As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
Year(s) ago, I posted on this board and asked about modesty. Since then, I’ve written a 200 page book on the subject of female toplessness. Obviously I’m not going to make all of those points here, but following are some of the highlights. And if you have any challenges or questions, feel free to present them.
“The sheer number of fine-grained decisions that goes into the making of any Bible translation says to me that people are in special danger of committing the ‘insufficient sampling’ fallacy when evaluating them.” - Mark Ward
This post and those to follow are extracts from a draft chapter in the book The Words of the Covenant: A Biblical Theology, Vol. 1 (forthcoming, d.v.). Read the series.
“While the Baptist faith and message says that, ‘The office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by scripture,’ there are many who call themselves ‘complementarians’ who are more flexible when it comes to women teaching men, or even preaching.” - RNS
God wants His people to live a certain way. To act a certain way. To have certain honest motivations. He wants His people to love one another, and to prove it by their actions.
The fruit of real salvation is moral and spiritual reformation, because you love God. You don’t “clean yourself up” to gain favor with God; that’s not possible. Instead, because God has already changed your heart and mind and given you spiritual life, you reform your life with His help. Part of that means you love your fellow believers.
Eusebius wrote his church history sometime in the early 4th century. Towards the beginning of his work, there is an excerpt from some curious correspondence which purports to be between Jesus and the King of Edessa, a city in present-day southeastern Turkey.1 It’s unknown whether this correspondence is authentic, but Eusebius claimed to have translated the text from Syriac himself. Even if it isn’t original, it’s a curious piece of work captured in the earliest history of the Christian church ever written outside the Holy Scriptures:
This post and those to follow are extracts from a draft chapter in the book The Words of the Covenant: A Biblical Theology, Vol. 1 (forthcoming, d.v.). Read the series.
The Library of Congress in Washington D.C. is one jaw-dropper of a building. If you have an architectural bone in your body, a modicum of historical interest, or a primal appreciation of fine art, this building is an exquisite treasure. The Library of Congress is officially described as “the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution … the research arm of Congress … [and] the largest library in the world.” Its architectural grandeur, artistic splendor, rare holdings, and ubiquitous historical symbolism comprise an illustrious tribute to our nation.
This post and those to follow are extracts from a draft chapter in the book The Words of the Covenant: A Biblical Theology, Vol. 1 (forthcoming, d.v.). Read the series.
In the last idol-meat thread, Kevin asked:
Kevin Miller: The question I want to ask is this: If a person buys meat that they know for certain has been offered to an idol, but they go home and eat it in private with the knowledge that an idol is nothing, have they sinned by eating meat that they know has been offered?
1 Corinthians 10:25-30 ESV
Discussion