Biblical Theology

General

Doomsday Prophets: Biblical Views on the Future: A contrast of prophetic and apocalyptic perspectives on the future work of God, showing how each are valid expressions of biblical faith but are tied to specific historical situations, the confusion of which can lead to distortion and perversion of the biblical message.
Day of the Lord: Metaphors of Accountability: Various phrases and terms that refer to intervention by God in the world in a "coming" or "visitation," with brief reflection on the theology associated with the coming of God.; Day of the Lord and Related Metaphors: Biblical Passages

Old Testament

The English Term "Perfect": Philosophical and Biblical Perspectives: Short analysis of the Hebrew and Greek words translated "perfect," suggesting that the popular meaning is shaped more by philosophical categories and doctrine than by biblical meanings.
Old Testament Sacrifice: Magic or Sacrament?: A theological analysis of the Old Testament practice of sacrifice, concluding that it differed from magical appeasement of the gods or a physical means to forgiveness, but was a sacramental response to and celebration of God's grace.
The Third Generation: Nehemiah and the Question of Identity: A reflective article based on Nehemiah 13 addressing the tendency of religious traditions to drift from their original purpose and vision as they move further away from their origins; suggestions for maintaining religious identity.
Social Ethics in the Prophets: The prophetic concern to ground social ethics in the revelation and experience of God in human history; suggesting that the main prophetic guidelines for social ethics are included in the concepts of "righteousness" and "justice."
Torah as Holiness: Old Testament "Law" as Response to Divine Grace: A detailed paper analyzing the Old Testament concept of torah from the biblical traditions, concluding that torah is not properly equivalent to "law," but to lifestyle as a response to God's grace, and can be seen as analogous to the Wesleyan concept of holiness of heart and life.; Footnotes for "Torah as Holiness"
The "Fall" - A Literary Analysis of Genesis 2:4-3:24 [Available in .pdf]: A detailed exegesis of Genesis 3, placing the passage against the background of Israelite culture as well as religious and theological concerns, concluding that the passage is more about grace than it is about a "fall" from grace.
Psalm 51 and the Language of Transformation: An exegetical analysis of Psalm 51, noting how the psalm moves from using language of forgiveness to language of transformation as a perspective on biblical holiness.
Naaman, Dirt, and Territorial Gods: The Canonical Function of 2 Kings 5:17-19: An examination of the canonical function within the Deuteronomic History of Namaan's request to take dirt back to Syria in order to worship God (2 Kings 5:17-19).

New Testament

Did Jesus Have to Die?: Analysis from New Testament passages as well as reflection on the presuppositions and assumptions of certain theories of the Atonement of the implications of assuming that Jesus was predestined to die to pay the penalty for humanity's sins. An abbreviated and popularly written version of the following article.
The Death of Jesus: Historically Contingent or Divinely Ordained?: A detailed essay examining from a biblical perspective the tension between the death of Jesus as predestined by God, or as the result of human decisions; concludes by examining the implications of this tension for theories of the atonement.
Discovering Jesus: A series of four articles discussing the tension between traditional confessions of Jesus as the divine Son of God and Jesus as a human being; Part 1 concentrates on the Gospels' portrayal of Jesus of Nazareth."; Jesus of Nazareth and the Christ of Faith: Retracing the Journey; Jesus, Religion, and Politics; The Social Relationships of Jesus; The Self Understanding of Jesus

Site Navigation