Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Misunderstanding “Galatianism” has caused several problems in the Reformed church. Because circumcision is at issue in the Galatian epistle, some have fallen into thinking that ritual per se, rather than anything uniquely Mosaic or Jewish, is the object of Paul’s critique. Likewise, his polemic against “works of the law” is…
Many texts in the NT become more perspicuous if we keep in mind the possibility — and indeed ubiquity — of Gentile God-fearers in the Old Covenant. After the special covenant with Israel is set up, Gentiles are not altogether excluded from the hope of salvation. Israel’s special status in…
I was once trying to get a sermon out of Ephesians 1.12-14 and it seemed obvious that I should look for two parallel statements both ending with the phrase, “to the praise of his glory.” Paul here begins talking about two groups of people (“you” and “we”), and he later…
WHY A DENOMINATION WITH SOUTHERN PRESBYTERIAN ROOTS SHOULD CAREFULLY CONSIDER THE “NEW PERSPECTIVE ON PAUL” In my denomination, the PCA, we are continually haunted by the sins of our racist Southern past. It has become an annual rite at General Assembly for the issue to be addressed one way or…
Recent debates over whether or not, “justification is central” to Paul’s theology have reminded me of a sermon I once heard by a Presbyterian seminary student. This African American student challenged his audience on the sin of racism and the ways it might manifest itself among us. Like any good…
In Charles Hodge’s 1853 article, “Idea of the Church,” his stated aim is to analyze the idea of the Church proposed in the Apostles’ Creed, in which, “the Church is declared to be “the Communion of the Saints.” He writes: The conception of the Church as the communion of saints…
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INTRODUCTION Chapter 23 departs from the normal style of the book of Proverbs, not only in the fact that the Proverbs in this chapter are lengthier but also in the sense that several of them are more riddling than other portions of Proverbs. At least, so it seems. The first…
Given that the Trinity is incomprehensible, there are limits to our understanding, and I regularly have students ask how far they should go. That has always struck me as an odd question. Incomprehensibility is not a reason to stop exploring and meditating, but the opposite. Because God is incomprehensible, He…
Gerard Baker says in the London Times: “It never ceases to amaze me how the Left falls again and again into the old trap of underestimating politicians whom they don’t understand. From Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher to George Bush and Mrs Palin, they do it every time. Because these…
Barth writes, “according to Subordinationist teaching even the Father, who is supposedly thought of as the Creator, is in fact dragged into the creaturely sphere. According to this view His relation to the Son and Spirit is that of idea to manifestation. Standing in this comprehensible relation, He shows Himself…
Romans 2:27-29 is frequently brought into discussions of sacramental efficacy: There’s a difference between the physical rite of circumcision and the spiritual reality to which the rite points. I’m not so sure that’s what Paul is talking about. The terminology of the passage is interesting. Verse 27 speaks of those…
Van Ranke: “I wish I could eradicate myself, as it were, to let only the things speak, the powerful forces appear.”
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