Tag: <span>book of acts</span>

Published May 24, 2021

At the threshold…

Summary: Questions about the past have a way of propelling me forward. At least that’s what I experienced once on a visit to Caesarea Maritima as I stared toward the sun sinking down toward the vast Mediterranean Sea. Knowing how we got somewhere is one thing; where we will go next is not so different a question. The vocations we chase after never end; nor do our attempts to make sense of them and their effects on our lives. I think this is one way that faith works and continues to disrupt and comfort our lives, by giving us the nudge to keep journeying and to keep our sights set on a future that exists–out there, yet to be discovered.

I wrote this meditative article for the publication Thin Places, which offers resources for spiritual growth and is published by Westminster Presbyterian Church of Minneapolis. The article appears in the June/July/August 2021 issue (Issue Number 107). Read the full article at Thin Places.

Bible commentary: general audience

apostle paul book of acts Caesarea Maritima contemplation future meditation mediterranean sea memory vocation

Published April 27, 2021

Commentary on Acts 8:26-40

Summary: The story of Philip’s encounter with an unnamed court official, an Ethiopian Eunuch, raises numerous questions about ancient culture, Greco-Roman attitudes toward people from far away, sex and gender, and the differences in people’s social locations. It’s important that preachers and other interpreters tend to those questions, so they can both appreciate and be critical of the ways in which the book of Acts imagines the consequences that the good news has for all people. This story and the ambiguity surrounding the characterization of the court official can serve as a reminder of the ways that Christian communities struggle to identify and include people who are strangers or “outsiders.” It’s notable to remember, then, that at the close of the story the Ethiopian is not merely a convert, he is also a theologian who demonstrates his understanding that the good news is for him, as he is.

I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preagcher.

Bible commentary: preachers & teachers workingpreacher.org commentary

Acts 1:8 acts 8:26-40 baptism book of acts Ethiopian eunuch gospel inclusion justo gonzález philip preaching

Published May 3, 2016

Exposing a Government’s Abuse of Power, and Other Life Hacks (Acts 16:16-40)

Summary: The book of Acts tells a story about two traveling evangelists, Paul and Silas, as they encounter severe resistance in Philippi, a Roman colony. After the pair are dubiously accused, savagely beaten, and shamefully incarcerated, an earthquake miraculously frees them from their chains and cells. What might look like a story of supernaturally aided escape is really a story about vindication, a means of God exposing the futility of Roman attempts to obstruct the preaching of the gospel. The whole scene has a burlesque quality to it, for its aim is to expose the powerlessness and peevishness of an imperial culture that sets itself up to resist God’s presence, with violence if necessary. The passage speaks about more than ancient Roman realities, however, for its portrait of imperial abuses looks uncomfortably similar to the ways in which modern societies protect their interests and prerogatives. In the end, the story suggests that God offers a different reality, one beyond our ways of suppressing outsiders and clinging desperately onto our attempts at self-preservation.

Read the full article, which is part of the ON Scripture–The Bible project, on The Huffington Post, Day1, and Patheos.

Bible commentary: general audience ON Scripture--The Bible

acts 16:16-40 acts of the apostles book of acts empire paul philippi prison escape silas

Published March 28, 2016

The Value and Limits of Religious Liberty (Acts 5:27-32)

Summary: According to the book of Acts, when the temple-based authorities in Jerusalem command Peter and his associates to stop preaching and teaching about Jesus in public, the apostles refuse. With a pithy reply, “We must obey God rather than any human authority,” they declare their intention to honor their spiritual convictions no matter what consequences may result. The apostles’ heroic and bold resolve stands in a long tradition in which people have pondered when it is right to insist on honoring one’s conscience in the face of political and legal pressure to do otherwise. Given the contours of the current cultural discourse in America, when many are quick to demand laws and concessions that respect their “religious liberty,” this episode from Acts and the travails of other Christians who have paid a price for resisting tyranny remind us how we should conceive of “religious liberty” in the first place. Such liberty in a civil society should not become a license to do whatever one wants or a legal basis to deny rights and hospitality to others. Rather, it is a free determination to do what’s necessary to promote our neighbors’ well-being, even if those actions invite uncomfortable repercussions.

Read the full article, which is part of the ON Scripture–The Bible project, on Day1 and Patheos.

Bible commentary: general audience ON Scripture--The Bible

acts 5:27-32 apostle peter book of acts easter persecution religious liberty

Published September 27, 2015

Jesus and His Church (an excerpt from “Intrusive God, Disruptive Gospel”)

When I think about the church and all its flaws, I’m often prone to be cynical. The book of Acts urges me to take a second look, though. Acts depicts Jesus in relationship to the church in ways that challenge me and sometimes inspire me. That’s one of the reasons why I wrote the book Intrusive God, Disruptive Gospel: Encountering the Divine in the Book of Acts. Follow this link to read a short excerpt from the book, in which I talk a little about Jesus and his church.

Books and films

acts of the apostles book of acts church disruptive gospel intrusive god jesus

Published September 18, 2015

Read this excerpt from my new book “Intrusive God, Disruptive Gospel”

My new book will be available on Tuesday September 22. You can read an excerpt of it now, if you click here.

This book guides readers through one of the most colorful books of the Bible, illuminating passages from the Acts of the Apostles. It examines passages that show the Christian gospel expressing itself through the lives, speech, struggles, and adventures of some of Jesus’ first followers. The book emphasizes the disruptive character of the Christian gospel and shows how Acts repeatedly describes God as upsetting the status quo by changing people’s lives, society’s conventions, and our basic expectations of what’s possible. Suited for individual and group study, this book asks serious questions and eschews pat answers, bringing Acts alive for contemporary reflection on the character of God, the challenges of faith, and the church.

Books and films

acts of the apostles book of acts intrusive god

Published June 5, 2011

Commentary on Acts 1:6-14

Summary: In this biblical passage, the resurrected Jesus gives final instructions to his followers then ascends into the sky. His followers respond by returning to Jerusalem, where they wait and pray.

I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.

Bible commentary: preachers & teachers workingpreacher.org commentary

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Published May 29, 2011

Commentary on Acts 17:22-31

Summary: In this biblical passage, set in Athens, Paul preaches in front of the city leaders (the Areopagite Council). His sermon draws on understandings he shares with them before turning to an issue many in his audience find incredible: the idea of God raising someone from the dead.

I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.

Bible commentary: preachers & teachers workingpreacher.org commentary

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Published May 22, 2011

Commentary on Acts 7:55-60

Summary: In this biblical passage, the book of Acts describes the grisly death of Stephen, traditionally known as the church’s first martyr, the first person to die as a consequence of professing faith in Jesus.

I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.

Bible commentary: preachers & teachers workingpreacher.org commentary

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Published May 23, 2010

Commentary on Acts 2:1-21

Summary: In this biblical passage, set during the Jewish festival of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fills Jesus’ followers. Peter attempts to make sense of this remarkable event by appealing to the Prophet Joel and emphasizing the Spirit as a Spirit of prophecy. The lectionary assigns this passage for the Day of Pentecost.

I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.

Bible commentary: preachers & teachers workingpreacher.org commentary

acts 2:1-21 acts of the apostles book of acts holy spirit jerusalem joel pentecost peter prophecy