Is anger incompatible with love?

This question from the quarterly introduction leads in many productive directions. It comes up in this context because many Christian traditions picture God's justice as somehow being associated with His anger. We explore a few lines of thinking about anger and love, and also have a preliminary go at the related question "How do Love and Justice go together?"

We start a new season looking at the God of Love and Justice.

There's a lot in Christian history that suggests love and justice are somehow opposing attributes of God. We suspect this may not be the case, and in this introductory episode on this theme we tackle a few of the questions in the Sabbath School introduction. When discussing God's love, Isaiah 53:11 is a helpful reminder that there doesn't need to be a contrast between sacrifice and delight.

It is important to focus on the resurrection as we conclude an exploration of John's gospel.

This is a well-known passage, but worth revisiting. It is interesting that nobody seems to recognise the resurrected Jesus at first encounter, and we explore some other aspects of this chapter.

John's gospel includes an extensive interaction with Pilate as part of the crucifixion story.

There may be no "book of Pilate" in the Bible, but there are some interesting aspects of this character worth exploring. There are themes of power, control, and God's mission. This is not the most important part of Jesus going to the cross, but we turn to it as a stimulus for good conversation.

How can it be best for the followers of Jesus if He goes away?

This is a simple statement Jesus makes in John 16, but it seems at first glance quite counterintuitive. The answer hinges in the text on the Advocate who is to come, and we explore this idea. We apologise for this episode being published a week late!

We look at seven "I am" statements from Jesus in the gospel of John.

It is interesting to see some patterns in these various passages. People listening typically have difficulty accepting what Jesus is saying, and there's plenty to ponder in what he claims to be. We end up realising the importance of not just "having truth", but finding effective ways to express it.

John loves the phrase "eternal life", but what does it tell us?

This phrase in John serves a similar role as the phrase "Kingdom of God" in the synoptic gospels. We explore how these different phrases can help inform each other, and land on some challenges that arise from this theme. There's even a touch of mystical mathematics!

It is interesting to explore how Jesus fulfills themes and concepts from the Old Testament.