Blog: May 2017

Zacchaeus lived in the town of Jericho. He was a chief tax collector. Zacchaeus’s job was to collect money from the Jews for the Roman government. Many people knew Zacchaeus, and many did not like him. The Bible says that Zacchaeus was rich. Tax collectors often collected more money than necessary and kept the surplus for themselves. His greed and dishonesty led Zacchaeus to being looked down upon as a “sinner.” But Zacchaeus treasured his wealth more than his reputation. Zacchaeus probably never imagined that his entire life would change ...

At the time Jesus was on earth, the social food chain went like this: Jews don’t talk to Samaritans. The strife between the two groups stretched back hundreds of years, to the Babylonian exile. When the Babylonians attacked Judah, they moved a large group of God’s people away from their homes. But some of the people—the poorest, sickest, least able to work—were left behind in the region that became known as Samaria. The exile lasted 70 years.  During that time, those left in Samaria began to mingle with their neighbors to the north. They ...

Our studies in 1 Corinthians have prompted us to revisit the Bible’s teaching on man and woman in the life of the church.  Chapter 11 addressed gender-specific actions in worship:  women were to wear head-coverings when praying and prophesying; not doing so in the social setting of the time would have dishonored a married woman’s “head,” her husband (11:5).  Then ch. 14 indicated that women should “be silent” (14:34)—and yet we know this is not an absolute prohibition; it must be with respect to a certain type of speaking.  After all, 11:5 ...

Last Sunday we explored 1 Corinthians 13 together—the love chapter. And although God’s truth about love can be applied in marriage, friend­ship, and just about any kind of relationship, the point of the passage is to infuse the culture of the church with a self-giving, Christ-like attitude that relentlessly pursues the good of the beloved. “Love is patient and kind” (13:4).  Love “does not insist on its own way” (13:5).  Love is tough; it “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (13:7).  And love never ...