Gospel commentary index Lectionary Year A
On this page, you can find an index to all the commentary articles on the gospel lectionary readings for the whole of Year A, together with links to the video discussions between Ian and James. The articles will be reposted with updates during the year—but they are listed here for convenience and planning ahead.
The impartiality of God’s love in 1 Peter 1 video discussion
The lectionary epistle for Easter 3 in Year A is 1 Peter 1.17–23. In this section, Peter begins by reflecting on the significant of the impartiality of God’s love—he is not like a king who shows favouritism to some, by lifting their bowed face to look at him, but treats all equally—as Peter discovered in Acts 10.34 “I know that God does not show favouritism” using a word cognate word to the key term here.
The magnitude of what God has done for us in Jesus then leads him to explore the seriousness of our response to God’s grace. (For some reason, the AI video editor clipped out my pronouncing the key term ἀπροσωπολήμπτως! Apologies!).
My article on “impartiality” as the heart of the gospel is here.
The gospel reading is Luke 24.13–35, the encounter with Jesus on the road to Emmaus.
The video discussion is here,
and the written commentary is here.
The gender of Jesus in the Book of Revelation
At the Society of Biblical Literature annual conference in Atlanta in 2015, I attended several papers on the Book of Revelation. The one that I have continued to think about—and…
Truth, history, the Church Commissioners, and reparative justice
Professor Richard Dale writes: KICKING IN THE CATHEDRAL DOOR How the Church Commissioners relied on bogus history to denounce their predecessors and vilify their own Church It is over three…
Having our doubts about Thomas in John 20
The Sunday gospel lectionary reading for the Second Sunday in Easter is John 20.19–31, which includes Jesus’ encounter with so-called ‘doubting Thomas’. It is the set reading for this week…
The experience of Easter
He’s gone. The, the tomb….the stone’s rolled away! Jesus….He’s not there….I’ve just run the whole way back…. I had to tell you. This is mad. Completely crazy. You’re all looking…
Do the gospels contradict each other on Holy Week?
I am reposting again this year the article I post most years in Easter, on the question of whether the gospel accounts contradict each other in their schedule of the…
The future of the Anglican Communion? part 2
Andrew Goddard writes: Twenty years ago, in June 2006, Archbishop Rowan Williams wrote in his significant and still-worth-reading reflection, “The Challenge and Hope of Being an Anglican Today” There is…
Empty tomb and risen Jesus in John 20
The discovery by two disciples of the empty tomb, and Mary Magdelene’s encounter with Jesus, in John 20.1–18, is one of the main options for the gospel reading for Easter…
What has happened to the Quiet Revival?
In April last year, Bible Society published a report called The Quiet Revival, and I interviewed the main researcher behind it, Rhiannon McAleer. The report made a number of claims,…
The Future of the Anglican Communion? part 1
Summary: This article analyses the significant developments emerging from the March 2026 GAFCON gathering in Nigeria arguing that a key feature of its Abuja Affirmation is not what it includes,…
The ‘triumphal’ entry on Palm Sunday in Matthew 21
It is always a relief when we celebrate Palm Sunday from Matthew (as we do in this Year A in the lectionary) or Mark’s account (next year). Luke 19.36 in…
