Kingdom of God ⁽³⁶⁾

Matthew 25:1–13 (read online ⧉) This is an odd parable. It makes some sense on the surface, but even then, not much. One of the surface tensions is that Jesus refers here to the Kingdom of God. Jesus often refers to the Kingdom having already…

Luke 17:20–37, Acts 7:44–60, Revelation 21:14–27 (read online ⧉) Throughout the Old Testament, there are memorial stones. The names of springs have tale-telling names. Altars were built…lots of altars. Places provide identity. The Promised Land (Israel) was one of identity. That particular land was powerful…

Ezekiel 27:1–36, Ezekiel 28:20–23, Luke 10:13–16 To understand Jesus’ “woe” statements, one needs to understand history. While Tyre and Sidon were now (in Jesus’ time) prosperous cities, their pride, pagan behavior, and anti-Israel behavior had gotten them a lot of punishment. After Ezekiel’s prophesy, the…

Luke 23:50–24:12, John 19:38–42, Matthew 10:32–33 Joseph of Arimathea is described differently by Luke and John. Luke describes him as good, righteous, and looking forward to the kingdom of God. John describes him as a secret disciple of Jesus. On the surface, these appear to…

Leviticus 21:16–24, Matthew 20:29–34, 1 Corinthians 1:26–29 Even today people struggle with blindness. Granted, today those who are blind have legal protections, braille, technology, and acceptance that wasn’t part of other cultures. In the New Testament era, the only “job” the blind could get was…