Jesus And #5

Jesus And Taxes The saying goes that the only things in life that are certain are Death and Taxes. And while that may or may not be true (and while it is certainly a cynical way of viewing the world–do you see what I did there?), Jesus, I think, would like to add something to … Read more

Jesus And #4

Jesus And Signs When I was a freshman undergraduate student at Abilene Christian University, I remember one class extremely vividly dealing with the topic of signs. I was sitting in one of the Bible building classrooms with approximately 40 other Bible majors when our professor walked in and looked distressed. He said to us something … Read more

Jesus And #3

Jesus And The Law During the course of Jesus’ ministry, he is consistently criticized for not following the Law or the rules of the people of Israel. It shows up time and time again. The Pharisees and other teachers of the Law want to know why Jesus does what he does.  And this is a … Read more

Jesus And #2

Jesus And Spiritual Forces Have you ever noticed that Jesus is much more comfortable talking about demons than you are? (Or at least, I know that’s the case for me.) The worldview that was handed down to me leaves very little room for demons, spirits, or even angels. But that’s not Jesus’ world. And that’s … Read more

Jesus And #1

Jesus and Authority It is no secret that Jesus has a few run ins with various teachers of the Law, officials, and Roman leaders during the course of his ministry. There are contentious moments where real issues are at stake. And it seems like there is a certain kind of person who responds to Jesus, … Read more

Beginnings and Endings

The End of the Year or the Beginning of the Next? It’s probably not a surprise, but since the year 2021 is coming to a close, I have been thinking about how things begin and how they end (and with the story of Scripture, how new things begin or even how old things have a … Read more

Simeon and Anna

The Birth of Jesus In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, we read unique stories about different people’s reaction to the announcement of the coming of Emmanuel. Over the next several weeks, we will examine and reflect on each of their experiences as recorded in Scripture, and how they prepared for the coming of Jesus.  … Read more

The Shepherd of Israel

The Magi from the East In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, we read unique stories about different people’s reaction to the announcement of the coming of Emmanuel. Over the next several weeks, we will examine and reflect on each of their experiences as recorded in Scripture, and how they prepared for the coming of … Read more

Good News of Great Joy

The Shepherd’s View In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, we read unique stories about different people’s reaction to the announcement of the coming of Emmanuel. Over the next several weeks, we will examine and reflect on each of their experiences as recorded in Scripture, and how they prepared for the coming of Jesus.  Can … Read more

Emmanuel Is Come

Joseph and Mary Learn of the Coming of Jesus In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, we read unique stories about different people’s reaction to the announcement of the coming of Emmanuel. Over the next several weeks, we will examine and reflect on each of their experiences as recorded in Scripture, and how they prepared … Read more