Matthew Thomas recently published a new article on the doctrine of justification for the St. Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology. You can read it here. Thomas offers a well-rounded overview of all the important questions (and controversies) that have accompanied the doctrine through the years. I’m fascinated by the subject. It’s interesting to reflect upon not…
In the my most recent podcast episode, I discuss Romans 9:14-33. Here Paul talks about God’s right to show mercy in the way he wants (with the same being said about divine hardening). To illustrate this, the apostle brings to the fore the story of Pharaoh, who God hardened. I connect this story, and the…
I’ve started a new series through Romans on my podcast, The Bible (Unmuted). Here are the first two episodes below. If you find the podcast helpful, consider subscribing and sharing with your friends! You can subscribe via Apple, Google, Spotify, or Amazon. Romans: Introduction, Part 1In this episode, Matthew kicks off his extended series through…
Yesterday evening, I gave a talk at my church on the biblical idea of “faith.” These days, that word is often used in ways that are quite foreign to the Bible. In popular culture, for example, “faith” has become a synonym for “wishing” or “positive thinking.” Many Christians misunderstand it as well. In today’s church,…
I’m excited to announce that my book, Paul and the Meaning of Scripture, has just been released. Here’s the link to the Amazon page. This has been a labor of love, and I’m happy to see it published. It’s a project that, in many ways, began over ten years ago during my my master’s research.…
I had the privilege to once again chat with Dr Matthew J. Thomas about Paul’s well-known phrase “works of the law.” When Paul says we are not justified by “works of the law” (see e.g., Gal 2:16), what does he mean? Is he saying good works are not necessary for salvation? Or by “works” is…
Here is the final installment of my series with Mike Heiser at The Naked Bible Podcast. It’s been a lot of fun chatting with Mike these past few months about the Old Testament’s messianic profile. As we’ve discussed throughout the series, knowing that profile is essential if we want to understand how New Testament authors…
Here is Part 3 of my series with Mike Heiser at The Naked Bible Podcast. Episode Description: In the preceding episodes, we’ve seen how Paul reconfigures Old Testament faith, faithfulness, and Torah keeping in light of the work of Jesus and his own encounter with the risen Christ. In this episode we look at how Paul…
The latest installment of The Naked Bible Podcast takes us back to Romans for a second time. In the following episode, Mike and I chat about how Paul employs the Abraham story in Romans 4. I discuss how Paul’s exegesis of Genesis and his christological assumptions work together to further his larger argument about justification.…
Mike Heiser and I have been talking a lot about the Old Testament’s “messianic profile” in several episodes at The Naked Bible Podcast. We wanted to do this because it’s so foundational for understanding Jesus’ ministry in the New Testament. It’s also important for understanding the way in which New Testament writers (such as Paul)…
In previous episodes of the Naked Bible Podcast, Mike and I spent a lot of time observing how the Old Testament builds a “messianic profile.” It’s important for readers of the New Testament to have a working knowledge of that profile because it aids in understanding how, exactly, Jesus of Nazareth brings the biblical story…