One minute, you're the most popular guy in class and the next minute you're not. That's how fast public opinion can change. Just ask Jesus. On Palm Sunday, he's riding a donkey as the crowd lays down branches and shouts, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”. By Friday, the crowd is shouting, "Crucify him!” Somehow, somewhere, something went terribly wrong. Or did it? Maybe what appeared to be wrong was actually God's plan to set things right. Good Friday reminds us that just because something doesn’t appear to have a happy ending is no proof that God wasn’t behind it.

Jesus would have made a horrible politician. Had Jesus been a politician, the first person he would have needed to hire would have been a public relations expert. Why? Because Jesus was a walking public relations nightmare. For one thing, he was politically incorrect. He didn't excuse immorality as a product of low self-esteem. He called it sin. Instead of pandering to the crowd, he challenged and provoked them. He was compassionate to the unpopular, and uncompromising toward the powerful. To ears both then and now, he would say things that sounded both intolerant and exclusive. There is no better example than this one: "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Jesus doesn't offer himself as an alternative path to God or even the best path to God. He claims to be the ONLY path to God.…

What is your greatest need? What is your neighbor's greatest need? We often get confused about needs and wants. I think I need a new computer when, in reality, I only want a new computer. My "old" computer is just fine. To be honest, our wants far outnumber our needs. In other words, we want much more than we really need. As a result, we end spending much more time and effort in pursuit of our wants than we do our needs. And this is unfortunate because fulfilling our wants will never match the satisfaction of having our greatest needs met. And what is our greatest need? It is to be loved and accepted by our Creator, leading to a relationship with him through Jesus Christ. Which is why evangelism is a core value of a biblical church. Don't be scared or nervous when you hear that word. It's a…

Over one million people a year file for bankruptcy in the United States.  I wasn't a finance major in college, but I did stay at a Holiday Express one time -- so even I know that's a lot of people. But there's more to it than just numbers.  Behind the numbers are individual stories of dreams unfulfilled and families torn apart.  Perhaps a little shame and regret might be mixed in.  The ripples of bankruptcy extend to friends and neighbors, employees, and beyond. I've never filed for financial bankruptcy.  But I have been bankrupt.  Spiritually bankrupt. The people who are spiritually bankrupt far outnumber those who file for financial bankruptcy.  They come in all shapes and sizes.  They live in "super zip codes" and blue-collar neighborhoods.   They are doctors and dock workers.  The spiritually bankrupt often appear to be successful.  Their kids win awards.  From the outside, it's not…