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.
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.
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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God’s Law is a death sentence for us sinners. There is no winning beneath the Law of God.
In Martin Luther's Small Catechism he borrows a line from St. Augustine about what defines a "god."
I’ve always been more at home in the Old Testament than in the New Testament.
The victory of Christ is hidden in the crosses we bear as Christians following Him to our own personal Golgothas.
Some have built an entire theology on the false assumption that when God commands us to obey or believe, we have the ability to obey or believe.
The Law must attack because nothing outside of Christ can enter Heaven—nothing!
Now, resurrection can only follow upon death. The good news is, it will!
But another possible translation for the Greek word we translate as ‘overcome’ and one maybe more consistent with the context is ‘comprehend.’
“Putting hope in the cross of Christ means putting hope outside of anything – mentally, physically or even spiritually – you do.”
The moral high ground isn’t anything to find comfort in. God gives us something better—Jesus.
The folly of sinful man attempting to bridge such an infinite gap to God Who is holy becomes obvious.
In Christ, God is not angry, but is your tender Father Who loves you with an everlasting love.