From Kyle Korver: Two concepts that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately are guilt and responsibility. When it comes to racism in America, I think that guilt and responsibility tend to be seen as more or less the same thing. But I’m beginning to understand how there’s a real difference. As white people, are we guilty of the sins of our forefathers? No, I don’t think so. But are we responsible for them? Yes, I believe we are. And I guess I’ve come to realize that... Read more

A number of varied sources recently have led me to learn that some well-known preachers and speakers are preaching sermons they, in effect, did not write and use research they did not do themselves. I know some names and I’m not afraid to use them but I won’t do that in this post. To get more specific, some pay significant sums for researchers to do the exegetical and biblical work, sometimes involving writing introductions and even providing illustrations. Others are... Read more

The next few chapters of Daniel Harrell’s book, Nature’s Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith, looks at the theological questions raised by the possibility of evolutionary creation. Providence. He considers the question of providence and introduces some categories. There is ordinary providence (the everyday workings of the “natural” world), extraordinary providence (as when God employs the wind or the locusts), and supernatural providence (resurrection being a prime example). The latter is an out-breaking of God’s future in the present. None... Read more

James Davison Hunter and Paul Nedelisky, in their new book called Science and the Good: The Tragic Quest for the Foundations of Morality, sketch the results of 500 years of the “scientific” study of morality. What has science achieved? (That’s their question.) Another question is What kind of results has it achieved? They begin with a brief on what science is: A more robust definition of science attempts to tie it to the observation of empirical data, mathematical representability, testability, and... Read more

One of my all-time favorite books exploring the relationship between science and Christian faith was written by a pastor… a pastor in a university community, committed to taking science and faith seriously. Nature’s Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith is a book I recommend highly to Christians interested in the topic – especially those with little or no scientific training. It is an entertaining and thought-provoking read. The book is worth a new look. As I am traveling a great... Read more

According to Miroslav Volf and Matthew Croasmun there is a crisis in theology (broadly considered through its location in academic institutions in North America) and they speak to this crisis in For the Life of the World. Remember this from our last post about this new, important book: We believe the purpose of theology is to discern, articulate, and commend visions of flourishing life in light of God’s self-revelation in Jesus Christ. The flourishing of human beings and all God’s creatures... Read more

Allan Bevere, who did his PhD under James DG Dunn on Colossians (when Dunn was doing his own work on Colossians), wrote a review of my Colossians commentary, and this is an excerpt of his review: “Paul’s Christo-theological message of Colossians can be reduced to ‘God has conquered the powers, delivered all humans from sin and its powers, and reconciled the entire cosmos to himself in, through, and under Christ.'” So writes Scot McKnight in his commentary on Colossians in the NICNT... Read more

By Geoff Holsclaw: a professor and pastor, offering a free mini-course on The 3 Forgotten Reasons for Jesus’ Death, to help expand your understanding of Jesus’s death. While it might seem gross and barbaric, all Christians confess that salvation is through the blood of Jesus (Eph. 1:7). But what does that really mean? Does God demand death? Is the blood a symbol of something else? Does it speak of a price paid? Or a gift given? And what is this price? This gift? As... Read more

To talk kingdom is to talk king, the king’s rule, the king’s people, the king’s law/ethics and the king’s land. Nicholas Perrin discusses the king of the kingdom in his new book: The Kingdom of God: A Biblical Theology. In other words, for Mark it is not merely a question of identity (Is Jesus the king or not?), but also a question of modality (If he is, what kind of king is he?) and functionality (If he is, what will he... Read more

Tune in tomorrow, Monday, night at 7pm and 8pm Central. Two more wonderful episodes. Read more