Monday, April 15th
- Acts 4: 5-12
There is no other name under heaven that can save humanity. “No other name” demonstrates God’s determination to save “all” through Jesus’ death and resurrection, despite the evil scheme of human powers…This shepherd provides protection, restoration, and abundance of life for his flock, in which other sheep are included…The “salvation in no one else” is not a doctrinally exclusive truth claim. Instead, it refers tot he singular act of Jesus – laying down his own life for his sheep. Jesus is “the Author of life.”
Jin Young Choi
Tuesday, April 16th:
- Psalm 23
As response to the text from the Acts of the Apostles, Psalm 23 focuses on the saving activity of God that is continued through the ministry of the early church. Someone who was ill has been healed. The connection between salvation and human healing is made manifest “by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth”. As one theologian has pointed out, “one of the primary Christian metaphors for what God has done for humanity in the person and mission of Jesus of Nazareth is salvation, a medicinal concept sharing the same Latin root salus, with salve, a healing ointment.”
Rhodora E. Beaton
Wednesday, April 17th:
- 1 John 3:16-24
Jesus is the good shepherd who sacrifices his own life to bring salvation to God’s people. This, John’s letter claims, is how we know love. We come to know love in this story of incarnation and sacrifice. We come to know love when we see that God did not leave humanity on its own, but joined humanity in the form of Jesus, who gave his life so that God’s love might be demonstrated. Jesus’ death is noble since he lays down his life for the benefit of others. John’s letter challenges its readers to let Jesus’ sacrificial love move them to love in similar ways.
Lindsey S. Jodrey
Thursday, April 18th:
- John 10: 11-18
Psychologists are reporting an epidemic of loneliness. People want to know others and to be known by others.
Jesus claim that he is the good shepherd because he knows his sheep is good news for today, and the preacher would do well to describe the malady of loneliness and isolation that many are experiencing, and then to expound on the proclamation that Jesus first and foremost knows each of us with all of our accomplishments and failings and hopes and despair. While this news is good for many, others will wonder exactly how they are to be known by Jesus the good shepherd.
Rodger Nishioka
Friday, April 19th:
Speaking holy words has serious consequences. These are not words that simply speak of God. There is nothing inherently serious, holy, or dangerous in God-talk. The holy words that bring consequences are words tied to the concrete liberating actions of God for broken people. Such holy words bring the speakers into direct confrontation with those in power. Jesus not only spoke such words but he was such a word. He was predestined to challenge those in power and confront the powers, spiritual and human. This moment was inevitable. The disciples knew this confrontation was coming. The struggle against those in power that marked the life and death of Jesus was coming for them as well. The great illusion of followers of Jesus, especially those who imagine themselves leaders, is that they could live a path different from Jesus and his disciples.
Willie James Jennings
