This is the second part of the 3 part interview with Preston Sprinkle the co-author (with Francis Chan) of the new book Erasing Hell: What God said about eternity, and the things we made up.

On July 1st, Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle will release a new book on Hell called Erasing Hell: What God said about eternity, and the things we made up. Here’s part one of a three part interview produced by Eternity Bible College where Preston is a Professor. Preston is a good friend of both Mike’s [...]

Over at ABC Religion and Ethics, John Dickson socks it to atheist philosopher Tamas Pataki about a lot of things pertaining to religion, science, history, and archaeology. Quite a demolition job. Very interesting comments follow it (interesting in the sense of gauging the radical ignorance and gallant bigotry of some non-believers).

In the second chapter of Nachfolge (Discipleship), Bonhoeffer has some incredible things to say about the Law and the Gospel–Incredible coming from a Lutheran. Perhaps the most thought provoking statement nugget is The call to discipleship is a commitment solely to the person of Jesus . . . It is beyond enmity between law and [...]

Bono and the Edge’s Broadway endeavor Spider-Man finally opened last night in Manhattan to mixed reviews. All seem to agree, however, that this version 2.0 is significantly superior to what was rolled out in February. After 183 previews and $70 million spent in production, the musical opened last night with pomp and circumstance. USA Today [...]

Prof. Jim Davilla of St. Andrews Uni has fresh news about the “More Old Testament Pseudepigrapha Project” including a table of contents for the volume.

The SMH reports Anglican Archbishop of Sydney Peter Jensen’s article on marriage where he claims that same-sex marriages will lead to incest and polygamy. Jensen supports legislation that extended the economic rights of married people to same-sex couples, but said religious leaders needed to defend marriage or risk losing the right to do so. My [...]

Scot McKnight The Letter of James NICNT; Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2010. Available at Amazon.com Scot McKnight is Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies at North Park University and writes the award-winning Jesus Creed blog at patheos.com. McKnight recently fulfilled a lifelong dream when he wrote a volume for The New International Commentary on the New Testament series [...]

I still have many connections with Scotland folks in the Church of Scotland and Free Church of Scotland. So I’m naturally interested in news and current affairs in the Kirk there. Recent news is that Rev. Dominic Smart of Gilcomston South Church in Aberdeen is leading his congregation out of the Church of Scotland in [...]

In light of my friendly disagreement with Brant Pitre’s rather wave of the hand dismissal of a non-eucharistic interpretation of John 6 in his recent book Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist: Unlocking the Secrets of the Last Supper, I want to quote  J. Ramsey Michael’s (2010) new commentary on John’s Gospel: While [...]

Eerdmans publishers has four books about Judaism that have come out in the last year or so. Anathea E. Portier-Young, Apocalypse Against Empire: Theologies of Resistance in Early Judaism (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2011). This volume looks at how sections of 1 Enoch and the Book of Daniel represent responses – political, religious, cosmological, and [...]

Awhile back, before the end of the academic semester and a trip to Greece and Turkey,  I began a series of posts working my way through Brant Pitre’s really good and accessible book on the Jewish background of the Lord’s Supper called Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist: Unlocking the Secrets of the [...]

Just been reading a bit of Anselm’s Cur Deus Homo (Why Did God become Man?) and found this gem of a quote from the Canterburian bishop. For, as death came upon the human race by the disobedience of one man, it was fitting that by another man’s obedience life should be restored. And, as sin, [...]

My forthcoming book with Paternoster, Jesus is the Christ: The Messianic Testimony of the Gospels, examines the theme of “messiah” and “messianism” in the christological fabric of the four Gospels. Basically I’ve reworked over a couple of articles I wrote for Reformed Theological Review on Mark and Luke, added some material Matthew and John, and included an [...]