While Luke is only mentioned by name three times in the Bible, his reputation is huge. We would know very little about him if it wasn’t for his authorship of the gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts (in both, he does not name himself). He wrote them about 30 years after the church began (a.d.60-62), but what do we know about him before that? Continue reading
The Power of Honesty
When the sons of Jacob returned home from Egypt they found a bonus in their sacks of grain. The money they had spent had been returned. Genesis 42 reveals this was part of the manipulations of their brother Joseph – now a powerful Egyptian official – to motivate them to return to Egypt. But they didn’t understand this, and they could have easily just put the cash back in their pockets. Continue reading
A Descendant of Eve?
The scientific world was buzzing this week as the ancient bones of up to 15 skeletons were put on display at a South African university. Discovered in an almost inaccessible cave system requiring people to slither through tunnels no larger than 10 inches, the bones were removed and reassembled for study. Attending scientists believe the remains are that of man’s early ancestors, a branch of the human evolutionary tree, and named it “Homo Naledi.”
The strange thing about the skeletons is that they are ape-like in many ways (small brain, large shoulders, etc.), but also display human-like features. Some believe the skeletons are an ancient burial chamber. Early guesses peg the age of the bones anywhere from 10,000 years old to several million. Many newspapers and magazines are over the top with excitement, hinting that the theory of human evolution is further confirmed. Continue reading
Simon, Who Bore the Cross
The New Testament mentions many obscure people. One is Simon, grabbed by Romans soldiers to carry the cross behind Jesus for the final leg of that famous walk to Golgotha. Matthew, Mark and Luke mention him. John generalizes the incident by stating “He went out, bearing His own cross” (Jn.19:17). His exposure in the gospel writings indicates his important, yet unexpected role with the cross. Simon has always been remembered by grateful disciples down through the centuries. Continue reading
Does What You Wear Fit?
The citizens of the Island of Crete didn’t have a very good reputation. Paul quoted one of their writers, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons” (Titus 1:12). Not very complimentary. Yet there were congregations of the Lord’s church present comprised of people struggling to reflect Jesus in their lives. So Titus was instructed to teach “things which are fitting for sound doctrine” (2:1). He was to help them live sound, moral, sensible lives. Like well-fitting clothes, life needs to fit who we say we are. Continue reading