'Biblical Studies_' Tagged Posts

Is it possible that the two men in white apparel standing beside the apostles at the ascension of Christ (Acts 1:9-11) were Moses and Elijah? —— “And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why…

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.” Jn 1:10 We know that the “Word was made flesh and dwelt among us” (v 14), and that He “explained” the Father (v 18), but what was the Son doing before all this? I believe, properly understood, that John 1 teaches that He was in the world. He was, in fact, God (“the Word was God,” v 1), so He was…

In this last week we have seen the amazing way that God’s Spirit spreads his truth to others. In the first chapter of Thessalonians we see this dramatically. The Gospel spreads through people of heartfelt devotion to Christ and understanding who speak it in the power of the Spirit and with sincere conviction. I think we will see coming out of this initial stirring men of truth preaching the gospel. It has been charateristically so that God raises up bold…

When the forlorn disciples met up with Jesus following His resurrection, it made the short trip from Jerusalem to Emmaus much more pleasant. Before revealing who He was and that indeed the Christ was alive from the dead, Jesus talked with them as a fellow pilgrim in life—but one who had extensive knowledge about the Scriptures. We find this story in Luke 24. He rebukes them, but more as a human like them who is confounded that these men do…

In Acts, the use of the word “witnesses” relates to the Apostles themselves, who were “witnesses of his resurrection.” It doesn’t seem to be used of the normal believer throughout Acts. Acts 1:8 was a commission and a promise given to the Apostles only, which was fulfilled in their missionary journeys (Mk 16:15; Col 1:23). See it in that light: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in…

Some of the most potent speeches ever heard by men were given by Moses. Consider his speech recalling the episodes in Israel’s history on the plains of Moab before his assistant Joshua would lead the Israelites over to the Promised Land. And his eloquence seen in the “songs of Moses” in Exodus 15, Deuteronomy 32, and Psalm 90, is unparalleled. His song in Exodus 15 is sung in heaven (Revelation 15:3)! No Wordsworth, or Dickinson, Keats or Frost will be…

Pay close attention to the phrase “the word of the Lord” in this encounter with Jeremiah: Now the word of the LORD came to me saying,5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”6 Then I said, “Alas, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, Because I am a youth.”7 But the LORD said to me, “Do not…

There is much that is difficult to understand about the unforgiveable sin. In one place (perhaps only one application), Jesus is instructing his disciples about their future ministry. He says, “And everyone who speaks a word against [blasphemes] the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him” (Lk 12:10). Since Jesus came to live as a perfectly responsive human (though He was God, Phil 2:11), the…

In order to stabilize and strengthen the church members at Rome with their radically divergent backgrounds, Paul shifts in the audience addressed alternatively between all the people in the Roman church as a whole, the Jew-born believers in the church, and the Gentile-born believers. The focus on a new audience does not mean that others of another background cannot benefit in several ways, but allows Paul to deal with special matters of concern principally for that ethnic background. This makes…

“Those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. “He said to the sons of Israel, ‘When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, “What are these stones?” then you shall inform your children, saying, “Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the Lord your God had done to the Red…