By Gordon Franz
The following document is in an outline format and does refer to slides; however, I believe this content would be useful to anyone interested and pray that it will be a blessing.
Click here to read Life and Land Notes

By Gordon Franz
Introduction
Coins offer a “numismatic window” into the world of the New Testament (Oster 1982: 218). At the end of the First Century AD, the power-hungry Roman emperor minted coins as political propaganda in order to influence his culture. This article peers through that window and examines the imperial coins from the reign of [...]

By Gordon Franz
The Apostle John describes the opening of the third seal in this way: “When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, ‘Come and see.’ And I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hands. And I [...]

By Gordon Franz
A Misconception
One misconception regarding John’s exile to Patmos which has appeared in the commentaries and popular prophetic writings it is that Patmos was a sort of Alcatraz (Swindoll 1986:3); or for the French, St. Helene where Napoleon was exiled (Saffrey 1975:392). Part of this is due to the 19th century travelers who described [...]

By Gordon Franz
Emperor Domitian, the self-proclaimed “Lord and God” and ruthless dictator, reigned from AD 81 to 96. He was the son of Emperor Vespasian and the brother of Titus, the conquerors of Jerusalem and the Judean people. During the last few years of his life, Domitian became very superstitious. In fact, on the day [...]

By Gordon Franz
Colin Hemer, in his book The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting (1986), has done an outstanding job of placing the letters to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor (Revelation 1-3) in their historical-geographical setting at the end of the First Century AD. Hemer’s book is a reworking [...]