PART ONE Continuing my personal assessment of the state of Dispensationalism, here are four more factors: 6. Lack of grounded, holistic Dispensationalist Systematics I referred to this above but it bears a little more investigation. Dispensational Systematic Theologies don’t exactly grow on trees. And this is unusual amid the general popularity of Systematic Theology in evangelical circles. Here are the major Dispensational works that I am aware of: Lewis Sperry Chafer (1947) – a large work with some excellent chapters. …
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Daniel Hummel has written a book that has got a attention recently. The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism: How the Evangelical Battle over the End Times Shaped a Nation has made a splash because it is an irenic study of the movement. Hummel has written an essay at the Gospel Coalition called “4 Snapshots of Dispensationalism Today.” He makes four points in his essay: 2. Scholarly dispensationalism has declined in recent decades. 3. The effect of these two trends on …
When I say Christ is the central Figure of Scripture what I mean is that He is the central Protagonist of God’s Creation Project. Here is an example of the Christ’s eminence in the Bible: God created all things through Jesus Christ (Eph. 3:9, Jn. 1:3), and all things created through Him were also created for Him (Col. 1:16). At this present hour the whole creation is upheld through Him (Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3). He is the Lord …
A review of Douglas Van Dorn, Giants: Sons of the Gods, revised & expanded, Dacono, CO, Waters of Creation Publishing, 2023, v + 385 pages, pbk. This review is certainly a departure from what I normally decide to write about (though see this). Yes, it is a book about the giants of the Bible and the ancient (and not so ancient) world. The author is a sober-minded pastor of a Reformed Baptist church in Colorado. Van Dorn is an amillennial …
Centuries passed before the time of the birth of Jesus Christ in the small hamlet of Bethlehem Judah around the Year 5-7 B.C.[1] Bethlehem was the place where David was born (1 Sam. 17:12), and also was the place where the Messiah would be born (Mic. 5:2). Yahweh had pinpointed Bethlehem so no other birthplace would be right for Jesus Christ. Not Jerusalem, not Rome, but tiny Bethlehem. God means what He says. And He would be born precisely at …
I’m doing the boring chore of name and Scripture indices at the moment. Here’s an excerpt from the forthcoming book. First of all, we must dismiss this view, held by many pious men throughout history, that the Church is in the OT. The New covenant was not made in the OT, and I have shown the Church to be a New covenant institution. The NT records the making of the New covenant in Jesus’ blood (Lk. 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25). This …
So I decided to do an annotated bibliography for the upcoming book. Here I have selected a set of samples to give an idea of what I said. If anyone wants to comment on how these short notes can be improved that would be great: A * means I recommend it even if I may disagree. A # means I have reviewed the work. A Abasciano, Brian J., “Clearing Up Misconceptions About Corporate Election,” Ashland Theological Journal, 41:1 (NA 2009). A response …
It may be help if I jot down what I believe to be the essence of my approach. I hasten to add that there is quite a bit more to it, but I would be satisfied if anyone studying my work were to characterize it under those five points. Everything else that I espouse is a direct result of these foundational tenets. …
A review of Benjamin P. Laird & Miguel G. Echevarria, 40 Questions About the Apostle Paul, Grand Rapids, Kregel, 2023, 319 pages, paperback. This is another of Kregel’s generally excellent “40 Questions” series, several of which have been reviewed at this blog. The book is divided into three parts: Part One answers questions about the Apostle’s life. Part Two focuses on Paul’s writings, and then Part Three is about Paul’s theology. The first section does a great job of covering the bases of Paul’s …
I read many books this year. Here are my thoughts on some of them: Peter Stuhlmacher, Biblical Theology of the New Testament A tome which covers methodology, canonicity, and, in it’s main section the theology (“proclamation”) of the NT. Quite easy to read for the well-versed. I found myself ingesting large chunks of this at one sitting. Really liked the chapters on Paul and after and on John. Stanley E. Porter, The Apostle Paul: His Life, Thought, and Letters Thorough and informative without being …
