Rev. Zach

1 Samuel 3:1-20 • John 1:43-51 Last Sunday, we celebrated Epiphany with the Magi, and I challenged you to consider the importance of curiosity and expectation in our lives of faith together and individually. In the afterglow of the star and the expectation that Jesus is God’s self-revelation, John’s Gospel has us jumping straight into the ministry of Jesus in Galilee. Of course, John’s gospel is not concerned with mangers or Magi, but it is concerned with revelation. John’s gospel is all about revelation, relationship, and belief. Verse 1 starts with, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… 4In him was life, and that life was the light of all humankind. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” The text goes on to emphasize how God has come to abide with us in the person of Jesus, and it is followed immediately by the introduction of John the Baptizer as the herald of Jesus. After his testimony about Jesus, ev...

1 Samuel 3:1-20     Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18     1 Corinthians 6:12-20     John 1:43-51 Most of you don’t know this, but I love rock climbing.  I do not do it very often, and you won’t find me bivouacked to the side of a cliff face like the heroic free climbers that spent 19 days on the face of El Capitan in Yosemite.  At best, I might make it to a rock wall at camp or a climbing gym every now and again. If you have ever been rock climbing, then you probably know the call and response that starts every climb. On belay?   Belay on!  Climbing.   Climb on! Falling.  Fall on!  To belay is to hold the rope for the climber and secure the tension that saves you if you fall.  Once you’ve confirmed that your “Belay” is on duty it is then a courtesy to be sure they know that you are beginning to climb.  The response of the Belay person assures you that they are really ready for you to climb.  If you have th...