• 2 Minute Read They shall beat swords into plowshares, and spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, [nor] learn war anymore. Isaiah 2.4 (NRSV) I have a bottle topper that says: “Recycled from disarmed nuclear weapon systems.” Its opposite reads: “Make wine not war.” Whether you drink wine or …
N.T. Wright Talks about Paul’s Biography (Judaism, Empire, Anabaptists, and Jesus) | S1 E1 (EP-59)
• 2 Minute Read Subscribe via iTunes or Google Season 1, Episode 1 (Spring Season, 2018 [Brand New Format!]) In this episode, N.T. Wright talks about his new book, Paul: A Biography. He discusses the sources we need to do good historical biographical work on Paul. We also might chat about Romans 13 and Anabaptists. You won’t want …
Exclusion and Embrace: Reconciliation with Enemies Two Decades Later
• 5 Minute Read On December 1, 1996, Miroslav Volf released his poignant and powerful Exclusion and Embrace. At the time, I was three years old (much too young to offer a review of such heavy reading!). So now, two decades later, it is time for me to review this important book that has …
Toward a Clearer Definition of “Spiritual Warfare” – Ephesians 6 as a Call to Justice and Peace
• 17 Minute Read The following is a seminary paper I dug up from the archives. I might say a few things differently today, but I think this paper is quite helpful for understanding “spiritual warfare” from a biblical perspective. Although there is debate to whether or not the Apostle Paul was the author …
The Roman Empire During the Time of Jesus (Background of Luke’s Gospel)
• 20 Minute Read The Roman Empire cast a vast shadow over the world of the New Testament. In the past couple of decades, biblical scholars and theologians have rediscovered this fact. The ripple effects in the twenty-first century of this fresh focus on how imperialism shaped the writings of the New Testament cannot …
Paul the Peacemaker (Introducing Philemon) (EP-18)
• < 1 Minute Read Paul didn’t just sit around and pontificate lofty theological ideas from a chamber flowing with the finest wines and grains of abundance. Not even close. Paul, although an intellectual, was a practitioner. For him, theology is always practical. In Paul’s short letter to Philemon, he challenges power structures of …