Pastor Foltz is Pastor Emeritus of Saint James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg, PA and author of the the Frontline Study content.
You can read John 11: 1-44 as the report of Jesus restoring life to his friend, Lazarus. If you do, you must answer some disturbing questions. What kind of friend delays rushing to heal in order to show off his power? Why do the sisters engage in strange confessions about raising the dead at the […]
If John’s unique version of the Love Command is to do as he does (Love one another as I have loved you), then what seems to be a gospel explaining who Jesus is becomes a guide to what we should be doing. What some read as obnoxious egotism becomes radical challenge. John 10: 1-21 That […]
So many people have asked about Bob Nordvall, I decided to post the letter and poem he asked to be opened at his death and read at his funeral. Once again he causes us to ponder our life and faith. Bob was the captain of the national champion debate team in college, a Harvard lawyer, […]
I am ready to complete the course on John. I plan to handle it a little differently. In one of my face-to-face classes a family doctor said it was evident to him that John was tackling the questions the early church asked. Would that more pastors did that! So I decided to write the lessons […]
John 9 uses the healing of a blind man to support Jesus’ proclamation, “I am the Light of the World.” Its treatment makes clear we are talking about more than restoring sight to eyes, so we can sense and sort out the physical world around us. Healing, also, involves social, mental, and spiritual repair. If […]
John 7 and 8 picture Jesus constantly on the run, constantly hiding; as just about every group in his society, beginning with his own family, challenges his authority or even attempts to arrest and kill him. Then in the midst of all this, Jesus promises, “The truth shall make you free!” This is certainly a […]
John 6 is built around Jesus’ proclamation, “I am the Bread of Life,” John’s working of the Feeding of the Multitude. His presentation of the Feeding almost parallels the reports of the other three gospels in which the mighty work appears five times. It is obviously very important to the early Church; yet all the […]
Chapter 4 begins with a tired and thirsty Jesus. John obviously does not think the Incarnate God is a superman. Significantly, his gospel is the one in which Jesus cries, “I thirst!” from the cross. When this Jewish rabbi finds himself alone with a Samaritan adulteress at a well, his conduct flies in the face […]
In John 3, Nicodemus, a teacher of Hebrew law, comes under cover of night to have a discussion with Jesus. He leaves baffled by Jesus’ words about being “born again,” failing to perceive the deep spiritual meaning. But that is not the end of the story. In 7:50-51, John pictures Jesus reminding his friends, who […]
In last week’s comments Bob asks the important question about how we should read the differences in the four gospels. Derek responds with his usual critical insights. You can read what they said and contribute your ideas on the site or in my next “Just in Case” email. Let me make a contribution by examining […]
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