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Category Archives: Faith
God-Stories vs. Godless Stories
I’m reading Patrick Rothfuss’s The Name of the Wind, a very well written novel in the fantasy genre (a genre I love and which I am writing in as you can see here). One his little side stories made me … Continue reading
Posted in Atheism, Faith
11 Comments
PODCAST: Faith in Waiting – Yeshua in Context
I’m wondering if we can look over Luke’s shoulder as he orders and shapes the storytelling in Luke 8. Does he order and shape these very familiar stories in a pattern that sends a message to the community in his … Continue reading
Posted in Faith, Gospel, Yeshua In Context
1 Comment
“Knowledge” Transcending Knowledge
I’m giving a Skype seminar next Wednesday to a small group in Texas. With the cost of airline travel and gasoline, it only makes sense for a small group to find an alternative. I’m interested to see how it all … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Discipleship, Faith, Mysticism
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Future Hope vs. Present Distress
Mark tells the story of Yeshua focused on future hope. Luke tells the story of Yeshua focused on present distress. What I mean is this: in Mark’s gospel, we see the theme of the identity of the veiled Son of … Continue reading
Posted in Faith, Yeshua, Yeshua In Context
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Communion Under the Anglo Jesus
God has friends and servants in all kinds of places. The face of Messiah looks different and yet the same. I’ve had a number of encounters with beautiful people and communities on the road recently. Humble shepherds, selfless servants, devoted … Continue reading
Posted in Christian, Faith
34 Comments
Poor in Spirit
How important is it to interpret a biblical text well? Obsession with details of theology, which is at least close to the same thing as obsession with a good interpretation of a sacred text, has been compared to speculating about … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, ethics, Faith, Gospel, Life to Come, Messianic Jewish, Yeshua, Yeshua In Context
1 Comment
PODCAST: Birth Issues – Yeshua in Context
The birth stories of Yeshua have issues. It’s not easy to understand why there are such big differences between them. It’s not easy to answer how the evangelists could have obtained the information in their accounts. And the virginal conception … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Faith, Messianic Jewish, Yeshua In Context
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Teaching Faith to Youth
I’ve been doing a short series on Sabbath afternoons with the youth of our congregation talking about faith. I didn’t have any when I was a teenager and was not raised in any sort of religious environment. So I find, … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham Joshua Heschel, Atheism, C.S. Lewis, Christian, Faith, Judaism, Judeo-Christian
5 Comments
Is Faith Imagined?
Many people suspect so. And I don’t just mean the critics. Many people who believe wonder, “Am I just imagining this?” I used to hear as an objection to faith, “It’s wish-fulfillment. You wish there were such a thing as … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham Joshua Heschel, Atheism, Faith, J-BOM, Philosophy
3 Comments
Obstacles to faith . . . from Yeshua?
A friend gave me some feedback on some recent commentary I wrote on Mark 7:24-30. I said that Yeshua at times puts obstacles in the way of those who come to him. They are faith obstacles. And they have to … Continue reading
Posted in Discipleship, Faith, Yeshua In Context
1 Comment
PODCAST: Yeshua in Context – Yeshua and Miracles
Today a commenter on the Yeshua in Context blog said that belief in the supernatural has no place in the college classroom or serious academic research. He believes Jesus is a myth. He says that religion scholars should not make … Continue reading
Posted in C.S. Lewis, Faith, Yeshua, Yeshua In Context
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Sci-Fi, God, the Universe, and Us
Science fiction was my religion once. Asimov was my prophet and Clark too, and my teacher was Sagan. That was before I came to Jesus and Judaism. Some of the radical amazement I used to feel for the vastness of … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham Joshua Heschel, Atheism, Faith, Philosophy
Tagged Asimov, Fantasy, Immanuel Kant, Sagan, Science Fiction
6 Comments
Frodo and Providence
At my Tolkien blog (don’t laugh . . . writing is a way I think and remember) I consider the gentle, effective way providence enters into Lord of the Rings. Let us use the strength and hearts and wits we … Continue reading
Mount Sinai and Mount Zion
I wrote something for a Christian audience explaining Hebrews 12:18-29. It is a passage, like many in Hebrews, which can be misunderstood as anti-Jewish or anti-Torah. Actually, it is a pro-Torah message of considerable genius, as I try to show … Continue reading
Miracles (C.S. Lewis), #1
See yesterdays “God in Search of Man, #1” for an explanation of this series exploring a Jewish and a Christian thinker who have much in common. I am much more familiar with Lewis than Heschel, having a fair collection of … Continue reading
Posted in C.S. Lewis, Christian, Faith, Love, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism, Philosophy
2 Comments
God in Search of Man, #1
Messianic Judaism is, in essence, a hybrid faith incorporating Jewish and Christian traditions and theology. I have for some time had in mind a project: reviewing some works by one Jewish and one Christian thinker who might be termed seminal … Continue reading
Posted in Abraham Joshua Heschel, Bible, Christian, Faith, Judaism, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism
5 Comments
PODCAST: Yeshua in Context – The Untransfiguration
“Tell no one of the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead,” said Yeshua. Chapter 1 of Yeshua in Context is about stories, Yeshua’s story and ours (and how they intersect). The story of Yeshua has … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Faith, Yeshua, Yeshua In Context
Tagged Dale Allison, Transfiguration
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PODCAST: Yeshua in Context – Reasons 4 Faith
Based on the four gospels and the life of Yeshua, what are some solid reasons to believe in Yeshua? I list seven. And the list may surprise you. It’s about realism, advanced notions in the gospels, foreshadowings hard to explain … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Faith, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism, Yeshua, Yeshua In Context
Tagged Podcast
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Why the Beatitudes Are Much Loved
A friend I care about wrote on his blog that during the past few years, having lost his faith in Yeshua, he has recently considered him with fresh eyes and still cannot see the greatness. About Yeshua’s teaching he said, … Continue reading
Transforming Aspects of the Gospels, #1
Posted in Bible, Derek's Writings, Faith, Yeshua
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God, Air, and Dragon Con
I spent most of my weekend at Dragon Con, the huge comics and sci-fi convention in Atlanta that is held every Labor Day. 30,000 plus people converge on Atlanta. Many wear faerie wings or Star Trek or a thousand other … Continue reading
The Difference Yeshua Makes
Someone asked me a good question last night. He’s been to a few Messianic synagogues now and is trying to understand from a Christian point of view what Jewish life in Messiah is all about. He said, “Do you guys … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Christian, Faith, Judaism, Life to Come, Love, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism, Theology, Yeshua
Tagged Ein Sof
6 Comments
FAQ’s About Yeshua (Jesus)
In many ways, over the course of a short, readable 154 pages, my about to be released book, Yeshua in Context, is an answer to frequently asked questions about Yeshua. Questions about Yeshua (a.k.a. Jesus) are among the most pressing … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Christian, Faith, History, Judaism, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism, Yeshua
4 Comments
Elul Meditation: Rescue and Shelter
Psalm 27 is read morning and evening throughout this month of Elul. The first section of Psalm 27 is about rescue (vss. 1-3) and the second about shelter (vss. 4-6). Not everyone divides the Psalm the same way. John Goldingay, … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Faith, Holidays, Judaism, messianic, Messianic Jewish, Messianic Judaism
Tagged Elul, Psalms
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