Sermon - Abiding in Christ

This sermon is actually a portion of my final for BI501: Biblical Interpretation, at Phoenix Seminary. Its an examination of John 15:1-11 and the Parable of the Branches. I hope to eventually upload the actual paper as its a fascinating and often misunderstood passage. To truly grasp the message you must look at the context in the book of John, as well as the historic context of the timing of the message by Christ. For now though, here is my sermon on the passage.

http://sermon.net/chandlerbible/sermonid/2622077

Sermon - The Christian Identity

Here's my first ever sermon, delivered on 1 Peter 4:1-11. Its about who we were, and who we are now in Christ.

http://sermon.net/chandlerbible/sermonid/2486824

Intro Presentations pt.3 - The Dead Sea Scrolls

Here is the last of the presentations. This was the first one I delivered, so the handout was in bullet form rather than paragraph form. Hopefully it still has useful information for the curious out there.

The Dead Sea Scrolls

Significance

∞      Gave a look into the life of the Essenes sect of Judaism

∞      Scrolls hidden during First Jewish Revolt circa 66-70 C.E.

∞      Oldest surviving manuscripts of the OT

o   Gave great support for the accuracy of the Masoretic Text (MT)

o   Only 13 significant variances between the two in Isaiah[1]

∞      All books of the OT canon are present in some form except Esther[2]

∞      A complete copy of Isaiah, 1QIsa^a, dates back to 100 B.C.E.

o   Previous complete books dated only to 895 C.E. from Cairo[3]

∞      Non-canonical books include: Enoch, Jubilees, Manual of Discipline, War Scroll

Intro Presentations pt.2 - The Council of Jamnia

Here's the second presentation on the Council of Jamnia. I will add a brief note that for all of these I was talking along with the handout. Without me talking they flow alright, but are at times disjointed, I apologize for that.

The Council of Jamnia

Key Terms

·         Great Beth Din: The high judicial court, Sanhedrin, of Israel consisting of 71 judges

·         Beth Din: A lesser court of Sanhedrin consisting of only 23 judges

·         Birkath Hammini: Curse against heretics

·         Yavneh, Jabneh, Yavne, Javneh: Jamnia

Location

Jamnia is located near the coast of Palestine south of Jaffa and is still inhabited.[1] A primarily gentile settlement until the Hasmonean period, Jamnia gained a substantial Jewish population only around 70 A.D.  Rabbi Johanan ben Zakkai, before the fall of Jerusalem, sought and was granted permission by Vespasian to move and found a rabbinic school at Jamnia. For sixty years, 70-130 A.D., the city housed a rabbinic school as well as Beth Din[2] and twice the Great Beth Din, first in 70 A.D. then again in 116[3].

Intro Presentations pt.1 - Translation Theories and Methodologies

Here's the first of three presentations I've given this semester on various extra-biblical topics. This one revolves around how we translate texts. Enjoy.

Translation Theories and Methodologies

Key Terms

·         Formal-equivalence - Word for word translation. Examples: NASB, KJV, and ESV

·         Dynamic-equivalence - Thought for thought translation. “If a free translation evokes the same response from its readers as the original did on the readers when the book was first circulated, it has accomplished its purpose[1]” Examples: NIV, TNIV and NLT

·         Paraphrase - Extreme version of the Dynamic-equivalence technique wherein the original text becomes a suggestion rather than a rule. Examples: MES and LB