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Writing

Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.

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Poetry

The Donkey

G.K. Chesterton assumes a surprising and memorable perspective from which to view the events of Palm Sunday (Matthew 21:1-11) The Donkey by: G.K. Chesterton When fishes flew and forests walked And figs grew upon thorn, Some moment when the moon was blood Then surely I was born. With monstrous head…

by Arthur KayApril 14, 2022
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Hermeneutics

The Tree, the Cross, and the Supper

There is a common biblical principle: you must give back what you steal. In the Bible, restitution is repayment with interest. If you rob someone of their money, you have to pay back double what you stole. A thief must pay back fourfold if he steals a sheep, and if…

by Kyle LammottApril 12, 2022
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Isaiah

The King’s Cure

Identifying Isaiah’s suffering servant with the promised Messiah is unthinkable for a Jew because it combines the offices of humble priest and victorious king. While it is frustrating that Jews refuse to see the sufferings of Christ in Isaiah 53, the reluctance of Christians to interpret the passage in its…

by Mike BullApril 5, 2022
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How to Worship

When Our Men Sing Again

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150:6 (ESV) The command to praise God is pervasive throughout Scripture. In the verse above the Spirit calls all things with breath to praise the Lord. Song is also clearly featured all throughout Scripture and is a featured…

by Grant Van BrimmerMarch 29, 2022
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Culture

The Transgender Bait and Switch

“Gender is a social construct.” That’s shocking to people who have assumed that gender and sex were synonyms but at least since I was in college, in the ‘80s, we were taught that “gender” refers to the forms, the customs, the traditions that our culture teaches us to define what…

by John CarpenterMarch 22, 2022
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Biblical Studies

Israel, Judah, and the Narrative Flow of the Bible

In Genesis 49, Jacob prophesies about (blesses and curses?) his twelve sons. The first three of them don’t fare well. Jacob recalls Reuben’s offense of taking his concubine (Genesis 35:22) and the murderous violence of Simeon’s and Levi against the Canaanite inhabitants of the city of Shechem (Genesis 34). He…

by Mark HorneMarch 17, 2022

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Leading the Choir

When John first sees the heavenly worship as he ascends to heaven, the four living creatures take the lead with an unceasing Sanctus. The twenty-four elders fall down before the One on the throne, cast their crowns before the throne, and praise God for His glory, honor, and power. They…

September 5, 2014

Full Martyrdom

When the Lamb breaks the fifth seal, martyrs cry out for vindication. That launches a thread of the plot of Revelation that continues to the end of the seven bowls. At this point, these seem to be the salient moments: 1) Martyrs cry out for vindication and are told to…

September 5, 2014
Trinity

Wesleyan Trinitarian Theology

Daniel Castelo’s Confessing the Triune God is a contribution to Cascade’s Wesleyan Doctrine Series. The Trinity is not a possession of Methodism, and much of Castelo’s book covers familiar ground - the roots of Trinitarian theology in the gospel, the early church debates about the Trinity, the danger of projection,…

September 5, 2014

Deviant Calvinism

Oliver Crisp admits that he has “been drawn to the margins of theological orthodoxy or to the doctrinally eccentric.” His reason is constructive: “those occupying such liminal places are intrinsically interesting subjects for theological exploration,” not least because “their work . . . throws light on upon the shape and…

September 5, 2014

Making Priests and Kings

Genesis is full of genealogies: A genealogy for Cain (ch. 4), for Seth (ch. 5), a table of the sons of Noah (ch 10), of Shem and Terah (ch. 11), of Ishmael (ch. 25), and of Esau (ch. 36). Besides those seven (!) genealogies, there are other lists of names…

September 4, 2014

Washed in Blood

The innumerable multitude that appears in Revelation 7:9 wears white robes, made clean by being washed in the blood of the Lamb (7:14). This cleansing gives them a sevenfold blessing: 1) They are before the throne, serving God day and night; 2) they are covered with the Lord’s tabernacle; 3)…

September 4, 2014

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