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What Paul Says about Fulfilling the Law (part 2 of 3)

November 7, 2018 22 Comments

If the Torah is God’s instructions for how to live, why would Gentiles be excluded from its wonderful truths? In both Romans and Galatians, after Paul has spent a lot of time arguing against their need to observe the Torah, he actually explains how they can “fulfill the Law.”

Filed Under: Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

What “Fulfill the Law” Meant in its Jewish Context (1 of 3)

November 6, 2018 26 Comments

Why Jesus say he “came not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it”? A surprising insight comes from the fact that “fulfill the Law” is actually a Jewish idiom. Along with being found in rabbinic writings, it’s even used several other places in the New Testament.

Filed Under: Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

Greek Brain, Hebrew Brain: The Way Parables Worked

July 12, 2018 3 Comments

Jesus’s parables fit perfectly into a non-Western, Jewish culture that expressed itself through tangible metaphors.

Filed Under: Articles, Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

“Where Two or Three are Gathered” …in Context

May 28, 2018 3 Comments

Jesus’ words in light of rabbinic sayings about what happens when people gather to study or pray… God’s Shekinah draws near. Fascinating.

Filed Under: Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

Why was Resurrection on “the Third Day”? Two Insights

April 1, 2018

Christians scratch their heads over Jesus’ being raised “on the third day.” Doesn’t Sunday comes only two days after Friday? And what’s so significant about the “third day” anyhow?

Filed Under: Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

A Surprisingly Messianic Tradition in the Ancient Synagogue

January 30, 2018 16 Comments

Christians should be fascinated that a prominent theme in early synagogues was the fulfillment of God’s prophetic promises. It fits perfectly with Jesus’ ministry of preaching from town to town about the coming of God’s redemptive Kingdom.

Filed Under: Articles: Jesus' Jewish Reality

“…and God has made me fat!”

October 25, 2017 8 Comments

Seeing how other cultures think can be quite helpful for understanding the Bible. Dieting and weight gain are particularly interesting topics to explore.

Filed Under: Articles: Thinking Biblically

Getting Beyond Me-O-Centric Bible Reading

May 26, 2017 8 Comments

All sorts of connections fall into place when you start to grasp the Bible’s communal cultural setting.

Filed Under: Articles: Book Excerpts, Articles: Thinking Biblically

Biblically, Your “Name” is Your Identity

May 19, 2017 10 Comments

A family’s public reputation, their “name,” was of critical importance in their communal society. Knowing this helps us decode a much misunderstood word in our Bibles, the Hebrew word shem, which overlaps with the English word “name” but is actually much broader.

Filed Under: Articles: Book Excerpts, Articles: Thinking Biblically

When You Read the Bible, You Need to “Be” There

March 15, 2017 5 Comments

When God called Moses up to Mt. Sinai, what he said, literally, was “Come up to me on the mountain and be here…” Why? Because it’s possible for a person to expend a great deal of energy getting to a destination, yet arrive there with head and thoughts somewhere else entirely.

Filed Under: Articles, Articles: Book Excerpts

Blinded by Our own Brilliance

October 3, 2016 12 Comments

Messier Galaxy - Wikipedia

We assume that as the centuries go by, we’re growing more intellectually sophisticated. But modernity has actually dulled our senses to a reality that biblical peoples had no problems experiencing.

Filed Under: Articles, Articles: Thinking Biblically

In the Biblical World, Aging was a Good Thing

July 6, 2016 5 Comments

To understand your Bible you need to grasp the assumptions of its cultural world. Sometimes glimpsing its alternative point of view can even put our own reality into perspective. For instance, in the Ancient Near East, advanced age was not seen as something to be avoided. Aging was seen a source of honor and dignity. […]

Filed Under: Articles, Articles: Thinking Biblically

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