Category: John
John 7—Is It Ever OK To Lie?
In John 7, Jesus’ brothers urge him to go to the feast in Judaea. He declines, stating he will not go. His brothers set off without him. But then Jesus *does* go. Secretly. Halfway through the feast, he makes himself quite public by teaching in the temple.
What’s up with this? Why did he lie to his brothers? He’s Jesus, so he must have known he was going to attend the feast, and that what he was saying to his brothers wasn’t true. And why did he keep a low profile there, around everyone, if he was just going to end up teaching in the temple anyway?
Easter as New Birth
Happy Easter! Today I discuss Easter as an event of new birth.
The Family of Abraham: Part 18—Jacob’s Ladder
I comment on Genesis 28 and Jacob’s Ladder.
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Are David’s Five Smooth Stones Related to Christ’s Five Loaves?
This is a follow-up to yesterday’s video on the five stones David picked up when facing Goliath.
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Numerology
Can you present some guidelines for a responsible handling of Biblical numerology? Many numerologists go way overboard, and many sober-minded theologians reject its use wholesale. Can you inject some moderation into this?
Why is the Apostle Peter Called Simon Bar-Jonah?
I found it odd that Jesus would address Peter as “Simon bar-Jonah” after his declaration of Jesus as the Christ (Matthew 16:17) — not because it’s uncommon for men to be referred to as “the son of” someone in the biblical text, but because the occurrence takes place so soon (in the text) after Jesus’ declaration that the only sign that the “wicked and adulterous generation” would receive was “the sign of [what I assume to be the prophet] Jonah” (16:4). Do you see anything beyond the coincidental double appearance of the name Jonah here?
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The Test of Jealousy
How should we interpret the water of bitterness in the ordeal for adultery in Numbers chapter 5? Is this some sort of a miracle on demand? If not, how much of an idea can we get regarding what’s going on?
Creation Days in John’s Gospel
What are we to make of the echoes of Genesis 1-2:3 in John 1-2:11? Is there any correlation between the days in Genesis and the days in John?
Why Was Jesus Baptized?
Why did Jesus have to be baptized? Was Jesus’ baptism a baptism of repentance?
