Wednesday Morning Bible Study Epiphany 2019 The Corinthian Correspondence        The setting for the ministry of Jesus was rural Galilee.  Thus, many of his parables have an agricultural theme.  But the Biblical record clearly shows that as Christianity spread through the Roman world, it was a largely urban phenomenon.  One of the earliest Christian […]

Wednesday Morning Bible Study November/December 2018 Hymns of Second Isaiah In the concluding chapters of the Book of Isaiah we find a collection of beautiful hymns from the liturgies of ancient Israel.   As we prepare to enter the Advent Season, we will be revisiting these familiar passages from the Hebrew Scriptures.  Come and join us […]

Song of Songs The author of the Book of Kings tells us that David’s son, Solomon composed more than a thousand poems. (I Kings 4:32) The Old Testament book known as the “Song of Songs” contains a collection of love poems attributed to King Solomon.  Some are written from the perspective of a woman — […]

Jesus and the Pharisees “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  (Matthew 5:20) In the four gospels there are numerous accounts of antagonistic interaction between Jesus and the Pharisees.  The Pharisees claimed Mosaic authority for their interpretation of Hebrew Scriptures. […]

Parables of Grace “Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing.” Matthew 13: 34 In chapter 9 of Luke’s gospel we are told that Jesus “turned his face toward Jerusalem.”  As he traveled south from his native Galilee, he preached to many large crowds.  Luke tells us […]

Joseph, the Dreamer The first book of the Hebrew Scriptures is essentially a collection of stories. The book opens with the story of creation and ends with a very long story of how the descendants of Abraham ended up living in Egypt.  The final 20 chapters of the Book of Genesis consist of a collection […]

Paul’s Letter to the Church in Colossae In the last days of Paul’s life, he was held prisoner in the city of Rome.  Because he was a Roman citizen, he was allowed certain privileges.  He was allowed visitors including his personal physician, Luke.  Because of his failing eyesight he was allowed to have a scribe. […]

“Lessons in Living from the Book of Ruth” Most of the important people in the Hebrew Scriptures are men.  An interesting exception to this is David’s grandmother, Ruth.  She is portrayed as a courageous and resourceful woman who perseveres in overcoming personal tragedy.  In many ways Ruth offers us a model of how to live […]