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Instead of approaching the book called Acts as the “Acts of the Apostles” we should see it as “The Powerful Acts of the Holy Spirit Through the Early Disciples.” Peter is most prominent in Acts 1-12 and Paul in Acts 13-28. But you already know there are many significant individuals in this chronicle of the early church's growth. Philip is one of those significant disciples of Jesus, appearing four times as God's Spirit blesses him in challenging circumstances.

Scholarly consensus puts the writing of John's gospel between 90-100 AD. John is referred to in the biblical texts as “the beloved” or “the disciple Jesus loved,” and there is a stronger sense of intimacy in the telling of this gospel. Consider also that John, who outlived the other apostles, had witnessed the outpouring of God's Spirit at Pentecost, the spread of the gospel across the empire, the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and had been exiled to Patmos where he wrote Revelation. John also uses philosophical language, but turns to actual events to capture our imagination as he applies a theological truth to life.

“But at age fifty years they shall retire from service in the work and not work any more.”

Many Christians quote Numbers 8:25 and then say, “See, God says we are to retire at age fifty.”  But full retirement age will soon be age 67 in America. Yet age 50 is a good time for us to start seriously evaluating and planning our retirement income from five sources.

Recently I was sitting in a church classroom and realized my attention was drawn to a poster on the wall. Was it the art? A snappy headline? Useful information? No, I realized it was because it was promoting something from last year.

It has been said that many Christians would like to go back to the Golden Age of church in the 50s. That’s not possible. Shouldn’t we also try to keep people from reliving the last year or two in our facilities?

We can fantasize about the original apostles who followed Jesus as men of unshakable faith, but the gospel narratives poke gigantic holes in that thinking. Even with the removal of Judas, the remaining eleven appear no different from us. Peter's epic statement about Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16), is offset by his denial in the courtyard of the high priest after Jesus’ arrest: “I do not know him” (Luke 22:57). James and John exhibited deep loyalty to Jesus, but they evidenced less than spirituality when they sought places of prominence in the kingdom to come (Matthew 10:37)! But when it comes to Thomas, we do this kind of religious sidestep and label him The Doubter!

I was the dinner guest of a scientist and his wife in their lovely home in South Korea. The wife was active in the church where I was preaching but the husband was not a believer. He saw Christianity as a moral philosophy, dismissing the resurrection as a folk tale. I asked him if he understood everything about the physical world and he laughed, responding, “No one does.”

The concluding week of Jesus' ministry as “the Human One” (v. 23) brings together all the contrasts and evidence pointing to God's ultimate plan for humanity. The Apostle John looks back over all the details and events as he identifies and presents the fullness of God's grace.

Grief and loss are never routine or easy. We can learn the sympathetic words to speak, repeat the correct doctrines, but in the darkness of loss we all struggle. I was charged with my first funeral in a small country church in southeast Oklahoma on a bitter cold November day. I had only attended one funeral in my young lifetime and that was to observe how a pastor should handle such an occasion.

Honestly, which would you prefer to read: a story about Jesus healing a blind man – or Jesus confronting our failures?

Imagine: You have put together an award-worthy video and now you are ready to tell the world about it. An announcement is crafted that that captures people’s attention as well as their interest. And then you tell people where to find it.