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God teaches us through faith and science. Previous Christian Faith Articles Next God Reveals Himself in Scripture and in the Natural World, through Faith and Science God teaches us through faith and science. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti March 18, 2024 I saw a meme that said, “I don’t follow the Science. I follow Jesus.” This statement deserves further thought. I am a follower of Jesus. I believe He is God (John 1:1). He is the Author of life (Acts 3:15). All of the created world was created through Him (John 1:3; Col. 1:16). God reveals Himself through creation (Rom. 1:20). God reveals Himself in Scripture and in the natural world The heavens and the earth – i.e., all of the natural world – tell the glory of God and proclaim His handiwork (Psalm 19:1). In other words, God reveals Himself and His truths both through Scripture (2 Tim. 3:16) and through the natural world He created (Prov. 30:24-28). Since God is always true (John 3:33), He cannot reveal truth to us in one part of revelation and lie to us in another. All of God’s revelation is true – both that which is found in Scripture and that which is found in the natural world He gave us. Therefore, we can find truths revealed by God in Scripture, and we can find truths revealed by God in the natural world He authored. Science The word “science” refers to a well-developed set of processes people use to understand truths about the natural world. Although scientists wouldn’t say it this way because they are looking for natural evidence, since God is the author of all creation, when they find things that are true in the natural world, they are finding truths that God has revealed to us in the natural world. God teaches us through faith and science. The word “science” is also used to describe the body of truths that humans have discovered as they use the processes of science to explore the natural world. We see “science” in every part of our lives. Scientists used the processes of science to understand the nature of penicillin and its healing properties. As a result, we have a body of scientific knowledge about antibiotics. Scientists used the processes of science to understand the nature of fuels, providing us with the scientific knowledge to provide power to our tractors, our automobiles, and our power plants. Scientists used the processes of science to understand how to improve the yields of plants and animals, leading to the science of agronomy that helps us feed the world. Observing God’s orderly universe All of this is possible because God created an orderly universe with laws that govern that universe, and because He allowed people to discover the truths about the natural world that are hidden in that orderly world. (Even the seemingly disorderly parts of the natural world contain truths that humans can and do discover about the natural world.) The Scriptures speak approvingly of attitudes and actions that are Bible-era precursors of modern science. The Book of Proverbs applauds those who carefully observe the natural world in order to apply it to their own situations (Prov. 6:6-11; 30:24-28). Jesus calls attention to those who observe signs from nature to predict the weather and suggests that we should have a similar attitude in reading spiritual signs (Matthew 16:2-3; Luke 12:54-56). Jesus also tells a parable in which he speaks well of a gardener who seeks to experiment with the soil in order to increase the likelihood of a good harvest (Luke 13:6-9). These passages reflect God’s approval of our use of the processes of science – observing, experimenting, drawing conclusions, etc. Using all of God’s tools to understand truth God has given humans the ability to search out the truths of the natural world through science, just as He has enabled us to search out the truths of the spiritual world through Bible Study. To say, “I follow Jesus but I don’t follow the science,” would be like saying, “I follow Jesus but I don’t follow Bible Study.” They are both just tools – methods of learning. Science is a method used to understand what God reveals through the natural world. Bible Study is a method used to understand what God reveals through Scripture. One and the same God reveals Himself in both places – in Scripture and in the natural world, through Bible Study and through science. Thank God that He has chosen to reveal Himself in both places and has given us these tools – Bible Study and science – to make sense of His truths in both places. God teaches us through faith and science. Blessed is the person who listens to all of God’s revelation, wherever He chooses to reveal it. Copyright © 2024, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Christian Faith Articles Next

Jesus spends time alone, leaving the disciples to get across the lake without him. When he walks on the water and joins them, they reach their destination. How do we handle the times when we don’t feel his presence? Previous Next John List John 6:16-21 Jesus spends time alone, leaving the disciples to get across the lake without him. When he walks on the water and joins them, they reach their destination. How do we handle the times when we don’t feel his presence? Anonymous artist in the circle of Jacopo Tintoretto (probably Lambert Sustris, 1515-c. 1591). Christ at the Sea of Galilee . Circa 1570s. Cropped. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. Public domain, courtesy of the National Gallery of Art, https://www.nga.gov/artworks/41637-christ-sea-galilee . Tom Faletti February 20, 2026 Read John 6:16-21 Jesus walks on the water This is the 5 th of John’s 7 “signs.” In a sentence or two, what happens in this incident? The reason why Jesus is not with the disciples in the boat is because, as verse 15 tells us, he withdrew to the mountain on his own. Why do you think he wanted to be alone, without his disciples? Matthew 14:23 tells us that he went up the mountain to pray, but can we take that a step further? Why do you think Jesus wanted to pray alone at this time, and not with his disciples? Are there times when we need to be alone? How is spending time alone important? Jesus is alone on the mountain, but the disciples are also “alone” in the boat in the sense that they are without Jesus. They have probably gotten used to having Jesus around, everywhere they go. Now they are facing strong winds and rough waves without him. At verse 19 before Jesus appears, how do you think they are feeling? Think of the fears you have had over the years, from when you were a child to now. What did you used to fear most, and what do you fear most now? What is Jesus’s response in verse 20? As you face troubling times in your life today, what do these words of Jesus say to you: “It is I; do not be afraid”? What effect do you think Jesus’s presence has on the disciples? Can you think of a time that Jesus had a similar effect on you or someone you know, where he came to you or made his presence known in a time of struggle? How important is Jesus’s presence to you? How important is it to feel his presence? In verse 20, most English translations have Jesus saying, “It is I.” However, in the original Greek, his words are, “I am,” which calls to mind the name by which God revealed himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14. (In Hebrew, God’s name is spelled using the Hebrew letters for “YHWH,” which is often written in English as “Yahweh” and also inaccurately written as “Jehovah”). Jesus also used “I am” with the Samaritan woman in John 4:25, but why is this moment on the sea an especially appropriate time for Jesus to claim for himself the divine name of God? At Cana, Jesus showed his power to transform nature, turning water into wine. With the feeding of the 5000, he showed his ability to multiply things in the natural world: to make something exist that did not previously exist. Here he shows his transcendence over nature: his ability to overcome the limitations of human nature and the chaos in the natural world. All of these acts show his power, but the third of these miracles demonstrates that he is not just a magician manipulating things; he transcends the natural world as only God does. How can you apply this passage in your life? What does this story tell us about faith? John ends abruptly with the cryptic statement in verse 21 that they immediately arrived at the shore. In Matthew’s telling of the story (Matt. 14:22-27), there is a dialogue and Peter walks on the water. John has a different focus. Perhaps to John the great miracle here was not the walking on the water but the immediate arrival at their destination once Jesus was with them. John emphasizes that once Jesus was present, the struggle is over: they don’t even have to do any more rowing – they immediately reach their goal, arriving at Capernaum immediately. How does the presence of Jesus make a difference as we try to reach a goal? In all 3 Gospels that have this story (Matthew, Mark, and John), Jesus walks on the water immediately after the feeding of the 5,000. They are connected in the movement of Jesus and the disciples and the crowd away from and back to Capernaum, but are they also connected symbolically? In what ways are the two stories similar in what they tell us about Jesus? Take a step back and consider this: The crowd so thoroughly misunderstood Jesus’s nature and purpose that they wanted to make him a king. So he withdrew from them. He also sent the disciples without him to Capernaum. Later in this Gospel, Jesus will say that he must go away to prepare a place for us but that he will return (John 14:3, 28). We can explore whether this passage says something to us about the times when we feel alone. There are times in our lives when Jesus feels more present and times when he feels more absent. How might those times when we feel more alone have value in our spiritual life? How might they help us become who we are meant to be? What does Jesus want us to do when we don’t feel his presence? How can this story help you in those difficult times? The disciples must row hard for a long time as they struggle to get across the lake while Jesus is not with them, but he hasn’t forgot about them and when he arrives, they reach their goal. What does that say to you in your times of trial? Bibliography See John - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/john/bibliography . Copyright © 2026, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous John List Next

Paul’s concern for the Thessalonians is like the love of a mother or father for their children. [1 Thessalonians 2:1-12; 2:13-16] Previous 1 Thess. List Next 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16 Paul’s concern for the Thessalonians is like the love of a mother or father for their children. Image from Wix. Tom Faletti January 26, 2025 1 Thess. 2:1-12 Paul describes his ministry among the Thessalonians In chapter 1, Paul focused on the Thessalonians. In chapter 2, he turns the camera around and focuses on himself: What was he doing as he was ministering to them? What is your overall sense of Paul’s character, based on his self-description here? How would you describe him to someone who did not know him? Verses 1-7 Paul’s motivations are like that of a nursing mother In the first two verses, Paul recalls that when he came to Thessalonica, he had been severely beaten in Philippi. And then he encountered swift opposition in Thessalonica. What sustains him? Where does he get the courage or boldness to continue preaching? We don’t face the kind of opposition Paul did, but many of us hesitate to talk about our faith with others. Why is that? How can you draw courage from God to speak boldly about the good news of knowing Jesus? In verses 3-6, Paul offers a list of negatives where he describes many things that his preaching was not . In compiling this list of false motivations, Paul may be responding to charges that were leveled against him by those who opposed him, or he may be defending the gospel of Christ more generally. In verses 3-6, Paul lists a series of false motivations that are not the reason for his preaching. What is the meaning of each of these false motivations? His preaching was not motivated by what? Not from delusion/deceit/error (v. 3). In other words, his message was not factually false; he was speaking the truth. Not from impure motives (v. 3). He wasn’t trying to secretly get something for himself. Not from deception/trickery (v. 3). He was not withholding information to trick them. Not to please humans (v. 4). He wasn’t doing it so that they would feel good about him. Not with flattery (v. 5). He wasn’t giving them false praise in order to get something from them. Not as a pretext for greed (v. 5). He wasn’t trying to get rich off of them. Not seeking praise from them or others (v. 6). He wasn’t doing it for glory or to gain popularity or acclaim. Tucked in the middle of this list of negatives that his gospel was not , Paul identifies the one motivation that governed his preaching (verse 4). What was his motivation? To please God. This list of good and bad motivations is useful not just for evaluating our “preaching”; it can be used to evaluate everything we do in our lives. What are we called to have as our one true motivation in life, and how does it look when we are living that way? When we seek to please God as our sole motivation, then we (do what?). Which of the false motivations Paul lists is a risk for you as you live your life in a world that does not always share your faith and values? What can you do to keep your motivations pure? We see in our own times how people disparage those they disagree with and use unsubstantiated charges to try to destroy them. What can we do when we or others we know are falsely attacked? Paul notes that as apostles, he and his companions could have made demands (not that making demands of people who are just getting to know you gets you very far, but he could have tried that). But that is not how he approached them. Paul describes himself as being like a nursing mother. What do you think this looked like in practice? How can you be “like a mother” in your approach to people in your community, your workplace, your online presence, your church, your family? Verses 8-12 Paul’s behavior is like a father with his children In verse 8, Paul says that he and his companions shared “not only the gospel of God, but our very selves as well” (1 Thess. 2:8, NABRE). What is his reason for why they did that (verse 8)? How does sharing your whole self enhance the message you are trying to communicate? We tend to want to share only the good things about ourselves, and not our whole selves. How might being more vulnerable strengthen our relationships? Also, how might this kind of openness strengthen our effectiveness in sharing the gospel? What does verse 9 tell you about Paul’s work ethic? Why might it have been important to work for his keep and not expect the Thessalonians to meet his basic needs? In verse 10, Paul describes his personal conduct and behavior. How did he act among the Thessalonians? In verses 11-12, Paul compares his behavior to that of a father with his children. In what ways was he like a father? How can you be “like a father” in the sense Paul means it, in your approach to people in your community, your workplace, your online presence, your church, your family? 1 Thess. 2:13-16 Paul gives further thanks, and digresses Paul here returns to his early theme of thanksgiving (1:2-10). Why is he thankful? Judea is the portion of the former kingdom of the Jews that included the region around Jerusalem. In verse 14, how have the Thessalonians become imitators of the churches of God in Judea? The Christians in the churches in Judea suffered persecution from their fellow Jews – recall the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7:54-8:2) and the persecution under Herod in which James, the brother of John, was killed (Acts 12:1-5). Similarly, Paul says, the Thessalonians suffered persecution from their fellow Thessalonians (although this came also from Jews even though the Thessalonian church was largely Gentile). At this point, Paul digresses to talk about the persecutions that some Jews were fomenting in his time. Because the tone suddenly becomes so harsh, some scholars argue that this was inserted later and not written by Paul. They point out that Paul was a Jew and held out fervent hope that the Jews would be saved. In Romans 9:3 he says he would undergo separation from Christ if it would bring his fellow Jews to Christ. In Romans 11:26, he asserts that “all Israel will be saved” (NRSV, NABRE, and other translations). Furthermore, this is the only place that Paul attributes the crucifixion to the Jews. For example, in 1 Corinthians 2:8, he says that “the rulers of this age” crucified the Lord. We might see this as Paul getting worked up and angry because of the mistreatment that he and these Thessalonians he loved had suffered at the hands of some Jews. An analogy might be a White person writing angrily about what “the Whites” did to African Americans in the South over the course of 300+ years of enslavement and oppression. Referring generically to “the Whites” would not mean all White people, only those who were directly responsible. Similarly, Paul’s denunciation of “the Jews” would not apply to all Jews. Verses 15-16 have been misinterpreted throughout the centuries to foment persecution against the Jewish people. Is Paul speaking about any Jews other than those who were persecuting Christians at that time he was writing? No. Paul’s words are directed only at those of his time who were persecuting Christians. This is not a statement about any Jews at any other time in history and should not be used to criticize or harass Jews in our time. Misusing this passage to justify attacks against Jews is a sign of anti-Semitism. We have seen previously the word “wrath” that appears in verse 16. It is Jewish shorthand for the final judgment of God. In verse 16, when Paul says that the wrath or judgment of God has (already) come, his specific meaning is unclear. There are several possibilities: He could be speaking apocalyptically about what Paul thinks is coming soon. He could be thinking of some specific event that had already happened shortly before he wrote the letter. In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , Raymond F. Collins indicates that Paul could have been referring to “any of a number of tumultuous events about AD 49: the famine, the edict of Claudius expelling Jews from Rome, the massacre in the Temple courts at Passover” (Collins, “1 Thessalonians,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , par. 23, p. 776). He could be thinking about the idea that embracing evil means that a person is already living in a state of anticipatory judgment. As the footnotes to the NABRE put it: “Sinful conduct (1 Thes 2:16) is itself an anticipation of the ultimate wrath or judgment of God (Rom 1:18–2:5), whether or not it is perceived as such” ( New American Bible, revised edition , fn. to 1 Thess. 2:15-16, p. 315). Looking at this entire section of Paul’s letter (1 Thess. 2:1-16), what would you have valued about Paul if you had been in Paul's church? In what ways might you like to be an imitator of Paul? Take a step back and consider this: In verse 4, Paul says that he, Silas, and Timothy were “entrusted” with the gospel. Raymond F. Collins writes, “Paul’s language recalls that of the Athenian court. Public officials are first scrutinized before they are entrusted with political responsibility. In similar fashion, Paul and his companions have been scrutinized by God before being entrusted with the mission of proclaiming the gospel” (Collins, “1 Thessalonians,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary , par. 19, p. 775). All believers, by virtue of their participation in the faith of Christ and the life of the Church, are entrusted with the task of sharing the gospel (in varying ways, of course, depending on our gifts, etc.). This is obvious to most Protestant believers. Catholics sometimes slip into thinking that the task of sharing the gospel belongs to the priests and religious. However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “the faithful, who by Baptism are incorporated into Christ and integrated into the People of God, are made sharers in their particular way in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly office of Christ, and have their own part to play in the mission of the whole Christian people in the Church and in the World” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church. Second Edition , https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/238/ , par. 897, page 237, quoting from Pope Paul VI, Lumen Gentium, (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) , 21 Nov. 1964, par. 31). The Catechism goes on to say: “Since, like all the faithful, lay Christians are entrusted by God with the apostolate by virtue of their Baptism and Confirmation, they have the right and duty, individually or grouped in associations, to work so that the divine message of salvation may be known and accepted by all men throughout the earth. This duty is the more pressing when it is only through them that men can hear the Gospel and know Christ.” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church. Second Edition , https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/240/ , par. 900, page 238) The priests and ministers can’t be everywhere and can’t know everyone; and even if they did, they wouldn’t have all the relationships we have. Some people may only hear the gospel through us. God has entrusted all of us with the work of spreading the message of salvation. All of us are called to share the good news, to encourage others to put their faith in Jesus Christ and accept the love God has for us. What do you need to do differently, if anything, in light of the fact that God has entrusted you with the gospel? Bibliography See 1 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/1-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 1 Thess. List Next

Pray with confidence that God will respond as your Father. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 7:7-11 Pray with confidence that God will respond as your Father. Image by Gustavo Sánchez, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti June 7, 2024 Matthew 7:7-11 Pray expectantly Overall, what is your initial impression of this passage? What is it saying? In verses 7-8, what is the attitude Jesus is calling us to have in prayer? The tense of the verbs in these verses is the present imperative active ( Interlinear Bible , https://biblehub.com/interlinear/matthew/7.htm ), which means that they would be better translated as: Keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking; or continually ask, continually seek, continually knock. We don’t have this tense in English, so our translators settle for “ask, seek, knock,” but the tense in Greek means to continually do that thing. The Greek verbs that are used in verses 7-8 indicate that Jesus is not talking about asking just once. The verbs actually mean “keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.” How does that affect your understanding of this passage? What does this tell you? In verses 9-10, Jesus offers two images of what human parents would or would not do, and then uses them as analogies to God. What would human parents not do, and why? To an innocent and undiscerning child, a large stone might look like a small loaf of bread. A small fish might look like a snake or eel. If a child asked for bread or fish, a parent would not give them a stone or a snake; that would be malicious. Almost all parents love their children and would responding lovingly, not cruelly or callously. In verse 11, Jesus then compares the parents to God. What does he say about “your Father in heaven”? By describing our prayers as like a child seeking what he or she needs from a parent, Jesus is telling us about our relationship with God who is our Father. What does this tell us about how we can approach God in prayer? Jesus says even human parents, who are “evil” (NRSV) or “wicked” (NABRE), wouldn’t give their child a stone if they asked for bread. What is he trying to tell us by using that word “evil” or “wicked” to contrast us with God? God, who is all good, will not give us fake gifts or false gifts. God will only give us what is good, what is consistent with His perfect love. This means God will not always give us what we ask. Even when we ask for good things, God does not always give us what we ask for. How do you make sense of that reality in the context of this passage? It is often said that God answers our prayers in one of three ways: Yes, No, or Not Yet. If the answer is Yes, we receive the blessing and move forward. If the answer is No, we accept the answer and move on. If the answer is Not Yet, we wait patiently, continuing to pray and trust that God has our best interests at heart. God cannot always give us what we ask for, because sometimes what we ask for would not actually be what is best for us, and God would not give us a stone even if we thought it was good and asked for it. How have you experienced God answering your prayers with a Yes? How have you experienced God answering your prayers with a No? How have you experienced God answering your prayers with a Not Yet? There is a fourth way that God answers prayer. Sometimes, after praying for a period of time, we come to realize that what we truly want and need is not what we were asking for, but something else. In this case, God has answered our prayer by changing our heart and our desires. When our heart is aligned with God, it opens the door for God to work in new ways that might not previously been feasible. But that requires us to be willing to more forward according to God’s ways, not our ways. How have you experienced your requests to God changing as you kept asking God for something? There is a fifth way that God answers prayer: with a “Not That But This.” God sometimes gives us something that is a blessing but not the blessing we sought. As William Barclay says: “God will always answer our prayers, but He will answer them in His way, and His way will be the way of perfect wisdom and of perfect love” (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 , pp. 275-276). A relevant quote that has been attributed to many people over the years is: “When one door closes another always opens, but we usually look so long, so intently, and so sorrowfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one that has opened” (quote investigator Garson O’Toole concludes that the source is unknown, although part may have come from Johann Paul Friedrich Richter). How have you experienced God answering a prayer not by giving you what you asked for but by opening a door to something else? Did you find it easy or hard to recognize that God was answering your prayer by giving you that alternative? The relationship we have with God, our Father, is far more important than anything we ask God to do. Are there ways that your prayer life might change if your prayers were consistently founded on the relationship you have with God as Father and not so much on what you want? How does this passage help you pray to God with confidence? Having looked at this entire passage in detail, what does it say to you? Take a step back and consider this: Sometimes what we ask for is not evil but misses the point. My grandfather, when he was in his 60s, told me that when he was young, he had asked God for three things: a beautiful wife, a beautiful car, and a big house. With his 8th-grade education and hard-scrabble upbringing, those probably seemed like big asks. But he was a hard worker, a sociable person who was good at understanding what other people wanted and how to bring people together, and a wise man about many things despite his meager formal education. He advanced in the steel mill from blue collar to white collar, then left to become a very successful insurance agent. He married early and eventually obtained a big house (relative to others in his community) and the fancy car he wanted. But he told me about his early prayer not boastfully but ruefully, as if to show the foolishness of the request. When he told me this, he was spending most of his time in one room of the big house, sitting next to the bed where his wife lay 23 hours a day. Her life had been sapped by chronic health problems, but she had all the time in the world to carp at him as he sat there. The fancy car mostly sat unused in the garage. People sometimes say: Be careful what you ask for. But that is too cryptic to catch the point. It isn’t what you ask for, but why, that matters. For whom are you asking, and to what end? For whom are you most earnest prayers delivered? To what end do you ask God to bless you? How would your prayers change, if you were only allowed to pray for things that you knew would help advance God's loving work in the world? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; it’s what comes out of your heart that defiles you. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 15:1-20 It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; it’s what comes out from your heart that defiles you Image by Nick Fewings, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti June 13, 2025 Matthew 15:1-9 The hypocritical Pharisees In verse 15:1 we see the first mention of Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem . Up until now, Jesus has been dealing with local Pharisees and scribes in Galilee. But he has now caught the attention of the religious leaders in the capital city of Jerusalem, and Pharisees and scribes have come north to check him out and ask him why he is doing what he is doing. What is the specific complaint of these Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem? This is not about hygiene. The Pharisees had developed a long list of traditions to reinforce their attempts to be ritually pure, traditions that were passed down from generation to generation “from the elders.” One of those traditions was to perform a ceremonial or ritual washing of the hands before eating. That rule didn’t come from the Old Testament Torah. The priests were commanded to wash their hands before serving at the altar (Exodus 30:17-21), but that did not apply to Jesus’s disciples. What is Jesus’s response? Jesus tells them that their tradition that allowed resources to be devoted to God even at the expense of taking care of one’s parents violates God’s command to honor one’s parents (in the Ten Commandments). His point is that they were putting tradition above God’s Law. Jesus distinguishes the law of God from the traditions of humans. When is it appropriate to break with traditions that have been handed down from the past, and when should they be upheld? In verses 8-9, Jesus quotes from Isaiah 29:13 (Matthew quotes from the Septuagint version). Looking at the passage Jesus quotes from Isaiah in Matthew 15:8-9, what is the fundamental problem with the Pharisees’ focus on tradition? Jesus is probably speaking in front of a crowd. His harsh language (“hypocrites”) draws a clear distinction between what is right and wrong; what is man-made and what is divinely inspired. In what ways might we find ourselves putting tradition or established rules ahead of what God has told us is right? In what ways might we be at risk of honoring God with our lips while our hearts are not in sync with God’s heart? Jesus’s response to these Pharisees and scribes is very forceful. When is it appropriate to take a strong stand, even if it offends other people? This exchange between Jesus and the delegation from Jerusalem appears to be a key moment in the events that lead to Jesus’s execution. When Jesus challenges their traditions, he is indirectly challenging the powerful people at the top of the social, religious, and political structure. Matthew 15:10-20 It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you but what comes out In this dialogue, Jesus is talking about what “defiles” a person – that is, what makes a person ritually impure or spiritually unclean : what makes them unholy in the sight of God. According to Jesus in verse 11, what defiles a person in the sight of God? How is this view different from what the Pharisees think defiles people? In verses 13-14, Jesus uses two proverbs to describe the Pharisees. What does he say about them? Why is their focus on ritual purity rules misguided? Why can’t what you eat make you impure before God (see verse 17)? In what ways does their focus on external purity make them “blind”? Jesus says that it is what comes out of your mouth that defiles you. In verse 18, he explains why. Where do these things that defile us come from? The heart. In verse 19, what are the specific sins he identifies that come from the heart? Why is it appropriate to say that these things “defile” us? How do they defile us? Would you say that the defilement is already within us before it comes out in sinful actions, or that we are not defiled until we do specific immoral things? Explain. Matthew’s list of the things Jesus names that defile us is shorter than Mark’s list. Matthew sticks to sins that specifically break the Ten Commandments (from the Old Testament). In Mark 7:21-22, Mark includes other vices or sins, such as greed, envy, and arrogance. Which of these sins do you think are especially a problem for people in the Church today? How can you know when you have given in to sin and have become defiled? What can you do when you have given in to sin and become defiled? If you had to summarize this passage in a sentence or two to explain the main point to someone who doesn’t know much about religion, how would you summarize it? In the next story, Matthew shows Jesus putting these words into action and applying this principle to a much bigger issue. Take a step back and consider this: In our day, we don’t think that touching a non-believer, a foreigner, or even a sinner can make us unclean before God. Even so, Christians tend to separate themselves from the world when they can. Sometimes, the reason given for this is that we should not associate ourselves with sin, or that we should not put ourselves in situations where we might be tempted to sin, or that we should build the church or Christian community that God desires and not get mixed up in the aspects of the world that do not reflect God’s desires. However, Jesus did not tell his disciples that they should separate themselves from the world. He told them to avoid sin, but he told them to go out into the world. In his long, final prayer in the Gospel of John, Jesus describes us as being “in the world” (John 17:11) even though we “do not belong to the world” (John 17:14). He then said to the Father, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). We are not meant to be separate from the world. But we are meant to be separated from sin, so that what comes out of our hearts and into our words and actions come from God. In what ways are you maintaining a presence in the world rather than avoiding it, so that you can be a witness for Christ in your words and actions? What challenges or temptations do you face in trying to live out your faith in the world? What can you do to be faithful to Jesus and avoid the defilement of sin while you live your faith in a messy world? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

To follow Jesus, we need to make some choices. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 8:18-34 To follow Jesus, we need to make some choices. Rembrandt (1606-1669). Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee . 1633. Detail. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rembrandt_Christ_in_the_Storm_on_the_Lake_of_Galilee.jpg . The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/experience/collection/10953 , stolen in 1990. Tom Faletti July 31, 2024 Matthew 8:18-22 Jesus cautions people who claim they want to follow him There are two stories here. The first story involves a scribe. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus undermined the common understanding of many Old Testament passages by his novel interpretation of the Scriptures. Yet now a scribe, a scholar trained in analyzing the Law, comes to him and says he will follow Jesus. Why is it significant that a scribe expresses interest in following Jesus? Jesus’s response if rather cryptic. What is the meaning of his reply to the scribe (verse 20)? What is Matthew hoping we will take from this story about the scribe? In verse 21, another man approaches Jesus. This man is a “disciple” – in other words, someone who has already been following Jesus around. What does he say? Scholars suggest that when he says, “Let me go and bury my father,” he probably doesn’t mean that his father just died. Rather, he is saying: I will follow you after my father dies. This might be meant literally, but it also might be meant figuratively: When I am no longer under his authority, or when I no longer have any obligations to him, or when I won’t have to deal with his disapproval of my following you. In any of these cases, it might be years before this “disciple” could actually envision following Jesus with his whole self. When or how do we sometimes put off following Jesus, or put off getting more serious in our commitment to him? What is the meaning of Jesus’s reply? Some scholars think that “let the dead” means let those who are unresponsive to the new life Jesus is proclaiming. If so, what is Jesus saying? Sometimes people are unresponsive to new ideas because they don’t want to question what they already believe – they’re too embedded in their comfortable mental ruts. My high school drama teacher Tom Beagle, the teacher who had the greatest impact on my life, was fond of saying, “People who stop thinking are as good as dead. They haven’t lain down yet, but they sure do stink up the place.” What is Jesus implying in calling some people “dead”? The key to this passage may be the word "first" in verse 21, which involves the issue of priorities. Matthew is trying to make a point about discipleship – about being a follower of Jesus. What is he trying to tell us? How important is it to be a 100%, all-in follower of Jesus? What do these two interactions with Jesus say to you about your own level of discipleship? Do these passages make you more or less eager to be a follower of Jesus? Explain. In the next set of 3 miracles, Jesus expands beyond the narrow realm of physical healing. Matthew 8:23-27 Jesus rebukes the storm There are anecdotal stories of sudden, fierce storms on Lake Kinneret, the modern name for the Sea of Galilee. The lake is nearly 700 feet below sea level, in a valley surrounded by rugged and arid terrain, and it is affected by Mediterranean sea breezes as well as the temperature dynamics in the valley. What is the disciples’ reaction to the storm in verse 25? What is Jesus’s response in verse 26? What does his rebuke say to them and to us? Note that Jesus doesn't say they have "no" faith – just "little" faith. How might this be an encouragement to us? What does Jesus do? What is the meaning behind the question the disciples ask in verse 27? What are they really wondering? In Jesus’s time, how might this kind of miracle – calming a storm – have been considered a sign of even greater power than physical healings? What does this miracle tell us about Jesus? People often see this incident as metaphor for how we deal with the storms of life. What does it say to you personally as a metaphor for life? Matthew 8:28-34 Jesus, men, demons, and pigs There is uncertainty about the location of this event, because Mark 5:1 says it is in the land of the Gerasenes, whereas Matthew says Gadarenes. Gerasa was 35 miles from the Sea of Galilee. Gadara is a more likely location. It was a predominantly Gentile town (one of the 10 cities of the Decapolis) just 6 miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee ( Ignatius Catholic Study Bible , Matthew 8:28 fn., p. 21) . However, the early church father Origen believed it happened in Gergesa, a town that was directly on the shore (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 , p. 326), and that name appears in some of the later manuscripts ( New American Bible, revised edition , Matt. 8:28 fn. ) and ended up in the King James version of the Bible. It was common for Jews in Jesus’s time to think that demons were everywhere and were behind every bad thing that happened. This incident happens in a town that had many Gentiles. We know this because Jews would not have had a herd of pigs, since it was forbidden to eat pork – even dealing with live pigs was considered unclean. This is the second miracle (the first involved the centurion) where Matthew shows that Jesus is for all people – Gentiles as well as Jews. How do you think the people in this town felt about the two demon-possessed men, as they approached Jesus? What do they shout at him in verse 29, and what does it mean? In Jesus’s time, many Jews expected that the Messiah, when he came, would vanquish demons as well as earthly powers. The demons are implicitly recognizing Jesus as the Messiah and suggesting that he is acting before his appointed time. What do the demons ask of Jesus? Why do you think Jesus agreed to do this? People sometimes object to the possibility that Jesus might have caused the death of these innocent pigs. Those of us who eat pork and do not have a religious objection to pigs might be more sympathetic to the pigs than a Jewish audience would have been. Barclay has an interesting response. In Jesus’s time, many people believed that legions of demons were all around them everywhere they went in their daily lives. Jesus might have realized that it would be hard for the two men to believe that they had been freed from their demonic tormentors without some visible sign. The stampeding of the pigs served as physical evidence that the demons were no longer in the men. And since it was believed that demons are killed by water, it would be clear that these demons are now dead and could no longer torment them or anyone else. In this view, a herd of swine is not too high a price to pay to save two men ((Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 , pp. 329-330). How do you think that Jews observing this would have felt about what happened? Why would Jesus’s power over demons have been seen as a greater power than even power over the storm? What does Matthew want his readers to understand about Jesus? The swineherds run off and tell the whole town what happened, and the people come out to Jesus. But whereas the people who heard about Jesus from the woman at the well in the Gospel of John came out to learn from him and ultimately believed in him, the people of this town had a different reaction. How do the people of the town react? What do the ask Jesus to do? Why do you think that is their reaction? They probably were concerned about the economic impact of the loss of the swine. They may also have had other fears. Isn’t it sad that the people of this town, when given an opportunity to spend time with the Messiah, ask him to leave? Compare this tragedy to the loss of the swine. Are there ways in which we ask Jesus to stay at a distance from us because of fear that he might ask us to do things that would affect our pocketbooks or finances? How might it be true that we don’t even see the choices we are making, small and large, that keep Jesus from being an integral part of our lives? If you were God, how would you respond to the fact that some people don’t want quite such a powerful, active, and personal God? Take a step back and consider this: Previously, Jesus healed people, showing his power over illness and therefore, in a sense, his power of the human body. In these two miracles – the calming of the storm and the freeing of the demon-possessed men – we see Jesus revealing his power over nature and over the demons in the unseen spiritual world around us. This is monumental power he is showing. And since how power comes from his Father in heaven, he is showing that he has been given authority over all of creation – both visible and invisible, seen and unseen. Most Christians do not see God working in such dramatic, physical ways. But to tell the truth, most Christians would be uncomfortable if God did act in such dramatic, physical ways. Is it possible that we don’t often see God working in dramatic ways because, deep down inside, we’re not sure we want to be quite so close to such a powerful, active, personal God? What might hold us back? Are there ways in which you might be afraid of the uncertainty of living with a God who acts so powerfully? Are there ways in which you might be afraid that you might have to give up too much of what you own, if you give your life totally to this kind of God? Are there ways in which you might be afraid of the level of discipleship and commitment this powerful and active God might want of you? How would Jesus respond to your concerns? As he got in the boat and left that town, he probably did so reluctantly, with deep sadness in his heart. He would have wanted to stay, and teach them, and share with them the love of his Father. He wants to be with us and teach us, and love us, and work through us. What is Jesus saying to you as you consider this story? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

The various denominations within Christianity don’t agree on whether Mary had other children besides Jesus, but they do agree with his statement that those who do his will are his brothers and sisters. How can we respond? [Matthew 13:54-58; Mark 6:1-6; Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21] Previous Mary List Next Session 5: Jesus’s family The various denominations within Christianity don’t agree on whether Mary had other children besides Jesus, but they do agree with his statement that those who do his will are his brothers and sisters. How can we respond? [Matthew 13:54-58; Mark 6:1-6; Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21] Everyone can be a brother or sister of Jesus, if they are willing to do the will of God. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti July 16, 2025 In the next two sets of passages that we are going to explore, the Gospels refer to Jesus’s “brothers.” The question of how to interpret the word “brothers” divides the body of Christ, with Protestants on one side and Catholics and Orthodox on the other. At its root, the question is whether Mary had other children after she gave birth to Jesus or remained a virgin all her life. Protestants say she gave birth to many children and Catholics and Orthodox say she was “ever-virgin.” There is also a question as to whether Jesus had stepbrothers who were children of Joseph from a prior marriage. This study is designed to be useful to people from all Christian denominations, so we will not insist that everyone reach the same conclusion. What this study will do, however, is call attention to the many pieces of evidence that scholars consider as they study the question, because the evidence is not as simple as some would like to think it is. Matthew 13:54-58 / Mark 6:1-6 Isn’t Jesus the son of Mary and the brother of James et al? Matthew and Mark tell about the same incident in these passages, which is why they are paired together here. Before we explore the main point of the passage (which is not whether Mary was a perpetual virgin), let’s deal with the issue of Jesus’s “brothers.” Without trying to argue one side or the other, can you state in one sentence why the word “brothers” is controversial? Why does it matter whether Jesus had “brothers” or not? There are a variety of issues to consider in exploring the disagreement about what “brothers” means in this passage. Here is the background: Three common interpretations of the references to Jesus’s “brothers” Protestants take the word “brothers” literally and argue that Mary had sex with her husband Joseph after Jesus was born and gave birth to children who were the blood brothers and sisters of Jesus. The Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church have always maintained that Mary was a virgin throughout her life and that “brothers” is properly interpreted as “relatives” – most likely cousins. A third view, which is acceptable to the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, is that “brothers” refers to sons of Joseph from a prior marriage, who would therefore be stepbrothers of Jesus (because Jesus was, in effect, adopted by Joseph). What is the evidence that might help us determine whether “brothers” means blood brothers, cousins, or stepbrothers, when it is used with regard to Jesus? To evaluate whether when the Bible refers to Jesus’s “brothers” it is referring to blood brothers, cousins, or stepbrothers, we must consider a variety of evidence, background information, and Scripture passages. Here are some of the factors to consider: In both the Old and New Testaments, the word “brother” is used for a variety of relationships, figurative and literal, partly because the Hebrew language did not have a word for “cousin” ( Ignatius Catholic Study Bible , Matthew 12:46 fn., pp. 29-30). In Greek, which is the language of the New Testament, the word for “brothers” is adelphoi , which is used for many kinds of relationships: (1) blood brothers (including stepbrothers), (2) people from the same nation, (3) one’s fellow men, and (4) fellow believers. It does not always mean a literal blood brother, so its meaning in any particular passage must be considered carefully, taking into account everything we know. The Gospels never refer to any person as a child of Mary except Jesus. We see references to Jesus’s brothers, but no one other than Jesus is ever called a child of Mary. This does not prove that Mary was ever-virgin any more than the references to Jesus’s “brothers” proves they were blood brothers. It is just evidence to be considered. Matthew 12:55 and Mark 6:3 tell us the names of four “brothers” of Jesus: James, Joseph (or its Greek variant Joses, in Mark’s Gospel), Judas, and Simon. Later, Matthew 27:56 tells us that one of the women looking on at Jesus’s crucifixion was “Mary, the mother of James and Joseph.” Similarly, Mark 15:40 refers to “Mary the mother of the younger James and of Joses.” Joses is a variant of Joseph. If both of these references to a James and Joseph are referring to the same pair of brothers, (which is likely but can’t be proved), it would mean that James and Joseph are not blood brothers of Jesus because their mother was with Jesus’s mother Mary at the crucifixion. They could be relatives, however, if, for example, this Mary and Mary the mother of Jesus are sisters or sisters-in-law. John 19:25 says that standing at the cross of Jesus were his mother and “his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas.” This might indicate that the Mary who was with Jesus’s mother at the cross was Jesus’s mother’s sister. Some people find that doubtful because it would mean that the two sisters were both named Mary. Alternatively, since “brother” and “sister” could refer to a wider circle of family relationships and not just blood brothers, it is possible that this Mary is the wife of a brother of Joseph. If that is the case, then she is the sister-in-law of Jesus’s mother, not her immediate sister. In either case, this might indicate that the James and Joseph who are identified as Jesus’s “brothers” are these relatives, sons of the Mary who was with Jesus’s mother at the cross. While Jesus is hanging on the cross, in John 19:26-27 Jesus entrusts his mother Mary to the beloved disciple (who is traditionally believed to be John). If Mary had other children, it would have been the norm for Mary to automatically come under the care of her other children. Jesus would not have needed to entrust her to a non-relative, and to do so would have been considered a serious breach of tradition. One explanation sometimes offered for why Jesus might have entrusted his mother to someone outside the family is that Jesus’s “brothers” did not believe in him. John 7:5 tells us that this was true for at least a period of time earlier in Jesus’s ministry. However, if the word “brother” is to be taken literally every time it shows up with reference to Jesus, then Jesus did have a “brother” who soon after that was a recognized leader of the church. Either he was already a believer when Jesus was executed, or he became a believer soon after. This “brother” is mentioned by Paul in Galatians 1:19, where Paul says that when he first went to Jerusalem after he started preaching the gospel of Christ (probably around AD 37, which is only a few years after Jesus’s death), he met with Peter but did not see “any other” apostles except “James, the brother of the Lord.” His use of the word “other” indicates that this James was considered an apostle. Two Jameses are named as apostles in the Gospels: the James who, along with John, was a son of Zebedee (Matthew 4:21), and the James who was the son of Alphaeus (Matthew 10:3). Matthew tells us the names of their fathers. Since neither of their fathers is Joseph, they cannot be sons of Mary. Therefore, if “brother” always means blood brother when applied to Jesus, then Paul is not referring to either of them. Acts 12:17 and Acts 15:13-21 tell us of a James who is a leader of the church in Jerusalem. According to tradition, the first bishop/leader of the church in Jerusalem was “James the brother of the Lord,” so that is probably who Paul is referring to. That means there was a James who believed in Jesus and was a “brother of the Lord,” and he was so prominent that he was a recognized leader of the church just a few years later. Jesus could have entrusted his mother to that “brother,” if indeed it was a blood brother; there would have been no need to turn Mary over to a non-family member. Therefore, the claim that Jesus turned his mother over to John because his family didn’t believe in him does not easily fit the facts. A better case can be made that this James the brother of the Lord is the son of the other Mary who was with Jesus’s mother at the cross, and therefore that in at least this instance, “brother” may mean cousin or relative. Some early church fathers taught that Joseph was an older man when he married Mary and that he had children by a previous marriage. That claim first appears in the Protoevangelium of James , a document written around AD 150. That document was not accepted as part of Scripture and was specifically rejected by some early Church leaders because some of its content was considered fiction or legend, but it offers some insight regarding ideas that were circulating in the early days of the Church. That document explains that Mary was dedicated to God as a virgin when she was born, that she was raised in the Temple from the age of 3 until she was 12, and that Joseph was then selected by lot, with a full understanding that she was a dedicated virgin, to take care of her by taking her as his wife. The references to the brothers and sisters of the Lord would then be references to the children of Joseph from an earlier marriage. They would therefore a stepbrothers and stepsisters of Jesus by adoption – not sons and daughters of Mary but still “brothers and sisters” of the Lord. A variety of church fathers before AD 400 taught that Mary was a perpetual virgin, but many of the early church fathers did not discuss the question, perhaps because it did not become an issue until a group of people in the 4th century began to teach explicitly that Mary was not a perpetual virgin. The details of who taught what over the years are beyond the scope of this study, but citations and quotes from various church fathers on the subject can be found in many places, including in “ Which church father first taught the perpetual virginity of Mary? ” A thousand years later, Martin Luther rejected the Catholic practices of venerating Mary and praying to her, but he taught the perpetual virginity of Mary. To summarize, there is a lot of evidence indicating that this is not a simple question. “Brothers” can mean many things in the Bible. Catholic and Orthodox readers find a lot of support for the position that Mary was a lifelong virgin and the word “brothers” refers to relatives of Jesus, but Protestant readers of the Scriptures prefer the plain-language interpretation of the literal words of the Bible. No Bible Study is going to resolve the ongoing disagreement among Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants about whether Mary remained a virgin throughout her life (or about the other issues about Mary that divide us). For the purpose of how you live your life, to what extent does this disagreement matter? _____ Matthew 13:54-58 / Mark 6:1-6 continued Now let’s return to these passages and look at what actually happens in this incident. Jesus has been traveling around Galilee preaching, and he returns to his hometown of Nazareth. What happens? Why do they not believe in him? How do you think Mary feels about the resistance of her fellow townspeople to believing in Jesus? What does Jesus’s statement about “a prophet” in Matthew 13:57 and Mark 6:4 mean? What do you think Mary’s view of Jesus is at this point? Who do you think she believes him to be? Are there ways that we are like the people of Nazareth? Do we ever find ourselves unwilling to accept the value of people who are doing the work of God, because they are too familiar to us? If so, what do we need to do to avoid missing what God is doing? It may require humility, letting go of our ego that wants to ask why he’s so great if I’m not, seeing with new eyes, and having some faith that God is at work in people and that they can grow to be more than what we may have seen in them. Are there ways that we are like the people of Nazareth in not embracing the teachings of Jesus because he or his teachings have become too familiar to us? If so, what do we need to do to continue to embrace his teachings and have them remain fresh and potent for us? Matthew 12:46-50 / Mark 3:31-35 / Luke 8:19-21 Jesus’s mother and brothers come to him Jesus has been traveling all over the region of Galilee. His mother and brothers have not been traveling with him. From Mary’s perspective, what happens at the beginning of this story? Why do you think she and the brothers have come and are standing outside the place where Jesus is preaching? What do you think Mary wants? When Jesus receives word that his family is outside, how does he react? Jesus says that whoever “hears the word of God” (Luke 8:21) and “does the will of God” (Mark 3:35) or “does the will of my heavenly Father” (Matthew 12:50) is his brother and sister and mother. What do you think he means by that? How can determine whether we are hearing the word of God and doing the will of God? How do we know if our actions are consistent with that description of the brothers and sisters of Jesus? How might God be calling you to respond right now to the call to hear the word of God and do God’s will? Even before Jesus was conceived, Mary was someone who heard the word of God and did God’s will. So is Jesus drawing a distinction that separates her from those who follow him? Or is he expanding the concept of his family, as he expanded on many Old Testament teachings when he said, “You have heard . . . , but I say . . .” (for example, in Matthew 5:21-48), to include others along with his mother? Explain. How do you think Mary interprets what Jesus says here? Note that Jesus presumably loves his mother dearly, but he wants to make a bigger spiritual point. We will see Jesus push us to see a bigger picture again soon. Take a step back and consider this: Jesus’s relationship with his mother was different when he was an adult than when he was a child. In what ways did Mary have to accept a change in her relationship with Jesus, and how do you think she dealt with it? We also have a changed relationship with parents and other family members as we grow older. Are there times when we are called to step outside the comfort zone of our previous relationship with a parent or other family member, as Jesus did? If so, how do we continue to honor our parents or other family members even as we live our lives in ways that might be different from their expectations? Sometimes it is the other person (perhaps a grown-up child) rather than us who is responding to an inner call that changes their relationship with us. What can we learn from this story that might help us deal with those changes? Bibliography See Mary - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/mary/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Mary List Next

Mary stands by Jesus at the cross and is with the Christian community at Pentecost.  How can we follow her example of being faithful in difficult times and remaining present with the church? [John 6:41-44; Luke 11:27-28; John 19:16-20, 23-27; Acts 1:13-14; 2:1-4; Galatians 4:4-7] Previous Mary List Next Session 6: At the foot of the cross and in the Upper Room Mary stands by Jesus at the cross and is with the Christian community at Pentecost. How can we follow her example of being faithful in difficult times and remaining present with the church? [John 6:41-44; Luke 11:27-28; John 19:16-20, 23-27; Acts 1:13-14; 2:1-4; Galatians 4:4-7] Quinten Massys (ca. 1466 – 1530). The Crucifixion . Around 1515. Cropped. The National Gallery, London, UK. Photo by Tom Faletti, 28 May 2025. Tom Faletti July 16, 2025 John 6:41-44 Is not this Jesus whose father and mother we know? This passage shows the family-oriented nature of Jewish society in Jesus’s time. It was important to know a person’s family background. Jesus was not a man who came out of nowhere. The people knew his parentage. What does this say to you? In our society, we tend to categorize people in a variety of ways, including based on their family. How important is family background to you? Jesus used familiar things in his parables: fathers, sons, farmers, grain, sheep, etc. He used the concept of a “father” to help us understand who God the Father is. What kind of relationship do you think Jesus had with his father Joseph, and do you think that relationship might have helped him as he considered how to teach us about God the Father? Luke 11:27-28 Bless is the womb / Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it This is another passage where people comment on Jesus’s earthly family relationships and he redirects the conversation to make a bigger spiritual point. What does the woman remind us about Jesus’s mother and her relationship with him? And what is the bigger point Jesus wants us to hear? Jesus keeps stressing the importance of hearing God’s word and doing it. How was Mary a good example of both hearing and doing what God says? How can we be people who are marked by both characteristics: that we hear God’s word and that we do it? John 19:16-20, 23-27 Mary at the foot of the cross Mary is at the foot of the cross. What is she observing? What is she thinking? What is she feeling? Mary is not alone. Who is with her? Mary Magdalene (Mary of Magdala) is there. Also present is Mary, the wife of Clopas. This could be a literal sister of Mary, but it would be unusual to have two sisters with the same name; so scholars think it is more likely that this is a sister-in-law of Mary. It could be her husband Joseph’s brother’s wife. Also present is the disciple whom Jesus loved, who is traditionally believed to be the apostle John since John is mentioned in the other Gospels but is not named in the Gospel of John. Why is it important that Mary is not alone? Why is it important that Christians not walk the road of life alone? How can the local church be a place where every person has other believers around them and is not alone? What needs to be done for that to be a reality in your church – that no one feels like they are facing the challenges of life alone? In verse 26, what does Jesus say to Mary? What do you think this means? In verse 27, what does Jesus say to the disciple? What do you think this means? How did they respond to Jesus’s instructions? According to tradition, John took Mary with him when he moved to Ephesus. What can we learn from Mary in her obedience to Jesus in this moment? The Gospel of John never names the beloved disciple and never mentions the apostle John by name. It also never names Mary by name. Some scholars believe Mary and John’s names are not used because John is partly offering them as symbols representing all of us. In what ways does Mary represent all mothers? In what ways does John represent all disciples? What does the fact that John and Mary are told to take care of each other say to us about ourselves? How can we be more like Mary and John in our lives? Is there something in this passage that God is using to call you personally to a new step right now? Notice that although in earlier passages Jesus seemed to be distancing himself from his earthly family relationships in order to make bigger points about the family of God, in the end, here, he takes care of his mother. What are our duties to our family members? The bigger-picture point that Jesus has been emphasizing is that family does not give you an inside track to Jesus. All people are called to be part of the family of disciples, the family of God who are followers of Jesus. How can we extend to all people that invitation to be part of God’s family? Acts 1:13-14 and 2:1-4 Mary in the Upper Room We do not know if Mary was with the disciples when Jesus appeared to them in the evening on the day that he rose (John 20:19-23; Luke 24:33-43), but it is quite possible. We do know that she was with them in this passage from Acts. In Acts 1:13-14, what are the disciples and Mary doing? This is after Jesus’s Ascension into heaven, and they are devoting themselves to prayer together, before the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Pentecost was and still is a Jewish holiday – called Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks. It is on the 50th day after the Passover and it celebrates two things: the giving of the Torah (the Law, the first 5 books of the Hebrew Scriptures) on Mount Sinai, and the grain harvest for the summer. Why is it significant that Mary is there praying with them? How important is it to our relationship with God to spend time praying with others? Why? Are there things you might consider doing, that would give you more time in prayer with fellow believers? Think about the experience Mary has already had of the Holy Spirit. What do you think it means to her to receive the Holy Spirit now? How might this experience of the Holy Spirit have been different for Mary than her experience of the Holy Spirit as a teenager? Pentecost is often described as the birthday of the Church. That means Mary was present at the birth of Jesus and at the birth of his Church. How is that special? How is the experience of the Holy Spirit important for you? How can you be more open to being filled with the Holy Spirit in your life? How can the Mary we see here be an example for us in our lives? Galatians 4:4-7 Paul mentions Jesus’s mother In Galatians, Paul makes this brief reference to Mary, without naming her by name. What does he say about her? Why might it have been important to Paul to note that, when God sent his son, Jesus was “born of a woman, born under the law”? Why does it matter that Jesus was born of a woman – that he entered human existence the way he did? Why does it matter that Jesus was part of the Jewish people who followed the Law? How important is Mary in God’s plan for our salvation? How might we be called to be like Mary, metaphorically, in having Jesus be born of us, to have him come to the world through us? Take a step back and consider this: We have watched Mary go through an extraordinary life’s journey: from a holy but young teenager called by God to do something monumentally unique; through some dangerous times when her baby’s life was threatened and she had to leave everything that was familiar to her; to a special moment when she pressed Jesus to take an action that became the first “sign” of his public ministry; through the excruciating experience of watching her son be tortured to death; to being present when his Church was born on Pentecost. In between the special moments, she lived an ordinary life for 30+ years. Our lives are similarly marked by singular moments scattered amidst the unremarkable routines of everyday life. How can we be ready for the special moments that pop up in our lives amidst the years of mundane, ordinary normality? What can we learn from Mary about those rhythms of extraordinary and ordinary experiences? How can we be like her? Bibliography See Mary - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/mary/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Mary List Next

If God doesn't care about us, we are in a pretty precarious position. Previous Next Table of Contents Does God Care? If God doesn't care about us, we are in a pretty precarious position. Tom Faletti (to be continued) Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Table of Contents Next

Jesus is greater than King David. He’s not your ordinary messiah, not your ordinary son of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus is greater than King David. He’s not your ordinary messiah, not your ordinary son of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640). King David playing the harp . Tapestry. Circa 1628. Convent of Las Descalzas Reales, Madrid, Spain. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:King_David_playing_the_Harp.png . Tom Faletti August 18, 2025 Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus challenges the Pharisees: What do the Psalms say about the Messiah? Matthew has now presented 3 separate confrontations between Jesus and 3 major factions of Jewish religious and political society: the Pharisees, the Herodians, and the Sadducees. Each group hoped to trip him up. In each case, he not only outwitted them; he gave timeless guidance for how to think about major questions in life. Jesus now turns the tables and poses a question to the Pharisees. He knows that they believe, correctly, that the Messiah will be the son of David. Matthew signaled from the very beginning of his Gospel that this is a key theme of the Gospel, when he presented the genealogy of Jesus in a way that showed that Jesus is the son of David (Matt. 1:1ff) and the Messiah. First, Jesus asks the Pharisees an easy question. What does Jesus ask in verse 42, and how do they answer? Jesus then asks a really difficult question that had never occurred to them. In verses 44, Jesus quotes from Psalm 110:1. This psalm begins with a caption attributing the psalm to David, and the Jews of Jesus’s time believed that this psalm was talking about the Messiah. In verse 43, he points out that David was inspired by the Spirit when he wrote it. In verses 43-45, what is the meaning of Jesus’s question? Why is this a difficult question? In the psalm, David says: The Lord (i.e., God) said to “my lord” (meaning whom?), “Sit at my right hand….” Who could David be referring to as his “lord”? The Jews interpreted the psalm as speaking about a son (descendant) of David, but a child is generally not considered greater than the parent. Who could be of higher stature than David, that David would call him “lord”? The Jews of Jesus’s time believed that in this psalm David was talking about the future messiah, yet David calls this descendant of his his lord. Jesus asks, how can this be? It is a difficult question because it suggests that the messiah is greater than David, not simply a descendant who would restore David’s throne. How can this be? If the messiah is greater than David, not just a son of David, what might that suggest about the Messiah? Jesus is suggesting that this Messiah is greater than David and more than just a “son of David.” But what could be greater than David? This raises the possibility that the Messiah is the Son of God. Is Jesus saying something about himself? How does this relate to Jesus? Several people have called Jesus the Son of David in Matthew’s Gospel, and he has never rejected the title. When the crowd called him the Son of David in Matthew 21:9 as he entered Jerusalem, he did not reject it. And in Matthew 21:15-16 when the chief priests and scribes criticized the use of that title for Jesus, he embraced it. So he is indicating that he is greater than David – greater than any human. If we put the pieces together, Jesus is saying that Jesus is the long-expected Messiah and Son of God, and that David prophesied that God would say to Jesus: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” If Jesus is described as being at God’s right hand and that God will put his enemies under his feet, what does that say about Jesus? Are the ideas in this passage old news to you, or does it shed new light on your faith in some way? What does this passage say to you? Matthew wants us to understand that Jesus is more than an ordinary messiah, more than a generic descendant of David. Who is Jesus in your life? Who is Jesus to you? Jesus has now stumped the people who should know the most about the Hebrew Scriptures. What does verse 46 tell us? Why are they afraid to ask him any more questions? Should we be afraid to ask Jesus questions about the Scriptures or anything else? Why not? Why do you think Matthew has walked through these debates between Jesus and the various Jewish factions? Among other things, Matthew is showing that no one knows the Old Testament Scriptures better than Jesus and that the Scriptures point to Jesus’s unique identity as the Son of God. It also sets the stage for what is coming by showing some of the reasons why the Jewish leaders want Jesus dead. And it shows Matthew’s readers why they can believe in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God. Looking back at the debates between Jesus and his opponents in Matthew 22:15-46, how does Jesus want us to respond to what we are learning from him in these passages? Take a step back and consider this: One of the early debates in the Church, as it was first being formed, was whether Christians needed the Old Testament or could just discard it as a relic of an earlier time before Jesus appeared. How do you think Jesus would respond to that question? Why is an understanding of the Old Testament valuable for the faith of a Christian? What is your relationship with the Old Testament? Do you find it valuable? If so, why? Are there ways you think you could do more to enhance your understanding of the Old Testament? Why? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

God’s judgment; indulgence and Penance; the Mother of God; hope as an anchor. (Paragraphs 22-25 of Spes Non Confundit) Previous Next Jubilee Year 2025: Embrace God’s Hope and Extend It to All Session 7: A life anchored in hope, part 2 God’s judgment; indulgence and Penance; the Mother of God; hope as an anchor. (Read paragraphs 22-25) Link to S pes Non Confundit Photo by Tom Faletti, Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, November 4, 2024. Tom Faletti November 16, 2024 When you complete this study, please give us feedback using this feedback form . God loves us so much that even God’s judgment is not to be feared for those who seek to follow God. That is the message of the final paragraphs of Spes Non Confundit , where Pope Francis encourages us to live a life anchored in hope. He explains the role of the indulgences that are offered during the Jubilee Year, calls us to receive God’s forgiveness in the Sacrament of Penance, and points to Mary as an example of persevering hope. Although we face God’s judgment at the end of our lives, we can approach God with confidence because, even though we may need to be purified before living forever with God, our salvation has been won by Jesus. Our study guide questions will help us explore the criteria Jesus will use in the Last Judgment, the effects of sin and how we might overcome those effects, how Jesus’s mother Mary is a role model, and how the way we live our lives can bring hope to others. We are on a journey where we can make a difference in the lives of others, not just ourselves! Read paragraphs 22-25 in preparation for this session. Paragraph 22 (God’s judgment) 🔗 In paragraph 22, Pope Francis looks squarely at the reality that we will all be judged by God. Read 1 John 4:7-16 According to John, how do we know that God loves us? According to John, how can we abide or live in God’s love? Read Matthew 25:31-46 What are the criteria by which God will judge us at the Last Judgment? How are you currently active in some form of service to others in need, or how might you take a step forward into service? Suggested Activities: Get involved in the work of a soup kitchen or food pantry in your community. Help a crisis pregnancy center as it seeks to provide the most basic needs of newborns in your area: cribs, diapers, baby food, clothes, etc. Talk with a homeless person you encounter on the street. Reach out to a stranger who is new to your neighborhood or parish and welcome them. Practice putting on new eyes that see the people in need who are normally invisible to most of us as we live our busy and distracted lives. Read Wisdom 12:19-22 In paragraph 22, Pope Francis quotes from the Book of Wisdom as evidence of God’s mercy. According to Wisdom 12:19, why is repentance an important step toward hope? What does receiving mercy from God (Wisdom 12:22) mean to you? What does it look like? In the second part of paragraph 22, Pope Francis tells us that we need to be “purified” in order to have “a definitive encounter with the Lord.” What does he mean by “purified”? How does Pope Francis connect this to our prayers for those who have died? Suggested Activity: Pray for those who have died, that God may purify them for eternal life. Paragraph 23 (indulgence and the sacrament of Penance) 🔗 In the multiple parts of paragraph 23, Pope Francis explains the Church’s teaching on indulgence and how it is different from the forgiveness of sins we receive in the sacrament of Penance. Read Psalm 103:2-4, 8, 10-12 What do these verses of Psalm 103 tell us about what happens when we confess our sins? What does this psalm tell us about God’s mercy and what God does with our sins? In the second part of paragraph 23, how does Pope Francis describe the purpose and effects of the sacrament of Penance? The Jubilee Year offers a special indulgence for those who participate fully in its practices. A separate Vatican document issued in May 2024 summarizes the indulgence as follows: “All the faithful, who are truly repentant and free from any affection for sin (cf. Enchiridion Indulgentiarum , IV ed., norm. 20, § 1), who are moved by a spirit of charity and who, during the Holy Year, purified through the sacrament of penance and refreshed by Holy Communion, pray for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff, will be able to obtain from the treasury of the Church a plenary indulgence, with remission and forgiveness of all their sins” ( Decree on the Granting of the Indulgence During the Ordinary Jubilee Year 2025 Called by His Holiness Pope Francis ). This indulgence can be applied to souls in Purgatory if certain requirements are met. In the third part of paragraph 23, what does Pope Francis mean when he says that every sin “leaves its mark,” and what does the Jubilee indulgence do? In the fourth part of paragraph 23, what does Pope Francis say about forgiving others? Why should the experience of receiving forgiveness from God lead us to forgive others? Suggested Activities: Go to confession and confess your sins to God. Where appropriate, reach out to those you have hurt and ask their forgiveness. Forgive someone who has done something wrong to you. Practice seeing others as God sees them and extend to them the grace and forgiveness that God extends to you. Paragraph 24 (the Mother of God) 🔗 Read Luke 2:25-35 What did Simeon say about Jesus? How does he describe Jesus in his prayer? In verses 34-35, Simeon tells Mary that she will suffer, but he says more than that in verses 29-35. How might his words have been an encouragement to her to have hope? Pope Francis presents Mary as the supreme example of hope and notes that the 500th anniversary of her appearance as Our Lady of Guadalupe is near. How have Mary’s appearances throughout history encouraged people who are suffering to have hope? How is Mary an example of hope for you? Suggested Activities: Pray the Magnificat and connect with Mary’s hope and trust in God. Use the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary as a way to contemplate Mary’s hope-filled approach to life; then seek to follow her model of willingness to submit to God’s will. Paragraph 25 (hope as an anchor) 🔗 Read Hebrews 6:17-20 Why do you think Hebrews 6:17-20 calls hope an “anchor” for our souls? Note: People sometimes find Hebrews 6:17-18 confusing. The author of Hebrews points to two things that are immutable (cannot change) because they come straight from the mouth of God: God’s promise to Abraham that he would have a son (Genesis 17:4; 18:10; and 21:22) and God’s oath to Abraham that he would have countless descendants through whom all the nations of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 22:16-18). Our hope rests on the fact that God does not lie. In the second part of paragraph 25, Pope Francis explains why he thinks the image of an anchor is so appropriate. What metaphor does he use to show how hope is an anchor? How is hope an anchor for your life? In the third part of paragraph 25, Pope Francis suggests that our hope in God can affect our work “in the Church and in society, in our interpersonal relationships, in international relations, and in our task of promoting the dignity of all persons and respect for God’s gift of creation” – in other words, in every facet of our lives, sacred and secular. How can we bring our hope in God into parts of society that are not explicitly “spiritual”? How can we put our hope in God into action to care for the environment and the Earth? In the final part of paragraph 25, Pope Francis says, “May the way we live our lives” encourage others to have hope. What is one thing you can do, in the way you live your life, that might spread hope to others? Suggested Activity: Go through an examination of conscience or examen. Use it to try to detect areas of your life where you need to make adjustments so that your life spreads hope and the love of God to others. Act on your discoveries. Closing questions: Looking back over this entire study of Spes Non Confundit , what do you think God wants you to take from this study and put into practice in your life? How might God want you to make adjustments in how you think , to more fully anchor your life in the hope that comes from God? How might God want you to make adjustments in the things you say , so that your words communicate clearly your hope in God? How might God want you to make changes in the things you do , so that your hope in God leads to actions that benefit the world around you? What is one thing you might do to help extend God’s hope to the poor, the sick, the young, the elderly, migrants, refugees, or prisoners? End this study with a prayer, asking God to empower you to ground your life ever more fully in God’s hope and effectively extend that hope to others in service and love. When you complete this study, please give us feedback using this feedback form . You can also share your thoughts using the Contact Form at the bottom of this page. Bibliography See Jubilee Year 2025 - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/jubilee-2025/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Jubilee 2025 Contents Next

Pre-tribulation theories contradict Jesus and Paul. What does the Bible actually say? Previous Christian Faith Articles Next The Rapture? It’s Not a Pre-Millennial Escape from Tribulation Pre-tribulation theories contradict Jesus and Paul. What does the Bible actually say? Image by CHUTTERSNAP, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti December 13, 2024 In 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18, the apostle Paul refers to the “rapture” while he is discussing the end times when Christ will return. The word “rapture” comes from the Latin word that translates the Greek word in verse 17 where Paul says that we will be “caught up” (literally, “snatched”) to meet the Lord in the air. Authors Tim LaHaye of the Left Behind series and Hal Lindsey of The Late Great Planet Earth fame have popularized an approach to interpreting what the Scriptures say about the end times that leans heavily on a modern interpretation of Paul’s “rapture.” These authors (and others, who don’t always agree among themselves) combine their interpretation of the rapture with their interpretation of the “1000 years” mentioned in Revelation 20:2-3 and other Bible passages to produce an entire timeline of the end times that is not consistent with the historic understanding of the Scriptures. Their views are based on ideas that mostly did not spread until the 19th century. Most of Christendom from the time of Augustine in the 5th century until the 19th century has taken a very different approach to interpreting the Bible’s end-times passages. Currently, the Catholic Church, the Orthodox Churches, and many Protestant denominations – including the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches and others – reject that interpretation of the end times. This summary of the problem is drawn from a variety of sources, in an attempt to identify the commonalities in Catholic and Protestant thinking about the subject. In addition to the sources used in my 1 Thessalonians study, it also considers Trent Horn (Catholic), Karlo Broussard (Catholic), Alan S. Bandy (Reformed), the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (Lutheran), and “Where does the Rapture fit into UM beliefs?” (United Methodist). The historic churches and denominations have much in common in their understanding of the end times. The main divide on this topic is not between Protestants and Catholics. The main divide is between a fundamentalist segment of modern Christianity and the rest of Christianity. Frameworks for thinking about the end times There are roughly 6 common frameworks for thinking about the rapture, the tribulation, and the 1000-year “millennial” reign mentioned in Revelation 20:2-3: The first three approaches all revolve around the idea that the rapture will precede a 1000-year millennium of peace and righteousness on earth. However, the pre-millennialists don’t agree on whether the rapture will happen before, during, or after the tribulation that precedes the end: Pre-tribulation, pre-millennial: Christ will come and take the Christians who are alive to heaven (the “rapture”) before the tribulation. Then the tribulation will come, in a world devoid of Christians. Then Christ will come again with the church (which sounds like a second Second Coming, since he already came to rapture people). Then Christ will reign for 1000 years, and then there will be the final judgment (which sounds like a third Second Coming). This is the view of the people like Tim LaHaye and Hal Lindsey who have fed the “rapture” industry. Mid-tribulation, pre-millennial: This approach is similar to the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach, except that the rapture will happen in the middle of the tribulation (i.e., halfway through the 7-year tribulation), not before it begins. Therefore, Christians will experience some of the tribulation and not be fully spared. Post-tribulation, pre-millennial: This approach says that Christians will not be spared the tribulation at all. Christians will not join Christ until he comes in his Second Coming at the end of the tribulation. Then Christ will reign for 1000 years, and then the final judgment will come. These approaches all separate the Second Coming of Christ from the final judgment. Jesus never suggests such a separation, nor does Paul. They both describe one decisive event when Jesus comes, takes believers to himself, and presides over the final judgment. Amillennial: This view rejects the separation of the “rapture” from the final judgment and the entire pre-millennial framework. In this view, we are in the 1000-year reign of Christ, which began when Christ broke the power of sin by his death and resurrection and ascended into heaven. The reference to “1000” years in the Book of Revelation is symbolic, not literal: “1000” means a large number and “1000 years” means “a very long time.” Revelation 20 says that in this millennial time, the devil is being restrained. God is giving us time so that the gospel can be spread around the world. After the period we are now in, which includes its own times of smaller tribulation, Satan will be allowed to try to turn people away from Christ and the great, final tribulation will come. The Christians and non-Christians suffer now, and both the church and non-believers will suffer during the final tribulation, as Jesus warned from the beginning (see, for example, Matthew 24:29-31, where the tribulation precedes the gathering of the elect to Christ). After that period of tribulation, the final judgment will begin with Christians being caught up with those who have risen from the dead to meet Christ when he returns (1 Thess. 4:17; also referred to by Paul in 2 Thess. 2:1 as our “assembling” with the Lord). That event is not a pre-tribulation, pre-millennial escape from suffering; it is part of the Second Coming and final judgment exercised by Christ. This more traditional approach to interpreting the end-times Scriptures was the generally accepted view throughout the church from the time of Augustine in the 5th century, through the Protestant Reformation, and all the way until the 19th century. It is more faithful to the Scriptures, and it is followed by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and a variety of current Protestant denominations, including the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches and others. Although scholars call this approach the “amillennial” approach, that term is not necessarily used by these churches. All of those churches reject the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach that was popularized in the decades before and after the year 2000. There are two other views worth mentioning, for the sake of completeness (and there are many other sub-categories and branches dividing all of the approaches). Postmillennial: In this view, first there will be a (literal or symbolic) 1000-year golden age of prosperity and minimal suffering on Earth, during which most people will be converted to Christ and live in righteousness. The devil will be bound during that time but will be loosed at the end of the 1000 years. After that 1000 years of relative peace, there will be a time of tribulation followed by the Second Coming (when believers will be called up to heaven) and the final judgment. This view was popular in the 19th century (the 1800s), until the World Wars of the 20th century made people rethink whether the world could reach such a golden age of righteousness. Metaphorical: In this view, most of the end-times references in the Bible are metaphorical and should not be interpreted literally. There will not be a literal trumpet, a literal 1000-year reign, a literal meeting of Christ in the sky, etc. God has used figurative language and metaphors to help us understand things that are beyond us. All of the key points of Scripture will be fulfilled: Christ will return and judge the world, the dead will be raised, there will be a final judgment, the devil and death will be defeated, and Christians will live with Christ forever. But the details of what it will look like are not for us to worry about. Problems with the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture idea The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory is inconsistent with Scripture in several ways: The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture violates the claim in Acts 1:11 that Jesus will return in the same visible way he left, since the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial story creates a scenario where Jesus remains hidden except to believers. The theory claims that Jesus doesn’t stay on Earth after the rapture and only returning visibly 1000 years later. The word Paul uses in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 for the “coming” of the Lord (the Greek word parousia ) in was used by the Greeks before Christ to refer to the ceremonial arrival of a king or ruler. Pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture proponents argue that in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Christ only comes partly back, gathers the raptured people, and returns to heaven. However, Paul does not say Jesus immediately returns to heaven with them; he only says that those who are caught up to meet him in the air will be with him forever. The word for “meet” in verse 17 is a Greek word used to describe the situation where people go out from their town to meet a visiting official or king and escort that official into their city (in response to the “coming” in verse 15). Paul is saying that when Christ comes to Earth and the risen Christians and the still-alive Christians join him, they will stay with him as he comes to the Earth and does his work of final judgment. The idea that Christ aborts his “coming” and returns to heaven, only to return later, has been added by the pre-tribulation advocates without justification or good evidence. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory that Jesus’s coming to gather the elect is separated from his final judgment by 1000 years contradicts Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says that Christ’s Second Coming will be announced with an archangel’s voice and the sound of a trumpet, at which point the dead will be raised. 1 Corinthians 15:51-55 also links the trumpet to the raising of the dead. In Matthew 24:29-31, Jesus links his coming in power and glory (verse 30) with the angels (verse 31), the sound of the trumpet (verse 31), and the gathering of the elect (verse 31). In Matthew 25:31-33, Jesus links his coming in glory (verse 31) with the final judgment (verses 32-33ff). These events are all connected and happen together. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial approach contradicts Jesus by separating the raising of the dead from the final judgment by 1000 years. In Matthew 24:29, Jesus says that these events happen right after the tribulation (verse 29). The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial advocates seek to escape the tribulation that Jesus clearly foretells. The pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture violates Jesus’s statement in Matthew 16:27 that when he comes with his angels, he will repay people according to their deeds (i.e., the Second Coming with the final judgment). Again, Jesus does not teach any separation between these events. Note: Some rapture fans also interpret Luke 17:34-37 as referring to the rapture. In that passage, Jesus says that one person will be taken and another will be left. However, when you read that verse in context, starting at verse 26, you see that people are being “taken” in judgment. They are not being taken to heaven. They are not being raptured away to be saved from tribulation. Conclusion: The popular theory is wrong, but the Lord will be with us forever. In summary, the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture story created in the 19th century and popularized as Americans endured the Cold War and approached the millennial year 2000 does not have a sound basis in Scripture. The Book of Revelation is filled with symbolic language. There is no reason to distort the teachings of Jesus and Paul in order to interpret Revelation’s round number of 1000 years as a literal 1000 years. It is symbolic for the long period of time we are in before the Lord returns. And Jesus and Paul are very clear that Christians will endure the tribulation before they are united with Christ in his return. We must reject the distortions of their words that are central to every pre-tribulation rapture theory. This also means that no one escapes the tribulation except by dying. What else is true? The Scriptures tell us clearly: Christ will return. The dead will be raised. Christians (both those who have died and those who are still alive) will be united with Christ and live with him forever. Christ will judge the living and the dead and ask them how they treated “the least of these” among us. Fortunately, that’s all we really need to know about the end times. Copyright © 2024, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Christian Faith Articles Next