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Slavery in the Bible – Does God Condone Slavery?

...that the Jews, God’s own people, were forced into (Exodus 1:13-14). The Lord delivered Israel from that slavery. So we know that this type of slavery certainly does not have God’s approval (Exodus 6:6). God would not need to “deliver” a people from something that is not sinful and wrong. So God gives guidelines on one from of slavery, seemingly approving of it to a certain extent, while condemning another form of slavery and delivering His people from it. Herein lies the seed of the confusion. Some innocently read the Bible and don’t realize this, but most who bring this topic up are skeptics just looking for a reason to discredit the Bible. They do...

The Historic Practice of Abortion and How Ancient Christians Responded

...ve as the Jews?” in regards to views on abortion. Being “progressive” is all well and good, but it assumes we’re all intrinsically progressing towards something good or right. I don’t think that disregarding the value of life, and especially that of unborn children is necessarily progressing in the right direction. It baffles me that people think we are taking a step backwards by desiring to preserve the sanctity of life by viewing abortion as a moral issue, not a religious one. Humans as icons of God First and foremost, Christians have always held high respect for life and creation, a worldview inherited from Judaism. This is rooted in creation in...

When did Christians become so whiny?

...ed by the Jews as foreigners and are persecuted by the Greeks; yet those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their hatred. To sum it all up in one word -- what the soul is to the body, that are Christians in the world. Quite a statement, especially that last line: "what the soul is to the body, that are Christians in the world" — is it possible to still make such a claim? Apology of Tertullian, AD 197 Though we have our treasure-chest, it is not made up of purchase-money, as of a religion that has its price. On the monthly day, if he likes, each puts in a small donation; but only if it be his pleasure, and only if he be able: for there is...

The Coming Kingdom of the Son of Man

...that non-Jews will understand, such as what that the “desolating sacrilege” is: "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains..." Luke 21:20   Jesus then rounds up with more apocalyptic imagery from Daniel's prophecy which speaks of the Son of Man coming on clouds – a direct quote of Dan 7:14; "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see ‘the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven’ with power and great glory. " Matt 24:30   If we also look at when Jesus was befor...

Is fasting an expectation for Christians?

...e amongst Jews (see Luke 18:12 for a brief mention of it), and this is what Jesus would have been targeting in his teaching in Matt. 6. A late first century text from the early church, called The Didache (which was a sort of “church handbook”), expands on this teaching of Jesus and demonstrates to us how the earliest believers understood this and carried on the practice of fasting, taking the familiar model they were used to in Judaism, and reshaping it: But let not your fasts be with the hypocrites; for they fast on the second and fifth day of the week; but fast on the fourth day [Wednesday] and the Preparation [Friday]. — Didache, VII This help...

Palm Sunday and the End Times

...aism; the Jews who rejected Jesus. The temple was abandoned by God and the Romans trampled it, as predicted: Luke 21:24 They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. We can see how this played out in the writings of Josephus, a first century Jewish historian, who reported what happened in Jerusalem and at the temple during the Roman-Jewish war. Moreover, at the feast which is called Pentecost, the priests on entering the inner court of the temple by night, as their custom was in the discharge of their ministrations, reported that t...