Entrance Exams The Texas sky threatened an ice storm. My wife and the storm radar confirmed it. However, my entrance exam for the PhD program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary was scheduled early in the morning. So I reasoned that I could leave early, stay ahead of the storm, and make it to Fort Worth … Continue reading My PhD Journey at SWBTS
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On Lottie Moon’s 181st birthday
Each year around Thanksgiving, Southern Baptists around the nation are reminded once again of her name. Charlotte Digges (or “Lottie”) Moon’s name has been associated with the annual missions offering taken in December since 1918. She may be the most famous woman in Southern Baptist history. And yet, most of the people who write a … Continue reading On Lottie Moon’s 181st birthday
The Critical Difference between Error and Heresy
Cold, clammy, and shaking, my hands revealed more about my nerves than my face let on. Sitting in a small room at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, surrounded by bright young minds and the brilliant but piercing gaze of my PhD supervisor, I presented my first exegetical paper in a seminar on the Trinity. Yes, we … Continue reading The Critical Difference between Error and Heresy
Meditating on death: a memorial for 2020
I could come to terms with loss, if good-bye only meant see you next summer; if the cold sting of death's winter was blunted by whispers of spring's tiding. But this past year heaps snow upon snow, loss upon loss; I feel like it is always winter and never Christmas. On April 11 we held … Continue reading Meditating on death: a memorial for 2020
GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 6
Implications of the Study: How to Be a Disciple according to Matthew 28:19–20 The final implication that I want to draw out from the above study of the Great Commission is about how to be a disciple. If one makes a disciple by baptizing a person and teaching that person to obey everything that Jesus … Continue reading GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 6
GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 5
Implications of the Study: How to Make Disciples according to Matthew 28:19–20 One of the most revelatory aspects of the above grammatical and syntactical analysis of Matthew 28:19–20 is that it reveals how to make disciples. If all the participles take on the imperatival value of “make disciples,” then the relationship between “going,” “make disciples,” … Continue reading GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 5
GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 4
Implications of the Study Now that the grammatical and syntactical analysis of the key components of the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19–20 is complete and the ambiguity of the participles resolved, attention must turn to the implications of the above study for individual Christians, the 21st-century church, and mission/evangelism organizations. The implications of the above … Continue reading GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 4
GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 3
Relationship of Participles to Imperatives in the Gospel of Matthew: Participles that Follow Imperatives in Matthew If the participle that precedes the imperative in Matthew 28:19–20 adopts the imperatival force of “make disciples,” then it is reasonable to ask if the following two adverbial participles do the same. A search in the Gospel of Matthew … Continue reading GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 3
Sinning in the Name of Christ: Ravi Zacharias, Paul Tillich, and the Skeletons under the Altar
Christian Apologist Ravi Zacharias (1946–2020) and Liberal Theologian Paul Tillich (1886–1965) share several things in common: Both men were considered premier Christian apologists. Both men rose to fame later in life. And both men used a superior position to prey upon women. Allegations against Zacharias first came to public attention in 2017, when Lori Anne … Continue reading Sinning in the Name of Christ: Ravi Zacharias, Paul Tillich, and the Skeletons under the Altar
GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 2
Relationship of Participles to Imperatives in the Gospel of Matthew: Participles that Precede Imperatives in Matthew The best way to discern the function of the participles in the Great Commission is to analyse how participles are used throughout the Gospel of Matthew. Because the three participles are adverbial participles related to the imperative “make disciples,” … Continue reading GUEST POST: Another Look at the Great Commission, part 2