Digging Deeper: Jesus’ Sermon at His Hometown Synagogue

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Author: Mr. Kenneth Frank | Faculty in Theology, Living Education

Estimated Reading time: 7 min.

Did you know that Jesus was considered a member of his hometown synagogue congregation and was thereby invited to preach to them on a Sabbath?

I have never preached a sermon in my hometown, although I have done so in my home state. Paul spent several years preaching in his hometown of Tarsus, in today’s nation of Turkey. If you were invited to speak before your hometown congregation, what would you say to them? You may want to be complimentary and grateful to those who witnessed your life changes in their community. This Digging Deeper will explore the first-century Sabbath liturgy in a narrative only Luke records to better understand what happened when Jesus addressed His local congregation.

The Gospel According to Luke records this experience in Luke 4:16-30. It occurs near the beginning of Jesus’ Galilean ministry. This was Jesus’ first visit to the town of Nazareth, where He grew up, since His baptism by John the Baptist. It is important for our understanding of Jesus’ sermon to remember that the Gospels refer to this area as “Galilee of the Gentiles” in the first century. During Pax Romana, the era of “Roman peace”, Galilee was occupied by many non-Jews. Luke records this incident right after reporting Jesus’ temptation by Satan in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-13). However, John’s Gospel inserts His early Judean ministry following His baptism by John the Baptist and His temptation by the Devil. Following that, Luke briefly records Jesus being well-received when He taught in the Galilean synagogues (Luke 4:14-15). Jesus was both a preacher and a teacher, which are different means of communication. Teaching can be more effective than preaching because teachers can turn passive listeners into active participants. Jesus expected a response to His messages from the audience.

The First Century Synagogue

The word synagogue means “assembly.” Perhaps more than any other institution, the synagogue preserved the religion, culture, and special status of the Jewish people. These meeting places originated during the Babylonian captivity of the House of Judah and developed further during the time between the testaments (the Intertestamental Period). These buildings served as places of prayer and worship on the Sabbath. During the week they were transformed into law courts and schools. But on Sabbaths and at festivals they were places of scriptural instruction. Each synagogue was supervised by a board of elders or rulers. One lesser official was called a chazzan, somewhat equivalent to a deacon in Christian churches. The Holy Land offered synagogues not only for native Jews but also for diaspora Jews (those Jews originally from outside the Holy Land). It is estimated there were 480 such synagogues in Jerusalem alone.

In the standard synagogue layout, the main room provided a reading desk upon which scrolls of the Hebrew Bible were unfolded for reading. It was customary to read a portion of the Law and then a portion of the Prophets while standing, out of respect for God’s word. Following that, someone was invited to expound upon the texts for the day, usually based on the reading from the Prophets. Qualified men of the congregation were called upon by the rulers to sit in an assigned seat called “Moses Seat.” I refer you to my recent Digging Deeper article by this same title. Jesus was popularly considered a rabbi, or teacher – John 1:38, 49; 3:2; 6:25. Visiting rabbis were often invited to address the assembly, as was common for the Apostles Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:13-16). Not only this, being a male member of this congregation entitled Jesus to be called upon to deliver the sermon for the day.

Order of service

Attendance was required for the Sabbaths and Feast days. The congregation faced the ark (chest or cabinet) housing the scripture scrolls in the front of the room. Men sat on one side of the room and women and children on the other or up in a balcony. Those who sat in the front near the reader’s desk were in the “chief seats,” mentioned by Jesus in the Gospels.  Following an opening prayer, the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 5 reports a typical order of service as follows:

  1. Recitation of the shema – Deuteronomy 6:4-9 – known as “the creed of the Jews”. Part of this read: Deuteronomy 6:4-5 KJV  “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD :  (5)  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
  2. The parashah, or reading of the appointed section of the Law – anyone making the least mistake was immediately replaced by someone else.
  3. The haphtarah, or reading of the Prophets.
  4. The derashah, or “investigation, study” – a homily, discourse, or sermon usually given by a member of the congregation, usually based on the Prophets but also could be from the Law.
  5. The bendiction (blessing) – offered by the priest, if one was present. Otherwise, a prayer was offered to conclude. In some places singing of psalms was introduced into the service (Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1980, pp. 57-58).

Luke 4:16 affirms that Sabbath attendance was Jesus’ regular habit. Jesus’ and His apostles and believers always observed the seventh-day Sabbath throughout the New Testament. Following their Master’s example, Christians today regularly attend Sabbath and festival services. Jesus’ example also provides evidence that the seven-day cycle since Creation has not been lost since Christians need only go back to Jesus’ day to verify this. He is the Creator and Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:28). Time has not been “lost,” as some assert, since the first century. Jews would not have lost the cycle of days since that time either. They have meticulously recorded their weeks, months, and years for millennia to faithfully observe God’s sacred times. 

He stood up to read

After the synagogue service began with prayer and a reading from the Law, Jesus was invited to read the Prophets portion for the day. The scroll he was handed was that of Isaiah. Possibly, He chose that scroll for this occasion. He stood to read it out of respect for God’s word. In the time of Ezra, not only did Ezra stand to read but the audience did as well (Nehemiah 8:5). The words “to read” in Luke 4:16 imply that Jesus read aloud. He preached in other synagogues, but read only here in Nazareth, showing He was considered a member of this synagogue. The lesson for the day was only read in Hebrew, indicating Jesus knew Hebrew as well as Aramaic (the common language of first-century Jews in the Holy Land), and possibly Greek (the common language of the eastern Roman Empire).

The chazzan would take the scrolls from a cabinet (chest) called “the ark,” to hand to the President of the synagogue who then handed it to the reader for the day. Scrolls were animal skins of parchment on which the sacred words were written in ink. These parchments were rolled on two rollers, or spindles, and were unraveled from the right roller to the left. Unlike many modern languages, Hebrew is read from right to left. As Jesus unrolled the scroll, He read a portion from two passages of Isaiah: Isaiah 61:1-2; Isaiah 58:6. This combining of texts was commonly done in that time to join together passages with a similar theme. This was called gezerah shava, a “comparison of equals”, creating a composite text.

What Jesus read at first brought keen interest, then curiosity, then alarm, and finally hostility. What did Jesus say that brought about a mob action that threatened His very life? Watch for a future Digging Deeper in which I will annotate Luke’s summary of Jesus’ message to that congregation. In the meantime, I encourage you to read and study this entire account in Luke 4:16-30.

Kenneth Frank headshot

Kenneth Frank was born and raised in New Jersey, USA, and attended Ambassador College, graduating in 1973. He served in the Canadian ministry from 1973-1999, after which he returned to the USA to pastor churches in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina for 15 years. Having earned a BA degree from Ambassador College he later earned a MA degree from Grand Canyon University before being assigned to the Charlotte office to teach at Living University, now Living Education. Currently, he teaches the Survey of the Bible course to the on-campus students and writes the Digging Deeper column for our online Bible study program. He is married, has four children, and seven grandchildren.

Course Spotlight: How Did Jesus Die?

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In the Church of God, we have long understood, quite correctly, that most texts of Matthew’s Gospel now omit a key line depicting a soldier spearing the crucified Christ and thus killing Him violently. Yet, even what is present in the rest of the Gospel accounts may in fact reveal more than we might at first notice. Could some of the answer be lost in translation?

Course Spotlight From The Life, Ministry, and Teachings of Jesus Christ: (Unit 4) Passover to the Resurrection
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Course Spotlight: Why We Say “Amen!”

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Why do we use the word “Amen” at the end of each of our prayers? Find out the origin of this word and how it is used throughout Scripture!

Course Spotlight From Tools for Christian Growth: Prayer
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Course Spotlight: Prophecies of Christ’s Crucifixion

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Did you know that the Old Testament has multiple prophecies relating to Christ’s crucifixion? Check out how these prophecies were fulfilled in the New Testament!

Course Spotlight From God’s Feast Days: Passover
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Digging Deeper: Daughter of Abraham

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Author: Mr. Kenneth Frank | Faculty in Theology, Living Education

Estimated Reading time: 7 min., 48 sec.

Did you know that Jesus illustrated acceptable Sabbath behavior by healing a crippled woman on the Sabbath?

When referring to her, He used a term that appears only once in our entire Bible: “daughter of Abraham.” This was a striking term for its focus on women. “Son of Abraham” appears twice in our New Testament. The Gospel According to Luke alone described this incident. Luke paid special attention to stories involving women as they related to Jesus’ ministry, even more so than the other Gospels. This Digging Deeper will examine this account of the daughter of Abraham, providing a vital lesson concerning acceptable Sabbath behavior.

Our focus verse is: “And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?” (Luke 13:16 KJV). So special was this story to Luke that he focused attention on how women were often treated, or mistreated, in first-century Judaism. This anecdote is often referred to as “The Healing of the Crippled Woman” or “A Woman with a Disabling Spirit.” Its context is Luke 13:10-17.

Jesus performs a miracle

This is the only recorded case of Christ’s preaching in a synagogue during the latter part of his ministry. It was customary to invite visiting rabbis, like Jesus, to deliver the sermon after the reading of the Law and the Prophets from the biblical scrolls. Please refer to my recent Digging Deeper article, “What Was Moses’ Seat?” While Jesus was preaching, He noticed a woman bowed over who could not lift up herself. The word in v. 11 for “bowed” in Greek is a medical term (Luke was a physician – Colossians 4:14) indicating curvature of the spine as if she were doubled over from carrying a heavy burden. Upon seeing her, Jesus immediately set her free from her infirmity by laying hands on her to straighten her (vv. 12-13). He would not heal her from a distance, as He did in other cases. The touch of the Master’s hand gave her the encouragement needed to stand up straight. Once she did, she broke out into praise to God (v. 13).

Surprisingly, the ruler of the synagogue, who also should have rejoiced, criticized Jesus’ action because He had healed her on the Sabbath (v. 14). According to rabbinical tradition, emergency cases might be given a minimum of attention on the Sabbath, but not chronic cases such as hers. Perhaps this daughter of Abraham had been attending this particular synagogue for the entire 18 years of her infirmity. As a result, her case would not be classified as urgent. Either no one was able to help her, or perhaps, even tried. Nonetheless, she continued faithfully attending Sabbath services. This crippled woman had hobbled to synagogue every Sabbath for these 18 years! If she had not attended that day, she may never have been healed. Her example is an encouragement to all women that, despite pain and suffering, they go where there will be reassurance, fellowship, and even blessing among other worshipers on God’s day.

An unwelcome response

Notice that in v. 14, this ruler angrily turned to the audience to complain that Jesus had healed her on the Sabbath. Perhaps this was his pious attempt to discredit Jesus so he could retain control over this congregation. He considered healing a type of work forbidden on the Sabbath (v. 14). Jesus retorted that the Law permitted properly feeding and watering one’s animals on the Sabbath (v. 15). Then Jesus asked a pointed question in v. 16: should not this poor woman be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath if farmers and ranchers commonly served their livestock on the Sabbath? A.T. Robertson in his Word Pictures in the New Testament explains Jesus’ reason for healing her as a “Triple argument, human being and not an ox or ass, woman, daughter of Abraham (Jewess), besides being old and ill” (e-Sword 12.2).

Verse 17 displays contrasting responses to her healing: the audience rejoiced while Jesus’ adversaries were ashamed. This was a culture of honor and shame. The synagogue ruler had tried to shame Jesus in public but Jesus turned the tables on him by working a breathtaking miracle in front of them all. These critics of her healing were shamed before their congregation, displaying their unreasonable standards of Sabbath observance.

A woman of the covenant

At the beginning of v. 16, Jesus referred to her as a “daughter of Abraham.” This was deliberate because the term “son of Abraham” was used commonly to stress the worth of men as members of the covenant community. However, the title “daughter of Abraham” was virtually unknown because women were not seen as citizens of the nation but rather as members of their family. Jesus used this exalted title to stress that she was a woman in the covenant community – God’s highly favored elect people – since she was a descendent of the great patriarch, Abraham. Attending synagogue, despite her 18 years of suffering, indicates she was not just a Jewess but a believer in the God of Abraham who had made a covenant with her people. She was entitled to the Messiah’s blessing.

Many Jews regarded women as less important than men. Notice Jesus’ contrasting treatment of women, as explained by The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary, edited by Joseph S. Exell: “There is great beauty in the behaviour of Christ to women, whether it be the woman of Samaria, whose deep wound He probes so faithfully, yet with so light a touch; or the child of Jairus, to whom He speaks in her own dialect, holding her hand; or the widow of Nain, whom He bids not to weep; or she whose many sins were forgiven her, loving much; or Mary, for whose lavish gift He found so pathetic [touching] an apology—’She hath done it unto My burial’” (e-Sword 12.2).   

A lesson in loosing burdens

The word “loosed” in v. 16 is used for disease only here in our New Testament, evidently because it referred to being bound by the Devil. Jesus argued from the lesser to the greater. How much more important was a human condition of suffering compared to an animal’s. Both should be considered acts of mercy permitted on God’s holy day. Jesus was “Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28) and therefore knew how the day should be observed.  Jesus’ critics did not accept Him as the God of the Hebrew Scriptures who created the Sabbath.

A common belief in Jewish culture was that calamity or suffering was the result of some great sin. No sin is connected to her suffering. Instead, Jesus said that Satan had bound this woman. No reason is given why Satan had done so. She was not possessed by the Devil; however, God permitted it as He had permitted Satan’s afflicting the patriarch Job. David Guzik in his Enduring Word Commentary explains this case had a spiritual dynamic: “We are foolish to think that spiritual issues cause all physical problems, but we [are] just as foolish to think spiritual issues can never cause physical problems” (e-Sword 12.2). For Jesus, handicaps were opportunities for God to display his power. Jesus displayed complete mastery during His ministry over demons, sickness, and disease.

What better day could there have been for this miracle than God’s Sabbath? Sabbath observance is not intended as a ritualistic burden, but as a blessing, as Jesus explained: “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Some Sabbath-keepers become so legalistic in their observance of the day that they forget the original intent was to provide rest, rejoicing, refreshment, and renewal for humans and animals during this holy time. It should be enjoyed for its created purpose, not as an excuse for gaining more profit or participating in trivial worldly pleasures.

Bob Utley’s You Can Understand the Bible teaches us a valuable lesson from this singular story: “Jesus exposed this man and all who think like him (plural, hypocrites). The rabbis had great compassion in their oral traditions for the human treatment of animals on the Sabbath (cf. Luke 14:5), but were restrictive in their treatment of humans. Jesus illustrates the fallacy of the rabbinical system’s legalism without compassion for people. We must be careful of our rules. They often become more important than people. People are priority with God. Only people are eternal. God made creation for fellowship with people! Our rules often say more about us than about God” (e-Sword 12.2)!

Kenneth Frank headshot

Kenneth Frank was born and raised in New Jersey, USA, and attended Ambassador College, graduating in 1973. He served in the Canadian ministry from 1973-1999, after which he returned to the USA to pastor churches in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina for 15 years. Having earned a BA degree from Ambassador College he later earned a MA degree from Grand Canyon University before being assigned to the Charlotte office to teach at Living University, now Living Education. Currently, he teaches the Survey of the Bible course to the on-campus students and writes the Digging Deeper column for our online Bible study program. He is married, has four children, and seven grandchildren.

Course Spotlight: Why Did Peter Deny Christ?

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In some of our online courses, we have a “Student Thoughts” section where we ask a question to see what the students think. In Unit 4 of the Life Ministry and Teachings of Jesus Christ course, we asked the question:

Why did Peter deny Christ (Luke 22:54-62)? What can we do in our own lives to make sure we do not deny Him (Matthew 10:32-33)?

Come take a look at some of the Student Responses below!

“Peter denied Christ three times because he feared. Scriptures tell us to be of courage and have faith. Christ also told us to pray not to be lead into temptation. If we are truly converted and do not deny Christ, He will not deny us to the Father. We must truly be sure we know the truth, love the truth, live the truth, and be willing to die for it if necessary.”

– SJ

“We have often been admonished to overcome self, Satan, and society. This incident with Peter is a good example of these three pulls in our lives. First, Peter was fearful of what society would do to him. The scripture reference of Matthew 10:32-33 is in the context of Jesus’ instructions to His disciples before sending them out. The preceding verses instructed them not to fear those who can kill the body but not the inward man that God has started within us. Peter’s focus on what the governing authorities could do was part of his failure here. Another vital part was that Satan was ‘playing him like a cheap fiddle.’ Jesus predicted Peter’s denial just a little earlier saying, ‘Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.’ (Luke 22:31) However, Satan’s influence over Peter’s actions here was because Peter was trusting in his own strength. This is evidenced by his use of the sword. In order for us to succeed in the job God has given us to do, we need to recognize our enemies. We have three. They are self, Satan, and society”

– TW

“Peter was still carnal, not fully conquered by the power of God, the Holy Spirit. Also, Peter was relying on his strength rather than putting his trust in God to take care of everything. So, for us today, we have to keep the commandments of God as shown in John 14:15. Also in 1 Thessalonians 5:18-22, we are told, ‘give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.’ [ESV] “

– LK
Tell us your thoughts!

Recommended Reads: The Case for a Creator

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Digging Deeper: What was Moses’ Seat?

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Author: Mr. Kenneth Frank | Faculty in Theology, Living Education

Estimated Reading time: 7 min.

Did you know that Moses was honored with a seat in New Testament Jewish synagogues?

Centuries after Moses died, the seat of Moses was an honored chair in these meeting houses. In the first century, there is evidence from some synagogues of a special decorative seat called the “Seat of Moses” on a raised platform. His seat was filled by men who claimed the exalted position of teaching by Moses’ authority. Jesus referred to this religious office with some sharp statements about the religious leaders who occupied it. Today’s Digging Deeper explores the history behind this exalted position with Jesus’ important caveat.

Our central passage for this study is: “Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not” (Matthew 23:1-3 KJV). In this same chapter, Jesus pronounced seven woes upon these men for their abuse of power (Matthew 23:13-36).

The authority of Moses

Moses was the great legislator of the Israelite nation. God inspired him to preach and to inscribe five books (the Torah or Pentateuch) in God’s name. His influence transcended the centuries, for he is named 80 times in our New Testament, having a massive presence among the devout of the land. Moses occupied the office of expounder and chief justice for the application of the law to specific cases of conduct. Exodus 18 describes how his father-in-law convinced him to delegate authority to other judges under his command, thereby sharing his authority but leaving him as the chief justice with God’s final authority. Upon his death, Moses’ authority passed on to his successors who sat in his seat.

The Expository Notes of Dr. Constable explains what sitting in Moses’ seat represented: “According to Old Testament figurative usage a person who sat on a predecessor’s seat was that person’s successor (Exodus 11:5; 12:29; 1 Kings 1:35; 1:46; 2:12; 16:11; 2 Kings 15:12; Psalm 132:12)” (e-Sword 12.2). Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible explains why God permitted them to do so: “They sat there formerly by Divine appointment: they sit there now by Divine permission” (Ibid.). They were not authorized to mandate new law but rather to interpret already provided law for their followers.

The College Press Bible Study Textbook Series describes how his position was transferred upon his death: “Moses’ seat is his cathedra, his ‘Bible Chair’ from which his doctrine is read and expounded. In Malachi’s day it was the priests who had the magisterial responsibility (Malachi 2:7 ff.), a duty as old as the priesthood itself (Leviticus 10:17; Deuteronomy 17:9-13). But with ‘Ezra the priest and scribe’ (Nehemiah 12:26) the function began shifting onto professional scribes (Nehemiah 8:4, 7-9; 8:13, 18; cf. Ezra 7:1-6; 10)” (e-Sword 12.2).

The Transfer of Influence

In the first century, the Levites were to have been Israel’s teachers, but most of them were Sadducees and no longer carried the same authority. Moses’ authority had devolved to the scribes and Pharisees. Study of the Scriptures was of little interest to the indifferent Sadducees. The Pulpit Commentary, edited by H.D.M. Spence and Joseph S. Exell, explains: “The Sadducees seem to have had no popular influence, and were never recognized as leaders. The Levitical priests never appear in the Gospels as teachers or expositors of the Mosaic system; this function of theirs had devolved upon scribes and lawyers” (e-Sword 12.2).

By Jesus’ day, scribes (doctors of the law or legal experts) were mostly from the Pharisaic party instead of the Sadducean, but not all Pharisees were scribes. Dr. Bob Utley’s You Can Understand the Bible describes the scribes as “…experts in the Written Law (OT) and the Oral Law (Talmud) of Israel and were available to make local practical applications. In effect they replaced the traditional OT functions of the local Levites” (e-Sword 12.2). A Commentary on the Holy Bible, edited by J.R. Dummelow explains their claim to authority: “The scribes (who were ordained with the laying-on of hands) claimed to have received their authority through an unbroken succession from Moses. The ‘sitting’ refers to the judicial power, and the authority to teach, which all scribes or rabbis possessed, and which was centred in the Great Sanhedrin [Jewish supreme court]” (Ibid.).

Sitting to Teach

Moses’ writings were read incrementally in the synagogues every Sabbath day (Acts 15:21). When the Law of Moses (Genesis-Deuteronomy) and the Prophets were read from the scrolls stored in “the Ark” (cabinet) in synagogues, the reader stood; however, when he expounded the reading afterward he sat. Sitting was the posture of a teacher. Jesus employed this position to teach as well: “And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him” (Matthew 5:1 KJV). The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges notes that “In the Talmud ‘to sit’ is nearly synonymous with ‘to teach'” (e-Sword 12.2).

When Jesus said the scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, He merely acknowledged the fact. The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges explains His remark about these leaders: “Where they went wrong Jesus will point out. But here He must mention them, because, despite their faults, they uphold Moses, as opposed to the paganizing leadership of the Sadducean priesthood” (e-Sword 12.2).

However, Jesus did criticize their hypocrisy (Matthew 23:3-7). The College Press Bible Study Textbook Series clarifies that Jesus’ criticism of these religious leaders was not for their holding such an authoritative position but “…because their party zeal strenuously applied the theologians’ legalistic conclusions to everyday life with a rigor that required everyone to fall in lock-step behind them. In this sense, the Pharisees, too, were Israel’s teachers, even if unofficially” (e-Sword 12.2).

To do what they say

In Matthew 23:3 Jesus does not dispute the importance of Moses’ law, but His implication is clear. He goes on to explain that these teachers did not obey their teachings (Matthew 23:4). As The College Press Bible Study Textbook Series continues ” … whatever comes from Moses is from God and is to be received with full confidence and submission. Merely because Jesus must undercut the unjustified pretensions of the Jewish magisterium does not mean that Moses must go too. So, before beginning His condemnation of the unfaithfulness and sinful conduct of the religious leaders, He calls for sincere reverence for God’s Law” (e-Sword 12.2).

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible provides us two important lessons from this passage:

“1. Many a good place is filled with bad men; it is no new thing for the vilest men to be exalted even to Moses’s seat (Psalm 12:8); and, when it is so, the men are not so much honoured by the seat as the seat is dishonoured by the men. Now they that sat in Moses’s seat were so wretchedly degenerated, that it was time for the great Prophet to arise, like unto Moses, to erect another seat.

2. Good and useful offices and powers are not therefore to be condemned and abolished, because they fall sometimes into the hands of bad men, who abuse them. We must not therefore pull down Moses’s seat, because scribes and Pharisees have got possession of it; rather than so, let both grow together until the harvest, Matthew 13:30″ (e-Sword 12.2).

Respect for high office, especially religious office, is a fundamental teaching of church government. Jesus set the record straight at a time when there was much abuse of this position by the religious teachers. This was not meant to condone their unbiblical behavior but rather to instruct their followers to abide by their correct teachings of God’s word, despite their hypocrisy. God’s mighty word will still change lives, even if delivered by defective servants.

Kenneth Frank headshot

Kenneth Frank was born and raised in New Jersey, USA, and attended Ambassador College, graduating in 1973. He served in the Canadian ministry from 1973-1999, after which he returned to the USA to pastor churches in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina for 15 years. Having earned a BA degree from Ambassador College he later earned a MA degree from Grand Canyon University before being assigned to the Charlotte office to teach at Living University, now Living Education. Currently, he teaches the Survey of the Bible course to the on-campus students and writes the Digging Deeper column for our online Bible study program. He is married, has four children, and seven grandchildren.

Course Spotlight: The Gloss of 1 John 5:7-8

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1 John 5:7-8 is a common passage in Scripture that secular Christians claim that the Bible supports the Trinity. How can we prove that these verses are not talking about God having a Trinitarian nature?

Course Spotlight From The General Epistles: (Part 2) The Letters of John and Jude
Find the answer!

Course Spotlight: Is the Law Done Away?

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Many professing Christians today believe that Christ did away with the Law. They often think that Christ kept the Law for them, and earning salvation does not come with any requirements or responsibilities beyond loving God and your neighbor. But is this the case?

Course Spotlight From The Life, Ministry, and Teachings of Jesus Christ: (Unit 2) The Galilean Ministry
Find the answer!