A quick reference guide, with my last 49 (7×7) posts listed and accessible.
Subtle and Oblique by Design
Saturday, November 13, 2021 What did Jesus indicate? Shop talk. Get ready for some theological shop talk. I must necessarily get detailed and somewhat technical in this post. A single word will examined. I want to make a case for translating and interpreting an old Greek word in … Continue reading Subtle and Oblique by Design
Because Peter Says So
Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Is Moses a historical figure, as opposed to merely a literary character? Did Moses really live? If he did actually live, did he really lead the Children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt? And are all the plagues and miracles recorded in the Book … Continue reading Because Peter Says So
In the Depths of the Dungeon
Wednesday, October 13, 2021 Based on Genesis Chapter 40 Although he was stuck in prison for who-knows-how-long, Joseph had not been abandoned. Given his helplessness and the uncertainty of his situation, Joseph was undoubtedly tempted to despair. However, God was there with him — with him and for him. … Continue reading In the Depths of the Dungeon
The Snatcher and His Favorite Son
Wednesday, October 6, 2021 Wrestling for A Blessing On the eve of a dread and potentially deadly family reunion with his hairy twin brother (his long-estranged, vowed-to-violent-vengeance twin brother Esau), Jacob the Snatcher arranged for himself to be all alone for what might possibly be his final night on … Continue reading The Snatcher and His Favorite Son
How to Spot a Creep
Monday, September 27, 2021 Jude _:4 The Epistle of Jude, the next-to-last book of New Testament, has only one chapter. Its fourth verse says: For certain individuals have crept in unnoticed, those who long ago were designated for such condemnation, irreverent sorts, who pervert the grace of our God … Continue reading How to Spot a Creep
The Smug and the Lazy
Friday, September 17, 2021 Two problematic, contrary strains exist within American Evangelicalism. The first is a smug, smarter-than-thou, prejudicial and elitist intellectualism. The second is a lazy can’t-and-won’t-be-bothered-to-think anti-intellectualism. Both are bad. Both are a persistent threat to the growth of a disciple’s faith. Which is the more … Continue reading The Smug and the Lazy
His Message to Smyrna
Thursday, September 16, 2021 Ninety-nine years have passed since it occurred. But I only learned of it within the last week. Yesterday I finished reading a book by Lou Ureneck about the Great Fire of Smyrna in September, 1922. If I were to place a small bet, I would … Continue reading His Message to Smyrna
Remember Lot’s Wife
Friday, August 13, 2021 Are you a Bible quiz whiz? How many Bible verses do you know by heart? Today, we will learn not one, but two Bible verses by heart, and in almost no time at all. Then you will be well on your way to that most … Continue reading Remember Lot’s Wife
A Prayer for Homicidal In-Laws
Thursday, August 5, 2021 Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away a newly-wed groom woke to a very bad morning. The kingdom’s evil king had sent his henchmen to watch the house of the newly-wed groom. They had orders to kill the groom that morning. However, … Continue reading A Prayer for Homicidal In-Laws
Fire Flung from Heaven, Part One
Sunday, August 1, 2021 Shall we just skip Chapter Seven entirely and ignore it away? Maybe it does not matter too much. Just one of Revelation’s twenty two chapters can be overlooked; right? Perhaps it does not contribute much content to the book. No? Well, I mean, after all, … Continue reading Fire Flung from Heaven, Part One
A Scientist and a Fisherman
Wednesday, July 28, 2021 Curiously enough, interpreting the Book of Revelation rather resembles a science project. An interpreter starts with a hunch, a hunch that he (he, because by he in this scenario I mean me) needs to first articulate and craft into a clearly-stated hypothesis. Once the interpreter … Continue reading A Scientist and a Fisherman
Opus Alienum Dei
Monday, July 19, 2021 Opus Alienum Dei translates from Latin as the “alien works of God” or the “strange works of God.” Here I use the phrase in an interpretive sense, where and when it is applied to five pivotal historcial events which, at first glance, hardly seem like … Continue reading Opus Alienum Dei
Six Seals of the Apocalypse
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 About 95AD/CE on the small Aegean Island of Patmos, Jesus Christ appeared in a vision to a man named Johan, an exiled political prisoner. Not long before, the Roman Emperor Domitian had ordered that Johan be exiled from the City of Ephesus to the Island … Continue reading Six Seals of the Apocalypse
Heptads of History
Monday, July 5, 2021 To make sense of the Book of Revelation, a careful reader must necessarily grapple with four consecutive, structural sets of seven: four literary heptads in succession. The word heptad is specialized shorthand for structural sets of seven; it derives from the Greek word ἑπτά, which … Continue reading Heptads of History
The Poet’s Hidden Treasure
Wednesday, June 30, 2021 Within the last few days, I came across an online article about a poem that serves as a treasure-hunters’ guide. The poem contains a variety of clues about where a buried treasure can be found. Doubtless, a number of people will be motivated to decipher … Continue reading The Poet’s Hidden Treasure
Hearsay
Friday, June 25, 2021 After a worship service a few weeks ago, I deliberately lingered in the pews to socialize for a while. An attorney friend approached me, as he occasionally does. He always makes for an interesting conversation partner. Sometimes, though, we disagree about this or that. A … Continue reading Hearsay
God Cannot
Wednesday, June 23, 2021 Although He strongly desires to do so, sometimes God will not intervene in a situation unless a mediator — an intercessor —approaches the Throne to request His intervention. And although it may sound unorthodox (and perhaps even heretical), it may even be accurate to say … Continue reading God Cannot
The 72 Hour Sign of Jonah
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 If you happened to read or listen to my last post, you may remember that I promised to write a post about “the duration of internalization.” In case you do not recall what I meant by that very catchy, rhyming phrase — “the duration of … Continue reading The 72 Hour Sign of Jonah
The BBC & Jonah
Saturday, June 12, 2021 Last night while browsing the BBC news, I came across an article about a scuba diver who was momentarily “swallowed” by a Humpback whale off the coast of Massachusetts. This morning, after handing her a cup of coffee, I told my wife about the article. … Continue reading The BBC & Jonah
Jesus Christ and General Jackson
Thursday, June 10, 2021 Back in April 1945, Vice President Harry S. Truman received a phone call. He was told to come “quickly and quietly” to the White House. Without being explicitly told, Truman realized that the frail and ailing president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, must have just died. When … Continue reading Jesus Christ and General Jackson
Sacrificial Love
Tuesday, June 8, 2021 The true measure of how much someone loves us is the extent to which they will embrace genuine sacrifice for us. We know that intuitively. We know that someone loves us if and when that person will sacrifice of their time, their resources, their attention, … Continue reading Sacrificial Love
Parrot Polycarp
Thursday, June 3, 2021 Bishop Polycarp of Smyrna was a mere middle man. Polycarp stuck slavishly to Paul. Polycarp demonstrated little to no originality. For the most part, he just parroted whatever the Apostle Paul once said. When he wrote his pastoral epistle to the Church in Philippi, Bishop … Continue reading Parrot Polycarp
Safe Assumptions
Wednesday, June 2, 2021 By its very nature, the Book of Revelation is cryptic. Like a secret code, it is meant to be progressively figured out. Like a jig-saw puzzle, it is meant to be pieced together until it slowly coalesces into an increasingly coherent whole. That should be … Continue reading Safe Assumptions
A Bad Guest
Tuesday, June 1, 2021 This past weekend my wife and I attended a long-delayed wedding. For well over six months, the dread virus had prevented the betrothed couple from publicly exchanging their wedding vows. Nonetheless, after patiently (or impatiently) enduring the pandemic-imposed pause, they had made it to the … Continue reading A Bad Guest
Chapter 15 – Eschatological Exodus
Tuesday, May 25, 2021 To start, I should probably give credit where credit is due. The term Eschatological Exodus does not originate with me, but, as far as I know, with (the now semi-retired) Professor Richard Bauckham from Her Majesty’s United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Personally, … Continue reading Chapter 15 – Eschatological Exodus
Bathwater and Babies, Diamonds in the Dirt
Monday, May 17, 2021 Thanks to Horrible Hal (Hal Lindsey, that is, whom I honestly do not regard as highly horrible) — thanks to Horrible Hal and other End-Times Enthusiasts, no one takes the idea of the Rapture seriously any more. Okay, yes, that is a wee bit of … Continue reading Bathwater and Babies, Diamonds in the Dirt
God-Forsaken Location
Wednesday, May 12, 2021 Its precise latitude and longitude coordinates criss-cross at 31 degrees, 46 minutes, 41.2176 seconds north of the equator; and 35 degrees, 14 minutes, 9.5748 seconds east of the prime meridian. Many years ago, long before those coordinates had any meaning at all, heaven and earth … Continue reading God-Forsaken Location
Two Rabbis from Galilee
Friday, May 7, 2021 They were there on the mountainside out of deference to their esteemed Rabbi from Galilee. Catastrophes invariably provoke variations on one basic theological question: What did God have to do with this event? One week ago, on Friday, April 30th 2021, an awful tragedy occurred … Continue reading Two Rabbis from Galilee
Fear and Hatred
Thursday, April 22, 2021 In Proverbs 8:13a (a = the first half of the couplet) personified Lady Wisdom declares that the fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Welcome back to 7th grade! Consider this a remedial crash course in middle school English Grammar and Usage. In American … Continue reading Fear and Hatred
Christian Chameleons
Thursday, April 15, 2021 A few weeks ago a good friend of mine requested that I write a post about a section from Saint Peter’s Second Epistle. To be precise, he asked that I comment on 2 Peter 3:9, which says that God is not slow to fulfill His … Continue reading Christian Chameleons
Horrible Hal
Sunday, April 11, 2021 According to a well-positioned and entirely reliable informant, a popular theology instructor at a local educational institution once believed that Jesus Christ was likely to return to Earth before the end of 1988. Someone had convinced him that the re-establishment of the State of Israel … Continue reading Horrible Hal
Does It Belong?
Thursday, April 8, 2021 Does the Book of Revelation actually belong in the Bible? For a while, the canonical status of the Book of Revelation was debated. From the second century to the early fourth century of the Church, Christian leaders were divided on whether the Book of Revelation … Continue reading Does It Belong?
Propeller Beanie
Thursday, March 25, 2021 The Book of Revelation matters. It matters more than most people realize. The Book of Revelation matters more than most people realize because some of the key events which it describes are current events. Revelation symbolically describes events that you are likely to watch on … Continue reading Propeller Beanie
Into the Sea, Mulberry Tree
Monday, March 22, 2021 What topic shall I blog about next? Writers sometimes find themselves inexplicably incapable of writing anything worthwhile. Tedious spells of doubt and indecision sideline a wanna-be writer. Any attempt at writing languishes. Although the cursor pulses away on the screen, its expectations go unmet, in … Continue reading Into the Sea, Mulberry Tree
Our Opposition
Wednesday, March 17, 2021 The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. 1 John 3:8 A good friend asked me to write something about unanswered prayer. Ironically enough, his request to write about the vexing problem of unanswered prayer comes as an answer to … Continue reading Our Opposition
Hollow and Hallow
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 To start, a multiple choice quiz question: Among all possible candidates, who or what is first designated as holy in the Bible? You might want to read that question again, since the wording matters and may determine whether you get the right answer. The words … Continue reading Hollow and Hallow
The Authentic It: The Veracity of V
Thursday, March 11, 2021 But what if it is actually real? What if, in spite the skeptics’ scorn, it actually is the honest-to-goodness, authentic item? What if it is the real McCoy? The implications are simply staggering. It could overturn everything we were previously taught, everything we have ever … Continue reading The Authentic It: The Veracity of V
Elohim the Creator
Tuesday, March 9th, 2021 In the opening chapter of Genesis a deity named Elohim displays their creative glory. Oops. Scratch that. Scratch out the pronoun their. Instead, make it his. The pronoun their is the wrong pronoun, although it is exactly what an ancient scroll-reader might have expected. And … Continue reading Elohim the Creator
If We Disown Him
Thursday, February 25, 2021 Can someone cease to be a Christian? “Obviously yes. Next question.” But wait a second: The answer is not an easy and obvious “yes” for someone who takes the Bible seriously. Recently, I spoke with a friend of mine about this question, which has ceased … Continue reading If We Disown Him
Admonition and Emphasis
Thursday, February 11, 2021 A bearded, bespectacled theology professor once told his students that they were reading their Bibles much too personally. They were wrong if, when reading about David’s slingshot toppling of Giant Goliath, they extrapolated that God would help them overcome their giant personal problems. That is … Continue reading Admonition and Emphasis
How Herman Hears
Friday, February 5, 2021 What the Apostle Paul says about the Second Coming of Christ can and should be taken literally. Literally, you should read Paul’s writings literally (most of the time). What John the Apocalyptic Narrator says about the Second Coming of Christ should (almost always) be taken … Continue reading How Herman Hears
Crass Literalism
Wednesday, February 3, 2021 Within the last week, one of my readers asked me to cover the thirteenth chapter of Mark. If I am not mistaken, I think that reader wants me to interact with what the Right Reverend N.T. Wright has written about Mark Chapter 13. This, then, … Continue reading Crass Literalism
Humiliation
Tuesday, February 2, 2021 If you are reading this to see how I will attempt to refute the Right Reverend N.T. Wright on the question and reality of the Rapture, please feel free to skip past the historical stuff about Antiochus Epiphanes that follows immediately hereafter, interesting though it … Continue reading Humiliation
Inoculated Against
Sunday, January 31, 2021 Thirty years ago, I asked a young defense attorney if he had ever won an acquittal for a defendant he knew without doubt to be guilty. He gave me an easy yes, and explained that he had prepared a believable but bogus line of defense, … Continue reading Inoculated Against
Discern the Days
Monday, January 25th, 2021 Yesterday I went to a nearby church to hear a twenty-something-year-old pastor preach. His message ranks as one of the best I have heard in a long time. He preached about the urgent necessity of self-disciplined discernment — discernment pertaining to various news sources, including … Continue reading Discern the Days
Audacity
Friday, January 22nd, 2021 Sometimes you should not show your cards. Sometimes you should. Most of the time you only show the select cards that you believe will benefit you. But both my amateur observations and this card-shark analogy hinge on the presumption that you, the player, are completely … Continue reading Audacity
Figurative Fig
Jesus once cursed a fig tree with the words, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” The next morning, the tree was withered away to its roots, which shocked his disciples. Yes, this is a weird and disturbing portrayal of Jesus. And it is weird and disturbing … Continue reading Figurative Fig
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About Me
Hello there, Dearest Visitors!
Here in creative confines of cyberspace I call myself the DeKrakenator, which has nothing to do with the terrifying underwater Kraken creatures, but is just a theatrical spin on my surname. I am an aspiring theologian: I aspire to know Jesus Christ and make him known. About twenty years ago I acquired a degree or two from the most reputable seminary in all of human history, a multi-denominational seminary in Pasadena, California, located not far at all from the Rose Parade route. My family and I live far, far away from there now, though, as events served to transplant us somewhere in the northern reaches of fly-over America. We are members (in good standing, currently, hopefully) of a local, multi-ethnic evangelical church. At that same local church, I occasionally attempt to make myself useful, albeit with varying degrees of success. Over the years, I have gathered a lot of theological and historical books. Impressively, I have even read some of those books. Someone once told me that dogs, with their keen sense of smell, can judge character well. So, for what it’s worth, dogs seem to like me. At least, ours do, provided I feed them. I have dabbled in photography, but am not especially photogenic myself. Bald is not necessarily beautiful. When the pandemic put everyone in lockdown, I was bored, so I took up blogging. I hope you find my blog intensely thought-provoking, utterly compelling, and immensely edifying. If you do, you ought to immediately subscribe to it. That is all I have to say about me and my blog. Thank you for your attentiveness.
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