Prepare the way of the Lord
There is a real danger that we are so familiar with John the Baptist fulfilling Isaiah 40:3 that we lose sight of the staggering implication this has for Jesus.
So France comments:
There is a real danger that we are so familiar with John the Baptist fulfilling Isaiah 40:3 that we lose sight of the staggering implication this has for Jesus.
So France comments:
R T France is characteristically helpful as he discusses what the phrase "kingdom of God" (Mark and Luke) or "kingdom of heaven" (Matthew) means:
It's easy to trot off the tongue that we believe in a doctrine called "the priesthood of all believers".
It's harder to explain what we mean by that, and what we don't mean.
It's harder still to articulate the cash-value: What impact does this doctrine make to the lives of Christians and churches on a daily basis?
What's going on when someone preaches?
How does God's word preached relate to God's word written?
How does the sermon relate to the other parts of a church service?
How does preaching relate to / differ from the other contexts and events in which we hear God's word?
How do the words of the preacher relate to the words of God?
Where does the Spirit fit into preaching?
OK...
Jesus warns the 12, as he sends them out in Matthew 10, that if they speak to others of him they will be opposed. The warning is given in the context of their mission during Jesus' earthly ministry, but many of the details in there make fuller sense in the period after his ascension. Jesus taught them with the deliberate intention of preparing them for more than just that one mission, and Matthew recorded those words with the Great Commission at the end of his gospel in mind.
Jesus... born in a manger.
From Peter Leithart's blog post entitled "Oxen and Mangers"
Many of us have been taught many times over that the gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh pointed respectively to Jesus royalty, his priestly role or his divinity, and his forthcoming death and burial.
R T France would caution us here, and helpfully allows the rest of the Bible to tell us what they signify. Letting Scripture interpret Scripture is always a far safer bet than guessing or importing symbols from elsewhere. So here is what he suggests:
Helpful words from R T France on the visit of the Magi. The star's role changes as they leave Jerusalem for the final leg of their journey to Bethlehem:
The Adam Smith Institute have published an article (provocatively) called The Church of England is barking up the wrong tree.
It is well worth reading, inviting us to think a little more carefully what a Christian engagement in the realms of politics and economics should look like.
God willing (* see James 4:15) I will be speaking on an "Unlocking the Bible" weekend at Otford Manor, the fine home of the fine Oak Hall Expeditions, next weekend (November 18-20).