The concept of the eyes serving as a source of light or darkness aligns with biblical imagery, particularly in the portrayal of God in the Hebrew Bible, where divine vision is often associated with light and fire. This reflects an ancient belief that humans can project internal light through their eyes, symbolizing both illumination and the potential for absence of light. In this context, the eyes act as conduits of inner essence, reflecting the ultimate source of light that is God.
Sermon on the Mount E27 – Jesus continues addressing our relationship to money and possessions with a riddle about the eye being the lamp of the body–a reference to a common cultural metaphor in which “having a bad eye” meant someone was stingy. By saying that the eye is the lamp of the body, Jesus highlights how our relationship to our possessions reflects our true character. In this episode, Tim, Jon, and Michelle explore how generosity creates possibility, while clinging tightly to our stuff causes us to lose everything.
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Timestamps
- Chapter 1: Lay Up Treasures in Heaven (0:00-6:58)
- Chapter 2: The Riddle Goes Like This (6:58-25:50)
- Chapter 3: Light and Dark (25:50-30:14)
- Chapter 4: The Generous Eye Creates Possibility (30:14-39:08)
Referenced Resources
Show Music
- “Bushwick” by cocabona
- “The Upper Room” by The Doppelgangaz
- “Cookie” by Benno
- Original Sermon on the Mount music by Richie Kohen
- BibleProject theme song by TENTS
Show Credits
Jon Collins is the creative producer for today’s show, and Tim Mackie is the lead scholar. Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer; Cooper Peltz, managing producer; Colin Wilson, producer; Stephanie Tam, consultant and editor. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer. Frank Garza and Aaron Olsen edited today's episode. Aaron Olsen also provided our sound design and mix. Nina Simone does our show notes, and Hannah Woo provides the annotations for our app. Today’s hosts are Jon Collins and Michelle Jones.
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