For many Christians, their faith was born, wholly formed, 2000 years ago. The covenant established in 
the New Testament provides, for many, all the equipment for living the Christian life requires, and the certainties that come with this confidence are powerful and sometimes lead to an under-appreciation of the wisdom of the Old Testament. Is it possible that this tendency has had a detrimental effect on the life of the Christian mind?
Dr. Marvin Wilson of Gordon College suggests that too many Christians neglect the richness of their tradition and that this has had serious consequences for the depth of their faith experience. Wilson argues, in Exploring Our Hebraic Heritage, that Christianity does not begin with Jesus, but rather with Abraham, and that Christians can learn a great deal from the way Jews have contended with their faith over the centuries.
In this episode of Christian Humanist Profiles, Danny Anderson speaks with Dr. Wilson about the deep connection Christianity has with Judaism, and the lessons Christians might learn from Jewish theological traditions.
[…] http://www.christianhumanist.org/2014/09/christian-humanist-profiles-11-marvin-wilson-on-our-hebraic… […]
Dr. Anderson – thanks for the interesting and edifying interview w/ Dr. Wilson. So far you’ve had the easiest job on CH Profiles – you barely had to nudge Prof. Wilson and he was off and running. Thankfully his commentary was very interesting so it worked. So far it seems you have had the easiest interview and Dr. Farmer has had to work the hardest with his guests (Larrimore and Westphal were not given to small talk). Dr. Gilmore’s interviews seem to fall in between with the added dimension of his picking fights with his guests. All enjoyable and edifying. We need more profiles from Dr. Grubbs!
“At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon.” (John 10:22-23) Interesting how Dr. Wilson pointed out that Jesus celebrated Hanukkah. That seems to throw a wrench into the “Regulative Principle” espoused by many in the Reformed community with regards to how Christians should worship. Hanukkah is a holiday that is not found in the Pentateuch, yet Jesus participates with Israel in this time of worship and celebration. Good stuff!
ChenBuLei We’re working on some more episodes from Grubbs–stay tuned!