Mary’s trip to see her relative, Elizabeth, is one of those episodes that’s unique to Luke’s gospel. In this early section of his gospel, Luke is showing Theophilus how God broke into the world to set up the kingdom of Jesus. Rather than tapping into existing power structures like the Roman Empire or the Jewish aristocracy,Continue reading “Mary Takes a Trip”
Tag Archives: Jesus
Meditating on God’s Word
One of my favorite borrowed sayings goes something like this: “Our goal isn’t to get through the Scripture as much as it is for the Scripture to get through us.” I like that because I know from personal experience how easy it is to get distracted as you work your way through Scripture. You’re busyContinue reading “Meditating on God’s Word”
After Dinner Conversation
Did you know that all foods share at least one common ingredient? No matter what kind of food you’re eating, it contains a social ingredient which means it always tastes better in the company of others. Food is something God gave us not just to nourish our bodies, but to nourish our relationships. Get people together toContinue reading “After Dinner Conversation”
Proclaiming with Power and Authority (1)
In terms of development, Luke favors geography more than chronology (Krol). After alternating between the early lives of John and Jesus in the first three chapters, he takes us to Galilee (4-9), Samaria (10-19), and Jerusalem (20-24) in telling us the story of Jesus. Chronology isn’t ignored (see 7:21, 9:51), but neither does he strictlyContinue reading “Proclaiming with Power and Authority (1)”
Proclaiming with Power and Authority (2)
In living for Christ then disciples are proclaiming the reign of God as well as providing proof of such. By “living for Christ,” I don’t mean disciples are to be good people doing nice things—there are plenty of people doing that who (sadly) don’t belong to Jesus. By living for Christ I mean that ratherContinue reading “Proclaiming with Power and Authority (2)”
Revolution
You say you want a Revolution, Well, you know, We all wanna change the world. You tell me that it’s evolution, Well, you know, We all wanna change the world. John Lennon sang these words in 1968 in the Beatles’ classic, Revolution. Our country (and much of the world) was going through turbulent times—not a lot different than today in manyContinue reading “Revolution”
The Challenging Beatitudes
Matthew’s gospel alternates between six narrative and five teaching sections (5-7,10,13,18,23-25). Each of the teaching sections conclude with a statement to the effect of when Jesus had finished saying/teaching (all) these things (7:28,11:1,13:53, 19:1,26:1). Some think that Matthew laid the teaching of Jesus out in five sections to mirror the five books written by Moses. That mayContinue reading “The Challenging Beatitudes”
Jesus, Mary & Joseph
In the first part of his gospel (1:5-4:13), Luke goes back and forth between John the Baptist and Jesus (Krol). In 1:5-38, he presents us with the prediction of John’s birth in v. 5-25, and in v. 26-38 it’s the prediction of Jesus’ birth. Then there’s birth, circumcision, and naming of John (1:57-80) followed byContinue reading “Jesus, Mary & Joseph”
Two Voices for God
John the Baptist is referred to as “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord,’” (3:4). It’s a bit unusual to for someone to be referred to as “a voice.” I suppose if you were a sports announcer, say for the Atlanta Braves, then you might be known asContinue reading “Two Voices for God”
Drilling Down in Isaiah 53
Isaiah 52:13-53:12 is a challenging text—there’s more involved than most people are aware of. Many people can only see Jesus in the text. While He is unquestionably all over the text, the question is: does the text have reference to anything else, or is it simply a predictive text that had no immediate message forContinue reading “Drilling Down in Isaiah 53”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 