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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It’s easy to slip into thinking about forgiveness solely in terms of our authority over it.
God's city is beautiful because God has constructed it to offer eternal safety to all weary sinners.
We need to remember that we belong to God by Grace Alone. It’s not by our best works. Not by the sweat of our brow, it’s not even by our best attempts to repent.
We now stand holy and blameless before our Heavenly Father as his own dear children, and we are set free to serve our neighbor in love.
Christians are in a unique position to show the world something truly other-worldly. We are free from living in our world as if it contained all there is.
How we define holiness will affect our approach to God.
Jesus has conquered the storm’s power to condemn me – for by his death on the cross for my sins, he has removed any barrier between God and myself.
What is it that the 13th session actually has to say about the Eucharist, and how does it compare to what Luther and the reformers confessed about the Lord’s Supper?
Understanding that I am completely free in Christ allows me to read the injunction to “love my neighbor as myself” as a promise instead of a threat.
We are given the peace to know that all our sin is forgiven by our gracious God. We enjoy the comfort of knowing that our ways are watched over and protected by the Lord...
This is an excerpt from “The Freedom of the Christian” written by Martin Luther and translated and edited by Adam Francisco (1517 Publishing, 2020).
The quality of our walk with Jesus is not predicated on anything we do, for the only thing we bring to our salvation is the sin that makes it necessary.