Yeshua in Context >> Birth of Messiah
Birth of Messiah, Video
Isn't it curious that the oldest gospel, Mark, doesn't include the birth of Messiah stories? Have you considered that the gospels may have been written "backwards"? All of this might help us understand the infancy narratives of the gospels (Matthew 1-2 and Luke 1-2) all the more. They really have an inspiring purpose and seeing evidence of their purpose makes them all the more important. ... Read entire article >>
Filed under: Background to Gospels , Birth of Messiah , Divinity of Yeshua , Formation of the Gospels , Video , Virginal Conception
Bethlehem Star, Video
When the very Jewish gospel of Matthew tells us the story of Messiah's birth, you can bet it will be filled with Jewish themes. In fact, there are little known Jewish themes in the Matthew 2 story of the magi from the east and the star that reveals the place of Messiah's birth. What was the star of Bethlehem? What is the Jewish background of the star and the magi? ... Read entire article >>
Filed under: Background to Gospels , Birth of Messiah , Detailed Commentary , Intertextuality in the Gospels , Preachable Points , Video
Birth Issues
This is a transcript for today's "Yeshua in Context Podcast." Note that I never recorded and posted last week's podcast on "Yeshua's Burial." Life had other plans. I should and will record the "Yeshua's Burial" podcast at some point. Meanwhile, later today, listen for "Birth Issues" on iTunes in the "Yeshua in Context Podcast" or at DerekLeman.com. Only two out of four gospels have birth narratives about Yeshua. And the two birth narratives we have are so very different. They agree on major points, twelve of them, which I will list, but they are so different in other ways. It has often been said, and I think this is valid, that the gospel tradition developed backwards: the Passion and Resurrection narratives were first. Then the miracles, deeds, and sayings traditions developed. ... Read entire article >>
Filed under: Answering Objections , Birth of Messiah , Divinity of Yeshua , General , Gospels as History , Virginal Conception
Birth Narratives: What Matthew and Luke Have in Common
If you've read and compared the Matthean and Lucan birth narratives and if you've read much secondary literature, you know that from the perspective of historical inquiry there are problems. I commend the view of Luke Timothy Johnson in The Historical Jesus: Five Views on matters of the gospel tradition and historical research. With the various problems the birth narratives present to us, it is reassuring to consider the common elements in Matthew and Luke's accounts, which suggest a tradition that pre-dated both of them. Fitzmeyer gives a suprisingly detailed list of the doubly attested traditions of Yeshua's birth and some of these elements may surprise you: ... Read entire article >>
Filed under: Answering Objections , Birth of Messiah , Gospels as History , Identity of Yeshua
Magi's Gifts, Video
December 2nd, 2011 | 1 Comment
Matthew sometimes shows the scriptures behind the story of Messiah's birth and sometimes he expects us to see them in the hints he leaves in the story. What is the Jewish background to the gifts of the Magi in Matthew 2? Click "Read entire article..." to see the video. ... Read entire article >>
Filed under: Background to Gospels , Birth of Messiah , Detailed Commentary , Ideal Israel Theme , Intertextuality in the Gospels , Video