Thursday Theological Threads

As we read Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, it’s easy to imagine a thistle or dandelion as the weed that’s sown in with the weeds. The old KJV uses the word “tare.” The Greek is zizania. It’s a word for a weed that looks like wheat in the early stages. This weed wraps itself around the wheat stalk, essentially using the wheat stalk as a stability pile to pull itself up. So if you try to pull out the weed, you pull up the wheat as well.  Based off this parable, a botanist conducted a study and tried to determine exactly which weed Jesus was talking about here. In his study he found some 19th century research where someone had taken the weed darnel and supervised experiments to find out how much of it was safe to eat.  The experiments included feeding darnel to horses and smaller animals in varying amounts. If an animal eats enough darnel, it will start to hallucinate. If it eats more, it will go into a comma. If a large amount is eaten, it is deadly.  So this means the enemy who c...

 Greetings, dear friends! I’m so glad you are still with me on this theological journey through the Articles of Religion. Today, we set our sights on Article 3, a profound statement about the redemptive work of Jesus. So, let’s dive in. Article 3: "Of the Resurrection of Christ" We believe and proclaim that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, truly died, was buried, and rose from the dead on the third day. His resurrection is not a mere legend or a symbolic tale; it is a historical event of profound significance. In the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, we witness the culmination of God's redemptive plan. Jesus chose to carry the weight of our sins upon the cross, offering himself as the perfect sacrifice. But death could not defeat him—on the third day, he victoriously rose from the tomb. The resurrection of Jesus is the pivotal event that seals our hope and secures our salvation. In Jesus' resurrection, we find the assurance that sin and death do not have the final w...