S. Kent Brown

July 05, 2023 12:00 PM MDT
“Acts 2 has frequently caught the attention of students of the New Testament, for it is here that the power of the Holy Ghost begins to show itself in the life of the nascent church.”
5 Min Read
December 10, 2019 10:00 PM MST
It all started with the fathers. As with countless Jewish girls, Mary’s betrothal likely began when, by custom, Joseph’s father approached hers. Before Joseph’s father said more than a few words, Mary’s father likely knew what he wanted. To be brief, he wanted to discuss a possible engagement of his son with Mary. That topic would require a somewhat formal meeting.1 Whether Joseph’s father was the first parent to approach Mary’s father we cannot know. It is certainly possible that her father had been approached by other fathers of young men in Nazareth. Mary would surely have been visible to all the fathers in the small town. She may have been one of the few eligible young women that year in a settlement that sat apart, high above the surrounding plains at the top of steep hills that rose near one another and, falling precipitously toward each other, formed a bowl-like setting for Nazareth’s few inhabitants.
7 Min Read
July 23, 2019 01:10 PM MDT
The setting was an institute class wherein some important dimensions about Acts 16–20 became clear to me. For example, it became apparent that in three instances the Lord had coated his believers with Teflon, so to speak. All instances involved the Apostle Paul in one way or another. Plainly, the Lord watches over his people and orders events for their good, whether they perceive it or not.
5 Min Read
June 19, 2019 09:00 AM MDT
We begin with the unnamed, unknown persons in this story—the crowd. If modern Middle Eastern towns are a gauge, the crowd that followed Jesus was likely made up of men and, perhaps, a few boys who had squeezed in among the adults. If women or girls were present, we expect that they did not join the throng. Instead, typically, they hung back. This observation alone underscores the bravery and determination of the woman, unnamed in the accounts, who pushed her way into the clump of male bodies and reached out for Jesus’s clothing to gain relief.
5 Min Read
June 12, 2019 11:43 AM MDT
We begin where almost everyone begins—with the name. As all know, the name means “olive press” and derives from Hebrew. The place lay on the slopes of the Mount of Olives, on the east side of the Kidron Valley, opposite the city of Jerusalem, which sat on the west side of that valley (Matthew 26:36; Mark 14:32; Luke 22:39). It likely had a wall around it for it was called “a garden” (John 18:1). The name “olive press” points to the place’s essential character, a parcel of ground that grew olive trees and therefore must have had a working press. Archaeology does not disappoint. Though we do not know the exact location of this garden, very near this area was a cave that shows evidence of having been used for olive oil extraction and for the storage of tools.1 Occasionally, the cave may also have served as a sleeping place for Jesus and His disciples (Luke 21:37; John 8:1).
6 Min Read
May 30, 2019 08:24 AM MDT
This is the third article in a three-part series on Jesus Christ's teachings about families found in the Gospels. Read part one, "How Christ’s Teachings Highlight the Ever-Present Emphasis on Families in the Gospels," and part two, "The Miracle of the Fishes + Other Ways Jesus Demonstrated His Focus on the Family." Honoring parents can shape the character of families and even how members interact with one another. In this short study, which continues the earlier two, we learn how Jesus and His disciples retained honorable ties to parents.
9 Min Read
May 30, 2019 08:23 AM MDT
This is the second article in a three-part series on Jesus Christ's teachings about families found in the Gospels. Read part one, "How Christ’s Teachings Highlight the Ever-Present Emphasis on Families in the Gospels," and part three, "How Jesus Honored His Family Despite Complicated Relationships." In light of the Gospels' interest in families and their proper nurture, we turn to reports, partially told, of how Jesus intentionally impacted families in enduring ways.
9 Min Read
May 30, 2019 08:22 AM MDT
This is the first article in a three-part series on Jesus Christ's teachings about families found in the Gospels. Read part two, "The Miracle of the Fishes + Other Ways Jesus Demonstrated His Focus on the Family," and part three, "How Jesus Honored His Family Despite Complicated Relationships."
9 Min Read