By Mike Peek

  My thoughts about John’s gospel come from spending a great deal of time in this gospel.  In addition to my daily reading of Scripture, I recite at least one chapter out of John’s gospel every day. I have read, memorized, recited, meditated on and studied John’s gospel daily for over a decade. I have come to the conclusion that the gospel according to John is biblical allegory. I am not saying that Jesus did not do the things written about him in this book. Nor am I saying that Jesus did not say the things that this book says that he said.  Seven Miracles, I Believe 1.            Jesus turned water into wine. [1] 2.            Jesus healed a nobleman’s son from dying, who was a great distance away. [2] 3.            Jesus healed a man who had a sickness for thirty eight years that had made him lame. When Jesus commanded the...

For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let’s celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. ~1 Corinthians 5:7-8 Christmas has been a Christian feast from the mid-fourth century to the present day. It’s significance in the lives of Christ followers have wained and surged throughout church history. Many have sought to do away with Christmas, while others have embraced it. The December 25 th  date that had previously been a pagan festival date was adopted by christians. Christmas was not the first feast celebrated by early Christians. The feast of Epiphany celebrated the coming of the Magi to see Christ. The feast of Epiphany was celebrated long before Christmas but has little notice in the church today. There are a number of feasts in the church calendar today: Lent, Easter, Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas to name a few. Why have certain feasts gained in popularity ...

Photo Credit: Patrick Schneider, Unsplash Dear Neighbor, What an incredible story! The Word, who was with God in the beginning, and was God, became flesh and dwelt among the people that he created. (Jn. 1:1, 1:14)  Have you really thought about this? Has it impacted you the way that it should? What kind of effect does the incarnation have on your day to day life? The Story, Luke 2:1-20 Mary was to betrothed to Joseph but was with child, conceived of the Holy Spirit. Joseph had to go to Bethlehem to register for the government ordered census because he was a descendent of David. While in Bethlehem, Mary gave birth to her first born son; cared for him and laid him in an animal feeding trough, for there was no room for them in the inn. There were some shepherds watching over their flock at night, when an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them; they were frightened, as are all persons in biblical stories when they meet an angel. They angel said to them: Luke 2:10-13  Do not ...

Dear Neighbor, This morning the Lord gave me the privilege of speaking about his word in the church. I talked about something that is very near and dear to my heart. The already not yet aspects of the kingdom of God. As Christians we look back to the first advent of Christ in remembrance of him and we look ahead in anticipation of his second coming, when all will be made right.  God is presently at work making all things new through the work of the Spirit. God has declared that he will create a new heaven and new earth, but unlike the first creation where he made the earth first and later made man, in his new creation, God is making the people first. When “It is finished,” God will make the new heaven and the new earth; then, and only then will God rest. Jesus is the first man to be raised in the new creation. All will be raised on the last day; those who receive Jesus Christ as Lord, will be raised to eternal life in the new heaven and new earth which is yet to come, but those who...

Photo by KaLisa Veer on Unsplash Dear Neighbor, Today marks the beginning of the advent season. During advent, we look back to the birth of Christ, while looking ahead to his second coming. During advent, a total of four candles are lit, beginning from a single candle, an additional candle is added each Sunday. The first candle  is the prophet’s candle,  lit on the first Sunday of advent, and it represents hope. The second candle, is the Bethlehem candle, lit on the second Sunday of advent, and it represents faith. The third candle is the shepherd’s candle, lit on the third Sunday of advent, and it represents joy. The fourth candle is the angel candle, lit on the fourth Sunday of advent, and it represents peace. Lastly, on Christmas Eve, a fifth candle is lit, it is the Christ candle, and it represents purity. I love advent because these symbols are used to preach Christ. By them, Christ is preached in the Catholic Church, in the Anglican Church, in the Baptist and in many oth...

One of my favorite things to do, is to go out for a run. The first run that a remember was with my earthly father at the age of five. My father encouraged me in running. When I was but a ten year old boy, he challenged me to run five consecutive miles in under eight minutes per mile. I wanted a pair of running shoes, he told me that if I met his challenge, he would purchase the shoes. I trained and met his challenge. I am thankful that my earthly father encouraged me in this way because it has given me a healthy activity on into middle age. I am not as fast as I once was, in fact, I am back to were I was at the age of ten.  Currently, I am running at least five miles, at least four days a week, for a total of at least twenty miles a week, and trying to run those miles in under eight minutes per mile. The route that I take on Sunday mornings is my favorite because I pass three things that remind of the Lord Jesus Christ.  First, I pass through the grounds of our local high scho...

Why do I write this blog? I do not believe that writing this blog serves any purpose other than to fulfill my desire to express what has been laid upon my heart. My work involves asking and doing but there is not much opportunity for sharing. I write this blog in order to fulfill my desire to share the gospel. The word gospel simply means good news and there is no news greater than the gospel.  The apostle Paul wrote:  1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Is there any better news than to know that God has not destined us to wrath, but to obtain salvation from the wrath that we deserve through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him? It is the desire of my heart that everyone should read the Bible, for through reading the Bible I came to know God the Father and ...

What is your desire? What causes you to get out of bed in the morning and go forth? Is it pleasure that you seek, or riches that you desire, or maybe it is fame? It is my desire for all to know God and the Lord Jesus Christ. I call this blog,  The Nurse Theologian, because I am a nurse who thinks and writes about God. I do not write about nursing, though I may mention my profession on occasion, but it is God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ whom I write about, and whom I desire for you to know.  Several years ago, when seeking how I might tell others about God and his Christ, I came across a teaching, The Way of the Master.  This teaching, uses the Law to bring the knowledge of sin before presenting Jesus Christ. Using the Law to bring the knowledge of sin is biblical. Most people know that it is wrong to lie, to commit adultery, to murder, but they do not consider the reason these things are wrong. We live in a godless society, resulting from modernistic ideals. Mode...

In 1 Corinthians 12:28, the apostle Paul gives a list of Spiritual gifts. This is the second time in the same chapter that he gives a list of gifts that come from the same spirit. Each list varies in what he mentions as gifts; therefore, one can conclude that each listing of gifts is incomplete. The apostle has a point in this list regarding the Corinthian church. They were putting a high emphasis on speaking in tongues and ignoring the gifts that edify; therefore, he begins with apostles, prophets  and teachers, and ends the list with various kinds of tongues. I have often thought about these things. What is my gifting? I am not an apostle and I do not have the gift of speaking in tongues but I do believe that I have the gift of helps first and teaching second. I cannot heal anyone but I can give help to the sick. I am not a prophet or an apostle but I can explain the writings of the prophets and the apostles. I am a Registered Nurse who felt compelled to study theology.  The...

Yesterday, a couple of monsters came by the hospital. I think that there is some truth in these funny costumes with regard to the world that we live in. Each year, in the month of October, I drive by some gruesome images displayed in some of our neighbors yards, and others put on costumes that glorify evil and death, but still  others were costumes like these that look fun and inviting. We should keep in mind that no matter how gruesome or friendly the monster looks, they are nonetheless monsters. People very in their appearance, thought, actions and words. Some are more wicked than others but all people apart from Christ are monsters no matter where they might fall morally on a scale between Hitler and Mother Teresa. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The goal is not to be like other people, even the best person that you know, but to morally like God in every way. God said of Jesus: “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Jesus is the image of the invi...

I saw a picture on the back of a woman’s phone while at church. I was so mesmerized by it, I drew out what I saw on the back of a ministry card that I keep in my wallet.  I am mesmerized by it because the three stick figures represent my life: I ran away from God’s perfect plan, repented and believed in the Lord Jesus. The imagery is so simple and yet it is so profound. I am not an artist but I can quickly doddle this symbolic message of life on the back of a card.  In addition to the three stick figures, there are three circles: The first circle represents God’s perfect plan for life. The second circle represents the broken world that we now live in and the wavy arrows represent out attempts to escape this broken world. The third circle represents the gospel of God: the eternal Son of God descended and entered this broken world becoming one of us; He died a death that He did not deserve; He rose from the dead, ascending to the righthand of God; all authority in heaven and on ...

Dear Neighbor, This morning I began to read the Acts of the Apostles. John following Luke is most confusing because Luke and Acts have the same author and were meant to go together. The New Testament is setup with the four gospels at the front, followed by the book of Acts, then the apostles letters to the churches and concludes with the Revelation of Jesus Christ; therefore, most people read the Scriptures in that order. But to read Acts after reading Luke is the way that it was originally written. Am I saying that the order in the Bible is wrong? No, that is not what I am saying at all. The Bible is a library and just like any good librarian would do, the books are put together into categories.  I also find it interesting that people read their belief’s into the text. The first Christian sermon, preached by the apostle Peter at Pentecost is a good example: In Acts 2:37-39, the men that Peter had just preached the gospel too were convicted and asked the apostles:  Brethren, w...

Dear Neighbor, In our Sunday morning bible study we discussed baptism. Our leader Shane had previously taught on the etymology of the word baptism, showing that the word means to immerse. He taught on the typology of baptism being a picture of death and resurrection. And he taught about the chronology of baptism in the scriptures and in history. He taught about other Christian beliefs about infant baptism; catholic, Lutheran and Reformed. Lastly, he went through several text of scripture refuting those views. It was after this, during corporate worship service, while sing ing hymns and praises to our Lord that I saw the picture that I included. I saw the picture on the back of a woman’s phone in the pew in front of us. I recognized it as being the three-circles method of sharing the gospel, but it was different, instead of using words, the artist used symbols to tell a story. The first circle represents the good world that God created; everyone loved God and one another. Then there is...