Richard Bauckham Lectures – What Sort of History are the Gospels?
This week Dr. Richard Bauckham (Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, The Testimony of the Beloved Disciple) was in Louisville, Kentucky, to deliver the Julian Gay Lectures at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. I had the privilege of taking in all four of his lectures, two on Tuesday, two on Wednesday. They were fruitful, illuminating, and enjoyable. I wanted to share some thoughts from Bauckham’s lectures, particularly the first one, but with some insights from the second and third ones as well.
Bauckham spent the first lecture discussing the genre of the New Testament Gospels.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
God is Greater Than Google
Praying to Almighty Google
I can’t remember how many years ago my son, now 10, first asked me a question that I think all Christians ask at one point or another in their journey of faith.
“Dad,” he asked, “when we pray, does God hear us?”
“Yes, son,” I answered wisely, “of course God hears us when we pray.”
“If you and I are both praying at the same time, does God hear us both?”
“Yes, son, of course God hears us both.”
“What if there are lots and lots of people all praying to God at the same time, Dad? Can God hear all of them praying at the same time?”
“Yes, He can.”
“But, dad,” he asked, “if Mom and I are both talking to you at the same time, you can’t hear us both.”
“That’s right, son,” I answered, “I can’t hear both of you at the same time."
“Dad - if you can't hear two people talking to you at the same time, then how can God hear lots of people praying to Him? How?”
That question, “How?” is a tough one to answer, isn’t it? I can’t make sense of what anybody is saying if there’s more than one voice coming to me at the same time. If I can’t do that, how is God able to sort the simultaneous prayers of millions of His children?
Last night I heard what I think is the best illustration I have ever heard that describes God’s ability to hear and respond to simultaneous prayer. It came from the lips of our BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) teacher in Louisville, KY—Richard Ross. What follows is a rough paraphrase of Richard’s illustration, with some of my own embellishments and additions.
PRAYING TO ALMIGHTY GOOGLE
I can’t remember how many years ago my son, now 10, first asked me a question that I think all Christians ask at one point or another in their journey of faith.
“Dad,” he asked, “when we pray, does God hear us?”
“Yes, son,” I answered wisely, “of course God hears us when we pray.”
“If you and I are both praying at the same time, does God hear us both?”
“Yes, son, of course God hears us both.”
“What if there are lots and lots of people all praying to God at the same time, Dad? Can God hear all of them praying at the same time?”
“Yes, He can.”
“But, dad,” he asked, “if Mom and I are both talking to you at the same time, you can’t hear us both.”
“That’s right, son,” I answered, “I can’t hear both of you at the same time."
“Dad - if you can't hear two people talking to you at the same time, then how can God hear lots of people praying to Him? How?”
That question, “How?” is a tough one to answer, isn’t it? I can’t make sense of what anybody is saying if there’s more than one voice coming to me at the same time. If I can’t do that, how is God able to sort the simultaneous prayers of millions of His children?
Last night I heard what I think is the best illustration I have ever heard that describes God’s ability to hear and respond to simultaneous prayer. It came from the lips of our BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) teacher in Louisville, KY—Richard Ross. What follows is a rough paraphrase of Richard’s illustration, with some of my own embellishments and additions.
PRAYING TO ALMIGHTY GOOGLE
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Reason, Arguments, and Presuppositions - E. Linnaman
"Reason is a whore, Luther says. There is nothing for which logical arguments cannot be adduced. We should resist beguilement through logical arguments. Our minds are swayed by logical arguments, but such arguments are never free standing. They are always wrapped up in a complex of presuppositions. It is not just that questions arguments exist: arguments themselves are questionable-that is, they must be traced back to their presuppositions. Insofar as they are logical, they may appear to be neutral, but they are most assuredly not.
"That is why God's Word admonishes us: 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.' (Prov. 3:5) Is this a denigration of our God-given intellectual capacity? No; it is simply a reminder of why our minds were given and what they were never designed to be: objects in which to place our total trust."
Eta Linnaman, "Biblical Criticism on Trial", trans. Robert Yarbrough. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2001, p. 180.
"That is why God's Word admonishes us: 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.' (Prov. 3:5) Is this a denigration of our God-given intellectual capacity? No; it is simply a reminder of why our minds were given and what they were never designed to be: objects in which to place our total trust."
Eta Linnaman, "Biblical Criticism on Trial", trans. Robert Yarbrough. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2001, p. 180.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Happy New Year!
Yes, I have been absent from my blog for a ridiculously inexcusably long period of time. My apologies to those who wondered where I have been! Our family traveled from our current home in Louisville, Kentucky, to our 'home' town of Edmonton, Alberta for Christmas. We celebrated two weddings, along with Christmas, with family and friends back in Alberta. It was a nice trip, but took us entirely out of the loop for a few weeks.
We are now back, and, God willing, I will be more faithful with my blogging this year. My first offering is a review of Tim Keller's 'The Reason for God,' a helpful little apologetics book which I highly recommend to readers of all stripes.
God's Blessings to you through this new year,
Tawa
We are now back, and, God willing, I will be more faithful with my blogging this year. My first offering is a review of Tim Keller's 'The Reason for God,' a helpful little apologetics book which I highly recommend to readers of all stripes.
God's Blessings to you through this new year,
Tawa
Timothy Keller, The Reason for God - book review
Keller, Timothy. The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. New York: Dutton, 2008. 293 pp.
Timothy Keller planted Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan in 1989. In the past twenty years, Redeemer has reached out to (and reached) tens of thousands of young, professional New Yorkers with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Today it ranks as a major church-planting center, with daughter churches not just throughout New York City, but in major urban centers around the world. Keller’s expositional preaching continually has in mind the objections that may arise in the minds of skeptics and non-Christians in his congregation. Every Sunday, the worship service is followed by at least an hour of question and answer, where Keller remains in order to respond to the questions and doubts of those (usually unbelievers) in attendance.
Timothy Keller planted Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan in 1989. In the past twenty years, Redeemer has reached out to (and reached) tens of thousands of young, professional New Yorkers with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Today it ranks as a major church-planting center, with daughter churches not just throughout New York City, but in major urban centers around the world. Keller’s expositional preaching continually has in mind the objections that may arise in the minds of skeptics and non-Christians in his congregation. Every Sunday, the worship service is followed by at least an hour of question and answer, where Keller remains in order to respond to the questions and doubts of those (usually unbelievers) in attendance.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Strengthening the Faith: Apologetics in Your Home & Church
Strengthening Faith: Apologetics in Your Family & Church – The Church at Cedar Creek
Sunday, November 14, 2010
NOTE: This is the text of a sermon preached two weeks ago at a vibrant, thriving church near Stanford, Kentucky. The desire and intent was to inspire church members to engage in apologetic ministry in their homes and through their church ministries.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
NOTE: This is the text of a sermon preached two weeks ago at a vibrant, thriving church near Stanford, Kentucky. The desire and intent was to inspire church members to engage in apologetic ministry in their homes and through their church ministries.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
National Geographic & The Power of Worldview
Joel Achenbach, “Lost Giants.” National Geographic 218.4 (October 2010): 90-109.
David Quammen, “Jane: Fifty Years at Gombe.” National Geographic 218.4 (Octobewr 2010): 110-29.
I have blogged before about the power of worldview. Specifically, I have argued that worldview exerts influence over how we interpret and accommodate new data, information, and arguments that we encounter.
The October 2010 edition of National Geographic contained a fascinating article about extinct megafauna (animals) in Australia. Over the past 180 years, numerous fossilized remains of massive wombats, kangaroos, tapirs, thunderbirds, wallabies, and marsupial lions have been discovered. Paleontologists debate the causes of their extinction – which current theories estimate to have occurred approximately 45,000 years ago. Some postulate a cataclysmic ecological (or metereological) event; others suggest that the arrival of humans (currently estimated to have arrived in Australia approximately 50,000 years ago) caused a precipitous decline in megafauna.
Within the context of the intramural debate, scientists involved make surprising admissions about the power of worldview, paradigm, and interpretation.
David Quammen, “Jane: Fifty Years at Gombe.” National Geographic 218.4 (Octobewr 2010): 110-29.
I have blogged before about the power of worldview. Specifically, I have argued that worldview exerts influence over how we interpret and accommodate new data, information, and arguments that we encounter.
The October 2010 edition of National Geographic contained a fascinating article about extinct megafauna (animals) in Australia. Over the past 180 years, numerous fossilized remains of massive wombats, kangaroos, tapirs, thunderbirds, wallabies, and marsupial lions have been discovered. Paleontologists debate the causes of their extinction – which current theories estimate to have occurred approximately 45,000 years ago. Some postulate a cataclysmic ecological (or metereological) event; others suggest that the arrival of humans (currently estimated to have arrived in Australia approximately 50,000 years ago) caused a precipitous decline in megafauna.
Within the context of the intramural debate, scientists involved make surprising admissions about the power of worldview, paradigm, and interpretation.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)