John 9 (AD 29) The Pharisees hereby continue their head-scratching propensity to ignore the enormous significance of what’s in front of their faces and focus instead on whether their godless bonus rules are being kept: Jesus healed a blind man who was then taken to the Pharisees. Then – to paraphrase the following conversations in … More Day 67: Don’t wanna believe, not gonna believe
John 8:12-59 (AD 29) Today’s passage is a uniquely argument-filled section. Jesus was facing down not just the religious leaders but groups of Jews who were attacking him with bad theology. Remind yourself first that Jesus, whilst God, was also a man capable of feeling hurt and being saddened. Note also the viciousness of the … More Day 66: Arguing with the children of Satan
Luke 9:51-62 (autumn, AD 29) Ever had the urge to do something useful, moved in the direction of doing that useful thing and had second thoughts when you got close? Often we can become excited by the anticipated end point, only to be discouraged when we catch sight of how long, winding and uneven is … More Day 64: Set your fa…wait, where was I?
Luke 9:51 (autumn, AD29) “As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.“ Older translations refer to him “set[ting] his face”. The Greek words ‘prosōpon stērizō’ literally mean, ‘his face set to turn resolutely in a certain direction’. Why did he have to set out ‘resolutely’. Why … More Day 63: Set your face
When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he knew that he was going to his death. Here’s what his last week looked like: Monday: Encounters blasphemous treatment of the temple – clears the temple. Plots to kill him continue, failed attempt to arrest him. Tuesday: [Matthew devotes five of his 28 chapters to this … More Horrifying Friday
Matthew 18 (AD 29) We’d like to think that we wouldn’t ask boneheaded self-serving questions like the disciples did. But let’s be honest – we absolutely would. “Who…is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” is a classic of its type: a cross between mindless trivia and self-absorbed ambition. Jesus’ illustration of needing to go … More Day 61: Soft love, tough love
Matthew 17:22-27 (AD 29) At this point in the story, Jesus was less than a year from being crucified, and this was the second prediction of his own death in a matter of (most likely) days or weeks (see Matthew 16:21-28). That first time, Peter had gotten angry with Jesus for talking of his own … More Day 60: Let Jesus finish his sentence
Matthew 17:1-21 (AD 29) In our previous passage (Mark 8:27-9:1) Jesus had predicted great suffering for himself. He followed that up with a memorable affirmation from the Father about who Jesus was. The ‘appearance’ of Moses and Elijah may not be as theologically bewildering as it seems, as it’s likely that this event was a … More Day 59: He is who he says he is
Mark 8:27-9:1 (AD 29) This is arguably the hinge passage in Mark’s gospel, marking the transition between establishing the identity of Jesus (chapters 1-8, covering about 34 years), and charting the consequences of that identity (chapters 8-16, covering less than a year). One can’t read too much into it, but it’s notable that the disciples’ … More Day 58: ‘Get behind me, Satan!’
Mark 8:1-26 (AD 29) Alcoholic fermentation involves the digesting of sugar by yeast. It produces ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide, which is how bread gets some of its flavour and all of its not-flatness. Trapped by the flexible dough, all the gas doesn’t disperse or break it’s surroundings, it just pushes it out. That’s the … More Day 57: Beware the single-celled fungi
Paul T Reynolds 