4/19/24 Scholarly Reflections Koukl, Gregory. (2019). "Chapter Nine: Turnabout: Defending against Columbo." In Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions (updated and expanded). pp. 126-139. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. Koukl observes that there are others who know how to use questions to navigate an issue skillfully. When another person uses questions and you think there is an effort to trap or humiliate you, Koukl notes that we should welcome the first two uses of the Columbo tactic, which seek to clarify and give reasons for beliefs (Koukl 2019, p. 127). However, leading ..read more

Evangelism Questions 4/18/24 I don't entirely know why I field some questions. Maybe it's because I seem non-threatening. Maybe it's because of a presupposition that someone in a clerical collar probably isn't really a Christian. Whatever the case, here we go. The young man, taking a "theology of the gospel" class at a local church, asked me two questions. First, "Do you believe in God?" I told him that was a foregone conclusion. I am a Christian pastor, and my belief is not only in some sort of divine being but specifically in the Christian God, who is eternally existent as one God in thre ..read more

Wednesdays are for the New Testament 4/17/24 Bruce, F.F. (1988). "Herod Agrippa I and the Church (12:1-24)." In The Book of Acts (Revised). (pp. 232-242). William B. Eerdmans Publishing,  At the start of Acts 12, Herod is introduced. Bruce notes this is Herod Agrippa, the grandson of Herod the Great (Bruce 1988, p. 232).  He was taken to Rome at the age of four, and grew up on good terms with Claudius and Gaius, who became emperor in A.D. 37. Gaius Caesar assigned Agrippa two tetrarchies in Syria, as well as the title of king. His realm grew when Claudius Caesar became emperor in 4 ..read more

Tuesdays Are for the Old Testament 4/16/24 Lessing, R. Reed, & Steinmann, Andrew E. (2014). "Chapter Fifteen: Esther." In Prepare the Way of the Lord: An Introduction to the Old Testament. (pp. 267-278). St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House.  Lessing and Steinmann observe the striking differences between Esther and the other Old Testament books. In particular, Esther never mentions worship or God, and is absent from the works discovered in the Dead Sea scrolls (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 267). The author of Esther is not identified. However, the knowledge of the setting sugg ..read more

Mondays are for Church History 4/15/24 Schaff, Philip. (2014). "Chapter III.Alliance of Church and State and Its Influence on Public Morals and Religion." In  History of the Christian Church. (The Complete Eight Volumes in One). Volume 3, Nicene and Post-Nicene Christianity A.D. 311-600, from Constantine the Great to Gregory the Great. (pp. 1856-1908). (Original work published 1889).  Amazon Kindle Edition. (Personal Library). "§21. Abolition of Gladiatorial Shows." (pp. 1885-1887). Schaff counts gladiatorial contests as barbaric and bloody (Schaff 2014, p. 1885). They normally pi ..read more

4/12/24 Scholarly Reflections Koukl, Gregory. (2019). "Chapter Eight: Perfecting Columbo." In Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions (updated and expanded). pp. 115-125. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. Koukl notes that as a way of managing a conversation his Columbo tactic is effective. However, keeping it working takes practice (Koukl 2019, p. 115). In particular, readily finding a workable response in a real-time conversation may be difficult. The best ideas come to us before or after the conversation (Koukl 2019, p. 116). Koukl recommends purposely anticipating situations ..read more

Praying with the Lord's Prayer 4/11/24 Matthew 6:7 cautions not to "heap up empty phrases" (ESV) in prayer. Some people take this as a caution against using prayers which have been prepared. However, Jesus moves on in verse nine to say, "Pray then like this" and he gives the prayer we generally refer to as The Lord's Prayer. Many Christians from the earliest times have used the Lord's Prayer as a center of their prayer life, communicating with God. Lutherans in particular have a long history of repeating the prayer, as well as using it as a framework for additional prayers. How do you do tha ..read more

Wednesdays are for the New Testament 4/10/24 Bruce, F.F. (1988). "Antioch Becomes a Christian Base (11:19-30)." In The Book of Acts (Revised). (pp. 223-231). William B. Eerdmans Publishing,  Acts 11:19 is a reflection of the same status as seen in Acts 8:4, where Christians were dispersed following the death of Stephen (Bruce 1988, p. 223). In chapter 11, Luke follows people who went north toward Antioch. Bruce observes that Antioch, "as the capital of the Seleucide monarch" grew in importance quickly after its founding in 300 BC (Bruce 1988, p. 224). By the middle of the first century ..read more

Tuesdays Are for the Old Testament 4/9/24 Lessing, R. Reed, & Steinmann, Andrew E. (2014). "Chapter Fourteen: Ezra and Nehemiah." In Prepare the Way of the Lord: An Introduction to the Old Testament. (pp. 243-266). St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House.  In introducing Ezra and Nehemiah, Lessing and Steinmann remark on the leadership and cooperative work shown in the books, rather than seeking t o view everything in terms of rebuilding a city and a temple (Lessing & Steinmann 2014, p. 243). Lessing and Steinmann identify four theories of authorship for the works. First, an earl ..read more

Mondays are for Church History 4/8/24 Schaff, Philip. (2014). "Chapter III, Alliance of Church and State and Its Influence on Public Morals and Religion." In  History of the Christian Church. (The Complete Eight Volumes in One). Volume 3, Nicene and Post-Nicene Christianity A.D. 311-600, from Constantine the Great to Gregory the Great. (pp. 1856-1908). (Original work published 1889).  Amazon Kindle Edition. (Personal Library). "§19. Elevation of Woman and the Family." (pp. 1876-1878). § 20. Social Reforms. The Institution of Slavery." (pp. 1878-1885)." Schaff says clearly that rai ..read more