Be Not Ashamed
Nashville is a tricky city for us Christians. On one hand, we’re Southern enough that the church is still expected and Christianity is not completely unknown. On the other hand, we’re metropolitan enough that the social norms and ideas of the secular world are fully engrained and lived in the society around us. In Nashville it’s not necessarily completely odd that you go to church on Sunday or have a “spiritual” life, but it is very clear that proclaiming Jesus as “The Way” and expressing traditional Christian ethics out loud in mixed company is not welcome. Read more...
Parables, Desire, and Salvation: A Counter-Reformation Reading of Mark 4:10-12
In the Synoptic Gospels, each Evangelist narrates an event where Jesus explains to the Disciples and the other people standing around him the reason for his use of parables (Matt 13:10-17, Mark 4:10-12, and Luke 8:9-10). Jesus says that he teaches those who follow him the μυστήριον τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ1 — the “mystery of the kingdom of God” (Mark 4:11). To those outside of his circle, however, he does not reveal God’s mystery. Read more...
Mark 6:30-52 and the Unanswered Question; Who is this?
On October 8, I was invited to preach at McKendree Village where I did my field education last year. It was a blessing to be back with so many friends and to see the healing God had brought to many of the people I had visited in the rehabilitation center. Since I’m taking A.J. Levine’s course on Mark this semester, I decided to preach on the miracles of the feeding of the 5000 and Jesus walking on water in Mark 6:30-52. Read more...
Helping the Seeds Grow
The Parable of the Growing Seed – so called by Snodgrass1 – found in Mark 4:26-29 at first glance appears to present an image of a careless and maybe not very intelligent man who aimlessly throws seed around, naps during the growing season, and then harvests whatever happens to grow. First impressions, however, are not always best. On a deeper analysis, the parable reveals an image of humankind participating in the building of the kingdom of God and enjoying the bounty of God’s blessings once his kingdom has been fully realized. Read more...
Sanctification of Soil
The parable found in Luke 8:5-8, Mark 4:2b-9, and Matt 13:3b-9 titled the “Parable of the Sower” by Snodgrass1 is much better titled the “Parable of the Soils” as it is called in Burton’s2 early 20th century gospel harmony, because the point of this parable has very little to do with the sower and everything to do with dirt.3 Snodgrass provides sufficient evidence that the nimshal found in Matt 13:18-23, Mark 4:13-20, and Luke 8:11-15 fits well within the bounds of what Jesus would have taught to his disciples. Read more...
Mustard Seeds, Leaven, and the Present Kingdom of God
Though the Gospel of Thomas separates the parable of the mustard seed1 and the parable of the leaven2 and Mark does not have the parable of the leaven entirely3, the pairing of the parables in Luke and Matthew bring the similarities of both to light. The parables are connected in that both are about the small acts of women and men who, when paired with the mysterious acts of God, bring forth the Kingdom of God in the present world. Read more...
