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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Luther’s famous treatise contains great consolation for Christians struggling with grace, suffering, and hope.
Wisdom lurks in the outer places. Rich gratitude sprouts from the impoverished and forgotten.
By the end of this prayer of wrestling, David finally has the strength to claim victory over his lying enemies.
This article is part of Stephen Paulson’s series on the Psalms.
A Bit of Earth is about the garden, but it’s also about us—as we are made from dirt.
The Lord has an answer to your tears, your trouble, your weariness, your enemies, your grief, your shame, your sin.
This is an excerpt from Chapter 7 of Junk Drawer Jesus written by Matt Popovits (1517 Publishing, 2024). Available today!
Press on, church. Yours is the victory through Jesus Christ your Lord.
God can never really be said to be ignoring us, even if our experience with God at any given moment is that he is.
This is an excerpt from the Chapter 12 of Hitchhiking with the Prophets: A Ride Through the Salvation Story of the Old Testament written by Chad Bird (1517 Publishing, 2024). Now available!
In Christ, this world’s never-children are his always-children, because he isn’t a God of death, after all.
This is a companion article to “Johann Spangenberg on Dying Well”