new testament – Page 4 – Jesus @ 2 am blogs and podcast

Understanding the Bible 14.875: Christmas (Christmas Eve 2013)

January 17, 2014March 7, 2014Kirk WinslowLeave a comment

There is no understanding the Bible without recognizing love at the center – or so I have been arguing from the first installment of this series. The whole project of salvation is rooted in the love of God for his people and indeed all creation.

And I imagine that this is not so hard to believe as a matter of literary criticism or even theology. But how do we internalize this truth? How do we own that we are loved by God in our bones?

For my part, I think one of the clearest looks at the love of God for us is given at Christmas – and not just in the humility of the incarnation (God willing to surrender the glory of heaven for a barn), but by the inherent intimacy that exists between parent and child.

In this episode – a short sermon on Christmas Eve – we look at the traditional nativity story (Luke 2:1-20) and get one of our most moving glimpses of the love of God.

Jesus at 7PM – Live Audience Q&A in Irvine, CA

November 12, 2013November 12, 2013Kirk WinslowLeave a comment

Honest answers to sincere questions are essential to the work of love. Indeed the lessons that have been most formative in my spiritual life have not come from books and lectures (important though they are!), but from the candid conversations that came at the cafe or in the parking lot after the formal lesson was over.

My hope is that these live Q&A events can offer something of that same experience in the digital age – thoughtful, candid answers to the questions that are weighing upon you.

The responses are unscripted (and therefore quite imperfect). And this first foray into the world of live theological conversation includes a mea culpa (and some edits) for an answer I wish had been more complete.

Topics include:

A very brief look at the biblical perspective on homosexuality,
A look at the Apostle Paul’s advice to avoid marriage if possible (and the idea that even the biblical perspective can evolve),
The two creations stories in Genesis and how to interpret them,
A discussion of how we think about the “authority of scripture” and its “accuracy,”
Canvas (the church where I am pastor in Irvine, CA) and what it means to be a part of the Fresh Expressions movement (what defines a “fresh expression” and how that differentiates us from “traditional church”),
The influence of American Christianity on the global church, and
How to interpret Genesis 6:1-4, that nearly indecipherable passage about the Nephilim (the favorite term paper topic of every Old Testament professor in the world).

The next Jesus at 7PM event is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2013 (location TBD – hopefully a cool bar or pub in the OC!). Know a spot???? Let me know!

Gospels, Part 5: Jesus, Prophet of the Kingdom

January 14, 2012April 28, 2014Kirk WinslowLeave a comment

One of the greatest challenges to understanding the message of Jesus is knowing how to categorize him as a speaker. When those first audiences gathered, who did they think they were going to hear? A teacher? A philosopher? A political leader? Or something else?

In this fifth installment in the Next Steps into the Gospels course we examine Jesus’ rhetorical genre and identify him as an “apocalyptic prophet” – one who comes to proclaim God’s word to his people, one with a message that God is bringing the present age to it’s conclusion and ushering in the new era of salvation.