Christian Reaction to the Election Speaks to Our Witness

The New Testament writers never seemed that concerned with who happened to be Caesar at any particular time. This may not seem like a big deal, but, besides the fact that who was Caesar had considerable impact on their lives, it’s in stark contrast with the Old Testament writers. To read the Old Testament...

The Unstuck Bible: Recognizing the Movements of God in Scripture

In the last post I observed that there are places in the Bible where God is capricious and volatile, acting in a way that is inconsistent with One who is described as “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Not that he merely appears to be these things, but...

Why Does God Sometimes Act So Temperamental?

If God never changes, then why does he seem so different in the New Testament than the Old? Everyone sees it. Readers new to the Bible are disturbed by it. Experienced Bible readers develop reasoned explanations for it which seem sound in general but which tend to become strained when looking at specific...

The Testament That Comes After the New Testament

By the time of Jesus, the Old Testament was closed, i.e. it was determined that nothing new would be included in the sacred writings of the Hebrews. The Torah was five books, not six; Moses was dead, so how could there be more anyway? Besides, five is all that is needed, they said. Psalms? There are a...

Why You Should Stop Reading the New Testament

You should stop reading the New Testament. Just stop it. Not forever, mind you. Just for a while. Just long enough to read the Old Testament. Several times. Then you can go back and read the New Testament, and when you do you’ll find that it makes a whole lot more sense. You’ll find that some things that...

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