The most recent issue: A Fresh Look at John's Prologue - (Issue 7/3 – November 4, 2025)
We recall what made John's reference to the logos unique from widespread use of the term in the ancient world and how that reminder can enhance our appreciation of John's claim.
This Issue's "Think about it …" Quotation
Image by Peggy & Marco Lachmann-Anke from Pixabay
“History is never a mere collection of facts but an exercise in interpretation. Our earliest and best sources for knowing about Jesus are already an interpretation; there is no way they could not be. Even the people who knew and first talked about him to others were interpreting him; they could not have talked about him otherwise. But this does not mean there is no difference between good history and bad history, or that one interpretation is as good as another.” ~ Richard Bauckham. 2011. Jesus: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 6
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The Berea Page is a newsletter named from the example of the Jews in Berea who examined Paul's preaching about Jesus as the Christ to see if what he said was so (Acts 17:11) and written with the assumption that other New Testament texts that commend the examination habit should be taken seriously, namely that God's people should:
Each issue (15 annually) will include a feature article (about 600 words), mainly focused on matters related to why we believe in Jesus, enduring trials and suffering with faith, and the relationship between faith and truth.
Also included will be a sidebar column with quotations, pointers, and/or references to materials designed to
Feedback is welcome--email me at [email protected].
- test and confirm what we hear (e.g., 1 Thess 5:21; 1 John 4:1);
- follow the example of the earliest Jesus followers who invited their hearers to examine their claims (cf. Acts 26:26);
- prepare to make a defense of the reason for our hope (1 Peter 3:15).
Each issue (15 annually) will include a feature article (about 600 words), mainly focused on matters related to why we believe in Jesus, enduring trials and suffering with faith, and the relationship between faith and truth.
Also included will be a sidebar column with quotations, pointers, and/or references to materials designed to
- encourage better Bible study
- increase awareness of cultural trends that raise questions for our faith
- give updates on my writing and teaching projects.
Feedback is welcome--email me at [email protected].
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Previous Issues
Volume 7
1 - John's Great Declaration (Issue 7/1 – October 7, 2025)
2 - Utilizing "the Word" — Then and Now (Issue 7/2 – October 21, 2025)
2 - Utilizing "the Word" — Then and Now (Issue 7/2 – October 21, 2025)
Volume 11 - A Model for Truth Seekers (Issue 1/1 - October 21, 2019)
2 - We Owe the World An Apology (Issue 1/2 - November 11, 2019) 3 - Proactive Preparation (Issue 1/3 - December 9, 2019) 4 - Nurturing for Growth and Response (Issue 1/4 - January 15, 2020) 5 - New Testament Apologetics (Issue 1/5 - February 3, 2020) 6 - To a World "In Every Way Very Religious" (Issue 1/6 - March 2, 2020) 7 - John's Stand for Jesus (1) (Issue 1/7 - March 23, 2020) 8 - John's Stand for Jesus (2) (Issue 1/8 - April 13, 2020) 9 - John's Stand for Jesus (3) (Issue 1/9 - May 4, 2020) 10 - Learning From An Ancient Teacher (Issue 1/10 - June 1, 2020) 11 - Teaching Disciples (Issue 1/11 - June 24, 2020) 12 - Strangers and Exiles (1) (Issue 1/12 - July 14, 2020) 13 - Stranger and Exiles (2) (Issue 1/13 - August 3, 2020) 14 - Strangers and Exiles (3) (Issue 1/14 - August 24, 2020) 15 - Strangers and Exiles (4) (Issue 1/15 - September 14, 2020) Volume 21 - A City with Many Gods (Issue 2/1 - October 19, 2020)
2 - Reasoning in the Marketplace (Issue 2/2 - November 9, 2020) 3 - Learning from a Preacher to Pluralists (Issue 2/3 - December 8, 2020) 4 - We Can Do This (Issue 2/4 - January 15, 2021) 5 - Outcomes Have Reasons (Issue 2/5 - February 4, 2021) 6 - "I Want To Know Why!" (Issue 2/6 - February 25, 2021) 7 - "Occupy the Premises!" (Issue 2/7 - March 17, 2021) 8 - Learning, Hearing, and Teaching in Ephesians (1) (Issue 2/8 - April 5, 2021) 9 - Learning, Hearing, and Teaching in Ephesians (2) (Issue 2/9 - April 26, 2021) 10 - Defending From the New Testament (Issue 2/10 - May 17, 2021) 11 - Thinking About Worship (Issue 2/11 - June 12, 2021) 12 - "Forcing Them Back to Truth" (Issue 2/12 - July 7, 2021) 13 - The Bible’s Reason to Believe Anything (Issue 2/13 - August 4, 2021) 14 - Comfort Over Truth? A Test Case (Issue 2/14 - August 30, 2021) 15 - Preparing Minds for Challenges from the Other Side (Issue 2/15 - September 20, 2021) Volume 31 - Paul's Defense Strategy: A Case Study (Issue 3/1 - October 14, 2021)
2 - "Looking at the World With Eyes Wide Open" (Issue 3/2 - November 5, 2021) 3 - Learning From a Bad Example (Issue 3/3 - December 6, 2021) 4 - Snobbery of the Modern (Issue 3/4 - January 7, 2022) 5 - "The Question That Never Goes Away" (Issue 3/5 - February 1, 2022) 6 - What If "What We All Know" Isn't So? (Issue 3/6 - February 22, 2022) 7 - "Now Faith Is . . ." (Issue 3/7 - March 15, 2022) 8 - So You Say You Have Faith? (Issue 3/8 - April 5, 2022) 9 - You Need to Know Before You Trust (Issue 3/9 - April 26, 2022) 10 - The God We Trust (Issue 3/10 - May 17, 2022) 11 - "If Only I Could See What They Saw" (Issue 3/11 - June 7, 2022) 12 - We Need To Talk About Truth (Issue 3/12 - June 28, 2022) 13 - "What Is Truth?" (Issue 3/13 - July 19, 2022) 14 - Loving the Truth (Issue 3/14 - August 9, 2022) 15 - Loving Truth: Easier to Say Than Do (Issue 3/15 - August 30, 2022) 16 - A Call to Arms (Issue 3/16 - September 20, 2022) Abortion in the Early Church (Special Issue -January 20, 2022)
What were the attitudes of the early church regarding abortion? How did they compare with Jewish attitudes, Greco-Roman cultural practices, and Roman law and practice? In this special issue, I summarize the the evidence and suggest some things we can learn as we face similar attitudes today. Volume 41 - To Be Like Job (Issue 4/1 - October 11, 2022)
2 - Praise from an Abyss of Despair (Issue 4/2 - November 1, 2022) 3 - To Know the Things of God: On Going "Back to the Bible" (Issue 4/3 - December 6, 2022) 4 - To Know the Things of God: Teaching Disciples-Where They Learned It (Issue 4/4 - January 3, 2023) 5 - To Know the Things of God: Teaching the Churches (Issue 4/5 - January 26, 2023) 6 - We Should Talk About the Canon (Issue 4/6 - February 21, 2023) 7 - Alternate Views of Canon Identification (Issue 4/7 - March 17, 2023) 8 - The Canon Story: What's At Stake? (Issue 4/8 - April 12, 2023) 9 - Canon Begins with Christ (Issue 4/9 - May 5, 2023) 10 - Beginnings of the Written Canon (Issue 4/10 - June 1, 2023) 11 - The Story of Canon Selection (Issue 4/11 - June 22, 2023) 12 - The Books in the Canon: How Did They Decide? (Issue 4/12 - July 18, 2023) 13 - An Apologetic for Fundamentals (Issue 4/13 - August 10, 2023) 14 - Giving An Answer to the World That Now Is (Issue 4/14 - August 29, 2023) 15 - The World That Now Is: Narrowing Our Focus (Issue 4/15 - September 19, 2023) |
Volume 51 - Christians Out-Thought the World (Issue 5/1 - October 17, 2023)
2 - Our Minds Still Matter (Issue 5/2 - November 7, 2023) 3 - Thinking Faith in a World of Feelings (Issue 5/3 - December 5, 2023) 4 - Centered Faith: Listen to John (Issue 5/4 - January 2, 2024) 5 - "Who Is Jesus?" In a World with Many Views (Issue 5/5 - January 30, 2024) 6 - Claims About Jesus: A Historical Matter (Issue 5/6 - February 20, 2024) 7 - Paul Affirms Jesus's Supreme Status (Issue 5/7 - March 19, 2024) 8 - "What Sort of Man Is This?" (Issue 5/8 - April 17, 2024) 9 - We Should Not Be Surprised (Issue 5/9 - May 7, 2024) 10 - When Christians Lived as Atheists (Issue 5/10 - June 4, 2024) 11 - Hard Questions: It's Okay to Ask (Issue 5/11 - July 2, 2024) 12 - Let's Keep Preparing (Issue 5/12 - July 30, 2024) 13 - This is (Still) Amazing!!! (Issue 5/13 - August 20, 2024) 14 - Defending Jesus: Starting with History (Issue 5/14 - September 17, 2024) Volume 61 - Presenting a Case for Belief in Jesus: An Overview (1) (Issue 6/1 - October 15, 2024)
2 - Presenting a Case for Belief in Jesus: An Overview (2) (Issue 6/2 - November 5, 2024) 3 - Presenting a Case for Belief in Jesus: An Overview (2) (Issue 6/3 - December 3, 2024) 4 - A "Word" on Happiness and Suffering (Issue 6/4 - January 7, 2025) 5 - Attending to the Psalms of Lament (Issue 6/5 - January 21, 2025) 6 - Was Jesus God? Let the Bible Speak (Issue 6/6 - February 4, 2025) 7 - How Dare He!? (Issue 6/7 - February 18, 2025) 8 - His Actions Speak (Issue 6/8 - March 4, 2025) 9 - Resurreciton—Our Reason for Celebration (Issue 6/9 - March 18, 2025) 10 - A Resurrection-Focused Community (Issue 6/10 - April 1, 2025) 11 - Paul's Resurrection Outlook (Issue 6/11 - April 15, 2025) 12 - Teaching for Renewal (Issue 6/12 - May 6, 2025) 13 - Paul's Personal Apologetic (Issue 6/13 - May 20, 2025) 14 - Not Your Average War (Issue 6/14 - June 3, 2025) 15 - About the Nones — Thinking Proactively (Issue 6/15 - June 17, 2025) 16 - Why Would He Say That? Utilizing Utilizing Historical-Cultural Background,— A Case Study, 1 (Issue 6/16 - July 1, 2025) 17 - The Messiah: What Did They Expect? Utilizing Historical-Cultural Background— A Case Study, 2 (Issue 6/17 – July 15, 2025) 18 - Expectation: A Messiah Who Conquers, Utilizing Historical-Cultural Background—A Case Study, 3 (Issue 6/18 – August 5, 2025) 19 - Learning from Peter's Messianic Education, Utilizing Historical-Cultural Background—A Case Study, 4 (Issue 6/19 – August 19, 2025) 20 - Jesus's Priority: Mark Gets to the Point (Issue 6/10 – September 2, 2025) 21 - Who Was the Man in the Linen Cloth? An Exercise in Measured Interpretation - (Issue 6/21 – September 16, 2025) |