Josephus does not tell us that Christianity is true, and Christians do not need Josephus to tell them that Christ is risen. But Christianity makes claims about things that happened in public history under identifiable rulers, priests, and governors. For that reason, testimony from outside the church matters.
Today, the longing for cultural Christianity on both the left and the right hearkens back to an older version of Christendom that was a mixed blessing for the church in the western world. The cultural mediation of Christian views on created order has certainly benefitted the civilization we’ve inherited. But the gospel itself isn’t something that can be reduced to cultural mediation either. Instead, the gospel as a message stands apart from all human accomplishments and achievements, no matter how beneficial they might be.
The student of Scripture should always have a map open next to their Bible as they read. If possible, they should also travel to Israel, not to make a pilgrimage, but to see the context of the land in which these stories took place. These are not fairy tales made up about fictional fantasy lands; these are stories about real people in real places interacting with a real God.

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Although the outcome has been decided by Jesus victory, the devil won’t give up without a fight.
What do such callings look like? They are ordinary and everyday.
The story of your life stretches beyond the dash on the tombstone.
Seek moments of silence, and use them to listen and ponder.
He has freed you from a selfish fixation on gifts. He has freed you to look to the Giver.
Faith takes God at his word and holds his promise to be true for me because I know God would not lie to me.
‘Peace’ means “I have forgiven all those sins against me.”
God chooses to clothe himself in promises and hides himself in his word.
Jesus refreshes you with the promises of the gospel, wrapped in the words of Scripture, drawn in the pictures of the sacraments.
In grace, God chooses to love his people.
Jesus, the true Bridegroom, erases that mistake by his own compassionate, saving act. Isn’t this also a picture of the gospel?
Christ is always the ultimate for God's children, but we sometimes struggle with things that come before.