Church Posts

My Least Favorite Chapter in the Bible?

My Least Favorite Chapter in the Bible?

Numbers 31 is a tough look for anyone who uses a surface-level reading of the Old Testament. By that I mean those who literally take each verse at face value without ever trying to make it make sense in light of the person of Jesus (who God is later revealed to look like).

To begin with, God instructs Moses to fight a war of revenge. It reminds me of hearing that George Lucas originally wanted to name the third of his Star Wars movies “Revenge of the Jedi,” but realized that Jedis wouldn’t seek revenge. That movie became “Return of the Jedi.” And later he made a movie called “Revenge of the Sith.”

Apparently, Jedis are above seeking revenge, but according to a literal reading of Numbers 31, God isn’t. Does this make the Old Testament God a Sith Lord? But I digress.

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Partnership with Faithlife (Logos)

Partnership with Faithlife (Logos)

I’m excited to announce I’ve started a partnership with a company called Faithlife. This will allow me to offer resources to my readers at a discount and add an avenue for financially supporting my writing.

Faithlife makes an unbelievable program called the Logos Bible Software. I started using that software in college and continue to use it to this day. I’ve used it for school papers, sermons, blog posts, books, and those moments I stumble upon a really good theology question. The software allows you to digitally search through the Bible and other books and commentaries to dive deep into any topic or idea you are interested in as you study a passage. There’s nothing else like it.

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The Power of Suggestion

I recently posted a slow-motion video of my dogs playing with O Fortuna playing in the background. One of the comments on that post was someone sharing the following YouTube video with an orchestra performing the song and ‘misheard’ lyrics applied on screen as they sing in Latin. It literally made me laugh out loud.

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You Don’t Need to Give God Your Drink

One of the advantages of my Bible reading plan (which you can download for free if you click here) is that I’m often making connections between different parts of the Bible. For example, I’ve recently been reading in the book of Numbers. Similar to other gods in that time, the Biblical God instructs the Israelites on how to feed their God. “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Give these instructions to the people of Israel: The offerings you present as special gifts are a pleasing aroma to me; they are my food. See to it that they are brought at the appointed times and offered according to my instructions'” (Numbers 28:1-2).

God even goes so far as to make sure they include alcohol. “Along with it you must present the proper liquid offering of one quart of alcoholic drink with each lamb, poured out in the Holy Place as an offering to the Lord” (Numbers 28:7). That’s my kinda God!

Now imagine this was the only verse you knew of God today. If you wanted to follow God and attempted to live this out, things would get a bit weird.

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Why You Can’t See Your Nose

Why You Can’t See Your Nose

Your nose is front and center on your face. Yet we don’t stare over or around it all day. Have you ever realized that your eyes can see your nose all the time?

Probably not, because your brain chooses to ignore it.

Don’t take my word on it though. Close one eye at a time and look at your nose. You can see it from each side. Yet when you open your eyes together it seems to vanish.

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2022 Reading List – 2/4

2022 Reading List – 2/4

I’m currently driving home after five weeks in Oregon. That means my kids will be starting back at school in a few weeks and we are about halfway through the year. It’s a good time to check in on this year’s reading list and share my thoughts so far.

Click on any of the titles below to get to a link to buy it. (DisclaimerAs an Amazon Associate, I may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com).

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