Gateway to the Word

Well, by God’s grace we landed in Tel Aviv at little before 7am, meaning it was midnight as far as our bodies were concerned. When we touched down everyone on the plane broke into applause. One of the attendants told us over the intercom, “We...

We spent the night sleeping in the airport and boarded a plane for Miami at 7:00 this morning! It’s been a mad rush to get through security here and get to the gate, but we are finally on an El Al flight to Israel! They asked me a hundred questions...

Today, Bryan Smith and I embark on a long-anticipated excursion to the country of Israel. We are currently waiting to board a Delta flight to JFK, and there we will take the 10-hour flight to Tel Aviv, landing late Thursday morning. Bryan’s son,...

In the era of social media and electronic communication, very few of us actually write letters any more. Instead, we write emails and send a lot of texts. Or, we may message people through Facebook or send out a “tweet.” And if you’re in the millennial...

The scene in Psalm 50 and Revelation 4–6 are mirror images. Psalm 50 depicts God as the judge of all the earth, seated in glorious Zion, the temple mount. He summons all of heaven and earth to a great judgment. Only, this is not the judgment of the...

Why does John place the story of “doubting Thomas” at the climax of his gospel? Because John’s whole purpose is to call people to believe in Jesus of Nazareth—his claims about himself, his ministry, his death for sin, and especially his resurrection...

We’re missing some needed disbelief in our Christian experience. I don’t mean the kind that causes us to ultimately doubt what God promises us is true. I mean the kind of disbelief that the disciples experienced during their first meeting with Jesus...

We don’t normally give as much attention to the Saturday between Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. But out of all of the days that we celebrate during the passion week, it is this day that connects most with the life that we live as believers in...

When we read this amazing story, we’re riveted on Jesus and Peter because of Peter’s strong reaction. But let’s consider for just a moment that Jesus not only washed the feet of Peter, but he also washed the feet of Judas, the disciple who was about...