David Yoon and Stanley Porter exemplify grace in their remembrance of one whom they didn’t exactly see eye to eye with in technical and theological matters. Christians don’t necessarily have to forge alliances to show respect. God gives a unique ministry to each believer and none have arrived to perfection. May we love God more as we come to know Him better and be kind … Continue reading How to Disagree: an Example

If a person believes only what they can see, hear, or sense such as archaeological evidence from an earlier epoch, that person is their own arbiter and so is playing God. They are their own reference (or what other humans reference-they being an extension) and so only believe what can be sensed in some way. Unless a record exists from an earlier time, they will … Continue reading The Exodus from Egypt

Presence of the Lord By Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood I have finally found a way to live just like I never could before I know that I don’t have much to give, but I can open any door Everybody knows the secret, everybody knows the score Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah I have finally found a way to live in the colour of the Lord … Continue reading Everyone Knows God Innately and Not by Design of Creation (Romans 1.18-32)

In Matthew 19.13-15 we see that Jesus welcomes little children to come to Him: Then the little children were brought to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them and pray for them; and the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”And … Continue reading Metaphorical Children

The best way, I believe, to examine Jesus’ teaching in the Olivet Discourse is to have the three Synoptic accounts open at the relative sections. This is easy to do digitally but may also be read with three hard copy bibles. I personally never achieved clarity of the account until doing this very technique. No, I am not speaking about the specific timing of the … Continue reading Understanding the Olivet Discourse

I went to schools for my theological training where marginalization of blacks, though outwardly condemned, was justified at least on a personal level. Several students believed  in and justified their racism by appealing to the bible’s account of the sin of Ham and his son Canaan. They identified Ham with the African Continent and said that blacks were cursed to be slaves somehow and they … Continue reading America’s Sin

The well known story of Jesus turning water into wine is found in the second chapter of John. In the account is what I always thought a curious feature: stone water pots for cleansing-Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washing, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. (John 2.6) The rationale of strictly observant Jews (Pharisees and others) is a parenthetical … Continue reading Stone Jars

Originally posted on Ferrell's Travel Blog:
From Tel Megiddo one has a good view of the Jezreel Valley. Our panorama is composed of three photos made from the same spot at Megiddo. The Jezreel Valley lies before us to the north (and slightly east). Nazareth is located in the mountains of lower Galilee. The valley continues east between the Hill of Moreh and Mount… Continue reading The significance of Megiddo and the Jezreel Valley

Originally posted on Larry Hurtado's Blog:
In an essay from 1979 I floated the idea that Paul’s collection-project for Jerusalem may have been used against him by his critics in the Galatian churches:  “The Book of Galatians and the Jerusalem Collection,” Journal for the Study of the New Testament 5(1979), pp. 46-62.  In recent weeks, I’ve returned to that essay while reading Bruce Longenecker’s… Continue reading Galatians and Paul’s Jerusalem-Collection Re-visited