With a smirk befitting someone about to deliver the authoritative word on a subject long puzzled over, the apostle John reaches for his pen to begin inscribing his gospel account (or so I can at least imagine). Going from 0 to 60 in record time, he opens: “In the…
Joy-Full Fellowship (Part 5): The Prophets
Following the apex of Israel’s glory with the construction of the Solomonic temple, the biblical drama enters a period of sustained decline with the occasional righteous Davidic king temporarily suspending its ultimate demise. The inhabitants of Jerusalem repeatedly fail to meet the…
Joy-Full Fellowship (Part 4): The Temple
Introduction The Garden The Patriarchs The Tabernacle Israel’s history progresses and time and time again they prove to be an unholy people unworthy to have the Holy One, the Lord of Glory dwell in their midst. Nevertheless, the Lord brings…
Joy-Full Fellowship (Part 3): The Tabernacle
We continue our expedition through the biblical drama of the triune God’s pursuit of union and communion with his people in joy-full fellowship (Ps. 16:11). The promise, “I will be your God and you will be my people,” is the refrain of his heart that…
Joy-Full Fellowship
Where can I find joy that is full and pleasures that are everlasting? This is the one great pursuit of men in every age. In the words of Pascal, “All men seek happiness. This is without exception.” Because this is…
Did Mary Know?
The other day the song “Mary Did You Know?” came on the radio. Someone in the car remarked, “Uh oh, Dan doesn’t like this song.” True, I had mentioned my dislike of it before. And I’m sure some of you have “liked” the…
The Dawning of a New Age: Jesus’ Birth in Matthew’s Gospel
Matthew opens his gospel account with these words: “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (1:1). We find the same wording in Genesis 2:4 (LXX), “The book of the genealogy of heaven…
Behold, the Virgin Shall Conceive: Luke’s Use of Isaiah 7:14
Mary is twice mentioned as a “virgin” (παρθένος) in Luke 1:27. “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph,…
Joy-Full Fellowship (Part 2): The Patriarchs
The drama of the biblical story is driven by God’s desire to dwell with his people in joy-full (Ps. 16:11) fellowship. In our previous article we referred to this as the Immanuel principle (God with us)—a fitting theme to consider as…
Joy-Full Fellowship (Part 1): The Garden
The theme of God dwelling with his people in joy-full (Ps. 16:11) fellowship is a vital vein that runs throughout the single story of the Bible stretching from Genesis to Revelation. We can simply refer to this theme as the Immanuel Principle—God with us. While…
