Afleveringen
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The Samaritan woman at the well prompts us to explore the role of testimony.
We spend some time rehabilitating this woman's reputation somewhat, and exploring how Jesus interacts with her. There is power in her testimony and "many from the village believed", but what about her experience and proclamation was so compelling?
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John 1 records this strong and confident statement as a profound witness of Jesus as Messiah.
The story is about Jesus calling his early disciples, and them also calling others. It seems at first glance that they really "got it", calling Jesus "the Son of God—the King of Israel!” And yet, we know from the rest of the story that they were regularly confused by Jesus and his actions. It seems possible to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah and simultaneously misunderstand most of what he is trying to achieve. That's worth pondering.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Analogies are so compelling that we need to be careful to keep them the right way around.
Humans are story-telling creatures and so good analogies and narratives captivate us. The opening "prologue" of John's gospel introduces many of the central themes that reappear throughout the book. Perhaps it is possible to get things mixed up if we end up focussing more on the analogy than on Christ himself.
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What features of a miracle make it a "sign of divinity"?
The well-known story in John 6 tells about Jesus miraculously feeding the 5000, and it seems an interesting context to explore the nature of God.
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A well-known miracle makes us think a bit harder about "signs".
The healing at the Pool of Bethesda is a great story, but the more we look at it the more questions arise. One obvious one is why just this man was healed when there were 5 covered porches of "sick crowds" by the pool. It is also fascinating that John records this miracle as a sign that can help believers maintain confidence in Christ, and yet the religious leaders who witnessed it were far from persuaded.
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Jesus is risen, go and tell!
The Book of Mark seems to have multiple endings, and the earliest manuscripts lack the final few paragraphs we typically find in our bibles. There's a lot to ponder in the resurrection story, but it turns out that the original ending to Mark is not perhaps as abrupt as it first appears.
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In John 3:16 we find that God gave himself for us. In 1 John 3:16 we find that we are to give ourselves for others. The cross is not just the center of our own salvation story, it is a call for us to embrace the suffering that comes when we live to establish God's kingdom by sharing His love.
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The Last Supper is a remarkable overlap of ritual and routine.
The menu for the meal recorded in this chapter was almost certainly quite familiar everyday food for Jesus and his disciples, and yet it was also a Passover meal with deep historical and ritual significance. This same juxtaposition shows up in the various ways that Christians celebrate communion - is it the actual body of Christ, or could it be best done with a Big Mac and diet Coke? However we find the most meaning in this story and tradition, it seems clear that Jesus claiming the Passover meal as representing his own body is a vivid picture of God's gracious desire to save.
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The destruction of the temple seems to be blended here with the end of time, and things are not super clear.
This chapter is almost entirely a sustained speech by Jesus, which is prompted by some observations about the impermanence of the temple. Some of it seems quite specifically about the temple in Jerusalem, and this makes the most sense of some of the details. Other sections sound a lot like the apocalypse, which is how the Adventist church usually reads it. We discuss wars, famines, and rumours-of-wars - but can't help comparing the weighty topics of this chapter against the way Jesus points out a generous widow in the preceding verses.
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A number of challenging statements are made in this chapter of Mark.
We focus on the story of Jesus cursing a fig tree, which seems somewhat unfair given that it was not the season for figs. There's something interesting here because when the disciples ask about it Jesus answers with comments about prayer. We find a few connections, but are unable to fully resolve our questions about this passage. Helpfully there are plenty of other passages that make the important things clear - even in this part of Mark.
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Is it possible that Jesus enhances the gift by allowing Bartimaeus agency in choosing it?
At first it seems almost strange for a proven healer to ask a blind man what he wants, and yet that is the conversation between Jesus and Bartimaeus. We explore this story and some others with similar phrases to ponder the depth of choice and agency that God seems to want embedded in His creation.
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A lot happens for the disciples once Peter declares Jesus to be the Messiah.
It is fascinating to connect this conversation Jesus has with his disciples with the story of the Transfiguration which happens soon afterwards. The preceding healing of a blind man is the only recorded time that Jesus has to touch twice to heal, and it could be a masterful teaching technique. The disciples are confused by their inability to cast an evil spirit out from a young boy, and the explanation Jesus provides is not all that clarifying!
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In an encounter that sounds provocative we learn some deep truths about the Mission of Christ.
We can't fully understand why Jesus responded to the Syrophoenician woman as he did, but her response teaches us as well as His disciples. She understood the vast power of God (thus her request was for mere crumbs), and she reminds us that there were crumbs below the table precisely because the children had dropped dropped and rejected them. There's a challenge for all of us who want to be the Children of God.
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The strong emphasis on the authority of Jesus continues through a number of stories.
We briefly discuss Jesus calming the storm at the end of Mark 4, and then spend some time examining the demon-possessed man in Mark 5. The second half of this chapter tells of a woman healed and a girl resurrected, but we can't add to the stimulating comments way back in episode 8 of season 2 of this podcast! We get a bit deep in the geography of the Gerasenes, Gennesaret, and the Decapolis - but find our way back to an important reflection on what these stories are trying to tell us about Jesus.
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Mark 4 presents a number of seed stories, and we go looking at even more.
It is interesting to see how useful the agricultural analogy of seeds are for Jesus and other biblical writers. We explore a few examples growing out of this chapter, and end up somewhat sympathetic to the disciples who later "asked him what the parables meant".
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Mark's rapid story-telling presents a healing and a confrontation with religious leaders.
The paralysed man being lowered through the roof is a well-known story, but has plenty to discuss. The four faithful friends are one of the best examples of the power of intercession, and it is interesting to honestly examine whether we might be inclined to an attitude similar to "the teachers of religious law."
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It's interesting that the first "healing" in Mark is casting out an evil spirit.
This is a short episode recorded in somewhat adverse circumstances, and we notice the emphasis on Jesus' authority and authenticity. We look forward to exploring these themes as we progress through Mark.
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We're looking forward to a season exploring the Gospel of Mark.
One of the interesting themes in this opening chapter is time.
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How do we keep our awe and attention on the Love of God as the story ends?
The Adventist church has various more-or-less clear pictures it regularly tells about the closing stages of the Great Controversy. It is certainly not unique in its fascination with the apocalypse and transition to a restored resurrected eternity. We discuss a few details which seem not to mesh all that well with the loving revelation of God in the life and ministry of Jesus, and conclude with a resounding endorsement of focussing on His love.
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In the great controversy, what is Truth opposing?
The lesson this week states it is a battle between "truth and error", but quotes from John 8 where Satan is called the "father of lies". It doesn't seem that error means exactly the same thing as lies, and so we explore this passage in John to see what might be the opposite of Truth. We strongly suspect the issue at hand might go deeper than erroneous intellectual ideas.
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