Jun 25, 2011

Richard Hays on Reading Scripture alongside the Gospel Writers

  
George W. Truett Theological Seminary’s 2011 Winter Pastors’ School sponsored by the Kyle Lake Center for Effective Preaching featured Dr. Richard Hays who spoke on the theme “Reading Scripture alongside the Gospel Writers.”

Hays’ five lectures are:

“Can the Gospels Teach Us How to Read the Old Testament”
"Torah Reconfigured: Reading Scripture with Matthew"
"Turning the World Upside Down: Reading Scripture with Luke"
"The Temple of His Body: Reading Scripture with John"
"Opening Our Minds to Understand the Scriptures"

You can access free video or audio of the lectures here.

Jun 24, 2011

The Dangers of Preaching and Pride

  
Peter Mead provides a good reminder about the dangers of preaching and pride here.
  

Hurtado on Manuscripts

  
Larry Hurtado offers some balanced observations on New Testament manuscripts here.
 

Jun 23, 2011

New Continuum E-Book Store

  
Continuum has a new E-Book store here. The page for biblical studies can be found here. There are some interesting titles, but although some of the prices appear to be a bit less than hard cover editions, I did not find any real bargains in my cursory browsing.
 

Jun 22, 2011

The Future of Biblical Archaeology Conference

  
The Riley Center on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary is hosting The Future of Biblical Archaeology Conference on Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15, 2011. Scheduled speakers include William G. Dever, Steven Ortiz, Tom Davis, James Hardin, Dale W. Manor, Karen Borstad, Laura Mazow, Abby Limmer, Jennie Ebeling, Alysia Fischer, Elizabeth Willett, and Heather Reichstadt.

Registration is $25 for students who complete early registration by September 30, 2011. After September 30, the price for students is $50. Non-students can attend the conference for $50 if you register before September 30, 2011. After September 30, the cost for non-students is $75. 

Go here for more information. 
  

Jun 21, 2011

David Murray's Top 20

  
See this post on David Murray's twenty most influential books in his life.
 

Jun 20, 2011

The World of the Early Church

  
A package from Kregel arrived today containing Simon Jones' The World of the Early Church: A Social History. I have scanned through it and it looks interesting. The Publisher's description states:

Expand your understanding of the Bible by learning about the real life of the first Christians in the Roman Empire 
  The Roman world formed the social and cultural backdrop to the emergence of the Christian movement, which has in turn deeply influenced the world we live in today.
So what was life like for ordinary people of that time? Where did they live? What did they eat? What kinds of work did they do and what did they do in their time off? And what about social relationships? How did people understand their place in the world, and in relation to others and--very importantly--the gods?
And, significantly, how was it that a marginalized, oppressed, Jewish renewal group from rural Galilee became one of the fastest-growing urban movements through the first century and became the dominant social, intellectual, and cultural influence throughout the Empire within 300 years?
Perfect as an aid to individual Bible study, or as a topic for a group study, The World of the Early Church fills the gap between longer scholarly works and the short articles found in Bible guides and other general Bible study aids.

 You can read an excerpt here.
 

Jun 19, 2011

Wise and Unwise Teachers in James


Christopher Morgan commenting on James 3:13-18, which, he ties back to the topic of teachers addressed in 3:1-12, states,

"Teachers reveal by their tongues what kind of wisdom they possess. Not everyone who want to lead should, because not everyone possesses genuine wisdom. The church should resist those seeking to teach who lack such wisdom. In time, their selfish motives will only cause factions and disorder. They will deem it more important to feel important than to serve the body. Genuine Christian teachers, however though not perfect (3:2), are deeply concerned about truth and setting a good example (3:13). They humbly plant seeds of truth in peace and produce a harvest of practical righteousness in people's lives.In sum, wise teachers are consistent."

Christopher W. Morgan, A Theology of James; Wisdom for God's People, ed. Robert A. Peterson (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R, 2010), 54.