Posts by Bertram Church of Christ
Intentionally
What would be the perfect opening sermon for the first ever Church? Some kind of pep talk? Actually, when Peter stands up to address the first Christian community in history, he begins on a sobering note. First things first, we have to talk about… Judas. “He was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry,” Peter says. (Acts 1:17) The betrayer Judas was handpicked by Jesus himself. Even Jesus’ handpicked community was not immune for the trappings…
Baptized into Adventure
To begin the book of Acts (the sequel to the Gospel of Luke), Luke immediately lets us know that we’re picking up right where we left off. Acts couldn’t be a more organic overflow of where the Gospel of Luke leaves us. First, Acts opens with a lot of Spirit talk. “John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:5) “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has…
Free
Freedom is a funny thing. For being a word we’re so accustomed to, it can be more difficult to define than we often think. It can also be more difficult to know it when we see it, or know it when we see the lack of it. Acts 16 gives us a full cast of characters, some free and some not, although which characters are which may not be clear at first. Among this cast of characters are first Paul…
First Day People
In Acts 20, we get to see what a worship gathering looks like to some of the first Christians. Paul is in the city of Troas, and before moving onto his next destination, chooses to gather with the worshiping church on the first day of the week. Luke tells us immediately what the ultimate purpose of this gathering is: the breaking of bread. Paul intends to preach and discuss, but these are not the main event – the table is.…
Visibile Salvation
Sometimes we can give the word salvation a narrower meaning than it deserves. If we’re using the word, we’re likely talking about the afterlife. But in Acts 16, when a jailer in Philippi asks Paul, “What must I do to be saved?” he’s not inquiring about his status in the afterlife. In fact, he’s trying to stay away from the afterlife. He’s just come near to attempting suicide after the prison over which he presides, and in which Paul and…
Clean
In Acts 10, we meet a Roman military officer named Cornelius. For reasons we’re not told, he’s a big fan of the God of Israel, being a “devout man who feared God.” He’s simply one more example of how God is reaching into every nation and finding people who are open to his love. We’re also told he keeps a regular practice of generosity and prayer. And this practice of prayer opens him up to a vision. An angel appears,…
Hesed and the Table
In Acts 9, Ananias shows us that baptism is where fear and hostility go to die. We say the same for the table. It’s hard to remain fearful and hostile toward someone when you’re eating together. There’s something disarming about sharing good food. In 2 Samuel 9, we find David encountering one who could be considered an enemy, but choosing kindness over hostility. And how does David show this kindness? With the table. By the time we get to 2…
Brother
To be a Jesus follower is to allow Jesus to put us into relationship and community with people we might not have chosen for ourselves. Baptism and table fellowship are not places where we wield great power to include and exclude as we choose. They are places where we submit to the infinitely expansive love of God. And nowhere does this infinitely expansive love of God challenge us more than in Acts 9. The murderer Saul, a rising star in…
The Middle of the Action
A discussion of the importance of table fellowship will eventually bring us to the Gospel of Luke. Luke is where all the important stuff seems to be happening during a meal. The table becomes the location of forgiveness and repentance, of preaching and calling. In Luke 6:6-11, amidst several other stories about Jesus creating controversy, comes a story about Jesus healing a man with a withered hand. This happens in a synagogue during Sabbath worship. The scribes and Pharisees present…
The Proclamation of the Water
At the deepest part of our humanity lies the question, “Where do I belong?” Much of our lives are spent finding answers to this question. We want to belong to a family, to friends, to a spouse, to a church, and of course, to God. But we don’t stop there. We find belonging in ideas and the people who share them with us. We find it in the fan base of our favorite sports teams. We experience it when a…
The Water and the Table
The New Testament consistently emphasizes the importance of both baptism and table fellowship. But their importance is not separate from one another. Scripture has a clear trajectory from the waters of baptism to the table. In Acts 2, Peter delivers a masterful sermon in Jerusalem during Pentecost, claiming that the Holy Spirit is pouring itself out on the whole world, claiming that Jesus is in fact everything God has ever wanted for his people and that Jerusalem responded not by…
Steadfast, Enduring
Hunger and thirst are bad enough no matter who or where you are. But on top of that, Psalm 107 places a group of hungry and thirsty characters in the wilderness, in a desert waste. Dirt and dead grass as far as the eye can see. There is no town on the horizon, no refuge. One by one, these weary characters are fainting out of consciousness. The body has no energy left, no more strength to carry on. What is…
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