Theological disputes are not something unique to our time, or even the time of our ancient relatives.

Reaching all the way back to the first century we can find disagreements about important theological matters.

Jesus had his arguments with the Pharisees and Sadducees, not to mention those with the religious leaders of his day. Paul had to deal with controversies with church members as they were still learning what it meant to live in this new kingdom with its new covenant. And John felt pushback from those who insisted that although Jesus may have been God (there were definitely some who thought he wasn’t), he surely wasn’t a human being.

Just before talking about the common practices of giving, praying, and fasting, Jesus gives his hearers this warning: “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven” (Mt 6:1, NIV).

There are at least two things to make note of with that statement.

Here are my three favorite books—along with short blurbs for each book provided by Logos Bible Software—pushing back on the idea that the KJV is not just the best English Bible translation available, but the only trustworthy English translation.

Parables, by their very nature, are not easy to understand… at least, not at first.

A parable is a unique type of story designed to promote observation, meditation, and action. A parable that does not invite this sort of deep thinking and eventual active response to the meaning contained within the story is not a parable after all.

I was listening to a podcast on Jesus’s parables and, as the host introduced the episode by giving a quick rundown of what was going to be discussed—as all good hosts do—he said something that caught my ear. While setting up the importance of Jesus’s parables he referenced a place in Mark’s gospel where the evangelist writes about Jesus’s teaching style and this host said, “It even says specifically that when Jesus taught the masses…he taught exclusively in parables.”

In the longest chapter of one of the longest books of the Bible, the psalmist wrote, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Ps 119:11, NIV).

All 176 verses of this psalm are dedicated to the written revelation of God, because of its supreme value. In particular, this psalmist at the time valued it for how it might help keep him from sin.

What is holiness? I see a picture of some saint in my head, holding up three fingers, alone on a hill, staring longingly up at the sky, with a halo around his head (sometimes her head, but mostly his head). Or, are we talking about "His Holiness, the Pope?" Or, something set aside for a specific purpose? Or, is that sanctification? Is it the same thing?

A friend asked me what I have learned from teaching my daughter about Jesus. However,  I could not come up with an answer. After thinking about it for some time, I realized that I do not teach my little girl about Jesus. If I want her to know her Savior, I have learned that I have to show my child who Jesus is.

We don't talk about covenants much in our day-to-day lives, but they are integral for understanding the biblical storyline and what part of that story you and I find ourselves.

The movie, Sully, is about the real life event of when Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger safely landed a commercial aircraft on the Hudson River after losing both engines from a bird strike shortly after takeoff. Throughout the movie the NTSB (the National Transportation Safety Board) had been investigating the water landing to determine if Sully had actually made a mistake by going for the Hudson when he could have—and should have—headed for a nearby airport.

Podcasts are the best.

I especially like listening to The Rewatchables, which is a podcast where a group of 2-4 people discuss their favorite “rewatchable” movies.

During the last episode I listened to they were talking about Ghost. (A movie I haven’t seen before… I know, I know, I should make it a point to watch it.) Since the movie is about someone’s loved one being killed and then returning as a ghost it didn’t take long for the conversation to come to a discussion about the afterlife.

Of all the things Jesus said to get himself in trouble with the religious leaders of his day (“Your sins are forgiven”, “Before Moses was, I am”, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath”, etc.) what he said in John 10:30 might have been the topper.

Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament, 28th Edition
Οὐ γὰρ ἐπαισχύνομαι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον, δύναμις γὰρ θεοῦ ἐστιν εἰς σωτηρίαν παντὶ τῷ πιστεύοντι,

Several years ago I watched a pretty intense and illuminating debate on the Trinity between two people who (obviously) did not share the same belief. One believed the God who revealed himself within the Scriptures revealed himself as triune (i.e., the Trinity). The other manifestly believed he did not. For him, God is “one”—case closed (i.e., Unitarian).

It [the new heavens and new earth] will be a world ruled by love, through the one who is love, with those who live in love.

Surely there can’t be a confusion between hell and paradise. Those two realities are more different than quite possibly anything else we could imagine. Jesus either descended to hell or descended to paradise.

Not everyone needs to learn New Testament Greek. But, oh man, it’s pretty fun to be able to.

Those who are interested in New Testament Greek but don’t take up the challenge of learning it don’t do so because they don’t believe it’s doable. I, for sure, was one of those people.

If I say I hate asparagus, pretty much everyone knows what I mean. It means I really don't like it (which is absolutely true). Now watch what happens when I switch out asparagus for something else.

Burgers or pizza tonight?

What about burgers or pizza for the next 40-nights? What about for the next 10-years? Or, what about for the rest of your life?

John Piper is fond of saying, “Books don’t change people, paragraphs do — sometimes sentences.” To his credit, he does quickly iron out this statement by explaining that he doesn’t think books are a waste of time—he’s written over 50 of them!—it’s just that it’s difficult told hold an entire thesis of a book in your head at once.