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2011 Books

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My 2011 books

These days I read mostly for school of for research of one sort or another. Even so, here are my 2011 books.

My favorites were:

Unconditional? by Brian Zahnd

The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer

Imaginary Jesus by Matt Mikalatos

The Holy Wild by Mark Buchanan

I also enjoyed The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

 

What about you? What did you read and enjoy this past year? What do you plan to read in 2012?

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Filed Under: Friday Update Tagged With: , , , , Mark Buchanan, Matt Mikalatos, , , , ,

STT: Mark

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hourglassThe gospel of Mark is the story of a man, a God-Man, on a mission. I'm in the middle of an in-depth study of Mark with my Wednesday morning group and I've developed a deep appreciation for this compact, action-oriented gospel. I love how the narrative flows from one episode to the next, building as it goes. It's the shortest gospel- only sixteen chapters and makes for a quick read and a great study.
 
Here are a few things to keep in mind as you dig into Mark.
 
Mark is written for a Gentile audience. There are few mentions of Old Testament prophecies or Jewish customs or traditions. 
 
The focus is on what Jesus does. Matthew proved Jesus was the Messiah based on the scriptural evidence. In Mark, the proof comes through His miracles. Nearly every chapter contains some demonstration of Jesus' divine power. Also note Jesus' unwavering focus on His mission. Nothing distracts Him from fulfilling His ultimate purpose.
 
Watch the transitions, time markers, and place names. Phrases like "they went out from there" or "while He was still speaking" or "then they crossed over" underscore Mark's narrative style. Another key word that's worth noticing is "immediately" (or "straightway", if you're KJV).
 
Mark supplies details and comments that none of the other gospels have, especially sensory details. He highlights the green grass, the little boats, the disciples' fear and failures. For instance, toward the end of chapter 6 after Jesus calms the storm, only Mark tells us the reason for the disciples fear and amazement. "For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened."
 
What's your favorite passage in Mark's gospel?
 
 

 

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Filed Under: Book study, Study Tip Tuesday Tagged With: , Gospel of Mark, , Mark

Throw the Cloak Aside

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empty bird cageMark 10 tells the story of the healing of a blind man named Bartimaeus. In verse 50, there's a detail worth noticing.
 
Throwing aside his cloak, [Bartimaeus] jumped up and came to Jesus.
 
That cloak was his bedroll and his blanket. It was his sole earthly possession. It was essential to his life as beggar. 
 
But he threw it aside.
 
He was about to have an encounter with Jesus, the Christ, and he knew nothing in his life would ever be the same. 
 
He called Jesus by the same intimate, personal name Mary Magdalene used on Resurrection Morning. He knew the One he was talking to.
 
And he asked for healing.
 
That's the choice. 
 
Keep the cloak, and all it represents 
 
Or receive restoration. 

 

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Filed Under: Monday Meditations Tagged With: , , Mark,

GP: Miracles by Alex Adena

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(I'm pleased to welcome fellow fiction writer and super nice guy Alex Adena today. His novella, Signs and Wonders, is a redemptive story about a faith healer who finds she may not be a fraud after all. You can get it at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and Apple's iBooks. Connect with Alex on Facebook and on Twitter @alexadena.)


 

Signs and Wonders coverThings happen that are beyond our ability to comprehend them.
 
We look at a snowflake and wonder how they can all have unique patterns. Or we read about the discovery of a new planet in the universe that appears to defy the laws of physics. Or if you ask a mom, they’ll cite as an example the inner workings of the teenage brain.
 
Some are things that we just have yet to understand. Knowledge is constantly evolving -– it was only a few hundred years ago that we figured out that the earth was not flat, after all.
 
But there are some things that we, as Christians, can accept that science may never explain. Miracles. God likes to keep some secrets for himself and we’re okay with that.
 
From Mark 16:20: “Then the disciples went out and preached it everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.”
 
But what are these signs? Is it incurable cancer that spontaneously goes into remission? Is it Moses parting the Red Sea? Is it the image of the Virgin Mary on a piece of toast?
 
I don’t think a sign even needs to stop us in our tracks to be considered a miracle. There are many signs all around us that go unnoticed as we rush about our lives. Even toast. If God gave us a sense of humor, surely he has one himself, right?
 
Some suggest that miracles may not even be all that rare.
 
English mathematician J.E. Littlewood proposed that miracles – he defined them as an event of exceptional significance – could happen at the rate of one in a million. After he did some calculations, he proposed we observe one miracle every 35 days.
 
That’s a lot of miracles! Maybe we’re missing some of them. Or a lot.
 
If we stop to take stock of our lives from time to time, the result is we can focus on the things that are truly important to us. Our lives become richer and we suddenly find ourselves capable of enriching the lives of others.
 
And just perhaps, you’ll spot a sign that otherwise you would have missed.
 
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STT: Word Study

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Another study method you can use – especially if you are feeling particularly geeky – is a word study. A word study connects our English translation with the original language word to give a fuller, richer understanding of how the word is used in Scripture. 
 
It can get tricky, though. For instance, several original language words get translated as the same English word. In the New Testament, "servant" could be one of seven different Greek words.
Or, one Greek or Hebrew word gets translated into a whole collection of English words. The Hebrew word kaphar usually gets translated "atonement", but it (or a form of kaphar) is also rendered purged, reconciliation, merciful, appeased, cleansed, forgave, pacified, pardoned and pitch. "Pitch" comes from the story of Noah and the ark. 
 
Think about that- The same word that is used in Exodus to talk about covering the people's sins through blood sacrifice is used in Genesis for the ark covering that will ensure Noah and his family will pass through the waters of judgment. Fascinating!
 
Here's what you need:
  • Your study Bible and notebook
  • English dictionary
  • Your other favorite translations (My study Bible is NKJV, so here I use NAS and NLT primarily, but I also occasionally check ESV, NIV, God's Word, CEV and NCV.)
  • An exhaustive concordance
  • A Hebrew and Greek Dictionary
 
How it works:
1. Choose your word. Let's say I read Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest." I'm going to choose "rest"
2. Look it up in the English dictionary.  I found lots of definitions:
1. Stopping work or activity 2. Sleep 3. Absence of movement 4. Death 5. Freedom from anxiety 6. A place to stop and relax 7. Support 8. A pause in music.
(And that's just the noun! There are more for the verb.) 
 
Hmm… Jesus could be talking about just stopping work, but I'd say it's more like freedom from anxiety or support.
 
3. Check your other translations. They also render it "rest".
4. Look up the verse in the exhaustive concordance. It lists the "Strong's number" for the word. (Yep Mr. Strong numbered all the Hebrew and Greek words in the Bible, making it easier for us to look them up and cross-reference them. See why it's called 'exhaustive'?) 
 
Here's how Matthew 11:28 looks in Strong's NAS concordance.
“Come (G1250) to Me, all (G3956) who are weary (G2872) and heavy-laden,(G5412) and I will give (G373) you rest.(G373)
Notice "give" and "rest" are the same number. That's a tip-off that our English phrase "give you rest" is just one word in the Greek.
 
5. Check the Hebrew/Greek dictionary
Rest is G373 ἀναπαύω (the actual Greek word) anapauō (and the transliteration)
Then in my Thayer's Greek Dictionary, the entry reads:
1) to cause or permit one to cease from any movement or labor in order to recover and collect his strength
2) to give rest, refresh, to give one’s self rest, take rest
3) to keep quiet, of calm and patient expectation
Part of Speech: verb
A Related Word by Thayer’s/Strong’s Number: from G303 and G3973
Total KJV Occurrences: 12
Ease, 1, Luke 12:19
Refresh, 1,Philem 1:19-20 (2)
Resteth, 1, 1 Pet 4:14
 
(Notice how the Greek definitions match the English ones from step 2. Although I like that Greek definition #3, with the sense of expectation. I'll make a note of that.)
 
 
Most of the time, I stop after step 3, but I admit, I enjoy digging a little deeper, especially when I'm teaching (or writing blog posts).
 
 
Give word studies a try. No pressure. Do as many steps as you feel comfortable with or have resources for, and let me know what you learn! 

 

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