My Journey Into Biblical Context Teaching
When I first began writing about the world of the Bible, I described the sense of distance I felt between Scripture’s ancient world and my modern experience. That gap—the languages, the customs, the worldview—compelled me to study, to ask questions, and eventually to teach. But that journey didn’t begin in a classroom. It began with a call.
I was called to bring the gospel to Jewish people in 2009—just four years after I came to faith. The call surprised me. I wasn’t Jewish. I knew almost nothing about Judaism. I had never celebrated Passover, never stepped foot in Israel, and had no background in Jewish religious life. Yet the Lord made the call unmistakable. And even though I didn’t understand it, I couldn’t ignore it.
Two years later, I entered seminary to study biblical languages. I wanted to handle Scripture with precision, and I knew Hebrew would be essential for ministry among Jewish people. During that season, I spent a year attending synagogue to better understand Jewish worship, rhythms, and culture. Not long after, I moved to Jerusalem—where my world expanded. I immersed myself in Biblical Geography, Archaeology, History, and Second-Temple Judaism, studying the context of both the Hebrew Bible and the Gospels.
Those years of study—and the call that drove them—opened my eyes to the deep continuity between the Old Testament and the New. I began to see Jesus through Jewish eyes: his halakhic interpretation of Torah, his rabbinic meshalim (parables), his teaching during biblical feasts that would have resonated instantly with his Jewish hearers. The world behind the text came alive.
After seven years of preparation, a Christian woman in Jerusalem approached me and said, “Let the preacher preach and the teacher teach. You are called to preach the Word.” At that point, I had preached only twice in my life. But that year, I preached more than sixty times in churches across Israel and the United States. Her words marked a turning point—one that clarified not only my calling, but my voice.
My teaching has taken shape over time, but its focus remains consistent: illuminating the Jewish world of Scripture. I teach seminars and Bible studies, write blogs and books, and preach sermons with one aim—to help Jewish people recognize their Messiah and to help Christians understand the Jewishness of the Bible. The context of Scripture is not an academic accessory; it is the world in which God chose to reveal Himself.
This is the continuation of my journey: bridging the gap between the ancient world and the modern reader, so that Scripture becomes clearer, richer, and more compelling. The world of the Bible is not far away. It is waiting to be rediscovered.
