Understanding context makes for a much clearer story
Today on Discover the Word, Randy Richards and Brandon O’Brien join the team to lead a discussion on the story of David and Bathsheba and Uriah. Discover how understanding their culture makes some confusing things about this story a lot clearer. Join the conversation about “Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes,” today on Discover the Word!
Can God Be Trusted? My Struggle with Asperger’s
“Have you heard of Autism Spectrum Disorder?” David, my mission team leader, casually asked me while we were having lunch at Makassar, Indonesia, while on a mission trip.
Jesus Loves Maysel
When my sister Maysel was little, she would sing a familiar melody in her own way: “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells Maysel.” This irritated me to no end! As one of her older, “wiser” sisters, I knew the words were “me so,” not “Maysel.” Yet she persisted in singing it her way.
Now I think my sister had it right all along. The Bible does indeed tell Maysel, and all of us, that Jesus loves us. Over and over again we read that truth. Take, for example, the writings of the apostle John, “the disciple whom Jesus…
“Love God and love others” – How did this gospel get Jesus crucified?
The gospel is sometimes summarized as “Love God and love others.” So it makes you wonder how that message got Jesus crucified. Today, the Discover the Word team continues their series titled “Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes”—providing cultural perspective for the Bible. We’ll learn why some things we consider orthodox were absolutely revolutionary to first-century […]
Isn’t My Job Supposed To Mean Something?
Over a year ago, I found myself worn out and exhausted: greatly taxed from a job that didn’t seem to give much in return for my effort.
Christmas at MacPherson
About 230 families and individuals live at Macpherson Gardens, Block 72 in my neighborhood. Each person has his or her own life story. On the tenth floor resides an elderly woman whose children have grown up, gotten married, and moved out. She lives by herself now. Just a few doors away from her is a young couple with two kids—a boy and a girl. And a few floors below lives a young man serving in the army. He has been to church before; maybe he will visit again on Christmas Day. I met these people last Christmas when our church…
Waiting
“How much longer until it’s Christmas?” When my children were little, they asked this question repeatedly. Although we used a daily Advent calendar to count down the days to Christmas, they still found the waiting excruciating.
We can easily recognize a child’s struggle with waiting, but we might underestimate the challenge it can involve for all of God’s people. Consider, for instance, those who received the message of the prophet Micah, who promised that out of Bethlehem would come a “ruler over Israel” (5:2) who would “stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord” (v. 4). The initial…
Ham and Eggs
In the fable of the chicken and the pig, the two animals discuss opening a restaurant together. As they plan their menu, the chicken suggests they serve ham and eggs. The pig swiftly objects saying, “No thanks. I’d be committed, but you would only be involved.”
Although the pig didn’t care to put himself on the platter, his understanding of commitment is instructive to me as I learn to better follow God with my whole heart.
To protect his kingdom, Asa, king of Judah, sought to break up a treaty between the kings of Israel and Aram. To accomplish this, he sent…
How our “cultural blinders”affect how we read the Bible
We all know Jesus wasn’t a 21st-century American, yet we often read the Bible with cultural assumptions we might not even be aware of! Today on Discover the Word, we invite Randy Richards and Brandon O’Brien back to the table for a fascinating discussion about how our “cultural blinders” often affect how we read the […]
