Artisanal Bible Study

So what is artisanal Bible Study? It’s something I read somewhere. Can’t remember where – but it got my attention. Sounded interesting.

And that’s what things in this category are about. It’s not “traditional” study, where we go through the grammar and other scholastic stuff like that.

Instead, it’s about the culture of the time – because we’re just not living in anything like what the world was like in Biblical times. We can’t really relate to what the Bible says unless we can walk in the shoes – or sandals – or bare feet – of the people we’re reading about.

And it’s about Hebrew and Greek word meanings. Their language was so much richer than ours today. We try to cram in the single best word scholars can come up with. The scholars and translators have to do that, otherwise the Bible will be way too long. No one would read it.
And yet, by making those choices, we lose so much of what transpired. We lose nuances. We lose idioms. We get such a watered down version that we don’t really understand the impact of what was said.
In one case, we read of Paul calling his pre-conversion life as anything from a waste of time to rubbish. But what he actually said was about something we’d sit on the toilet for today. Since we’re comparing his pre and post conversion life and beliefs – that’s a difference we should know about!

So that gives you the flavor of what’s going on here. Verses and passages that we probably know. But in a whole new light. A light that will, I pray, give us a better understanding of why Christianity, as we call it today, was so exciting to the early church! They risked their lives for “The way” as it was know then. But today we have a hard time even getting to church on Sundays. Obviously, something’s different. It’s not God. It’s us. And we’ve got to get “it” back!

Old Testament prophecy: Was Jesus subject to the government?

Old Testament prophecy: Was Jesus subject to the government?

Advent, Artisanal Bible Study

Was Jesus subject to the government? Yes, He was. Kind of. Sort of. Does Old Testament prophecy say this was going to be the case? Well, we can say yes, in a way. Yet again the Nelson’s Topical Reference we’re using for this Advent study has a New Testament verse for Jesus being subject to the government. Therefore, once again we’ll take the context of that NT verse and see what the Old Testament says about it.

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Old Testament prophecy about the timing of Jesus' birth

Old Testament prophecy about the timing of Jesus’ birth

Advent, Artisanal Bible Study

Today’s topic is Old Testament prophecy about Jesus’ birth. No, not the exact day. And, by the way, Jesus wasn’t born on December 25th. Rather, the prophecy about when Jesus would be born was more like a formula, which was derived from a prophecy referred to as the seventy sevens. But it wasn’t your average math formula. It’s about prayer, the seventy years, and the seventy sevens.

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Old Testament prophecy announcing Jesus' birth

Old Testament prophecy announcing Jesus’ birth

Advent, Artisanal Bible Study

This segment of our look at Advent focuses on Old Testament prophecy announcing Jesus’ birth. We’ve seen prophecy about Jesus, but this is specifically about announcing His birth. As we progress through the series on the first Advent, we get more and more granular. It’s truly amazing that prophecies, written by various people, and across thousands of year, all combine together to bring us the person so many people were waiting for two thousand years ago. Jesus Christ, the Messiah and savior for all who believe in Him.

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One Nation Under God. But Which God? he squirrel doesn't care!

One Nation Under God. But Which God?

Artisanal Bible Study

One Nation Under God. But Which God? That’s a question I’ve brought up before. Today, I bring it up again because it appeared in a Letter to the Editor in the LA Times. Their heading was: If you want ‘one nation under one God,’ chances are it won’t be your religion. That is so true. But guess what? The point I always try to make is that it won’t be God’s “religion” either! That is, after all, implied in my site title – God versus religion. Also by its subtitle – What religion is God?

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Do you want to be immortal?

Do you want to be immortal?

Artisanal Bible Study

Since this is about looking at ourselves, let’s look in the mirror and ask the person we see there, Do you want to be immortal? To be honest, if it’s about being immortal in this word, the way it is and where it seems to be going, saying yes is very hard. I think most of us know there’s something wrong with this world. And we want something better, even though we don’t seem to be able to do anything to keep it from getting even worse.

Do you want to be immortal? More

non-prodigal son - the "good" son

The non-prodigal son

Parables of Jesus

Lots of people know the story of the Prodigal Son. Even many non-Christians. But what of his brother? In Luke’s Gospel, the parable of the Prodigal (lost) Son is 22 verses. Only five of them are about the “other” brother. I can’t help but wonder though …

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