Theopolis Logo

Writing

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

See all
trnava-university-beeyeib-am8-unsplash
Biblical Horizons

Puritans v. Reformed Worship: (Part Two of a Book Chapter Review)

Continuing through The Worship of the English Puritans by Horton Davies: The author gives some of his own appraisals rather than immediately quoting Durel, even though that is how he began his chapter. In Davies’ opinion, while the Puritans would invoke their own interpretation of Scripture in order to condemn,…

by Mark HorneFebruary 9, 2008
kelly-sikkema-gpoh17dxqdm-unsplash
Ephesians

Luther Should Have Inserted “Alone” a Second Time in Romans

What follows are from a couple of posts on my blog. I hoped to do a series. If I do follow up, I will probably want to do it here on the BH blog rather than my own. Feedback welcome: It is no secret that some have been scathingly critical…

by Mark HorneFebruary 9, 2008
jim-jordan-teaching-2
Baptism

Jesus’ Baptism and ours

Jeremy Sexton wrote this in an earlier line of discussion: “Along those lines, I think what we most often miss in our theology of baptism (though Calvin didn’t miss this) is that Christian baptism — if it “is” anything that came before — is Jesus’ water baptism. In our baptism,…

by James B. JordanFebruary 8, 2008
sixteen-miles-out-d40gdcd_-he-unsplash
Numbers

Israel was not (all of) the Church

Jeff pointed out that baptism is not Christian circumcision . Looking at the comments, I think it might be helpful to point out that Israel was not the Church . In the new creation, the idea of an “unbaptized Christian” is either very temporary or an anomaly. Those who came…

by Mark HorneFebruary 6, 2008
aaron-burden-h8s0pf2rcqs-unsplash
Parables

Parables, Part I

Once a upon a time, one Sunday morning, a pastor mounted his pulpit for the sermon and said the following: A troubled young man walked into a downtown high-rise building. As he approached the directory on the wall, he took out a small booklet and looked back and forth from…

by Jeff MeyersFebruary 5, 2008
sixteen-miles-out-al48tflf4e8-unsplash
Exodus

What is a Prophet? (Friendship and Justification)

If you are, say, leading a Bible study in Genesis, you might notice that right after the covenant is renewed and circumcision is established (ch 17) that we see Abraham eating and drinking with God (ch 18). After that meal, God makes a point of saying the he should share…

by Mark HorneFebruary 3, 2008

Showing page 216 of 309

See all

Showing page 12 of 43

See all

Putting the oikos into Oikonomy

Psalm 128 promises a fruitful home to the man who fears Yahweh. He will prosper from the labor of his hands, with no one plundering or taxing away his goods. The assumption is that productive work is part of family life. The family is an economic unit, among other things,…

February 11, 2016

Glory of Kings

God gave us the book of Proverbs to teach us wisdom. Partly, He does that by teaching us the content of Proverbs. But he is also teaching us wisdom by the way He communicates wisdom. Proverbs 25:2 says, “It is the glory of kings to conceal a matter, but the…

February 11, 2016

Grace, Judgment, Gospel

Atonement theories can be seen as efforts to synthesize the grace and judgment of God: How does He show grace to a race that deserves condemnation. Solutions are often sought systematic syntheses, and there is something to that: The cross proves God to be just and the justifier of those…

February 11, 2016

Finding Fixed Points in Revelation

Revelation is a confusing book for many readers, apparently endlessly, perhaps even drearily repetitive. The pyrotechnics and special effects might fascinate for a bit, but after a while it all blurs and blends and leaves us wandering in the bewilderness (David Sterritt's wonderful term). Can we find fixed points, coordinates…

February 10, 2016

Hope of the Hopeless

We do what we do because we hope to accomplish something by our actions. All our actions are directed at the future. We want things to be different than they are now, and we plan and act in hope that we can make things come out differently than they otherwise…

February 10, 2016
Political Theology

Theology, Civic or Natural

Modern theology has often been obsessively concerned to justify itself to cultured despisers, and this self-justification has often taken the form of “prolegomenon,” the technical name for an introduction to a theological treatise. To the extent that prolegomena represent efforts to describe the work of theology and its place in…

February 10, 2016

Showing page 322 of 2212

Browse by Category

In Medias Res

Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.

Donate

Theopolis is nearly 100% donor-supported. Consider joining us on our mission.