To undertake the reformation of desires is a calling, with no guarantees of success, but some promise of God’s grace along the way.
Divine Wisdom calls. It is publicly accessible. We may not recognize the voice because we might not be listening for it. But it is there beckoning to us.
The text of 1 Kings 8 is a conversation, not a monologue. For those of us who look to Scripture to guide our understanding and action in our own context, this text invites us to wrestle, conversationally, with the embedded ideologies of our own political leaders’ projects. Names matter in politics. But humble leadership, for the good of all, ought to matter more.
Jesus doesn’t ban sitting or reclining in public. He encourages it, supports it, and even participates in it.
Paying attention to Herod’s fears about Jesus can keep us from depoliticizing the gospel.