Son of God
Read: Matthew 3:13-17 Behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (v. 17) For more than three decades now, I’ve kept a small piece of paper tucked between the pages of my Bible. Its edges are worn, and its ink has been rain-spattered. But I keep […]
Son of Mary
Read: Luke 2:4-19 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary? (Mark 6:3) Sometimes, I send my children the pictures I took of them years ago. My kids roll their eyes and laugh about the way they get random baby pictures popping up on their cell phones when they’re in the middle of math […]
Son of David, Son of Abraham
Read: 2 Samuel 7:8-16 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. (Matt. 1:1) I once asked a group of students to write letters to their future selves. They composed notes to themselves five years in the future, and then I tucked them away. “How do we […]
Son of Man
Read: Romans 5:12-21 The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45) As I taught a group of Sunday school students about Jesus’s genealogy, one boy had an “Aha!” moment. “Was Jesus descended from Adam?” the ten-year-old asked, eyes wide […]
Alpha and Omega
Read: Revelation 22:1-13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. (v. 13) Have you ever read a story that ended so beautifully, you wanted to go back and reread the whole thing all over again? The best stories have endings that feel just right. As […]
Bright Morning Star
Read: Matthew 28:1-10 I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star. (Rev. 22:16) Every once in a while, I awaken early enough to watch the dawn. Almost imperceptibly at first, the sky turns from black to gray, as the last bright stars wink out one by one. Sometimes, the clouds […]
The Word of God
Read: Mark 15:42-47 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. (Rev. 19:13) Sometimes, the most powerful moment in a symphony comes in a beat of rest. The instruments build to a climax, and then suddenly the hall goes silent. Every […]
Lion of Judah
Read: Mark 15:37-39 One of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered.” (Rev. 5:5) Have you ever watched a long-distance runner finish a race? You can see the pain in their faces as they push their bodies to the limit. […]
Lamb Who was Slain
Read: Hebrews 9:11-28 Worthy is the Lamb who was slain! (Rev. 5:12) Many years before Jesus was born, when God’s people were slaves in Egypt, God sent plagues to prepare Pharaoh to release them. The last plague was the death of the firstborn. Although that death was meant for the Egyptians, the people of God […]