After hearing John the Baptist declare two days in a row that Jesus is the Lamb of God, in John 1, verse 37 we read that John’s disciples stop following John, and they start following Jesus. Jesus hasn’t uttered a word. And because of that, the scene strikes me as humorous. The two disciples justContinue reading “Discipleship begins with the spiritual practice of questioning – John 1:35-42, Part 2”
Monthly Archives: September 2022
What is discipleship? – John 1:35-42, Part 1
Discipleship. What is it, really? Over the years we’ve talked a lot about discipleship, and there has been some confusion. Some have equated evangelism with discipleship. Evangelism is when we proclaim the story of Jesus in both word and deed. Though related, discipleship is different. When we are attempting to define discipleship, we are attemptingContinue reading “What is discipleship? – John 1:35-42, Part 1”
Who do you follow? – John 1:35-42, Preview
Who do you follow? If you have social media accounts, you might follow people or organizations on those accounts. When you follow people or groups on social media, you receive their updates in your news feed. Your following is informational. But perhaps your following of close family and friends, and of some organizations, is moreContinue reading “Who do you follow? – John 1:35-42, Preview”
John the Baptist’s mystery friend, and why we need prophets in our lives – John 1:19-34, Part 5
In John 1:19-34, John the Baptist makes a surprising statement that there was someone alive right there, nearby, perhaps even in the crowd that day as John was baptizing people by the Jordan River, someone of whom John is not worthy even to untie his sandals. Untie sandals…what’s that matter? In John’s culture, that wasContinue reading “John the Baptist’s mystery friend, and why we need prophets in our lives – John 1:19-34, Part 5”
John the Baptist’s testy interaction with the religious establishment – John 1:19-34, Part 4
Because John the Baptist said the darndest things, you can imagine it did not sit well with the religious leaders, especially when he called them snakes. And that brings us back to the passage we are studying this week: John 1:19-34. We learn in John 1:19 that the religious elite back at their HQ inContinue reading “John the Baptist’s testy interaction with the religious establishment – John 1:19-34, Part 4”
Was John the Baptist a wild man? – John 1:19-34, Part 3
Did John really go wild? In the previous post, I mentioned that much artwork depicting John the Baptist has him looking like a caveman. Why? Because in Matthew 3:4 we read this about John, “John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts andContinue reading “Was John the Baptist a wild man? – John 1:19-34, Part 3”
The backstory of John the Baptist – John 1:19-34, Part 2
Who was John the Baptist? In this post we begin to learn the backstory of John the Baptist. While our current blog series is studying the Gospel of John, and while this week we are learning about John 1:19-34, to get the backstory of John the Baptist, we need to turn elsewhere. The full accountContinue reading “The backstory of John the Baptist – John 1:19-34, Part 2”
The Prophet who said the darndest things – John 1:19-34, Part 1
The TV Show Kids Say the Darndest Things has been on the air for decades. The title of the show uses the word “darndest,” and that’s a catchy title, but what is the title really getting at? Well, take a look: The word “darndest” is getting at the fact that kids have that wonderful quality ofContinue reading “The Prophet who said the darndest things – John 1:19-34, Part 1”
Prophets who don’t know how to be prophets – John 1:19-34, Preview
Are there still prophets in the world today? No doubt there are people who claim to be prophets. Do you remember Harold Camping of the Family Radio Network? He predicted Jesus was returning in 1994. When Jesus did not return that year, Camping went on to predict Jesus would return in May 2011. In fact,Continue reading “Prophets who don’t know how to be prophets – John 1:19-34, Preview”
The problem and solution of God’s invisibility – John 1:1-18, Part 5
How many of you wish that God were visible? How many of you wish that you could just have a little miracle of Jesus showing up at your doorstep to give you some reassurance that he is right there? How many of you look back at some of the miracles recorded in the Bible andContinue reading “The problem and solution of God’s invisibility – John 1:1-18, Part 5”
Engaging Scripture 