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In Matthew’s Gospel, after Jesus resurrected from the dead, he sent his followers to a mountain where he appeared before them.   

Matthew 28:17 

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 

Read

While this verse may seem inconsequential, Dr. Mark Allan Powell points out that in the original text, the words “but some” are not found.  The Greek simply says: “When they saw him, they worshiped him and doubted.”  When Dr. Powell challenged the “but some” translation, a colleague said “You can’t worship and doubt all at the same time.”  To which Dr. Powell said, “You can if you’re a Lutheran!”   

One of the central pillars of Cross of Life is authentic community – the basis of which is vulnerability.  We do not pretend to have all the answers, we worship and doubt all at the same time, we engage in heartfelt conversations sharing both our faithful and faithless moments.  We seek to be real.   

As our church website says to all newcomers: “Even though we don’t know you personally, we know the ways we all seek to grow and learn, the incredible demands on our time and energy, the ways the church has let us down in the past, even the times when life has been so overwhelming that we question God’s very presence.  But we at Cross of Life also know the joy of intentional spiritual growth, the peace we find when we simplify and put first things first, the incredible gift of forgiveness in community, and the power that comes through an authentic faith struggle lived out in community.”

Reflect

How are you participating in the authentic community of Cross of Life or your church home?   

How might your honest and vulnerable testimony to your imperfect faith counter the perception that all Christians are judgmental? 

Pray

Let us pray, 

Lord God, you surrounded yourself with flawed disciples who, despite their enthusiasm, struggled to understand your mission in our world.  Yet you loved them, worked in them and used them to change the course of history.  Bless Cross of Life and churches everywhere with an authenticity of faith and community, that your love would be made known.  We pray in the name of the one who predicted Peter’s denial even as he gave him the keys to the kingdom, Jesus Christ our Lord, 

Amen. 

Please contact the church office if you’d like to receive the daily devotions through email.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: devotions, fasting, judgment, Lent