JOHN: HEARING IS BELIEVING Gospel of John, Chapter 2 Just before the great Passover celebration, Jesus went to Jerusalem. He entered the Temple court. Various animals were being sold for sacrificing in the Temple. Moneychangers were taking foreign currencies in exchange for local money which could be used to purchase the sacrificial animals. In the […]
Listen, it can’t be the same as it ever was
JOHN: HEARING IS BELIEVING Gospel of John, Chapter 2 The Word began to be heard. John the Baptist began the conversation. His icebreaker was, “Look, the one who takes away the sin of the world” (chapter 1, verse 29). He identified Jesus as “the Son of God” (verse 34) and “the Lamb of God” (verses […]
Here’s a word for you (continued)
Gospel of John, Chapter 1 Continuing with the first chapter of the Gospel of John, declaring that our Creator has spoken to us with the Word – the eternal Son became a flesh and blood human and named Jesus. This is all true. John saw it. “We have seen his glory,” he writes (verse 14). […]
Here’s a word for you
JOHN: HEARING IS BELIEVING This begins a series of studies in the Gospel of John. I’m not going to cover every verse or even every chapter. Mostly it will be about various encounters Jesus had with people, personal experiences and John’s messages from the Spirit to us. I pray we will hear these messages for […]
RUTH: FINDING REST
The Old Testament book “Ruth” is a story set “when the judges ruled” (1:1), the period covered in the book “Judges.” It was written later during the monarchy since King David is mentioned at the close. “Ruth” is a beautiful story. There are three main characters: Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz. Naomi was the wife of […]
FOLLOWING JESUS – WHAT YOU’RE IN FOR
Matthew 8:18 – 10:42 After Jesus preached the “Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5-7), the people who heard what he had to say were overwhelmed by his teaching. They were so powerfully impacted because “he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Matthew 7:28-29 NIV). Shortly thereafter, Jesus […]
Strength to Love
January 20 is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the United States. When King was assassinated in 1968, I was 16 years old and did not understand him. Over the decades since, I think I have a better comprehension of who he was and what he was doing. Dr. King wrote a book […]
PERSONALIZE CHRISTMAS
Here is a meditation/devotional I’ve written for the Christmas season. You may find it helpful during the busyness of the holidays to use it as a way to keep your focus on Christ as you participate in all the other plans and events going on. Use it as the Spirit of God leads. You don’t […]
Christmas: a new king is in town
THE VISIT OF THE WISE MEN, Jan van’t Hoff The four gospels in the New Testament are not simply biographies. There is more to them than “the life of Christ.” They are histories and more. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John constructed their documents in ways to convey meaning beyond plain facts. They were free to […]
CONSTRUCTING COMMUNITY
In 1 Corinthians 1:10 – 6:20 Living as a disciple of Jesus entails living with other disciples of Jesus. Community is an important emphasis in many churches today (as well as the culture in general). It has always been part of church life. Back in the day, it was called “fellowship.” However, the call to […]