In the closing verses of Psalm 16, the Psalmist give us the keys to Wisdom, Security, Joy, and Life. By constantly “setting the LORD before me” our lives are correctly measured, and our minds are consistently guided. Faced with His eternity we are compelled to make the best use of our days. In light of […]
Psalm 12 Falsehood Truth, and Preservation
We can claim the evil we do is overlooked by the LORD. When we do, we ignore the fact that the LORD inclines His ear to the need of the poor (v17), that entire nations have risen and fallen before His judgement (v16), and finally, that ultimate justice is future, but it is coming. (v18)
Imagine seeing a person mistaking the sign for a city. If you saw a road-weary man on the edge of I65 hugging the “Welcome to Birmingham” sign and unpacking his trunk at its base to enjoy his stay in this wonderful city, you would think he was loony. The sign is not the city. He […]
We have been told by historians that the December 25 Christmas was the Church’s way of covering over and stamping out the celebrations of Saturnalia. However I can find no early sources that say that is what the church was doing. Nor do I find this widely attested pattern on part of the early church. I do see a pattern in modern scholarship. This pattern insists, “The early Christians were just stealing ideas and holidays from pagan culture and incorporating them into the Jesus myth”.
We were so encouraged at Unified Fellowship Community Baptist Church last Sunday. The community’s love for God and dependence upon Him was evident. God’s presence was tangible in worship. Jesus was lifted up. I think though we came to bring God’s word, Vikki and I received far more ministry than we were able to offer. […]
Over the past 20 years I have integrated Torah studies with an understanding of New Testament Worship and Disicpleship. Below are some of the fruits of this work which I hope will benefit you as you study, teach, and grow in Messiah:
On July 17, 2004 I was asked to say a few words at my own service of ordination. This what I said then. I pray it is always increasingly true in my life: When God poured his grace out on me in the year of 1988, it did not occur to me that the call […]
In translating 1 Timothy, I came an attribute necessary to those in Christian leadership- they should be “xenophiles.” This is generally translated “hospitable” but we might better say, “a lover of the stranger”. In the ancient Jewish context, the “stranger” usually refers to one from beyond our borders and culture. In today’s political atmosphere that […]
Maybe we expect Paul to echo The Sayings of the Fathers. One section, attributed to Hillel sounds almost exactly like Paul in 1 Timothy 6. In my most recent reading of the Pirkei Avot, I have been noticing many similarities between the sayings of the Fathers and the sayings of my Great Rabbi. Here is […]
