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Writing

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

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Matthew

Fertile Toledots

The Book of Genesis contains eleven distinct markers readily acknowledged as the toledot formula. 1 Commentator Nahum Sarna counts the ’elleh toledot to be “…one of the distinguishing characteristics of the Book of Genesis”. 2 Among translations, the noun is variously translated as “generations” (ESV, KJV), “records of the generations”…

by Ben LoveladyDecember 20, 2022
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Romans

Who was Judah's Wickedest King? (Kings & Romans 1:18ff)

The answer that immediately comes to mind to the question in the title is Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah. He was conceived during the extension of life that God granted Hezekiah in response to his ardent prayer on his sick bed (2 Kings 20:1-11, 21:1). His reign is summarized in…

by Mark HorneDecember 13, 2022
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Ecclesiology

The End of Premium Mediocre Church

Back in 2019, on a whim, I sketched out a setting for a modern fantasy story: a single coffee shop that is simultaneously present in multiple cities throughout the world: “...you know the one. Books by local authors, brochures for a walking tour of the city’s outdoor sculpture, a poetry…

by Tim NicholsDecember 6, 2022
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Colossians

Colossians 4:2, “Watch"

Peter O’Brien’s translation of Colossians 4:2 surprised me: “Persevere in prayer as you watch for the Lord’s return, and be thankful.” 1 What is surprising about that? Well, none of my English translations mentioned “the Lord’s return” — nor does the Greek text! Translated literally, the verse just says: “In…

by Ralph Allan SmithNovember 29, 2022
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Books

The Laws and the Cosmos: A Brief Response to Stephen Wolfe on Cicero

I Natural Law This is a brief (well, briefer than it could be) first attempt at responding to a very small section of Stephen Wolfe’s recent book The Case for Christian Nationalism . It’s partial, deeply incomplete, and does not at all address the book as a whole; it is…

by Susannah Black RobertsNovember 24, 2022
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Formation

A Bad Man Speaking Well

The scuttlebutt of the last hundred years would tell us that Albert Einstein was a horrible husband, Winston Churchill was a racist, Mother Theresa was a hypocrite, and Caravaggio a murderer. From Benjamin Britten’s boys to Gandhi’s girls, it can be depressing and confusing to hear about people of great…

by Garrett SoucyNovember 22, 2022

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Skubalon

A few weeks ago, I posted some discussion of vulgar language on my site. I included some brief, and inconclusive, comments about Paul’s use of skubalon in Philippians 3:8. Classicist Matt Colvin examined and analyzed the use of the word in Greek literature, and concluded that “the word would definitely…

March 12, 2007

Sermon notes, Fourth Sunday of Lent

INTRODUCTION Every family lives between the sometimes contradictory demands of the past and the future. Every family also lives between the sometimes contradictory demands of the “inside” and the “outside.” Families have to develop their own distinctive “culture,” but also have to interact with other families and the wide culture.…

March 12, 2007

Eucharistic meditation, Third Sunday of Lent

Genesis 2:21: So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place. We saw in the sermon this morning that every marriage involves a break with the past. A…

March 11, 2007

Baptismal exhortation

1 Corinthians 12:12-13: Even as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slave or free,…

March 11, 2007
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Exhortation, Third Sunday of Lent

When God created the land animals, He created them male and female. The earth brought forth sexed living creatures, both male and female arising from the ground. God did not create the human sexes in the same way. He formed Adam from the dust of the ground, but in a…

March 11, 2007

Wedding sermon

How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes which have come up from their washing, all…

March 10, 2007

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