Whose company do you prefer? A person who keeps their opinions to themselves and has you constantly walking on eggshells, never knowing what they think or where you stand with them? Or a person who can be blunt and brash at times, but who speaks their mind in every situation? … More Guileless Faith
The Jewish Messianic hope was often contaminated by a nationalist fervor that had God’s people thinking the Messiah was coming to take the country back for God from the unbelieving Gentiles in power, and bring swift judgment on the less zealous and insufficiently patriotic religious compromisers. … More When God’s Glory Appeared & Wept
We just finished up a 3-part Advent Series exploring Jesus as the perfect embodiment of Micah 6:8 spirituality that invites us to “do justice, love mercy, and walk in humility.” In between Sundays, I’m on college campuses trying to light a fire in college students to embrace and cultivate this kind of Christianity in the world today. … More Doing Justice to Christmas
Why was the creation of the universe described in 9 verses in Genesis, whereas the building of the tabernacle is detailed in hundreds of verses over many chapters Exodus? Moses was working with a fractious bunch divided into twelve tribes, and one of the best ways to unite a people is by joining them together in a common project. … More Shut Up & Build Up: Healing Our Divisions
In John 12, Jesus is telling us that life is to be found in the dying and losing process, not on the other side of it or by avoiding it. If you want to bear much fruit spiritually, then you may first need to be broken open, split in two, pressed into hard soil, plowed over by persecution, humbled by the spade that throws loose dirt over the false, airbrushed version of your life. … More Cow Manure and Spiritual Growth
If God is the true Sculptor and we are the clay, then we need to sit still on God’s workbench more often so he can do his job. Imagine old Geppetto trying to put the finishing touches on his masterpiece Pinocchio if he were already a living boy, jumping up and down and running around the room. That’s much of American Christian spirituality. We’re working too hard for God to work on us. We’re moving too fast for God to move in us. … More Sit Still, Pinocchio!
Peter stands naked in the boat, both for practical fishing purposes and to symbolize a man laid completely bare before God-in-Christ. Instead of hiding his shameful nakedness, he wraps himself in a garment of grace, plunges himself into the waters of forgiveness, and swims into the arms of his loving friend. … More Laid Bare, Yet Lavishly Loved
Today I read MLK’s Letter from a Birmingham jail alongside the letters to the seven churches of Revelation. John and Patmos, and King in a jail cell–what great prophetic company! … More MLK and the Seven Churches in Revelation
The Prince of Peace himself wants to hold classes in every church across the globe this New Year “that He may teach us concerning His ways, and that we may walk in His paths” (Isaiah 2:3). What are the key topics of his seminar? The psalmist gives us the curriculum. Jesus wants to teach his people that in Him “unfailing love and truth have met together” (v. 10a). … More Justice & Peace Have Kissed! (Psalm 85)
Join us Sundays at 5pm as we open the Gospel of John and heed Jesus’ invitation to COME, SEEK, SEE and ABIDE like never before. … More Come, Seek, See & Abide
God’s angels congregate in the “empty places” bringing comfort to people with empty emotional tanks and empty hopes. But they also redirect our attention away from what’s empty to focus instead on what’s now being filled! … More Angels in Empty Places (Easter ’22)
Let’s imagine ourselves into the story and join this strange cast of characters sitting around Jesus’ table. Which of these characters do you relate to most? … More A Table for Misfits and Ragamuffins
In the fullness of time God came again to His people. No longer cloaked in a terrifying tornado, this time His presence dwelled in a teething toddler. His radiant glory, instead of flashes of lightning across the eastern sky, now shone from the eyes of a humble baby in a manger. … More Christmas on Mt. Mystic 5: The Cloud
I don’t know about you, but it sends a shiver down my spine to think that there was a strange moment on a mysterious mountain long ago and far far away where three heroes of history huddled up to discuss my deliverance! … More A Holy Huddle and a Game Winning Play
In today’s Mount Mystic Meditation, I want you to reflect on what it feel like to be “chosen” for something special. Can you think of a time you were selected for some special role, or reward, or experience, or trip? Likewise, how does it feel to be overlooked and watch others get chosen ahead of you? … More He Chose Them, And Us Too!
I wonder if we share Nicodemus’s wonder and curiosity about Jesus and the kingdom he’s bringing. Are we consumed with questions about what God is up to in Jesus? Given a private meeting with Jesus, what questions would we ask him? … More The Chosen 7: Face to Face with Jesus
We think the kingdom comes by taking responsibility, putting in the blood, sweat and tears, grabbing life (and faith) by the horns. This is life, faith, and ministry under the heavy yoke. This is the pathway to burnout, bitterness, and disillusionment with God and religion. This is doing God’s work without God’s presence and power. … More I Am Nicodemus
What a sad day it is when those called to show the world the true character and embracing love of God end up preaching bigotry, withholding grace, and turning a cold shoulder to those we’ve labeled the Other. … More Waters of Enemy-Love
Today’s episode explores the Exodus and the God of the oppressed in our ongoing series, “Spirit on the Water.” Let’s drop anchor and explore the biblical vision for “social justice.” … More Podcast: “Is the Bible Too Woke For Many Christians?”
Rather than a road map to the last days or a cryptic code to unlock, the Book of Revelation is a powerful manual for “theopolitical discipleship.” Revelation is a practical guide for how to live as faithful representatives of Jesus’ upside down kingdom in the midst of worldly systems and powers. … More Book of Revelation: Theopolitical Discipleship (5-Part Video Overview)
Deep down we know, and God knows, that we need CONCRETE examples we can see, real flesh-and-blood role models who embody Christ’s teachings and values. Elijah and Elisha invite us to explore the waters of mentorship. … More Waters of Mentorship
Another excerpt from my manuscript Spirit on the Water. This chapter explores crossing the Jordan into the Promised Land, throwing off an identity as slaves and a “scarcity mindset,” and embracing our new identity as children of God and an “abundance mindset.” … More Waters of Inheritance
We should strive to be both as politically conservative as Jesus would have us be, and as woke to the kingdom’s socio-political values as he would dare us to be. Christians need to stand firm on a ‘Make the Church Look Like Jesus Again’ platform, and God-willing be clothed with actions that embody the Red Letters of Jesus. … More Waters of Liberation
Have you considered how strange it is how many soon-to-be parents decorate their nursery with wallpaper depicting sanitized scenes from a global catastrophe that claimed countless lives? We would hardly place our baby in a Hiroshima themed nursery surrounded by images of mushroom clouds in a crib with a mobile of little gas masks going round and round to put junior to sleep. … More Waters of Wrath
The Spirit is on the water, and the waters of chaos are no match for Him. God hovers over it all with a gracious gaze and readiness to partner with us in pushing back all the crud of life on this spinning ball of organized chaos we call Earth. … More Waters of Creation
Jeremy Berg 