They had known each other since they were ten years old. They grew up in the same neighborhood, went to the same school, played ball together, spent the night at each other’s house, and did all of the other things that good friends do. Somewhere in their early to mid-teens, they began to drift apart.Continue reading “Obedience And Love”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Words for the Wilderness
The backdrop for understanding the temptation of Jesus in Matthew 4/Luke 4 is Israel’s time in the wilderness. The parallels aren’t difficult to see. I’ve adapted the following from Liefeld and Pao (Luke, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary). To that last point, when Israel was in the wilderness, they were fresh off their miraculous rescue byContinue reading “Words for the Wilderness”
“Our Father”
There’s nothing in the biblical witness like the prayer that Jesus gave His disciples. It is located in the heart of the SOTM (Matthew 6:9-13), yet in terms of the overall organizational flow of Jesus’ message, the prayer is somewhat of a deviation. The central idea of 6:1-18 is the importance of not doing thingsContinue reading ““Our Father””
Living in the Land of Promise
“Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, The Lord is one,” (Deuteronomy 6:4). It’s hard to overstate the importance of this text for Israel or for the follower of Jesus. For Israel, these words were spoken to them as they were on the brink of f-i-n-a-l-l-y entering the land of Canaan. The previous generation ofContinue reading “Living in the Land of Promise”
God At Work
Whatever else it might be, Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is filled with fundamentally rich and glorious truths about the church that should transform the way we think about the community God has created through Jesus. Written to a first-century congregation comprised of people from starkly different backgrounds (Jewish and Gentile), the topic of community would be an area where theyContinue reading “God At Work”
Grateful Hearts Make Us Whole
When Jesus was traveling along the border of Samaria and Galilee, He went into one of the villages. On His way in, He came across ten lepers. It wasn’t uncommon for such groups to station themselves outside of towns and villages so they could petition passersby for help. They were somehow aware of who JesusContinue reading “Grateful Hearts Make Us Whole”
After Dinner Conversation
When you’ve eaten well and are among friends, the conversation can flow like a river. It might be light-hearted or substantive, but it is always special. In Luke 22:24-32, Jesus had an after dinner conversation with His disciples that continues to speak to us today. In that conversation: Jesus taught about true greatness. As He institutedContinue reading “After Dinner Conversation”
Some Thoughts on Inspiration
Paul tells us all Scripture is “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16-17), and we believe that. But what does that mean? One answer has to do with origin—it means the Scripture ultimately comes from God rather than man. This is Peter’s point in 2 Peter 1:19-21. Even in instances where the writer “carefully investigated” his subject matterContinue reading “Some Thoughts on Inspiration”
The Leader of the Band
Dan Fogleberg was a singer-songwriter who enjoyed his greatest popularity during the late seventies and early eighties. He had several hit songs: Part of the Plan, Longer, Same Old Lang Syne, and the song he is best known for—Leader of the Band. Leader of the Band is a tribute song to his father, Lawrence, who was a high schoolContinue reading “The Leader of the Band”
Finishing Strong
Moses’ mission was accomplished. Joshua had been commissioned as his successor (Deuteronomy 31:14,23). Israel was on the brink of entering the land of Canaan. They had renewed their promise to live under the covenant first given to the nation at Sinai (29:9-14). The next chapter of their story will be told in the book ofContinue reading “Finishing Strong”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 