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In my recent sermon on I Corinthians 15, (March 26, 2023) I glossed over a controversial verse in Paul’s teaching on the resurrection. It’s 15:29 that gets our attention: Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? (NIV) What’s going on here? Let’s review the context. In 1 Corinthians 15:12-34 Paul is arguing that the resurrection of Jesus is absolutely necessary for our faith. Without the resurrection our faith is worthless.   To bring this point home he assures the readers that those who have died are actually only asleep. Death is not the end. If Jesus is not raised those who have died are lost. Playing on this thought he then introduces a practice among the Corinthians – baptism for the dead. Such a practice is meaningless if there is no resurrection. The question is the purpose or intent of this practice. Some suggest that Paul is being hypothetical here. It’s n...

Driving to work the other day I hit a pothole and, like most people, I reacted angrily. “Why can’t they do something about this?” I mumbled under my breathe. But this time instead of complaining I thought maybe I could learn a lesson or two from the pothole.  Here’s what I learned: Pothole Lesson #1 - There will always be potholes. It seems like every city that I’ve lived in has had potholes. They’re everywhere. In fact, if you find a city without potholes move quickly because they soon will have some. Do you, like me, expect life to be all smooth sailing? That’s a nice thought but it’s just not going to happen. There will be potholes in life. Some of my own making. Some the making of others. And some just because we live in an imperfect world. Maybe I need to just make sure that I don’t overreact to these inevitable potholes in life. Sometimes I can let something annoying ruin my entire day and the day of everyone around me. It’s not that potholes are enjoyable, but I shouldn’t le...