‘A table of the Lord’
Dr Barry Newman has been blogging on the meaning of the expression in 1 Corinthians 10: 21 –
“Focussing on the phrase, ‘a table of the Lord’, the aim of this blog series is to present a case that suggests that this phrase has nothing to do with any practice associated with a sacrament…”
– Barry has now posted the full series as a single PDF file on this page. You can follow his arguments and see what you think.
T4G panel on Preaching
“Preaching: Is there a Plan B?” – That was the topic for a panel at last month’s Together for the Gospel conference – participants were Albert Mohler, C. J. Mahaney, Ligon Duncan and Mark Dever.
The uniqueness and sufficiency of Christ
Dr Mike Ovey, Principal of Oak Hill College, preached on Hebrews 1:1-4 at the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans Conference in London this week.
Watch his most encouraging, edifying and challenging exposition – at the GAFCON website.
A Conversation with Gerald Bray on his new Systematic Theology
At The Gospel Coalition website, Gerald Bray responds to questions put by Matt Smethurst about Bray’s recently published Systematic Theology, “God is Love”.
“God Is Love is very different from any other systematic theology on the market today because it takes the Reformation principle of sola Scriptura seriously. It is not just a question of backing up everything from the Bible but of trying to convey God’s self-revelation in the Bible in a biblical way…”
Related: Mark Thompson writes:
“Here is a piece of mature theology, concerned for the glory of God, the edification of his people, and the spread of the gospel in the world. What a refreshing change from the posturing and positioning of so much theological writing today. Gerald is not trying to draw attention to himself, make a name for himself or impress his peers in the theological academy or in his ecclesiastical stable. From the beginning the spotlight is elsewhere – something this book has in common with the best of Christian theology through the centuries.”
– at Theological Theology.
Why did Jesus Die?
“On the surface of things, it seems that Jesus was in the wrong place at the wrong time — a victim of circumstance, crushed by political machinations that were far bigger than he could humanly control. …
But history also tells us something else. It tell us that not long after these events, Jesus’ followers reassembled and began boldly proclaiming that on the Sunday after his death Jesus had emerged from his tomb alive again…”
– Dr. George Athas at Moore College asks “Why did Jesus die?”
Themelios, April 2012
The latest issue of Themelios, is now available from the Gospel Coalition website in PDF and html formats.
Dr Peter O’Brien in conversation on Hebrews
Dr Peter O’Brien recently sat down with John Gray and Keith Baker at St. Paul’s Castle Hill for a relaxed chat about the letter to the Hebrews.
Most encouraging.
See the conversation in segments of about 5 minutes each on Vimeo –
- What points of similarity are there between the first readers of Hebrews and Sydney Christians today?.
- What should we make of the call to be certain of what we do not see?
- When we go through hard times, can we discern between God’s discipline and simply living in a fallen world?
- What does the call to follow in the suffering footsteps of Jesus mean today?
- In Hebrews 12, what does it mean to say the readers have come to the new Jerusalem?
- Who is Melchizedek?
Related:
- Peter O’Brien’s Pillar New Testament Commentary on Hebrews – Andy Naselli.
- Warning Passages Ahead – Collin Hansen interviews Peter O’Brien.
- Thank God for Gifted Professors and Students – Andy Naselli.
Evangelical Ecclesiology
“If an evangelical were to be asked to say what he believed about the death of Christ or the inspiration of Holy Scripture, then in most cases he would be able to do so with relative ease. But if that same evangelical were to be asked to relate the essentials of his beliefs about the church, that might prove to be a little more difficult.
As a result of this lack of clarity in thinking about the church, evangelicals become all the more prone to accept views about the church which are far from Scriptural, and certainly in the Church of England that means quasi-Catholic views of the church – this happening almost by default.”
– Church Society continues to republish articles from Churchman. In this 1991 paper “Towards an Evangelical Ecclesiology” by Melvin Tinker, he argued that many evangelicals need to think clearly about what church is. Relevant in 1991, and relevant now.
It’s available as a PDF file from Church Society.
Visual Theology — The Trinity
Tim Challies has produced another ‘infographic’ in his ‘Visual Theology’ series.
“It seeks to show what we must and must not believe about the Godhead while also explaining the complementary roles of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” – See it here.