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What Is Biblical Literacy?
We complain about it, write about it, claim it’s important or even critical, design programs to create it, but what is it? I don’t mean that none of us know what we mean when we say “biblically literate” or “biblically illiterate,” but do we all mean the same thing? I don’t think we do, and…
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Fences: Mending or Rending
The following is a sermon I presented at the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Pensacola on September 11,2005 and originally posted here on September 13, 2005. I’m reposting it because when I went to look for it, I found that the original post had somehow been truncated, and also because there is a one word at a…
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Experiencing the (Baptism of the) Holy Spirit
This is a topic where I tend to make just about everyone uncomfortable. Long time readers may recall a previous discussion of speaking in tongues, and my own experience of it. Those who expect me to be intellectually oriented and rational are uncomfortable with mystical experiences, and many who are comfortable with the mystical experiences…
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Is Your Worship a Joy
As I’ve been setting up a series of posts on thinking about God, I’ve discussed a little bit what our theology can do, and what it cannot. For example, in a video yesterday, I talked about how our theological knowledge cannot save us. Yet at the same time it can mess us up. I was…
Symbols, Actions, and Idolatry
I encountered a question recently that I’d like to explore a bit. The question comes in three parts, or perhaps with three perspectives. When God commanded the Israelites to look to the bronze serpent to be healed, was God commanding idolatry? Why would God give this command? Was this a good command? It’s easy to…
Knowing About God or Knowing God
In the dim reaches of time (no, no dinosaurs, not that long ago) I was attending college, and right during registration for my second year, I heard the call of God to study biblical languages. The call is another story, but whether it was God or not, the idea of studying the languages fit with…
What Do I Do About Grace?
This question has come up a number of times in my Romans study group, and it’s a good one. I’m not one to call all questions good. In fact, I think if you ask the wrong question, you often end up with an answer that leads you astray. In this case, however, we’ve gone from…
Substitutionary Atonement: One of Many Perspectives
I have often annoyed people by saying both that I believe in substitutionary atonement, though I prefer not to use “penal substitutionary atonement,” and also do not believe it is the sole reason for, view of, or metaphor to describe what God did in the atonement. So it’s nice to link to Roger Olson, who…
Freedom and Responsibility
I posted an extract from Dave Black’s blog on The Jesus Paradigm today. (I do this because you can’t link to a specific post on Dave’s blog, and I have his permission.) Dave is talking about Galatians 5:13-15, and what freedom means. Rather than commenting on this passage myself, I want to put a quote…
Of Christians and Ayn Rand
There have been a number of articles recently discussing Ayn Rand and her Christian supporters and (supposed) followers. One of these is by Sheila Kennedy, who doesn’t do all that bad, though I still see things differently. Key Questions which I Might not Answer The key issues I encounter are: How can a Christian enjoy…
A Challenge to See
This past Sunday I was invited to preach in my home church, Chumuckla Community Church. It’s a real privilege to speak on the last Sunday of the year, hopefully rounding up where we have been and presenting a challenge for the future. I was offered the epiphany scriptures, and used Matthew 2:1-12. I’m not going…
Link: Linguistics and Gospel Origins
Dave Black had some interesting notes on this subject today, which I posted to The Jesus Paradigm. There is a constant debate on what is “correct” usage. We have this with regard to modern usage. I’ll have authors cite some manual against their editor, usually on optional items. So why do we expect all usage…
Link: Timeline of the Far Future
Via FiveThirtyEight.com’s Significant Digits, which I read religiously and daily, I discovered the Timeline of the Far Future on Wikipedia. I am particularly concerned that in 600 million years C3 photosynthesis will become impossible.
Link: Geneaology Mixup in Luke Manuscript
This from CSNTM will give you some insight into the study of manuscripts:Â From the Library: Luke’s Genealogy in NT Manuscripts.
A Moment with Brevard Childs on Exodus
I’ve appreciated the work of Brevard Childs since I first encountered him via his Isaiah volume in the Old Testament Library series.I just finished with the first section in his Exodus volume (see below), and I have to say that I find it even better. Childs takes note of source and redactional issues, but subordinates…
Diversity in Worship
This is another one from those in my former denomination, but again it speaks to everyone, I think. Diverse Unity in Adventist Worship. I think this could speak to worship for anyone.
When One Issue Drowns Out Others
After interviewing Allan R. Bevere a few days ago I discovered another video. First, here’s my interview with Allan. We were talking about the United Methodist Church General Conference in 2019 looking for a way forward as a denomination with regard to same-sex marriage and related issues. The new video is from the Adventist News…
Jacob’s Ladder as an Example of Grace
I believe that God’s grace is taught as much in the Old Testament (or Hebrew Scriptures) as in the new. The key element here is that Israel was never called to obey in order to earn God’s acceptance, but rather were offered God’s acceptance and then called upon to obey. One of the problems with…
Slippery Slopes
There are a few terms that are quite true and yet misleading in many actual uses. I like to cite “Christians aren’t perfect; just forgiven.” Precisely true, but in common use very likely an excuse for ordinary bad behavior. Whatever the intent, it ends up sounding like, “I’m a Christian, so I can do whatever…
What’s Old about the Old Testament?
Many years ago, more years than I will admit to, I went into a Jewish book and supply store and requested a copy of the “Hebrew Old Testament.” I recall vividly the look on the store clerk’s face, and I apologized, but it’s not an error that you can recover from easily. To a Jew,…
Free Will and Hardening Hearts (Romans 9:14-24)
This is a follow-up to my last Wednesday night’s (November, 2018) discussion from Romans 9 at Chumuckla Community Church. The passage cited is not my suggestion of a good division of the material in Romans 9, but rather is just where we started and ended up. I did have to look back to verse 13…
Why Christians Should Embrace Science
First, of course, we should ask why anyone should embrace science*. It’s not because: Science is perfect Scientists are without biases and always produce objective truth The results of science are never in error Science can decide everything for us I’m reminded of the quote, “The perfect is the enemy of the good.” Frequently people…
Voting Tomorrow
Let me first warn you that this post contains nothing whatsoever that’s exciting. 🙂 Well other than the three interviews I conducted with Energion authors about the election. Tomorrow I will go to my polling place and cast my vote. I’m a traditionalist. I go to the polls on election day. I’m happy that there are…
Link: We Don’t Really Know
I really like this article about detecting deception from FiveThirtyEight.com. Of course, I should note that it totally supports my own view on the matter, as held before I read it!
United Methodists for a Gracious Exit
This is something I can support: United Methodists for a Gracious Exit. No matter what we do as a church, we need to be gracious to others.
Argument Test
Whether you’re using an argument against someone’s position, or dealing with application of a text, try it out against yourself. As in X said A contradicting Y who said B. Response: “X has been known to lie/be wrong.” Would you accept “Y has been known to lie/be wrong” if you held position B?