Jim’s Blog

Jesus’ Birth 1:18-25 Part 1 Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth is blunt and to the point, lacking Luke’s beguiling detail. Matthew seems to rush into the messianic narrative, impatient to recount Jesus’ powerful, earth-shaking ministry. So he summarizes the story of the incarnation. But the words he does use are charged with meaning. The word […]

None of us are unaware of the rapid spread of the corona virus around the world. It’s a threat to all of us, even as the epicentre of the critical mass of affected persons is still its country of origin. The nations of the world are on high alert and proactive measures are escalating. Blame, […]

Jesus’ Ancestors (1:1-17) Part 10 Before moving on, just a word about “levirate marriage”. In De. 25:5-10 we read this: “If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of […]

Jesus’ Ancestors (1: 1-17) Part 9 Then, there is another woman to consider. Bathsheba was a Hittite woman, wife of Uriah one of King David’s military leaders. While Uriah was on duty, David seduced Bathsheba, then had Uriah killed. To maintain whatever honour David could have salvaged from such a sinful, tawdry act, he married […]

I was watching a TV documentary recently where there was a study on “finding happiness” through group dynamics. In other words, leaving all screens behind and simply fellowshipping face to face with flesh and blood human beings was the road to happiness. What a concept! One of the significant benefits of this kind of intentional […]

Jesus’ Ancestors (1:1-17) Part 8 Then there’s the story of Ruth. An entire, but brief, book of the Old Testament tells us about her. A Jewish man, Elimelek (“My God is king”), with his wife Naomi (“Pleasant”), migrate from Bethlehem to the region of Moab because of a famine. In Moab, shortly after, Elimelek dies. […]

Jesus’ Ancestors (1:1-17) Part 7 Judah married Er to a young Canaanite woman named Tamar. Their marriage was short-lived. Er died. So Judah ordered his n ext son, Onan to have sex with Tamar in order “to raise up offspring for your brother.” This was what we know as “levirate marriage” (more on that later). […]

I was just remembering a conversation I had a while back with someone who was always anxious. It was a lifelong burden. Pretty much everything in his life was seen through a worst case scenario lens. And, of course, one can view almost anything in terms of what might go wrong. Worry is the father […]

Jesus’ Ancestors (1:1-17) Part 6 In Ge. 38:1-3 the narrative of Judah and Tamar is written. Judah was the fourth-born to Jacob’s first wife Leah. He was the “father” of the future Isrealites who later took on his name to describe their territory — the southern kingdom of Judah — and their national/ethnic designation: “Jews”. […]