Listen to Pastor Nick read the “Firestarter” and the Gospel.

God led the Chosen People from slavery in Egypt; however, a new kind of oppression later arose. Religious leaders became slaves to greed and power, exploiting the people as evil shepherds who rob and murder sheep— God’s people. A new Exodus was needed. It came with Jesus.

The center Sunday of Easter has traditionally been “Good Shepherd Sunday.” By the gentle call of each by name, Jesus leads us, his wounded and abused sheep, out of the oppressive dimension of the institution of religion, into a glorious new sheepfold. There the sheep are so one with the shepherd that the bond is the same as that between the Father and Jesus.

Let go and give yourself to the Lord, then God will hold onto you; no one will be able to snatch you out of God’s hand.

John 10:22–30

What are “Bible Breaths”? Learn More…
Example: I hearing the Shepherd’s voice. v. 27

Sundays are dedicated to the Gospels from the Revised Common Lectionary.
In year C, during the Easter Season, we read from John’s Gospel, with Luke on the Seventh Week.

For all the Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.

Listen to Pastor Nick read the Firestarter and Leviticus 17:10-14.

Blood and sexuality are spoken about as holy. Blood is life; life is to be dedicated to God, and so blood was reserved for God alone. No blood was permitted to be consumed by anyone.

The New Testament Letter to the Hebrews develops this in an exalted way, speaking about the holiness of the Blood of Christ. His blood is sacramentally consumed by us, for in Christ, we already belong to him and are one with him. Communion is the expression of the blood of Christ given back in sacrifice to God.

The world tends to degrade sexuality and eclipse its holiness. The prescriptions in chapter 18 are to remind us of the goodness and joy of human sexuality. Care must be taken to protect and maintain its sacredness, for upon this depends whether God will be present in the sexual encounter or not. May the spirit of these ordinances become even clearer to you, for the greater glory of God.

Leviticus 17—18

This is the second and third of three parts of the Torah Portion Ahare Moth (After the Death) 
Conservative and Reform Jewish congregations read only this part this year,
as also in this Bible plan.
Here is the entire portion in all three parts.

Leviticus 16:1—18:32

Learn about Bible Breaths Learn More…
Example: My life’s blood offered to You. 17:11

The Saturday passages follow the reading list that Jewish people use in their synagogue worship
throughout the world. They are taken from
“The Torah,” the first five books of the Bible from Genesis to Deuteronomy
that are read each year beginning with autumn.

For all the Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information

Listen to Pastor Nick read the “Firestarter” and the day’s passage.

 The disciples huddle together, wrapped in choking bands of fear, doors shut and bolted from the anger outside. With no sense of moving through doors or walls, Jesus simply stands in the middle. May the first word from his mouth, designed to dissipate their fright, be the word that has all your fears vanish: “Peace be with you.” As unexpected, unhoped for, and undeserved as was Jesus’s appearance to them, so does he now come to you and those rejoicing with you in your meditation on this same passage.

Extraordinary shifts from grief to joy, from loss to gain, from fear to peace, from death to life, mark the resurrection appearances. For John, a pre-Pentecost fullness comes to the disciples this night of the resurrection in the giving of the Holy Spirit. Receive the Holy Spirit as you join your breath with God’s.

John 20:19–23

Create your own Bible Breaths Learn More…
Example: Seeing the hands and the side v. 20

Fridays are dedicated to the Gospels.
In the Easter Season this year we read the final third of John’s Gospel.

For all the Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.