Reading the Bible as if it really were the actual words from God is different—monumentally different—from reading even a piece of Christian theology written by an orthodox Christian author.
A Bible Reading Option for 2020
Isn’t it amazing to think about the fact that you can open a Bible at home, on break at work, on your phone while your standing in line at the store and in that same moment be reading the very words of God?
What God has done for us with the Bible is not unlike what he did for us through the birth of Jesus. On Christmas we celebrate the truth that God stepped down into creation in the person of the Son. Matthew tells us that at that point in history God was “with us” like never before.
Exegetical Meditations (14)
What a remarkable thing it is to have the angels of God rejoicing because a sinner has repented of their life thus far! Could it be, though, that there’s an even more remarkable thing going on in this verse that is often not noticed? Before we get there, let’s track (at least for a moment) what comes before verse 10.
Exegetical Meditations (13)
As Jesus began to pray to his Father in John 17 he did so with two major goals in mind: 1) being glorified so he could glorify the Father and 2) eternal life by way of knowledge for those given to him. For this short article I want to focus in on the second major goal of Jesus—eternal life by knowledge.
Exegetical Meditations (12)
How are we to view those who try to lead the church astray?
Some see people who bring a different teaching that isn’t orthodox as a gift to the church because they’re rescuing her from her old way of thinking. Some view these so-called teachers as doing nothing more than trying to help those trapped in a system of thought and a way of viewing the world that is abhorrent to the rest of mankind. They’re here to help; not to harm.
Brief Thoughts on John 3:16
The Apostle John can write generically and specifically within the same sentence (as he often does throughout his gospel and his letters). Here, he writes that God gave his one and only Son. In the context, God is clearly the Father; however, even though we know in the specific sense that God is the Father we shouldn’t ignore the general fact that God has given something. If we solely focus on the Father giving his Son, we can forget that God has given of himself.
By the Numbers: "Love" in 1 John 4:7-21
1 Corinthians 13 is often referred to as the “love chapter” in the New Testament, and rightfully so. What Paul says about love in that part of his letter is worldview altering. We all ought to come to 1 Corinthians 13 ready and willing to be examined by God through Scripture because what Paul says there is no less than definitional about love.
That being said—and you should have known an exception was going to be made from the title of this article—if we’re going by the numbers there’s one section in the New Testament that really ought to be considered a primary authority on love. And that section is 1 John 4:7-21.
Jesus: One Like a Son of Man
Terms for Jesus
What do we do with the different terms used to explain the identity of Jesus? One obvious thing we do is we use them all the time. We often talk about Jesus as “savior,” “redeemer,” or “sacrifice.” We use these terms assuming our hearers know what we mean by them and we use them because we’re comfortable that they each explain at least a part of who Jesus is. In that, they’re good terms and we can be helped and help others by using them.
Must We Take Jesus Literally?
When it comes to taking someone or something (a written document, a movie, or a song) literally, there are some pretty serious pitfalls to avoid. This true and even more so when it comes to the Scriptures. Some people strenuously object to taking the Bible literally because of the “danger” a literal interpretation produces. They bring up issues like stoning, fire from heaven that wipes out entire groups of people, God striking down people, or hell as the “dangerous” implications of taking the Bible literally.
Exegetical Meditations (11)
How we talk about Jesus matters. It matters because our speech about him is a reflection of what we believe to be true about him, and what we believe to be true about him directly shapes the relationship we’re in with him. If we believe Jesus to be less than what he’s revealed to be in Scripture then we could in danger of worshipping someone who is no real Jesus at all.