Examining the Ten Commandments You may feel you are familiar with the Ten Commandments, but are you aware there are two different versions in the Bible? Did you know the prophet Ezekiel in one of his prophecies seems to contradict part of one of the commandments? Did you know when listing the Ten Commandments both…
Exploring Our Lord’s Parables “All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable.” Matthew 13 May 25 Session One Luke 8: 4 -15 The Parable of the Sower June 1 Session Two Luke 10: 29-37 The Parable of the Good Samaritan June 8 Session…
The Book of Judges contains a diverse collection of stories set in the 13th and 12th centuries BCE. In this period, the twelve tribes of Israel formed a very loose confederation. These tribes, along with various Canaanite tribes occupied the inland hill-country of what is Modern Israel. People known as “Philistines” dominated the coastal…
Readings: Isaiah 43:16-21; Psalm 126; Philippians 3:4b-14; John 12:1-8 Our grandson, Noah, will be entering the 9th grade this fall and has just selected his courses. For electives, he has chosen Consumer Finance and Business Networking. Interesting choices. I said to him that I hope they were courses he would enjoy. He thought that they…
“Be Merciful Just as Your Father is Merciful” Readings: Genesis 45: 3-11, 15, Psalm 37: 1-12, 41-42, 1 Corinthians 15: 35-38, 42-50, Luke 6: 27-38 Jesus didn’t begin his public ministry until he was almost thirty years old. But it didn’t take long for his reputation to spread. He was an amazing preacher. As…
Paul’s Letter to Timothy The Second Letter of Paul to Timothy is the most intimate and personal of the epistles attributed to Paul. It is addressed to a young man who had been a companion to Paul on many of his missionary journeys. Like Paul, Timothy was a Jew who had a Greek or…
Readings: Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 36:5-10; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; John 2:1-11 My wife Anna has inherited a quirk from her mother and her grandmother. All three of these women are people who pray for parking spaces: “Lord, please give us a parking space.” Just like that as they’re driving through the parking lot. Anna’s grandmother, who’s…
The Sermon on the Mount In chapters five, six, and seven of Matthew’s gospel, we find a collection of the teachings of Jesus. In these teachings, Jesus is challenging the people of that day to rethink their understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures. He is speaking to a first-century Jewish audience. Join us this fall…
Mark 10:17-31 We are never done with the stories of the Gospels. We don’t outgrow them. They’re not something to be mastered, completed: “Oh, I’ve heard that one.” “Oh, that one’s about this or that”. When we reduce the stories of the Gospels to themes and morals, we strip the Gospel of its power. The…
“Who Do You Say That I Am?” Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked them, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who…