The True Faith? Yesterday I received an email advertisement. It contained the following: So, of course, I was interested. Not because I wanted to know the heroic stories of the apostles, but because I was fascinated by the idea that the apostles’ stories would provide me with the Jewish roots of Christianity. I simply can’t…
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. Romans 10:17 NASB Hearing – Just pause a minute and think about what Paul wrote. He doesn’t say that faith (pístis) is a function of doctrine, or dogma, or creeds, or the Bible. He writes that faith arrives by audible transmission. No poster, no tract, no pocket Psalms…
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-6 NASB One faith – Theological orthodoxy contributed to the collapse of Roman civilization. In this respect,…
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20 NASB Without excuse – Consider an implication of Paul’s opening declaration. No, not the usual one about how everyone should know…
Have mercy on me, LORD, for I am wretched. Heal me, for my limbs are stricken. Psalm 6:2 Robert Alter My limbs – On the 30th of April of this year, I wrote a piece about the excruciating pain I was experiencing in my left knee. I asked for your prayers (thank you). I wrote…
“And it shall be, if you truly heed the voice of the LORD your God to keep to do all His commands that I charge you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.” Deuteronomy 28:1 Robert Alter All His commands – Keep them all! That’s the…
A Personal Relationship The question I received from a reader is very important: The Christians that I work with speak of having an ongoing relationship with Yshu’ah. I see in them that this goes well beyond “believing in him”. I see their genuine affection for him. We, as Orthodox Jews, are totally in love with…
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written: “But the righteous one will live by faith. Romans 1:16-17 NASB From faith to faith –…
For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelled in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well. 2 Timothy 1:5 NASB First dwelled – Where does the Bible start? You’ll immediately respond, “Why, in Genesis, of course!” and that is textually true, but it…
Look. Wisdom calls out, and Discernment lifts her voice. Proverbs 8:1 Robert Alter Calls out – Since the discovery of significant archeological artifacts in the late 19th Century, biblical scholars have had to face the question, “How does archeological evidence impact biblical faith?” The answers have not been easy. As Haggai Misgav points out, “The…
