Apocryphal Gospels, Conspiracy Theories, and the Mainstream Media
One thing that I have observed over the years is that major media outlets love apocryphal gospels. Whenever the person of Jesus is discussed–usually at Easter and Christmas–there is always a discussion about how the real story of Jesus has been suppressed and can only now be found in these lost gospels.
Sweeping claims are then made about how there was no agreement on much of anything in the first four centuries of the faith and that other stories of Jesus circulated by the thousands. Only after Constantine came along does the church decide which books to accept (and then subsequently denies all other books admission to the club).
When … Continue reading...
Hello, My Name is God
Did Jesus think he was God?
This may be one of the most common questions people ask about early Christology. And it reflects a long-standing scholarly debate about Jesus’s own divine consciousness. Even if other people thought Jesus was divine, did Jesus himself think so?
A number of years ago, Bart Ehrman jumped into the fray of these debates over early Christology in his book, How Jesus Became God (HarperOne, 2014). And he addressed this question about Jesus’ divine self-awareness.
Not surprisingly, Ehrman argued that Jesus never thought of himself as God. Leaning on his earlier book, Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium (Oxford, 2001), he says that Jesus … Continue reading...
Did Jesus Promise to Return within the Lifetime of his Disciples?
For critics of early Christianity, one of the stock objections is that Jesus predicted he would return in the lifetime of his disciples. And since he clearly didn’t return, then he cannot be believed.
Indeed, it is this belief that has spurred many other theories among scholars, most notably Hans Conzelmann’s thesis that Luke’s Gospel was written to explain the delay of the second coming.
But, is it really true that Jesus predicted that he would return in the lifetime of his disciples? Here’s a recent video where I briefly address this question:
As for whether the imminent coming of Jesus affected the development of the NT canon, see my … Continue reading...
The Heresy of Orthodoxy: What Do the NT Books Tell Us About Early Christian Diversity?
Last week I began a new blog series (see first post here) addressing the theme of unity and diversity in early Christianity, particularly as it pertains to the well-known work of Walter Bauer.
Essentially, Bauer argued there was no such thing “heresy” or “orthodoxy” during this time period. These ideas, he argues, are simply artificial constructs of the later theological victors.
This series is exploring Bauer’s thesis through a number of video conversations between myself and Andreas Köstenberger. These videos reflect on our book that critiques Bauer: The Heresy of Orthodoxy: How Contemporary Culture’s Fascination with Diversity Has Reshaped Our Understanding of Early Christianity (Crossway, 2010).… Continue reading...
Did Jesus Claim To Be God?
One of the fundamental question for Christians is whether Jesus claimed to be God. Did he really present himself as divine? Did the NT authors think Jesus was divine?
This issue has become especially important in recent years as some scholars continue to dispute whether Jesus ever claimed such a thing. Bart Ehrman’s, How Jesus Became God (HarperOne, 2014), is a key example.
For a response to Ehrman, see my review of his book here, and the full length work edited by Michael Bird, How God Became Jesus (Zondervan, 2014) which includes contributions from a number of scholars.
I provide a brief answer to these questions in the video … Continue reading...