By the Numbers

By the Numbers: "And" in the Gospels

While reading the Gospel of Mark (in the ESV) the other day I was struck by how many verses begin with the word “And”. What made this stand out to me all the more was a section in Mark 8 where “And” began nine sentences in a row in just five verses (8:6-10). That got me thinking about the way in which Mark wrote his gospel.

Nearly everyone who picks up and reads the Gospel of Mark can sense the pace of his story. This is even more clear when it’s compared with the other gospels writers—Matthew, Luke, and John. Matthew’s gospel seems to me to be episodic.

By the Numbers: "Love" in 1 John 4:7-21

1 Corinthians 13 is often referred to as the “love chapter” in the New Testament, and rightfully so. What Paul says about love in that part of his letter is worldview altering. We all ought to come to 1 Corinthians 13 ready and willing to be examined by God through Scripture because what Paul says there is no less than definitional about love.

That being said—and you should have known an exception was going to be made from the title of this article—if we’re going by the numbers there’s one section in the New Testament that really ought to be considered a primary authority on love. And that section is 1 John 4:7-21.