A meme is something that spreads qucickly through a culture, an idea or concept, often an image, especially via social media. It may or may not be true but it’s impact is based on that ability to spread and its stickiness rather than on the evidence behind it. I wonder if we have such an… Continue reading The “Jesus and non-violent resistance” meme
Tag: Matthew
The Big Preach
The Gospels introduce both to what Jesus did and what he said. A significant proportion of that teaching is grouped together in both Matthew and Luke at around about this point either under the heading of “The Sermon on the Mount” when referencing Matthew or “The Sermon on the Plain” (Luke). I believe both accounts… Continue reading The Big Preach
The pearl of great price -another perspective
In Matthew 13, Jesus tells two parables about valuable treasure. First he describes a man finding a a field with buried treasure in it. He sells everything in order to purchase the field and so own the treasure in it (13:44), then in the following verse he tells of a merchant who finds a pearl… Continue reading The pearl of great price -another perspective
What happens when Jews read Matthew’s Gospel together for the first time?
Rabbi Jonathan Romain writes in the Church Times that his Synagogue congregation have been reading through Matthew’s Gospel together, an exercise in Jewish-Christian dialogue. HE acknowledges the imbalance in the conversation as is caused by the fact that Jews are unfamiliar with the New Testament whilst Christians have read the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). In… Continue reading What happens when Jews read Matthew’s Gospel together for the first time?
How not to apply Song of Songs (or any part of the Bible) to Jesus
Last week, I shared some blog articles on the Song of Songs talking about whether and how we could/should apply it to Christ and the church. You’ll notice that whilst I’ve been writing that the Song is meant to be about Christ, that I’ve been careful to distinguish things like prophecy, metaphor and typology from… Continue reading How not to apply Song of Songs (or any part of the Bible) to Jesus
Who needs a doctor? (Mark 2:13-17)
We now begin to see why sharp divisions were growing between Jesus and the Pharisees. There was a clear line drawn between “us and them”. That line was between those who were considered to be faithful or at least trying to be faithful to YHWH by keeping Torah, by seeking to be pure, clean, hol… Continue reading Who needs a doctor? (Mark 2:13-17)
Gethsemane
For Good Friday, here’s a little Bible study, formally used at our old Sunday Night Church. I thought this might be a useful thing for people wanting something to work through reflectively. I’ll also be sharing a study on the crucifixion For Starters Have you ever made a New Year’s Resolution or similar commitment/promise? What… Continue reading Gethsemane
Remember: You are not Jesus!
What turns out to be the most controversial is often a surprise. Sometimes I can write something or say something and it gets little reaction when I would expect it to create a lot of heat. Other times, I say something I consider fairly innocuous or obvious and it creates waves with people taking the… Continue reading Remember: You are not Jesus!
Is three a magic number?
You’ve probably heard people quote these words from Matthew 18:19-20 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” And you’ve probably heard them used to suggest… Continue reading Is three a magic number?
Confrontation in church life
The other day, I wrote about the risks of getting a response to trouble and confrontation wrong. I wrote specifically about the challenges facing the West in responding to Vladimir Putin. However, most of us are not involved in major geo-political issues and hold little power over politicians or big business so on one level,… Continue reading Confrontation in church life
Faithroots 