1 Corinthians 15:56-57

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

From Background Notes [BN] for April 4th & 5th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Is Easter simply about surviving death as an immortal soul gone to heaven? Did Jesus come in order that we might be reminded that there is life after death?

John 11:25-26

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

From Background Notes [BN] for March 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Then there is the arrival of Jesus in each generation since his ascension. He continues to come to us, even now.

John 11:21

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.

From Background Notes [BN] for March 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

By telling the story of Jesus’ delay before his arrival in Bethany, the writer of John 11 offers a rich imaginative text for future Christians to make sense out of their own futures, and also a way to handle what became for them the problem of Jesus’ delayed coming again.

John 6:68-69

"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God".

From Background Notes [BN] for March 28th & 29th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The lesson for us is clear. With Jesus we can have the sort of relationship that can be found nowhere else. When the words “believe” or “trust” or “faith” appear in the biblical text...

John 21:16

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

From Background Notes [BN] for March 21st& 22nd written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What do you love? In his book Desiring the Kingdom, Jamie Smith offers an alternative form of human nature than the common belief that to be human is to be “a thinking thing” (apologies to Descartes!). He tells us that...

Romans 8:28

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

 

Deuteronomy 7:9

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.

2 Timothy 1:9

He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time

John 13:8

“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”  Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”

From Background Notes [BN] for March 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

To have a "part,” a meros with Jesus, means being in the place provided by Jesus, namely, with him in his glory, the place God the Father gave him.

John 13:13-14

 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.

From Background Notes [BN] for March 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

“Christ the servant.” The phrase echoes throughout the history of the Christian faith, both in telling the stories of Jesus and in hearing the stories of the church at work in the world.

John 13:1

It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

From Background Notes [BN] for March 7th & 8th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What’s especially provocative about the Gospel reading from John 13 is that Jesus knew his followers so thoroughly, and yet he still loved them to the point of dying for them.