Hungering and Thirsting for Rightness

discipleship, justice

Matt 5:6

As naturally as apple trees bear apples, righteous people do the right thing. Indeed, citizens in the Kingdom of God, justified (made right) by the grace of God through Jesus, will seek out wrongs to make right.

English translations typically translate the Greek and Hebrew nouns dikaiosune and tsedeqah with “righteousness” and related adjectives with “righteous.” Unfortunately, centuries of usage in the contexts of piety and spirituality have given these terms the patina of interiority and other-worldliness. One hears them as references to purely Continue reading Hungering and Thirsting for Rightness →

The Mistranslated Gospel

Christian faith, interpretation, translation

This entry initiates a series that will examine the nuances of important concepts in Christianity as represented by the pertinent terms used in the Bible. In general, words are astonishingly slippery. They have connotations: although skinny and slender, for example, denote virtually the same condition, they do not communicate the same thing when Continue reading The Mistranslated Gospel →

Ordination

church, grace, ministry, selfishness, vocation

A Protestant View of “Apostolic Succession”

Does the validity of ordination depend upon the status of the “ordainer”?  A former student of mine and current reader of this blog has asked me to advise her on this question, which, in turn, a friend of hers posed to her. She acknowledges that, while she has her own convictions on the matter, she cannot substantiate them with detailed arguments. The Continue reading Ordination →

The “Nones” and I Have Something in Common

atheism, church, civil society, cosmology, discipleship, idolatry, materialism, monotheism, nationalism, racism, tradition

I, Too, Don’t Trust “Organized Religion”

By all accounts, we are well into a cultural period defined in part by the decreasing importance of religion in peoples’ lives. We hear and read almost daily about the millennial generation’s a-religiosity, the so-called “nones,” and those who profess spirituality without religion. People discount and decry “organized religion” with a tone of contempt.  After all, Continue reading The “Nones” and I Have Something in Common →

Romans 13 – Obedience to the Government

church, ethics, government, interpretation, nationalism, Pauline epistles, politics, sovereignty

“Obedience … in the Lord”

The current public debate concerning events at the nation’s southern border, especially the separation of families and the detainment of small children, exposes the profound degree of Christian disunity regarding issues of church-state relations, ethics, and biblical interpretation. Unfortunately, Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ citation of Romans 13 seems Continue reading Romans 13 – Obedience to the Government →

Reading the Prophets

Apocalyptic, interpretation, prophecy

A recent presentation on “Reading the Prophets” made at Powhatan Community Church, Dr. Brian Hughes, Pastor.   The password is “Biddle.”

 

On Being Useful vs. Suffering Abuse

creation, discipleship, family, free will, grace, love, poverty, reconciliation, redemption, women

According to this morning’s news, the Paige Patterson/SWBTS saga continues. Its prominence in the news cycle has focused my thinking on Jesus’ call to self-sacrificial love both as properly understood and also as commonly misunderstood. Continue reading On Being Useful vs. Suffering Abuse →

An Embassy in Jerusalem, a Rebuilt Temple, and Cynical Support for Israel

Apocalyptic, Arab-Israeli Conflict, Dispensationalism, prophecy

The recent ceremony celebrating the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem featured two figures that call attention to the cynical character of the uncritical support of the modern nation of Israel offered by many evangelical Christians in the US.

Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church Dallas, who offered a benediction at the Continue reading An Embassy in Jerusalem, a Rebuilt Temple, and Cynical Support for Israel →

Spousal Abuse and Biblical Interpretation

ethics, family, imago Dei, interpretation, love, Paul, Pauline epistles, violence, women

Eph 4:21-33

A couple of weeks ago, the Baptist Blogger posted a video of a sermon preached in 2000 by fundamentalist SBC leader and president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary Paige Patterson. In the sermon, Patterson related a story about a woman who sought his counsel concerning how to deal with her abusive husband. He advised her simply to pray, Continue reading Spousal Abuse and Biblical Interpretation →

The “Christian Sabbath”

Acts, covenant, Easter, Exodus, interpretation, Sabbath

Saturday or Sunday?

Just as my “medical vacation” has ended (I am “back in the saddle,” as it were, although the horse is old, slow, and docile – no galloping yet), a question has come to me from a former student that probably crosses the minds of many Christians.  If God commanded the observance of the Sabbath (seventh) day of the week (Saturday) as a holy day of rest and worship, why do Christians, who presumably desire to obey God’s specific commands, worship on the first day of the week, Sunday?  The question invites a practical answer, a “Pauline” answer, and a reaffirmation of the theological purpose of Sabbath observance. Continue reading The “Christian Sabbath” →