Speculative Practices

Now I praise you because you remember me in everything, and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you.  1 Corinthians 11:2  NASB Traditions – Now that we have some justification for understanding paradoseis as the oral Torah, we might ask, “What practices could Paul have been speaking about?”  Paul doesn’t…

What Isn’t the Law

Now I praise you because you remember me in everything, and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you.  1 Corinthians 11:2  NASB Traditions – Do you find Paul’s praise a bit misplaced?  After all, he’s writing to the Corinthians!  These are the people whose orderliness in worship is a mess,…

Rationality Fatigue

All such things are wearisome:  No man can ever state them; the eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear enough of hearing.  Ecclesiastes 1:8  JPS No man can ever state them – Human beings have a universal headache.  And it’s not going away anytime soon.  We are all suffering from rationality fatigue.  Our…

The Case Law God

. . . that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.  Romans 3:26  ESV Just – In our thinking, justice means following the rule of law.  But in the ancient Near East, justice is conformity to prior paradigm cases and traditions.  In our world, a legal structure…

A Little History

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy  Exodus 20:8  NASB Sabbath day – Donna Dozier wrote her doctoral dissertation on the transition from Judaism to Christianity in the early centuries.  In it she discusses the shift from Sabbath to Sunday.  As part of the historical record, she provides the following citation: “There is a…

A Gift from the Past

You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men  Mark 7:8  ESV Tradition – When are we unwittingly following the traditions of men rather than the commandments of God?  The answer to this question is not so obvious since traditions are usually considered necessary and authoritative.  In fact, more often than…

A Gift for You

Now I praise you because you remember me in everything, and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you.  1 Corinthians 11:2  NASB Traditions – There is little doubt that the mixed assembly in Corinth had a lot of problems.  Internal strife, immorality among the members, dissention and struggles with proper…

The Man Who Would Be King

“Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen better than the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22 Is Better Than – Saul loved being king.  He loved to be the man in charge.  He loved to make the decisions.  That love of power and prestige ruined him.  He forgot that the king is…