In this episode we talk about the significance of the women mentioned in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus. For this conversation, Dr. John Anthony Dunne and Brandon Hurlbert are joined by Dr. Jeannine Brown, Professor of New Testament at Bethel Seminary (St. Paul, MN), member of the NIV Translation Committee, and author of a few commentaries on Matthew. We talk about why genealogies are worth digging into rather than skipping, why it’s significant that women are...
At my local church here in Minneapolis, Mill City Church, we’ve been reading through and preaching through the New Testament, and the plan was always to preach through Revelation for Advent. This was planned long before 2020 became the “apocalyptic” year that we all think of it as. At present, one of the particularly relevant aspects of Revelation for our cultural moment is the notion among some concerned Christians that maybe the COVID-19 vaccine might...
Enough for him whom cherubim, Worship night and day, A breastful of milk, And a mangerful of hay; Enough for him whom angels Fall down before, The ox and ass and camel, Which adore (A Christmas Carol, Christina Rossetti) It’s hard to imagine the King of the universe, the Word of God through which everything has been made, being content with a stomach full of milk, laying in a manger of hay. For the rest of humanity,...
O come! O come! Emmanuel! And ransom captive Israel; That mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appear. Advent is a time of mournful waiting. Participants in this season undergo a theatrical embodiment of the struggles of the people of God. In this drama, the Church relives, in a sense, a time in history in which the Messiah had not yet visited his people. We participate in such a drama in order...
For those who don’t know, I am getting married in about 30 days from now. The prospect of this fills me with such joy, primarily because my wife-to-be is my best friend and someone I choose not to live without. There will be so many practical benefits to our marriage: Cutting commute time in half, functionally saving up to thirty hours a month; less sleep; more sleep; building a home of our own. Yet, I...
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it saved Israel. As he unwittingly proto-typed Jesus, the Good Shepherd, Moses was distracted by a curious phenomenon: “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” (Ex. 3:3) Read the rest of the story here. Why is the bush not burned? Moses’ question is not answered, but Israel is set free from slavery. — Even more curious is the mystery of...
I appreciate the season of Advent – not just for the joy of Christmas parties, decorations, carols, eggnog, gift-giving and receiving, and celebrating the holiday with family and friends, but also for the longing and anticipation that comes with the Advent season. I’m grateful being reminded that the joy of Christmas and the reality of Christ’s incarnation only happened after Israel waited and anticipated for hundreds of years for the Messiah to come. Even in...
It’s been 27 days since most American’s have begun the bell curve that is participation in Christmastide, and the participation in Advent, for those who chose to devotionally and/or liturgically relive the anticipation of the coming of Messiah. Yet now, the gift wrap is all torn asunder, and presents have all been revealed. The holiday classics have all aired for the year. The eggnog carton is empty. The ugly sweater parties have ceased. The derives, caroling...
How preposterous a thought it is that in the often barren, frigid, and life-drained months of winter that we celebrate the birth of new life of Jesus, the God-Man. The church’s celebration of the resurrection seems to get it right- the rising from death to the glory of new life remembered on Resurrection Sunday seems aptly fit for the greening and budding months of Spring. Yet, the tapestry of the testaments are here to remind...
On Sunday we lit the second Advent candle in church, which means I’ve been observing Advent for the first time as an adult for about a week and a half. I’m pretty sure you need to practice this tradition for years to be able to really sink down into the season and begin to glimpse the treasures it offers, but, here, quickly, are a few initial observations. 1. Waiting Is Undervalued. I admit that I...
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