Have you ever seen the previews to a movie, gotten all excited about it, then watched the movie and walked away disappointed because it wasn’t anything like what the previews suggested? Welcome to the club. I suppose the people who put the previews together could tell you they were just doing their job (which isContinue reading “Doing It By The Book”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Not Chance But Choice!
The book of Deuteronomy is (among other things), a record of Moses preparing Israel for life in the promised land. Chapter 28 is part of a concluding section of Moses’ address given to the nation shortly before his death (34:1-8). Not long after his passing, Israel entered Canaan under Joshua’s leadership. We reach a crescendoContinue reading “Not Chance But Choice!”
Just Passing Through
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking ofContinue reading “Just Passing Through”
The Scripture and Gender (3)
What does it mean to be masculine and what does it mean to be feminine? How do we guide our sons and daughters in this important area? In a previous post, I touched on some important basic truths: With these things in mind, let’s dig into some meaningful specifics. 1. We should think of ourContinue reading “The Scripture and Gender (3)”
Democracy And The Kingdom Of God (1)
If you live in America, democracy is ingrained in you. It’s in the air you breathe and the water you drink. In the language of technology, it’s our operating system. We don’t even think about it; which is another way of saying we’re not always aware of how it colors and shapes our thinking. It’sContinue reading “Democracy And The Kingdom Of God (1)”
Hide or Seek?
Jesus summed up the Torah as being about loving God exclusively and loving your neighbor as yourself. But of course, He did more than talk about it, He modeled it in all aspects of His life so that when we look at Him, we see Someone who was the epitome of loving God and others. Continue reading “Hide or Seek?”
Blessing and Cursing
Balaam is a fascinating character who shows up about two-thirds of the way through the book of Numbers (chapters 22-24). Out of context, his story seems strange, but if you’ve been following along in Numbers you’ve already come across God supplying Israel with a ridiculous amount of quail (11), people being swallowed up by theContinue reading “Blessing and Cursing”
Thinking About the Tithe
Tithing is one of those things that can betray our approach to and understanding of the Old Testament if we’re not careful. It’s easy to note that it meant ten percent, assign to Israel an unconscious, semi-spiritual attitude and move on to making applications to our giving today. But as Lee Corso says, “Not soContinue reading “Thinking About the Tithe”
Truth Telling
The witness section of Deuteronomy 19:15-21 should lead us to think about truth telling as it relates to the community of Christ. After all, the text isn’t addressing honesty in general terms, its specific concern is with truth telling as it relates to the community of Israel and its judicial proceedings. The judicial system wasContinue reading “Truth Telling”
Community, Justice, & Truth-Telling
We’re in a section of Deuteronomy that’s largely concerned with governing. That being so, we hear about: In all this, it’s not hard to see a focus on those who were to lead Israel and the legal processes and standards they were to implement. Brueggemann reminds us that Israel is being given “a pattern ofContinue reading “Community, Justice, & Truth-Telling”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 