Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
“And it shall be in those days when you are multiplied and increased in the land,” declares the Lord, “they shall say no more, ‘The Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.’ And it shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they miss it, nor…
Elsewhere, I have argued that there is grace in the so-called covenant of works (see, e.g., my colloquium essay, “A Response to ‘The Biblical Plan of Salvation,’” in The Auburn Avenue Theology: Pros and Cons , edited by Calvin Beisner (pages 118-148). It may be equally surprising to find justice…
Years ago, as a layman, I had the privilege of attending a Bible study led by a gifted teacher. His story was interesting: back when he was a student he had been severely sanctioned for affirming that one must repent in order to be saved, that one must trust Jesus…
Believing that God really exists Defining “faith” is sometimes made too complicated. The theologian, Louis Berkhof, for example, distinguishes “faith in general” from “faith in the religious sense and particularly saving faith.” Berkhof’s core definition of saving faith is not so bad. He says that it is “a certain conviction,…
It is generally acknowledged that when Paul wrote letters to churches, he expected his letters to be read in the worship service to the congregation. It is interesting, then, that when Paul wrote letters to a congregation he could feel free to address children and tell them to obey their…
Book 4 of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion is a classic work of ecclesiology. This book is the longest section of the Institutes , showing Calvin’s deep interest in and love for the church. Among its many salutary features is a full scale exposition of those ecclesiastical leaders Calvin…
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Once upon a time, Europeans believed that the order of the world was the result of God's providential guidance of all things. Along came Newton, who demonstrates that the world was a machine that operated by laws that could be described in mathematical terms. As Jonathan Sheehan and Dror Warhman…
The Ten Words (Exodus 20) are organized in two sets of five commandments, one pertaining to our relationship to God and the other our relationships with one another. James Jordan has argued that the two sets of five run in parallel. The five words about worship match the five words…
Thomas asks whether the Father delivered the Son to the Passion ( ST III, 47, 3). His answer is Yes, and he gives a proof text: Romans 8:32. But the way he explicates that affirmative answer is worthy of attention. He starts by emphasizing that Christ “suffered voluntarily out of…
Israel suffers the first cycle of plagues along with the Egyptians. Their water turns to blood; their homes are infested with frogs; the dust of Goshen clings to them in the form of gnats. With the fourth plague, Yahweh begins to make a distinction between Israel and Egypt: “I will…
The church has faced many challenges in her two thousand year history. Bishops and priests evangelized Romans and barbarians. Adventurous monks settled on the frontiers of Europe. Bold missionaries traveled to the remotest peoples on the planet. Never before, though, has the church been called to ministry in a society…
Isaiah prophesies that the Lord will bring Israel out of Babylon as He brought them from Egypt, in a new exodus. He draws on events of the first exodus to describe what will happen again. For example: “I will open rivers on the bare heights, and springs in the midst…
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