The Parable Preaching Pattern… the Radio Spot. Take a Listen.
This is a highly edited sermon on the 5th narrative sermon of the Gospel of Mark. In it I address Mark’s depiction of Jesus’ parable telling. It is the first…
Do the New Testament Writers Care about Context, Part 1: Fulfillment Issues in Matthew 2:15
Matthew 2:15 is one of those passages that bothered me a lot when I was a young Bible college student. After reading the original passage from which this “fulfillment” was…
Eight is Enough: Entrapment Rhetoric in The 1st Prophetic Sermon of Amos
We have invited Melodie Sargent, a student at Northpoint Bible college, back again to deliver another blog post. This time her attention is turned the importance of rhetorical structure in…
Inspiration and Interpretation… the radio spot, take a listen
When I first made my attempt at radio, I tried my hand at some discussions with just me and my recorder at home. I use audacity and love it. This…
Death in Ecclesiastes… Good Times! (The Radio spot)
A couple years ago, I received a phone call on a late Thursday afternoon asking if I could be the main speaker at a Men’s Conference two days hence. Something…
Getting Isaiah, Part 2: Twelve Events Standing Behind Every Prophecy in Isaiah
In my last post, I introduced the background to the book of Isaiah in vague pictures designed to capture the essence of the political, social & religious dynamic at work…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Historical Hermeneutics and Saul’s Grabbing of Samuel’s Hem in 1 Samuel 15:23-31
The garment hem plays an unexpected role in many Scriptures. It is unexpected because we have nothing like it in our western world. Below is a link a recent lecture…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Studies
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
Nazarenes, Rednecks, and Other Well-meaning Slurs
I love puzzles, always have. Growing up, I saw puzzles of all kinds as a natural exercise of my desire to be a detective someday, tracing out subtle clues to…
A Better Question is, “Who wouldn’t”: The Prodigal Son in Reflection, Part 3
One of my favorite gags in the old 1980’s TV show, Taxi, has a nervous Tony Danza shaving several times throughout the day to keep himself fresh looking for an…
I’ll Take Allegories & Analogies for 200: The Prodigal Son in Reflection, Part 1
I’m sure most of you have heard at least five prodigal son sermons in your lifetime… I’ve been around a while and can lay claim to at least 20 myself……
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me as Quote NOT Statement: Psalm 22:1 in the New Testament
Matthew 27:46 reads, “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken…
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
NT's Use of the OT
Text Criticism Issues
Fun with Hebrew Poetry: Isaiah 40:3 in the New Testament
I’ve been teaching an Isaiah class of late and we had an amusing time last night considering the way the New Testament Scholars have handled the quote from Isaiah 40:3…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 3: Is Proverbs 22:6 a Promise?
In two previous posts I’ve been discussing Proverbs 22:6 and the translation issues involved in what seems a rather ambiguous central phrase, “upon the mouth of his way” which seems…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 2: What is the way of the Child?
In a previous post, we turned our attention to a literal rendering of Proverbs 22:6, which being one of the most hurled about texts, whether in accusation, self-defense, or hopeful…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 1: Translation Issues in Proverbs 22:6
Proverbs 22:6 is one of the most quoted, potentially mistranslated and, thus, misunderstood verses in the Bible. As commonly rendered, it is interpreted as a glorious promise of “do it…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
Society
The Foundation of Beautiful Society: Genesis 9 and Natural Rights
While foolishly engaging a Twitter troll the other day, as this egomaniacal barbarian cursed the idea of God and Scripture, declaring Christianity and all other religion the source of all…
Genesis as Ancestor Epic Part III: The First Law as the Seed of All Just Law
In two recent posts we began to discuss the implication of reading Genesis as an Ancient Near Eastern (ANE) Ancestor Epic, a collection of stories that a people tell themselves…
Genesis as Ancestor Epic, Part II: What is an Ancient Creation Story?
In a recent post we began discussing the nature of Genesis as an ancestor epic—the stories that a people tell themselves about how they almost weren’t a people. Crises have…
Genesis as Ancestor Epic, Part I: Getting with the Program
When reading any document it helps to know what you are reading. Is this document a comic meant to be funny, mocking or otherwise derisive? Is this document a fiction…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
He’s No Idiot: Peter’s Interpretation of the Vision of the Sheet in Acts 10
In an earlier post, we discussed how common interpretations of the words spoken from heaven to Peter in Acts 10:13, “Rise, Peter, kill and eat” and in Acts 10:15, “What…