Jesus is living during a terribly oppressive time for people outside of political power, so it’s in this context Jesus speaks, “Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . blessed are the meek . . . blessed are those who mourn . . . blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness . . .” With these words, Jesus pushes back hundreds of years of hate and self-doubt by saying, “You aren’t too small in God’s realm. You aren’t too broken for my future. And when it comes to the Kingdom of Heaven, you matter to God.”

When Jesus calls the twelve together, we see something amazing happen. Those who get to be in the Lord’s inner circle are people like you and me. It’s not just the rich or the politically powerful, but the earnest and the seeking. This unfolding in scripture sets the stage for an enormous theological truth: those who get access to God is not dependent upon your social status but rather your soul’s earnest search. This truth still applies today.

When Jesus was baptized, the heavens opened, and God said, “This is my Beloved.” Henri Nouwen believes this is the same message God says to us at our baptism. After nearly two decades of higher, theological thought and church praxis and nearly thirty years of being a Christian, I agree. Our baptism sets a trajectory and tone for the deep, deep truth of who we are in Christ: A beloved child of God.

In Matthew 2, there are two sets of Magi. The Magi of the East are scholars who feel compelled to go and meet the God of not just Israel, but in fact the world. But there is another group we don’t often think about: the Magi of the West. This group of scholars are hunkered down in Jerusalem bidding for Herod’s attention and love. These two groups create a stark dichotomy of what faith looks like when it’s fueled by hope and mystery or fear and certainty. Learning about these two groups will help us find ourselves in the story.

Rev. Dr. Jim Baldwin shares a special New Year's Day message from Genesis 19: 24-26.

As soon as the world catches their breath at the birth of Jesus, a chorus of
both angels and shepherds sing! Scripture says, “And suddenly there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven /
and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” This act of worship demands our attention
and our repetition.

Simeon was a devout man who was told by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem and commission the baby Messiah. Simeon arrives on cue, takes Jesus into his arms, and sings to him a song that still reverberates today. His song leads us into worship.

Zechariah was mute for the pregnancy of John the Baptist for not believing the angel Gabriel when it was prophesied that Elizabeth would bear a son. As soon as John
was born, though, Zechariah’s voice returned, and he sang these words, “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in
darkness, and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” We would do well to let this song lead us into worship today.

Mary’s song is the gospel before the gospel unfolds. She visits her relative, Elizabeth, who is most likely her cousin, and announces in song that she will forever magnify the
Lord because of this miracle. During her pregnancy, she predicts the gospel before it
unfolds. Her words still ring true for us today and lead us into worship.

There are very few moments in scripture that illustrate so perfectly what
God’s ultimate story looks like on earth as it is in heaven, but we get it here in Acts 10. The
sequence between Peter’s dream and his encounter with Cornelius is a game-changing
moment for Peter’s faith, for us the readers, and for human history. You could go as far as to
say that human consciousness evolves at this moment and there is no going back. When it
comes to engaging God’s ultimate “The Story,” we need to look no further than Acts 10.