We are halfway through the spring semester and are taking a break this week. There will be no classes on Thursday. Enjoy the sunshine (while we have it)!
This week -- our last week of classes for spring semester -- let me offer this brief reflection on the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus, taken from Psalm 22, which was written a thousand years before Christ died upon the cross. THE SUFFERING KING (Ps 22). A thousand years after David wrote this psalm of lament, his royal descendant, Jesus, spoke the first verse of it while he hung upon the Roman cross. Of course, that doesn't mean only that one verse, but rather the whole of the psalm, is about him. The suffering of the Messiah is plainly set forth, as it is also in Isaiah 53. David describes in detail what happened at the cross of Christ. At first reading of this psalm, we observe that David seems to be describing a rejection of his own kingship, and that is likely the context of its writing. But then we notice things that never happened to David... the dividing of clothing by lots, the pierced hands and feet, and the physical condition of his parched thirst, his b...
Christian apologetics is the study of the philosophy and method of defending the Christian faith. Since taking apologetics courses in seminary, and over 35 years of pastoral ministry, I have found these books to be the most helpful to me. Admittedly, they range from presuppositional to evidential in their approach -- but I have discovered that God freely uses a variety of means in bringing people to himself. Blomberg, Craig L. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels (IVP Academic, 2007). This is a very good, scholarly overview on that topic. Geisler, Norman L., and Turek, Frank. I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist (Crossway, 2004). An excellent walk-through of the evidences for, and reasons why, we believe. Groothuis, Douglas. Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith (IVP Academic, 2011). This is a larger reference work, and very worthwhile to have; it covers many of the issues and topics related to a...
At a weekly lunchtime study a few of us are going through Paul's epistle to the Romans. Though we should build upon our own reading and study of Romans, we will also find some commentaries helpful. In choosing and keeping commentaries for each book of the Bible, I like to have at least one commentary in each of these categories: 1) exegetical, that is, focusing on the text in its original language; 2) expositional , which is a running commentary on the verses, both in meaning and application; and 3) devotional , relating more to the personal application of the biblical truths in that book of the Bible. Of course, some commentaries overlap these categories. In the process of downsizing my own personal library (i.e., the physical books) over the last couple of years, I've been faced with choosing which commentaries to keep. On Romans, I have kept (and use) the following volumes: Romans (Exegetical Commentary), by Thomas R. Schreiner (Baker Academic, 1998). Schrein...
Comments
Post a Comment