Bible Study: Parody and Subversion in Matthew's Gospel

Send us Fan Mail

This episode is simply to direct my viewers to two YouTube videos where C.J. Cornthwaite explains that the words that get translated into English Bibles as "faith" and "church" really don't mean what we think they mean. And that makes a HUGE difference.

The video on faith/pistis, “Did early Christians have 'belief'? This evidence says no.” by C.J. Cornthwaite    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8rSjPC11Gs

The  video on ekklesia/church, "The first churches make no sense. Until you see what they copied. by C.J. Cornthwaite:: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kLYwtkdb-A&t=274s

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, I review the work that I did in episodes 59-61 on chapters 24-25 of Matthew, often referred to as "The Little Apocalypse." I reflect on this sermon by Jesus in these chapters during a time when the world as we know it may be coming to an end, i.e. the world in which the U.S. is the dominant hegemon. What is the message for us from these chapters? What was the message for its original audience in the late first century when Israel had been almost completely destroyed by Rome? I hope this review both clarifies the work the I did in episodes 59-61 and also helps us apply it to today's situation.

Send a text

This special episode takes another break from Matthew to explore passages from Luke. Drawing inspiration from Ched Myers, I present a sermon that I recently delivered, focusing on two parables unique to Luke: The Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31) and The Parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1-8). To conclude, I share a story illustrating how the second parable came to life in my own town.

The story of how the parable came to life comes from the housing justice work of Making Housing and Community Happen. You can find more information about our housing justice work at www.makinghousinghappen.org.

Send us Fan Mail

In this special episode, I interview Ched Myers about his new book, Healing Affluenza and Resisting Plutocracy; Luke's Jesus and Sabbath Economics.

To order the book, go to Bookshop.org and search for Ched Myers. Through the end of July 2025, the promo code SOJO20 will reduce the price by 20%.

You can also use this link:

https://bookshop.org/beta-search?keywords=Ched+Myers

Description from Bookshop.org:

Myers brings a well-honed interpretive eye to a thematic study of Luke's Gospel. He reads synoptically the crisis of socioeconomic disparity in Jesus's world and ours, and proposes powerful analogies that can build social imagination and animate personal and political practices for systemic change and justiceamong communities of faith today.

There has been a revival of interest over the last half century in the Third Gospel's focus on issues of poverty and wealth. However, most exegetical or homiletic work by scholars and preachers of the Global North has been constrained by middle-class social assumptions, which inevitably domesticate Jesus's radical teaching and practice. To counter this, Myers argues that Luke's literary arc and individual representations are best interpreted through the lens of ""Sabbath Economics"" in the Hebrew Bible. He then brings socio-literary analysis and engaged commentary to bear on Luke's wise oldstories, correlating his narrative structures and symbols to systemic political and economic issues then and now.

Luke's unique material, and how he redacts Mark and Q, reveals his unequivocal critique of socioeconomic disparity. Myers closely examines footprints and ""demonstration projects"" of Sabbath Economics in the first half of Luke, then considers archetypal characters, somatic representations, and socially contrasting scenarios of rich and poor in the second half. His approach deploys sociological exegesis, literary analysis, and liberation hermeneutics to recover Luke's story of Jesus in its historical context and its relevance to ours.

Send us Fan Mail

This is a sermon that I preached with a friend who is from Gaza.

The text that was read before the sermon is Psalm 22:

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?..."

Send us Fan Mail

This is a replay of Episode 31 with a brief new intro. 

Jesus tells a parable about a demon exorcism which results in a situation worse than the original demon possession. Those who read the Bible at surface level (and somehow don't seem to notice all the problems that presents) tend to read this passage literally, but Jesus is clearly speaking parabolically. This parable can be applied to  any situation in which a problem has been dealt with in a way that does not deal with the root cause and only kicks the can down the road. 

I didn't change anything in the original episode; I'm just suggesting that it is worth another hearing because it can be applied to our current situation.

Send us Fan Mail

For many modern Christians, especially in the West, the miracles of the Bible are such an uncomfortable subject that we often pretend that they are not even there in the text. We ignore them. But they are key to understanding the message of the Gospel.

Send us Fan Mail

What is the intersection between the "hidden things" and "secrets" of Matthew 13 and the recent conspiracy theories that have played significant role in U.S. politics?

If you need to review Matthew 13, click here.

If you want to watch clips of Palestinian American comedian Sammy Obeid, click here.

Send us Fan Mail

Could the Gospel of Matthew have been written to address the aftermath of a genocide, much like the one happening in Gaza right now?

Send us Fan Mail

I recommend to my listeners the amazing documentary, Gaza Fights for Freedom. You can find it free on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnZSaKYmP2s

It centers on  the 21 months of nonviolent demonstrations by Gazans at the border with Israel in 2018-2019.