Tag: Bible
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Putting Colossians in the Mix
Reading Colossians Remixed:Subverting the Empire by Brian J. Walsh and Sylvia C. Keesmaat, published in 2004, is a reminder of a time when postmodernity was in its ascendency. It’s not clear where we live now, but less than two decades later you feel that we are somewhere very different than the environment Walsh and Keesmaat…
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Dispatch from the Age of Idolatry
We live in the Age of Idolatry. If you want the bill of particulars, I’ve got it, but it does no good to rehearse the many ways that we have discovered gods who are not God since few of us will own up to such heresy. Idolators are always the other guys. And if I…
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Adrift in a Sea of Love and Antichrists: The Johannine Epistles
To translate the Johannine epistles (1, 2, & 3 John in the Bible) is to be adrift in a sea of love and antichrists. You get the sense that the community receiving these letters is tragically torn and needs the stern reminding of this elder to remember who they are and to learn how to…
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How Not to Take the Lord’s Name in Vain in an Election Year
Here’s an evergreen commandment—“Don’t take the name of the Lord your God in vain.” (Ex. 20:7) It’s one of the top 10 from Sinai and it’s most often invoked when someone believes they have breached it—say when they let a juicy God-based epithet fly in front of the preacher. How many times have I been…
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2 John: A Translation
The Second Letter of John A translation by Alex Joyner* From the elder to the Chosen Lady and her children, whom I love in the Truth. And I am not alone in this, but I also join all those who have known the Truth, because the Truth abides in you and is with you unto…
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1 John: A Translation
The First Letter of John A translation by Alex Joyner* That which was from the beginning is also, believe it!, that which we have heard, what we have seen with our own eyes, the Logos of Life—we beheld and held it with these trembling hands. The Life was revealed and we have seen and bear…
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Finding All Things in Christ: The Belated Review of Colossians
He’s never been known for his crystal clarity, but Paul, (often called the Apostle Paul), has a way of captivating you with the propulsive thunder of his rhetoric. Sure, there are elements of his writing that make a 21st century Christian cringe, (behavioral guides for slaves?!), but there’s also a cosmic vision of Christ as…
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Colossians: A Translation
A translation by Alex Joyner From: Paul, by God’s will an apostle of Jesus Christ, and Brother Timothy To: The holy and faithful in Colossae, brothers and sisters all Grace. Peace to you from God the Father. We give thanks to God, Father also of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we pray always on your…
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The Prodigal Son’s Older Brother as Wimbledon Chair Umpire – Friday Poetry
What the older brother squandered was his sweat, which, had he known it was as dissolute as life in the far country, he might have traded out for something more exciting. But his fierce fidelity to the American dream was his particular delusion. “Virtue can be earned in honest labor.” Only honesty was not his…
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O the Stories We Could Tell!
What if we ran out of stories? It doesn’t seem like we’re any danger of that. Netflix announced earlier this year that it was going to spend $8 billion on original content in 2018. Other media outlets are increasing their output. Even amateurs with a smartphone are producing YouTube series. Our appetite for stories doesn’t…
Heartlands 