Happ-O-Getics Newsletter

Apr 11 2023

The Jewish Synagogue and the Gospel

Beginning with Abraham, God chose the Jewish people to be a separated and divinely prepared people – His witnesses and blessing to the nations (see Genesis 12ff.). Furthermore, God gave Old Testament Scripture which prophesied the coming of a Messiah who would atone for the sins of all people. Rather than extend the hope they had received to the whole world, the Jews viewed God’s offer of salvation in a nationalistic sense. Nonetheless, God was directing history, and whether they intended it or not, He used the Jewish synagogue both as a means to prepare them to anticipate their coming Messiah and as a place for Jesus to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom quickly and widely. The Jewish synagogue played a crucial role in these events.

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Nov 23 2022

Emmanuel: God with Us

Is God knowable? All the religions of the world would answer “No” – except one. Christianity alone claims that God has made Himself known in history in the person of Jesus Christ. Emmanuel or God with us is a central tenet of the Christian faith. The apostle John shows his excitement as he begins his first letter,

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared, we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard…
1 John 1:1-3 NIV, emphasis added

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Mar 02 2022

Caesarea National Park: a 1st Century Marvel

If you ask most Christians about Caesarea National Park in Judea, you are likely to get a shrug of the shoulders or a puzzled facial expression. If they know about it at all, compared to Nazareth, Bethlehem, or Jerusalem, it doesn’t really count.

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Oct 28 2021

Giants in the Bible!?

Wouldn’t a football coach love to have Goliath as his fullback? Any coach could easily put together a championship basketball team made up of Amorites. The Nephilim would make great security guards. Why? There are giants in the Bible! Is there any truth to these passages?

Giants in the Bible — This photo from 1902 shows the fossilized skeleton of *Archelon*, the extinct giant turtle (public domain).

Those who don’t believe in the inspiration of Scripture are likely to consider this claim as a legend which evolved over time. For example, a recent article on giant claims in Biblical Archaeology Review suggested that any large bones that have been found likely belonged to some large animal (like an elephant) but were mistakenly identified by non-scientists as belonging to giant humans referred to in mythology (see “Encounters…” source). They suggested that the idea of giant humans roaming the earth is a “fantastic tale.”

BUT…

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Apr 24 2021

Devolution of Darwinism

Affirming Evidence from Science

Darwinism is in decline. Oh yes, most in the professional sciences and even many lay people would not yet admit it. Belief in evolution has become a passport to admit people into the “camp” of respectability. To suggest that Darwin’s mechanism of natural selection may be flawed can cost you your job, and certainly raise eyebrows about your educational legitimacy. That is beginning to change. Why?

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