The Bible and Culture

Tom Wright’s suggestion (cited on p. 145) that maybe Adam and Eve were picked out of the 10,000 hominids and endowed with representative power as in the image of God, is certainly possible, but not necessary. As Scot says, the Genesis story leaves the impression that Adam and Eve are the only persons around. One could argue they are the only progenitors of God’s people, who are the only people about whom the story is told. Adam and Eve may not be Israel, but the story is suggesting they are th … [Read more...]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cv2ueYnKjgThe second edition of Guardians of the Galaxy took quite some time to emerge (the first one appeared in summer of 2014). Somehow mysteriously during the interim we lost big Groot and acquired baby Groot, as well as a bunch of other characters, for example, Nebula (Karen Gillan) as the antagonistic sister of Gamora, or Kurt Russell as EGO (and boy is he appropriately named, he's god in his own little world which he created), and Sylvester Stalone … [Read more...]

Boy do I have some fabulous news for all ya'll. The brand new collection of C.K. Barrett's sermons has launched on Kindle at a ridiculously low price. Here's the deal....Luminescence, Volume 1: The Sermons of C. K. and Fred Barrett Kindle Edition by C. K. Barrett (Author), Fred Barrett (Author), Ben Witherington III (Editor), & 1 moreKindle $9.99Yep, only $9.99. Of the hoards of people who have been asking when all these juicy quotes from CKB are going to be … [Read more...]

On pp. 143-44 we run into more problems. Adam and Eve are not Israel, they are the progenitors of the people who became Israel. Yes, Israel’s experience mimics the experience of Adam and Eve right down to the exiling part, but the two should not be equated, any more than Christ is Israel. Christ is the last Adam, that’s clear from Paul, but it is equally clear in Paul that Israel means non-Christian Jews in Rom. 9-11, who are distinguished from their messiah in Rom. 9.1-5.So it is a mis … [Read more...]

I like the line on p. 140 from Durham’s own Venerable Bede--- “Adam had the burden of embarrassment, but not the humility of confession.” Scot’s next comment is near the mark on the same page--- “Every conceivable relationship is affected by their choice, and this infection begins to spread until in 8.21 God can say this of human “every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood”.I agree with the view that the banishment from the garden is to prevent Adam and Eve from eating f … [Read more...]

One of the best insights comes with Thesis 9 (pp. 139-40), namely the sharing of responsibility with God to govern the creation necessarily implies freedom—‘you are free to eat from any tree except’ implies both permission and prohibition, and more importantly it implies that humans have the power to freely choose one or the other.Where I would disagree with Scot is it does seem to me that he has underestimated what the Bible actually says about human fallenness as a result of the curse. … [Read more...]

Thesis 6 is about the fact that humans are bi-gendered for the sake of procreation, so humans can multiply and flourish themselves. They are gendered not just for multiplication but also for mutuality, for relationship, a one flesh relationship that only a male and female can share. Scot discussion of ezer kenegdo is right on target (pp. 134-35). It means a suitable helper, and since God himself can be called the helper of Israel (Ps 121.1-2), the term implies no subordination of one party … [Read more...]

I have to also disagree with the statement on p. 127 that all of creation was designed “not for humans but for God”. Wrong, it is quite specifically designed for human and animal life, God doesn’t need it! Or better said, it is designed for human life so that we can both have a relationship with God, being in his image, and with the rest of creation, and of course worship the creator of it all.Under thesis 4 we have some helpful discussion of male and female made in God’s image. Followi … [Read more...]