GENESIS 3 / Something is wrong with us at a very basic level. Just read the news, interact with others, or leave your car unlocked to know what we mean. This is the story of us. This chapter tells of our fall and this is God's first announcement of a plan to rescue his creation. Nothing ever conceived in fiction compares to this.

GENESIS 1 / Often we get lost in the mechanics of the creation story but miss the reason it was written: to place us in God's good creation and put God at the center of an epic story. We are image-bearers of God commissioned to do his good will.

It is around December 31st that everyone typically looks back on the last year and evaluates how it went for them. Will this one prove to be better? Would I say I am going into this year with a high level of faith and expectancy of God doing something great around me or would I describe my mood as more grey and pessimistic?

Jesus will wrap up His teaching with both a warning and a promise. Without apology, He tell us that there are only two choices to be made in regards to Him. We cant miss this! It really is a life and death decision…

Since the garden of Eden, we wanted to be the judge of what is good and what is evil, and in our rush to sit on the throne of judgment we lost something that could only be regained at great cost. Our rebellion is invited back into a new kingdom and taught how to live with one another as children of our Father.

Wealth in this world equals power and influence. People are willing to lie, steal, kill, prostitute, and work themselves to death over it. It splits families, separates friends, and causes us to go to war. On the other hand, wealth can be used to relieve suffering, further the kingdom of God, and glorify the God we say we trust in.

Perfection is not a sinless life lived with no mistakes, but a call to a life of maturity and the fulfilling of our God-given design. It is in this context that Jesus warns us against the trap of living inauthentic lives such as a pagan or Pharisee. He invites His followers to the Father's table, whosoever will may come.

Jewish nationalism fueled by their religion demanded justice, and the cycle of revenge and violence spun constantly. To forgive was seen as weakness and peace with an enemy as simply impossible. The cross opens up for us a new way to be human.

If you thought our election results were shocking, think of how it will be when Jesus is crowned King of all the nations! Many people will be truly dismayed to realize that His rule and authority go far beyond what they ever believed. In His love for us, Jesus shatters our vain imaginations in the hope that we would look to Him and find eternal life.

All of us have some picture of who God is, but the important question is how closely do they align with what is really true? Jesus won't allow anyone or anything to reshape Him for their own selfish ends. Up to now He has been speaking in the third person, but now He speaks directly to the religious and the sinners alike: "But I say unto you..."