The most basic vocation for every Christian is to be a sound exegete of God’s Word. Since we believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, we scrutinize over how every “jot and tittle” is interpreted.
In many ways, wrestling with these hard sayings is a quintessentially evangelical occupation. One of the reasons why we sweat over getting the hard sayings of the Bible right is because we believe, like Peter, that they hold the words of eternal life. As this list illustrates, difficulties in biblical interpretation are not limited to the hard sayings of Jesus but are present throughout the entire Bible. Jesus’ sermon touches on doctrines as wide-ranging as the Trinity, election and reprobation, the purpose of His mission, the nature of faith, the relationship between the Old and New Testaments, the place of Israel within redemptive history, and the work of the Holy Spirit. How shall we respond to the hard sayings of Jesus?Įven a cursory reading of John 6:22–71 will reveal a host of interpretative challenges. The Apostle Peter responded to the very same “offensive” words with confidence, exclaiming, “You have the words of eternal life” (v. Not everyone was as put off by the words of Christ. But individuals have been grappling with the teachings of Jesus long before the don of twentieth century British evangelical biblical scholarship wrote his now-famous work.Īfter Jesus’ bread of life discourse in John 6, several professed followers of Christ abandoned His band of disciples because they were offended by what they dubbed His “hard sayings” (vv. In addition, he served as consultant for The Bible television miniseries, viewed by over 100 million Americans.ĭownload the Q&A with Craig about Fabricating Jesus.The so-called hard sayings of Jesus entered Christian vernacular in 1983 with the publication of F.F. Bruce’s book of the same name. Evans has reaffirmed the uniqueness and supremacy of Jesus Christ to millions of people on television, by radio, and in print media including Dateline NBC, National Geographic Channel, Discovery Channel, The History Channel, The BBC, New York Times, Global TV, Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. Uniquely skilled to communicate biblical scholarship through the media, Dr. Evans has lectured at several prominent universities and seminaries around the world, including Cambridge, Durham and Oxford in the United Kingdom, Princeton and Yale in the United States, and Hebrew University and Ben Gurion University in Israel. His edited volumes include Studying the Historical Jesus, Dictionary of New Testament Background, and Christian Beginnings and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Wright), Jesus and His Contemporaries, Matthew (in the Word Biblical Commentary), and Ancient Texts for New Testament Studies. His academic and popular books include Jesus and the Jihadis, Fabricating Jesus, From Jesus to the Church: The First Christian Generation, Jesus, The Final Days: What Really Happened (co-authored with N. A prolific writer, Evans has published more than seventy books and over 500 journal articles and reviews, and his books have been translated into several languages. He has written extensively on the historical Jesus and the Jewish background of the New Testament era. Evans (PhD, Claremont) is an internationally known and respected New Testament scholar, apologist, and author who serves as the John Bisagno Distinguished Professor of Christian Origins at Houston Baptist University. What Should We Think About the Gospel of Judas?Ĭraig A. Agrapha: Free-floating Sayings of JesusĪppendix 2. Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up? Unfabricating His Aims and ClaimsĪppendix 1.
Hokum History and Bogus Findings: Jesus Between the Linesġ1. Anachronisms and Exaggerated Claims: Christianities Lost and Otherwiseġ0. Dubious Uses of Josephus: Understanding Late Antiquityĩ. Diminished Deeds: A Fresh Look at Healings and MiraclesĨ. Skeletal Sayings: Maxims Without a Contextħ. Alien Contexts: The Case Against Jesus as CynicĦ. The Gospel of Peter, The Egerton Gospel, the Gospel of Mary and the Secret Gospel of Markĥ. Cramped Starting Points and Overly Strict Critical Methods: The Question of Authenticityģ. Misplaced Faith and Misguided Suspicion: Old and New School SkepticsĢ.
0 kommentar(er)
