A151 – Pentecost 20 (Deuteronomy 34:1-12; Psalm 90; 1 Thess 2; Matt 22:34-46)
Rev Dev Anandarajan joins us for a conversation about Moses’ humble leadership in the story of his death in Deut 32. Moses is not heard bargaining with God over not getting into the promised land. The story stresses, instead, the centrality of the journey of obedience for a people ‘on the way’. Dev explores psalm…
Read MoreA148 – Pentecost 17 (Exod 20:1-20; Matt 21:33-46)
Megan Turton, a specialist on law in the Hebrew Bible, joins us to talk about the Decalogue and legal narrative in Exodus. Holiness, identity, and mutual covenant are key themes to explore. In the gospel reading, conflict continues between Jesus and the other Jewish leaders. We discuss the parable of the vineyard in Matthew 21…
Read MoreA147 – Pentecost 17 (Exodus 17:1-7; Matthew 21:23-32)
Questions of Jesus’ authority – an ongoing focus in Matthew – now come to the fore in the parable from chapter 21, as Jesus’ challenge to the temple authorities escalates. The theme of consistency, being publicly honest about what one believes, emerges. The gospel is real about our ongoing failure to be consistent. We point…
Read MoreA146 – Pentecost 16: (Exodus 16:2-15; Psalm 105; Matthew 20:1-16)
The Israelites’ journey to freedom in Exodus is hard and their complaints understandable. The providence of God dominates the passage. God hears and responds to the people, providing what they need and testing their willingness to trust him into the future. God offers equity not ‘equality’ as we understand it, and how that can rile…
Read MoreA144 – Pentecost 15 (Exodus 14:19-31 (15:1b-11); Matt 18:21-35)
Themes of divine power, liberation, creation and salvation weave throughout the Exodus text. We talk about the ways the Crossing of the Red/Reed Sea has been used by oppressed communities to speak into their hope of freedom, and we also name the real violence that is implicit in the story. We note the echoes of…
Read MoreA143 – Pentecost 14 (Exod 12:1-14, Matt 18:15-20)
Bill Loader joins the podcast this week to help unpack Matthew’s advice in resolving Christian conflict without gossiping (Mt 18:15-20). We discuss the tension between forgiveness and judgment in this section of Matthew’s Gospel, between holding offenders accountable and the ongoing demand to love them. Exodus 12 tells the story of Passover, a story that…
Read MoreA142 – Pentecost 13 (Exodus 3:1-15, Matthew 16:21-26)
Moses’ encounter with God in the burning bush is a both a theophany and call story. We note that Moses wasn’t looking for God, rather God took the initiative and sought him out. We unpack the mysterious and playful I AM name for God, and highlight its uniqueness as a verb. God’s dynamic character comes…
Read MoreA141 – Pentecost 12 (Exod 1:8-2:10, Ps 124, Mt 16:13-20)
Themes of fear, power, enslavement, genocide, and hope for liberation begin early in Exodus setting the tone for what will follow. We focus on the midwives who use their domestic context and skills to thwart the plans of powerful men by rescuing Moses, much like Irena Sendler during WW2. We unpack some of the images…
Read MoreA140 – Pentecost 11 (Gen 45:1-15, Matt 15:21-28)
Meg Warner unpacks the Joseph story through the lens of trauma, noting this is a turning point in the story where reconciliation occurs. We discuss Jesus’ encounter with the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15 which crosses geographic, ethnic, religious, and purity boundaries. Despite their differences, Jesus recognises her faith and praises her for it in…
Read MoreA139 – Pentecost 10 (Gen 37, Matt 14:22-33)
Meg Warner joins the podcast to talk about Joseph, favoritism, family dissension and trauma. We discuss how Joseph’s story is contradictory and ambiguous; that Joseph himself is an enigma – which attention to the nuances of his dreams illustrates. We note that though his story is as long as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob’s, Joseph is…
Read More