November 2018

“Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but blessed is he who keeps the law.” — Prov 29:18 (ESV) Prophecy leads God’s people to obey their Lord. But, several ingredients must be present. First, God must give us a vision. When Samuel was young, “the word…

This post will appear during Thanksgiving week. Our forefathers in the United States established a tradition of thanking God for the year’s harvest. We continue that practice and here acknowledge our Father’s blessings this year. A harvest of a different kind is the subject of our blog this week. We…

Matthew has prepared us for the parables of Matt 13. He has given us Jesus’s discussions of the Mosaic and messianic ages. Jesus spoke of the age transition in Matt 9. He said the disciples would not finish their mission to Israel before he, the Son of Man, came. He…

Commentators often say the kingdom of God is Matthew’s major theme. For example, Donald A. Hagner says, The central emphasis of the book is found in . . . ‘the gospel of the kingdom’ (Matt 4:23; 9:35; 24:14; cf. 26:13), namely, the good news that the reign or rule of…