February 2009
You are browsing the archive for February 2009.
But Did It Help?
Read: Mark 9:2-9 Reading the gospel lesson for today–and I’m writing this on Sunday morning before going to teach Sunday School–I was struck by the parallel to a question I commonly get from Bible study classes. “Why can’t God just make it clearer, unmistakable? Why all this variety and human stuff?” I can imagine the [...]
2 Kings 2:1-12 (Transfiguration B)
I used this translation as the basis for a devotional today, 2/18/09, for my wife’s devotional list. Here is the translation with a few additional notes. Translation Notes 1This is what happened when YHWH took Elijah in the whirlwind up to heaven. Elijah and Elisha left Gilgal. 2Elijah said to Elisha, “Please [...]
Isaiah 40:25 – The Trouble with Talking about God
Isaiah 40:25 asks us to consider who might be comparable with God, and who might be considered his equal. Now we normally use this passage to talk about God’s great power and how he is unique, the creator, someone greater than anyone we know. And there’s nothing wrong with that. But when I think of [...]
Mark 1:34 – Silencing Truth-Telling Demons
One of the fascinating themes of the gospel of Mark is the interaction between Jesus and the demons. There are many surprising things, but one of these is that the demons react to Jesus just because he shows up. Another is that one of the things the demons want to do is identify Jesus. Why [...]
Epiphany 5B Preliminary Thoughts
In trying to write these lectionary notes I have found that it is so much easier to get notes into my Bible margin, or on sticky notes marking the pages as I read, than it is to write them up for others. I hope some of you will be patient enough to stick with me [...]