Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations; make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison. (NIV) This verse, I believe, has been mangled by many, including John Piper, over the years. I heard his take … Continue reading The Bitter Root (Dt. 29.18)
Folks today, generally speaking, do not adequately understand the primary aspects of the weekly gathering of Christians. The evidence of this is the almost universal adoption of The Willow Creek Model by Evangelicals. The service resembles a concert and people are encouraged to express themselves by singing and movement. This is a departure from the biblical practice. By employing entertainment methods to generate growth they … Continue reading Don’t Go to Church During a Pandemic
Written by Dr. Thomas Howe I was recently asked by a student about the book by Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm. I was not familiar with either the author or the book, so I got the Kindle edition. It did not take very long to discover a critical problem at the foundation of his approach that undermines his whole system. He says, Was my loyalty … Continue reading The Circularity of Michael S. Heiser
So that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. (Eph. 3.10) Growing up in Fundamentalism I was always instructed to view the Incarnation as merely (and it seemed imply exclusively) a necessity for Christ to redeem fallen humanity. The Incarnation was for much more than that narrow scope according to … Continue reading Jesus Erases the Creator/Creature Distinction
Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States, in the case Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, ruled in a 6-3 decision that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against their employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. The Court’s opinion was written by Justice Gorsuch… via Botching Bostock — Analogical Thoughts Continue reading Botching Bostock — Analogical Thoughts
Heb. 11 is a passage that answers or defines what faith is and has been used by inquirers for centuries. Overall, the bible is the best source to illustrate faith and explain it. The New Covenant Jesus summarized what the New Covenant will look like in Jn. 6.45: It is written in the prophets: They will all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard … Continue reading What is Faith?
I’m going to talk about two kinds of leaders in Mark 10:42-45, but the discussion will make fullest sense if I spend some time in the rest of Mark’s Gospel setting the stage for this. Jesus throughout Mark’s Gospel displays one kind of leadership. Some scholars like to play Jesus’s “Messianic secret” (his invoking silence… via Two kinds of leaders—Mark 10:42-45 — Bible BackgroundBible Background Continue reading Two kinds of leaders—Mark 10:42-45
N.T. Wright (some call him N.T. Wrong) claims that scholarly focus should be on the literature of Jesus’ time. I counter because Jesus appealed consistently to promises found in the text of scripture long ago written (at His time) and not to the faulty ideas circulating during His time. Jesus, instead, refuted many of the popular notions such as: 1. Wealth indicating divine favor. 2. … Continue reading Scholar Folly
In a succinct manner, Kevin DeYoung distills the bible’s account of the Ascension to make it relevant for Christians. He didn’t mention Christ’s Priesthood directly which is what He just accomplished in His death before he ascended. Heb. 5.1-2 tells us the representative nature of a priest that he needs to mediate ignorant and straying people before God. A human High Priest knows this inherently … Continue reading The Importance of the Ascension
Earlier this week a friend asked where he should start in reading Calvin’s Institutes. I suggested, as I often do, beginning with Calvin’s A Little Book on the Christian Life which is an excerpt of the larger work, and one focused largely on Christian living. Here’s a wonderful and timely extract from the new edition… via Stuck in the Mire of Our Love for this World … Continue reading Stuck in the Mire of Our Love for this World — Tim Challies
In our series of bioarchaeographies, we’ve alternated between Old Testament people, such as Tiglath-Pileser III, Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus, Shishak, King David, Ahaz, Hezekiah, and Omri, and New Testament figures, like Caesar Augustus, Quirinius, Herod Agrippa I and II, Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate, Gallio, and Sergius Paulus. In this article, we’ll explore the life of one of […] via King Ahab: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report Continue reading King Ahab: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report
Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord. (Lev. 18.5 NIV) Paul, as a Pharisee, recognized the promise of eternal life in Lev. 18.5. Before he was a Christian, Paul, in his conception of this verse, would probably sacrifice as needed to keep his slate clean in anticipation of the resurrection. Thus Heb. 2.15 … Continue reading The Devil’s Armor
At least on a metaphorical level. After the Fall in Eden, the man, woman, and the serpent all stand judged at God’s tribunal. At this judgment scene the curse upon the serpent features two prophecies: 1. The Seed of the woman would crush the serpent’s head (This is future since Heb. 9.28 says a second appearance for salvation). 2. The serpent would pierce the heal … Continue reading Exact Biblical Fulfillment
For most Christians (and others reading the bible) the book of Job is enigmatic. However, by meditating (reflecting on what the text says), readers can gain some insights about Job’s struggles and their own as well. Craig Keener offers one of the better summaries of the book of Job. Not always, or even often, does God explain all of His workings to us. He has, … Continue reading The Book of Job’s Storyline
The Forger Among Us: The Museum of the Bible Dead Sea Scrolls and the Recent History of Epigraphic Forgeries Prof. Christopher Rollston (Ph.D. Johns Hopkins University) rollston@gwu.edu Dept. of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations George Washington University On March 13, 2020, the Museum of the Bible held a symposium in Washington, D.C. … via The Forger Among Us: The Museum of the Bible Dead … Continue reading Fake Artifacts
Over at his award winning blog (it’s true), Ian Paul has interviewed me about Myths & Mistakes, why skepticism sells, and whether textual criticism is the geekiest of the NT subdisciplines. Thanks to Ian for having me. via Interview at Ian Paul’s Blog — Evangelical Textual Criticism Continue reading Interview at Ian Paul’s Blog — Evangelical Textual Criticism
During the period in Jewish history known as the Divided Monarchy, the formerly united Hebrew nation split into to two kingdoms: the kingdom of Israel in the north and the kingdom of Judah in the south. In our series of bioarchaeographies, we explored the lives of King Ahaz and King Hezekiah of Judah; we now […] via King Omri: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report Continue reading King Omri: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report
The post A Preliminary Evaluation and Critique of Prosopological Exegesis appeared first on Southern Equip. via A Preliminary Evaluation and Critique of Prosopological Exegesis — Southern Equip Continue reading A Preliminary Evaluation and Critique of Prosopological Exegesis — Southern Equip
When Herod the Great died, his kingdom was divided among his sons by Caesar Augustus. Herod Antipater, better known as Antipas, was granted the right to rule Galilee and Perea. He was given the title of Tetrarch (“ruler of a quarter”), although he was sometimes known as King Herod, as his father had been (Mk […] via Herod Antipas: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report Continue reading Herod Antipas: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report
Dr. Barrick’s post is informative, cogent, and better than anything I can come up with at the moment: After one week of research on the ground in Jordan, we turned our attention to Israel for the next two weeks. On our first day, six of us drove a rented van south to the Negev and the Gulf of Aqaba. We went with two purposes in … Continue reading Israel Research Trip, Post #1 — DrBarrick.org
Be sure to read the whole series. A very fine job by Dr. Barrick. https://drbarrick.org/jordan-research-trip-post-11/ Continue reading Jordanian Biblical Sites
In our next bioarchaeography we’ll be exploring the life of the last Herodian King: Herod Agrippa II. With five different Herods mentioned in Scripture (not to mention a couple of Philips who may also have born the name Herod) it can be difficult to keep them straight, so here’s a quick summary: Herod the Great […] via Agrippa II: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report Continue reading Agrippa II: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report
This account closely matches my own testimony of initially misreading the bible and holding to aberrant beliefs. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/romans-8-made-calvinist/ To this day, whenever I stand behind a pulpit and say things like “All true saints will persevere to the end and none will be lost,” I still have to pinch myself. I laugh inwardly and think, What would the 22-year-old me say if he could hear … Continue reading From Arminianism to Calvinist
It seems fitting that, having explored the lives of Hebrew, Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian kings, we should now consider an Egyptian Pharaoh. While many Pharaohs in the book of Genesis are not named, following the convention of Moses’ day, later Pharaohs in Scripture are named, following the convention at the time of later authors.1 One […] via Shishak: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report Continue reading Shishak: An Archaeological Biography — Bible Archaeology Report
The point is that [a transformed society] is not our goal, great as that is…. Our goal is the holy city, the New Jerusalem, a perfect fellowship in which God reigns in every heart, and His children rejoice together in His love and joy…. And though we know that we must grow old and die, that our labors, even if they succeed for a time, will … Continue reading Ashford’s Favorite Cultural Critics
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