Drew Downs
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Deconstructing Polarization
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10 min read
It seems like we are so divided, but that isn’t it precisely. We aren’t divided; it’s more like we’re scattered and pretending we’re divided. We’ve been talking about political polarization for longer than I can imagine. You’d think by now we would have solved the problem. And we would…if we really thought it was a…
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Trading Spaces
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8 min read
What Jesus’s interaction with the Syrophoenician woman in Mark 7:24-37 tells us about what God is really up to with Jesus the Christ. How the gospel of Mark flips the Christ Project on Jesus. Proper 18B | Mark 7:24-37 It was only a chapter ago in the gospel we call Mark when Jesus was trying…
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What God Intends
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9 min read
In Mark 7, Jesus responds to a challenge over rule-breaking by exposing their hypocrisy. Is this just a takedown, or is he saying something else? The challenge of following Jesus isn’t doing or believing. It’s both. Proper 17B | Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 We have to go back nearly two months. Back in June, we…
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Fighting Over Credibility
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5 min read
Instead of dealing with the systemic abuse scandalizing the Roman Catholic Church, some are trying to fuel the culture war machine. I’m not Roman Catholic, but I think we should all pay attention to this scandal. Not just the crimes and cover-ups, but the bigger story. Now, I have a rule I try to follow:…
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Of Heart and Mind
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5 min read
In Heart and Mind, Alexander Shaia gives us a useful path for spiritual growth, offering the gospels as an example and guide. In interviews, Alexander Shaia’s wisdom and profound belief are striking. Hearing him speak to his own story of life and death, invigorates his study. And his interview with Rob Bell about the mythic…
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Who can listen to it?
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9 min read
At the end of the Bread of Life discourse in John 6, his disciples abandon him. Not because the road is hard, but because Jesus told them the truth. We want to be more effective. Jesus would rather be honest. Proper 16B | John 6:56-69 You’ve heard of reverse psychology. It’s a simple idea that…