"God likes to forgive, I like to sin: what a great relationship!" In that line W. Robert Godfrey nicely captures the often hidden assumption that Christ came merely to save us from sin's guilt while leaving us under its slavery. Throughout church history, preaching and teaching have attempted to properly relate God's saving work for […]
Delbert Burkett and Cambridge University Press (CUP) have conceived a well-constructed, thoughtful, and highly informative collegiate textbook introducing the New Testament and the origins of Christianity. Burkett, no stranger to CUP imprints and the pages of New Testament Studies, as well as Novum Testamentum, is associate professor of religious studies at Louisiana State University. A […]
David Wells's latest book, Above All Earthly Pow'rs, is one that I found next to impossible to put down once I started reading it. This work truly is the culmination of his theological thought. Wells has published a book that describes the essence of postmodern thought as well as a remedy that enables the church […]
For some poor souls, those substances that lubricate conversation, ease pain, or invoke euphoria can become demanding mistresses that destroy lives. When the problem gets out of control, Alcoholics Anonymous and various other twelve-step programs are the most popular and well-known methods addicts use to conquer their demons. James Frey argues against the twelve-step method […]
Who brought about the greater changes in American Protestantism: Charles Darwin or Jonathan Edwards? Most historians argue that the sea change came after the War between the States. Protestantism had to grapple with the problems created by cities and industries, the challenges of higher criticism, the changes brought about by looking at religion through the […]
Growing up in a Baptist home while attending a Presbyterian church, I heard quite a few discussions about covenant theology. Nearly every time, though, the focus of the discussion was on the legitimacy of paedobaptism. This happened often enough that I naturally associated the two subjects; whenever covenant theology came up, I assumed paedobaptism was […]
I am writing this article just after the conclusion of the high school basketball season. The girls' team from one of our city's high schools had a successful season, going all the way to the state championship game where they lost. The next morning the sports section of our daily newspaper showed a pathetic picture […]
In the evangelical world in which I was raised, it was the minister's job to ensure that everyone in his congregation was "living in victory." What this meant was that those who were truly committed to Jesus Christ and had made him Lord over every area of their lives would not be content to remain […]
Agnosticism is, in a sense, what I am preaching. I do not wish to reduce the skeptical element in your minds. I am only suggesting that it need not be reserved exclusively for the New Testament and the Creeds. Try doubting something else. – C. S. Lewis, “Modern Theology and Biblical Criticism” English professors find […]
Introduction: What Changes? When a person becomes a Christian a strange thing happens-nothing changes! If they were struggling financially before their conversion, their financial woes are not instantly taken away. If they were previously divorced, the new believers do not awake to find themselves happily married. If they were living under an oppressive government, they […]
We are all natural-born theologians. Consider the endless variety of religions in the world. From animism to Zen, from Zoroastrianism to atheism-everyone is a theologian. But not everyone is a good theologian. In fact, by nature, we are all lousy theologians. St. Paul puts it this way: We are fallen, so our natural-born theology is […]
