Gospel Insights for Gentiles
Jesus was a Jewish teacher speaking to first century Jewish people and leaders. To understand him, we need to understand those he was speaking to, and the concerns they had at that time.
Finding historically reliable facts about Jesus in the Bible is complicated because it can be regarded as biased. Historians have a useful tool to combat bias: the criterion of embarrassment. Something negative or embarrassing that is recorded by a friend or ally is likely to be accurate, because they'd rather say something positive. This criterion can be used to establish all the primary facts about the life of Jesus, as well as open our eyes to aspects of his life that we have overlooked.
Some of the strange sayings of Jesus suddenly make sense when we know the language and phrases of first century Judaism. His teaching on things like unforgivable sins, eternal torment and divorce sounded very different to his original hearers.
Chapters:
Wine and Drunkenness
The Gospels portray Jesus drinking and making wine, and he was even accused of being a drunkard. The NT does not warn against drinking alcohol, but condemns drunkenness.(Not yet available)
Bad Table Manners
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Baptism
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Bitterness Is Poisonous
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Censored Arrest Warrant
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Child Abuse
In Roman society slaves could be treated as sex-toys – even children. This lifestyle was imported into Palestine, where this portrait was created in about AD 10 near Bethlehem, as part of a homoerotic scene. Jesus threatened the severest punishments for child-abusers.(Not yet available)
Child-Like Religion
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Conflict Resolution
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Contemplating Suicide
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Disruptive Worship
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Embarrassing Resurrection
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Excommunication from Jesus' Church
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Financial Scams in the Temple
Millions went missing in Jesus' day. We know many of the ingenious schemes for getting money, and some of the places it went. But millions are still unaccounted for.(Not yet available)
Fraudulent Miracles
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Hypocrisy
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Jesus' Illegitimate Birth
Jews regarded Jesus as a 'mamzer' (a 'bastard') – a charge which all four Gospels address in different ways. It was a predictable outcome of claiming a virgin birth. Why invent this, if it would create such problems?(Not yet available)
Ineligible Bachelor
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Marital Abuse
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Personal Devil
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Polygamy
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Prostitutes
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Second-Rate Disciples
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Shameful Execution
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Supplanting Passover
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The Cursed
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The Unchosen
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Unfair Loans
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Unforgivable Blasphemy
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