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Writing

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

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American Culture

The Affections of Asbury

Over the past few days, quite the event has developed at Asbury University down in Wilmore, Kentucky. University students have appeared at the Hughes Auditorium to worship and sing praises to God, which has continued for over 90 hours at the time of this writing. There is recent reporting that…

by Charles JacobiFebruary 16, 2023
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Apostle Paul

Paul and Nero

It is well-enough known that Nero was emperor from AD 54 when he was just 16 until his death as a young man of 30 in AD 68, just 14 years later. Paul ministered during most of those 14 years (we are not sure which year he died), accomplishing 3…

by Ralph Allan SmithFebruary 14, 2023
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Apostle Paul

For Me to Live is Christ!

When the apostle Paul says, “For me to live is Christ!” (Philippians 1:21), we do not find it difficult to understand. Paul had been a faithful servant of Christ from the time that Christ confronted him on the road to Damascus (AD 30) and through Ananias told Paul that he…

by Ralph Allan SmithFebruary 9, 2023
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Song of Songs

Bridal Song

I think there’s a layer to the Song of Songs which has been largely unexamined. The Song is about Christ and his church, Yahweh and Israel, the nature of the marriage covenant, and the marriage of the couple in the Song. But while the Song is “of Solomon” (or to…

by Daniel StanleyFebruary 8, 2023
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Biblical Studies

Paul and the Praetorian Guard

In Philippians 1:12-13, Paul informs his beloved brothers in Philippi that his Roman imprisonment — which one would naturally think hindered his ministry and the preaching of the Gospel — actually resulted in the surprising and wonderful progress of the Gospel. Of course, from our perspective 2000 years later and…

by Ralph Allan SmithFebruary 2, 2023
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Biblical Theology

Abraham’s Seed: Heavens, Earth, and Sea Made New

In a recent post , I explored the threefold order of creation—heavens, earth, and sea—and suggested that in Genesis 1 God stamps heaven’s order, his own threefold nature, on the creation, giving earth a trinitarian shape. So what happens to the three-level architecture of creation after Genesis 1? We don’t…

by Josh JensenFebruary 1, 2023

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Justification and Sacramental theology

Many Protestants today, perhaps most in the Reformed churches, believe that justification by faith is threatened by a high sacramental theology. The more efficacy you attribute to baptism, the less prominence you give to faith. While it is true that certain kinds of sacramental theology might be a threat to…

August 15, 2004

“To Obey Its Lusts”

We tend to think of desire as the antithesis of submission to authority. Saying “I ate that chocolate pie because I wanted to” is the opposite of saying “I ate my broccoli because Moma told me to.” Paul, however, recognizes the imperative force of desire. Urging the Romans to resist…

August 15, 2004

“To Obey Its Lusts”

We tend to think of desire as the antithesis of submission to authority. Saying “I ate that chocolate pie because I wanted to” is the opposite of saying “I ate my broccoli because Moma told me to.” Paul, however, recognizes the imperative force of desire. Urging the Romans to resist…

August 15, 2004

1 Kings 1

Here is a very rough, very wooden and literal, translation of 1 Kings 1. Now the king David was old, entering in days. And they covered him in clothes And it was not warm to him. And his servants said to him, ?Let them seek for my lord the king…

August 14, 2004
Philosophy

The Other Frenchman

Descartes is often credited with being the fountainhead of modern philosophy, but Robert Solomon suggess instead that the modern notion of the self comes from Rousseau: “What Rousseau discovered in the woods of France was a self so rich and substantial, so filled with good feelings and half-articulated good thoughts,…

August 13, 2004
Biblical Studies

Numerology

I continue to be very impressed with Victor Wilson’s Divine Symmetries . Here are a few excerpts from his brief discussion of numerology: 1. Abraham is 140 when Isaac and Rebekah marry. Isaac and Rebekah’s marriage lasts precisely that long, and this number is the sum of 1 squared through…

August 13, 2004

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