Vorsprung durch Theologie

About This Blog

2010-11-25T15:01:00.003Z

You’ve stumbled across a blog which chronicles the experience of someone studying theology at Highland Theological College, after leaving a career in engineering consultancy behind and moving to the Outer Hebrides! Most of the posts are reflections on the various modules studied over the four years. But, there are plenty of other posts on a variety of other things too.

This is the last post on the VdT blog. It was only intended to run for as long as I was an undergrad at HTC. It is now parked – permanently. If you are interested in studying theology, might I point you in the direction of the HTC site (link on the left).

Concluding Postscript

2010-10-27T10:55:00.001Z

For the record, I graduated with a First Class Honours Degree from Highland Theological College on 17 September, winning the HTC UHI Student of the Year Award for the 2009-2010 session.

Whatever I have achieved, whatever benefit I have drawn from this course, is in huge measure down to the faculty and staff of HTC, past and present. Special thanks must go to Principal Hector Morrison, Vice-Principal Jamie Grant and Dr Michael Bird – all formative influences upon me, who have rescued me from travelling down false alleys, have taught me truth and provided an example of grace in the Way. It has been a privilege to sit at the feet of such teachers.

Also, special mention must go to Martin Cameron, who has quite rightly been described to me as the best theological librarian you could wish for. He has also become my good friend (and supplier and co-consumer of Chinese food!). And to my fellow students, in no particular order: Ross, Joe, Stuart, Eilidh, Emily, Eileen, Ross, Andrea, Alex, Morag, Stephen, Annie, Liz, and many more. Grace and peace to you all.

And also to my friend, ex-pastor and colleague the Reverend Iain MacAskill, who lent me books and provided a constant example of grace and zeal for the kingdom of God and for the salvation of the lost during my studies, helping me to ‘keep it real’! He has been of more help to me in the Way than I can express.

And finally to my wife and children – suffering a husband and father late with the dinner, and often in the shedquarters studying. Strength and dignity are her clothing; my children are like olive plants around my table. My family: a great gift and blessing from the LORD.

Soli Deo gloria.

Peroratio

2010-10-25T10:51:00.001Z

Well, I think that’s more or less it! I hope that you’ve found (and will continue to find – since I’ll leave the blog up) the reflections of a 30- and 40-something theology student helpful in some way. If you are considering studying theology, especially later in life when family and church commitments can make things more difficult, may I recommend that you take time to look at Highland Theological College. Take the trip up to Dingwall and visit, talk to the staff there about their excellent open learning facilities and how they can help you. If you can get to move up close to Dingwall for the duration of your studies, even better. If you would like more information, please feel free to contact me, as some have been doing.

HTC is a rare bird in the UK. It’s a truly Reformed and evangelical college that sits within a wider university system in a similar way to the old divinity departments. It has an amazing story and amazing staff. If you want studying theology to be about studying theology (as opposed to just focussing on practical ministry or on a narrow tradition), then HTC has an excellent academic approach. If you want Reformed to be as much about semper reformanda as about the rich history and heritage, this is the place. It is a true community of faith and scholarship. I have found studying there to be a truly uplifting and exciting experience. I pray that HTC and the University of the Highlands and Islands both prosper and go from strength to strength.

I believe more than ever that the Church and individual Christians must return to theology. It is what we believe, and why we believe it, that is at the heart of our faith. God has spoken – we must listen and understand. We must study, we must teach, we must be taught. We must grow in wisdom and in the knowledge of God. This is no stuffy or merely cerebral exercise; it is about faith, and the truth that sets us free. For the revival of the Christian cause, for life in the Church, for the growth of the Kingdom of God in Britain today – advancement through theology.

From Baptist to Presbyterian

2010-10-22T09:24:00.003Z

When I arrived here in Scotland, I was a doubting Baptist (that's doubting about being a Baptist, not about being a Christian) and had been such for many a long year. Soon after arriving, I read several things that brought my doubts to a head and satisfied my questions about paedobaptism. Perhaps one of the most helpful was Marcel’s classic work, The Biblical Doctrine of Infant Baptism. Since then, my studies at HTC have brought even greater conviction regarding the ecclesiology of the historical Reformed Church.

The visible Church, which is also catholic or universal under the Gospel (not confined to one nation, as before under the law), consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion; and of their children: and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation. WCF 25.2

For the first time I can truly say and appreciate: ‘I believe in the holy, catholic church.’ It is actually a return to my own theological roots – my mother’s family were Presbyterians, or as they would have preferred it, Calvinistic Methodists. Of course, back in Wales, evangelicalism has largely abandoned the stance of the Reformers, which was also the position of the Fathers of the Awakening (Jones, Williams, Harris, Rowland) and of Calvinistic Methodism (Elias, Charles). The Associating Evangelical Churches of Wales arose from the Evangelical Movement of Wales, then a mix of Baptists, Congregationalists and Presbyterians united by their evangelical stance. However, it is now almost exclusively baptistic. I cannot really explain this shift, except perhaps to posit that the pressure for unity around what is defined as ‘the gospel’ has gradually persuaded former Presbyterians to remain silent about their convictions about the nature of the church. This has meant that, untaught about these things, the default position of the hearers has become baptistic. This shift followed the flight of some evangelicals from the denominations; my own move from independency to a denomination highlights to me just how detrimental to unity the move to independency has been in Wales. The Presbyterian Church of Wales (to which my mother’s family belonged), although facing serious decline, still has over 30,000 members in over 700 congregations.

Anyway, I now live in Scotland – one of the seats of the Reformation and of Presbyterianism. So there’s no looking at you askance when you say you’ve baptised your children! As I’ve written before, John Franke described visiting Edinburgh as the Presbyterian equivalent of a pilgrimage to Mecca! Students come to both HTC and to the Free Church College from Presbyterian denominations around the world to suckle at the breast of the Mother Church (!), returning to serve in far-flung regions. That sense of the world-wide Presbyterian family is important.

I count it a joy and privilege to have served as an elder in the South Uist and Benbecula congregation of the Free Church of Scotland during my undergraduate studies. This denomination has close links to other denominations around the world, sister churches in India, Peru and South Africa, and has its own congregations in other lands (England(!) and North America). I’ve met so many people within the Free Church (both ministers and laypeople) for whom I hold a deep respect and who have had a deep and lasting influence upon me. I’ve come to share in the rich heritage, the stories, the theology. The congregation here in South Uist has been a joy from day one. It’s small, but it’s alive! To see folk come to faith in Jesus, to see folk grow in wisdom and the knowledge of God, to worship together – this is what it’s about. The opportunity to minister to these folk as an elder continues to be a privilege. And it is very useful to me to live as part of a community where most folk are Roman Catholic, with the opportunity to experience Roman Catholic piety and religion and to learn more about our shared common ground and our essential differences. My prayer is for continued reformation in all Churches and denominations, so that God might be glorified and the lost might find life through faith in Jesus Christ.

From Glamorgan to the Outer Hebrides

2010-10-21T08:41:00.003Z

So, four years of reflections on my time studying theology at undergraduate level are now complete. I thought I would conclude the Vorsprung durch Theologie project with a few brief reflections on various aspects of the last four (or more) years, beginning with my move from Wales to the Outer Hebrides.

I have been privileged, whilst studying for my degree, to live in an extremely beautiful and remote part of Scotland. The island of South Uist is unique: blessed with wild, treeless landscapes – expansive white sands backed by dramatic mountains, and studded with a multitude of lochs and lochans. Its remote location on the edge of the North Atlantic gives it the qualities of wilderness. Here, the rare fauna and flora of the mainland become commonplace: otters, red deer, seals, hen harriers, golden and white-tailed eagles, curlews, orchids... This backdrop to my studies has, I’m sure, had an impact on my theology. The importance of creation theology has been one of the key emphases arising from my time at HTC. The relationship of man to the planet and the cosmos is inseparably forged by the interlinked relationships between God and the cosmos, and between God and humanity, created as stewards of the planet.

Apart from the constant presence of the natural world – in both beautiful and challenging ways - my removal from the hustle and bustle of life working in Cardiff, surrounded by relentless advertising and retail opportunities, has given opportunity to reflect upon what is probably the fairly homogenous experience of a professional in cities or in the suburbs throughout Britain. Whilst our family income has reduced significantly, so have our outgoings. At the same time, whilst life is still busy, it is easier to find time for family and for reflection. The Western Isles are also one of the most Christian parts of Britain. Here in South Uist, a majority Roman Catholic island, Christian morality still undergirds so much of society. So, my life here could be thought of as having assumed some monastic qualities! I do think there is a place for a kind of monasticism in the Christian life – but not for all, and not for all of the time.

However, any monastic facets have been cut alongside a greater awareness of the lost and the desperate. Although these islands still have a strong Christian heritage, the last twenty years has seen, by all accounts, a significant decline in regular church attendance, across all denominations. Faith is under fire. And, even in Christianised communities, people are still people, and the dark side of human experience is never far away. Some folk come here and see an idyll. But living here, working in addiction support and being involved in ministry has made me more aware than ever of this dark side. Wherever human beings are, be it a shanty town or an exclusive resort, an urban estate or a remote island, they are still human beings. And outside of Christ they are still dead in their sins, lost and bowed down under their burden; they are rebels and victims, perpetuating and being destroyed by, the kingdom of This World.

The Heavens Opened

2010-10-06T21:49:00.002Z

Only one module Reflection remains from my whole time at HTC. This is the double-module assigned to the Honours Year Dissertation: 10,000 words on a subject of your choice. The title of my work: The Heavens Opened: Intertextuality and Meaning in John 1:51.

For a long time I've suspected that common interpretations of this verse owe more to later Western projections onto the text than they do to approaches that arise from the text and its historical setting. Such interpretations include the widespread view that Jesus portrays himself as the Way to Heaven using the imagery of Jacob's Ladder (or Stairway) in Genesis 28. I wonder whether folk who hold this view stop to think of the imagery going through the minds of the disciples in response to Jesus’ words. If this interpretation is correct, then it is necessary to believe that when Jesus spoke the words ‘you will see the heavens opened and the angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man,’ the disciples immediately imagined the Son of Man akin to a huge colossus with his feet on the earth and his head in the clouds, angels traversing the divide by means of his colossal body. If you think that sounds a likely scenario for Galilean Jews in the Second Temple period, then I’m not sure how to respond!

I’ve pondered this question for some time and posted on it early in 2007. In my dissertation I attempted to explore this in more detail and to try to tease out the implications of how we interpret John 1:51 in terms of how it fits contextually within the opening to the Gospel.

The Hebrew text of Gen 28:12 can be read as portraying the angels ascending and descending towards Jacob. The targums demonstrate that such readings were likely to be extant during the first century. I think it far more likely that the disciples imagined, not a huge colossus, but the scene portrayed in Genesis 28, but with angels ascending and descending over Jesus, in the place of Jacob. If that is true, then where do we go with the interpretation of the verse? Of course, the Son of Man motif there is critical, and I propose, using the recent work by Casey along the way, that the title The Son of Man is used by Jesus as a unique self-designatory title. The conjunction of Jacob and The Son of Man can then be explored. And it is, I believe, a fruitful avenue.

Here’s a summary of the dissertation:

John 1:51 presents unique interpretational challenges within the Fourth Gospel. Approaches tend to focus on either the background to the Son of Man motif in the verse, or the intertextual reference to Jacob's encounter with Yahweh at Bethel, recorded in Genesis 28. In this dissertation, intertextuality with both the Bethel narrative and 'son of man' material is examined in the light of recent developments in the Son of Man debate. A consideration of the literary context of the verse is also brought to bear. As a consequence of this approach, a meaning is identified for the verse which is consistent with its historical and literary context and which connects the Son of Man motif and the Bethel narrative. A Jacob-Jesus nexus is proposed as the interpretational key which unlocks the meaning of John 1:51. This nexus gives a strongly representative emphasis to the Fourth Gospel's first Son of Man saying. In this regard, links can be detected between Jesus as Messiah, Suffering Servant and The Son of Man. The promissory content of the Bethel narrative is fundamental to Jesus' description of a symbolic recapitulation of Jacob's encounter with Yahweh. As Jacob inherits the Abrahamic promises as the representative of Israel, so the Son of Man inherits them as the representative of a redeemed humanity. Thus, the title The Son of Man here conveys Jesus' self-understanding as the locus of that new humanity. The 'greater things' of John 1:51 are the signs of the Johannine Signs Source, designating Jesus as the inheritor of these promises. These signs constitute the opened heavens, the apocalyptic revelation of Jesus as The Son of Man. Thus, the narrative location of John 1:51 immediately prior to the 'beginning of the signs' at Cana assumes significance. Implications for other interpretations of the verse are briefly explored.

Reflections on Reformed Theology

2010-10-05T13:14:00.001Z

The second of my Level 4 systematic theology modules was this one: Reformed Theology. Now, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this module, but that was more down to me. I’ve come from a fairly narrow, very conservative (Reformed with a capital R) background, heavily influenced by the Puritans and dominated by systematics. My encounter with biblical studies at HTC was really a kind of awakening for me, and I thank the Lord for that. So, what was I to make of going back into the world of Reformed dogmatics, right into its heart, with the Reformed Theology module? Well, I’m so glad I did. Why? Because this module restored my faith in Reformed theology, and expanded my horizons. And I thank the Lord for that! Oh…and the tutor: Dr Rob Shillaker! Here are some of the reasons that this course was still a highlight for a biblical studies person like me…!

Calvin and the Puritans – I read Calvin’s Institutes (well, most of it) when I was maybe 19 or 20. Around the same period of my life I was living on a diet of Puritan Paperbacks (this may mean very little to you – they are published by the Banner of Truth) and Berkhof. So, let’s just say I had a particular take on things back then! During the module you look at the debate about Calvin and the Calvinists, as Paul Helm put it, in response to RT Kendall’s Calvin and English Calvinism. Now on the face of it, this might seem a particularly dry and academic debate. However, for me it opened the possibility that the English Puritans were not the true guardians of Calvin’s thought. This would have been anathema to me before, but how things can change. So, I read Calvin through fresh eyes, proving that our presuppositions have such a significant impact on how we understand and interpret what we read. Now I don’t happen to sign up to Kendall’s particular version of pseudo-Amyraldianism – far from it. But the wider context of Kendall’s argument is the point. The module also brings in the debate on Calvin and Westminster theology at the hands of the Torrance brothers. I don’t concur with the Torrances, but again, for me, this invited me to read Calvin with fresh eyes.
Calvin on Election – There were many points at which Calvin came alive to me again in a fresh way. Perhaps one of the most interesting was reading Calvin on election. I’ve already posted several times on this. Suffice to say here that later developments of Calvin’s thought did not keep his particular emphases in election. That’s interesting to me in the context of Welsh evangelicalism. Why is it that evangelical independency today, whilst claiming deep roots in Calvinistic Methodism, is almost exclusively Baptistic? I think it likely that, at least to some extent, Puritan developments in election and soteriology, so influential in Wales, undermined the doctrine of the covenant, such that even Presbyterians struggled to delineate a satisfactory doctrine of the covenant and the church.
Dutch Reformed Theology – Before I moved to Scotland, one of the first major influences that I came into contact with through reading Scottish theology was the work of the Dutch Reformers. There are strong connections between the Scots and the Dutch (and, as an aside, I was privileged to study alongside a Dutch student this year on the course – he taught me how to pronounce Hoekema!). Kuyper’s initial proposal on the importance of common grace has several difficulties. Bavinck provides a better delineation (of course!), placing less emphasis on an antithesis between nature and grace, and rooting all common grace in Christ; he is closer to Calvin in proposing a more moderate assessment of the unbeliever. The overall Dutch Reformed emphasis on common grace is a desperately-needed corrective in some traditions. One of the great legacies of this Dutch tradition is that Calvinism is not just about soteriology, it is a total worldview. The anabaptist ‘flight from the world’ is still around today sadly. The Dutch tradition invites a full involvement in all of life and society for the cause of the Kingdom.
Federal Vision – As well as looking at important historical debates in the development of Reformed Theology, modern debates are part of the mix in this module. That is fantastic, because Reformed Theology, probably more than most is open to the accusation of being stuck in the past. One whole unit on the module is given over to Semper Reformanda. We looked at two areas: first, Franke’s proposals for Postmodern Reformed Dogmatics; but the one I really enjoyed was the second: the Federal Vision. Suffice to say (this post is already too long) that in my view the FV central proposition of a more objective covenant needs to be listened to.

A Presuppositional Argument for Belief in God

2010-09-23T14:39:00.000Z

Our assessment paper for the Reformed Apologetics course was to write a presuppositional argument for belief in the existence of God. My own paper was more Framean than Van Tillian in its approach. I have reproduced the text of the paper as a standalone page, accessible via the link in the left sidebar.

Reflections on Reformed Apologetics

2010-09-22T12:53:00.000Z

Looking back over four years of module choices at HTC, they have been largely focussed on biblical studies and biblical theology. However, in my final semester I took two more Systematics modules: Reformed Apologetics and Reformed Theology. These are both taught by Dr Rob Shillaker.

The Reformed Apologetics module aims to show something very important: the relation between philosophy, scripture and theology in determining apologetic method. It covers the three main apologetic traditions within the Reformed theological community: evidentialism, foundationalism, and presuppositionalism. And, it was a most enjoyable module – Dr Shillaker uses video and audio excerpts to illustrate the various arguments (made easier by the incredibly flash IT systems newly-installed in the HTC classrooms – Warp Factor 6, Mr Sulu!). Some very brief highlights and reflections follow:

Listening to a reading of Plato’s ‘The Cave’ when looking at ontological arguments in class. Excellent!
Alvin Plantinga and Reformed Epistemology. This part of the course was a real highlight for me. Looking at the roots of Reformed Epistemology in Scottish Common Sense Realism was hugely instructive. Plantinga’s work on basic and non-basic beliefs, and on warranted belief is particularly important. Clifford’s classic statement of modernism: ‘It is wrong, always and anywhere, for anyone to believe anything without sufficient evidence’ was challenged by Reid’s argument that everyday life is based upon beliefs which are not supported by evidence. Plantinga has taken this on: he attempts to demonstrate that theistic belief is properly basic. Of course, Reformed Epistemology is subject to critique: it is too reductive; it is too broad. However, I think it has a lot to offer. The ‘fuzzy logic’ of Reid and his successors works in the real world, whereas the sterile, rigid logic of rationalism ends up being unworkable in its hubristic self-reliance.
Presuppositional Apologetics. Of course, this is the meat and potatoes for any self-respecting Reformed (Calvinistic) apologist! Van Til’s work in Westminster was refined in the crucible of the battles with liberalism within the Church, where one of the main foes was the tyranny of reason. Van Til rightly swings the pendulum back to revelation and the need for faith, but I do think that (like many positions forged in the heat of battle) his resultant views were not nuanced enough. I was helped a great deal by Frame, who backpedals somewhat from his tutors certainties. For me, Van Til almost becomes Kierkegaardian in his emphasis on faith and revelation. I think some kind of synthesis (not Hegel again!) between Presuppositionalism and Reformed Epistemology might offer dividends (seeing as they do share some common ground and common roots) – but such an analysis is beyond me!
Theodicy. One of our assessment papers was to review Plantinga’s book, God, Freedom and Evil. It’s a very good book, and surprisingly easy to follow, due to Plantinga’s accessible style. I was dubious about some of his arguments (on side issues) but in the main his approach is promising. It stops short though of being a theodicy – which Plantinga acknowledges; it is cast as a Defense. Fair enough, but as such it represents the first stage of what ought to be a significant and more satisfying project. For some more stimulating thought on Theodicy, see Blocher’s work.

John Muir

2010-09-21T11:47:00.000Z

Three quotes from John Muir, Scotsman and lover of wilderness:

“The battle for conservation will go on endlessly. It is part of the universal battle between right and wrong.”

“A few minutes ago every tree was excited, bowing to the roaring storm, waving, swirling, tossing their branches in glorious enthusiasm like worship. But though to the outer ear these trees are now silent, their songs never cease. Every hidden cell is throbbing with music and life, every fiber thrilling like harp strings, while incense is ever flowing from the balsam bells and leaves. No wonder the hills and groves were God's first temples, and the more they are cut down and hewn into cathedrals and churches, the farther off and dimmer seems the Lord himself.”

“The mountains are calling, and I must go.”

John Muir (1838-1914)

Reflections on Biblical Theology I & II (Part III)

2010-09-14T09:12:00.001Z

I thought I would post a few reflections on the Biblical Theology II module – that’s the practical module of the HTC BT experience. Our four three-week seminars were addressing biblical theological questions (which the student must develop) on Marriage, the Spirit, the Nations and the City. In the final week of the seminar the student must present an outline for a methodological approach toward answering their question. Then, two of these must be fully written up as assessment papers. There follow my questions and a few brief thoughts:

Marriage. The question: ‘The Genesis creation narratives portray a foundational role for male-female relationships within the created order. Can biblical theology reconcile this with Jesus’ teaching on marriage and resurrection in the synoptics?’ Specifically in view here are Jesus’ words to the Saducees in Mark 12:18-27 (and parallels) to the effect that ‘in the resurrection men do not marry, women are not given in marriage…for they are like angels’ (my paraphrase of the synoptic variations). Some thoughts: interpreters who see marriage as simply transitory typology, fulfilled in the relationship between Christ and the Church, overlook (i) the relationship between male-female and the image of God in Gen 1:27, and (ii) the foundational statement in the creation narratives that it is ‘not good’ for the man to be alone, even before the Fall; this is answered by male-female relationships. As an aside, they often also reverse Paul’s metaphor in Eph 5 to say: look at your marriage and you’ll understand the greater truth of Christ and the Church, when in fact Paul is saying, look at Christ and the Church and then take that example back into your marriage. The Church sometimes comforts lonely single people by effectively saying ‘well, we’ll all be single in heaven!’ (the dreaded gift of singleness), whereas perhaps it is better to say ‘ the Lord will answer your loneliness with perfect companionship in the resurrection.’ The answer in a nutshell: the male-female complementarity that is fundamental to the constitution of humanity will continue in the New Earth, although it cannot be sufficiently depicted by the concept of human marriage institutions in this world. Being ‘like the angels’ means not being subject to mortality (this is clear in Luke’s account). It is not a reference to another (heavenly-ethereal) form of existence.

Spirit. The question: ‘The synoptic Gospels and the Fourth Gospel contain the tradition of the descent of the Spirit in the form of a dove upon Jesus at his baptism. Explore whether there is an Old Testament background to the imagery of the Spirit as a dove.’ Some thoughts: in his account Luke is clear that what he saw had ‘a physical appearance like a dove’ (Lk 3:22 My trans). Yahweh is depicted at several points in the OT using avian imagery. However, the only place where the Spirit is depicted in this way is in Gen 1:2 (and only if you interpret ruah as spirit, not wind). Interestingly 4Q521 Fr2 contains this: ‘over the poor His spirit will hover and will renew the faithful with his power.’ I do wonder about texts like Pss 18:10 and 104:3 – should we read in these the term ‘on the wings of the spirit', (al-canepey-ruah) rather than ‘on the wings of the wind’? The key OT connection with Jesus’ baptism is with Is 42:1 where the spirit of Yahweh is put upon the servant. The answer in a nutshell: the broader avian metaphor of the OT provides background to the appearance of the Spirit in a form akin to a dove. However, the descent imagery is a departure driven by the ideas in Is 42:1. There is no connection with Noah!

Nations. The question: ‘To what extent does the New Testament, and in particular the event of Pentecost, portray a reversal of the genesis of diverse languages and nations through God’s intervention at Babel in Genesis 11:1-9?’ Some thoughts: many interpreters see Babel as a curse upon an hubristic humanity trying to ‘storm heaven’. Pentecost is the redeeming act that reverses this curse. There are three problems with this: first, a close reading of the Babel narrative gives little evidence for this interpretation (the scattering is referenced without a negative assessment in Gen 9:19; 10:18; 10:32 – God’s act rectifies humanity’s decision to huddle in Babel in disobedience to the divine command to populate the earth in Gen 9:7); second, the details of the Pentecost narrative do not allow such an interpretation (many languages are spoken, not one; only one nation is present, not Gentiles – there is a tribal reconstruction motif here for the house of Israel and the house of Judah, in fulfilment of the Jeremaic covenant promise); and third, the result of this interpretation is cultural and linguistic negativism – diversity of culture and language is a curse to be overcome. We thus come close to justifying cultural imperialism and the destruction of minority cultures. The answer in a nutshell: Yahweh’s action at Babel was a gracious intervention for the good of humanity, in opposition to the introspective rebellion of humanity. The separation of languages and nations secured the divine intention for humanity to spread over the earth and diversify. Hence, the diversity of the nations, including their languages, is good. Far from portraying a reversal, the Pentecost narrative reinforces this view.

City. The question: ‘Is there any theological counterpart in the New Testament to the exhortation found in Psalm 48 to consider the architecture of the city of Jerusalem as a picture of Yahweh?’ Some thoughts: Ps48: 3, 14 seem to indicate that the physical city of Zion acts as a visual representation of the God of Zion, Yahweh. Such iconographic thought is rare in the OT. Perhaps a consideration of the defences of Zion are intended to prompt recollection of the story of Zion, and hence the God of that story, but the visual metaphor on the face of it seems more direct - Ps48:15 MT begins with the literal phrase: ‘for this is God’. The only place perhaps in the NT where similar iconography is encountered is in Revelation 21. The city of Jerusalem there has ‘the glory of God’ and its architecture is described in great detail. God, the Almighty, and the Lamb are its temple/sanctuary. Answer in a nutshell: architecture (the work of man) here does supply a metaphor for God, just as features of the creation often do in scripture. This is an interesting point for a consideration of all of the arts. That the geography of Zion supplied a metaphor for God is part of the theology of Zion expressed elsewhere in the Songs of Zion. The larger theological point is perhaps that the creation of the city of God as a redeemed human society, comprised of individual image bearers as ‘living stones’, will indeed bear some of the attributes of God himself. Thus the city of John’s Apocalypse bears the glory of God. For Zion, and for the new Jerusalem, the glory of the city reflects that of the God who dwells within it. In the Church, we consider the logos made flesh as the icon – he who has seen me has seen the Father - ‘for this is God.’ We also consider one another as the works of God, showing Christlikeness as new creatures.

Reflections on Biblical Theology I & II (Part II)

2010-09-13T12:39:00.000Z

Further to my previous post on the Biblical Theology modules, I’d better proceed with my reflections proper, so here are a few of my highlights:

Discussing the origins of BT (studying, for example, the text of Johann Gabler’s 1787 inaugural lecture in Altdorf) and the definition of the discipline. Childs is helpful here: he sees that from one perspective, the entire modern history of the discipline of Biblical Theology can be interpreted as the effort to distinguish between the views that (i) BT is descriptive, historical task seeking to determine what the theology was of the biblical authors themselves (a theology contained within the Bible), and (ii) BT is a constructive, theological one that attempts to formulate a modern theology compatible in some sense with the Bible (a theology that accords with the Bible).
Reading B S Childs. My first B S Childs reading was a few years back in his excellent OTL Exodus commentary. However, reading Childs’ Biblical Theology: A Proposal as part of the BT I module was a great introduction to Child’s canonical approach to BT. It’s only a short book, but crystallised in its pages you find a brief history of BT, a discussion of the issue of the canon, and an outline of his canonical approach to BT: the two testaments; text and interpreter; shaping; witness and subject matter. Of course, you then have to plunge into Childs’ Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments!
Apostolic Hermeneutics. This was the subject of the assessment paper for BT I. Why do the NT authors seem to do strange things with OT texts? Can we follow their example? Many say ‘no’, preferring to urge a straightforward grammatico-historical approach. There’s a lot that I could write, but I simply offer what follows. The fact is that strict grammatico-historical exegesis of OT texts will not yield Christian readings of those texts. So this approach will not suffice. Some form of midrashic exegesis is required. To correctly constrain the enterprise, the horizons of the OT author, NT author and present day interpreter need to be understood. The OT author occupies a unique eschatological and canonical context (he is situated before the advent of Messiah and before there is any canon); the NT author shares an eschatological location with the present day interpreter (post Messiah), but the canonical location is different: the former is situated post-OT canon, but pre-NT canon, the latter is situated post-canon. The Church’s task of theology then is to reflect upon the whole canon in a way that would have been impossible for the NT authors. Enns’ description of this task as Christotelic midrash is I think correct.

Reflections on Biblical Theology I and II (Part I)

2010-09-10T08:39:00.000Z

These are the modules that caught my eye right back before I started the HTC course: two consecutive Level 4 modules, taking you through the year, 26 weeks of Biblical Theology tuition. This comes on the heels of the Old Testament Themes year 3 module, which is an excellent biblical theology primer, being a kind of introduction to Old Testament Theology. If you’re thinking of studying theology in a genuinely Reformed setting, then these are two of the modules that should make you travel north to Scotland (if you’re not already here) to find the road to Dingwall.

Biblical Theology I is the theoretical module, Biblical Theology II the practical module. So, in BT I you look at the history of BT, the issue of the canon, NT use of the OT, and a range of methodological approaches to BT. You study salvation-historical approaches (e.g. Vos, Goldsworthy), canonical approaches (e.g. Childs, Seitz, Watson), and the approaches of Barr and Brueggemann. In BT II, you get to deploy what you’ve learnt. So, you get four three-week blocks where you research and develop a biblical-theological question relating to four subject areas, and then answer it using your chosen methodology. Our subjects (they are chosen by the seminar) were Marriage, the City, the Spirit, and the Nations. This of course is all overseen by Dr Jamie Grant.

For now, some brief reflections follow:

The neglect of Biblical Theology. BT is a closed book it seems in some circles where people who feel quite comfortable operating theologically within the categories of Systematic Theology talk about Biblical Theology in vague terms. It soon often becomes apparent that they’re talking about theology that’s ‘biblical’ – usually that means plucking Systematic Theology from the Bible!
The relationship of BT to ST. Systematics is very important (don’t try to cast me as a BT flag-waver in the BT-ST war! I attend Dogs in Edinburgh every two years for Pete’s sake!). However, an over-reliance on ST is not good. The development of BT as a discipline has accompanied the Church’s developing appreciation of the historical nature of the Faith. Although Gabler’s original proposals for BT were off-beam in some respects, at least he was right in this: that BT ought to form the foundation for ST. It’s my humble opinion that both BT and ST flag-wavers need to recognise the inter-related nature of their disciplines in the service of the Church. The Church needs ST. The Church needs BT. And successful ST needs BT.
BT, History and Categories. The fact remains that ST presents theology within an artificially imposed framework. The categories of ST are often not the categories of scripture. The framework within which scripture is placed per se in the canon is an historical one (notwithstanding the presence of the wisdom literature, Von Rad’s infamous nemesis). BT fundamentally operates within, and presents its results within, this framework, whereas ST does not. There is a great need for the Christian in the pew to recover the historical and eschatological component to the Faith. BT is assisting this in the Church. It is of huge importance at this time.

The Problem of History

2010-09-09T22:29:00.000Z

For what it’s worth, here’s a bit more on the hermeneutical problem of history, an extract taken from the conclusion to my paper on the subject:

‘…According to Troeltsch, it was the Church's insistence on seeing all of history within the framework of supernaturalist theology that hindered historical enquiry for 1500 years, up until the Renaissance. Whilst Troeltsch's view is undoubtedly conditioned by the over-confidence of the modernist project, it is true that the Reformation alliance of epistemology and theology was a much-needed development. Calvin's correct insistence on the link between knowledge of God and knowledge of the self has enabled philosophical investigation to contribute to the field of biblical hermeneutics. Thiselton's defence of the role of philosophy in hermeneutics is important for any reassessment of biblical hermeneutics. Practitioners must recognise the modernist substructure of the historical-critical method. Post-modernism's challenge to this substructure presents three contenders for a philosophy of history: realist/empiricist; idealist; or postmodern. The Church, with the benefit of two millennia of history, has an opportunity to re-examine these alternatives. This is why new proposals from scholars such as Meyers and Wright (for a new foundation for historical investigation based on critical-realism) are such an important development. To aid the Church's task, the Church can reflect on pre-modern interpretation. The recognition of different levels of textual meaning contrasts with the reductive modernist view of a single layer of meaning. The lectio divina emphasis on subordination to the text contrasts with modernisms critical judgement of the text. The 'rule of faith' as appeal to community tradition and the metanarrative of scripture contrasts with both the sterile individualism of modernism and the metacriticism of postmodernism. These positive pre-modern traits are seen in many postmodern approaches. However, the postmodern total collapsing of hermeneutics into the horizon of the reader is incompatible with the claims of Christian truth. The metacritical approach, which denies the metanarrative of Christian truth, must be countered by the Church. Pannenburg shows the way in viewing history as metanarrative in the widest sense of the word, embracing not only the past, but, through eschatology, the future – even if that future is only 'provisionally and proleptically accessible'. Modernity has established an awareness of temporal distance and impelled the Church to take the historical phenomenality of scripture seriously...’

Reflections on Hermeneutics

2010-09-09T09:47:00.005Z

For various reasons, I ended up taking Hermeneutics under the rubric of the Year 4 Guided Reading module, although a Hermeneutics course is offered at Level 4. The advantage of this approach was that I could tailor the module (in discussion with my supervisor – Dr Jamie Grant). So, I ended up writing three assessment papers:

Barriers to interpretation in ancient texts and the methods that have been adopted in an attempt to overcome them throughout the history of the Church.
a book review of Words and the Word: Explorations in the Bible and Literary Theory.
Human authorship and scriptural authority with special reference to Enns’s Inspiration and Incarnation and McGowan’s The Divine Spiration of Scripture.

A brief thought on each of these follows:

barriers to the interpretation of ancient texts arise fundamentally because of the ‘problem of history,’ the problem of the ‘pastness of the past.’ So, in my paper I examined the historical Church’s awareness of this problem. It is only since the Reformation that the Church has begun to truly get to grips with the historical nature of our faith, based as it is on divine intervention in human history, and the associated problem of bridging the historical distance. After the existential disconnection of post-Bultmannian theologies and the sterile criticism of modernity, it’s time for the Church to get to grips with the problem of history constructively. And, I think it is (beginning to get to grips with it). I’ll post some more on this (perhaps).
Being borne in the womb of Imperial College, trained as an proper engineer, then as a policy-making ‘soft engineer’, literature has been for a long time on the fringes of my education (O’ level English Literature is the fringe I’m talking about!). Of course, studying theology has put paid to that. And I had a lot of catching up to do on literary theory etc. So, this essay enabled me to get to grips with an area of hermeneutics that still appears, to many scholars it seems to me, like the Land of Mordor, shielded from view on all sides by high mountains. Well, I passed Shelob’s Lair and went in for a look! And lo, ‘twas a fearsome land! But I returned alive and better informed about Wittgenstein (that’s him above, by the way), speech-act theory, poetics and rhetoric (although to be fair we’ve done lots of rhetoric as part of the NT courses).
This one is the (extremely) hot potato, especially with the furore over Divine Spiration, the book by HTCs former principal. I was dismayed over the attacks made on a good man, who is honestly grappling with a subject where amongst some evangelicals there is little desire for honest and open discussion and doctrinal development. Few of the attackers engaged with the substantive issues. Anyway (avoiding fresh potato burns), I posted plenty at the time on this subject...

Reflections on 1 Corinthians (Greek Text)

2010-09-08T16:22:00.003Z

And so begins the final series of reflections on my time at Highland Theological College as a theology undergraduate. The 1 Corinthians module is a Greek text module and is a first semester Year 4 module, meaning that I was taught this module by Dr Mike Bird during his last semester at HTC.

The module aims to equip the student to interpret this letter in its historical setting, to discover its theological and ethical significance for today and hopes (according the the blurb) to discover the student demonstrating ‘comfortable familiarity with the methods and resources required for Greek textual exegesis’!

Here are a few of my highlights:

Mike getting us to read and translate from a copy of the p46 manuscript (not easy when you’re attuned to UBS4)!
Reading on historical setting and archaeology in Corinth. Thiessen on social stratification was hugely interesting for gaining an insight into the background of the letter, as was Murphy-O’Connor on archaeology at Corinth. I think it was Bishop Stephen Neill who wrote about the need for eminence in the fields of the exegete, the theologian and the historian in order to be successful in probing Christian antiquity. I think the successful exegete or theologian (or Christian) must be at least mindful of the importance of history, even if he or she cannot achieve eminence as a historian!
Reading Richard Hays on ‘The Conversion of the Imagination’ in NTS 45 (1999). If you have the slightest interest in Pauline eschatology then try to get your hands on this paper. I think this really was one of the most important things I read all year.
Interacting with Pete Enns’s stuff on the extant ’Moveable Well’ tradition that seems to stand behind some of Paul’s material in chapter 10.
Writing the assessment paper on the resurrection body in chapter 15. The role of vv38b-41 in Paul’s argument is not immediately apparent, but it seems clear to me that in this chapter Paul is making a direct allusion to the second triad of the creation narrative of Genesis 1. Therefore, far from this section inviting limitless conjecture as to the future ‘glory’ of the resurrection body being like the glory of the stars, Paul actually sees the resurrected body taking its appropriate place within the second triad of a renewed creation, where each body has its appropriate ‘glory’. It would seem to me that this indicates a continuance of the framework provided by the first triad of creation, which is not mentioned but assumed.
Grappling with psychikos and pneumatikos (again, for the assessment paper). It’s not easy to decipher the significance of psyche, especially since in 1 Corinthians it appears with negative connotation in 2:14 and 15:44 and without negative connotation in 15:45. I can’t go into details here, but basically I think that the answer lies along the same trajectory as Paul’s use of sarx, which can possess both negative and neutral meanings. In short, there is an aspect of psyche and sarx that must be done away with, but nevertheless the bodily nature of the resurrection is maintained, such that we will still be psyche (but not psychikos) and sarx (but not sarkikos) - our existence will be best described as pneumatikos.

China and the Authority of Jesus

2010-09-03T14:51:00.003Z

The VdT silence is broken!

Soon, I will post reflections on my final year modules at HTC (yeah, yeah…you said that before), and perhaps a few other reflections on my time at HTC. But I wanted to post something before that…

On Sunday last, I was preaching on Matthew 28:16-20 in a Church of Scotland congregation in North Uist. The words of Jesus, recorded by Matthew, are pregnant with prophetic power. I was citing the growth of Christianity in China as a powerful example of the fulfilment of the words of Christ: ‘all authority has been given to me, in heaven and on earth.’

How wonderful it was, then, to listen to Crossing Continents on Radio 4, reporting on this phenomenon, and to hear new Christians being baptised ‘in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,’ in obedience to Jesus’ command. Of course, Christianity’s growth in China is not straightforward; there are many issues and potential problems. However, it is a cause for praise. In the words of one of the interviewees: ‘God is doing a great job in China!’

China is quickly becoming one of the most prominent global economic powers, and hence political powers. The waxing of the dominance of the West, especially in Old Europe, reminds me of the words of Moore in his Zephaniah commentary: ‘The kingdoms, powers and governments of world history are the scaffolding for the kingdom of God, to be torn down when their purposes are accomplished.’

Vorsprung

2010-05-29T08:37:00.002Z

When I started this blog back in October 2006, my aim was to blog my way through my degree. What started as a briefly-lived team blog with a few friends has become a record of my own reflections whilst (and sometimes about) studying theology; a record of my own advancement (Vorsprung) through theology, both chronologically and, I hope, spiritually and intellectually. Vorsprung durch Theologie also expresses my own conviction that only theology will give the Church its advancement under Christ in the world. Theology is for the Church.

Along the way I have become somewhat sceptical about blogging and have almost abandoned the VdT project at several points. But for my very few readers I hope that something of value has occurred in your occasional encounters with VdT. And I hope that for those contemplating studying theology, VdT has given some kind of insight - and I hope it's encouraged you to consider HTC, which is an outstanding community of faith and scholarship in the Reformed tradition.

Anyhow, the VdT project enters its final stage. All Honours year modules are now complete - my final exam was yesterday. All that remains for me is to post some reflections on those modules, and perhaps a few reflections on my time at HTC as a whole. Then the End Will Come!

Progressive Creation

2010-05-14T09:51:00.008Z

After Bruce Waltke's words about the evidence for evolutionary process and his subsequent resignation from RTS, some will (of course) adopt the myopic narrative that this is the Church listening to modern, rationalistic science instead of to God (in fact an article on Reformation21 has stated just that, in a disservice to Bruce Waltke).

Unfortunately (or fortunately) this unbelievably simplistic analysis is...well, unbelievably simplistic and wrong. The idea that the six creation days ought not to be taken literally has a long history that goes back to the Fathers (it can be seen in Augustine, Origen, Clement, and others). Here in Scotland, some of the Free Church's own Fathers, men like Hugh Miller and William Cunningham, were happy to embrace an old earth and a progressive creation process moving from simplicity to greater complexity. I'm glad to say that prominent Free Church theologians today are similarly inclined.

To stress the unity and eternity of God; to insist that the whole universe is His work; to emphasise that we live in a world of order, not of chaos; and to put the gods of Egypt and Babylon firmly in their place: these were the intentions of the author of Genesis 1. I suspect that if we had asked him, 'But how long were the days?' he would have looked blank. He was assuming a natural science rather than advocating it.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed would soon lose its effect if we became obsessed with the question, 'But is it really the smallest of all seeds?' And our Lord's encounter with Nicodemus would teach us little if we focused only on the question of reconciling John 3:8 with modern meteorology. I am not sure that our treatment of Genesis 1 has been much more intelligent. (Macleod, A Faith to Live By, 60).

If I am not hostile to the notion of a universe thousands of millions of years old and if I am prepared to accept that life-forms emerged according to a progressive pattern, from the simple to the more complex, does this make me a Darwinist? Not for a moment! I draw a very firm distinction between such a position and the position of consistent evolutionism. (Macleod, AFtLB, 62).

Genesis and Genre

2010-05-12T11:48:00.003Z

I didn't post when, a few weeks back, Bruce Waltke resigned his post at RTS (announced April 6) after a controversy about the orthodoxy of theistic evolution. From what I have read from the pen of Bruce Waltke, and what I have heard from people who know him, he is a gracious, deeply respected brother. As I've reflected on what's happened to him, and on some of the reaction, I felt I should post by twopenneth. So, what happened? You can read about it at CT here, but basically a video had appeared on BioLogos (which has subsequently been removed at the request of RTS) in which Waltke questioned whether Christianity can seriously ignore scientific data that seem to point to an old earth and to evolutionary theory. Waltke has since re-affirmed his belief in a historical Adam and Eve (you can read Waltke's Statement of Clarification here), but this it seems is insufficient. BioLogos themselves hold that young earth theories are untenable and that the ID movement has reached a 'dead end'. Waltke probably isn't so definite about the latter of these, but perhaps it's another case of the dreaded Guilt By Association. Have we really reached the point where any concept of theistic evolution is viewed as heresy in Reformed thought?

Such a broad concept allows perfectly well for an Adam and an Eve, for the divine fiat, for man as the Imago Dei. In fact, it allows for all of the truths that Reformed Christianity holds to. I might not be a confirmed theistic evolutionist according to one specific model, but I can see that the earth is very old. Evolutionary processes at some level are contributing to biology today and have done so in the past. It seems probable to me that death existed in the animal kingdom even before the fall (from looking at the Genesis narratives, not from ignoring them). However, I still think that teleological arguments for design have got stronger and stronger in recent years, in the realm of microbiology and elsewhere. After all, it is this type of argument that eventually proved persuasive for Anthony Flew. Evolutionary process, the divine fiat and design are not mutually exclusive.

At heart, this problem is (again) centred around the doctrine of Scripture. If Scripture is to be read as a genre-less, ahistorical monolith, then we should all be young earth, six day creationists. However, if we believe in divine accomodation in scripture; if we believe that scripture is a human as well as a divine work, written to make sense to the first readers, as well as to us; if we believe that incarnation is some sense helps us understand the nature of scripture (if you argue with this concept, you are arguing with Warfield, Hodge, Bavinck, Ridderbos as well as with Enns - and you need to read this); if we believe in hermeneutics, then other options are available for the interpretation of the Genesis narratives. Why is it so hard for Reformed theology to recognise its own view that Scripture is human and divine, is itself an accomodation to human understanding? The Genesis creation narrative is expressed in the context of the ancient NE. Its genre reflects the aNE stories of origins. And at the same time it is true; it is the Word of God. The Genesis narratives convey critically important truths about God, about man, about the cosmos, about sin, about redemption. It is my firm opinion that if Christians spent less time trying to defend a literalistic, scientific reading of the Genesis protology, and more time reflecting on its theology, then the Church would better understand not only protology, but also eschatology, and a whole lot of ologies in between.

Covenant and Election (Lillback on Calvin)

2010-05-05T15:46:00.000Z

In his The Binding of God, Lillback summarises the relationship between Calvin's conceptions of predestination and covenant in the following terms, in agreement with Hoekema as cited in the previous couple of posts.

The doctrine of sovereign election is that which explains why the covenant operates as it does. While Calvin hints at the idea of an eternal covenant in the Godhead, he is very clear that the covenant operates in time in union with the doctrine of election. This is true not only of the Israelites, but of Christians also. The covenant is not the same as secret election that infallibly secures salvation. Rather, the covenant is a general election that offers the promise of the benefits of the covenant. Only secret election ratifies the covenant in the case of any individual. Such is the covenant as viewed from the decree of God.
Nevertheless, the covenant has duties for men to execute. Thus man must not look to the decree for his salvation, but to the promises he finds in the covenant that he embraces by faith. Hence, the covenant creates an intermediate category of persons between those who are the ones rejected by God, and those who are elect. It is from this intermediate category that hypocrites arise, who later break the covenant by unbelief and disobedience. This type of covenant-breaking can even happen in the new covenant, since there are those admitted to the Church by baptism who will not be elect and who will not obey the covenant. Further there are those who come by profession of faith without a genuine working of grace. These too will ultimately show themselves to be non-elect by failing to fulfill the duties of the covenant. Nevertheless, those who enter the covenant sphere by baptism, even if not secretly elected, are really in the covenant.
For Calvin, the covenant is the place of salvation, but not all who are in the covenant will receive that salvation because of the mystery of divine election. Those who do not receive the grace of election are responsible for not fulfilling their covenant duties. They are those who have degenerated from sons of the covenant into illegitimate children. Such is Calvin's view of the hypocrite. Here we corroborate the views of Hoekema, Eenigenburg, Van Der Vegt, and Vanden Bergh vis-a-vis Polman and McClelland.
pp308-309

Covenant and Election (More from Jean)

2010-04-30T13:18:00.003Z

Further to my post a couple of days ago, here is another extract from Hoekema's article in CTJ:

The distinction between covenant membership and particular election is explicitly stated in the following words:

But that the general election [generalis electio] of a people is not always firm and stedfast, a reason readily offers itself: because to those with whom God makes a covenant God does not invariably (Hoekema's trans. of protinus) give the spirit of regeneration by virtue of which they would persevere in the covenant even to the end; but the outward change [externa mutatio] without the interior efficacy of grace which might have availed to keep them is a kind of middle way [medium quiddam] between the rejection of mankind and the election of a small number of the godly.

Here Calvin clearly teaches that the adoption of people into the covenant of grace does not mean that each covenant member will invariably be saved. Rather he calls the covenant here a kind of middle way (medium quiddam) between the rejection of mankind and the election of some. You could say that covenant membership is here pictured as a circle wider than particular election, but narrower than mankind as a whole.

[A A Hoekema, 'The Covenant of Grace in Calvin's Teaching', CTJ 2/2 (1967)]

Perhaps a couple of points. First, this is essentially the understanding of covenant found in Shepherd, which I referred to earlier, and definitely that found in Marcel, whose work on baptism was so influential in my finally adopting a presbyterian theology. This understanding of covenant is to a large degree my understanding, and resolves the difficulty that some presbyterians still seem to have in delineating the doctrine of baptism. Secondly, Calvin's distinction between general and particular election does raise again in my mind Paul's use of eklegomai in Ephesians 1:4. I have posted before on Paul's use of pronouns in Ephesians 1 and 2 and must confess that it seems at least possible to me that in 1:4 Paul is writing of the choice of the nation of Israel. That point, however, is likely to be more controversial!

Tom Wright back to Academia

2010-04-28T13:47:00.003Z

I read with some surprise on the Times Mobile site last night that Tom Wright is resigning from his post as Bishop of Durham to return to academia at St Andrews. Although a loss to the diocese, this must be good for those awaiting the final volumes of NT's magnum opus and further popular volumes from Tom. Anyway, here's a link to read.

Covenant and Election

2010-04-28T12:52:00.006Z

The current Reformed Theology module has given a chance to read more on the above subject, on which I've posted before, and also before that. Here is a quote from A A Hoekema, tracing the idea that the covenant of grace is a wider category than election back to Calvin himself.

As is well known, certain Reformed theologians have insisted that, strictly speaking, membership in the covenant of grace is identical with membership in the circle of the particular elect— in other words, that only the elect in this particular sense are members of the covenant of grace. This position was held, among others, by Abraham Kuyper in the Netherlands and, more recently, by Herman Hoeksema in this country. It has even been contended by proponents of this view that the conception of the covenant just described was the only one which was genuinely Reformed. I propose to show, however, that this view of the covenant of grace is not the one we find in Calvin.

In Book III of the Institutes, Chapter 21, sections 5 to 7, Calvin makes clear that he does not identify membership in the covenant of grace with particular election. (With the exception of two paragraphs, the material found in these three sections was added in the 1559 edition; it therefore represents Calvin's mature theological thought.) In III, 21, 5 Calvin asserts that God's choice of Abraham and his posterity was an example of his gracious election. He means here, not election in the usual theological sense, as referring to individuals chosen from eternity to be saved, but election in a wider sense, as the choice of a nation to be the recipient of God's special revelation and the object of his special care. In section 6, however, Calvin introduces a distinction into his conception of election:

"We must now add a second, more limited degree [gradus restrictior] of election, or one in which God's more special grace [gratia magis specialis] was evident, that is, when from the same race of Abraham God rejected some but showed that he kept others among his sons by cherishing them in the church."

The "more limited degree of election" must mean what we have previously identified as particular election.

[A A Hoekema, 'The Covenant of Grace in Calvin's Teaching', CTJ 2/2 (1967)]

Natural Evil

2010-04-08T15:40:00.001Z

I've recently been grappling with the Problem of Evil for an essay for the Reformed Apologetics course. Most theodicies or defences discriminate between moral evil and natural evil. For example, the Free Will Defence of Plantinga focusses on moral evil, but also addresses natural evil. Plantinga's proposal that natural evil is also a consequence of the actions of non-human free moral agents seems to me a little bizarre. A more fundamental question is: is natural evil actually evil? I'm sure that a nuanced answer is required, but my own view is that things that are often labelled as 'evils' are not in fact evil. Here's Henri Blocher on sin being the worst evil, the foremost evil, the essence of evil, the thing that makes humanity susceptible to all other evils:

Of course, this proposition appears exaggerated or strained to some: was it not God who created viruses and volcanoes? Did not the law of the jungle shed blood for thousands of centuries before the human race appeared on the scene? These objections are not insuperable. In his original, sinless and flawless state, mankind was bursting with health, so that viruses and other pathogens, which are all the more dangerous when an organism is weakened, caused him no harm whatsoever. He no doubt had intuitive wisdom and such finely tuned premonitory senses - far sharper than those of the most amazing of today's animals - that volcanic eruptions were incapable of causing him any danger. As for the manifestations of violence in the animal kingdom which shocked Wilfred Monod so profoundly, it is debatable whether they can be considered as evil...
The idea that before mankind's creation Satan might have caused the transformation of peaceful, loving animals into parasites and predators, or even that the fall in Eden was its cause, finds no support in the Scriptures; the speeches in the book of Job (38:39ff.; 39:29f.; 40:25ff.) and Psalm 104 (vv. 21 and 27f.) reveal in the behaviour of the carnivores the wisdom of God the Creator. This wisdom gives us a sense of wonder indeed, when science unfolds the intricate ordering and complex control of various ecosystems. Pain undergoes a radical change of category, depending whether there is or is not a reflecting consciousness that is able to relate sensations and experiences to a personal centre ('I'). Where there is to be found a similar consciousness, suffering certainly seems evil - that is, in human beings; but you cannot draw the hasty conclusion that it is the same in the case of animals. Evil and the Cross, 58-59.

He has Risen!

2010-04-04T08:00:00.001Z

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him.

Very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. They were saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?" Looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, although it was extremely large.

Entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. And he said to them,

"Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. "But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘ He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’ "

They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani?

2010-04-02T08:12:00.001Z

At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice,

ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI

which is translated, MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME? When some of the bystanders heard it, they began saying, "Behold, He is calling for Elijah." Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink, saying, " Let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down."

And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last.

Reflections on Old Testament Themes

2010-03-09T09:41:00.003Z

The Old Testament Themes module is taught by Hector Morrison, now principal of HTC. Its title seems to be a little simplistic for a Level 3 module - it sounds like something you might do on a Saturday course! However, this module is really akin to an Old Testament Theology primer. It's a great introduction to the Biblical Theology modules of Level 4. It is a superb module! Many highlights could be highlighted, but I will be brief:

Chaoskampf. One of the seminar themes - focussing on possible occurrences of the motif in the Psalms and writing prophets. I preached a mini-series on some of the Songs of Zion a few months ago and the chaos motif is clearly present in Ps46, contrasted there with the life-giving qualities of the Edenic Gihon spring on the slopes of Zion. The order displayed in the Sinaitic Law, whilst burdensome to the people, should perhaps be understood (at least to some degree) as a recreation of the world in the nation of Israel, which rises from the chaos of Egypt. Our God is a God of order!
Isaianic Portrait of the Messiah. This seminar caused disquiet for some by disallowing a simple reading-back of NT perspectives into the traditional Isaianic passages. However, important methodological decisions must be taken when intepreting the OT. One of them is to ask: what did this passage mean in Israel? If we do not ask this question, if we do not impose a historical ordering principle on our hermeneutic, then we will never properly understand the revelation of Christ.
Covenant. Dr Mike Bird used to harangue me (in jest) about the number of times I mentioned covenant! In this module, working through the Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic and Davidic covenants enables your thinking to crystallize in this foundational area. A seminar on the New Covenant ('not like the covenant I made with their fathers...') was then an opportunity to build on this. Especially useful for me was time spent considering the fact that the New Covenant is made with the houses of Israel and Judah. Some want to interpret this spiritually, but I think that's a mistake. A literal understanding is what we need, if we are to understand what's happening at Pentecost (and before that, for example, at the well in John 4) and what Paul is getting at when he uses his vine imagery in Romans 11 (on a personal note, this kind of thinking a few years ago now was critical in my own ecclesiastical shift from being a Reformed Baptist to being a Presbyterian. In fact, thinking about it, does that move in itself make me a reformed Baptist?!). It also makes me wonder whether in some of the ways in which the Samaritans feature in the Gospels, we are in fact seeing some kind of tribal reconstruction motif - a rehabilitation of the northern tribes?

Proclaiming God's Redemptive Purpose

2010-03-08T09:58:00.004Z

Re-reading my last post put me in mind of something I posted last year (prompted by studies in Paul's letter to the Romans) about the dangers of a gospel which is perceived in narrower terms than that proclaimed in the NT (and OT for that matter). The Near-Disaster of the Simple Gospel.

Kerygma, Didache and the Cross

2010-03-08T08:06:00.001Z

Further to my reflections on Luke-Acts, I reproduce here a couple of excerpts from my assessment essay for the Luke-Acts module on the apostolic kerygma:

We have already noted the relative absence of atonement theology from the kerygmatic speeches of Acts, and contrasted this with its significance in Paul and elsewhere. Whilst CH Dodd's strict dichotomy between kerygma and didache expresses an unwarranted polarisation between the content of evangelising proclamation and the content of teaching in the Church, a case can still be made that the theology of vicarious atonement appears more strongly in the context of didache than in the context of the type of evangelising kerygma that we find in the book of Acts. This is not to say that the atonement did not feature at all in the kerygma of the early church. Such a view must contend with the evidence of passages like 1 Cor 15:1-8 and the fact that what is presented in Acts can only be a summary of the kerygma or didache of the church. However, it may still be the case that the salvation-historical emphasis of the kerygma necessitated that the atonement received less emphasis than it did in the didache of the church. The salvation-historical emphasis of the kerygma places the cross in its context as part of the work of Christ, and in the wider context of its role in fulfilling the purpose of God for humanity and creation. The didache, such as we find in the NT epistles, is where the riches of the doctrine of vicarious atonement are taught and explored. It is certainly pertinent that the sole explicit reference to vicarious atonement in Acts occurs in the context of Paul's address to the Ephesian elders, a context more akin to didache than kerygma.

...Luke contextualises the cross within the whole work of Christ, which in turn is contextualised within salvation-history. Therefore, the role of the cross does not receive a detailed exposition. This is also true of the largely salvation-historical kerygma of the apostles. It is in the didactic material of the NT that we discover this exposition. This observation itself perhaps challenges the practice of the contemporary Church at a number of points.

Reflections on Luke-Acts

2010-03-06T09:41:00.003Z

The Luke-Acts module was (when I took it in 2009) taught by Dr Mike Bird. Aiming to investigate the literary and theological relationships between Luke's two volumes, the module draws out the main theological themes through thematic lectures backed up by exegesis sessions from the text in translation. There were many highlights, but one will suffice here: the Apostolic Kerygma in Acts. This was the topic for the assessment essay.

Are challenges to the centrality of the cross in the apostolic kerygma justified? An analysis of the seven apostolic kerygmatic speeches (as opposed to other types of speech in Acts) shows that the death of Christ is referred to in all but one of them, with the cross explicitly referenced in all but two. The resurrection is always mentioned. However, Dodd's challenge (also that of Conzelmann) that the cross is not linked to the forgiveness of sins by Luke was significant. Key in refuting this view is Acts 20:28 - a prominent reporting of words of Paul which clearly support the idea of vicarious atonement. Textual difficulties in this instance are minor and sometimes exaggerated. Also significant are references to the cross as a 'tree' on the lips of Peter and Paul. The reference to the cross as a tree is unusual and due to its multiple use (and its use by Paul), Morris writes that 'it is difficult to escape the impression that Luke is alluding to this (Jesus bearing our curse)'. And, of course, the Suffering Servant in the preaching of Philip in Acts 8.

However, this said, it must be acknowledged that Luke's particular focus on salvation-history and eschatological fulfilment means that the significance of Jesus' death is not necessarily seen in terms of the mechanics of salvation, but in how it fulfils God's purposes for salvation in history.

Telling the Truth

2010-03-05T14:49:00.001Z

In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act, George Orwell

Reflections on Amos

2010-03-04T09:41:00.003Z

Continuing my very late reflections on the last of my third year modules, we reach Amos. The Amos module is translation and close textual exegesis of the Hebrew text of the whole of the canonical book, taught by Hector Morrison. Very briefly, highlights included:

Discussion of the canonical form of the book; Amos' words are introduced by a narrator; in chapter 7 Amos' visions are related in the first person, and his conflict with Amaziah in the third person. How were these sources and oracles, proclaimed against the Israelite elite (perhaps in a cultic setting), eventually set in their canonical form?
Amos' profession: was he a poor shepherd or a wealthy landowner? Not only was Amos a sheep-keeper but also a sycamore fig farmer - diversification is the key to succesful farming! Or was he actually a seasonal manual labourer who moved between both? The former view has some merit.
The plumb line. Or not? In 7:7, what exactly is the import of the vision? Whatever it is, it seems almost certain that it is not a plumb-line that is in view. Rather, it seems as if the weakness of the wall is in view here, anak being the material in mind. Dealing with a hapax like this just reinforces the difficulties that can often be encountered in the art of translation.
Of course, the huge theme is judgement - contectualized amongst the nations, but also crystallized against Israel's apostasy. Yahweh's indictment of the war crimes of the surrounding nations speaks in our world to the accountability of leaders and soldiers engaged in conflict. The indictment of the northern kingdom in the midst of their material prosperity speaks to the Church in the west, where wealth can so easily displace genuine, countercultural worship.
The Day of Yahweh - this prophetic leitmotif rises here in Amos. Discussion as to its origin is fascinating, including the classic treatment by Von Rad.

As always, much more could be said...

Walden

2010-03-02T16:36:00.000Z

Over the last few weeks I've been dipping in and out of Walden by Henry David Thoreau, much like Thoreau himself dipping in Walden Pond! Thoreau's prose is beautifully constructed, but it's the prophetic quality of his observations of life in the mid-19th century that I find most striking. Walden was published in 1854. Early in the work, Thoreau muses on the the importance of shelter for life...

No man ever stood the lower in my estimation for having a patch in his clothes; yet I am sure that there is greater anxiety, commonly, to have fashionable, or at least clean and unpatched clothes, than to have a sound conscience. Henry David Thoreau

In the savage state every family owns a shelter as good as the best, and sufficient for its coarser and simpler wants; but I think that I speak within bounds when I say that, though the birds of the air have their nests, and the foxes their holes, and the savages their wigwams, in modern civilized society not more than one-half the families own a shelter. In the large towns and cities, where civilization especially prevails, the number of those who own a shelter is a very small fraction of the whole. The rest pay an annual tax for this outside garment of all, become indispensable summer and winter, which would buy a village of Indian wigwams, but now helps to keep them poor as long as they live. Henry David Thoreau

Reflections on Greek Texts III

2010-03-01T13:42:00.003Z

I'm quite a few months behind on my reflections on my course modules. Given that this blog is primarily about my experience studying theology at HTC, this is not good! So, over the next couple of days reflections will follow on my modules from semester 2 of year 3 - yes, I really have neglected it for that long!

First up, Greek Texts III. To get to Greek Texts III, you've already been through Greek Grammar I and II, and Greek Texts I and II. That's about 600 hours of Greek! So, with Greek skills more developed, Greek Texts III becomes an enjoyable journey through Acts 2, 2 Thess 2, Hebrews 6, Revelation 5, Psalm 41 LXX and selections from the Didache. Highlights include:

looking at citations of Psalms in Peter's sermon, comparing LXX and MT;
the relationship between repentance, baptism and forgiveness in the ministries of John and Jesus;
the meaning of Acts 2:39, always a bone of contention; the reference here to offspring is clear, and unless you abandon anchors in the Abrahamic covenant (therefore abandoning quite a bit of Paul, not least the all-important olive tree of Romans 11) then this message of Peter only leads to one conclusion;
discussions on the man of lawlessness and the parousia in 2 Thess 2; including Calvin's (I believe) view that the parousia would occur in Palestine;
more discussion on the warnings against apostasy in Hebrews; on this, I believe that Shepherd's idea of Observable Covenant Reality brings a much-needed emphasis in interpreting these passages;
Working in Psalm 41 LXX and the Didache was encouraging - here we are venturing outside the relative safety of the NT!

I will post some further reflections on Revelation 5, this being the text for our exegesis paper.

Creation, Worship and Life

2010-02-16T12:37:00.010Z

Here is a typically thought-provoking excerpt from Brueggemann's Theology of the Old Testament (p532). Even without his particular assumptions on the dating of the Genesis account, his point still stands. This particular strand of interpretation of the Temple was introduced to me in my first year Pentateuch class and has been one of many abiding and fruitful insights from the time here at HTC. Anyway, here's Brueggemann...

Creation as Counter-Experience in Worship

One other peculiar practice in Israel’s worship life bears on our theme. It is evident in Gen 1:1–2:4a that creation and its gift of blessing are understood to be accomplished through (a) utterance, (b) separation of day from night and the waters from the waters, and (c) in the culminating practice of Sabbath.
.
It is widely held that creation became a crucial claim of Israel’s faith in exile, when Gen 1:1–2:4a is commonly dated. This setting for creation faith suggests that affirmation of creation as an ordered, reliable arena of generosity is a treasured counter to the disordered experience of chaos in exile. If this critical judgment is accepted, creation then is an "enactment," done in worship, in order to resist the negation of the world of exile. As a consequence, creation is not to be understood as a theory or as an intellectual, speculative notion, but as a concrete life-or-death discipline and practice, whereby the peculiar claims of Yahweh were mediated in and to Israel.
.
This assumption has led a series of scholars to notice that the Priestly construct of the tabernacle in Exodus 25–31 has an odd and seemingly intentional parallel to the creation liturgy of Gen 1:1–2:4a. That is, the instructions for the making of the tabernacle, given by Yahweh to Moses, consist in seven speeches, matching the seven days of creation, and culminating, like Gen 2:1–4a, in the provision for the Sabbath (Exod 31:12–17). Moreover, the assertion that the tabernacle is finally "finished" (Exod 39:32, 40:33) corresponds to the "finish" of creation in Gen 2:4.
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This parallelism suggests that while creation may be an experience of the world, in a context where the world is experienced as not good, orderly, or generative, Israel has recourse to the counter-experience of creation in worship. Such an exercise, we may suspect, permitted Israelites who gave themselves fully over to the drama and claims of the creation liturgy to live responsible, caring, secure, generative, and (above all) sane lives, in circumstances that severely discouraged such resolved living.
.
Thus creation, in such a context, has concrete and immediate pastoral implication.

Final Semester at HTC

2010-02-09T13:23:00.000Z

The final semester of my theology degree at HTC has just started. Modules for this semester are as follows:

Biblical Theology II The follow-up to Biblical Theology I (no surprise there), this module builds upon the methodologies studied previously and applies these to themes within the canon. So, during the semester we will discuss Marriage, the City, the Spirit and the Nations, developing biblical-theological approaches to analyses in each of these areas. All of this under the expert guidance of Dr Jamie Grant.

Reformed Apologetics My degree up to now has been dominated by Biblical Studies, Biblical Theology and the Languages. Nothing wrong with that! In this final semester, I will be bringing some systematics to the table in the form of two modules (reflecting my Gablerian conviction that Biblical Theology must form the basis for Systematic Theology). The first of these looks at Reformed approaches to apologetics. Dr Rob Shillaker teaches the module.

Reformed Theology Dr Rob Shillaker is also the tutor on this module, the second of my brace of systematics subjects. The module was written by Rev Professor Andrew McGowan, former principle of HTC, and addresses the development of Reformed theology up to the modern day. Along the way, we will analyse Westminster theology as a development of Calvin's thought, and bring things up to date with a consideration of current trends in semper reformanda, including the federal vision.

Dissertation As for last semester, 25% of my study time is to be spent writing my dissertation, the working title of which is 'The Heavens Opened: Intertextuality, Function and Meaning in John 1.51.'

So, it's head down for the next 14-ish weeks!

God's Divine and Gracious Word

2010-02-03T13:12:00.002Z

The final post here (for now) on the nature of Scripture is two quotes from the WTS Hermeneutics Field Committee report.

Concursus warns us against playing the humanity of scripture off against its divinity and vice versa. To the extent that one stresses the foundational role of God as primary Author, to that same extent the question of His determination to use real human authors (and not mere amanuenses) becomes more insistent. The fact is that the Bible that we have presents us with the amazing fact that God chose to use human beings well beyond the minimum threshold required for communication. The tell-tale signs of such an activity in Scripture are, therefore, not principial problems to be explained away or denied but rather wonderful marks of its origin and perfection. Kuyper did not drive home the power of the disanalogous aspects. The depth of divine condescension in the Incarnation is incredibly greater than his condescension in inscripturation, and was strictly necessary, given God’s decision to redeem a people. By comparison, the divine condescension in inscripturation, though less costly, is surprisingly much deeper and pervasive than was necessary! It is the wisdom of this surprising condescension in which I&I and HFC wish to exult, 86.

The phenomena that our tradition has labeled "the humanity of scripture" is, therefore, a signature mark of the character of its divinity. This divinity, if we may paraphrase Pascal, is not the abstract divinity defined by the philosophers; it is the divinity of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Yahweh, the covenant God! As such, these "troublesome" phenomena of Scripture are one of the important revelatory burdens of the Bible, providing us a unique view into the nature of our God, of his relationship with his people and the concerns of his heart. As a set, then, these phenomena are of immense moment for our understanding of the Bible, the Christian walk and calling. We dare not minimize this dimension of scripture in the slightest. It is an integral part of a biblical "doctrine of Scripture." I&I drives this point home to an audience that needs to hear it, 87.

God's Infallible Word

2010-02-02T12:11:00.002Z

To round off a series of post on the nature of scripture, perhaps I can quote Ridderbos and also (in the next post) a section of the WTS Hermeneutics Field Committee paper. Both are very much in line with my own position. First, Ridderbos:

[W]hat we are confronted with in Scripture is not just human beings in their human faith and human efforts to witness to what they understood of God's revelation; it is God himself, addressing himself to us by men...But at the same time we must always be aware that it is God's speaking in his condescension to men, wonderfully adjusting himself to human language and human possibilities of understanding, Studies, 33

To attempt a theological definition of the Scripture is no easy matter. This results from its unique origin and character. All Scripture is God-breathed. Therefore all our human definitions will remain inadequate. Just because it is divine, it arises above our knowledge, and we shall never fully realize 'what is the breadth and length and height and depth' (Eph 3.18). This applies also to its authority and infallibility. Its authority is much greater than we are able to express in human words. But at the same time we have to acknowledge that this Word of God has entered so very much into the human and has so identified itself with it that we shall always again stand before the question as to what the unassailably divine and what the relativity of the human in Scripture mean concretely, Studies, 34.

Ridderbos, Jannes and Jambres

2010-02-01T12:24:00.007Z

In Inspiration and Inspiration, Peter Enns questions whether the actual names of Pharoah's magicians in 2 Tim 3:8 were Jannes and Jambres, or whether this in fact represents a Second Temple tradition. It's interesting to find Ridderbos coming to the same conclusion as Enns.

...In some respects, the Jewishness and Rabbinical background of New Testament writings are clear enough. If the second letter to Timothy speaks of Jannes and Jambres as men who withstood Moses, we cannot recognise in them the Egyptian magicians of the court of Pharoah, until we come across these same names in certain late Jewish writings with a plain reference to those magicians. Elsewhere, when Paul speaks of the mediation of angels in giving the law on Sinai (Gal 3.19), or when, wishing to indicate Christ's exaltation above all other spiritual powers, he list a whole series of kinds of angels (Col 1.16); or says that the promise was given 430 years before the law (Gal 3.17) - these are all expressions whose background we are not able to find in the Old Testament or elsewhere in the New Testament, but which only become clear to us from the late Jewish writings. How must we now view this? Must we say that because Paul, the apostle of Christ, who was led by the Spirit, calls the magicians of Pharoah Jannes and Jambres, these must have been their real names? Although there may have been those in times past who would have answered this affirmatively, it would not be easy to mention anyone who takes this standpoint today, at least among those aware of the way these names were probably brought into vogue in Jewish literature.

Now, of course, the concrete significance of this last example is particularly slight. From the point of view of faith no one is interested in the names of Pharoah's magicians. Nevertheless... [this example] is not without importance. It lets us see that inspiration can also mean connection with certain Jewish or non-Christian elements, without these elements at the same time being brought under the sanction of inspiration and thus belonging to the normative character of Scripture.

Studies in Scripture and Its Authority, 31-32

Gaffin and Old Amsterdam

2010-01-30T11:34:00.002Z

There has, over the years, been debate over the position of Dutch Reformed theologians on the doctrine of scripture (eg. Rogers and McKim, and more recently McGowan). Some have argued recently, on the basis of work by Gaffin (published in two WTJ articles in 1983), that Dutch Reformed theology 'supports' the idea of inerrancy. However, it seems to me that the case is overstated. Readers of the works of Bavinck, Kuyper and Ridderbos cannot fail to notice the relative absence of references to inerrancy, or semantic equivalents.

Even Gaffin admits, with reference to a single quotation from Reformed Dogmatics where Bavinck writes of the scriptures as being 'without defect' that:

As far as I can discover, nowhere else than here does Bavinck address more directly the issue of error in Scripture, 'Old Amsterdam Pt II', WTJ 45/2 (1983), 248.

Gaffin also writes:

Admittedly Bavinck has little to say about the issue of error in relation to Scripture or its infallibility, at least in his development of the doctrine of inspiration. This is all the more remarkable in view of the times in which he was writing, 'Old Amsterdam Pt II', WTJ 45/2 (1983), 249, emphasis added.

AA Hodge on the Accuracy of Scripture

2010-01-27T12:26:00.002Z

This quote from AA Hodge has probably been endlessly reproduced, but here goes anyway:

It is not claimed that the Scriptures, any more than their authors, are omniscient. The information they convey is in the forms of human thought, and limited on all sides. They were not designed to teach philosophy, science, or human history as such. They were not designed to furnish an infallible system of speculative theology. They are written in human languages, whose words, inflections, constructions and idioms bear everywhere indelible traces of human error. The record itself furnishes evidence that the writers were in large measure dependant for their knowledge upon sources and methods in themselves fallible, and that their personal knowledge and judgments were in many matters hesitating and defective, or even wrong. AA Hodge and BB Warfield, Inspiration (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1979), 27-28.

Note also Hodge's words regarding his fathers famous statement ('The errors in matters of fact which skeptics search out bear no proportion to the whole. No sane man would deny that the Parthenon was built of marble, even if here and there a speck of sandstone should be detected in its structure') when he writes to Warfield,

But the question remains was this book [the Bible] with its (1) human (2) oriental & (3) Hebrew characteristics intended to stand the test of microscopic criticism as to its accuracy in matters of indifferent detail? It appears my father [Charles Hodge] was speaking of the possibility of infinitesimal inaccuracies of no importance relating to the end designed, in Systematic Theology, Vol. I, p. 170. I say so too – very heartily. But the question remains what degree of minute accuracy do the facts prove that God designed to effect? That is for you critics and exegetes to determine.
Letter from AA Hodge to BB Warfield, November 14, 1880 (in Warfield’s papers, Speer Library, Princeton Theological Seminary), emphasis added.

Ridderbos and Bavinck on Rethinking Scripture

2010-01-25T11:55:00.005Z

One of the key arguments of those at WTS who opposed Peter Enns was that the Westminster Standards had once for all defined sufficiently the doctrine of scripture. Of course, an extreme rigid confessionalism is the enemy of reformation - this point was powerfully made in the report of the Hermeneutics Field Committee.

Ridderbos, in Studies in Scripture and its Authority, writes:

When new light is cast on the Scripture, also through the investigations of historical science, the church has to rejoice, even though this may compel it at the same time to be ready to reconsider and redefine theological concepts related to Scripture, 35.

In his Reformed Dogmatics, Herman Bavinck writes (following a section dealing with discrepancies in the historiography of scripture and the use of citations) that:

On these points the dogma of Scripture is far from being fully developed and leaves room for many special studies, RD, I, 447.

Perhaps people like Enns are most obviously following the invitation of Ridderbos and Bavinck.

Ridderbos on Scripture

2010-01-21T10:08:00.000Z

One of the books I most appreciated whilst reading for my hermeneutics module was Ridderbos' Studies in Scripture and its Authority (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978). Here's just one of many interesting quotes:

[D]ivine inspiration does not necessarily mean that the men who spoke and wrote under inspiration were temporarily stripped of their limitations in knowledge, memory, language, and capability of expressing themselves, as specific human beings in a certain period of history, 25.

Hanging by the Hare

2010-01-19T11:05:00.000Z

I posted at the beginning of December on the Enns Documents (the documents relating to the disagreements amongst the WTS faculty over Enns' book, Inspiration and Incarnation). If you are interested in debates concerning the Doctrine of Scripture, then I would urge you again to read these documents.

Anyhow, my own reading of them was in preparation for a piece on the authority and inspiration of scripture. I'll post a few quotes relating to this topic over the next few days. To kick off, I deliberately reproduce this amusing verse (gleaned from Achtemeier) - the well-known piece of sarcastic doggerel from the nineteenth century prompted by debates over Leviticus 11:6 etc where the hare is described as chewing cud:

The bishops all have sworn to shed their blood
To prove 'tis true the hare doth chew the cud
O bishops, doctors, and divines, beware -
Weak is the faith that hangs upon a hare.

-Inspiration and Authority, 49.

HTC appoints new NT lecturer

2010-01-16T12:11:00.000Z

HTC has appointed Dr Jason Maston as NT Lecturer, to replace Dr Mike Bird, who returned to his native land of Australia a couple of weeks ago to take up a position at the Bible College of Queensland. Jason is a Paul scholar, having completed his PhD on Romans 7 at Aberdeen. Jason joins principal Hector Morrison in the elite band of HTC staff with names from Greek mythology!

Let Brotherly Love Continue

2010-01-15T12:18:00.001Z

I was engaged last semester in some work on Hermeneutics and Scriptural Authority, and was revisiting two fairly recent books, I&I (Peter Enns) and Divine Spiration (Andrew McGowan), and some of the reviews and reaction that have followed in their wake. I've been struck again by the contrasts that can be seen in such reactions. Bruce Waltke's interaction with Peter Enns in WTJ was an example of respectful disagreement. So too the SBET review of Andrew McGowan's book by Rev Kenny Stewart of my own denomination. However, the ugly face of disrespectful jingoism too often raises its head. It is a shame to the evangelical community that Peter Enns should describe Waltke's brotherly approach as 'refreshing'.

Just before Christmas, the Reformation21 attack dogs were off the leash again, with predictable consequences. The authors of such pieces should learn from the brotherly approach of Mr Waltke. We must as God's people refrain from assuming the worst about a brother or sister, when there is absolutely no reason under heaven to do so. Do these people not live in the real world? What is one of the first reasons that unbelievers give for not taking Christianity seriously? Anyone?

Bavinck on Roman Catholicism

2010-01-14T10:16:00.001Z

Here's a quote from Bavinck on Roman Catholicism (taken from The Certainty of Faith) which was reproduced in part by Norman Jeune, who was in turn cited by Mike Bird. A fuller version is given here, which I reproduce below.

'Far be it from us to immediately denounce the latter with the protestant judgment that since such piety issues from a false principle—righteousness by works—it is therefore worthless to God. For no matter how much truth that judgment may contain, before we utter it we must remind ourselves that the Catholic righteousness by good works is vastly preferable to a protestant righteousness by good doctrine. At least righteousness by good works benefits one’s neighbor, whereas righteousness by good doctrine only produces lovelessness and pride. Furthermore, we must not blind ourselves to the tremendous faith, genuine repentance, complete surrender and the fervent love for God and neighbor evident in the lives and work of many Catholic Christians. The Christian life is so rich that it develops to its full glory not just in a single form or within the walls of one church.
Nevertheless, Catholic piety, even in its best form, is different in character from that of protestantism. It always remains unfree, unemancipated, formal, legalistic. Complete inner certainty of faith is lacking. It always leaves room for the question: Have I done enough, and what else should I do? Rome deliberately keeps the souls of believers in a restless, so-called healthy tension. Spiritual life fluctuates between false assurance and painful uncertainty. Catholicism does not understand the word of Holy Scripture that the Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are children of God and that all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.'

Living as I do in a Roman Catholic community, I can uphold Bavinck's sentiments (particularly the final two sentences of the first para above). And I would urge Protestant Christians to think likewise, for they sometimes do not.

Spirit of the Hills

2010-01-12T23:10:00.004Z

Well, the exams have come and gone; Christmas has passed; it's a new year, with the new impetus and hope that this time of year brings. The past few weeks have been pretty busy. Around 1500 miles in the car visiting family and friends; living out of a bag; sleeping in five different beds on five consecutive nights! So, I spent a day last week on the roof of Uist, in the quiet and solitude of a Hebridean summit. There may be higher hills than Beinn Mhor, but I doubt there's a vista to compare for many a long mile around.

...And so from the hills we return refreshed in body, in mind and in spirit, to grapple anew with life's problems. For a while we have lived simply, wisely and happily; we have made good friends; we have ventured well. The hills have taught us to be content in our faith and in the love of God who created them...
FS Smythe, The Spirit of the Hills (thanks Dad for that one)

Dr Michael F Bird leaves HTC

2009-12-10T10:47:00.001Z

Dr Michael F Bird taught his last lecture class at HTC on the afternoon of last Friday, 4 December - the final session of the 1 Corinthians (Greek Text) module. Mike will be missed by all at HTC, and not just at the teaching level. His prolific output has raised the profile of the college no end, and his enthusiasm for the NT has been infectious. I said goodbye to Mike and his lovely family last Friday evening; I returned back to the Outer Hebrides and they will return to Australia over the Christmas holiday. It has been a privilege to study under Mike's leadership and guidance, to worship with him in chapel and hear his chapel addresses, and to know him as a friend, a brother and fellow disciple of Christ. I hope I can witness to what he has passed on to me, in the service of the Church and to the glory of God. I'm sure I join all others at HTC in wishing Mike and his family every blessing and safe travels as they return to the land of the vegemite sandwich.

I leave you with the Bird, speaking about authors that have influenced him...

The Enns Documents

2009-12-07T10:18:00.008Z

The controversy that followed in the wake of Peter Enns' book, Inspiration and Incarnation resulted in Enns' departure from the faculty at Westminister Theological Seminary under 'mutually agreeable terms'. Much has been written about Enns' book in many fora, often generating more heat than light (see for example the article in the Spring 2009 WTJ that concludes that Enns book 'undermines the whole doctrine of redemption').

Ad fontes is usually the best approach, so I would urge you, if you haven't already done so, to read the Enns documents (click on view as pdf), originally released in April 2008 , published by WTS on their site. Read the HTFC critique. Read the HFC report. Take your time and do it properly. Then you will come much nearer to an informed conclusion on what's been going on at WTS.

A Presbyterian in Wales, 1739

2009-11-30T09:15:00.001Z

In a fascinating passage in The Calvinistic Methodist Fathers of Wales (Vol. 1), we read of the following interchange between a parish clergyman in Llanymawddwy and Lewis Rees (Dissenting minister of Llanbrynmair), the year being 1739:

'Where are you from?' asked the clergyman.
'I am from Llanbryn-mair, sir,' answered Lewis Rees, mildly.
'What brought you to Llanbryn-mair?
'The Dissenting congregation was without a minister. At their request I came to them, firstly on probation, and both sides being satisfied, I was appointed pastor over them.'
'How,' said his reverence, 'can you, being a Presbyterian, expect to be tolerated in this country? Go to Scotland. That is the Presbyterians' country.'
'I hope, sir,' said Mr Rees, 'that you act from a higher principle in religion than a regard to the custom of the country in which you happen to live; else, if you were to change your country you would change your religion: if you were to go to Scotland you would turn Presbyterian; if to Italy, a Roman Catholic.'

Thankfully, Dissenting Mr Rees was one of the spiritual forerunners of the Presbyterian Church of Wales, and the vicar was proved wrong!

World Toilet Day

2009-11-19T09:00:00.006Z

Each minute of the day, on average,

three children aged 5 or under die because of illness caused by dirty water or inadequate sanitation.

Tearfund is working to tackle this problem in the name of Jesus. And today is World Toilet Day.

(In a fascinating coincidence, today is also World Philosophy Day).

Surprised by Hope

2009-11-17T09:24:00.002Z

Two quotes from Tom Wright's Surprised by Hope. And why not?

On 1 Peter 1: 4 (...to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you), Wright writes:

If I say to a friend 'I've kept some beer in the fridge for you', that doesn't mean that he has to get into the fridge in order to drink the beer, 164.

And this one on the resurrection life...

Why will we be given new bodies? According to the early Christians, the purpose of this new body will be to rule wisely over God's new world. Forget those images about lounging around playing harps. There will be work to do and we shall relish doing it, 173.

Reflections on EDC 2009

2009-10-29T11:14:00.007Z

Rutherford House has a brief report and some photographs from the 2009 Edinburgh Dogmatics Conference (on the Doctrine of the Church) on its website. Since I'm in one of the photos, I can prove I was there!

For me, this was another enjoyable EDC. Where else can you get speakers of real calibre from such diverse Reformed backgrounds as Henri Blocher, Bruce McCormack, Michael Horton and John Franke, all sharing a platform to speak and debate? That's why EDC is so important. It's dogmatic theology with listening, discussion and reflection. Sure, you don't agree with everything, but this kind of forum is priceless as a setting contributing to reflective theological process in the Reformed church.

Highlights for me were:

Prof Bruce McCormack's paper, Credo sanctam ecclesiam: the Holiness of the Church after Barth. The paper was in part a defense of Protestant ecclesiology against fashionable communion ecclesiologies, but for me it was the presentation of the holiness of the church in mission, a reflection of God's own holiness, that spoke to me. I found the paper moving and edifying. That's not always the case at EDC!
Prof Henri Blocher's paper on Sacraments. This paper surveyed movements in both Protestant and Roman Catholic views of the sacraments and Prof Blocher's argument was rooted in Calvin's view of the sacraments. Calvin is usually seen as closer to Luther than to Zwingli - Prof Blocher has his doubts! One useful part of the paper was on the paradox of the sign as a sign: it is self-effacing; it fulfils its role when it is not noticed.
Prof Michael Horton's paper on Apostolicity. Prof Horton is a good speaker and his paper was challenging: the problem of losing the reached while reaching the lost; the need to feed the sheep, not set them aside as self-feeders; the church for believers and unbelievers (Calvin: 'we are partly unbelievers until we die'); worship as the missionary event.
Prof John Franke's paper on Catholicity. Prof Franke worries some people! He worries me! But, I like his challenging approach and I really appreciated this paper. He viewed his journey to Scotland as the Presbyterian equivalent of a trip to Mecca! Good man! His presentation of the reality of the explosion of Christian communities that do not identify with orthodox Protestantism in any way was particularly striking. The tension between Unity and Pluriformity, or diversity were key themes. I continue to have concerns about how Prof Franke's view of things deals with unorthodoxy; lines should be drawn, but (where) would he draw them?

As usual, the Plenary Session with all speakers interacting between themselves and with the floor was also one of the highlights.

There's my twopenneth...

Bird Flies South in Winter

2009-10-07T08:19:00.005Z

Over at Euangelion, Dr Mike Bird has announced the sad news that he will be leaving the staff of HTC in the New Year. He has secured a post teaching Theology and Apologetics at the Bible College of Queensland - and I am pleased for Mike and his family that they can return to family and fair weather in the land down under. The time for eulogies will come later(!), but suffice to say that the NT padawans of HTC will dearly miss their jedi master!

Paul in 1 Cor 4:3 and Stendahl

2009-09-24T09:46:00.003Z

Here's a worthwhile (imho) quote from Thiselton's NIGTC volume on 1 Corinthians on 1 Cor 4:3: It counts for very little with me, however, that I should be judged by you or by any human court of judgement; indeed, I do not even judge myself.

This last phrase (v. 3b) has assumed particular importance for Krister Stendahl's interpretation of Paul, which also paved the way for E. P. Sanders's hermeneutic. Stendahl argued that "the Pauline awareness of sin has been interpreted in the light of Luther's struggle with his conscience."223 But it is "exactly at that point" that a drastic difference emerges between Luther and Paul. Paul, Stendahl argues, was aware of the problem of sin and guilt as an objective state of affairs, but not primarily as the subjective problem of "a troubled conscience." Indeed, he declares that he was "blameless as to righteousness — of the law, that is" (Phil 3:6). "Paul was equipped with what in our eyes must be called a rather 'robust' conscience."224 He is concerned with the objective status of being declared in a right relation with God, not with the problem of "forgiveness," about which he speaks seldom. As a Pharisee he perceives himself to have been obedient (Gal 1:13; Phil 3:6), and as a Christian to have received grace which was "not in vain" (1 Cor 15:10).225 Strikingly, Stendahl asserts, Paul declares "I have nothing on my conscience" (1 Cor 4:4).226 But Western tradition turns Paul into an introspective, guilt-ridden, individual-centered, experience-centered man, misinterpreting the "I" of Rom 7:13-23 as an individual ego in conflict with itself rather than as representative of an objective human condition in relation to divine law and divine grace.227 The upshot is that whereas Paul stressed justification, the Western tradition stresses forgiveness; where Paul stressed call, this tradition stresses conversion; where Paul ascribed a role to weakness, this historical legacy is obsessed with sin.228

The value of Stendahl's approach is both to correct an imbalance and to disengage an obsession with "experience," "relevance," "failure," or even "success" from Paul in exchange for Paul's emphasis on objective acts of God which bring objective consequences for humankind as a social whole. Whether Stendahl can be defended in his further critique of the Lutheran interpretation of "boasting" becomes more problematic, for he concedes that Paul boasts in his "weakness" as against the triumphalism and self-sufficiency of his -opponents.229 His work, however, serves to demonstrate the pivotal importance of 4:3b and 4:4 for Paul's theology. He leaves his successes and failures with God. What has been done is done, and God alone knows and can disclose the worth of it. It must simply be left with God while the servant of God goes on to the next task, at the same moment "judging nothing before the time" (4:5) and "knowing that your labor is not in vain (kevos, empty, null) in the Lord" (15:58).

223. K. Stendahl, "The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West" (1961 and 1963); rpt. in Paul among Jews and Gentiles (London: SCM, 1977 and Philadelphia: Fortress, 1976), 78-96. Cf. E. P. Sanders, Paul and Palestinian Judaism (London: SCM, 1977), 434-47.
224. Ibid., 80-81.
225. Ibid., 89.
226. Ibid., 90-91.
227. Ibid., 86, 92-95; cf. 3-7, 23-40.
228. Ibid., 20-43, 81-82, 86-87.
229. Ibid., 40 and 88.

Pradis Fades into the West

2009-09-23T08:35:00.004Z

The best poor man's bible software around by a country mile has bitten the dust. Zondervan announced yesterday that they are discontinuing Pradis. Oh well, it was good whilst it lasted! Zondervan's Greek and Hebrew Grammar package and EBC under Pradis have (almost) seen me through college and their great advantage (especially for students) was that you could pick them up for not a lot.

Technical support will continue only until 1 June 2010 - after that, you're on your own! Some good news for Pradis users is that existing titles will be migrated to Logos by the end of the year, and the press release indicates that existing Pradis customers will be able to purchase the migrated titles at a discount. Whether it is a true poor man's discount remains to be seen!

The Loss of God

2009-09-17T10:33:00.002Z

'The decisive event which underlies the search for meaning and the despair of it in the 20th century is the loss of God in the 19th century' Paul Tillich

New Semester at HTC

2009-09-16T19:35:00.005Z

We're already into the second week of the new semester at HTC. This is the start of my fourth year, the Honours level year on the course. Modules and tutors for this semester are as follows:

1 Corinthians (Greek Text) 13 solid weeks of Greek exegesis in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians with Dr Mike Bird. Time spent in the company of Paul and Dr Bird is usually profitable! The key texts for this are Thiselton's NIGTC commentary and Dr Bird has recommended Hays' commentary in the Interpretation series - probably worth a look then!
Biblical Theology I The module I've been waiting for for three years! To be followed by Biblical Theology II next semester! A whole year of Biblical Theology!! The module tutor is Dr Jamie Grant and key texts are the New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, and the works by Childs (eg Biblical Theology - a Proposal), Vos and Scobie (eg The Ways of Our God) amongst others. Of course, various OT and NT theologies will also come into it. Also ready on my shelf is Volume 5 of the Scripture and Hermeneutics series (edited by Bartholomew et al), entitled Biblical Theology and Biblical Interpretation.
Guided Reading in Hermeneutics Level 4 means fewer lectures and more self-study. As part of this, I am able to consult with tutors and concoct a bespoke module! Nice! So, I'll be studying and writing papers on historical approaches to hermeneutics, hermeneutics and literary theory, and hermeneutics and scriptural authority under the guiding hand of Dr Grant.
Dissertation 25% of my time over the whole year is to be set aside for the dissertation. Mine is concerned with Intertextuality, Function and Meaning in John 1:51.

Homeless in this world

2009-08-25T22:10:00.004Z

I'm in Edinburgh at the moment for the 13th Dogmatics Conference. Breathing the rarified air of the systematicians can leave me with theological vertigo - but I found this evening's paper by Professor Bruce McCormack truly edifying. His paper closed with this quote from Karl Barth (who else!)...

Homeless in this world, not yet at home in the next, we human beings are wanderers between two worlds. But precisely as wanderers, we are also children of God in Christ. The mystery of our life is God's mystery. Moved by Him, we must sigh, be ashamed of ourselves, be shocked and die. Moved by Him, we may be joyful and courageous, hope and live. He is the origin. Therefore, we persist in the movement and cry out: 'Hallowed be Thy name! Thy Kingdom come! Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven!"
Konfirmandenunterricht, 1909-1921, 372-3

Dr Mike Bird on Romans 7

2009-08-25T22:02:00.004Z

Further to my reflections on Romans, I've noticed that Mike Bird (he of the crazed Zonderpunked videos), who teaches the Romans module has been updating the course notes and has published his own thoughts on Romans 7.

Reflections on Romans

2009-08-24T23:05:00.000Z

My reflections on Romans are now ended. I should point out that the last few posts on Romans are my own reflections, and may or may not reflect the content of the taught module.

For completeness, I can reveal that the Romans module on the HTC course (a Level 3 module) is taught by Dr Michael Bird and is split between exegesis of key passages (for which the main textbook is Moo's or Schreiner's commentary) and Wirkungsgeschichte (for which the textbook is Greenman and Larsen's Reading Romans through the Centuries). Needless to say, another excellent module. I should also note that I found Jimmy Dunn's two volumes on Romans in the Word series extremely helpful. If you want to own and use one commentary on Romans, I can't help you. My solution is to own and use two: Moo and Dunn. And to borrow others!

Romans 15:8-9

2009-08-24T07:58:00.000Z

Our exegesis paper was from this chapter. Thielman writes that the pastoral goal of the entire letter reaches its climax in this chapter. Quite so! For those interested in Paul's argument here, and especially the phrase introducing the catena of OT quotations in the chapter, I offer the following…

The syntax of 15:8-9 has not been finally resolved; Cranfield lists no less than six suggested explanations. Keck clearly sets out the crux of the debate: either there are two parallel purposes to Christ's servant-hood (confirming the promises and Gentiles glorifying God), or there is a single purpose (confirming the promises is the means to the Gentiles glorifying God). Moo believes the first alternative best reflects Paul's theological argument here. However, Lambrecht sets out the key objection to this parallelism: the resulting change in subject between clauses is syntactically awkward. Moo attempts to explain the awkward construction by appealing to Käsemann's noting of the theological tension between the equality of Jew and Gentile, and the salvation-historical priority of the Jew. The NIV adopts the second alternative, and translates the conjunction as 'so that', therefore subordinating Christ's servant-hood to the circumcision to the purpose of leading the Gentiles to glorify God. Cranfield himself reads the conjunction as an adversative: 'but the Gentiles glorify God for [his] mercy'. This gives the sense that the Jews should glorify God, but actually only the Gentiles are doing so. Cranfield's solution avoids the awkward syntax of the first alternative, but does not do justice to indications of parallelism in the text. Dunn concurs with Cranfield's reading, but is more ambiguous as to the meaning: 'Paul's whole point is that Christ became servant of the circumcised not with a view to their salvation alone, but to confirm both phases of God's saving purpose: to the Jew first but also to the Gentile'. Wagner produces what we believe is the most satisfying solution, which is achieved by proposing Christ, not the Gentiles, as the subject of the second clause. Wagner's solution can be represented thus:

For I say that Christ has become
a servant to the circumcision
on behalf of the truth of God
in order to confirm the promises to the fathers
And [a servant] to the Gentiles
on behalf of the mercy [of God]
[in order] to glorify God

In filling the ellipses directly from the parallelism, a solution is obtained which is both syntactically and theologically balanced, where the progression of salvation history from Jew (here denoted by the circumcision) to Gentile is reflected in the differentiated roles of God's truth and mercy, and where equality is powerfully underlined in the servant-hood of Christ to both.

References to authors are usually to their major commentaries on Romans. Wagner's paper is 'The Christ, Servant of Jew and Gentile: A Fresh Approach to Romans 15:8-9', JBL 116.3 (1997).

Romans 11

2009-08-23T22:50:00.000Z

In Romans 11 I think we find one of the most important pieces of imagery for understanding the relationship of the NT and OT people of God and of the Old and New Covenants. That image is that of the Olive Tree, employed by Paul to impress on the Gentile Christians their indebtedness to the Jews and therefore prayerful humility in their attitude to unbelieving Jews.

The important point is that Gentile Christians are considered as wild (uncultivated) olive braches that have been grafted (contrary to nature) into an already existing cultivated olive tree with a rich (pioths) root. Unbelieving Jews are considered to be broken off. The olive tree therefore represents the covenant people of God which has continued into the New Covenant Age from the Old, onto which Christians are grafted and become members. This idea of a renewed covenant with Israel, of which Gentile Christians then become beneficiaries through their in-grafting is reflected in the New Covenant passage in Jeremiah 31, and in the Pentecost narrative. This strong theme of continuity in Paul's thought must be recognised when interpreting Paul.

Romans 7

2009-08-22T14:40:00.000Z

In Romans 5 Paul expands the basis for justification by faith (which he introduced in chapter 3) – the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. For Paul, we are 'justified in/by His blood' (5:9). Can't get clearer than that! Chapter 6 then emphasises that believers have been made new (we have died and risen to new life – spiritually). Christians must consider themselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (6:11). That means a commitment to righteous living – hence Paul's imperatives (5:12,13,19).

In Chapter 7, Paul writes specifically to Jews (7:1). If you don't pick that up, then interpreting this next section is (more) problematic. Paul's great concern is to explain that the Law has served it's purpose (the argument here ties in very well with that in Galatians 3:15-29, esp 24-25). Obviously, as becomes clearer later in the letter (and is evidenced in other parts of the NT), Jewish Christians' attitude to the Law was a major stumbling block to church unity. So, Paul tackles this in the Roman church. If he can address it there, then he has addressed in in the congregations at the centre of the known world. The Law is holy and good (but Paul would still maintain that Christ has superseded the Law). It provided a framework for covenantal obedience, and highlighted sin, revealing to the attentive Jew the need for forgiveness and the importance of faith.

In this context, the problematic section in 7:14-25 then is not about the Christian life, but about the experience of a Jew. Paul could possibly be speaking autobiographically, but I prefer the view that he assumes the persona of a faithful Jew. He is obviously not describing a legalistic, or careless, Jew since the 'I' is joyfully concurring with the law of God in the inner man. That he is describing a Christian is unlikely, simply because he describes the general experience of not doing the good that he wishes, and doing the evil that he does not wish. I don't believe that's a description of the Christian life. It is likely that this is a description of life under the Law. Paul then makes the transitional argument at the beginning of Chapter 8 that there is 'therefore now' no condemnation. That's an eschatological 'now': now, in the New Age, the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you/me free from the law of sin and death (the situation he described in 7:14-25). If this is true then Chapter 7 helps us to answer the theological question about the different experience of God's people under the Old and New Covenants, leading into the practical effect of the adoption as sons (8:15, cf8:23), which is an eschatological benefit of the New Covenant.

Interestingly, I think Lloyd-Jones recognised the problem of interpreting this as a description of a Christian and took the view that Paul here was describing the experience of someone becoming a Christian. I wouldn’t agree, but this view has more merit than others.

Romans 4

2009-08-21T20:49:00.002Z

Paul continues his argument in this chapter that justification is by faith in God, not merely by obedience to the Law. This argument serves perhaps two causes for Paul:

Soteriological: to reinforce his point that only obedience to God which is the result of faith (inward circumcision in the language of Deuteronomy) is true obedience, because justification is by faith. Paul wants to emphasise that the promises given to Abraham, the foundation for the great hope of all believers are given to those who have faith and are realised in the New Covenant, not in the Sinaitic Covenant.
Ecclesiological: to emphasise to the Jewish believers in Rome that the Law was subservient to the true means of justification before God, which is faith. Therefore, Paul can disconnect both circumcision (4:10) and obedience to the Law from justification (4:13, see Galatians 3:17-18). Abraham did not have the Law (contrary to some Rabbinic teaching, which illustrates the problem Paul had!) and so justification cannot rely on the Law. Abraham was justified (his faith reckoned as righteousness) while uncircumcised, so justification cannot rely upon circumcision.

Participation in God's people through justification and becoming a beneficiary of the promises given to Abraham does not depend on circumcision, or on the Law, but on faith in Jesus Christ alone.

Romans 3

2009-08-21T07:24:00.000Z

In this chapter, Paul hints at the problem of unbelieving Israel (which he takes up properly later) and also emphasises the universality of sin – for the Jew as well as the pagans he has described in chapter 1. This chapter also provides the other half of the problem of chapter 2. If the doers of the Law were justified (2:13), then how come no flesh (comprehensive enough!) will be justified by the works of the Law? It might be that Paul is arguing eschatologically: that the Law is superseded by Christ and so the works of the Law are not relevant. The problem with this is that the eschatological 'now' is in 3:21. So, 3:19-20 are dealing with the Law from within the context of those under the Law. Those who see a problem with a straightforward reading here are not seeing that the doers of the Law are justified (2:13), but not by the works of the Law (3:20). The two statements are entirely compatible and fit totally into Paul's argument. The doers of the Law still committed sin, and their sin could not be atoned for by any works of the Law - they could not be justified by the works of the Law. And yet, they were justified. How? By faith (which is what Paul underlines in Chapter 4), apart from the works of the Law (3:28).

On 3:27, Dunn writes:

Once the centrality of 'faith' in the preceding section is grasped, the movement of thought in v27 becomes clear, for in the resumed diatribe of vv27-31 it is precisely this point which is hammered home: faith as the proper understanding of the law, faith as the indispensible basis of 'doing the law'.

But, for Paul, debates about the Law itself are now academic, because a new eschatological age has dawned. Now, the righteousness of God is manifest without the Law, through faith in Jesus Christ (3:21-22) embracing all nations and peoples. Paul's argument is aimed at showing that it is faith that's essential.

Justification has always been by faith. In the New Age, both Jews' and Gentiles' faith must be in Jesus (Paul's Christology is clear here). In fact, those Jews justified under the Law (their 'doing' of the Law a result of their circumcision of heart, or faith) were also redeemed by Jesus Christ because God had merely passed over their former sins in his forbearance. But now, atonement has been made, and redemption accomplished in Christ.

Romans 3 adequately demonstrates the obstacles in interpreting Paul and the Law. The interpreter is ranging across eschatological and covenantal boundaries. At once dealing with Jewish legalism and obedience under the Old Covenant, and debates on the Law, then with the New Covenant in Jesus Christ, and justification through faith in him.

Romans 2

2009-08-20T13:51:00.002Z

This, according to Tom Wright, is the joker in the pack. Maybe. It's definitely a key spot at which to get your interpretation correct. The direction you take here will have big consequences. It's quite clear that in Romans 2 Paul is attacking a Jewish trust in covenant status, divorced from covenant obedience. To claim to be righteous with an attendant unrighteousness is absurd – and will lead to wrath. Therefore such people are in the same position as the unrighteous pagan. To be justified before God it is not enough merely to hear the Law, it must be obeyed (2:12). This is where some interpretations falter. To 'do' the Law is not to be morally perfect. The Law assumes the moral imperfection of the people of God – it provides for the confession of, and forgiveness of, sin within its rubric. We might best describe 'doing' the Law as covenantal obedience, living a life of obedient faith – a point that Paul goes on to stress.

Paul stresses that circumcision is of value to the one who practices the Law, but to the one who is a transgressor, it becomes uncircumcision (2:25). In the same way, the pagan who is obedient is justified, rather than the Jew who is a transgressor. 'Transgressor' here must be interpreted in as the antithesis of the 'doer' of the Law – it is the person who has no heart concern for obedience. Paul makes clear that this obedience is the sign of an inward change (2:29). Circumcision is of value, if it is followed by circumcision of the heart. The Law itself stresses this – circumcision of the heart, the Law in the heart, is the means to life (see Deut 10:16; 30:6, Cf. 6:4-6; 11:18).

As to who the Gentiles are who instinctively do the things of the Law (2:14,15), or the uncircumcised who keeps the Law (2:27), Paul could be referring to God-fearers (or theoretically to proselytes in the former case), but I think it likely that he here refers to Gentile Christians.

See also my former post on Romans 2.

Romans 1

2009-08-19T22:21:00.001Z

During the last intersemester I blogged my usual reflections on the previous semester's modules at HTC, with one exception. I didn't blog any reflections on the Romans module, taught by Mike Bird. A crime? Probably close. Anyhow, I am now blogging some brief reflections/thoughts on that module over the next few days, in the form of a few thoughts on selected chapters, beginning with Romans 1.

Paul's critique in Romans 1 bears similarities to Jewish renunciations in Wisdom 11-15. Dodd characterises God's wrath (1:18) as the inevitable process of moral forces. Dr Bird's notes rightly reject this. But, I wonder whether perhaps we should add a 'merely'. It is a theme apparent in OT Wisdom that God's order is stamped in the fabric of the world. Therefore God's wrath is not merely eschatological, or a proactive discrete intervention, but also it is outworked in the fabric of the world, in the structure of his order, and in the effects of the disorder of chaos which works against God's order through the forces of darkness. The giving up (or handing over) of 1:24ff suggests God's grace in holding back the consequences of his wrath revealed in the natural order, but when this grace is removed sinful societies as well as people begin to debase and destroy themselves (they receive the due penalty, 1:27). This is an aspect of God's wrath.

If we want to square this with a conception of 'active wrath', it's not difficult. Paul in Colossians writes of the role of Christ in God's maintaining of the order of matter - at that level natural processes are founded on the order generated by God himself.

Perhaps another neglected aspect of God's wrath is its relationship to salvation and the righteousness of God. Part of the function of God's righteousness is to remove (ultimately) from creation all that will despoil it - and to protect the seeds of the new creation in this age in the church. His wrath is the operative energy in this process, the aim of which is to secure the salvation of the cosmos, with the new humanity at its centre in Christ. Only when we keep salvation and judgement connected will we avoid some of the pitfalls in our conceptualisation of God's wrath.

As with all of these, there is much more I could write, but I'll leave it there...

The Apostle Paul on Radio 4

2009-05-28T08:08:00.004Z

I should be revising, but I gave myself 45 minutes off to listen to In Our Time, which today was on the subject of the Apostle Paul. The contributors were:

John Haldane, Professor of Philosophy at the University of St Andrews;
John Barclay, Lightfoot Professor of Divinity at Durham University; and
Helen Bond, Senior Lecturer in the New Testament at the University of Edinburgh.

The treatment of Paul was generally very good. It was good to hear Haldane's comments on the influence of philosophical thought on biblical criticism, on the progression from rationalist scepticism to the acceptance that belief in the miraculous is not absurd, and the concomitant shift back towards a straightforward reading of the NT documents; and Barclay's continual emphasis on Paul's eschatological belief that the cosmos was turning on its hinge with the death and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah. There are also good comments on the reconciling death of Jesus.

Listen to the programme at 9.30pm tonight or here.

Brueggemann on Easter

2009-05-05T10:53:00.000Z

In the same vein as my recent post on NT Wright and Easter, I offer this quote from Brueggemann. I especially love the first sentence...!

Easter is the extreme case of God's sovereign action. The resurrection of Jesus must not be trivialized around a biological question of resuscitation of a dead body, nor around questions of curiosity about immortality or life after death. That Jesus is risen is not a statement about heaven, but about the transformation of earth. Proclamation of the Resurrection in the OT, Journal for Preachers, 9 no 3 Easter 1986

The Near-Disaster of the Simple Gospel

2009-04-29T09:23:00.002Z

Last semester I submitted an essay on the purpose of Paul's epistle to the Romans, in which I took the view that the driving (but not the only) purpose behind the letter is the delineation of Paul's grand eschatological vision of God's redemptive purposes for humanity and the cosmos, fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Last week, I submitted an essay on the cross in the apostolic kerygma in Acts. Very interesting. One cannot but be struck by the redemptive-historical schema that the apostles adopt in kerygmatic settings - as is also true for the didactic material in many portions of the epistles. Anyhow, there is a cogent challenge here to the preaching of the church today to present this grand vista, expressed in the following quote from William Still:

You will notice I have not spoken of the ministry of the Gospel but of the Word of God, and this I do advisedly. It is not that I want to avoid the word 'Gospel', but because I want you to be very sure what I am talking about. I am not talking about a set of fundamental doctrines of the Word of God, systematic or otherwise, nor any formulation of doctrine (sub-Apostolic, Patristic, Reformed or Modern) culled from the Word of God, but the whole Bible itself. In evangelical circles the danger that the Gospel may be equated with the mere rudiments of the Word of God has become almost a disaster, for these rudiments are only the beginning of the Good News. There are profounder things by far in the Bible than what is called 'the simple gospel', although they issue from it. Indeed, in a sense, those who proclaim almost exclusively forgiveness of sins and justification, only make known the preliminaries to the best Good News, which is not that our sins are put away and that we are justified in God's sight, wonderful though that is, but that God wants us for Himself and to that end brings us to the birth in Christ. After all, the death of Jesus, for all its wonder, is a means to an end, which is not merely that we might be right and clean but that we may be His, which involves personal relationship in love. The Work of the Pastor, 62-63.

Calvinism, Multiformity and Scripture

2009-04-24T11:13:00.000Z

In view of the recent clashes over the Reformed Doctrine of Scripture, particularly the confrontation between the Princetonian and European views, I thought that this quote (taken from Peter Enns' site, A time to tear down-A Time to Build Up) was worth reproducing here...

Harvie Conn citing Herman Bavink, 'The Future of Calvinism,' The Presbyterian and Reformed Review 5 (1894): 23:

'All the misery of the Presbyterian Churches is owing to their striving to consider the Reformation as completed, and to allow no further development of what has been begun by the labor of the Reformers…. Calvinism wishes no cessation of progress and promotes multi-formity. It feels the impulse to penetrate ever more deeply into the mysteries of salvation and in feeling this honors every gift and different calling of the Churches. It does not demand for itself the same development in America and England [and the author of this volume adds, Africa, Asia and Latin America] which it has found in Holland. This only must be insisted upon, that in each country and in every Reformed Church it should develop itself in accordance with its own nature, and should not permit itself to be supplanted or corrupted by foreign rule' ,221-222.

The Soul cannot Survive without God

2009-04-20T08:20:00.000Z

In our Greek Texts class we are now undertaking translation and exegesis of Psalm 42 (41 LXX)...my soul thirsts for the living God...the God of my life. Mays, in commenting on this Psalm, writes this:

The soul cannot survive without God. That is true of every human soul, not just the deeply pious. Many or most may not understand the thirst that disturbs and drives their living, but it is there because God created the human soul to correspond to God. Where that correspondence is weakened, disturbed, or interrupted, the experience of its lack becomes like the thirst and hunger that is the opposite of being satisfied. The advantage of the psalmist is that he knows what is missing.
Psalms, Interpretation

Goldsworthy on Maturity

2009-04-17T10:00:00.000Z

Paul's expressed hope for believers is that they might be perfect, or complete (eg Col 1:9-10,28) - it is the goal of Christian maturity. This maturity is connected to wisdom, as the comprehension of God's ultimate purpose in Christ, which in turn connects to the discernment of God's primeval intentions in the Old Testament. Goldsworthy offers this 'tentative definition' of Christian maturity:

A mature Christian is one who is able to look at the whole of reality through Christian eyes. He is in the process of achieving an integrated overview of reality in those areas that belong to his experience as well as in those areas that he knows only theoretically. He is learning to understand all things in terms of what they are in this corrupted realm and of what God intends them to be by virtue of his redeeming work. Thus, he is an integrated person who is learning daily through the gospel how to relate, not only to himself, but to all things according to the creative purpose of God. Trilogy, 356

The challenge to the Church is to make maturity the goal of ministry. Making disciples must be defined in these terms, not merely to bring people to the point of professing faith.

NT Wright on Easter

2009-04-14T11:02:00.001Z

Over at Euangelion, Mike Bird has reproduced a quote from an article in The Times by the Bishop of Durham entitled The Church must stop trivialising Easter - Christians must keep their nerve: the Resurrection isn’t a metaphor, it’s a physical fact. I wanted to reproduce a different part of the article (dare I say it, a better quote!):

What God did for Jesus that explosive morning is what He intends to do for the whole creation. We who live in the interval between Jesus's Resurrection and the final rescue and transformation of the whole world are called to be new-creation people here and now. That is the hidden meaning of the greatest festival Christians have.

This true meaning has remained hidden because the Church has trivialised it and the world has rubbished it. The Church has turned Jesus's Resurrection into a “happy ending” after the dark and messy story of Good Friday, often scaling it down so that “resurrection” becomes a fancy way of saying “He went to Heaven”. Easter then means: “There really is life after death”. The world shrugs its shoulders.

New Principal at HTC

2009-04-13T10:35:00.004Z

I've just returned from a refreshing week's holiday in the Pentland Hills. While I was away, Rev Hector Morrison was appointed as the new Principal of HTC, succeeding Rev Andrew McGowan, with whom he founded HTC back in 1994. This is excellent news. Hector Morrison is a skilful biblical theologian, a good exegete and a very effective Hebrew teacher to boot! His series of talks on The Mountain of God, delivered in HTC chapel over a few months were truly inspirational and will remain a highlight of my time at HTC, whatever happens in my remaining time there. Just as importantly, he has owned and developed the vision of HTC over the last 15 years, and is especially committed to the high academic standards that make HTC the institution it is as part of UHI. The press release follows:

Following a search and selection process, the Board of Governors of Highland Theological College UHI has unanimously approved the appointment of Acting Principal Hector Morrison as Principal of the College, with immediate effect.

In an announcement to staff today, Chairman of the Board of Governors, the Reverend Alexander Murray, said, “Always passionate about theological education, Hector is committed to wanting the best for his students. He has a very clear vision for the future of HTC as an independent constituent college in its role within the UHI network. In the best sense of the term, Hector is a ‘godly’ person and minister and, as a capable academic, theologian and leader, has a wealth of experience to bring to the role of Principal. We look forward to working with Hector as he leads HTC forward to meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.”

Hector gained the degrees of BSc, BD and MTh from Glasgow University. He is a Church of Scotland minister, having worked in parishes in Glasgow, the Western Isles and Lochalsh. Along with the Reverend Professor Andrew McGowan, he founded Highland Theological College and has been its Vice Principal since its inception in 1994. With research interests particularly in the discipline of Biblical Studies, most of his teaching concentrates on Old Testament and Hebrew. As well as his teaching commitments, Hector has been a key figure within the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences faculty of UHI. He is Subject Network Leader in Theology & Religious Studies for UHI and also has responsibilities for Academic Management, Quality Assurance and Enhancement and Subject Reviews, amongst other things.

Hector has been Acting Principal at HTC since the former Principal, Andrew McGowan, left in January to become minister of the East Church in Inverness.

The Cross

2009-04-10T09:51:00.002Z

A couple of Sundays ago, I was preaching on Jesus' words from the cross as recorded by Mark: 'Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani?' I came across this quote from Ben Witherington III:

The passion narrative at its heart is about the cross, and it still holds true that how we react to the cross of Christ tells us a great deal about ourselves...The cross is the great truth serum and litmus test. Our reaction to it shows what we really believe about God and about life. Some are all too ready to wear the cross, but not to bear the cross. We often prefer a health-and-wealth gospel to one of suffering and service. We join churches because they meet our needs, not because they give us the most opportunity to serve and sacrifice for the gospel. Yet still, the cross beckons us to come and stand in its shadow. Whether we do so or not is the ultimate test of our discipleship. Mark, 409

Brueggemann on Wisdom

2009-04-03T09:40:00.001Z

For the OT Themes module this semester, I'm reading a bit of Brueggemann's Old Testament Theology and finding it very stimulating. In dealing with Creation as Yahweh's Partner, he observes that creation requires that humans, given dominion over it, practice wisdom, righteousness and worship. He offers this description of wisdom:

Wisdom is the critical, reflective, discerning reception of Yahweh’s gift of generosity. That gift is not for self-indulgence, exploitation, acquisitiveness, or satiation. It is for careful husbanding, so that resources should be used for the protection, enhancement, and nurture of all creatures. Wisdom is the careful, constant, reflective attention to the shapes and interconnections that keep the world generative. Where those shapes and interconnections are honored, there the whole world prospers, and all creatures come to joy and abundance. Where those shapes and interconnections are violated or disregarded, trouble, conflict, and destructiveness are sure. There is wisdom in the very fabric of creation. Human wisdom consists in resonance with the “wisdom of things,” which is already situated in creation before human agents act on it.
Brueggemann, Walter: Theology of the Old Testament : Testimony, Dispute, Advocacy. Minneapolis : Fortress Press, 1997, S. 532

Paul and Wisdom

2009-03-31T09:13:00.000Z

In preparing for a recent set of sermons on Ephesians chapter 1, exploring the link between wisdom, maturity and knowledge of God's purposes (which is Paul's great concern), I came across some good stuff from Graeme Goldsworthy. Commenting on Ephesians 1:9-10, he writes:

Paul thus points to the intellectual content of the gospel as it reveals the ultimate plan of God. It shows us that this plan is much bigger than we may be used to thinking of it...here Paul put's forward what we might refer to as the cosmic dimension in salvation. That is to say, God's plan, which he revealed in Christ, is to bring the whole universe or cosmos to its proper goal in Christ...Paul's purpose is not to define wisdom but to describe God's ultimate purpose. Yet wisdom is closely related to the knowledge of this purpose. Goldsworthy Trilogy, 354

And again, he writes that wisdom for the Christian...

is not first and foremost a knowledge of how to perform good works, but of what God has really accomplished for us in Christ. 355

Late Reflections on Wisdom Literature

2009-03-26T11:03:00.001Z

These reflections on last semesters Wisdom Literature course should have been posted back in the inter-semester break. But they weren't. And here they are now.

The wisdom literature module is taught by Dr Jamie Grant. It deals with themes and genres in the OT wisdom corpus, takes an overview of Proverbs and then a more detailed look at the book of Job. To round off, an assessed book review is thrown in - last semester this was of Jacque Ellul's (French Protestant Neo-Orthodox Techno-critical Philosopher) work on Ecclesiastes, Reason for Being (!). Sitting in the first lecture, I remember thinking: I'm not sure about interpretative principles for this corpus and I don't know much about wisdom as a genre. I think that just shows that the OT wisdom corpus is neglected, precisely because interpretation is far from straightforward. It just doesn't fit easily in OT theology (as Von Rad's omission in his OT Theology illustrates). So, what is wisdom? Bartholomew offers this pithy definition:

Wisdom in the OT is about how to negotiate life successfully in God's good but fallen world. Reading Proverbs with Integrity

Perhaps I'll post again on that...yes, perhaps some Goldsworthy and Brueggeman. But for now, here are a selection of the many highlights from this excellent course:

Wisdom and creation - wisdom is closely linked to creation theology. This is brought out in Bartholomew's definition above; wisdom affirms the doctrine of common grace, the goodness of God's revealed primordial intention for human life and society, and the continuing value of these despite the fall, especially with reference to the covenant people. If wisdom relates to the task of life, then this is not merely an activity for the fallen creation.
Wisdom and scripture - wisdom is to a degree empirical, dealing in observation. Wisdom statements are not to be interpreted as rules or laws, but rather generic norms. For example, reflection on the very first proverb 'A wise son makes his father glad, but a foolish son is a grief to his mother' makes the point - it is not universally true. Therefore the human component of scripture is very much to the fore and presents challenges to any hermeneutic that is not attuned to this.
Interpreting Proverbs - One of our major assessments dealt with this question. Some interpreters recommend that proverbs are paradigmatic; any situation can be informed by them as long as you pick the correct proverb or combination of proverbs. However, my view (after the course!) is that proverbs have a more significant role as pedagogical rather than epistemological statements. They require interaction as well as interpretation - the empiricism requires reconciliation with the foundational epistemology of Israel, found in the revelation of Yahweh. It is not enough to view the proverbs merely as a toolbox for God's people, pulling out pithy statements to effect guidance in a certain situation; proverbs are more than this - they require interaction, reflection, and become a training ground for the godly...
The didactic function of collected proverbs was not to produce proverbial parrots, but students of wisdom who understood the purposes of Yahweh. In learning wisdom – how to apply the revelation of God in Christ to our topsy-turvy world – proverbs remind us that we do so not by mere rote application, but through having the 'mind of Christ'. Proverbs still function as a training ground for the Church, since Christ is the telos of Yahweh's revelation.

This module has been hugely instructive. Engaging with the wisdom literature has been hugely rewarding.

Emerging from Stasis

2009-03-24T10:16:00.004Z

The blog has been in stasis for six weeks (stretching sporadic blogging to breaking point). I have not been, and here lieth the problem. During the last six weeks I have done many interesting and exciting things: a birthday (a significant birthday), some preaching, some climbing in my favourite, long-unvisited mountains, time with my family, a church planting conference, drinking coffee with friends, driving 2000 miles...and the studies of course. Blogging is sliding down my list of priorities - although I do have another blog for my family and close friends which I keep going. Perhaps two sporadic blogs equals one more regular blog...?

Some time back, I wrote a series of articles for Free Magazine about young people, technology, Christianity and culture. One of the key emphases was the importance of the real over the virtual - therefore I intend to keep my blogging sporadic, and my involvement in the real regular and frequent.

New Semester Starts

2009-02-11T22:48:00.006Z

Semester two of Year 3 at HTC has started this week and I'm over in Dingwall on campus for the start of the new modules. This semester, my four modules are:

Amos (Hebrew), taught by Hector Morrison, covers the whole of the Hebrew text of the prophet Amos looking at text critical issues, exegesis and theology.
Luke-Acts, taught by Dr Mike Bird, sees us each week spend some time in key themes in the Lukan corpus, exegesis of key passages linked to that theme and a linked mini-seminar.
Old Testment Themes, taught by Hector Morrison, is really an introduction to Old Testament Theology I suppose, and forms an immediate background to the Biblical Theology modules of the honours year.
Greek Texts III, taught by Dr Mike Bird, continues our exegetical and text critical work in the UBS4, working this time through the final chapters of Mounce's Graded Reader, including a stab at the LXX and the Didache.

I've posted the key books for these modules over on the left.

The new semester also sees HTC under the guidance of Hector Morrison as Acting Principal, following the return of Rev Prof Andrew MacGowan to pastoral ministry at East Church, Inverness; he remains a tutor at HTC, teaching Systematic Theology. Dr Jamie Grant is now Acting Vice Principal.

Reflections on Hebrew Texts

2009-02-05T13:35:00.000Z

Reflections on last semester's modules continues with Hebrew Texts, taught by Hector Morrison, currently the Acting Principal at HTC, who also sits in worship with a BHS in front of him - respect! The module covers three texts: first, there's the beginning of the Book of the Covenant, as found in Exodus 20-22; second the prophet Hosea, chapters 1-4, and third, the wisdom of Qohelet in Ecclesiastes 1-4. This way, you get to deal in different Hebrew styles and genres. The highlights of the module are somewhat dulled (!) by the problems of reading and translating the Hebrew, which I find a bit more of a struggle than the Greek.

At this point can I highly recommend to any theology student intending to pursue Greek and/or Hebrew throughout their degree (and why wouldn't you?!) the Original Languages software from Olive Tree. I run it on my Loox PDA and what a help it is - parsing and lexical data at the touch of a stylus! I bought the Original Languages Package when the pound was still a meaningful currency and bought lots of dollars, but even in these days of the weakling pound , I would say it would be a worthwhile investment. Of course, its no help in the exams, but it assists in the learning.

Some brief highlights:

The material from the Book of the Covenant is fascinating, not least the question of the relationship of the Book to the Decalogue. Also, comparisons to the parallels to other ANE Law Codes, such as those of Hammurabi, emphasise the contextualisation of God's revelation to his people Israel, but also the counter-culture that the Laws of Yahweh represented. Especially striking is the sanctity of life and the egalite of the Mosaic Law, as well as the important of family respect, in contrast to other ANE codes. I found Peter Enns' commentary on Exodus (NIVAC), whilst not technical, helpful and readable. As a technical commentary I used Childs' volume (OTL).
Interpretation of the book of Ecclesiastes is difficult. I used Longman's recent NICOT volume, in which he propounds the view that the teaching of Qohelet is somewhat heterodox, and is presented by another orthodox author who composes a frame around the work. Longman's commentary is certainly valuable, but I wonder whether his view does justice to the complexities of life as a believer, the absurdity that we do find in existence in a fallen world, as well as the pedagogical role of contradiction in wisdom texts. In any case, reading Qohelet gave me my first experience of enjoying the metrical rhythms of wisdom texts.
Hosea contains the most difficult textual problems in the whole of the Old Testament. Some of these huge problems are found in Chapter 4 and this is where the passage for the assessed exegesis paper was found. In this chapter, the sins of the people are laid bare, sins which are pictured in Gomer's own promiscuity. Reading around the ANE background to this passage in the fertility cults of Baalism is not particularly edifying, but does shed light on Yahweh's indictment of his people through the ministry of Hosea. Some scholars propose a narrowly spiritual reading of the promiscuity of God's people, but I think it more likely that the promiscuity of Gomer is not officially cultic, but associated with the activities of the hoi polloi at cultic sites - promiscuity had become a practice of the worshippers. Therefore Yahweh's judgements are against the literal, as well as the spiritual (the two being connected) fornications of the people. Also, I must mention Hosea 2:18, which foretells the Edenic peace which is the telos of the New Covenant (and which is also within its scope) - a definite highlight.

Reflections on Greek Texts II

2009-02-03T14:30:00.002Z

Reflections on last semester's modules kicks off with Greek Texts II. What can I say....? It falls between Greek Texts I and Greek Texts III....self-evident. These three modules take us through Mounce's Graded Reader of Biblical Greek and it's not just about learning Greek, it's a bout learning exegetical skills, learning theology and hearing God's word. Each week we have to prepare translations and do some reading from the commentaries and lexica (when I say 'have to', I mean 'are supposed to'). The module was assessed on an exam (on sight exegesis with nothing but UBS4 in front of you) and a exegesis paper (which this year was from 1 Peter 1:13-17). It's hard to pick out a few highlights when you've ranged across the gospels and epistles during a module, but my main highlights come from our studies in Philippians...

In exegeting the Christ hymn of chapter 2, Muller's old NICNT volume (produced under the editorship of Ned Stonehouse) was very helpful. Of course, the meaning of harpagmon in 2:6 is debated; I opted for the translation prized possession, following Muller: 'in combination with hegeisthai it is used to denote a much-valued possession or gain, and the pregnant meaning of robbery has been ousted'.
In 2:6, Paul writes that Christ Jesus existed in the morphe of God. Lightfoot writes that morphe is the 'outward display of the inner reality or substance' as opposed to the schema, which is merely outward appearance, something changeable. In Plato (although the use is rare) it is 'the impress of the idea on the individual'. Therefore here morphe is expressing the essential unity of the pre-existent Christ with deity. There is a problem with most translations of the remainder of this verse. NASB renders it 'did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but...'. The problem is that this can be made to imply that Christ gave up his equality with God, since he did not regard it as a thing to be grasped (or a prized possession). Muller's exegesis of the phrase to einai isa thew is therefore interesting. He translates it as to exist in a manner like unto God rather than to be equal to God, arguing that isa is an adverbial form carrying the sense of in such a way or manner, rather than the substantive isov, which Paul would have used if he wanted to denote equality. This avoids the problem since Paul's thought is therefore that Christ did not consider existing in the same manner as God, i.e. his pre-incarnate spiritual existence, as a prized possession, but emptied himself. To my mind, this is theologically more satisfactory, although I'm sure arguments could be brought against this interpretation of isa.
The Christ hymn is a sublime passage of scripture which Paul deploys in order to encourage the Phillipian believers to humility and service - something that ought not to be overlooked as we seek to glean Christology from it.

Other highlights can only be mentioned in passing:

In James, we noted the connections with wisdom literature, and with the Sermon on Mount, which also has connections with wisdom literature.
The similarity between James 1 and 1 Peter 1 on faith and testing is striking.
Christ's quotation from Isaiah whilst explaining the parable of the sower in Matthew's gospel can be compared to the Isaianic source in both the MT and LXX. The differences are very interesting indeed: are the parable spoken because the people don't understand, or so that they will not understand?
Ephesians 1 is another sublime passage and can be characterised as a berakah psalm....

Greek is becoming more familiar, which is a good feeling! Some might question the need to do so much Greek (or Hebrew for that matter). Well, I've heard a few dodgy exegeses over the last couple of years (not in my own congregation!) that would have benefitted from some awareness of the fact that the Word of God was not given to us in English! Anyway, it's on to Greek Texts III this coming semester...

Inter-Semester

2009-01-28T09:40:00.011Z

This blog is getting ridiculously out of date with the last post still being 'Advent'! There's only so far you can stretch a claim to be a sporadic blog! It's intersemester break right now and since the last post I've put 1800 miles on the car in two weeks on a trip to Wales for Christmas and New Year, written a book review, revised, had the flu, done my exams, had a bad cold and been catching up on the piles of stuff that didn't get done during the last few manic weeks of last semester.

It's always good to be back in the homeland, to see family and (long lost) friends, and to get along to churches with which you have enduring connections through family ties and prayer. Whilst we were there we worshipped at Borras Park, Wrexham; Free School Court, Bridgend; and Malpas Road (Newport) - a select band indeed!

Anyway, I hope to get a few posts done over the next few days, including reflections on last semester's modules and a look forward to next semester's modules. I might also post on my reading for the intersemester:

The Divine Authenticity of Scripture, McGowan
The Mabinogion, trans. Guest
Jesus and the Victory of God, Wright

but no promises; after all, this blog is sporadic.

Advent

2008-12-19T10:44:00.004Z

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.

But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying:

Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.

Matthew's Gospel, 1:18-21

Ridderbos on Scripture

2008-12-17T11:30:00.000Z

Herman Ridderbos: a great European biblical theologian, who went to be with the Lord only last year. Here's something he wrote on history and scripture.

When new light is cast on the Scripture, also through the investigations of historical science, the church has to rejoice, even though this may compel it at the same time to be ready to reconsider and redefine theological concepts related to Scripture. Studies in Scripture and its Authority, 35.

Hodge on Scripture

2008-12-15T11:24:00.002Z

Here's a quote from Charles Hodge, the Old Princetonian:

Our views of inspiration must be determined by the phenomena of the Bible as well as from its didactic statements.
Systematic Theology Vol 1, 169

Murray on Scripture

2008-12-08T10:22:00.004Z

The following quote from John Murray on scripture recently came to my attention (via a letter in the Record, written by my brother), which I expand a little here.

We may not impose upon the Bible our own standards of truthfulness or our own notions of right and wrong. It is easy for the proponents of inerrancy to set up certain canons of inerrancy which are arbitrarily conceived and which prejudice the whole question from the outset. And it is still easier for the opponents of inerrancy to set up certain criteria in terms of which the Bible could readily be shown to be in error. Both attempts must be resisted....In all questions pertinent to the doctrine of Scripture it is to be borne in mind that the sense of Scripture is Scripture; it is what Scripture means that constitutes Scripture teaching. We cannot deal, therefore, with the inerrancy of Scripture apart from hermeneutics.
Collected Writings 4, 26

A little further on, Murray writes...

Inerrancy in reference to Scripture is the inerrancy that accepts certain well-established and obviously recognized literary or verbal usus loquendi. It makes full allowance for the variety of literary devices which preserves language from stereotyped uniformity and monotony. And we must no allow the inerrancy which is implicit in the plenary inspiration of Scripture to be prejudiced by patterns of thought which are prescribed by pedantry rather than by sober judgement.
Collected Writings 4, 29

Recent Books by HTC Staff

2008-11-20T12:53:00.003Z

With a few books published in the last year or so either authored by, edited by, or with significant contributions from, HTC staff, I thought I would do a quick summary of them. Hoping I haven't missed any, here goes:

A Bird's Eye View of Paul
Michael F Bird
IVP 2008

How Did Christianity Begin?
Michael F Bird and James G Crossley
Hendrickson 2008

Editorial Criticism
Kingship Psalms
Royal Court
The Wisdom Poem
Wisdom and Covenant , all Jamie A Grant
in IVP Dictionary of OT: Wisdom, Psalms and Poetry
Temper Longman III and Peter Enns (editors)
IVP 2008

Words and the Word: Explorations in Biblical Interpretation and Literary Theory
David G Firth and Jamie A Grant (editors)
including: Poetics by
Jamie A Grant
Apollos 2008

Karl Barth and Covenant Theology, ATB McGowan
in Engaging with Barth: Contemporary Evangelical Critiques
David Gibson and Daniel Strange (editors)
Apollos 2008
also includes:
Karl Barth and the Visibility of God, Paul Helm, HTC MTh Lecturer

Evangelicalism in Scotland from Knox to Cunningham, ATB McGowan
in The Emergence of Evangelicalism: Exploring Historical Continuities
Michael A G Haykin and Kenneth J Stewart (editors)
Apollos 2008

The Divine Spiration of Scripture: Challenging Evangelical Perspectives
ATB McGowan
Apollos 2007
published in the US as:
The Divine Authenticity of Scripture: Retrieving an Evangelical Heritage (IVP, 2008)

These are a couple of years old now, but worth including:

Always Reforming: Explorations in Systematic Theology
ATB McGowan (editor)
Apollos 2006

The Saving Righteousness of God: Studies on Paul, Justification and the New Perspective
Michael F Bird
Paternoster 2006

The God of Covenant: Biblical, Theological and Contemporary Perspectives
Jamie Grant and Alasdair Wilson (editors)
Apollos 2005

Latest HTC Newsletter

2008-11-17T11:38:00.003Z

The latest newsletter is now on the HTC site, where you can read the article from the Principal about his forthcoming departure, and also read about the 2008 Graduation (25 students graduated last year).

HTC at ETS

2008-11-17T09:56:00.007Z

It's that time of year again: the great Evangelical Theological Society Annual Meeting is about to kick off again, this time in Providence, Rhode Island (that's a Rhode Island beach on the right - looks a bit like South Uist!). Scanning through the program for non-US papers, there are a few contributed from German institutions, one from Hungary, one from Trinity in Bristol, and a couple from the University of Wales. Scottish institutions come in with a good showing (2 Aberdeen, 5 St Andrews, 1 Edinburgh), including 4 papers from Highland Theological College...Scotland is surely the UK Home of Evangelical Theology! There are many, I'm sure, who would argue with that!

Anyway, the papers being presented by HTC staff and students are as follows:

Dr Michael Bird
The Role of 'Canon' in New Testament Theology
(Biblical Theology Program Unit)

Dr Michael Bird

What if Luther had read the Dead Sea Scrolls? The Challenge of Historicizing Reformed Theology: Galatians as a Test Case

(Hermeneutics)

Dr Innes Visagie

Is the Story Character of Reading Reality Leveling the Playground between Science and Theology?

(Hermeneutics)

Ian Maddock

Free Grace versus Free Grace: John Wesley, George Whitfield, and the Nature of the Gospel

(Issues in Systematic Theology)

Doing the Law

2008-11-08T12:05:00.007Z

In my recent post on Romans 2, I speculated whether Paul takes the phrase 'doing the law' as shorthand for living according to the obedience of the covenant in a general sense, whether he is speaking of the Mosaic or the New. In the Old Covenant, this would not only include ethical obedience, but performing the sacrifices of the Law.

In 1 Peter, which is thoroughly Hebraic (even if you take diaspora as metaphorical in 1:1), we find:

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to the chosen refugees of the diaspora...according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the holiness of the Spirit, in obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ; may grace and peace be multiplied to you. 1Peter 1:1-2 (my translation)

The terse style of 1 Peter (verbs? what verbs?!) leads to plenty of interpolation in the standard translations, e.g. that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with his blood, NASB(!). Anyway, Peter's thought here is of his audience living as Christian refugees (or aliens) by God's election (thoroughly Jewish), in the holiness of the Spirit (parallel to Pauline definitive sanctification), in obedience and the sprinkling of blood (the New Covenant life). It strikes me that the thought here is compatible with (and derived from) the Old Testament covenant life of 'doing the Law'. The fact that Peter has obedience prior to sprinkling of blood poses a problem for those who want (so desperately!) to see the ordo salutis reflected here, but I think that Peter's thought is that these Jewish Christians have been called to New Covenant obedience in the Spirit and that their sins (which they still commit) are atoned for by the blood, not the blood of animal sacrifices that cannot remove sin, but the blood of Jesus the Messiah, the blood of the New Covenant (the argument of Hebrews). So, we can see parallels between Old and New Covenant obedience (what Paul calls 'doing the law'), alongside the excellency and significance of the atoning work of Christ.

HTC Principal returning to Pastoral Ministry

2008-11-07T12:35:00.000Z

News has just been published in the latest HTC Newsletter that Rev Professor Andrew McGowan, Principal and founder of HTC is to be inducted as minister of the East Church, Inverness and will leave his post as Principal at the end of January 2009. In the newsletter (which is not on the website yet), he writes of his calling back to the parish ministry - a move which takes him back to his initial calling. His departure will be a significant change and great loss for HTC, but he undoubtedly feels that his work in establishing the college is done. It has been, and continues to be, a remarkable story.

In the 14 years since HTC began, it has risen to become an internationally recognised Reformed institution reflecting the best of the Scottish Reformed tradition alongside an international Reformed teaching staff, some of whom are internationally recognised scholars in their own right. HTC is almost unique in the UK: it is thoroughly theological in the academic sense - you learn theology here as a discipline - and it is progressively Reformed in the true sense. The Westminster Standards form the background to the teaching, and this sits alongside a lively commitment to Biblical Studies and Biblical Theology, as well as progressive approaches to Reformed Pastoral Theology, together with the usual Systematics - which reflects Professor McGowan's own standing as a systematician who teaches around the world. HTCs achievements have been recognised by it's ratification as a training insitution by the Church of Scotland, alongside the four historic divinity departments at Edinburgh, St Andrews, Aberdeen and Glasgow. When you remember that this has been achieved in 14 years, it is an incredible testimony to the power of God in raising leaders, giving visions and the resources to bring them to fruition.

From a personal point of view, the departure of Professor McGowan will be a great loss. He has combined historic Scottish theology with new perspectives in the fields of federal theology and scripture. I greatly admire him as a theologian who is also a doer, an achiever . I'm sure that there are many who talk a good game about theological training, but who do not achieve a tenth of what has been achieved by Professor McGowan. I wish him all the best in his return to the work of the parish and I'm sure that his work at East Church will be blessed. It has been a privilege to study here during his Principalship - his return to the parish reminds us here at HTC that theologians are to serve the Church.

And what of the future?! I know that all of the staff here are superb, and not only those who teach. The vice-Principal, Hector Morrison, a Hebridean, was the co-founder of HTC, so we are ensured a continuity of vision. I am convinced that the Lord will continue the work for His Kingdom here, and that whoever takes up the reigns will continue the unique story of HTC.

In Him we have Redemption

2008-11-03T14:07:00.002Z

A week ago yesterday, I preached on Ephesians 1:7: in Him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins. A few days later I listened to this from Nicole Nordeman who, in my opinion, has some of the very best lyrics out there in the Kingdom...

We stutter and we stammer 'til You say us
A symphony of chaos 'til You play us
Phrases on the pages of unknown
'Til You read us into poetry and prose

We are kept and we are captive 'til You free us
Vaguely unimagined 'til You dream us
Aimlessly unguided 'til You lead us home
By Your voice, we speak
By Your strength, no longer weak
By Your wounds we are healed

Passed over and passed by until You claim us
Orphaned and abandoned 'til You name us
Hidden, undisclosed 'til You expose our hearts
By Your death we live
It is by Your gift that we might give
By Your wounds we are healed

What kind of love would take your shame
And spill His blood for you
And save us by His wounds?

Romans 2: 6-11

2008-10-31T12:26:00.009Z

In our recent work on Romans 2 under the direction Dr Mike Bird, we looked at no less than 6 interpretative options for explaining Paul's argument in this chapter, especially in verses 6-11. Briefly stated, they look like this:

Paul is only speaking hypothetically that it is in theory possible to fulfil the Law in order to be saved, but no-on actually does so - unfortunately, Moo's much-lauded commentary (and rightly so) takes this position. Moo states 'verses 7 and 10 set out the condition, apart from Christ, for salvation'. Since when was there any such condition? This kind of talk is essentially Lutheran.

Paul is speaking of Gentile Christians who fulfil the Law through faith in Christ and life in the Spirit - Cranfield takes this view; a view which is definitely on the right track in my opinion (rather than 1 which is totally off track), but probably defined too narrowly. Cranfield thinks Paul's description would also be true for OT believers, but that he is not describing them here.

Paul is simply being inconsistent at this point with what he says elsewhere about justiciation by faith - yes, this is the likes of Sanders and Raisanen! Enough said on that.

Paul only intends to say that God will both judge Jews and Gentiles according to the law they have - the outcome for both groups is entirely negative. Carson, I think, takes this view: the point is that of v11 - God is impartial - it says nothing about the mechanism of salvation.

Paul's phrase 'doers of the Law' is found in other literature where it is tantamount to perseverence - this is Don Garlington's view, who sees in 'obedience' and 'disobedience' Jewish concepts of perseverance and apostasy. Garlington's work here is very important: he recognises that the phrase 'doers of the Law' only becomes problematic when set within the context of Reformation controversies. I'm not sure about the direct identification of 'doing the Law' and perseverence, but this interpretation has a lot of value.

Paul's statement should be taken at face value whereby works indeed play a role in determining one's ultimate status, for pagans and Jews, before God at the final assize - the controversy of this view depends on how you interpret it. At face value, as pure merit-theology, it must be rejected. However, from the perspective of James, faith without works is dead and, as Dr Bird points out, 'we are not saved by our works; neither are we saved without them' (which is attributed to Jean Calvin himself). The Reformation doctrine that justification is by faith alone cannot be breached - the problem here is more likely to be a purely cerebral-spiritual understanding of faith.

I myself would go for something essentially akin to 2, with a touch of 5. However, I think that in the context of Paul's grand eschatological vision in Romans of what God has achieved and will achieve in Jesus the Messiah, he is describing in vv6-11 the essential character of those who live by faith (either under the New or Old Covenant), versus those who do not. His vista is across salvation history: Ioudaiou te prwton kai Ellhnos. Then 'doers of the law' for Paul here are contrasted with merely 'hearers' (13); it is those who respond in faith, resulting in obedience, who are justified. And, given where Paul is heading - to Abraham - he has in view the importance of the faith that Abraham displayed, that was reckoned to him as righteousness. For Paul, mere outward observance is not enough (R3.20); faith that produces obedience is essential.

My question is this: in vv14-16, does doing the law become for Paul, as he sweeps across Covenants, a shorthand for the obedience of faith? I think perhaps it does. What it does not mean is ethical perfection (absence of sin). This is a unsatisfactory interpetation; the Mosaic Law is replete with atoning responses to sin. Doing the Law means living out a covenant lifestyle, including, under the Old Covenant, observing the required sacrifices for sin; and under the New Covenant, living out the 'obedience of faith', confessing our sins and trusting Jesus Christ. The Lutheran interpretation fails to account for this.

The Wisdom of Whymper

2008-10-30T08:08:00.000Z

One of the things about Biblical Wisdom is that some of it has been gleaned (so it seems) from those outside Israel. Hence, the words of Agur, son of Jakeh and King Lemuel in Proverbs 30 and 31. Some wisdom is the wisdom of common grace. Krakauer, in Into the Wild reproduces the famous quote from the alpine pioneer Edward Whymper - a quote which I've known for a long time and which I've tried to keep in mind whenever in the mountains, but especially when in epic (by which I mean worrying) situations. It offers Wisdom for Life - especially Life in the Kingdom of God...

There have been joys too great to be described in words, and there have been griefs upon which I have not dared to dwell; and with these in mind I say: Climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are nought without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime. Do nothing in haste; look well to each step; and from the beginning think what may be the end.
Edward Whymper, Scrambles Amongst the Alps

Wright on Romans 2

2008-10-29T20:59:00.002Z

Another excellent Romans class today with Dr Bird: on Romans chapter 2 - its place in Romans and Biblical Theology. In advance of a little more blogging on Romans 2, I offer this...

Romans 2 is the joker in the pack. Standard treatments of Paul and the Law have often failed to give it the prominence that one might expect it to have, judging by its position within his most-discussed letter. But generations of eager exegetes, anxious to get to the juicy discussions that surround 3.19-20, 3:21-31, and so on, have hurried by Romans 2, much as tourists on their way to Edinburgh hurry through Northern England, unaware of its treasures.

Wright in Dunn, Paul and the Mosaic Law, 131.