You wouldn’t even try to count the number of books written about Jesus. Most of them would have value, I guess, but some are long and scholarly, others lack a good historical basis. But here’s one that is short, written by a respected historian and is encouraging to faith. What’s not to like? It is […]
Difficult issues series It is one of the most central teachings of christianity that Jesus died to save us from our sins. But it has come under scrutiny in recent years – from believers, who want to understand and explain it better, and from non-believers who attack it as barbaric and illogical. There are many […]
Difficult issues series On the first Counting Crows album, Adam Duritz sang about Maria, who said she was “close to understanding Jesus”. But I can’t help feeling that modern western christianity has covered Jesus in layers of theology and convenience, and is close to misunderstanding Jesus. If you think that’s harsh, please read on.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.” I quoted this passage from Isaiah 9 […]
Two years ago I wrote about the progression we can see in the New Testament of the disciples’ belief in Jesus (see How did Jesus become God?), how they seemed to go from incomprehension to belief he was the Messiah, to belief in him as the unique son of God. In particular, I referenced New […]
One day, when I was a young christian, I had a surprising thought. As soon as I thought it, I knew it couldn’t be true. But this untrue thought set me on a path of discovery that I am still on today. This path has enriched my understanding of Jesus and changed the way I […]
Jesus is arguably the most influential person who ever lived. But what is his influence? How should we understand him, and how should we respond to him? I think the Anabaptists have something worthwhile to tell us here. (See my previous post on the Anabaptists.)
Bart Ehrman, a respected New Testament scholar who is not a christian, has recently written: “Jesus is best understood as a Jewish apocalypticist from the backwaters of a rural part of the Roman empire, a Jewish preacher who got on the wrong side of the law and was executed for crimes against the state, how […]
Continuing my discussion of common arguments used against christians. This post: arguments that seek to undermine faith in Jesus by arguing that the gospels aren’t reliable as history, or that we can know little factual about Jesus, or that Jesus could not have been divine.
It is the Thursday night before Good Friday. I was at a Tenebrae service, where Mark 14:61-64 was read out: Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the […]