I am 200 pages into N.T. Wright’s massive Paul and the Faithfulness of God (Fortress, 2013). In due time, I will be doing an evaluative review for Interpretation. However, a 1500-word review can hardly do justice to a 1500+ page book of this complexity and depth (a 5000 word review would still seem inadequate!). Also, an evaluative review will, of necessity, focus on the flow and substance of Wright’s wider argumentation, but there are so many anecdotal, exegetical, and even random “goodies”... Read more

Yesterday, while I was microwaving left-over pizza for lunch, I read Robert Gundry’s incisive, critical review of Reza Aslan’s Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. Was Jesus’ primary aim to commit sedition against Rome? Aslan thinks so, but his arguments are put through the wringer by Gundry. Today, for some research I am doing on Scripture and justice, I dipped into David J. Bosch’s trend-setting Transforming Mission (1991; often-recommended to me in seminary, but I only cracked the spine... Read more

Yes, I am yet another ZonderFan of Mike Bird’s new Evangelical Theology. As I will say in a soon-coming review, I usually find systematic theologies a snore-fest, but I find Mike’s work very engaging, easy to read, and visually appealing (great charts and sidebars). Here is a nice quotable-bit on the atonement: …the atonement is the climax of God’s project to put the world to right through the cross of Jesus. The atonement brings God’s people into God’s place under... Read more

Only just today did I have a chance to finally begin reading Dale C. Allison’s new ICC volume on James (Bloombury, T & T Clark, 2013). I was able to complete the introduction and I can confidently say that Allison’s knowledge of the secondary literature is astonishing and his discussion always insightful. He has read and interacts quite extensively with the relevant literature, not only in the last century, but throughout the centuries of Christian interpretation of this text. Indeed,... Read more

Recently I read the CEB text and study material for the Gospel of Matthew in the Common English Bible Study Bible (Abingdon 2013). Here are some soundings: – The study material is provided by Eugene Eung-Chun Park and Joel B. Green. – A one-page introduction gets you into the basic orientation towards the First Gospel: “The overarching theme of the Gospel of Matthew is the role of Jesus as the Christ in relation to God’s plan of salvation for all... Read more

Tomorrow (Nov 4), I will be giving a public lecture on the subject of violence in Scripture. I have given this lecture a number of times now, and while it is only inklings and exploratory thoughts, it has always generated good discussions. If you are in the area, come on over. You can find the details here. Read more

If you missed the 11AM (EST) live lecture and discussion with N.T. Wright today regarding his new book on Paul, they have now posted the recording for public viewing. Go here. Read more

I just got word of a live webcast with NT Wright that is happening today (Wed, Oct 30) at 11AM EST. Wright will be talking about his new Paul book – Paul and the Faithfulness of God (Fortress, 2013). The Webcast is hosted by Wycliffe Hall. The link is here. Read more

Imagine that you, a preaching pastor, made a plan to preach through the Sermon on the Mount for six weeks. That plan sounded great a year ago when you set up the preaching calendar. But now that the series is a week away from beginning, you scramble to pick up “resources” for studying this important and complex portion of Scripture. So you are a bit panicked. Now, imagine, in the midst of your panic, you hear your computer “bleep” informing... Read more

“For disciples who live in the sphere where God rules through the risen Jesus, doing the greater righteousness is the normal order of things” – Jack Dean Kingsbury (“The Place, Structure, and Meaning of the Sermon on the Mount within Matthew,” 131) Read more