OneLife Nashville: Rare but vital conversations about Jesus

In this episode we move on from passover and into Israel crossing the Red Sea. We look at the various terms used for the body of water Israel crossed, such as "Sea of Reeds" and "Sea at the End", and how those terms relate to the way Egyptians saw death, the underworld, and the afterlife. We also explore how Amun-Ra, symbolized by the Sun, would have been connected to the &quot...

In this episode we look more closely at the context of Jesus' statement in Mark 10:45 "For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but so serve, and give his life as a ransom for many." The Old Testament background for interpreting this statement is found in Numbers 3 and the redemption of the firstborn, which in turn is connected with the Passover in Exodus 12-13. Yes...it's a...

In this episode we fast forward to look at a point in Israel's story where God gives more detailed and practical instructions about redeeming the firstborn sons of the Israelites from God. All the firstborn sons of Israel belonged to God, which means they were to be exclusively devoted to serving God. But God does soemthing interesting int he book of Numbers. He allows the the first generation...

In this episode we look at the instructions God gave to Israel about redeeming the firstborn from their family and flocks. This kind of topic may seem strange and irrelevant, especially in our culture. Western families only think about the firstborn in reference to the social psychology of birth order and family systems. Some of that can be applicable to the ancient near eastern cultural significa...

In this episode we start digging into how our understanding of the passover lamb in the Exodus as a symbolic representative of Amun-Ra helps us understand Jesus being identified as the passover lamb in the Gospels, as well as other passages in the New Testament. Equating Jesus with the passover lamb presents a bit of a riddle because it implies Jesus is somehow being equated with Amun-Ra. However,...

In this episode we take some of the lessons about the meaning of Passover from the previous episode and look at how John recounts the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3 in highly suggestive ways. For example, the Passover for Israelites was kind of like July 4th for Americans - it was a national holiday that celebrated the nations independence from tyrannical rule by an oppressive...

In our previous episode we looked at the Passover in its Biblical context within Exodus and noticed that through the Passover (along with plagues 4-9) God was making a distinction between Egyptians and Israelites.  In this episode we are going to look at the Passover in its historical religious context and how this can address common questions that surround the events and symbolism of Passover. Fo...

In this episode we start a new series on the Passover in Exodus and the New Testament. This is a major part of Israel's story as well as the overall story of the Bible, and becomes a major point of reference for not only the prophets, but also Jesus and the writers of the New Testament.  A major goal for us in this series will be to help us understand the Passover as the Israelites themselves...

This is more of a Living the Story episode as we pause with the story of Moses at the burning bush. God is telling Moses that he is sending him to free his people, the Israelites, from captivity in Egypt. Moses pushes back hard on God's call, but God always has a solution. Tiffany shares how she can relate, and our guess is there are others who can as well. Moses' 4 rebuttals: Who am I? Wh...

In this episode we look at the significance of Israel being called God's firstborn son, and how that frames not ony the conflict God has with Pharoah, but also Israel's relationship to God, and the nations. (See Episode #49 Jacob and the Firstborn Status for a more detailed exploration of the firstborn). As the firstborn, Israel was to be a pioneer among the nations, partnering with God al...

In this episode we transition out of Genesis into the story of the Exodus. We talk about how Exodus fits into the story of Genesis, specifically, how the conflict between the seed of the serpent and the seed of woman are exemplified in the conflict between Pharaohs enslavement of the Israelites, and ultimately his attempt to kill off the promised seed of Abraham. This pattern of the seed of the se...

In this episode we look at how Joseph interprets God's activity in his life. We talk about the relationship between good and evil, and how God can work in and through the evil of other people's choices to bring about the goodness of his purposes.  We see this same thing working out in the story of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. God did not cause Jesus to be crucified. He was cruc...

In this episode, we look at Joseph's naming of his two sons - Manasseh and Ephraim - and how that symbolizes Joseph's struggle to "forget" all his hardship from the past and move forward to be "productive" in the present. This had to be a difficult thing for Joseph to do, but the encouraging thing is that, despite his traumatic experiences of rejection, betrayal, and op...

In this episode we look at how Joseph is brought out of prison, and how his experience of navigating different positions of leadership, as well as different seasons of suffering, develops and qualifies Joseph for the assignment God has for him. Specifically, Joseph's relationship with God deepens through each stage of his life, as opposed to weakening. Most notably, he is recognized by Pharaoh...

In this episode we continue to take a look at the story of Judah and Joseph, and how the story of Joseph's temptation with Potiphar's wife compares and contrasts to Judah's temptation with Canaanite women and Tamar. Joseph handles his temptation in a competely different way, and this is one of the many situtations that, because of how Joseph resonds to it, contributes to Joseph's d...

In this episode we look at how Joseph's story of resisting sexual temptation with Potiphar's wife compares with the story of Judah not having any restraint in his sexual life. The writer of Genesis uses these two stories to compare Joseph and Judah, and how their choices created very different outcomes in their lives. God used these experiences in Joseph's life to develop and mature hi...

In this episode we look at how Joseph's brothers betray him, throw him into a pit, and sell him to some Midianites and Ishmaelites who "just happen to be passing by" on their way to Egypt. We talk about how God, while not being mentioned, is clearly working in Joseph's life to turn the evil choices of his brothers into something good.  We then draw some parallels between the stor...

In this episode we transition from the story of Jacob to the story of Joseph. We take note of several contrasts between the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the story of Joseph, and how God changes the way that he interacts with people in those stories. But we also emphasize the overarching themes throughout the book of Genesis of God meeting with people and working through the seed of Abr...

In this episode we have a special guest come on to talk about their experience of wrestling with God, and why it's so important be authentic and real with God in our relationship with him. JT shares his own unique perspective about why this story of Jacob wrestling with God has been so meaningful to him, and what it tells us about God that he is willing to wrestle with someone all night long....

In this episode we take a look at the story of God meeting with Jacob after his two sons, Simeon and Levi, take revenge on the family of Shechem for violating their sister. Jacob is nervous that the surrounding cities will hear what they have done, see them as an invasive threat, and form an alliance to wipe them out. God meets with Jacob and tells him where to go, and what to do when he gets ther...

In this episode we look at the strange, yet revealing encounter between Jacob and God. Jacob wrestles with God all night long, and the amazing thing about this encounter is that God does not overpower him. In other words, God does not use shear strength to overcome Jacob in the wrestling match. Instead, God weakens Jacob by touching his hip. God does this because Jacob will not let God go until Go...

In this episode we look at the story of Jacob returning from his 14 year absence from the Promised Land, and how he proactively seeks to meet with his brother Esau. Jacob anticipates Esau will treat him badly, so he sends messengers ahead of him to offer Esau gifts so that he can "kippur" Esau's "face" in hopes that Esau will "accept" him. The meaning of the Hebre...

In this episode we look at Jacob's dream of the ladder that connects heaven and earth, with angels ascending and descending on it. Jacob has this dream as he is on his way out of the promised to land to find a wife in Haran among Abraham's extended family. But before Jacob left the promised land, God appears to him in a dream and reveals Jacobs future as it relates to the Abrahamic covenan...

In this episode we look at how the dysfunctional family situation that led Jacob to conceal his true identity to receive the blessing from his father Isaac illustrates certain dysfunctional aspects of penal substitutionary atonement. In penal substitution, Jesus essentially changes the way God sees us by allegedly "covering" us and hiding our sin from the Father. In this way, Jesus is ki...

In this episode we look at the birth of Jacob and Esau, and how the events surrounding their birth give us insight into the role of the firstborn in ancient cultures. Although Jacob was technically not the first born, he used an opportune moment of weakness in his brother to purchase the birthright from him, allowing Jacob to secure the rights and rewards of the firstborn in the family. The intere...