I've had an Epiphany!

The great city of Nineveh . Twice before, and again at the end of Jonah 4 the Lord calls the city “great.” It was the capital city of a nation so filled with arrogance and blood thirst that it would be forever known for its ruthlessness and brutality. It was an enemy of God’s people, and the Lord spoke of it in terms that equate it with Sodom and Gomorrah . Its wickedness has come up before me (Jonah 1:2). Who wouldn’t sympathize with Jonah? Who wouldn’t see things from Jonah’s perspective? Few nations in all of recorded history were more deserving of God’s wrath and judgment. Yet the God who is slow to anger, who relents in sending calamity, considered Nineveh …great. I am stunned as I contemplate the compassionate and merciful love of God. He would later use Nineveh as a scourge against his own people for their eternal good. But Nineveh was great in the sight of the Lord because his heart abounds with love and is moved to rescue what has been lost to him. ...

Several times in the Gospels, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16; Matthew 21:28 -44; Mark 12:1-11; Luke 13:6-9) In 1569, the height of the Lutheran Reformation, Lucas Cranach the Younger (1515-1586) painted “The Vineyard of the Lord” (Der Weinberg des Herrn). Cranach, along with his father, Lucas Cranach the Elder, is one of the most important German painters of the Reformation era. He and his father were staunch supporters of the teachings of Martin Luther and the other Reformers. The painting is hanging in Martin Luther’s parish church of St. Mary ’s in Wittenberg . Cranach created this painting in memory of the Reformer Paul Eber, who lectured on theology in Wittenberg . “The Vineyard of the Lord” depicts a vineyard divided by a fence. The vineyard is the biblical metaphor for the Christian Church on earth. At the left of the vineyard are representatives of the Roman Catholic Church destroying it. At the right is Luther with a rake an...

Genesis 50:15-21 When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, "Your father left these instructions before he died: 17 'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father." When their message came to him, Joseph wept. 18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. "We are your slaves," they said. 19 But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. 21 So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children." And he reassured them and spoke ...

Psalm 23 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Death is an uninvited visitor in our homes. Death is unwelcome intruder in our lives. Yet death has barged in once again! One moment you are planning on bringing your wife home from the hospital. The next moment you are pushed to the side as doctors and nurses rush around trying to keep her alive. One moment you are at the zoo with your children, enjoying a day off from school. ...

"Be patient with me," he begged, "and I will pay back everything" (Matthew 18:26 ) The wicked servant didn’t plead for his debt to be forgiven. Instead he arrogantly asked his master to simply put off or delay his judgment until he could pay back all he owed. The man was oblivious to the size of his debt and his inability to repay. He was deluded into thinking, “Just give me a little more time and I will make it right.” How insulting those words sound when the damage is so great and the debtor is so powerless! I think and act and speak this way more often than I would ever want you to know. I make light of my sins, and favorably compare my debt to the debts of others. I foolishly think that a good day or hour somehow makes up for a week of thoughtlessness. Yet, like the wicked servant, the Master has wiped away my entire debt. How amazing! Not just our sin, but even our repentance can be an ugly thing to witness as we find it so hard to give up the notio...

Title: Joseph pardons his brothers Artist: Bacchiacca, 1515 This painting is one of a series of   panels   that decorated the bedchamber of the Borgherini Palazzo in Florence . Together, they tell the life of   Joseph   from the Bible (Old Testament). Here Joseph pardons his brothers for selling him into slavery.   On the le ft, the brothers are brought to Joseph, with Benjamin the youngest a prisoner. On the right, they beg for Joseph's mercy and he forgives them. Worship Theme: The Church forgives as God forgives. Anytime we try to imitate God, we quickly realize our inadequacy. Yet today God tells us to model our forgiveness on his: a boundless, free, and loving forgiveness based on the sacrifice of Christ. Old Testament:   Genesis 50:15-21 When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" 16 So they sent word to Joseph, ...

2 Corinthians 11:14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. Your daughter is on the club soccer team. Your son has a part-time job after school. You’ve just received a raise and more responsibility at work. Your cancer is in remission. Your boyfriend or girlfriend wants to take your relationship to the next level. You finally have your “man cave” or your crafting room. And the devil laughs. Try to imagine our world if the devil had control. What would Racine look like if Jesus took the leash off the devil and let him loose to create havoc? Immediately our mind imagines that downtown Racine would look like Ukraine or Iraq . We imagine a strip club on Bate St. and a drug house on Olive St. We picture mass chaos, bloodshed, and moral decay. Certainly Satan might appear as he does in Revelation – as a dragon tearing apart the fabric of our society. Or he might appear as St. Paul describes him, “masquerading as an angel of light” (2 Corinth...