Yeshua’s Immersion

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The words of the heavenly voice that spoke at Jesus’ immersion foreshadowed the trajectory of Jesus’ career.

Yohanan the Immerser’s Execution

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The story of John the Baptist’s martyrdom was rich with allusions to stories from the Hebrew Scriptures.

Yohanan the Immerser’s Eschatological Discourse

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John the Baptist anticipated the coming of an Elijah-like priestly messiah who would purify the Temple on an eschatological Day of Atonement.

Yohanan the Immerser Demands Repentance

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In Yohanan the Immerser Demands Repentance John the Baptist challenges his audience, which had gone through all the trouble of going out to the Jordan River to receive his baptism, to accept his even more important advice: to repent of their evil deeds and imitate the faithfulness of Abraham their father.

A Voice Crying

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An examination of the Jewish setting of John the Baptist’s proclamation of an immersion of repentance for the release of Israel’s sin indebtedness.

Darnel Among the Wheat Parable

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Is the Darnel Among the Wheat parable an allegory about eschatological events, or a lesson about God’s character?

Yeshua, His Mother and Brothers

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Did Jesus reject his natural family in favor of a spiritual kinship, or did he pay Mary and his brothers the highest possible compliment?

Four Soils Parable

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By not revealing what the Four Soils parable was about until its dramatic conclusion Jesus drew in his audience and held their attention, making them the very thing the parable urged them to be: good listeners.

Mustard Seed and Starter Dough Parables

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Jesus used the Mustard Seed and Starter Dough parables to demonstrate that the Kingdom of Heaven is a living and active presence that is increasing within the realm of human experience.

Friend In Need Simile

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Is God asleep, oblivious to our prayers? Is he a grouch, unwilling to respond to our pleas? In the Friend in Need simile Jesus instructed his disciples that the grounds for confident prayer is the character of their good and trustworthy God.

Yeshua’s Discourse on Worry

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In Yeshua’s Discourse on Worry Jesus confronted one of the most serious concerns of the disciples: how would their basic needs be met now that they had given up their possessions and livelihoods in order to itinerate full-time with Jesus?

Praying Like Gentiles

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What can Jesus’ warnings against praying like Gentiles teach us about Jesus’ relationship to Second Temple Judaism and his attitude toward non-Jews?