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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The following was delivered as a "Solemn Charge and Exhortation" at the beginning of Epiphany Term 2022 . We at Theopolis aspire to form leaders who share and carry out a biblically-rooted vision for reformation in the city of God and renewal in the city of man. We hope to…
Angels were certainly not unknown to Israel, and the entire history of Israel occurred under angelic oversight. But nowhere in the Bible is there a cluster of angelic appearances like we find at the beginning of the gospel story. An angel appears to Joseph to tell him to take Mary…
This article was first published at Firstthings.com on December 4, 2015 . The Gospels obviously tell the life story of a human being. Jesus was born. He lived in subjection to his parents, grew up, learned a trade, made friends and enemies, walked the dusty roads of Judea, climbed mountains,…
What are the general ontological foundations of the incarnation? asks Sergius Bulgakov in a dense paragraph of The Lamb of God (171-2). “In what does the inexorable predeterminedness of the Incarnation consist?” Negatively, he writes, it’s “erroneous to limit the theology of the incarnation to soteriology.” The incarnation isn’t merely…
I wrote the following essay some time back for some website or other. When I went searching for it recently, I discovered it was hard to find, so I'm re-posting it here, with very minor changes, to make it more readily available . The recent Evangelical brawl about the Trinity…
Consider: 1. The Spirit is the Passion of God, the center of His emotional life. His Spirit arouses judges to battle frenzy. In the Spirit, Yahweh regrets creating the world (Genesis 6:3, 6). Yahweh’s soul delights in His Servant (Isaiah 42:1) and rejoices over Israel (Jeremiah 32:41). Yahweh pours out…
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