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Writing

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

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Baptism

For the Children’s Sake | An Alternative Angle on the Paedocommunion Debate

The debate over paedocommunion does not seem to have made much headway on either side in recent years. Certainly both sides have made a solid effort to argue for their position. But no resolution seems to be forthcoming in the near future. As a convinced paedocommunionist, I find the church’s…

by Rich LuskNovember 16, 2002
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Covenant

Covenant & Election FAQs

How do covenant and election relate to one another? There are many issues of semantics that enter into this discussion and many issues of real substance, so we need to be careful. If we oversimplify, we can say that election relates to God’s eternal plan to save a people for…

by Rich LuskAugust 20, 2002
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Theologia

Vine, Branches, & Fruit

Shortly after the Last Supper and before his final arrest, Jesus said these words to his remaining eleven faithful disciples: I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit…

by Mark HorneJune 7, 2002
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Deuteronomy

The Gospel of Deuteronomy

Was Caleb saved by faith or works? Caleb is just one of many thousands of Hebrews who entered the Promised Land after spending years in the wilderness being led by Moses. God had delivered the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt and gave them a law at Mount Sinai based on…

by Mark HorneJune 7, 2002
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Romans

Romans and the Role of Israel in the Atonement

For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly (Romans 5.7) So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of…

by Mark HorneJune 6, 2002
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Ephesians

Paul's use of the Decalogue in Ephesians 6:1-3

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (which is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth” (Ephesians 6.1-3). Honor your father and your mother, that your…

by Mark HorneJune 6, 2002

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Falling Angels

The four living creatures are “in the midst” and “around” the throne of the Enthroned one (Revelation 4:6). They continuously sing the Sanctus, and when they do the 24 elders fall down to prostrate themselves to the Enthroned one (v. 10). Given the arrangement, they cannot help but prostrate themselves…

May 10, 2014

Grateful Performance

Bruce Ellis Benson argues in The Improvisation of Musical Dialogue that the distinction of “composing” and “performing” doesn’t “describe very well what musicians actually do.” In place of this “binary” scheme, he offers an “an improvisational model of music, one that depicts composers, performers, and listeners as partners in dialogue.…

May 10, 2014

Solving the Piketty Problem

Alex Tabarrok has as solution to the problem of capital accumulation that Thomas Piketty identifies as the driver of inequality ( Capital in the Twenty-First Century ): Change the birthrate of the rich: Increasing fertility rates would do the trick: “If every wealthy family has 4 children, wealth per person…

May 9, 2014

Godziller

Watch the trailer and tell me that Godzilla hasn’t become Godziller. Now I have proof. One “Dr. M” observes that he’s tripled in size since he was first sited in a movie theater near you: “In 1954 Godzilla was a mere 50 meters (164 ft). In the newest movie, Godzilla…

May 9, 2014

Who Is Worthy?

John sees a book at the right side of the enthroned Father, and a “strong angel” asks, “Who is worthy to take the book and open it by breaking its seals?” The Father Himself is worthy (4:11) to receive all glory, honor, and power. Yet no one mentions Him as…

May 9, 2014

Sprouting Wings

God created winged-things (Genesis 1:21; kanaf ), and they were preserved in the ark (Genesis 7:14). But there aren’t many references to winged-things in the first book of the Bible. At the Exodus, Yahweh sprouts eagle wings and carries Israel from Egypt (Exodus 19:4, the first use of pterux in…

May 9, 2014

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