If it was good enough for Jesus it is good enough for us! This is sentiment I have heard repeatedly in the discussion of Adam, Eve, science and Christian faith. It seems clear (some will claim) that Jesus regarded Adam and Eve as historical figures. He taught that Adam and Eve were historical figures. But is this actually what the available evidence in the Gospels demonstrates? What follows is an edited repost examining the topic. Jesus is the Center. Jesus... Read more

There is nothing less than a full throated irritation among some today. Some contend Christians are being persecuted, some think that claim is risible and biting into a NothingBurger, some come back with responses of incredulity that anyone cannot see this, and others say this is alarmism pure and simple. More of some of this when I blog about Rod Dreher’s new book The Benedict Option. For today I want to trot out what I read recently in Mary Eberstadt’s little... Read more

A new cohort for the DMin in New Testament Context is taking shape, and I could not be more excited about who is enrolling. Think about joining us… we begin July 10-14, 2017. This will be our second iteration of a new and innovative Doctor of Ministry (DMin) program at Northern Seminary. Here’s our announcement: “The DMin in New Testament Context will give pastors the opportunity of a lifetime.  In my speaking and conversations with pastors, preachers, and lay folks,... Read more

By Kelly Edmiston, @kellyedmiston Student minister at First Colony Church of Christ. I’m just not feelin’ it any longer,” she said to me, from across the table where we sat facing each other in the coffee shop. With our lattes between us, I could see the steam from the hot cups billow up and disappear as it met the cool crisp morning air. She went on, “It used to feel so real and so powerful when I prayed. I used... Read more

His contention is that faith means “allegiance.” Why? Because that’s what our gospel requires and because that is what the term “faith” (pistis) means.  The old question, “What is saving faith?” is the question Matthew Bates is actually answering, and it is an old theological question. (See Matthew Bates Salvation by Allegiance Alone: Rethinking Faith, Works, and the Gospel of Jesus the King.) Money quote: The gospel reaches its zenith with Jesus’s installation and sovereign rule as the Christ, the king. As... Read more

Oftentimes when discussing issues of science and faith, or other issues that challenge the conventional thinking of the Christian faith, someone will up and quote or paraphrase Paul from his letters to the Corinthians. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”... Read more

It’s a risk to ask if God behaves badly in the pages of the Old Testament, a question asked by David Lamb in his book God Behaving Badly, and it’s the same to ask with Mark Strauss about Jesus Behaving Badly, but there’s less risk to ask with Randy Richards and Brandon O’Brien about Paul Behaving Badly. But some get nervous here because they fear that one is getting near irreverence toward Scripture, and then the come back that Paul, after... Read more

I contend that as Americans on the Right or on the Left and as Americans of various races and ethnicities separate themselves from the church they develop transcendent expectations of Washington DC, the political process and our elected officials. Transcendence is inherent to who we are and either we locate it in God or we locate it in something else, and today many have transferred that sense of transcendence to political results. An amazing new piece by Peter Beinart, The Atlantic.,... Read more