Theopolis Logo

Writing

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

See all
13071-probablyvalentindeboulogne-saintpaulwritinghi-1
1 Corinthians

The Great Exchange: Understanding Second Corinthians 5.21

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. My argument is simple: What Paul means in writing the quotation above in context is the same as what he was telling the Ephesians when he wrote,…

by Mark HorneJune 7, 2004
ben-white-w8qqn1pmqh0-unsplash
Biblical Theology

What is Biblical Theology (Part 3) : The Art of Biblical Theology

THE ART OF BIBLICAL THEOLOGY IN PRACTICE: INTERTEXTUALITY AND TWO PAULINE CASE STUDIES The Art of Biblical Theology: Intertextuality Biblical Theology is really an art. Like other skills of this sort, it is not a matter of following rules (though there are certainly guidelines and techniques). Rather, it’s matter of…

by Rich LuskJune 6, 2004
malcolm-lightbody-tc2f02iq8le-unsplash
Biblical Theology

What is Biblical Theology: (Part 2) The Christotelic Spiral

Click HERE for Part 1 Reading Christotelically Jesus Christ is the heart of God’s plan for creation and history. There is no “hidden plan” or “hidden God” lurking behind Christ; rather, in and through Christ God has revealed himself and his intentions towards the world. In Christ, the Father has…

by Rich LuskJune 6, 2004
aaron-burden-qjdzyt_k8xg-unsplash
Biblical Studies

What is Biblical Theology? (Part 1)

STORY THEOLOGY AND A THEOLOGY OF STORY Defining Biblical Theology What is Biblical Theology? How does it compare to other ways of doing theology, such as Systematic Theology? Geerhardus Vos suggested that whereas Biblical Theology draws a line, Systematic Theology draws a circle. That is to say, Biblical Theology is…

by Rich LuskJune 6, 2004
screenshot-2023-09-21-at-3-59-23-pm
Hebrews

Living by His Faith: Some Rough Thoughts on the Faithfulness of Christ

The gospels strongly imply Jesus lived by faith in the promise of his heavenly Father. How else can his prayer life understood? How else could he have wrestled through the Gethsemane experience? How else could he have committed himself into his Father’s care at death? How could Jesus have presented…

by Rich LuskJune 6, 2004
sixteen-miles-out-al48tflf4e8-unsplash
John

John 3:16

John 3:16 is probably best-known, or at least, best-liked Bible passage in North America: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This declaration of God’s love of the whole world is greatly comforting…

by Mark HorneJune 6, 2004

Showing page 223 of 309

See all

Showing page 28 of 43

See all

Pedagogy and Counter-Pedagogy in Genesis

Before Yahweh is an object of worship, He is a teacher, issuing an invitation to Adam to eat from the fruit of the garden but prohibiting the fruit of the tree of knowledge (Genesis 2:16-17). After He forms Eve, though, He disappears from the narrative, leaving Eve and Adam to…

April 15, 2015

Inevitable Denominations?

Rex Koivisto ( One Lord, One Faith ) argues that the problem of church unity has less to do with denominational structures and more to do with a sectarian spirit. Denominations weren't sectarian in origins, but an attempt to retain catholicity in a diverse theological setting. All true, but his…

April 14, 2015

The Addict as Modern Prophet

K ent Dunnington ( Addiction and Virtue ) observes that what Peter Berger called “the heretical imperative” sharpens questions about the “right ordering of the goods and activities of our lives.” Our diverse world doesn't direct us to any particular ends; it deliberately refuses to do so. As a result,…

April 14, 2015

Chiasm of Love

M arion Gibbs and Sidney Johnson present a sensitive analysis of the poetry of Gottfried of Strassburg's Tristan in their introduction to Medieval German Literature . In the Prologue to the poem, Gottfried captures the contradictory qualities of love with a rich series of antitheses: ir süeze sur, ir liebez…

April 14, 2015

Apocalyptic Mouths

“Mouth” ( stoma ) appears 22 times in Revelation. Mostly, things come out of mouths, rather than going in. The book is framed by double references to the sword that comes from the mouth of Jesus (1:16; 2:16; 19:15, 21). Jesus' mouth-sword is the ideal: A word that slays and…

April 14, 2015
Architecture

Church as Sacred Place

Some of the churches that Duncan Stroik discusses in The Church Building as Sacred Place sound and look like wretched spaces. The parish church in Tor Tre Teste, thirty miles outside central Rome, for instance, is designed to disorient and decenter: “The nave is conceived as an asymmetrical space in…

April 13, 2015

Showing page 440 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.