Grace Chicago Church

This is the only miracle recorded in all four gospels. In John's gospel, however, it is simply the opening vignette in a chapter that will be all about bread. The crowd is hungry, and while the miracle feeds their stomachs, they will be back the next day hungry again. What does it look like to truly feast on the bread of life? Is it possible to never feel hungry again?

In this week's passage from Samuel, David wants to build a temple for God. The prophet Nathan says "Go for it!" but God says "nope." In Ephesians, Paul writes about the community of faith being the house of God.

The beheading of John is a tragic event that is not untypical of what happens when power is used derisively. It challenges us to consider the brokenness of our world. Mark's readers, however, read this story in light of the resurrection. We too, read the suffering and pain of the world through the lens of the cross and resurrection.

Jesus allows himself to be impacted by his hometown's lack of belief. God chooses to be vulnerable, to the point that what we do matters. In turn, God asks his followers to be vulnerable as they bring the good news to the world.

To be in the presence of Jesus is to be touched by God. This brief homily by Pastor Bob focuses on God's heart for the least among us is evident in Mark's gospel.

Mark 4 has two stories you've heard. The parable of the sower and the four soils and the story of Jesus calming the storm. The four soils is about being the right kind of soil for the Word to grow. Jesus calming the storm is about trusting in Jesus' sovereignty over all creation. In between those stories are 8 verses that don't fit. They introduce suspicion and mystery into the made-up minds of the disciples. We will look at those 8 verses and consider our role in the Kingdom of God.

Davin has been leading at Grace Chicago for nearly 15 years. He has been the Director of Music for the last two years. In this conversation with Charlotte Swanson, he shares his views on music in the church, improvisational singing, how music has changed and much more.

The passage for this Sunday (Mark 3:20-35) is full of drama. Jesus’ family is worried that he is “out of his mind”. The religious leaders accuse him of being in league with Satan. But in the midst of all of this distraction Jesus offers a vision of the sort of community that makes for human flourishing. I am looking forward to exploring what Jesus’ words mean for us today: “whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother”.

In the midst of all of the noise in our lives, is there hope to clearly hear from the voice of God? How would you know it was God? Those are questions that arise for me from the passage that calls us to worship (I Samuel 3:1-10). Another question arises form our reading from the Gospel of Mark (2:13-3:6). In this reading, Jesus says, provocatively, that the Sabbath was made for humankind and not humankind for the Sabbath, prompting me to ask: when does religious practice become an obstacle to recognizing God's presence in our midst?

Nicodemus is faced with the prospect of being born again, of starting over. All of his professional accomplishments and accolades will look like rubbish in this rebirth. What Jesus promises in this rebirth is not entirely clear, but Nicodemus makes the decision that it is worth everything. What does it look like for us to be born again this week?