In his Romans commentary, Karl Barth develops an image to speak of the relationships between the Law and the Gospel, Jews and gentiles.  It relates very well to Paul’s use of Habakkuk and the necessity of faithful gospel improvisation among God’s people.  The image also nicely sums up the epochal shift in the death and resurrection […]

In Romans 1:16-17, Paul says the following: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who is faithful, to the Jew first and also to the Greek; for the righteousness of God is revealed in it from faith(fulness) unto faith(fulness) (ἐκ πίστεως εἰς πίστιν), […]

Why does Paul make this claim in Romans 1:16?  And what does he mean by it?  And why does he say this in this letter to this audience? Many interpreters consider Romans 1:16-17 as Paul’s thesis or thematic statement for the entire letter.  I’m not convinced that this is the case.  I agree with Daniel […]

I enjoyed a long lunch yesterday with a friend who is in seminary.  Among other things, we talked for a bit about the various trajectories college graduates take after intensely pious or zealous undergraduate years.  Some react dramatically against certain experiences, setting off in radically different directions.  Others carry scars in various forms that bear […]

Eerdmans Publishing Co. celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary last week.  They hosted a talk on Saturday morning by Mark Noll, who gave an overview of his new book Jesus Christ and the Life of the Mind.  It’s a sort of sequel to his Scandal of the Evangelical Mind.  I had intended to bring my well-marked-up copy […]

*Given at Midtown Christian Community, October 15, 2005* Almighty and everlasting God, in Christ you have revealed your glory among the nations: Preserve the works of your mercy, that your Church throughout the world may persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with […]

As I said yesterday, there are many things to say about evangelism.  I’m just discussing a few things I regard as essential but that are often overlooked or neglected when it comes to strategizing about evangelism.  The three big notions I’m drawing out are (1) the character of salvation, (2) Jesus’ command to make disciples, […]

There are many things to say about evangelism, and I don’t claim to have the final word on this topic.  I’ll just lay out some important considerations that I believe have been overlooked or neglected, matters which ought to have priority in our thinking about evangelism. I’ll develop three biblical/theological notions that ought to orient evangelism, […]

Let me throw a wild-card into this discussion of evangelism.  I’m not really going anywhere specific with this; it was just banging around in my head today (along with lots of thoughts about Tiger Woods and the PGA Championship this week). In my college and seminary courses on the church, the question of the purpose […]

The discussion from yesterday’s post raised some good questions about methods of evangelism.  I’m putting together some of my own thoughts on this, sparked by Scot McKnight’s forthcoming book, The King Jesus Gospel.  For now, however, I’m just wondering a bit about the extent to which context determines method. Here’s my question: How wise is it […]