Allan R. Bevere

Changes Here at My Blog

2024-04-04T19:32:00.001-05:00

The time has come for me to move on from the blogger platform. I have been blogging here since December of 2005, and it has been a great run!

I am not going away, but I am shifting all of my writing to Substack. The address is https://allanrbevere.substack.com/. In consolidating my venues, I also hope to post more content.

I will keep this domain active for a few weeks before it disappears.

See you on Substack!

Believing Is Seeing: Can a Scientist Believe in the Resurrection?

2024-04-02T07:42:00.001-05:00

On this episode of "Believing Is Seeing," we ask theologian and astrophysicist, Rev. Professor David Wilkinson about his Christian faith and whether the belief in a bodily raised Jesus is credible in the twenty-first century. David has two Ph.Ds: one in astrophysics and the other in systematic theology.

David Wilkinson is ⁠Director of Equipping Christian Leadership in an Age of Science⁠ (ECLAS), an international project based at St John’s College, Durham University, U.K. in which Cranmer Hall is situated. He is also a Professor in the ⁠Department of Theology and Religion.

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Coming This Week on the Daily Lectionary - March 31-April 6, 2024

2024-03-30T10:49:00.000-05:00

SUNDAY: Taming the Wild Beasts

MONDAY: A “Spiritual Body”?

TUESDAY: The Mortal Body and Immortality

SPECIAL POST: Can a Scientist Believe in the Resurrection?

WEDNESDAY: Psalm 118 and Easter

THURSDAY: The Beauty of Wisdom and Knowledge

FRIDAY: Who Were the Sadducees?

SATURDAY: Speaking the Words of the Father

The Daily Lectionary

The God of Christianity Is Not a Tribal Deity

2024-03-28T15:04:00.002-05:00

The God of Christianity is not a tribal deity. To connect him as having special status to any earthly nation is to reduce the God of the Universe to the tribal equivalent of Baal or Chemosh.

On this Holy Thursday, we are reminded that Jesus instituted for his followers-- not just American Christians-- a meal in which all are invited. And though different Christian traditions do not agree on whether Christians from other traditions can partake of the sacrament in their tradition, one thing that no church requires is a birth certificate or citizenship papers in order to sit at the Lord's Table.

The people God has called to be a light to the world is not America or Canada or Germany, but the Church. The Church is God's holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). It is the ONLY Christian nation that has ever existed and will ever exist. To claim any earthly nation as Christian is to commit ecclesiastical fraud. Thus, to connect the secular documents of any nation-- e.g. the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence-- to the Bible is to profane the very writings that the Church has declared holy. It is to reduce the Bible to just another cultural liturgy of one nation, enlisting it in the kind of tribalism the New Testament rejects.

The Bible is the story of God and God's work in the world in order to reconcile the world; and the Church as God's holy nation bears witness to that transnational message that cannot be tamed or enslaved to the provincial boundaries of national borders.

It is a good thing for Christians in America to love America, but what cannot be done is to baptize the secular and enlist the Scriptures in service to one earthly people by binding it with other documents that God has not inspired. To do so is to commit idolatry and peddle heresy.

Christian Nationalism turns the God of the Universe into a golden calf and reduces the church into nothing other than a cheerleader for narrow national interests.

One Doesn't Have to Be a Nihilist to Stare Into the Abyss

2024-03-25T02:00:00.009-05:00

Nihilism: a viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that existence is senseless and useless (Merriam-Webster).

I am not a nihilist, though those who know me know I am attracted to nihilistic humor. I believe that the universe points to toward a Creator, and because I cannot explain the existence of Christianity apart from the bodily resurrection of Jesus, I believe the empty tomb points toward a universe with purpose-- a divinely given purpose in the new creation God has initiated in the risen Christ.

However, as a person of curiosity and questioning faith, I have periodically stared into the nihilistic abyss, particularly as I have become older, knowing that less years lie ahead than what is now behind. I wonder at times if I have made a difference and am not sure if that difference will ripple into the future after I am dead. Has all my work been for naught? Will my loyalties, sacrifices, and convictions not survive in eternity? What if there is no eternity? What if the abyss is at the end of it all?

It is reminiscent of the conversation after Jacob Marley's burial in the 1999 version of Dickens, "Christmas Carol."

Crump: I can hardly believe that Mr. Marley's gone."
Priest: "He's at peace, Mr Crump."
Scrooge: "He's nowhere sir. Truth is he's dead, dead as a door nail, though I don't know what's particularly dead about a door nail."
Crump: Come to think of it, I wouldn't think that a door nail was the deadest piece of iron mongery in the trade. Why not say he's dead as a door knob or a door knocker?"
Scrooge: Nail, knob, or knocker-- Jacob's gone. If there's an end to it a mighty poor turnout for such an important businessman."
Priest: "Perhaps it was because of the day he died?"
Scrooge: "The day he died sir?"
Crump: "Christmas Eve. It would account for the lack of grieving relatives."
Scrooge: "At least he was spared that in his final hours."
Priest: "Great loss, sir. We leave you to grieve in silence."

My belief in a God who gives us the gift of eternity, does not mean that doubts are always absent. Faith does not mean the absence of doubt, though doubt can become too normative for faith to have vitality. Faith is the posture of life that moves us forward even in the midst of doubts. Like the man who said to Jesus, "I believe. Help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24), I make that plea at times to God in my prayers. Like Thomas, there are moments that I want Jesus to stand before me, so I can put my fingers in the nail marks in his hands, and the spear wound in his side (John 20:25). I look at the vastness of the universe and wonder along with the psalmist, "what are human beings that you, O God are mindful of us" (Psalm 8:4)? Doubts and questions are the natural outgrowth of curiosity. Since curiosity is a gift, doubts and questions cannot be bad in and of themselves.

I pity people who are not curious and whose questions never get any deeper than the superficial. They live day in and day out walking through an unexamined life that Socrates said was not worth living. While they never face serious questions and doubts that keep them up at night embodying the adage that ignorance is bliss, neither do they encounter the joy and wonder of knowing there is more to know than what can be seen. For them, the future is just the movement toward the end of it all than the anticipation of death as, in the words of Shakespeare, "the undiscovered country." Perhaps the abyss is not a black hole that swallows all, but the place where a new journey begins?

In this Holy Week, we journey with Jesus as he covets the community of his friends one last time, the doubts as he prays in a garden, the painful darkness of crucifixion, and the silence and cold of the tomb. As one who seeks and wonders, I think I understand Jesus when he questioned on the cross, "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34). Nevertheless, like Jesus I trust in God exclaiming, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46). Jesus could stare into the abyss having faith that his Heavenly Father would not let the darkness have the last word.

Easter is coming. The undiscovered country is about to be revealed.

Calmly Considered: The Silver Tsunami

2024-03-21T07:12:00.005-05:00

On this episode of "Calmly Considered," Michael and Allan discuss the "silver tsunami," the wave of older adults growing across the world. What are the challenges of the silver tsunami? The opportunities? Is the language of silver tsunami derogatory? Michael and Allan ponder the questions.

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Plain Truth for Plain People: The Folk Theology of John Wesley (Introduction)

2024-03-18T02:00:00.004-05:00

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism was first and foremost a preacher. It is estimated that he preached over 40,000 sermons in his approximately 60 year career.

For two centuries, Wesley's published sermons have been an important source of theological reflection for all Methodists, in particular his 44 standard sermons that he published between 1746 and 1760. These sermons are considered to be "canonical" for understanding Wesleyan theology. In the standard sermons, Wesley provided the center of his doctrinal teaching. All the sermons after that were considered to be supplementary.(1)

That the sermon was intended to be the main vehicle for conveying theological discourse is not surprising given Wesley's own Anglican context in the 18th century. The sermon along with Scripture, the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the patristic writings, and the liturgies of the Book of Common Prayer, et. al. were seen as authoritative sources for theological reflection.(2) In other words, Wesley was simply using the main means of communication in his day, and for an itinerant preacher the sermon was central. The sermon was to convey the means of salvation and instruction on holy living. While Wesley was an extemporaneous preacher, his manuscripts were published mainly for the benefit of his lay preachers. They were publications after the fact of his own itinerant ministry. While it is likely not the case that Wesley actually preached these sermons per se, they are in Father John's own words, "the substance of what I have been preaching for eight and nine years past."(3)

To use such common means made Wesley, according to Albert Outler, an Anglican folk theologian.(4) He desired to reach the masses with his words and his teaching. In his words, he was speaking "plain truth for plain people." It is true that Wesley's 18th century prose does not lend to plain speech for twenty-first century Western Christians; but for Wesley plain truth meant speaking in a way that avoided the rhetorical elegance of quoting Latin and leaving it untranslated or alluding to thinkers of the past that required an educated populace in order to understand the connections. While Wesley's learning came through in his sermons (and he was a voracious reader), he avoided a kind of flourishing eloquence (most of the time) that required formal education. Wesley was deeply concerned that the message of his sermons remain accessible to all listeners. He writes,

I design plain truth for plain people. Therefore of set purpose I abstain from all nice and philosophical speculations, from all perplexed and intricate reasoning, and as far as possible from even the how of learning, unless in sometimes citing the original Scriptures. I labor to avoid all words which are not easy to be understood, all which are not used in common life; and in particular those kinds of technical terms that so frequently occur in bodies of divinity, those modes of speaking which men of reading are intimately acquainted with, but which to common people are an unknown tongue.(5)

With this in mind, I now begin a series that will look at Wesley's 44 standard sermons summarizing, outlining, and providing commentary on the main teaching of each. There are certainly Wesleyan theologians better equipped than I that have already dealt with these matters. So, one may ask why would I undertake something that others have already done? Four reasons:

First, because I can. Having a rather large social media presence and regular readers, it is something that I would like to offer to those who may not read the works that have already delved into this area. I am offering these reflections free of charge.

Second, within the last decade, my study and research have taken me in other directions and I am personally feeling the need to refresh myself on Wesley's theology. It is valuable to me personally to invite others to join me for this journey into Wesleyan doctrine.

Third, as a pastor for many years, the sermon has also been a primary means of theological communication for me and I find that the sermon today is still essential for passing along the central doctrines of the faith to the church. In twenty-first century America, sermons have centered too much on pop psychology promoting moral therapeutic deism. We need more deep theological reflection that gives coherence and meaning to the Christian faith. In good Wesleyan fashion, I believe that doctrine and practice are interwoven together. Orthodoxy and orthopraxy are integrated. I reject wholesale the belief that what one believes does not matter. I also dismiss the idea that if one has the right beliefs, how one lives is irrelevant. Both misunderstand how faith and works operate together. Faith and faithfulness are of a seamless garment. For Wesleyans, the purpose of sound doctrine is not to hunt heretics, but to know how to live as the people of God.

Fourth, as an academic the need for offering the substance of the faith in the language of the people is essential if such scholarship is not to be viewed as somehow beside the point. Wesley's theology was indeed one of practical divinity; and his sermons are the most significant vehicle for conveying those truths.

While all of Wesley's 151 sermons are important, I will be focusing only on his 44 standard sermons. Once that is completed, if I have the gumption and if I am still breathing, I may indeed venture on to the rest. While I will be utilizing the sermons published in the bicentennial edition of The Works of John Wesley for its critical notes, I will be following the 1872 edition of Wesley's sermons as they are available online and can be accessed here.

As I post on each of these sermons, I hope that you will join me in this conversation. My goal is to post on a sermon every seven to ten days.

___

NOTES

(1) Albert Outler, "Introduction," Volume I. The Works of John Wesley, Sermons 1-33. ed. Albert C. Outler. (Nashville: Abingdon, 1984), p. x.

(2) Cindy Wesley, "What have the sermons of John Wesley ever done for us? John Wesley's sermons and Methodist doctrine." Holiness: The Journal of Wesley House Cambridge (Vol. 1, Issue 1, 2015): p. 133.

(3) John Wesley, Sermons on Several Occasions in Three Volumes, Volume 1. The Works of John Wesley, Sermon 1:1-33. p. 103.

(4) Outler, "Introduction," Volume 1. The Works of John Wesley, p. 26.

(5) Quoted in Kenneth L. Carder, "Proclaiming the Gospel of Grace," in Theology and Evangelism in the Wesleyan Heritage. ed. James C. Logan. (Nashville: Kingswood Books, 1994), p. 83.

Ecclesiastical Fraud and Tribalistic Idolatry

2024-03-01T06:14:00.008-05:00

The one thing that excites me the most about interacting with Christians from all over the world is that it reminds me that the church is truly a global community that transcends all national identities. In worship and conversation with sisters and brothers in Christ in various places, I experience a glimpse of Revelation 7:9-12:

The Asbury Revival One Year Later: A Divine Visitation or Fake Feelingrama?

2024-02-15T03:00:00.003-05:00

It's been one year since the "Asbury Revival." It was a two week experience of continual worship on the campus of Asbury University. Some were skeptical right from the beginning suggesting it was fake. Now, Samuel Sey, after making phone calls to local churches in the Wilmore, KY area, and based on his own experience has concluded that since the fruit of the revival has not resulted in growth of the local churches, the revival was indeed fake (his word). He writes about it here.

Please read the article and give the writer the hearing he deserves; but I have some thoughts to offer.

First, Christians in America have for many reasons become jaded and skeptical of our own, and at times for good reason. We all know of abusive congregations and pastors, and there are days when the egregious is so front and center, we forget about the good and faithful ministry churches are doing all over America. So, we tend to default to naysaying rather than open-mindedness and encouragement. It is not good to be naively accepting, but callously critical is not a good alternative.

Second, the skepticism from the beginning has come, for the most part, from progressively oriented Christians.* Since Asbury's theological and social bent doesn't fit the progressive Christian posture, immediately there was questioning. I dare say, we would not have seen such questioning had the "revival" taken place at a Mainline Protestant seminary.

I have said for years that one of the great problems with the church in America is that Christians are theologically and morally formed more by what it means to be liberal/progressive or conservative than what it means to be Christian. I have no doubt that had such "revival" broken out at a United Methodist seminary, evangelical Christians would be just as skeptical as the Asbury progressive naysayers.

Third, the writer of the article concludes the "revival" was fake because churches in the area had not experienced growth. It certainly is a fair concern that in reference to numbers, the churches don't appear to have been effected by what happened a year ago, but we must not forget several things. While the Day of Pentecost added people to the church, we know that over the decades Christianity did not take hold in Jerusalem. It did take hold in distant places, perhaps from the fact that many of those Pentecostal participants were "from every nation under heaven" and took their "revival" with them when they left the Holy City. How many at the Asbury "revival" took their experience with them?

Fourth, Jesus is clear in his parables that the Kingdom moves and increases in small and at times almost unnoticeable ways. The Kingdom grows like a mustard seed, it works like yeast in dough and you have to dig for it to find it, like a treasure in a field, or search for a lifetime like the merchant in search of that one priceless pearl. So much ministry in the name of Christ bears fruit quietly and slowly. No one can read the parables of Jesus and conclude that one year is enough time to discern fruitfulness. As the New Testament reminds us, God is faithful and does not discern time the way we do.

Fifth, one of the things we human beings do (and yes, ALL of us do it) is that we read our experience of events on to similar events. Sey concludes that the Asbury "revival" was fake because, as he writes, "I became a genuine Christian at a fake revival." I am in no position to question his experience of revivals; but I question whether his experience should be normative for all "revival" events.

Finally, Sey is certainly correct that Christians need to refrain from seeking every ecstatic event and hyped up worship. If the mustard seed and yeast apply to the fruit of the Asbury "revival," it must also apply to the worship and ministry of the church that can be described as normally routine. If the Holy Spirit brings revival, and I believe the Spirit does, it is extraordinary and therefore not the common ordinary way God works. A little revival is good. A lot of ordinary is the way the Kingdom of God moves through the world.

In Luke chapter 9:49-50 we read,

"‘Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Do not stop him; for whoever is not against you is for you.’"

Stanley Hauerwas has said that what it means for Christians in America to be liberal/progressive or conservative is more determinative than what it means to be Christian. Perhaps regardless of which labels we embrace, we need to heed the words of Jesus that those who are not against us are for us, even if they do not follow us as liberal/progressives or conservatives.

Perhaps we should be cautious that our skepticism does lead to false accusations of being drunk with sweet wine (Acts 2:13).
___

*Let me state that the discussion over the "Asbury Revival" need not be framed only in a liberal/progressive, conservative framework. There are other ways to see it. I am responding to the context I have experienced.

Calmly Considered: Why Ukraine Matters

2024-02-13T07:51:00.004-05:00

On this episode of "Calmly Considered," Michael and Allan discuss the continuing saga of Ukraine and why it matters to the United States and the rest of the world.

Podcast

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Equipping Pastors in Cuba

2024-02-08T03:00:00.005-05:00

I am pleased to have been interviewed along with traveling companion, Karen Reaume on our recent trip to Cuba.

Word Revisited: The Bible, Politics, and Imagination

2024-02-01T08:47:00.000-05:00

On this episode of "Word Revisited," ⁠Scot McKnight⁠ discusses his book, ⁠The Bible Is Not Enough: Imagination and Peacemaking in the Modern World⁠.

Podcast

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The Wesleyan Way: Our Holiness Heritage

2024-01-25T06:58:00.003-05:00

On this episode of "The Wesleyan Way," we interview Rev. Craig L. Adams, retired United Methodist pastor who is the keeper of the Wesleyan Holiness Heritage Facebook group. Craig discusses the holiness roots and heritage of United Methodism.

Podcast:

YouTube

2024-01-05T17:29:00.003-05:00

My latest book, Keeping Up with Jesus: A Narrative Devotional Commentary on Mark is now available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1631998919

It is also available at Barnes & Noble. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/book/1144562730?ean=9781631998911

Believing Is Seeing: Speaking Christian in Today's World

2024-01-04T08:13:00.002-05:00

On this episode of "Believing Is Seeing," Allan interviews Rev. Dr. Joy Moore, an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, and Professor of Biblical Preaching at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. They discuss how Christians can speak distinctively on moral issues in today's society.

Podcast: Believing Is Seeing: Speaking Christian in Today's World

YouTube: Believing Is Seeing: Speaking Christian in Today's World

My New Year's Resolutions for 2024.

2023-12-31T15:50:00.002-05:00

The Bible in a Year: Series Links

2023-12-31T01:00:00.019-05:00

These videos were produced in 2021, but the month and day are applicable for all years. The next month's readings will be posted on the last day of the previous month. Please bookmark this page for easy reference.

The Bible in a Year-- January

The Bible in a Year-- February

The Bible in a Year-- March

The Bible in a Year-- April

The Bible in a Year-- May

The Bible in a Year-- June

The Bible in a Year-- July

The Bible in a Year-- August

The Bible in a Year-- September

The Bible in a Year-- October

The Bible in a Year-- November

The Bible in a Year-- December

Merry Christmas!

2023-12-25T01:00:00.001-05:00

Calmly Considered: The Year in Review 2023

2023-12-22T07:57:00.000-05:00

In the final episode of 2023, Michael and Allan reflect on 2023 and look forward to 2024.

Podcast: Calmly Considered: The Year in Review 2023

YouYube: Calmly Considered: The Year in Review 2023

Today Is Charles Wesley's Birthday!

2023-12-18T08:28:00.003-05:00

He and his brother John founded the Methodist movement. He is the author of over 5000 hymns. Charles was born on this day 316 years ago in 1707. In his honor, I share with you one of my favorite hymns.

Did Jolly Old St. Nicholas Punch Another Bishop in the Face?

2023-12-06T03:00:00.004-05:00

NOTE: When this post was written, it incorrectly stated that Arius was a bishop. He was a presbyter.

December 6th is the Feast of St. Nicholas of Myra (270-343) who has come to us through the centuries as Santa Claus. At this time of year, the theological geeks among us post memes on social media reminding us that there is a tale that Bishop Nicholas irritated with Bishop Arius' heretical pronouncements about the person of Jesus slapped Arius across the face in disgust at the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Since theologians tend to live quiet lives of tedium, attending conferences that typically do not lead to violence and other such drama, perhaps it is comforting to think every now and then we can encounter something other than yawns and the need for a coffee break.

The Saint Nicholas Center recounts the tale:

In AD 325 Emperor Constantine convened the Council of Nicaea, the very first ecumenical council. More than 300 bishops came from all over the Christian world to debate the nature of the Holy Trinity. It was one of the early church's most intense theological questions. Arius, from Egypt, was teaching that Jesus the Son was not equal to God the Father. Arius forcefully argued his position at length. The bishops listened respectfully.
As Arius vigorously continued, Nicholas became more and more agitated. Finally, he could no longer bear what he believed was essential being attacked. The outraged Nicholas got up, crossed the room, and slapped Arius across the face! The bishops were shocked. It was unbelievable that a bishop would lose control and be so hotheaded in such a solemn assembly. They brought Nicholas to Constantine. Constantine said even though it was illegal for anyone to strike another in his presence, in this case, the bishops themselves must determine the punishment.
The bishops stripped Nicholas of his bishop's garments, chained him, and threw him into jail. That would keep Nicholas away from the meeting. When the Council ended a final decision would be made about his future.
Nicholas was ashamed and prayed for forgiveness, though he did not waver in his belief. During the night, Jesus and Mary his Mother, appeared, asking, "Why are you in jail?" "Because of my love for you," Nicholas replied. Jesus then gave the Book of the Gospels to Nicholas. Mary gave him an omophorion, so Nicholas would again be dressed as a bishop. Now at peace, Nicholas studied the Scriptures for the rest of the night.
When the jailer came in the morning, he found the chains loose on the floor and Nicholas dressed in bishop's robes, quietly reading the Scriptures. When Constantine was told of this, the emperor asked that Nicholas be freed. Nicholas was then fully reinstated as the Bishop of Myra.
The Council of Nicaea agreed with Nicholas' views, deciding the question against Arius. The work of the Council produced the Nicene Creed which to this day many Christians repeat weekly when they stand to say what they believe.

But did it actually happen? Did the patron saint of children give Arius more than coal in his stocking?

Well, the story is most likely apocryphal. First, most scholars doubt that Nicholas was present at the First Council of Nicaea. The only mention of Nicholas' attendance was offered by Theodore the Lector two hundred years after the Council in his Historia Tripartita, but the best lists of council attendees do not include him.

But even if Nicholas was there, fisticuffs did not take place. The first mention of the incident comes one thousand years after the council in the fourteenth century AD by Bishop Petrus de Natalibus. He writes,

It happened that saint Nicholas, now an old man, was present at the Council of Nicaea, and out of jealousy of faith struck a certain Arian in the jaw, on account of which it is recorded that he was deprived of his mitre and pallium; on account of which he is often depicted without a mitre.

Notice Petrus doesn't mention that he punched Arius specifically, but a "certain Arian."

The truth of the matter is that we know little of the real St. Nicholas. It is difficult to extrapolate fact from legend. So, while it could be possible, though not likely that Nicholas was present at Nicaea, he certainly didn't punch or slap Arius or anyone else during the deliberations. It wasn't acceptable then, nor is it proper now to slap a fellow cleric over a disagreement, albeit an important one. While it may be a disappointment to some contemporary theologians, such drama will always be out of place during theological deliberations.

So, keep the coffee coming.

___

For Further Reading in Addition to the Links Above.

"Let's Stop Celebrating St. Nicholas Punching Arius," https://www.ncregister.com/blog/let-s-stop-celebrating-st-nicholas-punching-arius.

"Did St. Nicholas punch Arius at the Council of Nicaea?" https://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/54016/did-st-nicholas-punch-arius-at-the-council-of-nicaea.

The Bible in a Year-- December

2023-11-30T01:00:00.000-05:00

December 1, Daily Devotions (Session 337) 1 Corinthians 9-11

December 2, Daily Devotions (Session 338) 1 Corinthians 12-14

December 3, Daily Devotions (Session 339) 1 Corinthians 15-16

December 4, Daily Devotions (Session 340) 2 Corinthians 1-4

December 5, Daily Devotions (Session 341) 2 Corinthians 5-9

December 6, Daily Devotions (Session 342) 2 Corinthians 10-13

December 7, Daily Devotions (Session 343) Galatians 1-3

December 8, Daily Devotions (Session 344) Galatians 4-6

December 9, Daily Devotions (Session 345) Ephesians 1-3

December 10, Daily Devotions (Session 346) Ephesians 4-6

December 11, Daily Devotions (Session 347) Philippians 1-4

December 12, Daily Devotions (Session 348) Colossians 1-4

December 13, Daily Devotions (Session 349) 1 Thessalonians 1-5

December 14, Daily Devotions (Session 350) 2 Thessalonians 1-3

December 15, Daily Devotions (Session 351) 1 Timothy 1-6

December 16, Daily Devotions (Session 352) 2 Timothy 1-4

December 17, Daily Devotions (Session 353) Titus 1-3 & Philemon 1

December 18, Daily Devotions (Session 354) Hebrews 1-6

December 19, Daily Devotions (Session 355) Hebrews 7-10

December 20, Daily Devotions (Session 356) Hebrews 11-13

December 21, Daily Devotions (Session 357) James 1-5

December 22, Daily Devotions (Session 358) 1 Peter 1-5

December 23, Daily Devotions (Session 359) 2 Peter 1-3

December 24, Daily Devotions (Session 360) 1 John 1-5

December 25, Daily Devotions (Session 361) 2 John 1, 3 John 1, Jude 1

December 26, Daily Devotions (Session 362) Revelation 1-3

December 27, Daily Devotions (Session 363) Revelation 4-8

December 28, Daily Devotions (Session 364) Revelation 9-12

December 29, Daily Devotions (Session 365) Revelation 13-16

December 30, Daily Devotions (Session 366) Revelation 17-19

December 31, Daily Devotions (Session 367) Revelation 20-22

___

Sources: The Wesley Study Bible, The New Interpreter's Bible One-Volume Commentary, and Yours Truly.

The Cover of My Forthcoming Book.

2023-11-28T09:13:00.003-05:00

Word Revisited: The Apostle Paul-- Follower of Jesus or Founder of Christianity?

2023-11-14T08:09:00.002-05:00

On this episode of "Word Revisited," I chat with Dr. Michael J. Gorman, the Raymond E. Brown Professor of Biblical Studies and Theology at St. Mary's Seminary and University, Baltimore, Maryland. He is the author of numerous books and specializes on the theology and letters of the Apostle Paul.

Michael's Amazon author page is ⁠here⁠.

Podcast: Word Revised: The Apostle Paul-- Follower of Jesus or Founder of Christianity?

YouTube: Word Revised: The Apostle Paul-- Follower of Jesus or Founder of Christianity?

Is There a Rapture in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18?

2023-11-12T08:50:00.005-05:00

In this post, I appeal to N.T. Wright, a prominent New Testament scholar and theologian. Regarding 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, which is often associated with the concept of the "rapture" in some Christian traditions, Wright offers a different interpretation from the popular dispensationalist understanding of the rapture.

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