by Joel V Webb | Jan 7, 2025 | Orthodoxy Matters
Well…it finally happened. Wes Huff’s interview on the Rogan Experience podcast aired tonight. Since the beginning of the situation between Wes and Bill Carson (you can read my take HERE), the internet exploded with people calling for Wes to appear on Rogan’s podcast.
After a post last week showing the episode finally was recorded, I was estatic to be able to listen to it. And boy, can I say I am excited.
For a bit of background, Joe Rogan has not always been the most friendly to Chrisitanity, and the Bible. In the past, he has described it as no more than gibberish that has been mistranslated over and over again. But over the last two or so years there has seemingly been a subtle shift. Every once in a while a guest will be on the show that is a Chrisitan, and when discussions surrounding Chrisitanity comes up, Rogan has been much more friendly to yes religion in general, but also more positive about Christianity specifically.
Wes Huff appearing on the podcast marks a distinct difference from the past I highly recommend checking our Huff’s website, Youtube and resources. Wes is a legitimate scholar, academic, and authority on the text of the New Testament. Wes, even before I listened to the episode presented one of the biggest opportunities for Rogan to have his questions answered on the reliability of the Gospel text, and even more important, a direct conversation on the historicity and claims of Christ.
Over the course of three hours, the conversation covered a wide range of topics (most connected with the topic at hand). But once it entered the third hour, that is when the conversation more specifically became directed at the historicity of the Gospels, and towards the end a direct conversation about Jesus, the Gospel message, and what it means for our lives.
The payoff was just awesome in my book. Wes made a clear and concise case for the Christian faith on th 2 fronts that impact our culture. The first is the historic reality of the resurrection of Christ, and the second is the individual transformation that takes place when we encounter Jesus.
One side note, Wes’ comments about Jordan Peterson were spot on. Something I have noted for the last couple years is that Peterson certainly recognizes the importance of Jesus, but always comes up and short of the line of recognizing who He truly is. While there is “benefit” to the teachings of Christ, when we pass into simple moralism, we then enter the very territory He condemned during His ministry.
The Gospel, as Wes went to point on, is about more than just being better. It is about recognizing that we can never recover from sin, and it takes the work of Christ on the cross to change us into His image.
I hope that people who listen to this episode of Rogan will be intrigued by what was said, and the Holy Spirit does His work in drawing them to the loving arms of their creator.
by Joel V Webb | Jan 6, 2025 | Orthodoxy Matters
Yesterday I preached my last sermon at Blue Water Free Methodist being on staff before I move on to what is next. (More to come on this in the near future). I felt to write down, and expand on what I spoke on in a blog post. You can listen to the sermon HERE.
Jeremiah 31:10-14 NET, Listen to the Lord’s message, O nations. Proclaim it in the faraway lands along the sea. Say, “The one who scattered Israel will regather them. He will watch over his people like a shepherd watches over his flock.” For the Lord will rescue the descendants of Jacob. He will secure their release from those who had overpowered them. They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion. They will be radiant with joy over the good things the Lord provides, the grain, the fresh wine, the olive oil, the young sheep, and the calves he has given to them. They will be like a well-watered garden and will not grow faint or weary any more. The Lord says, “At that time young women will dance and be glad. Young men and old men will rejoice. I will turn their grief into gladness. I will give them comfort and joy in place of their sorrow. I will provide the priests with abundant provisions. My people will be filled to the full with the good things I provide.”
The prophet Jeremiah is speaking to the nation of Judah just before they go into exile because of their idolatry. The Northern Kingdom of Israel has already been dispersed and destroyed as every since they split from Judah their legacy was filled with idolatry, oppression and evil. And while Judah had some high moments, they also trended towards idolatry and worshiping the demonic gods of their pagan neighbors, forsaking the worship of the One True God.
This was quickly heading for Judah to be judged, and sent into exile. And Jeremiah had the distinct honor of proclaiming the coming judgment to a people who refused to listen. Amidst the declarations of judgment, Jeremiah 30 starts what’s called the “Book of Consolation”. Contained in it are words of encouragement. That despite the coming judgment, God’s plans were not done for His people, and that there was hope in future restoration of both Judah and of Israel, who make up the descendants of Jacob.
But the question must be asked, how can a loving God judge? How can one who;s most know attribute is love do something like send His special people into exile?
We must first start with what does love mean. The best definition I have found for love is “willing the best for the other”, or “the desire for the other to be” When we separate the word love from the emotionally charged, sexually explicit usage our current culture often associates with this word, we begin the see the deep abiding will for the best of that other person when we use the word love.
When God called Abraham in Genesis 12, it was for his descendants to represent, or image who God was to the nations of the earth. This role became more defined as the generations continued on, ultimately launching in earnest with Moses and the establishment of the law. Now, God’s people had well defined boundaries and knew how to represent the One True God.By not imaging the fallen spiritual powers that ruled over the surrounding nations, there was hope that creation could be restored through God’s people working in the world.
But most of us know the story. This began a continual cycle of obedience and rebellion. One generation following God, and then seemingly the next choosing to worship and participate in the demonic pagan idolatry of the surrounding Ancient Near East. This then brings us back to Jeremiah, prophesying about judgment, but also hope of future regathering.
So why does God judge?
It is ultimately to bring us back to Him. Everything is for our repentance.
All of us, like Israel are predisposed because of the fall to reject God. In fact Scripture says we are at enmity (or opposed) to God (Romans 8). Between that and the influence of the “spirits of the air”, who are solely concerned with the destruction of humanity, we all in different ways opposed God and work for the other side. It is because God loves us that exile happens. You see, God plays the long game. He ultimately knows what will show us that we cannot do it in an of ourselves, and what it will take to have us realize it is only through Him that things will be different.
And then there’s a catch. None of us can ever bring ourselves back from exile. The hopeful future that Jeremiah spoke of was not going to just happen if Israel got their act together. We have the story up to that point showing that no matter how hard they tried, they could never cut it. And we are the same. No matter how hard or intentionally we try, none of us are able to order our lives as God wants us to.
And just as Israel would never return from exile without someone else, the same is for us as well. Thankfully the answer to returning from exile is Jesus.
John 1:14-18 NET, Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father. John testified about him and shouted out, “This one was the one about whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is greater than I am, because he existed before me.’” For we have all received from his fullness one gracious gift after another. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. The only one, himself God, who is in closest fellowship with the Father, has made God known.
The law that none of us can keep was fulfilled and completed through Christ. What we are never able to do for ourselves was accomplished by Jesus. And while we may all be in exile in different ways, it is Jesus who brings us back from that exile, into the land that He intended for us. For each of us personally that means His Holy Spirit begin the work of transforming us into His image, and making us the people He originally created us to be.
The Gospel message is what affirms to us that we cannot do it, and because of Christ He already has. When we place our faith (allegiance) in Him, His Spirit does the work that we can never do.
So do you feel like you are in exile? You are in the perfect place to experience the love and transformation of the Gospel, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Make Jesus the true King of your life. OR if you are already a Christian and still feel you are in exile, actually let go, and let Him do the work you have been trying to do.
by Joel V Webb | Jan 1, 2025 | Orthodoxy Matters
“If the world is against the truth, then I am against the world: – St. Athanasius
Something that I have been reflecting on the last couple weeks is how we in the Church try to interact with the world. There have been in recent years strong currents seeking to have the culture look favorably at the Church. From what I have heard the logic goes this way, “if we are kind and nice, then people will listen to us.”…or something along those lines.
I understand the tension that people are trying to bridge here. As follower of Christ we are to be loving, as Christ was. And that should be a goal for all of us. But what I have been seeing is a desire to be lauded and seen positively by the culture. This does not work. Something that we have forgotten in our attempts to be seen and accepted is the reality that before salvation we are at enmity or opposed to God (Romans 8:7). In fact, the book of James has even stronger words to say, “do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility toward God?” (James 4:4 NET).
So while these intentions have been seeking to do something positive (having an opportunity to hose Christ), it is ultimately misguided because it will not work. The world is not just full of people who are opposed to God, there is more going on than we often recognize. There are as well spiritual forces that are at play, influencing and directing people against God (Ephesians 2:1-2).
Again, this must be balanced an in proper tension. This is not permission for Christians to go in a bull in a china shop, and just be a jerk. No! We are called to love those who are in need of love. We are called to show that we are apart of a different Kingdom by imitating what Jesus spoke of in the Sermon on the Mount. But we also must be understanding in how all of this goes down in reality. No amount of being cozy with the world, and trying to make good will work. There will always be opposition to the true preaching of the Gospel, because it gets to the heart of humanities opposition to God.
This does mean that then, at times we will have to be against the world. Maybe more often than we think. This is the wisdom that St. Athanasius shares in the quote above. His life exemplified this truth. He was exiled numerous times for standing for the truth of Scripture as to the nature of Christ. But he counted all those things as loss, because the knowledge of Christ as He truly is was worth it. And in that he had to be in opposition to something that seemed popular.
For Athanasius the issue was the deity and nature of Christ. I believe that there are issues the Church is contending with in our day that are certainly uncomfortable to address, but are essential because they speak to core issues of the Gospel, and it’s transformative power in our lives. Being a city on a hill, as Christ called us to be means that we will stand out in the darkness.
by Joel V Webb | Dec 31, 2024 | Orthodoxy Matters
Revelation 13:15-18 NET, The second beast was empowered to give life to the image of the first beast so that it could speak, and could cause all those who did not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He also caused everyone (small and great, rich and poor, free and slave) to obtain a mark on their right hand or on their forehead. Thus no one was allowed to buy or sell things unless he bore the mark of the beast—that is, his name or his number. This calls for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the beast’s number, for it is man’s number, and his number is 666.
The Mark of the Beast is one of those things that pervades the mind of many Christians, and is even a recognizable reference in secular culture. Throughout even my lifetime there has always been a buzz every couple years with the question being asked, “is this the mark!?” Before my time is was MasterCard, or Monster Energy drinks. More recently it has been things like RFID chips, the covid shot, or any number of things that people are trying to convince other that this particular thing is the mark.
But do we have it all wrong? Are we looking for something that in reality isn’t what we think it is?
Over the last several years I have had major shifts in my eschatology. Instead of looking at the book of Revelation as a step-by-step guide of everything that happens before Christ comes again (as is very popular in American Christianity in particular), I have begun to ask, “what was the purpose of the book to the original recipients, and how does that apply to me?” We have to remember the cardinal presupposition of understanding Scripture: it was written FOR US, but not TO US.
So with that in mind, what on earth could this mark even be, if it is not a literal mark that people will get in the future when the Antichrist takes over? Well…if we ask the 1st Century Christian who is like a Jew who we need sitting in our heads when we read the New Testament. So where else do we find Scripture speaking of something to do with arms & foreheads?
For this let’s go all the way back to Deuteronomy, to the famous Shema prayer.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 NET, Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You must love the Lord your God with your whole mind, your whole being, and all your strength. These words I am commanding you today must be kept in mind, 7 and you must teach them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, as you lie down, and as you get up. You should tie them as a reminder on your forearm and fasten them as symbols on your forehead. Inscribe them on the doorframes of your houses and gates.
The most recognizable outgrowth from this verse is something called phylacteries, which are small boxes that contain Scripture that Jews wrap around their arms and their head as they pray. It is a physical representation of having God’s law on their head and hands. What this speaks to (both the verse and the phylacteries), is that God’s people are to keep God’s law as the primary mover, or foundation for all their thoughts (head) and actions (hands).
This makes sense, doesn’t it? We know that the Gospel is supposed to renew and transform our minds, and also that is demonstrated by our actions and works. So now lets extend this as we should to what John is talking about in Revelation.
This means that when John is speaking about the Mark of the Beast, he is not giving the 1st Century Christians a glimpse into the future thousands of years later. What good would that be for persecuted believers in the Roman Empire. Instead, John is encouraging the Christians of his day, and our day that through our thoughts and actions we are either going to image God, or image the dark spiritual forces of this age.
Is how we think, and what we do representative of God? Or is it representative of the culture that is around us? The number 666 reinforces this, as a likely explanation is that is pointing to Nero, who was Caesar of Rome at the time. The Roman Empire worshiped the Emperor as a god, and it was by and through the Emperor that people prospered, had peace and could live a good life. But for those who follower Christ, they would be exempt from that. They would be persecuted and killed for the declaration of Christ as King. As so John here reminds and encourages Christians that those who do what they need to do to fit in to life a comfortable life are really imaging demons, rather than imaging God. They are holding the world above Christ.
So for us in our day. My encouragement is that we stop trying to ferret out what might be the mark of the beast. I think if we go with what John is getting it, then what he wrote is just as applicable then as it is now. Represent Christ in all things. Don’t be concerned if the culture rejects you, because it is fallen and of the world. Christ is our hope in life and death, and we should hold strong in our faithfulness to Him. To the end.
by Joel V Webb | Dec 16, 2024 | Orthodoxy Matters
“Monkey see, Monkey do” is a phrase that all of us have heard, and we all understand. We are always learning and imitating what is going on around us. I just became a dad, and while my baby son is too little to really imitate me, I know the things going on around him affect him and his reactions.
We also understand that the stuff that we devote our time to we become more like it. My wife and I really enjoy the show The Office, and we hardly go a day without finding some way to quote the show in our everyday life. In a way, that show has formed a bit of me, impacting how I interact and understand things.
Then we get to the concept of catechesis. This word simply means instruction, or instruction by word of mouth. As someone who grew up in a very low-liturgy protestant tradition, the only time I heard this word was in a Roman Catholic context. This word in fact has been used all throughout Church history to reference the teaching and training of new believers (often with a special title still used in some traditions, catechumens).
For most Protestants we could think of this as an extended period of intensive training, where a new follower of Christ is taught the truth of Scripture, and the practices of the worshiping community before being fully integrated as a Eucharist taking brother & sister in Christ. In many contemporary settings we use Sunday School as the primary way we teach our young ones. I believe this is a good thing! But what has arisen in many Churches is more entertainment and keeping kids busy, rather than intentional teaching of Christian truths.
Many in my generation were in some settings were just given Bible stories and memory verses, expected to content with the philosophies and arguments of a world that seeks to disprove the existence of God.
What intentional catechism provides is in many cases those same Bible stories and verses, but also imbued deeply with transmitting the core truths of the Christian faith. A young person going to college can’t contend with the philosophical argument of an atheist if all they know is Noah’s Ark and know John 3:16 by heart (these are good things still). It has to be more than just head knowledge of a few fact point. Rather, we need to be working towards holistic worldview development of our children.
This is made more poignant and important for myself with the birth of my first child. I see and know the world that they are going to grow up in. All the hundreds if not thousands of messages they will received in active and passive ways. And here’s the dirty little secret that most of us are uncomfortable with. There is no such thing as a neutral message. EVERYTHING is seeking to form and mold us into representing the message that we receive. For commercials it is trying to make us discontent with what we have so that we have to buy more to be happy. Or the education in our public schools. No matter how we put it, schooling is not neutral (despite how some may protest). The current ruling philosophy of our American public schools is materialistic agnosticism, if not antagonism to God. Nothing is neutral, everything is trying to form us.
Instead, we must work diligently to form the next generations to not just know facts about the Bible or about God. But to be fully formed in how they see the world through the eyes of the Christian faith. In many cases we unwittingly have been passive for several generations in allowing the culture around us to form our minds and how we think. Because of this we see our Christian faith just as a thing we do as apart of our lives. This is where we get phrases like “practice your faith privately”, and even Christians believe this!
Instead, Christianity explains everything. The entire reason for our existence, and what happens in the end is contained within the Christian story as seen in Scripture. And how much be believe that story impacts how we live our life. If we are not actually convinced of the truth of this story, and the life-altering reality of that story we will just continue living our lives as any other secular, materialist pagan, rather than as a person whose life has been completely transformed by the power of the message of the Gospel.
A simple place to start with this catechesis for children or adults is three simple things. The Apostle’s Creed, The Lord’s Prayer & the 10 Commandments. For much of Church history this has been the cornerstone of of teaching and forming new converts or children raised in the Church. These things, along with other spiritual disciplines of reading Scripture, prayer, corporate worship, confession, receiving Eucharist and others build us in Christ in every aspect of our lives.
The task is great, but the implications are dire. Let’s get to work.
by Joel V Webb | Dec 12, 2024 | Orthodoxy Matters
I’m sure many are aware of the recent debate and ensuing debacle surrounding Billy Carson, and his debate with Christian scholar and apologist Wes Huff. If you have not seen the debate you can find it HERE. The debate is a masterclass of defending the Christian faith on the merits of the historical truth. We don’t “just have faith”, we have a certainty in an actual historical event that actually took place. The resurrection of Jesus Christ.
If you have not heard of Billy Carson, he is a pseudo-scholar who is much what you would find on the History channel at 2AM from fifteen years ago. He claims to be an expert on ancient manuscripts, artifacts, and believes that he is uncovering “hidden truths” that have been kept from the general public about the truth of human history.
Much of what he talks about concerns essentially extra-terrestrial super powerful beings that are the source of the existence of gods in ancient civilizations. Much of what Billy presents is fundamentally a questioning of the Christian understanding and narrative of history. Billy has many thousands of supports that he has influenced because he has (until recently) a competence and a narrative that people disenfranchised for various reasons think explains all their questions.
Here’s the interesting thing. This is going to sound crazy, but in a foundational way, Billy isn’t totally wrong.
The Old Testament is replete with references describing spiritual beings, nephilim, sons of God, divine council…and the list goes on. These references continue to appear in the New Testament as well, taking shape as the spiritual powers just as demons and the like.
For many in the Evangelical world, we often flatten the reality of the spiritual world to be much simpler than what is actually presented in the text of Scripture. And for some, the claims of Billy seem off the wall (and in many cases they are, as per the debate linked above). But at the core premise of Billy’s worldview, there are spiritual beings that have influenced and impacted human history. The only difference between Billy and the narrative of Scripture, is that Billy is parroting the propaganda of the other side.
The Old Testament (OT) in particular is a product of the Ancient Near East (ANE). The Israelite people who produced it (through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) were declaring the truth of the Almighty God, King of the Universe, the Sovereign Lord who was the creator of all things. All of this while opposing the pagan deities of their geographic neighbors. So what we find is that much of what is written in the OT is a polemic against the pagan gods, and the religious narratives of the world around them, stating what actually went on.
An example of this is Genesis 6, where the Bible describes the sons of God creating the Nephilim, or might men. This of course was a great sin, and abhorrent in the eyes of God. And the offspring of these instances are described as tyrants, given to evil and not to be looked up to. This stands in stark contrast to every narrative we see in ancient mythology. Has anyone heard of Hercules? That is a pagan narrative of a “hero”, someone who is half-god and half-human. But the story in Scripture is actually saying, “THAT IS A BAD THING!!”
These parallels are evident all throughout the OT, and it is fascinating as you being to see how theses texts would have been so essential for the early nation of Israel, seeking to represent the one true God, in a world full of other stories.
As I have recommended in other posts, there are 2 books that are essential as primers when looking at this topic. The first is The Unseen Realm (or Supernatural) by the late Michael Heiser. The other is The Lord of Spirits by Andrew Damick. Both of these books provide the groundwork for seeing and understanding the spiritual landscape and presuppositions that are going on in the OT text, and the implications it has on the story of Scripture, and our lives today.
Because of all of this we see that Billy is searching for something more. The world, especially the spiritual world is much more detailed that many of us take for granted. Much of the Christian community in the West for the last 100 years has been fairly shallow when it comes to our understanding of what goes on in the spiritual world, and we have kinda shrugged off any suggestion of anything more than angels & demons. So Billy is hitting at something that is true, but has been deceived into believing the wrong thing about something that is in essence true. The spiritual beings he talks about are real. But they are not what he thinks they are. In reality they are fallen spiritual beings that solely desire to see the corruption & destruction of humanity because they are image bearers of God.
So what does this mean for Billy Carson?
To put it bluntly. Billy is essentially supporting demonic propaganda. Yes. Billy is very ill-informed and misguided, and whether intentionally or by happenstance he has been a mouthpiece for narratives that the demonic forces of old used to control the nations surrounding Israel in their nascent stage.
My hope and prayer is that Billy’s eyes will be open. That he will, through the work of the Holy Spirit understand his need for Christ and believe the Gospel that changes everything.
