Monday: Read John 16:1-33 Jesus continues His extended speech to His disciples. He reminds them that they will indeed suffer as a result of their belief in Him. He tells them of this in order to keep them from stumbling (1). The idea is that when these things begin to happen, they will remember that […]
I began this series by asking, “where are all the prophetic voices?” I will grant that the prophetic voices are out there: lest anyone adhere to the Elijah syndrome—which I like to call the Tigger principle: “I’m the only one!” One of the problems is that although the best place for the prophetic voice is […]
Monday: Read John 11:47-12:19 Having raised Lazarus from the dead, the authorities convene and determine that Jesus must die. In fact, Caiaphas, the high priest, declares that it would be best for one person to die for the sake of the nation (50). Of course, Caiaphas was thinking that if Jesus continued to gain followers […]
“There’s nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped […]
Week #3 Monday: Read John 7:40-8:20 The debate continues regarding Jesus’ identity. Jesus’ identity is a central issue in the Gospel of John. Some suggest that Jesus is “the prophet” (7:40). The allusion here is to Deut 18:15, 18 and the promise that God will raise up a prophet like Moses. Others were affirming that […]
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). “It’s in relationships and conversations that I find God. It’s not a real conversation if you’re trying to convert me to your position. That’s an argument. I’m not interested in arguing. That’s not […]
Monday: Read John 4:27-54 In this section, John stresses Jesus as the Word. Jesus speaks and things happen. John also notes that it is the Samaritans and not the Galileans who believe His word. The disciples return from getting the food (27; cf 4:8) and see that Jesus was speaking with a woman. They must […]
Stanley Hauerwas, in his work, A Community of Character, observes, “We rejoice in the difference and diversity of gifts among those in the church, as that very diversity is the necessary condition for our faithfulness. Discussion becomes the hallmark of such a society, since recognition and listening to the other is the way our community […]
Monday: Read John 1:1-18 The Gospel of John begins with a clear allusion to the book of Genesis: “In the beginning” (1). One of John’s goals is to identify the Word (Jesus) with the Creator. Thus, “all things came into being through Him” (3). We know that John is talking about Jesus in 1:1-3 because […]
In my last few posts (click here for the first post in this series), I have been sort of deconstructing the conservative, evangelical approach to biblical interpretation. I noted that one of the problems with our approach (though in reality, this applies to almost every approach) to biblical interpretation is that we do not like to […]
