By Tyler McKenzie In Matthew 5 the truest preacher of all time began the greatest sermon ever preached. His topic? “What does it look like to live the Christian life?” As Matthew recalls, Jesus made his way from the masses and up a mountain, drawing his disciples away from the crowds (5:1, 2). This sermon […]
By Tyler McKenzie Why do you believe in Jesus? What’s your motive? Do you believe in order to have a more comfortable life? Bad plan. Faithfulness is rarely comfortable. Do you believe because Heaven sounds better than Hell? Agreed, but God wants to be loved, not used for Heaven’s sake. Maybe you “believe to […]
By Tyler McKenzie It’s AD 14, Jesus will be 20 soon, and Caesar Augustus, the emperor of four decades who was worshipped as divine for establishing a time of unprecedented peace, is dead. Leader shifts leave governments vulnerable, so as the news spread, Rome holds its collective breath. Uncertainty abounds. Will a tyrant claim […]
By Tyler McKenzie Well it’s Christmas season, isn’t it? Look around—all the things that resemble sanity in your life got packed up on Black Friday and shipped to January 1st. Happy Holidays! There’s the shopping frenzy, the cross-country travel, the push at work for year-end bonuses, the kids home from school, and the reality show […]
By Tyler McKenzie Incarnation, the Christmas paradox: majesty dressed in humility, God’s Son growing in Mary’s belly, the Prince born peasant, Creator created, higher than angels laid lower than cattle, Jesus’ extraordinarily ordinary arrival. Can you feel the tension? If not, try reading Hebrews 1 over a modern-day manger, preferably while in use. “[God] […]
