Reflections and meditations about the Bible by Peter DeHaan, PhD.
In the Bible, it was common for Jesus to invite people to follow him. That’s simple enough. Anyone can do that. Does this give them eternal life? But sometimes Jesus would give a different instruction. For example, he told one very wealthy man to give away all his money and possessions, not ten percent, not […]
In the book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon does a lot of whining. (Don’t get bogged down by his negativity, for he eventually provides some reliable insight in the book’s concluding verses.) Overall I find it easy to dismiss Solomon’s complaining, but one of his laments does make sense to me. He grumbles about leaving an […]
Jesus taught his disciples to ask God for their daily bread, that is, the food they needed for the day. Just as God provided manna for the Israelites in the desert, the implication is God will meet our needs each day. We are not to ask for enough for the week, the month, or the […]
When the nation of Israel was in the desert, God provided food for them each day. The Israelites called it manna and it miraculously appeared every morning. The manna would provide them with the sustenance they needed for that day. If they tried to gather extra and stockpile it, it would turn bad (except for […]
In my post Be Careful What You Pray I mention a line in the Lord’s Prayer, “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” Different groups have different wording for this line. There are some I’ve run into: Debts “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” The word debt, conjures up thoughts […]
Silence Is Golden We live in a world where it’s hard to sit still and even more challenging to be silent. We are conditioned to be moving, active and physically engaged. And as we do so, we expect to be surrounded with sound, to be constantly exposed to an auditory stimulus. To be still can […]
Since eternal life is the result of following Jesus, what’s the alternative? Might “eternal death” be the opposite? If eternal life starts immediately when we begin our journey with Jesus, does eternal death start as soon as someone rejects him? If eternal life results in heaven, don’t eternal death result in hell? Some opine that […]
When a man asks Jesus, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life,” he is showing proper respect for Jesus by calling him good. Jesus, however, is quick to assert that only God is truly good. If ever anyone deserved the label of “good,” it was Jesus. But instead he offers this accolade […]
Jesus seems to specialize in doing the unexpected. For instance, consider when the rich young ruler asks Jesus, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus side-steps the question about eternal life. Instead, he goes into teaching about good. That was unexpected. Another time, four men bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus to […]
Jesus gives a brief story about the interaction between a servant and his master. The conclusion is that the servant should not expect any praise or special treatment for merely doing his job. So too should be our attitude when we do what God expects of us. Instead, we—I don’t think I’m alone in this—have […]