What happens while we pray? Would that we, like Jesus, could experience the power of being transfigured! How often we approach prayer scowling, smirking, or rolling our eyes from a day...

Even though Jesus just miraculously fed 4,000 people, not counting women and children—with leftovers to prove it—the Pharisees still seek a sign (see Matthew 15:32–16:4). Jesus declares that no sign shall...

Yahweh invites Moses to come up higher where he will receive instructions to guide the children of Israel. Moses reminds us all of the necessity of obedience. God called only him,...

To close a week of reflection on the law—the Hebrew law, an ode to it in the Psalms, and Jesus’ radical ethic—we hear a final word of grace from Paul, who...

Most of us can recall a teacher or mentor who profoundly shaped how we understand ourselves and the world. I often think with gratitude about my high-school English teacher. Most teachers...

We can often take our preaching cues from the form of the text itself. If the text tells a story, we might preach in a narrative form. When preaching from a...

Any preacher braving the narrow ridge this week between the law on one hand and grace on the other may want to rethink their route. Few will navigate it without falling...

Law codes mentioned in the New Testament are also a revealing window into the past. The authors of the Gospels appeal to Jesus as a source of authority. None do so...

The legal codes of Deuteronomy describe Israel’s life in the context of God’s covenant and offer us a window into ancient history. They show what conflicts arose out of daily life,...

Scholars identify much of the book of Deuteronomy with an ancient collection of laws called the Covenant Code. The first five books of the Bible are full of legal artifacts that...