Creative Space for Wanderers
Read If we were Jewish or celebrated with our Jewish brothers, this would be the time of year when the Feast of Tabernacles would kick into high gear. John uses the backdrop of this festival to highlight some significant lessons for us to consider. The first vignette is a look at the interaction between Jesus …
Read The last section in this chapter challenges us all to accept that which is hard to understand. Those of us that have worn the Christian badge for many years might have a hard time understanding the challenge here, but I want to strongly encourage you (exhort) to read this chapter from the eyes of …
Read John dedicates the third section in chapter six to answer some questions and raise even more. Some of the crowd finally track Jesus down after His water-walking escape. They’re confused. Their motivation is for signs and wonders more than understanding the message. John records the highlights of the conversation which ends with a section …
Read John’s version of Jesus walking on water is concise. We have to look around for some more details, but we shouldn’t miss the point that Jesus is Lord of all and wants us to know that we should not be afraid as we fight the battles in this life. John sets up the story …
Continue reading “John: Jesus Walks on Water — Don’t Be Afraid”
Read The commentators recommend reading the entire chapter to get the complete understanding of John’s perspective. The essence of the chapter is being fed by God, both physically and spiritually. We start with physical nourishment, but Jesus uses this miracle as a huge teaching point that most, including those closest to Him, cannot understand. Just …
As we head into chapter 5, I found it interesting that the NIV Application Commentary suggests the purpose of chapter 5 is to begin building the case against Jesus (cite below this post). This outline is helpful to give us some context for discussion: The Crime () A man at Bethesda is healed on the …
Continue reading “John: Healing at the Pool — Do You Want to Get Well?”
Read: Are you willing to take Jesus at His word and believe? The central character in this story is an officer in Herod’s regime, “a certain royal official,” who begs Jesus to heal his son. The passionate plea was met with a sharp response, but Jesus healed the son anyway. The official had faith while …
Read: There are actually two distinct parts to this section: the disciples and the woman. Both are significant, but I chose the title to reflect the part that I really hadn’t focused on very much. I’ll try to cover both parts here briefly. It’s up to you to dive into that which speaks to your …
Read In the first part of this story, the woman at the well was enjoying the debate with Jesus about living water. The unheard of conversation between a well-known Rabbi (Jesus) and a woman that has to draw water at noon to avoid other people went from bad to worse. I’m suggesting “bad” because no …
Continue reading “John: Jesus and the Woman at the Well — Part 2”
Read: Imagine Billy Graham sitting at a bus stop in downtown Atlanta engaged in conversation with a well-known prostitute. Don’t get me wrong, the woman at the well is not a prostitute, though her moral character is questionable, I am trying to set the stage for a conversation that is completely out of step with anything …
Continue reading “John: Jesus and the Woman at the Well — Part 1”