Olive Tree Staff, Author at Olive Tree Blog

New Testament

An Ancient Perspective on the Beatitudes

Learning from ancient Christians is priceless (here’s why). But it can be difficult to find out what they each had to say about a specific passage of the Bible. For example, it wouldn’t be super easy to find commentary on the Beatitudes from a handful of church fathers. Not only…

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Historical

Why Read Books by Ancient Christians?

Not too many people loved reading Hamlet or Wuthering Heights in high school. Why? The language was confusing! Older literature takes time to understand due to cultural nuances, idioms, and unfamiliar vocabulary. This can be a huge deterrent for reading the works of ancient Christians. Reading translations of Augustine’s or…

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Topical

You’re Called to Be an Apologist [VIDEO]

WHAT IS AN APOLOGIST? The words “apologist” and “apologetics” stem from the Greek word apologia. This word means “defense” or “answer.” It appears 17 times as either a noun or verb in the New Testament—including 1 Peter 3:15-16: “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give…

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Topical

5 Common Inner Crises Christians Face

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of…

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App Tips

3 Time Management Tips

Here are 3 time management tips to help you be more efficient as you study the Bible. TIME MANAGEMENT TIP #1:USE THE STUDY CENTER AT FULL-FORCE The Study Center has four tabs: Resource Guide, Parallel, Notes, and Lookup. Have you discovered how to take advantage of these tabs all at…

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New Testament

Jesus’ Leadership Formula

The Bible has a lot to say about leadership – especially in the Gospels. So, study tools like the NIV Leadership Bible Notes are very helpful for processing and applying these passages to your own leadership style. In Matthew 20:20-26, Jesus makes one of the most profound statements on being…

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New Testament

Be Noble: Studying Scripture Like the Bereans

“As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every…

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App Tips

Never Miss a Detail in Your Bible Study

Have you ever been listening to a sermon, chatting at small group, or even doing your own Bible study, and wondered if you were missing an important, insightful piece of information? It’s one thing to have a great collection of Biblical resources, but that doesn’t mean you know there’s a…

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Topical

God Shows Up Where You Don’t Expect

The following is an excerpt from the For Everyone Commentary Series by John Goldingay and N.T. Wright. Learn how God can show up. He can be for us even when we don’t deserve it — or even expect it. WE DON’T ALWAYS GET WHAT WE DESERVE I’ve remembered why I…

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App Tips

Stay Focused While You Study

When I was in Bible college, my homiletics professor said that for every minute you preach, you should spend one hour studying. I would sit down, ready to put a few good hours of research in… and I would get distracted. The worst part is that I wasn’t primarily distracted…

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