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Let us all be free
Jesus engages the disciples in their distraction and confusion—naming the way they are becoming the temptation to sin.
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Let’s not jealously undermine a stranger
When the disciples see a stranger exorcizing a demon in the name of Jesus, they react strongly. And to this, Jesus reacts strongly.
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Seasoning—the saltiness of living well
When Jesus speaks of being salted with fire, he speaks of seasoning in life, in living, in hoping and experiencing God’s grace.
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Jesus leads with love—for Proper 20B
In the second passion prediction, Jesus again upends the disciples’ expectations (and ours) for a messiah, and for his followers.
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The Seduction of Empire—rejecting its offer of fake peace
In the turning point in the gospel of Mark, Jesus is confronted with Peter’s ignorance and empire’s promise of safe oppression.
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Messiah and a new kind of leader
The word “Messiah” is loaded with meaning—then and now. And that meaning is built around expectations that Jesus won’t embody.
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Jesus changes his mind
In these two encounters with the Syrophoenician woman and the deaf man, seeing Jesus change his mind allows us to do the same.
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Pure and good—for Proper 17B
How Jesus speaks to his interlocutors in this gospel can be troubling or exciting, but our focus must be what he is teaching his followers.