“Egad! You Painted Yourself as Jesus!”
I am not an art historian, but as I understand the matter, it was not uncommon for great painters of old to put themselves into Biblical scenes as either the…
Did Jesus Sit in the Seat of Sinners?[1]
I knew a man who returned to Christ after decades of drugs and dealing, trafficking girls, violence, theft, and homelessness. Raised in church, he came back on fire for Jesus,…
Can I Get a Witness: The Call to Be Salt and Light in a Dark and Rotten World
As a teenager I worked in a grocery store doing anything that needed doing, whether bagging, cashiering, stocking produce, or even painting the kick spaces on the shelves. How many…
Weird Things Like Revelation & The Second Coming
It shouldn’t be too long into joining a church that you hear something that strikes you as rather peculiar—The Second Coming of Jesus Christ… not to mention whispers of an…
My Review of A Ransom for Many by John J. R. Lee, and Daniel Brueske
Shared with Permission from Criswell Theological Review A Ransom for Many: Mark 10:45 As Key to the Gospel. By John J. R. Lee and Daniel Brueske.Bellingham: Lexham Press, 2023, 203…
Jesus and The Failed Gentile Mission: The Prodigal Son in Reflection, Part 2
When Jesus called Peter to become a fisher of men, I seriously doubt he had any thought of the role he would someday play in fulfilling Israel’s sacred mission to…
Well, I Didn’t See That Coming: Behind the Scenes Footage from John 4
Pst… Psst… Pssst… Hey! You! Come over here, I want to tell you something you won’t believe about John 4. It blew my mind. Doing Old Testament Studies, sometimes you…
Matthew’s Christmas Bells
One of my favorite things to study in the Bible is the New Testament’s use of the Old Testament. I say USE because the New Testament writers do many things…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Studies
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
What the Woman Caught in Adultery Shouldn’t Teach Us: Law, Grace & Bad Hermeneutics
John 8:7 is especially popular with non-Christians who resent any suggestion within Christianity that they are sinners in need of salvation. It is usually paraphrased, “He who is without sin,…
The Three Amigos: Biblical, Systematic & Historical Theology
As a constant advocate for Biblical Theology, some imagine that I want Biblical Theology instead of Systematic Theology. I don’t. Systematic Theology does not hold as much interest for me…
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Studies
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
Jesus as Gospel: Is there Emperor Typology in Mark 1:1?
Some have suggested that the “OF” case in Mark 1:1 in the phrase “Gospel of Jesus” is objective… meaning that Jesus is the gospel and not merely the preacher of…
Keep One Eye on the Old Testament: Mark 1:2-13 & Ancient Reference
“I’m a New Testament Christian!” A common boast by those little interested in the Old Testament… I mean… Doesn’t that just sound defunct… OLD… Good old things get the label…
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Intertestamental History & Literature
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
A Baptism in Confusion: 3 Baptisms in Mark 1:2-13
In our last episode, we introduced the bare bones essence of water baptism as an ancient covenant ratification act saturated with typical death imagery and corresponding OT interests in ordeal…
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
A Baptism in Baptism
So you read the whole Old Testament. You read it several times. Having immersed yourself in the literature that your Bible, by its basic structure, seems to promise as the…
Bible Backgrounds
Inductive Study Methods
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Old Testament Studies
Text Criticism Issues
Name that Quote: Exodus 23:20, Malachi 3:1, and Isaiah 40:3 in Mark 1:2
I will never forget my first Master’s paper at Regent University. I called it, “How They Got This Out of That.” I worked hard in my undergraduate programs (Yes, programs…
Historical History & the Little Scholar Who Could
One of the benefits of a being raised in a blue collar environment and receiving academic training is that I tend to experience the full force of learning. This means…
Biblical Studies
Biblical Theology
Inductive Study Methods
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Jesus had an Identity Crisis: Christ & Son of God in Mark 1:1
I had a professor once, gifted in languages, but not in relationships. He could not only read more than his fair share of languages even for a scholar, but he…
Literary Relationships are Hard, but it’s Better than being Alone
One of the things that separates us from the animals, other than our smashing good looks, is the ability to use sound to form words and to use words to…
Mark 1:1 Makes No Sentence at All
Look at Mark 1:1… look reeeeeaaaaal close and careful. It reads in the ESV, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Seems simple enough. A…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Biblical Studies
Biblical Theology
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
A Crazy Proposal About Jesus and the Woman at the Well
Okay, as promised, this is the last post on the popular type-scene “Foreigner at the Well.” I hope it will be rewarding enough to warrant a gander. No, you don’t…