A Call for Discernment: Interpreting the Parables

The Parables of Jesus In our book Invitation to Biblical Interpretation, we define a parable as “a short narrative that demands a response from the hearer” (426). Parables are realistic in that they do not contain fanciful elements that would be found in myths or fairy tales, yet they are not true stories like historical narratives.

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Introduction to Hebrews: Who Were the Readers?

Introduction to Hebrews Throughout this blog series, we’ve been exploring introductory matters related to the book of Hebrews. Thus far, we’ve tried to detect clues within the letter as it pertains to the identity of the author and the central message of the book. In the final post of this series, we’ll turn our attention […]

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Introduction to Hebrews: What Is the Message?

Introduction to Hebrews In the first post of this series, I likened the task of biblical interpretation to the work of a detective meticulously searching for clues and evidence. When it comes to the Bible, I noted that exploring introductory matters can greatly help us in our interpretation just as a composite sketch of a suspect […]

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Introduction to Hebrews: Who Is the Author?

Introduction to Hebrews Recently, I was given the task of introducing the book of Hebrews at Randolph Street Baptist Church in Charleston, West Virginia. Over the next few posts, I’d like to explore introductory matters related to this important book. I believe knowing the background, that is, the historical setting, the literary design, and the major […]

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Jesus and the Future: John’s Gospel

Part 4: John’s Gospel Throughout this series of blogs, we’ve been investigating Jesus’ teaching about the future in the Gospels. In Part 1 and Part 2, we focused our attention on Jesus’ primary teaching about the future in the Olivet Discourse. In Part 3, we explored his other teachings about the future throughout the Synoptic […]

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Jesus and the Future: Other Teachings of Jesus in the Gospels

Part 3: Other Teachings of Jesus in the Gospels In this series of blogs, we are investigating Jesus’ teaching on the future. In Part 1 and Part 2, we looked at Jesus’ most important prophecy about the future in the Olivet Discourse. In this blog, we’ll begin to investigate other teachings of Jesus in the […]

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