Lord, You have always given bread for the coming day; and though I am poor, today I believe. Lord, You have always given strength for the coming day; and though I am weak, today I believe. Lord, You have always given peace for the coming day; and though of anxious heart, today I believe. Lord, […]

Paul writes quite a bit about bodies in Romans, both the human body and “the body” of gathered Christians in Rome. “Body” language pops up throughout the letter, and in some very interesting places.  One could even argue that at the subtextual level, Paul narrates the journey of the human body from corruption to transformation. […]

We began a new semester this week, in which I’m teaching Romans, 1 Corinthians, and New Testament Biblical Theology–I’m seriously living the dream! With every new semester, I think of this prayer for Bible study from the BCP.  I used it to begin our NT Biblical Theology class last night. Blessed Lord, who caused all […]

This semester I’m teaching 1 Corinthians and using Anthony Thiselton’s shorter commentary as one of the course texts.  In his introduction he describes the culture of Corinth as consumer-oriented and self-promoting—shaped by celebrity-ism. His comments about the ethos of Corinth brought to mind Daniel Boorstin’s brilliant book, The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America.  […]

In light of commending A Book of Prayers earlier, I thought I’d reflect a bit on intentionality when it comes to prayer. Typically, when evangelicals consider spirituality, they place a high priority on spontaneity, equating it with authenticity.  Especially when it comes to prayer we are largely resistant to anything planned or intentional.  “Ritual” in prayer […]

A Book of Prayers came in the mail the other day from IVP.  Their new catalog has some excellent new and forthcoming items in it, but this one especially caught my eye and I was happy to get my hands on it. If prayer is our conscious and intentional engagement with God, and if Scripture […]

I’ve been claiming that Romans is a pastoral letter from Paul written to resolve a developing conflict in the Roman church (or, network of house churches).  Paul’s arguments, therefore, are directed to that end—to bring about unity among all those in Christ, both Jewish and non-Jewish. This letter is often regarded, however, as Paul’s systematic […]

In Rom. 3:29-30, Paul makes a second argument for the unity of all Jesus-followers in the Roman church. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through […]

Paul wrote Romans to make a case for the unity of all Jesus-followers in Rome.  All those in Christ, Jewish and non-Jewish, are siblings in God’s one new family by the Spirit. In Rom. 3:27-31, Paul sums up his case for unity using two arguments that undermine claims of Jewish privilege in God’s new family. […]

In Rom. 3:21-26 Paul advances his argument that the church must be unified and competing factions must reconcile and “welcome” one another in Christ (Rom. 14:1; 15:7).  Just as no one has an inside track with God based on ethnicity, all Christians in Rome (Jew and non-Jew) are set right (“justified”) with God as a […]