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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A set of lecture notes for an upcoming lecture on the corporate character of worship. Some of this material has been posted previously on this site. INTRODUCTION Sometimes, Christians think that the transition from old to new is a transition from a corporate form of religion to a more individualistic…
Wayne C. Booth, The Rhetoric of Rhetoric: The Quest for Effective Communication (London: Blackwell, 2004), 206pp. Since the 1961 publication of his now-classic book, The Rhetoric of Fiction , Wayne Booth, an Emeritus Professor of English at the University of Chicago, has been one of the nation’s leading authorities on…
1 Corinthians 12:12-13: ?Even as the body is one and yet 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 slaves or…
1 Kings 22:26-27: ?Then the king of Israel said, ?Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king?s son; and say, ?Thus says the king, ?Put this man in prison, and feed him the bread of affliction and the water of affliction…
1 Kings 22: Micaiah said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd, and the Lord said, these have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace. Micaiah prophesies of Israel’s defeat at Ramoth-gilead, and of Ahab’s death. Ahab…
Micaiah is a prophet of Yahweh, the only prophet of Yahweh available to advise Ahab and Jehoshaphat as they plan to recover the city of Ramoth-gilead from the Arameans. As Ahab expects, Micaiah prophesies evil, warning that Ahab will die in battle and Israel will be left like sheep without…
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