Other Talks and Presentations

Centered on Reading Scripture in Context

What if some of the Bible’s most familiar passages are also among the most misunderstood?

In these presentations, Alex Haiken invites audiences to revisit well-known texts with fresh eyes—drawing on careful biblical exegesis and historical context to uncover what these passages meant to those who first heard them and what they mean for us today.

These presentations explore topics such as messianic prophecy, the paradox of Isaiah 53, and Jesus’ teaching about the future in Matthew 24. Time and again, participants find that passages they thought they understood take on new clarity, depth, and coherence when read in their original context.

Messianic Prophecy: An Introduction

How the promises of the Hebrew prophets unfold across Scripture and find their fulfillment in Christ.

Woven throughout the Hebrew Scriptures is a remarkable and often overlooked thread: a growing, unfolding portrait of a coming Messiah. Across generations, the prophets spoke with increasing clarity—describing not only His role, but striking details about His birth, life, mission, suffering, violent death, and even His resurrection—all penned centuries before He was even born.

This presentation traces that thread across Scripture, showing how these promises develop in the Old Testament and ultimately find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ. Along the way, it highlights the extraordinary continuity and specificity of these prophecies—so much so that many have come to see them as among the most compelling evidences for the faith.

Jesus Himself repeatedly pointed His followers back to these writings, grounding His identity and mission in the very Hebrew Scriptures they already knew.

** Participants come away with a clearer, more integrated understanding of how the Old Testament’s prophetic promises unfold—and why their fulfillment in Christ continues to be so striking and significant.

The Conflict of Isaiah 53: Conquering King or Suffering Servant?

How one of the Bible’s most remarkable prophecies resolves the paradox of a Messiah who both reigns and suffers.

The Hebrew Scriptures present what appears to be a tension at the heart of the messianic hope. While some passages describe a victorious king who establishes justice and peace, others portray a suffering servant who is rejected, afflicted, and ultimately dies a violent death.

At the center of this tension stands Isaiah 53—one of the most profound and widely discussed passages in the Bible. Of the many prophetic texts in Scripture, it is uniquely striking: a vivid and detailed portrait of a suffering servant who dies a brutal death but is then resurrected to see life again. In this chapter, the veil of obscurity that often accompanies prophetic language seems, in large measure, to be lifted—revealing with unusual clarity a portrait that has captivated readers for centuries.

This presentation takes a closer look at that chapter, exploring how it has been understood, why it has generated such enduring discussion, and how it helps resolve the apparent paradox in the biblical portrait of the Messiah.

** Participants encounter Isaiah 53 afresh—and discover why it continues to stand at the very center of the biblical conversation.

Matthew 24: Reading the Signs

What did Jesus actually say about the future—and are we understanding those words as they were meant to be heard?

In Matthew 24, Jesus delivers His final and most detailed teaching about what is to come prior to his return. Drawing on themes echoed throughout the Hebrew prophets, He speaks of a coming period of upheaval and tribulation—described in terms as sobering as they are significant—and points to specific developments, or signs, that would indicate what He promised was drawing nearer.

Yet prophetic language is often not straightforward. These passages are often read either too simplistically or through modern assumptions that can obscure their meaning.

This presentation takes a careful look at what Jesus—and many of the prophets—actually said, reading these texts in their historical and literary context. In doing so, it brings into clearer focus the nature of the events described, the role of the signs He identified, and how they may help believers live with wisdom, discernment, and watchfulness in the world today.

** Participants gain a more grounded and thoughtful framework for understanding this pivotal teaching—one that takes both the weight of the passage and the importance of careful interpretation seriously.