Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
A Study in Biblical and Practical Theology Sunday School Notes / Epiphany 2004 Introductory Note: January 6 is Epiphany in the traditional church calendar. Though Epiphany is often treated as a single day, with the Sundays following counted as “Sundays after Epiphany,” we will treat Epiphany as an extended season.…
Imagine someone from another world trying to learn to live in our society according to our customs. What if someone gave him a check for a hundred dollars for his birthday–the first check he had ever seen in his life? Would he immediately understand how a check was used? Perhaps…
According to Presbyterian doctrine, as articulated in the Westminster Confession of Faith, baptism is a baptized person’s “admission… into the visible church.” By referring to the “visible church,” the document makes clear it is referring to the present institutional Church with all her imperfections, as opposed to the future Church…
N. T. Wright claims that in the Apostle Paul’s writings “righteousness,” as it predicated of humans, denotes “covenant membership.” When he wrote this in the New Bible Dictionary edited by Sinclair Ferguson, J. I. Packer, and David Wright, no one thought this was too big a deal. However, when he…
It seems almost human nature to think that we can find something to do for God that will make Him do us favors. If we live more virtuously, or cut down on a vice or two, then God will have to reward us. But the problem with this notion is…
The First Commandment teaches us to trust in Christ alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life. The First Commandment reads (I’m using NASB throughout): “You shall have no other gods before Me.” Obviously, trusting in someone or something else (even one’s own good works) for justification, sanctification, and eternal life”…
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At The Atlantic , Peter Beinart explains why Obama doesn't think that terrorism is a threat to our way of life: “Unlike Rubio, he considers violent jihadism a small, toxic strain within Islamic civilization, not a civilization itself. And unlike Bush, he doesn’t consider it a serious ideological competitor. In…
Twice toward the end of Revelation, John falls down to worship an angel. Both times, the angel redirects his worship from himself to God. The two scenes look the same, but Austin Farrer notes a progression ( A Rebirth of Images ). In the first instance, John falls to worship,…
The overall aim of Rowan Williams's recent The Edge of Words is to explore what the phenomenon of human language might have to say about the reality of God. Along the way, he has much of interest to say about human language itself. He observes, for instance, that “we cannot…
Melinda Selmys ( Slave of Two Masters ) knows that TV-watching is “the classic example of ‘wasting time,'” but she doesn't think there's any reason why TV time is wasted time: “A person could watch the same show over and over again and still choose to claim something new out…
Writing at fivethirtyeight.com , Benjamin Morris argues that Stephen Curry is the three-point revolution. This isn't just the normal 3-for-the-price-of-two calculation: “Curry isn’t a product of the math; he’s so good that he has his own math. Indeed, the math is so far in Curry’s favor that the Warriors —…
In his stunning exploration of Revelation, A Rebirth of Images , Austin Farrer explains the calendrical arrangement of the book. Revelation is arranged, Farrer argues, in six days, beginning with the Easter Christ and ending with the “Advent, the Rider on the White Horse, the victor of the great battle”…
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