Do you find that some aspects of the Christmas story, no matter how familiar, stand out to you more some years than others? For me this season, it was those mysterious magi. What do we really know about these exotic visitors from a distant land? Are they a fulfillment to Biblical prophesies, and if so, […]
The synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) share similarities with each other, including their versions of Jesus’ parables. (The Gospel of John doesn’t contain parables.) When I discovered that Jesus’ parables constitute over one-third of the Master’s teachings in these three books, it was time to treat them as more than loved stories whose characters […]
As you study Jesus’ parables’, it becomes obvious quickly how important the Sower and the Seed story is, one of the few to appear in all three synoptic Gospels. (John’s Gospel doesn’t contain any parables.) But even more noticeable is that the Sower and the Seed story leads the rest, in Matthew (Matt. 13:3-17), Mark […]
Since our theme is leadership this month of May, let’s talk about a rather obscure event in Jesus’ ministry that illustrates one of leadership’s tougher aspects: declaring the sacred cows of our lives that are broken and need fixing. Matthew 21 tells one of those stories that can leave us scratching our heads more than […]
