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Writing

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

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American Politics

God Damn Democracy!

This may not be a good title for an essay, especially one written by a Christian minister who is deeply sympathetic with the people of Hong Kong. I suspect that many of our friends there would be overjoyed at the prospect of a significant infusion of “democracy.” They even raise…

by Ralph Allan SmithDecember 17, 2019
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Revelation

Apocalyptic Meme Warfare

Despite its deadly serious purpose, The Revelation of Jesus Christ is the funniest book in the Bible. Jesus’ sheep hear His voice but they often fail to get His jokes. God always delivers His witticisms deadpan because that is the easiest way to separate the sheep from the goats in…

by Mike BullDecember 10, 2019
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Biblical Theology

Symbolism and Worldview

The study of symbolism is seen by some as a curiosity, rather far removed from the central matters of life. According to them, anyone who spends time studying Biblical imagery and symbolism may well be getting into a "dangerous" area. Persons who engage in an "overly symbolic" interpretation of Scripture…

by James B. JordanDecember 3, 2019
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Biblical Studies

James Jordan and Biblical Language

The meaning of my title will not be apparent till the end, but he who endures will find intellectual relief, if not satisfaction. One of my favorite quotes from John Walvoord comes from his commentary on the book of Revelation. 1 With regard to the “stars of heaven” falling to…

by Ralph Allan SmithNovember 28, 2019
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Advent

Entitled Children

Christmas is just around the corner, which means the topic of purchasing gifts for children has been floating around my conversations. Minimalism has been on trend for the last few years, and many families have adopted the mindset of “less is more” when it comes to gifts. In Christian circles,…

by Lindsey TollefsonNovember 26, 2019
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Biblical Studies

God’s Patterns in Creation:

A Speech Given to a Christian School Hello High Schoolers and Middle Schoolers! I’m one of the local pastors in town, and one of my main jobs is to study the Bible. So I have come today to speak to you about some basic points about the Bible. One of…

by Eric GreeneNovember 21, 2019

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Love (III)

John Drury begins his book on George Herbert, Music At Midnight , with Herbert's “Love (III)”: Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back, Guilty of dust and sin. But quick-eyed Love, observing me grow slack From my first entrance in, Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning If I…

October 1, 2015

Self-Surprise

“I surprised myself,” says the woman who courageously fights off a mugger, the wife caught in an affair, the student who pipes up to disagree with the celebrity professor, the father dismayed by his rage at an unruly child. It’s such a common expression that we fail to see how…

October 1, 2015

Jesus and the Professional Theologians

On the Sabbath after the last day of the Feast of Booths, Jesus has an intense debate with Jewish leaders in Herod’s temple, climaxing with Jesus’ declaration, “Before Abraham was, I am.” The Jews have recently been eager to execute an adulteress. Now they’ve found a new target, a blasphemer,…

October 1, 2015

Sacrifice and Worship After Stoicheia

Let me begin with two starting points, too rapidly explained and defended. First: It is clear from the New Testament’s handful of uses of the phrase that ta stoicheia tou kosmou are connected with the regulations of the Torah. During her childhood (Galatians 4:3), Paul says, Israel was enslaved to…

September 30, 2015

Unseemly Members

It has been common in the Christian West, particularly in the modern era, to define the image of God in terms of rationality or some other intellectual capacity. Confronted by a madman, Christians will no doubt say “Oh, they’re human too,” but by this definition they are clearly defective humans.…

September 30, 2015

Premodern Condition

In The Premodern Condition , Bruce Holsinger examines the influence of medieval studies on some of the major figures in the 1960s French avant garde . By “medieval studies,” he means both scholarship on the Middle Ages (Marc Bloch, Lucien Febvre, the Annales school, Denis de Rougement’s Love in the…

September 30, 2015

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