Picturepocket's Blog

Category: Bible

  • 1 Corinthians 2: New Lens

    Paul continues by reminding the readers that he focuses on Jesus and his death in his teachings over his own ideas and thoughts. He speaks from a position of weakness and trembling. He has demonstrated the power of the Spirit, not his personal wisdom.  Paul says that if the rulers at Jesus’s time had understood,…

  • 1 Corinthians 1: God First

    This letter was written by Paul with the endorsement of Sothenes, (In Acts 18, he was the ruler of the synagogue in Corinth whose beating was ignored by the leader Gallio). It’s the same effect of telling the kids, “Your Dad and I have something important to tell you.” Their greeting is to the Church…

  • Finding Peace with Paul

    Finding Peace with Paul

    When I went to graduate school two decades ago, it was through a program where I taught English overseas during the school year and studied at home in the summer. Neat, right? I did all the courses to graduate, but at the end, I still needed three prerequisite Bible courses that the Christian college required,…

  • Philemon: The Slave is Our Brother

    I finished Romans and wanted to read another scripture, but didn’t want to launch into a whole new book, so I present: Philemon. It’s a one pager. In fact, after an extended introduction and conclusion, it’s a one paragrapher, a plea for freedom.  Like most of Paul’s writings it’s a letter, but unlike the others…

  • Romans 16: Goodbye

    Paul wraps up his letter with acknowledgments of fellow believers and ministers. He commends Phoebe, a deacon of the church at Cenchreae, who was his patron as well as host (in Acts). Then the couple Prisca (Pricilla) and Aquila, his fellow tentmakers and house church leaders who “risked their necks” for him. He greets his…

  • Romans 14: Quarrel Less

    During the season of family meals, we see Paul talking about food and faith. For religious purposes some people then, as many often do now, had guidelines in place of what not to eat or drink. In addition to Old Testament guidelines (no pork or shellfish) there were special fasts that individuals would observe or…

  • Romans 13: Armor of Light

    Paul is guiding the believers living in Rome to live pure. He tells them to follow rules and honor the authority that God has allowed. This is in the context of Jews living under heavy-handed and debauched Roman rulers. Paul reassures them that all authority is subject to God himself. He tells them to pay…

  • Romans 12: How to Christian 

    Paul is calling out to his fellow believers to live well. First, we are to be living sacrifices. So rather seeing our decision as a one time event, it is a new way of being. Every day Christians are to subvert their will to God’s. This is not a small ask, and requires fresh inspiration…

  • Romans 11: Grafted 

    Paul asks and answers his own question, is God rejecting his chosen people? He reminds the reader that he too an Israelite, descended from Abraham and Benjamin, just like Jesus, with a personal stake in this debate. God is not rejecting his people, even though as a group they have acted against his ways many…

  • Romans 10: Hide & Seek

    Remembering that Paul is speaking to Jewish believers living in Rome, he pleads the case for the inclusion of non-Jews into the family of faith. These new believers have zeal, but are ignorant of the law of God. Christ himself is their goodness.  Paul contrasts Jesus with Moses. Moses acquired the Ten Commandments from God…