Psephizo - scholarship. serving. ministry.
WEBMy most recent publications are: 'The reimagining of theological time: Revelation's use of the Old Testament' in The Scriptures in the Book of Revelation and Apocalyptic Literature. 'The genre of Revelation' (including two new proposals!) in The Apocalypse of John amongst its Critics. The New Testament's Vision of Mission Grove booklet, exploring key themes from the teaching and
Interpreting the sheep and the goats in Matt 25 - Psephizo
WEBNov 26, 2016 · Jesus' 'parable' of the sheep and the goats in Matt 25.31–46 is very well known and widely misinterpreted. It forms one part of the extended teaching about 'the end' distinctive to Matthew (compared with Mark and Luke). It is most commonly interpreted as an injunction to help the poor; most Christians (in the West at least) read.
Biblical Studies - Psephizo
WEB6 days ago · The kingdom is both desperately serious and delightfully accessible in Mark 9. September 22, 2024 by Ian Paul. The Sunday lectionary gospel reading for Trinity 18 in this Year B is Mark 9.38–50. It is a rather unusual reading; it completes the collection of sayings that we began last week, and there is some continuity across the two passages ...
The Turning Point of the Gospel in Mark 8 video discussion
WEBSep 9, 2024 · The reading for Trinity 15 in Year B is Mark 8.27–38, the encounter with forms the pivot in the second gospel: until now, there has been power, success, dynamism and crowds, but from now on, Jesus walks the lonely path to suffering and the cross. At the northernmost point of his ministry, Jesus turns from
The Beatitudes in Luke and Matthew - Psephizo
WEBFeb 15, 2019 · The Beatitudes in Luke and Matthew. February 15, 2019 by Ian Paul. This Sunday’s lectionary reading is Luke 6.17–26, this gospel’s version of the Beatitudes. One of the most obvious questions arising from the reading is how they relate to the Beatitudes as recorded in Matt 5.1–12. This might seem like a distraction to preaching on the ...
Jesus offers words of eternal life in John 6 | Psephizo
WEBAug 21, 2024 · Flesh here is associated with death, in contrast to the Spirit who brings life. Thus Jesus ‘giving his flesh’ for the life of the world in John 6.51 is a reference to giving himself up to death on the cross for our sake. Jesus dies that we might live. The contrast with receiving this life, eating Jesus’ flesh, is to believe in him, which ...
Was John the first gospel? | Psephizo
WEBAug 30, 2024 · Van Kooten is not by any means the first scholar to argue for an early dating of John and the other gospels. Perhaps the earliest and most notable in modern scholarship was John A T Robinson, who was bishop of Woolwich and in other ways a theological liberal, having written the notorious Honest to God in 1963, which appeared to argue for a non-realist understanding of God and an existentialist ...
Did Jesus laugh? Was he funny? - Psephizo
WEBJun 11, 2021 · There are many prima facie reasons why we might suppose Jesus was funny. If Jesus was fully human—indeed, the perfect embodiment of humanity—then we might expect him to be funny since this is a hallmark of humanity. In his 1971 book A Rumour of Angels, sociologist Peter Berger argued that humour was one of the seven signs of transcendence ...
Sexuality - Psephizo
WEBSep 11, 2024 · July 24, 2024 by Ian Paul. Andrew Goddard writes: Reflecting on the recent July Session of the Church of England’s General Synod and considering where we now find ourselves on the Living in Love and Faith (LLF) questions of sexuality, marriage and identity I was struck by the fact that we seem to be engaged in a game of episcopal Jenga. ….
Jesus was not born in a stable—and it really matters! - Psephizo
WEBNov 24, 2023 · Picture Jesus’ nativity. Bethlehem town sits still beneath the moonlight, totally unaware that the son of God has been born in one of its poor and lowly outbuildings. In an anonymous backstreet, tucked away out of sight, we find a draughty stable. Inside, warm with the heat of the animals, a family sits quietly.