April 21, 2012 in
Hermeneutics, Secondary Illuminations with
(The following comprises Part Fourteen of the Saturday series on Secondary Illuminations of Scripture.)
Last week we briefly considered Psalm 68:11-13. Psalm 68 is rich in allusions, and those verses hold particular encouragements for women. Now we’ll look at vv. 15-16 in a manner that builds on the encouragements of vv. 11-13. You may decide if I am over-reaching in my use of secondary illumination hermeneutics or if the Scriptures are hereby opened up appropriately. Luke’s blog on the “unconscious” intentions of Bible authors may be helpful in sorting this out (found here).
By way of background, Matthew Henry suggests that Moses’ blessing upon the placement of the ark in Numbers 10:35 is the source of the opening lines of this psalm of rest and victory and that this might indicate that David composed Psalm 68 upon moving the ark into its tent after military rest had come to the nation.[1] This could be significant as we consider v. 16.
Continue Reading…
April 19, 2012 in
Ecclesiology, Small Groups with
Here’s another foundation for small group ministry:
“Cut off from God, the human community can choose to receive or reject God’s gracious offering to restore divine-human community. In rejecting intimacy with God, the human community continues in a state of sin, broken relationships and dying persons. Thus the fragmented human small group will reflect a shallow form of community, immersed in addictive and abusive behavior and continuing in a struggle for control, identity, intimacy and meaning. Humanity tries to approach one another, but the approach is stifled in avoidance because God is not present to define, empower and complete the face-to-face meeting.” (Biblical Foundations for Small Group Ministry: An Integrative Approach)
Small groups that emphasize community with God point us towards the ultimate restoration to come…
April 16, 2012 in
Gender Issues, Humor, Leadership, Marriage with
This week I have the chance to put my theology into practice. Monday through Saturday shall be what I refer to as a “study lab.” It’s a time where my theological views shall be “put to the test.” You see, this week the gender distinctions that many Complementarians declare are ever-so-important have been trumped in my life. Why? Simple: my wife has gone to visit her family for a week. For all practical purposes, I have taken on the role of “mother.”
This is day one of being an Egalitarian
Well, a practical Egalitarian. Perhaps you could call me a theoretical Complementarian who is a functional Egalitarian. I don’t know. I just know that today I became Mr. Mom.
Perhaps you are wondering how my first day of being an Egalitarian went. Thanks for asking. I expected the day to be quite horrible, as I was unsure as to how my children would end up with a day of missing out on gender distinctions. In fact, I was so concerned that I had a back up plan in place: send them to live with a Complementarian family that I know. I also expected to begin doubting the authenticity of Scripture as the liberal agenda would force me to reevaluate how important form criticism was in regards to what we really know about the New Testament. Throughout the day I held my breath for the moment where I would begin to believe that the Documentary Hypothesis for the Pentateuch was clearly fact. Plus, at any moment denial of the gospel was sure to occur! Right?
Continue Reading…
April 14, 2012 in
Hermeneutics, Secondary Illuminations with
(The following comprises Part Thirteen of the Saturday series on Secondary Illuminations of Scripture. Deborah asked that readers consult the the NASB rather than the ESV for this one; it seems the ESV is favoring the LXX over the MT for this Psalm)
I’ve talked much about negative examples of secondary illuminations without providing substantive ostensibly positive examples. I can’t let myself off the hook quite that easily.
Psalm 68 is an important psalm containing loud echoes of its past and future. Most notable of these are (A) the Christological quotation of Psalm 68:18 in Ephesians 4:8-12 wherein the battle loot of old is now seen as the gifting of the church with leaders who equip the people to operate in God’s graces and (B) Psalm 68’s close inspirational link (Psalm 68:7-8) to the song of Deborah and Barak in Judges 5:4-5. See also Psalm 68:12 and Judges 5:19, 30; Psalm 68:13 and Judges 5:16; Psalm 68:18 and Judges 5:12; Psalm 68:21 and Judges 5:26; Psalm 68:27 and Judges 5:14, 18 and the presence of the chariots so important to Deborah’s story in Psalm 68:17.
Continue Reading…
April 13, 2012 in
Books, Christology with
Everyone and their mother knows about John Stott’s The Cross of Christ. It is certainly one of the best modern works on the Penal Substitutionary perspective on the Atonement and on Christology in general. It simply love that book, and love every single book I have read by Stott. His legacy will last for generations… I hope.
But there is another book on the subject of Christology that I think is really overlooked – The Incomparable Christ.
It’s a medium sized book (264 pp.), but retains the typical John Stott trademark of being a rich combination of scholarly, readable, practical, pastoral, and globally informed. Stott writes that,
“This book, therefore, will be a blend of Scripture and history. We will consider the church’s presentation of Christ and Christ’s influence on the church, against the background of the New Testament in general and the book of Revelation in particular. In this way the biblical portrait of Christ is seen to be normative. He is the authentic Jesus by whom all the fallible human pictures of him must be judged. My hope is that these studies in the Bible and church history will be seen to justify my title, The Imcomparable Christ. There is nobody like him; there never has been, and there never will be.” (p. 18)
Classic John Stott.
April 12, 2012 in
Gender Issues, Hermeneutics with
I generally define myself as a “soft-Complementarian” when it comes to my understanding of how Scripture informs us concerning the issue of women serving in ministry. In a nutshell, I hesitate at seeing Scripture affirming women as Elders (Pastors, Overseers) but do not see a problem with women teaching or preaching within the context of the local church gatherings. I suppose I could even state that I believe that the normative way in which a “senior” church leadership team should exist is by having men as a part of that group. That means that I’m not necessarily opposed to women being “team members” nor that I think this is the way it must always be (hence the use of my word “normative”).
Yet I should say that I’m increasingly aware that I may be either moving closer to Egalitarianism or at least more open to exploring the issue. If you are an Egalitarian, please refrain from recommending all of the wonderful books you own or have written or know will change my life. I probably already own them and I’m not so interested in this subject that I have to figure it out right this second. Thanks though! 
There’s three blogs that I think everyone should take a look at. Two include videos and the third is a decent introduction to the way that trajectory works within certain perspectives concerning hermeneutics. Check them out:
What do you think?
April 11, 2012 in
Ecclesiology, Worship with
Saw this video at Canon Wired. I’ve found liturgy especially fascinating ever since I read through Simon Chan’s Liturgical Theology. I am especially interested in the tension between the spontaneity of the Charismatic Movement and the pre-planned methodology of Liturgy. I’m inclined to believe that the apostle Paul would have argued for a tension between both.
At any rate, despite my complete disagreement with the sprinkling that is called “baptism” in this video, as well as the sprinkling of an infant, it’s a fascinating video to watch in order to learn more about a Reformed liturgy.
What are your thoughts in watching the video?
April 10, 2012 in
Apologetics, Church History, New Testament, Old Testament, Reviews, Scripture, Systematic Theology, Textual Criticism with
There are a lot of books that seek to expose problems in the Bible and many others that seek to defend its truthfulness. My shelves are full of books that address issues related to the historicity and truthfulness of the Bible. But there area lot of people, especially in today’s postmodern culture, who tend to take a rather apathetic approach to these issues. In fact, on more than one occasion I have had friends state that it doesn’t matter much whether or not the events recorded in Scripture actually happened… we just need to take the moral teachings of Jesus and the Bible and see them for what they are.
The natural question, then, is simple: does the history that is presented in the Bible actually matter to the Christian faith? What are we to make of all the current skeptics of the Bible and the advocates for its distrust?
A recent work has taken on this very issue, Do Historical Matters Matter to Faith?, edited by James K. Hoffmeier and Dennis R. Magary. Over twenty scholars contribute well-researched essays that cover a variety of topics, including issues related to Biblical, Systematic, & Historical Theology, the Old & New Testaments, and Biblical Archaeology.
Continue Reading…
April 3, 2012 in
Across the Web, Reviews with
The latest issue of Themelios is out. Lots of excellent articles, essays, and book reviews. Stand outs include:
Check it out!
April 2, 2012 in
Christology, Cultural Engagement, Hermeneutics, New Testament, Textual Criticism with
There are a lot of the benefits to reading Scripture in the original languages. There are also a lot of benefits to studying and understanding the social and cultural contexts that surround the texts in question. Not everyone has the ability to read Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, but most everyone can find resources that will help them understand better the text because they have a better understanding of the cultural context that the text arose within.
I’m not trying to downplay the life-giving nature of Scripture even when it is read at a surface level. What I am implying is that going deeper into Scripture in the hopes of understanding it’s intended meaning requires that we… go deeper! My advocacy for a deeper reading of Scripture comes from the mere fact that I have been sooooo blessed by it. There have been far too many times where I’ve been extremely blessed when I spent a little more time in the text and a little more time consulting good resources in order to have a better grasp on the meaning and purpose of a passage.
I fear that a lot of people read too quickly, and often miss the actual point of certain texts. Thus, the blessing or conviction or challenge often overlooked and we’re left with a less than satisfying understanding of Scripture. Of course, we don’t know it’s less than satisfying, but it is.
Enter Jesus’ proverbial “pimp slap.”
Continue Reading…
March 31, 2012 in
Hermeneutics, Secondary Illuminations with
(The following comprises Part Twelve of the Saturday series on Secondary Illuminations of Scripture.)
I believe that only when our handling of the Living Word grants it both the space to breathe and an environment in which it can retain its shape, will our stewardship be healthy and maximize its power to multiply in sustenance. So I have grown unashamed in my support for secondary illuminations even as I try to learn more about how to be responsible with their hermeneutics.
As I hope I’ve made clear by now, when I indulge in secondary illuminations, I am trying to keep a good handle on the historical and geographical facts and to honor those literal and metaphorical interpretations and spiritual applications which are already broadly recognized for the passages I reference. I would hope that when I present a teaching, those who are leery of my hermeneutical approach would find ample reason to believe that I fully respect the Word and its orthodox intents even if they feel I err on some points in my extrapolations.
Continue Reading…
March 29, 2012 in
Ecclesiology, Small Groups with
I’ve been thinking a lot about the role of the Church. The Church is God’s idea, not ours. It is his solution to many of the world’s problems, since the Church is called to represent and continue Jesus’ ministry, the final and ultimate solution to all problems.
In other words, groups of Jesus followers are one of the ways that God ministers grace to this broken world. And one of the ways that grace is ministered is when small groups of people gather together for the purpose of forming deeper relationships, reading Scripture, praying, and sharing their lives with each other. Small groups are a context wherein the Holy Spirit is able to flow through and empower people to bring peace, comfort, encouragement, and strength to others. It’s a powerful context to be in!
Dr. Gareth Icenogle provides another biblical foundation for small groups when he writes, Continue Reading…
March 28, 2012 in
Christian Living, Christology, Church Planting, Ecclesiology, New Testament with
In preparation for this Sunday, I have been working through portions of Matthew 21. This is the passage dealing with Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple money-changers. Jesus kicked them out of the outer courts and this text is widely known and generally connected to Holy Week.
Anyway, I found a really interesting way of connecting the principles behind Jesus zeal (turning over tables and rebuking money-changers) in the New American Commentary, Matthew, by Craig L. Blomberg:
“Contemporary application becomes even more urgent in view of the nature of the religious corruption in this passage—financial profit at the expense of the disenfranchised of society. How many millions of dollars are poured annually into our church buildings and activities and thereby taken away from the poorest and neediest of our world? Instead of always embarking on costly building campaigns, many churches need to consider planting new congregations, meeting in alternate sites, adding additional times of worship, and transferring active members to dying churches to infuse new life in them.”
What do you think? This sure seems counter-cultural to how many churches approach issues related to building and growing, etc.
March 28, 2012 in
Charismatic Theology, Pneumatology, The Vineyard Movement, Why I am "Charismatic" with
There’s a helpful saying that I’ve heard (and repeated) about the early Pentecostal movement. It states that Pentecostalism “was an experience in search of a theology.” This simply means that since there wasn’t really a “Pentecostal” category prior to the early 20th century, the experience(s) that took place during events like the Azusa Street Revival had to be thought of in newly created theological categories.
Make no mistake, experience is an important part of Charismatic Theology. I’d actually argue that those who make the suggestion that experience shouldn’t play a role in determining the validity of one’s theology are often arguing on the basis of their lack of experience, which is still an argument from experience! For Charismatics, experiencing the presence of the Lord is something that can be tangible and somewhat normative (like I said here and here). For me, one of the reasons why I’m “Charismatic” is because of my experience.
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March 28, 2012 in
Christology with
“The universe of Paul’s thought revolved around the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Paul’s christology illumined his thought in its entirety, sometimes shedding its light on aspects of his thought that one might have expected would have gone relatively untouched by christology. For instance, who would have expected Paul, in midrashic fashion, to tell his Corinthian listeners that the rock that gave forth water to the Israelites during their period of wilderness wanderings was Christ (1 Cor 10:4)? Here he draws on sapiential ideas about the role of personified Wisdom in Israel… Paul’s view of Christ was so broad that he could conceive of him as being involved in God’s dealings with his people long before he was born and began his earthly ministry. This is apparently because he saw Christ as Wisdom come in the flesh (cf. 1 Cor 1:24), and therefore whatever had been said of Wisdom in early Jewish thought, including its existence in heaven before creation (cf. Prov 8; Sir 24; Wis 7), was now predicated of Christ…” (Dictionary of Paul and His Letters, 103)
The apostle Paul closed the end of his life writing that he wanted to gain Christ and know him more (Phil. 3:8-11). There’s no doubt that the center of Paul’s universe, and the universe that Paul wrote about and lived in, was Jesus, the Son of God and fulfillment of the OT promises. Paul’s Christology was centered on Jesus, the one whom was to be given all preeminence (Col. 1:18). We can learn a lot from Paul…
March 24, 2012 in
Hermeneutics, Secondary Illuminations with
(The following comprises Part Eleven of the Saturday series on Secondary Illuminations of Scripture.)
My final negative example comes from a young friend who is developing a corrective prophetic voice. He was thrilled to happen upon Job 32:7-10:
“I thought, ‘Age should speak; advanced years should teach wisdom.’ But it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty that gives him understanding. It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right. Therefore I say: Listen to me; I too will tell what I know.” (NIV)
In a classic secondary illumination error that is based, as many of them are, upon not heeding the rules of sound primary interpretations, my friend took this as a true sentiment and a personal encouragement. The problem is that in this passage’s context young Elihu the Buzite is preparing to light into Job, purportedly speaking for God. He will shortly be seen to be an arrogant young man—zealous, but zealous in part for the wrong ideas and thus redoubling their wrongness. Continue Reading…
March 23, 2012 in
Fallacy Fridays, Hermeneutics with
This final guideline provided by Grant Osborne (The Hermeneutical Spiral) is pretty simple. It’s known as the Ignoring the Context fallacy. It’s almost too self-descriptive, right? Osborne is quite helpful in suggesting why this is so important. He writes,
“In one sense ignoring the context is the basic error that encompasses the others and makes them possible. For instance, etymology is misused as formative of meaning when the diachronic history of a term is given priority over the context. I have already noted that context and the current semantic range of a word are the two aspects of the synchronic dimension. The failure to note context may be the most frequently occurring error, since the majority of commentaries are organized around a word-by-word approach that usually isolates each word from the other terms surrounding it and as a result fails to put the message of the text together as a coherent whole.” (p. 93)
Continue Reading…
March 21, 2012 in
Church Planting, Ecclesiology with
Thought some of you might enjoy Ed Stetzer’s presentation on how churches can grow past 200 people. You can download the booklet here and then watch the videos here.
I really appreciate Stetzer a lot. Lots of insightful stuff to consider, especially for me. We’re heading in that direction and there’s a lot of stuff we need to “tidy up” in order to be better at (1) making disciples, (2) reaching people, and (3) not completely sucking. Ha ha!
March 19, 2012 in
Ecclesiology, Small Groups with
Dr. Gareth Icenogle writes,
“From the beginning of human history, the eternal God in Community created humanity as community. Humanity reflects the eternal community of God as man and woman together with God. These three form the primeval small group of human history. The minimum group of two, together with the Community of God, is called to live in intimate, reciprocal, dialogical and growing relationship. Around this prototype small group of the first divine-human community, God has gathered the greater human community of history.” (Biblical Foundations for Small Group Ministry: An Integrative Approach)
Who would have thought that marriage is a pointer towards small group ministry?
March 18, 2012 in
Christian Living, Cultural Engagement, Marriage, New Testament, Old Testament, Scripture, Sex with
A common question that is posed when discussing how the New Testament addresses the issue of homosexuality is as follows: Are there differences between the homosexuality addressed in the New Testament (1st century) and the monogamous homosexuality that is being advanced in today’s society (married homosexuals)?
This is a very important question because the “hermeneutical process” seeks to determine the contextual understanding in the ancient text and seeks to determine how that is both contextualized and whether the ethical issues still stand. For full disclosure, I believe that the OT and NT both condemn homosexual practices and that regardless of whether we find examples of homosexual relationships that are akin to those of today, exegesis of the relevant texts demands that we take a traditional perspective on the issue. I hesitate to suggest that we take a traditional approach to the issue because I believe that the church has not dealt with and related well to those who identify themselves within the LGBT community. But that’s an aside and not my main point.
Continue Reading…
March 17, 2012 in
Prayer with
St. Patrick of Ireland leads to pray:
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ where I lie, Christ where I sit, Christ where I arise,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every one who speaks to me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
Salvation is of the Lord.
Salvation is of the Christ.
May your salvation, Lord, be ever with us.
March 17, 2012 in
Eschatology, Reviews with
Having already read the other books in the “40 Questions” series, I knew that it was written primarily for non-scholars. Yet all of the books in this series have consistently reflected a scholarly grasp on the subjects addressed. Schnabel’s work is no different.
40 Questions About the End Times is just that – forty questions related to the subject of eschatology. Eschatology is generally considered the “study of end times,” though Schnabel’s first question (“When do the end times begin”) is answered in a way that demonstrates that the NT teaches that “the end times are a present reality since the first coming of Jesus” (p. 25). Schnabel goes on to say,
“End-time “specialists” who describe the last days or the end times as future period misunderstand the structure of New Testament eschatology. Jesus and the apostles taught that the end (eschatos) is near, the last days have begun, and the end times are now a present reality” (ibid.)
Continue Reading…
March 17, 2012 in
Hermeneutics, Secondary Illuminations with
(The following comprises Part Ten in the Saturday series on Secondary Illuminations in Scripture.)
This error is a radical misinterpretation of the book of Hosea.
In a secondary illumination mistake that probably builds on some of the same attitudes as the one described in Part Nine, I’ve known several women who have married men whom they knew were immature and even abusive, men who were apt to keep them from what some of these women had formerly perceived to be their own callings. They married these men precisely because they believed God wanted them to make a self-sacrifice in line with Hosea’s sacrifice in marrying the unrepentant prostitute Gomer. And, no, they weren’t looking for excuses to marry some guy they had a crush on. These women were rightly repulsed by their men’s behaviors and even their general persons before marriage, sometimes received family encouragements (even on the wedding day) to call it off, cried in some instances through their honeymoons (and many a night thereafter), and have struggled to varying degrees to live with any peace of mind in sometimes abusive and certainly very painful situations that they still believe God called them to for mysterious reasons beyond their comprehension. Continue Reading…
March 16, 2012 in
Christology, Hermeneutics with
Michael Williams writes,
“Reading the Bible through the Jesus lens is reading it the way it was intended. It keeps our reading, understanding, teaching, and preaching properly focused on God’s grand redemptive program that centers on his own Son. Seeing how each biblical book makes its own unique contribution to that redemptive focus enables us to use these diverse materials with much more confidence and accuracy. The Jesus lens ensures that our exegetical bowling balls stay within the lane and don’t go crashing over into areas where they can cause a lot of damage to the faith of believers and to our ability to use the Bible fruitfully in our service to God.” (How to Read the Bible through the Jesus Lens, 9).
I used to have a lot of concern about having an “agenda” when approaching Scripture, especially when so many tend to read into Scripture ideas and concepts that are simply counterproductive to the flow of redemption. Yet what better way to read Scripture than through the “Jesus lens”? Williams’ explanation of this way of reading Scripture focuses on several important concerns: Continue Reading…
March 16, 2012 in
Fallacy Fridays, Hermeneutics with
I’m going to keep this week’s contribution to the “Fallacy Fridays” series simple. We’ve been pointing out a few of the exegetical and logical fallacies that are related to biblical interpretation and the broader category of hermeneutics. In other words, we’ve been saying, “This is what not to do.”
So let’s take a quick scan of what you should do when considering how words work in the Old and New Testaments. Dr. Mounce, author of the world famous Basics of Biblical Greek, has also written what is in my opinion the best introductory Bible dictionary on the market – Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Seriously, you need to get this if you don’t already own it. Inside this helpful resource Mounce gives four simple steps that will help people do good word studies. Now remember, these are simple and not fully fleshed out, so calm down all of you exegetical giants! The steps are:
- Choose the English Word
- Identify the Greek Word
- Discover Its Semantic Range
- Context (as in, consider the context)
There. That’s a good place to begin.
How would you explain these steps?
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