Before we know what we know (and well before we know HOW we know what we know), we have to gather evidence. We do this naturally; it is part of learning how to navigate through the world into which we were born. Some things are obvious and easy to learn and categorize – “water is [...]
Allow me to start off by saying I deeply appreciate those who have commented here over the last two series on how we read our Bible. As I indicated in my response to one of the comments, I think it is time to open up a series on why we believe at all. I [...]
The concept that the Old Testament contains passages which are contradicted by the appearance of Christ is called “discontinuity.” And yes, I have shrunk the definition of discontinuity for the sake of this medium. From the very first years of Christianity, Christians have struggled to make sense of the OT commands for genocide with the [...]
As we continue to look at how to read scripture, we have to deal with the absolute inerrantists who believe that every single word of the Bible comes directly from the mouth of God and was received and recorded without error. The most rigorous proponent of this view that I know is the Dutch Reformed [...]
A few words of thanks need to be said here: I am learning quite a bit from the commenters that have chimed in here. While they don’t all agree with me or with each other, they have all enriched this discussion and I think I’ve learned something from every one of them. I’ve learned enough [...]
Jesus certainly believed that the scriptures (which, to him, would have meant what we call the Old Testament) were full of truths that the people of his day were not willing to face. As we saw in the last blog, it infuriated them when Jesus lifted up the Sidonian widow and when he [...]
We will get back to the next part in this series in a day or two. I wanted to stop for a moment, ask everyone to catch their breath, and address some issues raised by commenters; those who put their comments after the post and those who emailed me. I will not make a habit [...]