Part One Prophecies of Far Future Events The ministries of Samuel (see 1 Sam. 3:9-18), Elijah (2 Ki. 1:3-4), Micaiah (1 Ki. 22:17-20), and Elisha (2 Ki. 3:14-19) included short-term predictions which could be verified. But there were also prophecies which anticipated things much further off, like Nathan’s oracle, I will also appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, nor will the wicked …
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An draft excerpt from the book ‘The Words of the Covenant’ (forthcoming DV) It is commonly asserted within biblical scholarship that the main focus of the prophet was on proclamation; that only incidentally was he (or she) concerned with prediction. In many studies of the role of the prophet the emphasis is put upon the prophet’s function as a moral exhorter to his time and place. Here is a recent example: The prophet’s role was to speak the word of …
Alright, I’m on vacation and I wanted to give this article another twirl. Hope you like it. Introduction The greatest British theologian of the 17th Century was, in the opinion of many, John Owen. Owen made distinctive contributions in a number of theological loci. His book on the mutual relationship within the Trinity and our communion with each of the Divine Persons is still the best work on the subject.[1] Likewise, his manifesto for congregational-independency[2] offers some of the best …
This was first posted in 2010. Many people have maybe heard of what is called presuppositional apologetics but have little idea what it actually is. This situation is made worse because some defenders of the Faith are labeled presuppositional but, in fact, aren’t. So how should I describe it? The first thing I would say is that although I personally have few problems with it, “presuppositionalism” is not perhaps the best name for the approach. A more preferable title would …
A little while back Fred Butler told me that he had passed on my Forty Reasons article to a group of brethren connected with a network called Bible Thumping Wingnut. These men are proponents of New Covenant Theology and host a podcast called ‘Conversations on the Porch.’ They decided to spend some time on a critique of my article. This series of posts is my belated rejoinder to what they had to say. First off, I have to admit …
The following was written in response to a seminary teacher who wanted to know my opinion on Biblical Theology texts. My Thoughts on Biblical Theologies The first thing to say is that the definition of Biblical Theology is elastic. We have an idea of what it is but perhaps because of the various ways of actually doing it the works on BT can look quite different. For that reason i have tried to include a few varieties in my list, …
This is an older post acting as a stop-gap until I can get my laptop fixed. The computer I’m using is so slow that this post should be considered a near miracle. Everybody knows it. The Bible is composed of two parts: what we have come to call the Old Testament and the New Testament. Too, most people understand that by the Old Testament we mean the 39 books of the Protestant Bible. These are the same books which in …
The First Twenty 21. Saying the NT must reinterpret the OT also devalues the OT as its own witness to God and His Plans. For example, if the promises given to ethnic Israel of land, throne, temple, etc. are somehow “fulfilled” in Jesus and the Church, what was the point of speaking about them so pointedly? Cramming everything into Christ not only destroys the clarity and unity of Scripture in the ways already mentioned, it reduces the biblical covenants down …
Leslie T. Hardin, The Spirituality of Paul, Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 2016, 190 pages. This book is written in a lively and engaging style by a professor of New Testament at Johnson University in Florida, an institution connected to the ‘Stone-Campbell’ Restoration Movement. The University’s Statement of Faith expresses clearly the major bone of contention between Restorationist churches and Evangelical churches: Faith, repentance, confession of faith in Jesus, baptism (immersion) and prayer are for the remission of past sins, and …
A review of The Kingdom of Speech by Tom Wolfe. Audiobook read by Robert Petkoff, 2016. This little book by the novelist and contemporary commentator on modern culture Tom Wolfe is worth the attention of anyone interested in the enigma of language. An enigma it is, more especially if one does not understand language as God ordained. Wolfe would appear to be an example of this point of view. So if Wolfe does not connect language to the Creator, but …
