Category Archives: teaching

Our Crazy Ancient New Religion 1

Have you ever wondered why the Law of Moses is loaded with what seems mere sanitation measures? Anyone with some knowledge of modern health sciences tends to notice how much of what Moses called “divine justice” is just common sense … Continue reading

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Our Crazy Ancient New Religion: Introduction

Another series? Yes, I’m crazy and you have to live with it — or stop reading this blog. What’s the difference between a fresh revelation from God versus a coalescence of focus from knowledge you already had? There is no … Continue reading

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Spirit Scouts

The Boy Scouts taught me: “Always be prepared.” But we are Spirit Scouts: “Always be heart-led.” That’s as much preparation as we really need. First off, let me reiterate that the Internet isn’t likely to go away anytime soon. As … Continue reading

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Dona Nobis Pacem

I prefer amateur renderings of this song. The title is a traditional Latin prayer: Grant us peace. It’s supposed to connect to the Old Testament shalom but few Westerners are aware of the connotations of the Hebrew word. While I … Continue reading

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The Urge to Torment

Sometimes it’s not enough to say it comes from Satan; in our culture that can serve to dismiss any number of horrible sins and leave us no way to uproot them from our own souls. The psychology of Christian Mysticism … Continue reading

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Ritual Abuse

When you claim it’s your religion to increase human suffering, it’s a demonic cult. I’m not going to engage here in a long-winded analysis of the whole thing, but it was a fresh wound on my soul and I must … Continue reading

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A Sacrifice

I have made choices while deeply absorbed into a world of moral folly. Consequently, my choices were foolish, taking place outside the boundaries of my calling and covenant with Christ. Some of them resulted in permanent changes that I never … Continue reading

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Love Is the Law

I behold the face of my beloved. I seriously doubt you would find it aesthetically pleasing, but you haven’t spent a lifetime in her love, so I can forgive you for that. But I’m willing to bet you would understand … Continue reading

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Defacto ANE Family

The original first churches under the leadership of Jesus’ disciples were defacto Hebrew families. Consider the historical cultural context. The Hebrew people lived under ANE feudalism. Their immediate government was their family, and any higher political power was obliged to … Continue reading

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Calm Down

This is your elder/pastor writing, the shepherd who loves you because God taught him how to love: You need to calm down. Okay, some of you need to calm down, or maybe you can try to help folks who aren’t … Continue reading

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