Josephus does not tell us that Christianity is true, and Christians do not need Josephus to tell them that Christ is risen. But Christianity makes claims about things that happened in public history under identifiable rulers, priests, and governors. For that reason, testimony from outside the church matters.
Today, the longing for cultural Christianity on both the left and the right hearkens back to an older version of Christendom that was a mixed blessing for the church in the western world. The cultural mediation of Christian views on created order has certainly benefitted the civilization we’ve inherited. But the gospel itself isn’t something that can be reduced to cultural mediation either. Instead, the gospel as a message stands apart from all human accomplishments and achievements, no matter how beneficial they might be.
The student of Scripture should always have a map open next to their Bible as they read. If possible, they should also travel to Israel, not to make a pilgrimage, but to see the context of the land in which these stories took place. These are not fairy tales made up about fictional fantasy lands; these are stories about real people in real places interacting with a real God.

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Why would God warn his people not to trust in horses? Let's take a look at the ancient Near East to see how horses were connected to sun worship and military muscle. Along the way, let's see how the "Name of God" is another title for the Son of God.
The tragedy of the incidental Christ I was raised with is that he was really no Savior at all.
One could reason that God might, at least, give the church a little worldly power.
While the insights in each chapter are uniquely personal to the individual writers, the overarching theme is one of the sufficiency of Christ.
The LORD your God is one—He is your LORD. Therefore, you may/can/shall live as His child, and this is what that looks like!
Are we still haunted by God? Do our sins bother us to the point that we worry about God’s righteous wrath? Does the concept of justification, how one can be right in the eyes of God, even cross our minds?
Grace is God’s caring disposition toward His human creatures. And it is shown fully and purely in the work of Jesus for us.
The full effect of the Law had been visited upon God's people, but now the LORD will remember His people and return them to the land of promise and to Holy Jerusalem.
Hebrews proclaims you absolutely need a priest and you have one. This priest is Jesus!
Today, Jesus' road to Jerusalem turns into your congregation. He calls you and your hearers to follow Him all the way home.
Christ has taken our failures and defeats and exchanges that yoke for his own.
This is a Q&A for 1517 Publishing’s newest release, “How Melanchthon Helped Luther Discover the Gospel,” by Lowell C. Green. This release also marks the launch of our new Melanchthon Library.