Sermon and Worship Resources

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Showing 4576 to 4600 of 4963 results

4576. Stubborn Israel

Isaiah 48:1-11

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... Yahweh alone is God, no more overt arguing with the Judean community—indeed little more reference to Jacob-Israel. The sermon now looks for a response. “With the idols eliminated (44:24–46:13) and the political power of Babylon shattered (ch. 47), there remains the principal obstacle to the new exodus, Israel itself” (R. Lack, La symbolique du livre d’Isaïe; Analecta Biblica 59; Rome: PBI, 1973, p. 106). 48:1–2 Chapter 44:1–5 invited us to envision a day when nominal acknowledgment of Yahweh ...

4577. Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience

Isaiah 50:1-11

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... notion of Gehenna, but it has not done so yet. Additional Notes 50:1 The air of finality about 49:26 and the change of conversation partners in 50:1 are perhaps what led to the English chapter division here (there is no new chapter in MT). But the subject remains the same for 50:1–3. 50:4–9 See, e.g., J. Calvin, Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (trans. W. Pringle; 4 vols.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1948), vol. 4, pp. 52–60.

4578. The Suffering and Glory of the Servant

Isaiah 52:13--53:12

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... -offering (’asham), Lev. 5–6, keeps using the word for life/person/self (nephesh) in connection with the guilt-offering: see, e.g., 5:15, 17 (NIV renders “a person”). This supports the understanding “he himself appoints a guilt-offering.” But the meaning remains obscure. NIV’s though is odd. The word usually means “if,” and this leads more naturally into what follows. 53:12 Many and numerous (NIV mg.) are more likely right, as this fits the use of the word for “many” elsewhere in the ...

4579. Salvation for Others

Isaiah 56:1-8

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... way that this is good news for foreigners themselves. Judeans might be inclined to be offended at Yahweh’s openness to such people, or inclined to wonder whether Yahweh can fulfill this commitment when the smaller commitment of bringing Judeans themselves back remains unfulfilled. If so, verse 8 reminds them that the one who speaks is the Sovereign Yahweh. Additional Notes 56:1–8 In the commentary we note the difference between the attitude to outsiders here and in books such as Ezra and Nehemiah. In ...

4580. The Year of the Lord’s Favor

Isaiah 61:1-11

Understanding Series

John Goldingay

... divisions within the community and the leadership doing well at the expense of ordinary people, chapters 60–62 look on the community as a whole as oppressed and sorrowful, in the manner of chapters 40–55. So despite their reconstitution in Jerusalem, the people remain poor (see on 29:19), brokenhearted, demoralized, crushed in mind and spirit (cf. Ps. 34:18; 51:17), captives in their own land (cf. Ps. 106:46), prisoners (cf. 49:9), people who grieve the continuing suffering of their city (cf. 57:17–19 ...

4581. Riddles and Metaphors

Ezekiel 15:1-8, Ezekiel 16:1-63, Ezekiel 17:1-24

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... heart,” assuming a feminine form of the Heb. word leb (heart). However, this form, too, is found nowhere else: leb is nearly always masculine (note that in Prov. 12:25, the only place in the HB which treats leb as feminine, the word remains masculine in form). The LXX reading “your daughter” is an attempt to make sense of this word. Greenberg proposes a reading that, like the NRSV and the NJPS, relates the verb to Arabic mll (“be fevered”). However, drawing upon medieval sectarian Jewish poetry ...

4582. Personal Accountability

Ezekiel 18:1-32, Ezekiel 19:1-14

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... it did not apply to loans to non-Israelites. Indeed, since so many texts set forth these laws barring interest again and again, it seems likely that the practice was widespread in Israel, despite these prohibitions. On the other hand, excessive, crippling debt remains a serious problem—not only for the poor of our own nation, but for the economies of entire nations in the developing world as well. Perhaps Ezekiel’s call to economic justice means that we need to reevaluate our institutions and consider ...

4583. Miscellaneous Oracles of Judgment

Ezekiel 21:1-32, Ezekiel 22:1-31

Understanding Series

Steven Tuell

... this”—a very odd phrase]: The lowly will be exalted and the exalted will be brought low” (v. 26; compare 17:24). Jerusalem, too, is doomed: the word “ruin,” repeated three times in verse 27, underlines the city’s grim fate. Jerusalem will remain a ruin “until he comes to whom it rightfully belongs; to him I will give it” (v. 27)—implicitly, a future, righteous king. This promise seems very unlike Ezekiel. Since when, for this prophet, does the city “rightfully belong” to anyone but the ...

4584. Jesus’ Baptism by John

Matthew 3:1-12, Matthew 3:13-17

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... in Matthew, the Holy Spirit is crucial to Matthew’s Christology (see comments on 12:18).[8] 3:15 to fulfill all righteousness. When John demurs at Jesus’ request for baptism, Jesus provides a reason for his request (unique to Matthew; Mark remains silent on this point): “to fulfill all righteousness [dikaiosyn?].” This phrase has been variously interpreted. It may be that Jesus refers to the necessity of obeying God’s will for him. Yet his baptism is not an expression of God’s general ...

4585. Transition to Jesus’ Public Ministry

Matthew 4:12-17

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... all nations and peoples. The Joshua Project, an arm of the U.S. Center for World Mission, defines how much of the world has yet to hear the gospel in their native language. According to the best figures, more than seven thousand people groups remained unreached, a population totaling 2.91 billion people. This resource provides a smartphone app that offers a daily prayer guide. Operation World also provides a prayer guide on its website for Christian mission around the world. Summary: 1:1–4:16. Matthew’s ...

4586. Sermon on the Mount: Allegiance and Trust

Matthew 6:19-24, Matthew 6:25-34

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... were of elite economic status.3Another 17 percent would have been made up of merchants, some freed persons and artisans, scribes and lectors, and military veterans, who would have had a measure of security and greater possibilities of upward mobility. The remaining 80 percent would have lived close to or below subsistence level. As Bruce Longenecker notes of this larger group, “With 55% of the Graeco-Roman world skimming the surface of subsistence and occasionally dropping down below it . . . , and with ...

4587. Jesus, Isaiah’s Servant of the Lord, Heals Many

Matthew 8:14-17, Matthew 8:5-13, Matthew 8:1-4

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... not dull our senses to the surprising nature of Jesus’ words and Matthew’s point. Although non-Jews would have been welcomed into Israel when they converted to Judaism (via circumcision and Torah obedience), an influx into the church of Gentiles who remain Gentiles was a surprising development within the early church (see Acts 10; 15). Two teaching points emerge from this theological emphasis. First, Gentile inclusion is both an expression of God’s faithfulness to promises made and a vision of God’s ...

4588. Jesus’ Authority to Perform Miracles

Matthew 8:18-22, Matthew 8:23-27, Matthew 8:28-34, Matthew 9:1-8

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... With this question, Jesus responds to teachers of the law who challenge his claim to forgive a man his sins. It seems clear that it is easier to claim to forgive sins than to claim to heal, since the latter claim is easily and quickly debunked if the man remains unable to walk. But to demonstrate his authority to forgive sins, Jesus heals the man, who then gets up and walks home (9:6–7). 9:8 they praised God, who had given such authority to man. While the teachers of the law seem to think that Jesus ...

4589. Jesus Sends Out the Twelve

Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1-42

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... members follow Jesus and some do not (10:34–35). This kind of division in families occurs in our own contexts today. If family loyalty requires denying or turning away from Jesus as Lord, Christians must be ready to love Jesus more than family by remaining true to him and to his ways. After humanity’s fall (Gen. 3), idolatry—at root an issue of competing allegiance—becomes the bane of human existence. Just as Israel was called to untainted loyalty to Yahweh, Jesus calls his followers to be fully ...

4590. Herod and Hometown Misunderstand Jesus’ Identity

Matthew 13:53-58, Matthew 14:1-12

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... (21:26).3Matthew characterizes the Jewish and Roman leaders differently than he does the Jewish people (ochlos). So it is not helpful to collapse Matthew’s distinction between Jesus’ antagonists, comprised of Jewish and Roman leaders, and the Jewish crowds. The crowds remain open to Jesus’ ministry and so continue to be those who respond to Jesus’ message (see comments on 27:64). they considered John a prophet. Matthew indicates that the Jewish people consider John to be a prophet (here and 21:26 ...

4591. Community Discourse: Care for Others in the Kingdom

Matthew 18:1-9, Matthew 18:10-14, Matthew 18:15-20

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... literal fashion would not actually remove the temptation to sin.5Hands and eyes are not the root of the problem. The point is clear. Sin is so serious that cutting off a hand or gouging out an eye is preferable to allowing the cause of sin to remain. 18:10 See that you do not despise one of these little ones. Jesus’ statement helps the reader to define mikros, since the implication is that “little ones” are easily despised. This points to little ones as those of low status, who are easily seen as ...

4592. Jesus Is the Example of Service for His Followers

Matthew 20:17-19, Matthew 20:20-28

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... of sins (Isa. 53:4–6 in 1 Pet. 2:24–25). These New Testament uses portray Jesus as the Isaianic servant in his suffering and death, who brings healing (Matt. 8:17; 1 Pet. 2:24), gives his life as a ransom (Matt. 20:28), and exemplifies remaining faithful through suffering (1 Pet. 2:21–22). Teaching the Text 1. Jesus calls his followers to service for others modeled after his own example and not that of Gentile rulers. This passage brings together themes from across 16:21–20:28. One of these is Jesus ...

4593. Jesus Demonstrates Messianic Authority over the Temple

Matthew 21:12-17, Matthew 21:18-22

Teach the Text

Jeannine K. Brown

... and its leadership and his announcement of judgment on the temple to claims that he is issuing judgment on Israel as a whole in this passage and elsewhere. This conclusion would not fit Matthew’s portrayal of the people (laos) or the crowds (ochlos); the people remain open to Jesus even at the end of the Gospel (see 27:64). It has become all too easy in Christian sermons and reflection to castigate all of Judaism, in spite of Matthew’s portrayal of Jesus as the (Jewish) Messiah and as savior of Israel ...

4594. Jesus Inaugurates the Disciple Band and Conquers the Unclean Spirits

Mark 1:14-20, Mark 1:21-28

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

Big Idea: Jesus reacts to two types of people: (1) those who are willing to commit to him, like the first four disciples, and who are re-created by Jesus to “fish for people”; (2) those who remain outside him and thus will experience his authority to vanquish the powers of darkness. Understanding the Text Jesus’s Galilean ministry (1:16–10:52) begins here. Mark will start with two cycles of Jesus’s ministry to the three major Jewish groups of Galilee: his disciples (1:16–20; ...

4595. Jesus’s Ministry and Popularity Continue to Grow

Mark 1:40-45, Mark 1:35-39, Mark 1:29-34

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... does not want the people to degenerate into a frenzied mob stirred up by the spectacular healing. At the same time, the man cannot keep quiet. He is not ultimately disobedient. He has experienced the hand of God and been healed. One simply cannot remain silent. This is Mark’s point. When Christ has changed your life, you must go public with the incredible joy that you feel. show yourself to the priest. When Jesus commands the leper, “Be clean!” there is a double meaning, encompassing both the physical ...

4596. Jesus’s Authority to Forgive and Heal Sinners

Mark 2:1-12

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... ) everyone is “amazed,” and they “praise God” (or “give glory to God”). It is difficult to know whether the “everyone” includes the hostile scribes from 2:6–7. On the surface it seems so, but in the rest of 2:13–3:6 the leaders remain opposed to Jesus, and in 3:22 the scribes accuse him of being possessed by Beelzebul. It seems best to think that “everyone” means “all the crowds” and is in contrast with the hostile leaders. Either way, the story ends on a note of astonishment, at ...

4597. Jesus as Lord and as Archcriminal

Mark 2:23-3:6, Mark 2:18-22

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... “shriveled hand” unhealed rather than restoring his health. Thus it would be an act of “evil” rather than “good.” Jesus thus poses the dilemma of a system that, ironically, stands in the way of God’s good and obviates his true purposes. But they remained silent. The Pharisees had a ready answer (“This is not life-threatening [their law allowed healing if a life was at stake], so heal the man tomorrow rather than today”), so their silence seems strange. Perhaps they just did not want to be ...

4598. The Authority of Jesus over Nature and the Cosmic Powers

Mark 5:1-20, Mark 4:35-41

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... greater than Jonah (Matt. 12:41) and reverses the negative aspects of the Jonah story. The sailor’s “cushion” may be a pillow of some kind or a bag used for ballast. Most likely the thrust is Jesus’s great trust in God, which enables him to remain asleep even in the churning waves and howling wind. don’t you care if we drown? The disciples interpret his sleep not as faith but rather as indifference to their plight.2 Every aspect of their response to the sleeping Jesus shows their lack of faith in ...

4599. Gentiles Exemplify True Discipleship

Mark 7:31-37, Mark 7:24-30

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... into Syria, and Jesus wishes to be there incognito, apparently both to get away from the opposition that he has been experiencing1and to spend some private time with his disciples. At first he also seems to want little to do with the Gentiles, yet he remains in Gentile regions through the next few episodes, going from Tyre to Sidon, then to the region of the Decapolis (7:31), the ten cities of Syria, finally feeding the four thousand in that same area (8:1–10). Thus Jesus is deliberately ministering to ...

4600. The Gentiles Are Included in God’s Provision

Mark 8:1-13

Teach the Text

Grant R. Osborne

... on these people. Jesus’s compassion here is physical, centering on the effects of their hunger, while in 6:34 it was spiritual concern due to the failure of their “shepherds” (the leaders). The fact that they have been willing to remain with him for “three days” (does this foreshadow the “three days” before the resurrection [8:31; 9:31; 10:34]?) without sufficient provisions attests to their spiritual hunger for Jesus. Jesus’s concern crosses all boundaries and ethnic distinctions. 8:4 ...

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