Creative Space for Wanderers
Read: As much as I’d like to cruise through the book of Matthew, I simply can’t! There is so much to consider even in this single chapter of Matthew. As Hurricane Irma knocks out power and disrupts the lives of so many in Florida (in particular), I pray we can slow down and listen to …
Read: I don’t claim to have a scholarly approach to extensive Bible study, more of an inquisitive Christ-follower method. Every once in awhile I look at the detailed notes in the study Bible of choice for clues and context. Today it seemed fitting. The NIV Study Bible describes the book of Matthew as an artistically …
Continue reading “Matthew: Tough Words as the Third Discourse Concludes”
Read: Matthew wants to make sure we are clear on this: Jesus is The Messiah. The blind see, the lame walk, the sick are healed, the dead rise, and the gospel is proclaimed! This is the great news they’ve been waiting to hear, but some can’t understand because Jesus’ yoke is light, He didn’t provide …
Read: In this incredible chapter we read about Jesus sending out his fledgling followers we revere as His amazing disciples. They weren’t so amazing when they started, but they had one major advantage: they knew. They knew Jesus was the Messiah because they walked and talk and watched Him do things beyond their wildest imaginations. …
Continue reading “Matthew: Jesus Sends Out His Disciples; Working Within Your Gifts”
Read: Matthew provides an incredible list of miracles by Jesus throughout the area and some unique ministry challenges in these two chapters. It’s hard to imagine how this news spread around the region, how it was received, etc. I’m sure they were skeptical of the fake-news of their day and I’m confident I would have …
Continue reading “Matthew: A Collection of Miracles and Some Ministry Notes”
Read: There is no way that this simple post can adequately cover the vast material in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Seriously. I have to point back to the primary purpose of this blog at this time: read through the Bible and post thoughts that stick out as significant. With that disclaimer, let’s fly through …
Read: TheBibleProject.org’s video introduction to Matthew helps provide context and a framework within which we gain his perspective on the life of Jesus. Matthew choice of stories depend on some knowledge of what we call the Old Testament, common knowledge for those in his time. Today we read about John the Baptist’s preaching and baptizing …
Continue reading “Matthew: John Prepares the Way; Jesus’ Ministry Begins”
Read: The New Testament begins with a list of who’s who from the Old Testament, a very direct link to the past. The list of characters range from good to notoriously bad and even includes five women! As I tried to get through the first two chapters, I found myself digging into the details of …
Read: The closing chapter of Nehemiah exposes Eliashib’s character and the problems caused by his association with Tobiah. Way back when I was a young child, my parents used to tell me they knew who I was playing with by my attitude when I came home. Nothing new here. The Tobiah/Eliashib relationship runs deep. I’m …
Read: I’m amazed at how Nehemiah focused on the people, individuals and families, through this entire process. Most of the time I see lists of names and numbers and just move on, but this time I saw faces and families, men, women and children–real people living in difficult times. Nehemiah invested a lot of time …
Continue reading “Nehemiah: Individuals and Families Matter”