The Gospel of IDD

  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…”              The spirit of the Lord  God  is upon me,   because the  Lord  has anointed me;   he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,   to bind up the brokenhearted,   to proclaim liberty to the captives,   and release to the prisoners;   to proclaim the year of the  Lord ’s favor,   and the day of vengeance of our God;   to comfort all who mourn;   to provide for those who mourn in Zion—to give them a garland instead of ashes,   the oil of gladness instead of mourning,   the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.   They will be called oaks of righteousness,   the planting of the  Lord , to display his glory.   They shall build up the ancient ruins,   they shall raise up the former devastations;   they shall repair the ruined cities,   the devastations of ...

  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…”              When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read,   and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free,   to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4:16-21              Jesus provoked intense reactions.    S...

  Baptized into Christ              Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.    For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. Romans 6:3-5              My son’s baptism was an event.    He was 1 and the wiggliest guy you had ever seen.    Normally our church would call up everyone who was getting baptized, have them stand in a line together at the front of the church and then quietly wait as the pastor worked his way down the line, reading sacred verses specifically chosen for that individual and sharing encouragement ...

  Turning the Hearts of Parents and Children              Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the  Lord  comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse. Malachi 4:5-6              Malachi is the final book of the Old Testament; God’s final words to the Israelites before he goes silent for centuries.    He promises that he will send Elijah back to them when the last days are approaching.    That was why the nation was so excited when John the Baptist showed up wearing Elijah’s traditional camel hair clothing and living out in the wilderness.              Isaiah’s prophecy of John’s role states that he will prepare the w...

  John the Baptist Preaches                  John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?”    In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.”    Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” Soldiers also asked him, “And w...

  John the Baptist              The beginning of the good news   of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way;   the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:   ‘Prepare the way of the Lord,   make his paths straight,’” John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with   water; ...

  Blessed are the Peacemakers “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9              Blessed are those who see conflict, enter into it and bring peace for they take after their Heavenly Father.                My son does this all the time and I don’t know what to do with it.    He will see an argument, usually involving his sisters fighting or peers picking on each other and he will literally step into the middle and have them focus their attacks on him.    He’ll take a couple of verbal or physical blows then the conflict will dissipate, everyone will move on and he will go back to whatever he was doing.              He’s a big kid and he has some self defense training, but he’s been doing this since he was little.    Is this a tr...

  Deborah’s Song “In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,   in the days of Jael, caravans ceased and travelers kept to the byways. The peasantry prospered in Israel   they grew fat on plunder, because you arose, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel. When new gods were chosen, then war was in the gates. Was shield or spear to be seen among forty thousand in Israel? My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel who offered themselves willingly among the people.   Bless the  Lord . “Tell of it, you who ride on white donkeys, you who sit on rich carpets   and you who walk by the way. To the sound of musicians   at the watering places, there they repeat the triumphs of the  Lord ,   the triumphs of his peasantry in Israel.    Then down to the gates marched the people of the  Lord . “Awake, awake, Deborah!    Awake, awake, utter a song!    Arise, Barak, lead away your captives,   O son of Abinoam. Judges 5: 6-12...

  Deborah               At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “The  Lord , the God of Israel, commands you, ‘Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.’” Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” And she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the  Lord  will sell Sisera into t...