We're back to the early letter to the Ephesian Christians again where Paul reminds them of what Jesus has done that they might live in peace. He has torn down the wall of alienation and separation between people who are different - different races, different ethnicities, different classes, different however you define it. He calls us to recognize Jesus did that for us as well.

In a world that seems increasingly divided and increasingly hostile, is there a way to recognized differences, to talk about differences, and even understand our differences while living together as a reconciled community? Paul's letter to the Ephesians says, "Yes."

We like when those around us are pretty similar if not just like us. No muss, no fuss. No adjustments, no arguments. Paul, one of the first Christian leaders, says that's simply a formula for the end of the church. God calls his people to be a fellowship of differents.

If God directs everything to the end that he alone is glorified, doesn’t that make him a cosmic egotist? Doesn’t he end up being simply a huge version of a self-absorbed celebrity? Not if God is really God!

Many of us think of faith as an irrational leap in the dark. Something the early modern philosopher John Locke described as "a persuasion of our minds short of knowledge." Others think of faith as something virtuous in and of itself, popularized in the notion that it doesn't matter what you believe as long as you believe. Scripture reminds us that the certainly of faith is not faith itself but the object of faith, Jesus Christ.

What does it mean when we're hungry for something other than physical bread? Listen to the story of one woman who encountered Jesus and found him to be the bread of life.

So, is being right with God a cooperative effort? God makes his contribution, I make mine, we stir it all together, and the result is a right relationship with God? The Bible says that can’t be right? So, what is? The answer is found in what Jesus alone has done for his people.

One of the biggest questions we ask ourselves is, "Why do I exist? What is the meaning and purpose of my life?" God has a surprising answer that gives a purpose for our lives that is better than anything we can imagine.

We think of ourselves as alive. And in many ways we are. But what if at bottom, though, we're really dead men walking. What if at the end of the day we're dead to God? What hope is there for the spiritually dead to be alive to God? The Bible's answer is God's grace given to us in Jesus by his Holy Spirit.

How do we know God has spoken to us? Are we left alone wondering if God has revealed himself? Or do we have a sure word from heaven? Paul points to the Scriptures as the place where God speaks and by which he equips us for living faithfully for Jesus.