Tag: covenant
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Studying Deuteronomy 5 1-3, 10 12-13, and 27 1-10
We’re studying three short, related texts in Deuteronomy for Sunday, December 5. Deuteronomy 5:1-3 is the preamble to Moses’s reprise of the 10 Commandments. Deuteronomy 10:12-13 is Moses’s wrap-up of the meaning of the covenant at the Mountain of God for the Israelites. Deuteronomy 27:1-10 sets out a ceremony designed to enshrine the instructions associated…
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Second Sunday After Pentecost
As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Matthew 10:7
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Questions for Reflection and Discussion – 1 Samuel 18 1-5 & 19 1-7
We are studying 1 Samuel 18:1-5 and 1 Samuel 19:1-7 for Sunday, August 4. These are two short texts that describe the legendary friendship between Jonathan and David. [My notes on the text are here.] Here are a few questions about the text that we might want to reflect on before class or discuss in…
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Study Notes -Hebrews 9 11-22
We are studying Hebrews 9:11-22 (and really, through verse 28) for Sunday, June 16. This is the comparison of Christ’s high priestly function to that of the Levitical priests – to the great advantage of Christ’s. [Questions on the text are here.] Here are my notes on this text: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: As noted earlier…
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Questions for Reflection and Discussion – Mark 14 17-24 and Hebrews 8 6-12
We are studying Mark 14:17-24 and Hebrews 8:6-7 & 10-12 for Sunday, June 2. [Notes on Mark 14:17-24 are here; notes on Hebrews 8:6-12 are here.] Here are a few questions we might want to consider as we think about what these texts mean for us: Jesus arrives at the “large room upstairs” on the…
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Study Notes – Hebrews 8 6-12
We are studying Mark 14:17-24 and Hebrews 8:6-7 & 10-12 for Sunday, June 2. Notes on Mark 14:17-24 are here. Here are my very brief notes on the Hebrews text, which is embedded in the carefully constructed presentation that is the book of Hebrews. BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: The book of Hebrews is mysterious. God alone…
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Study Notes – Mark 14 17-24
We are studying Mark 14:17-24 and Hebrews 8 for Sunday, June 2. Here are my very brief notes on the Mark text, which includes Jesus’ remarks to his twelve disciples at the last supper; notes for Hebrews 8:6-12 are here. BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: The Gospel of Mark is thought to be the earliest of all…
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The Good Kind of Rules
I got to thinking in the middle of the sermon this Sunday: There’s a polarized and polarizing discourse around “rules” or “commandments” and “obedience” in contemporary Christianity. It’s as if, as soon as someone invokes “Biblical standards” or “obedience,” it signals a whole complex of other positions, as does any language about “cultural conditions” or…
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Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
[A sermon delivered this morning at a small church in southern Indiana, mostly concerning Genesis 25:19-34 and Mark 12:28-34] Probably every family has its stories. The ones we tell around the Thanksgiving dinner table or the summer time picnic table, the ones that start, “Hey, remember that time when …” And then comes a story…
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Questions for Reflection and Discussion (2 Chronicles 7 12-22)
The text we’re studying for Sunday, March 25 is 2 Chronicles 7:12-22. Here are some questions it might or might not be helpful to consider in class: God (YHWH) appears to Solomon at night – possibly in a dream or “vision of the night.” What would be our response to an appearance from God? Why?
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Questions for Reflection and Discussion (Genesis 17 1-14)
Here are a few questions about the Uniform Series text for this coming Sunday (Genesis 17:1-14) that we might want to consider in class: In v 5, God changes Abram’s name to Abraham. (God also changes Sarai’s name to Sarah in v 15). What does it mean that God makes this change in Abram/Abraham’s name?…
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Exegetical Exercise (Genesis 14 1-14)
The Uniform Series text for Sunday, September 10 is Genesis 17:1-14, with the whole chapter as background. Here are my [very few] exegetical notes: Background: Abram enters the Genesis narrative in chapter 12, with YHWH saying to Abram to leave Haran, and with a promise of descendants and land and blessing. Abram goes to Egypt…
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Exegetical Exercise (Genesis 8 20-22, 9 8-17)
The Uniform Series text for Sunday, September 3, is Genesis 8:20-22, 9:8-17. Here are a few notes on that text: The book: We are back to Genesis, the Torah; probably the form we have now reflects layers of stories from ancient times, put together from more than one source – in this passage, a southern…
Matters of Interpretation 