Cooling Twilight

Tag: exegesis

  • Adding to the Bible: Reflections on 1 John 5:7–8

    Adding to the Bible: Reflections on 1 John 5:7–8

    trinity

    The King James Version of 1 John 5:7–8 reads:

    For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. 

    Nowhere else in the Bible do we find such an explicit confirmation of the Trinity: in this brief passage orthodox trinitarianism is laid out in no uncertain terms. Unfortunately, this theological gem isn’t actually part of the original text of the Bible. In the words of renowned New Testament scholar Bruce Metzger: “that these words are spurious and have no right to stand in the New Testament is certain.” (more…)

  • Mark Driscoll doesn’t want you to study the Bible

    Mark Driscoll doesn’t want you to study the Bible

    Mark Driscoll

    Mark Driscoll recently caused another brouhaha with his views about gender roles. The short version of this latest controversy is that he compared nagging wives to water torture. You can watch the offending segment here.

    But are we really surprised by this sort of thing from Driscoll? By now it should seem par for the course: we know where he stands on these issues, we know that he states his positions in less-than-eloquent ways, we know he characterizes the positions of his opponents in less-than-charitable terms and we know that none of this is likely to change. 

    But in the rush to point out yet another misogynistic statement from Driscoll, a perhaps even more troubling statement from him was overlooked. In the opening of his sermon on Ephesians 5.22−33 and the subject of wives submitting to their husbands, Driscoll says:
    (more…)

  • Partakers of the Holy Spirit

    Partakers of the Holy Spirit

    “For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age, and then have committed apostasy, to renew them again to repentance, since they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again and holding him up to contempt.” (Heb 6:4–6 NET)

    This passages is a rich source for theological controversy and exegetical exploration, but I’m going to focus on only one word from verse four: partakers, or in Greek, μέτοχος. One tiny piece of the puzzle in regards to this passage is whether “partakers of the Holy Spirit” is describing a saved, regenerate person, or whether it could be describing a non-Christian who is merely the recipient of some benefits associated with the Holy Spirit. (more…)

  • Rebuke Him!

    Rebuke Him!

    Christians often cite Luke 17.3 as commanding us to condemn sin in the lives of other Christians: “If your brother sins, rebuke him.” This is sometimes followed by a reference to Ephesians 4.15, where we are admonished to “speak the truth in love.” Given these clear teachings, Christians are to eschew timid tolerance in favor of boldly confronting the sin in our fellow Christian’s lives. We are responsible for holding one another accountable for our actions and we are remiss if we let obvious transgressions go unchallenged. Surely if we had some unknown sin in our own life we would want to be told about it — so we have a Christian obligation to do the same when we see sin in others.

    Or possibly not. (more…)

  • Why Not Vine’s?

    Why Not Vine’s?

    I regularly encounter citations of outdated Biblical reference material: a friend recently sent me an article that referenced definitions from Grimm’s Greek-English Lexicon, another friend has cited entries from Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words and Strong’s Concordance is frequently used in sermons to give us the meaning of the original languages.

    So what’s wrong with these sources? Using biblical reference works of the past is like seeking medical advice from a 19th century medical dictionary. Would you feel comfortable if your doctor flipped open the 1858 edition of Gray’s Anatomy while he poked and prodded you? (more…)