Time and the Message
I have been taking a class on Biblical interpretation for ministry. We have been working through how to interpret the various genres represented in Scripture. Time and time again, we are memorized as our professors help us to uncover the meanings of various passages because we are confronted with insights that almost shock us with what a Biblical author was actually "saying." The most common issue is context.
Context considers the historical and textual context of a passage. The historical is usually easy to discover as there are many wonderful resources available for that purpose. However, fitting a passage into its literary context is not so easy. It requires looking at the genre of a passage (which might require looking at how the passage fits in the surrounding context), how the passage fits in with surrounding stories, parables, plot lines, character developments, and so on. It is tough work, but extremely rewarding. When things are placed in the proper context, a reader can quite clearly see what the author meant and why he arranged the material the way he did. Some of the principles that we are being taught are the same tools used to describe non-biblical literature, and have proved themselves necessary for understanding a piece of literature.
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Joe Schneider (joe@revision29.com) - 02/21/2010
An Unlikely Mission
Here is the recording of my latest sermon. The title is "An Unlikely Mission," which is based on Mark 1:16-20. Since I recorded it, I thought I would share it with the world.
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Joe Schneider (joe@revision29.com) - 02/7/2010
Binding and Loosing in Matthew 16
[As usual this is a roughly worded/formatted article. I am thinking out loud and looking for some input from others. In other words, I am seeking some peer review.]
I have been working through Matthew 16 for NT independent class. My goal is to compare the reactions of the disciples with the religious rulers to determine what is the difference between these groups not getting Jesus. My thesis for the paper that I will produce as the fruit of my study relates to why there is a difference between these two groups not getting it. I'll save the reason for later. I am having a hard time wording my thesis in a comprehensible manner. It is really a secondary issue that I am hoping to extrapolate from the text, which makes it a little hard to put down on paper.
I have not approached an exegetical project in this way. That is, I am looking at a theme that might not be something Matthew was trying to show, but is based on a pattern that I have deduced from the text. So my method is to exegete the text properly, then once I have a proper interpretation, see if the pattern I have deduced is valid. Usually I like to take the idea / thesis straight from the text itself or make the thesis what I think the passage means. In this case the meaning becomes the foundation for making sure I understand the text properly and then I build on top of that to demonstrate my thesis. It will make sense once I make public my thesis /summary of my paper.
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Joe Schneider (joe@revision29.com) - 11/27/2009
Ubuntu Studio and Wireless
I feel that part of my job as internet support technician is to keep up to date with latest technology developments. This would include messing around with various flavors of Linux. So the other day while I was taking care of other business, I installed the latest edition of Ubuntu Studio based of of the new Ubuntu 9.10. It really did not suck my time up as I already had my computer setup to accept an installation of Linux. It was just a matter of running the install DVD while working on various labor tasks that I have been leaving undone due to attention given to programming tasks. That is to say I did not waste company time educating myself on new technology developments.
The only problem I had was getting my wireless connection to work. Other flavors of Linux that I have tried tended to operate like Windows in getting connected to a wireless router. Ubuntu Studio makes it easy to connect to a hard wired ethernet connection, but wireless on a MacBook did not work for me out of the box. So I fired up Synaptic and searched for a network manager system other than the default mechanism. The first one I tried failed. Then I tried Wicd. Once I did that it placed an icon in the task bar in KDE (yep I installed KDE beside Gnome as KDE4 rocks) and listed the networks that the wireless card could see. All I had to do was click connect on the network I wanted. For encrypted networks it tells you it needs to have encryption on and password set which is as easy as clicking "Properties" next to the connect button.
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Joe Schneider (joe@revision29.com) - 11/4/2009
My Favorite Passage in Matthew
16:5-12, and here is why...
In chapter 14 the disciples carried to the crowds the bread that Jesus multiplied from five loaves and two fish. In chapter 15 they do the same with seven loaves and a few small fish. The disciples have seen what Jesus can do with a tiny amount of food. Food is a huge theme in these two chapters. However it does not end there.
Chapter 16 continues this food motif. This time Jesus warns the disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. He does this while they are whispering amongst themselves that they did not bring any bread to eat. Remember that they had witnessed how Jesus produced a ton of food from a few tiny morsels. Jesus knows that they still "do not get it," and I think he plays with them a little bit.
So while they are whining about being hungry and having no food, Jesus warns them about the leaven of the religious leaders. They are obviously confused by this. Perhaps they are thinking they will happen across a village with a couple of bread stands and Jesus is saying to stay away from the bread of the Pharisees and Sadducees. The disciples had gotten chastised by these guys for following Jesus, so perhaps they might poison some bread and give it to the disciples. So just in case they ran across these bread stands, they need to be careful about who they buy some from.
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Joe Schneider (joe@revision29.com) - 10/6/2009
February 2010
November 2009