Jun 27, 2009

The Fruit of the Spirit


Glen Scrivner has a good reminder concerning the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). In part Glen writes, "I wanted the fruit
not the Spirit. I wanted the fruit apart from the Spirit. Yet the fruit is fruit of the Spirit. It grows organically from a relationship with Him. Henceforward I prayed for the Spirit Himself." You can read the entire post here.

Jun 26, 2009

Quote of the Day


“The fact that Luke and Acts are addressed to Christian readers puts even more restrictions on contemporary free play of interpretation than their traditional character alone would require. All narratives have gaps in what is explicitly recounted, the filling of which is a major aspect of their interpretation. The gaps in Luke and Acts that are meant to be filled are gaps that would occur to Christian readers, and they are meant to be filled from a Christian perspective. The points of view of the text, both in its original setting and in its later context as part of the Christian Bible, are grounded in and express Christian faith. The most empathetic reading of the text would therefore ordinarily proceed from Christian faith and experience. Readers from many backgrounds and faiths can execute historical-critical methods to glean historical answers from the text or engage in literary analysis of the text, but reading Luke-Acts as biblical requires a biblical perspective and strong imaginative empathy for the Christian faith. Some obvious examples where faith facilitates filling biblical gaps in Luke concern Jesus' identity and accounts of providence or the miraculous, including Jesus' resurrection and relationship to God as his Father.”


William S. Kurz, Reading Luke-Acts: Dynamics of Biblical Narrative (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 1993), 15.

Jun 25, 2009

Latest Issue of Review of Biblical Literature


The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews that may be of interest from a Bible Exposition perspective include:

Stephen C. Barton, ed.
Idolatry: False Worship in the Bible, Early Judaism and Christianity
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6399
Reviewed by Markus Bockmuehl

Andrew Bernhard
Other Early Christian Gospels: A Critical Edition of the Surviving Greek Manuscripts
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6346
Reviewed by Stephen J. Patterson

Walter Brueggemann
A Pathway of Interpretation: The Old Testament for Pastors and Students
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6905
Reviewed by Danny Mathews

Warren Carter
The Roman Empire and the New Testament: An Essential Guide
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5406
Reviewed by Pieter J. J. Botha

J. Harold Ellens
Sex in the Bible: A New Consideration
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6856
Reviewed by William R. G. Loader

Jonathan Gan
The Metaphor of Shepherd in the Hebrew Bible: A Historical-Literary Reading
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6167
Reviewed by Claudia D. Bergmann

Jeffrey P. Greenman, Timothy Larsen, and Stephen R. Spencer, eds.
The Sermon on the Mount through the Centuries: From the Early Church to John Paul II
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6768
Reviewed by Charles H. Talbert

Philip A. Noss, ed.
A History of Bible Translation
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6910
Reviewed by Francis Dalrymple-Hamilton

Markus Saur
Der Tyroszyklus des Ezechielbuches
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7017
Reviewed by Lena-Sofia Tiemeyer

Martin A. Shields
The End of Wisdom: A Reappraisal of the Historical and Canonical Function of Ecclesiastes http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5240
Reviewed by Harold C. Washington

H. G. M. Williamson
A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 1-27: Volume 1: Commentary on Isaiah 1-5
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7176
Reviewed by Francis Landy


Jun 24, 2009

The Book of Revelation as Key to a Missional Hermeneutic?


Michael Gorman has an interesting
post discussing whether the book of Revelation is a key to a missional hermeneutic.

Jun 23, 2009

How Big was Goliath


The Logos blog has made a an article from their
Bible Study magazine on the size of Goliath. You can access the article here.

Jun 22, 2009

Monday Mornings for Preachers


Peter Mead suggests four ways that preachers can have productive monday mornings.


  • Reflect
  • Record
  • Relax
  • Renew

Read the post here.

Jun 21, 2009

Long on the Philistines


See this brief, but helpful
article on the Philistines by V. Phillips Long.