I’ve never made up a “books I’m going to read this year” list. But this year might be different. I want to be more organized and disciplined in my reading, so I’ve been keeping a mental list of books I’m going to (try to) read in 2015. As you’ll see, the list is a strange blend of popular, academic, fiction, non-fiction, and is (still) dominated by books about sexuality, homosexuality, and gender. Here’s what I’ve got so far. Kyle Harper,... Read more
Oh my goodness! I’m so stoked. I just got word that registration is now open for the first ever Center for Pastor Theologians annual conference, which will be held in Chicago this November (2-4). And if you love theology, ministry, people, and Jesus (not in that order), then you won’t want to miss this one! It’s going to go down as a great turning point in church history. Okay, maybe that’s a bit over the top. But I’m positive that... Read more
In the previous three posts (FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD), I’ve argued that the terminal punishment (aka “annihilation”) view of hell deserves a chair at the Evangelical table. Before you sharpen your pitch-forks and stoke the fire, please make sure you read all four posts in this series. If you still think I’ve turned to the dark side or abandoned Christian orthodoxy, then so be it. I’ve tried my best to show that there are good, compelling, biblical arguments in favor... Read more
In my previous post, I summarized some of the strongest biblical arguments in favor of terminal punishment. In this post, I want to summarize the best arguments for eternal conscious torment (ECT)—the traditional view of hell where the wicked will experience never-ending punishment. Let me begin with some of the weaker, though common, arguments that are often given for ECT. First, the images of “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 8:12; 22:13: 25:30; Luke 13:28) and the “undying worm” (Mark... Read more
In my previous post, I said that while I am not an “Annihilationist,” I do see enough biblical support for this position to qualify it as an Evangelical option. I have not yet had the time to clear my desk to engage in prayerful, thorough, painstaking exegesis to have landed on this position. But from what I have seen, there’s a good deal of sound, biblical arguments for it. Before we examine these, we need to know what it is... Read more
When I was nearing the end of Seminary back in 2002, I’ll never forget hearing that the great Evangelical leader John Stott was an “Annihilationist;” that is, he believed that hell does not consist of everlasting conscious torment. I remember thinking, “What? I thought that John Stott was a Christian?” I then wrestled with how such a stalwart of the Evangelical faith could have been an imposture all these years. Since true Christian can’t loose their salvation, I found theological... Read more
I often get asked if I’m “Reformed.” Oftentimes people just assume that I’m “Reformed.” Since I don’t care for labels and resist giving yes or no answers to complex questions, I usually give an answer much longer than the asker cared to receive. Am I “Reformed?” No, but I am “reformed”—lower-case “r.” Here’s why. I believe that God’s agency is primary, prior to, and causative of a person’s response to God in salvation. In other words, I chose God because... Read more
In this fifth and final post of the series, I’ll lay out my own views about the so-called New Perspective on Paul (NPP). I’ve insinuated throughout that I’m not an advocate of the NPP, and yet I’ve tried to accurately and fairly represent it in the previous posts. So, what do I see wrong with the New Perspective? Three things. First, NPP proponents (broadly speaking) see Paul and first-century Judaism as having the same structure of salvation, but different identify... Read more
We wrapped up the previous post with a question: “What role do works play in our future justification?” We’ll get to that question below, but first, let’s throw the whole Piper/Wright debate on the table. In a nutshell: Piper thinks Wright has seriously revamped the gospel, and Wright thinks that Piper is reading too much systematic theology back into the text. I’ve been a little discouraged by the whole exchange, since both Piper and Wright have hugely impacted my life... Read more
The last two posts have summed up some key New Testament passages that are foundational for the New Perspective on Paul (Rom 3:28-30; 4:12-14; Gal 2:11-16). James Dunn and others have argued from these passages that since first century Judaism was not legalistic (as shown by Sanders), Paul was not arguing against Jewish legalism with his justification by faith, but against ethnic exclusivity. To be justified by faith and not by works of the law means that Jews and Gentiles... Read more
Theology in the Raw
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