Lee Harmon's Blog, page 20
July 18, 2014
Book Excerpt: John’s Gospel: The Way It Happened
“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”
Jesus mashed his eyes shut, trying to expel words that had burned into his brain. Those were John the Baptizer’s words, bellowed invectives Jesus heard over and over from the day he became a follower.
“Come, you sinful nation, cross the Jordan with me. As your ancestors crossed this river into the promised land, so cross with me, and be clean! Be purged of your sins! Enter Adonai’s holy land again, through these cleansing wat...
July 17, 2014
Matthew 2:11, The Nazarene from Bethlehem
And when [the magi] were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him.
//There are two different birth stories of Jesus in our Bible. One comes from the gospel of Matthew (see above), and the other comes from Luke. Here is Luke’s story:
And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary...
July 16, 2014
Proverbs 14:31, Respect the Poor
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.
//Ever thought about the poor in this way? If you marginalize the poor, you show contempt for God. This same thought is repeated in another proverb:
Whoever mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished. –Proverbs 17:5
It’s possible to read the instructions of Jesus and his great concern for the poor and attempt to spiritualize it all. We tu...
July 15, 2014
Galatians 2:2, Pauline and Petrine Christianity
And I went up by revelation, and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or had run, in vain.
//The self-proclaimed “apostle” Paul writes that he learned about the Way of Jesus through revelation. He is emphatic that he not only received instruction from Jesus directly, but that he never shared that instruction with the Christian church in Jerusalem. He implies that it was fourteen years b...
July 14, 2014
Come Out of Her My People
by Tony Kessinger
★★★★
The mysterious book of Revelation was addressed to seven churches in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). Kessinger examines these “churches” (cities) in historical context, to see what lessons can be drawn for our benefit today.
This is a good book, so let me get my minor complaints out of the way first. First, it reads just a little dry, but that’s made up for by deep scholarship. It’s seldom that we readers get both. Second, Kessinger’s insistence that Revelation is the insp...
July 13, 2014
Micah 4:4, A New Economic Order
But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree,
And no one shall make them afraid;
For the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.
//When the Israelites escaped from the bondage of Egypt, they set about making a law code which would affirm the value of every life in the congregation. Never again would a life be lived with no hope of anything but slavery. No longer would the land belong only to a few rich folk, who benefited from the labor of others. Among the laws Israel enacted are...
July 12, 2014
Isaiah 55:3, The Hills Are Alive
Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—
The sure mercies of David.
//The 53rd psalm is some of the most beautiful poetry in the Bible. God calls to all who are thirsty, telling them to come to the waters. Telling we who have no money to come buy and eat, for the wine and milk is without price.
Then comes the verse above begging us to listen. Hear what God has to say and your soul shall live. Soon we learn what it is that w...
July 11, 2014
Matthew 9:11, The Closed Communion
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
//It would seem that one of the hardest examples for Jesus’ followers to accept was his willingness to eat with anyone. That just simply wasn’t done; you don’t share your table with others below your caste. Not as a Jew in Jesus’ day.
But Paul understood. It disturbed Paul greatly when his fellow Christians struggled with this precept. He soundly criticized Peter for his failure i...
July 10, 2014
Acts 2:1-4, The Day Christianity Began
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
//You’ve been reading the account of the descent of the Holy Spirit fifty days after Jesus resurrected. It’...
July 9, 2014
Book review: The Bible Tells Me So
by Peter Enns
Oops! Sorry, folks! We jumped the gun on this one, publishing our review before the publicist intended, and throwing off her campaign plan. So we pulled the review, and will re-post it when the publication date arrives.
This is a book you don’t want to miss, so look for it again in a couple months!
