By Joe LaGuardia In the last 200 years of biblical research, scholars have outlined various “quests” for the historical Jesus. Each quest accompanies new insights into historical records and artifacts that emphasize some never-before-understood facet about Jesus of Nazareth. The…
Congregations without vision cannot see Jesus
Seeing Jesus is a powerful image in the New Testament. Matthew 25:37-40 as an example says, “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?…
Who represents Jesus? It may not be who you think!
Who best represents Jesus? Those who profess Jesus as Savior, but side with the elite, the powerful, the rich, the oppressors? Or those who stand up for and stand with the little ones? Who is actually for Jesus and who…
If Jesus ran for president
First of all, I want to note that I don’t think Jesus would ever run for President of the United States. It wasn’t his thing. He didn’t come as a great political Messiah, and often he seemed ambivalent to the…
What the Bible is
The written documents that constitute our Bible are snapshots of an evolving, developing, dynamic faith frozen in time. The faith exhibited in these written sources thrived in an oral culture that did not depend on written materials. Writing materials were…
It’s time to give the Gospel of Thomas its due
The spiritual wisdom to be found in the Gospel of Thomas just may be the kind of spiritual wisdom contemporary Christians most need. The Gospel of Thomas is part of the collection of fifty-two texts (thirteen papyrus books – “codices”)…
Forgiveness breaks the Devil’s back
Fresh from wrestling with the Devil through forty days and forty nights, Jesus shows up in his home church of Nazareth and uses the ancient words of the prophet Isaiah to lay down his manifesto: The Spirit of the Lord…
Was Jesus insane?
What a preposterous question: was Jesus insane?! Those who are pious Christians may even be offended that such a question is raised. On the other hand, those who are highly anti-Christian may think the answer is obvious: in most likelihood…
A Scripture lesson on fundamentalism (and how progressives differ from conservatives)
The seventh chapter of John offers some important insights into the nature of fundamentalism. Consider the following: Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? And here…