Kirk E. MillerIn this episode of What in the Word?, Kirk E. Miller is joined by New Testament scholar Jeannine Brown to explore one of Scripture’s most challenging passages: Matthew 16. Did Jesus mistakenly predict his return? Together, they examine various...
Phillip CaryGod says to put God first. He also tells us to love our neighbor. But why does God command us to love him? And why does Jesus identify it as the greatest commandment?
Guy WatersOne of the best known and most comforting statements of Jesus is also one of his most enigmatic. What is it that Jesus holds out? Why do people need to receive what he offers? What incentives does he give to us to receive it?
In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus states that he does not know the day or hour of his return—only the Father does. But how can that be? If Jesus is fully God, wouldn’t he be omniscient? In this episode of What in the Word?, Kirk E. Miller is joined by...
Layton TalbertPrayer by itself has no power whatsoever. It wields no inherent supernatural sway; nor does it involve a formula or ritual which, if done right, guarantees any desired result. Christian prayer is not magic. The measure of prayer’s power, then, is...
Daniel StevensJesus chose to make Nazareth the site of one of the most significant and enigmatic declarations of his early ministry. As the community was gathered in the synagogue for Sabbath, he said: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. What did Jesus mean? Why...
Kat ArmstrongI came to faith in Christ at the age of sixteen because two church ladies shared the gospel with me. The year I became a Christian, the Holy Spirit ignited curiosity within me, especially regarding the characters in the Bible. Thankfully, I now...
Robby LockettIt’s a very catchy song. A mysterious minor key, a melody that sticks in your ear, cadences that just ache their way to resolution. It is also ubiquitous—and received uncritically by many who hear it. The song Mary, Did You Know? is as much a...
Michael F. BirdJoan Osborne’s 1995 pop hit What If God Was One of Us? asked an excellent question. Another song, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing—a famous hymn of Charles Wesley and George Whitefield—gives the correct answer. The ancient world had many deities, even...
Mark WardHave you ever looked closely at Jesus’s story of the Good Samaritan? All knowledge begins with asking basic questions, and through the magic of internet technology, I know what people out there are asking about the Sermon on the Mount. I see...
Nick PerezCenturies of focused concentration by the church have distilled language for discussing the Trinity, the two natures of Christ, and the person of the Son of God. Contributors to Jesus in Trinitarian Perspective: An Intermediate Christology, edited...
Daniel K. EngPerhaps you’ve heard it spoken, read it on a T-shirt, or heard it in a song. Jesus wants to be your friend. Jesus is my best friend. What a friend we have in Jesus. In some ways, the idea of friendship with Jesus is appropriate. Jesus taught that...
Tavis BohlingerThe Lautenschlaeger Award is a prestigious academic prize awarded to ten doctoral or first post-doctoral works in theology and biblical studies. Each winner is awarded a financial prize and the opportunity to propose an international colloquium on a...
Guest AuthorChristopher Croom | Columbia International University Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” (John 18:38) Introduction This famous portion of Scripture that has been rendered as a standalone verse is directly related to the crucifixion scene of...
Chris Date“What does God say about hell?” asks Kris Brossett, kicking off his two-article series on the topic. Brossett proceeds to survey the three historic Christian views of hell—eternal torment, conditional immortality, and universalism—and commendably...
by Kris Brossett In Part I of Kris Brossett’s series he discussed three views of hell, including Eternal Conscious Torment (ECT), Annihilationism/Conditional Immortality (ACI), and Christian Universalism (CU). In this second section, Kris...
"Grudem’s new chapter deserves a full response, and particularly one which presses in on the coherence of his affirmation of eternal generation with his reaffirmation of eternal functional subordination and with his view of the divine will"
Donald C. McIntyreSee also Part 1 and Part 2. A Case Study in Matthew 2:1–12 There are forty-seven verbal forms in this pericope; all but 10 verbal forms are perfective aspect. Of those ten forms that are not perfective, one is stative, two are future, and the...
Logos StaffWho can we know about the historical Jesus? While according to Barna most Americans (92%) believe Jesus was a real person,many know nothing about him—or what they know is wrong. As Eugene Peterson puts it, “Rumor, conjecture, salacious gossip...
Textual criticism is a hot topic among biblical scholars. The views on the discipline’s profitability span the extremes of being of crucial importance for serious scholarship and the opposing view of being hostile towards the revered doctrines of...
"This verse illustrates well that we cannot separate translation from theology. To do translation is to do theology."
In this article, I argue that we have been too apt to accept ancient and popular interpretations of Jesus’ wilderness testing in Matthew 4:1-11. Three issues warrant a fresh interpretation: the translation of πειρασθῆναι, our understanding of...
Ryan Lytton"Responsible scholars and pastors will invest time into familiarizing themselves with the same apocryphal texts that Jesus and his apostles had either read or heard during their own lifetimes."
"As the Lucan Jesus states, the Christ-movement is the 'community amidst a violent world' (“lambs among the wolves,” Luke 10:3) which fights for harmony, peace, and welfare in the context of injustice and oppression."
DidaktikosInviting Students to Confront Their Misrepresentations About Jesus Michael Kibbe | Great Northern University “The Gospel of Mark can be summed up in two words: Rome wins.” I speak these words about sixty minutes into my first hermeneutics session of...
Michael S. HeiserIf you’ve been a Christian for very long or were raised in a Christian church, chances are that you’ve heard that the Bible is really all about Jesus. That cliché has some truth to it, but it’s misleading. The truth is that there’s a lot in the...
By Kevin Vanhoozer This excerpt from Kevin Vanhoozer highlights the importance of not just hearing God’s voice but truly listening with the intent to obey what he says. In perhaps the most famous Arabian Nights story, Aladdin discovers a magic...
It’s easy to imagine what Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, or the Magi were thinking and feeling when they encountered the baby Jesus for the first time. I can imagine the mix of excitement, nerves, and expectation as they wondered when God would...
I recently had the opportunity to ask a few questions of Chris Keith, the editor of the prestigious NT monograph series LNTS, the Library of New Testament Studies (T&T Clark/Bloomsbury). His responses were colorful and insightful, giving a...
“Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah!… I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt 16:17–18). The “gates of hell”? Why did Jesus respond to Peter’s confession, “You are...