Kenton J. Kutney

Recently I’ve been enjoying a free channel on TV: Makeful has 4-hour competitions to find the Landscape & Portrait Artist Of The Year - I’m slowly learning what the panel of judges are looking for - they might say this is a painting about nothing! Where’s the subject?? (That’s the point!!) Framing the scene: cold, damp stone = Death Subject: empty space = Resurrection  Focal points: (near) burial cloth,  (receding) cross... the horror, grief and darkness fades away with the dawn of Sunday:  “O death where is your sting?” — see 1 Corinthians 15 Carving these words into the wood also etched them on my heart in a profound way this Easter: LOVE TOOK MY PLACE  Joy created a diorama of Easter story — the cross and the stone sealing the tomb:

‘Do you feel the world is broken?  Do you feel the shadows deepen?  But do you know that all the dark won't stop the light from getting through?’  I am ready for Easter Sunday. Trying to walk that final week with Jesus into Jerusalem — remembering that last meal, his betrayal and rejection, the hasty trial, the anguish of an innocent life sacrificed...  Then there is the burdensome weight of the state of our world. It’s a lot to take in, but the reality of dark shadows prepares the heart for the breaking of dawn.  The silence of waiting between Good Friday and Sunday heightens the hopeful anticipation of celebrating the astonishing life-giving miracle of Easter Sunday morning’s empty tomb.   Listen to this beautiful song...   (click for the link) “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory thro

One theory tossed around about the eyewitnesses claim that Jesus came back to life is that he never actually quite died. Can we know if it was simply resuscitation — or must we consider the  death defying  miracle of resurrection? Check out the modern medical analysis in this 3 minute clip...

Have a look at these edifying 5-minute reflections on the final days of Jesus. For anyone feeling alienated in their suffering, Jesus went there too. That means he lovingly understands everything you are going through. The Last Days Leading To Easter   The Meaning Of Jesus’ Death ...Did you know the name Jesus literally means ‘God to the rescue’!  You can discover much more about Jesus’ character, teachings and deeds in the highly readable and compelling little book by Michael Green entitled,  Who Is This Jesus?

What can we actually know about the real Jesus, the guy who walked this earth some 2000 years ago? Have layers of tradition inevitably changed and shaped the picture we now have of him? How reliable are the recorded accounts of the life of Jesus that are presented in the New Testament Gospels of the Bible today? Take a minute to watch this video consider things from the view of a forensic detective... When reading a modern English translation, we might get the nagging thought that we are so far removed from the original — realty, 2000 years is a long time since Jesus walked he earth! The printing press is a relatively modern invention, so it is natural to ask if perhaps errors and omissions and editing crept into the hand-written copying process. This is important to dig into. How can there be any claim of truth to the Bible if it has kept changing over time? Remarkably, we have an astounding amount of carefully preserved ancient manuscript evidence to compare; far more tha

The Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the Bible are biographical narratives about the life of Jesus - so why are they different? Does that mean the eyewitnesses are contradicting each other? ...Ever been in a car accident? There are always differing accounts - and not necessarily because people are lying. The insurance claim may report that a pedestrian saw something from a perspective that differs from a passenger in one of the cars involved, or yet again from another driver coming the other direction. That makes sense - the eyewitnesses each have their own vantage points.  In the same way, the authors of the gospels also have their unique perspectives. They should sound authentically different. In addition, the Gospels were originally composed with various audiences in mind, which makes a world of difference in tailoring the narrative message.  Watch this short clip of how a forensic detective thinks about all of this: As you (hopefully) take a clos

Conspiracy theories abound online. Although there are some people who have what you might call a 'blind faith', this isn't the kind of believing the Bible calls us to (heart + mind). We tend to compartmentalize life into boxes of mental, emotional, spiritual, physical - realms of science and religion that never intersect - yet the big mysteries of life (like love, for example) engage the whole person. In the course of my life I have come to realize that our modern exaltation of rationalism leaves much to be desired . Some things just cannot be tested in a beaker. As the famous mathematician Pascal observed, "The heart has it's reasons that reason cannot know." Questions are not a bad thing: they can take us deeper. Left unexplored, however, they fester into doubt.This Easter, think like a detective... About the video: Detective J. Wallace decided to examine the evidence for Christianity by applying the same forensic techniques he used to solve his co

This is a bit vulnerable (I'm sooo not photogenic!) but I hope the sincerity comes through...

If we move past an egg-laying bunny, our thoughts at Easter suddenly start to get real. Life and death questions: “Where is God in all of this suffering?” “What does the death of one man 2000 years ago have to do with today?” ...This week I’ll be posting some brief reflections on Jesus’ life, death, and most importantly, the question of his supposed resurrection. Is this a source of true Hope or just more naive wishful thinking like that bunny story? (To begin investigating for yourself, the Gospel of Mark is a quick read.) "This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again."    — John 3:16 (Bible, The Message version)

Here’s an idea I wanted to put out there for you to try: I invite you to take some time through the week to make a piece of creative artwork contemplating the incredible Easter message: God entering into human history to demonstrate how much each person in this world is loved.  I’ve asked each of us in our family to try this. Don’t say you’re not an artist , bc we all really do have the capacity to create. It’s not about impressing anyone. I’ve found you just need to be curious and willing to try something new. (YouTube art tutorials are a terrific resource!) ...You might want to start by reading - or listening on a Bible app - through at least the latter half of the Gospel of Mark, for example, as it is the shortest. I recommend trying out the dynamic Message version. Or search ‘Easter’ on Spotify for a background playlist to inspire your creativity.  So, this could be a symbolic image or actual word art with text you choose that reflects something of Jesus - His unpa