Chief of sinners

Paul famously declared that Christ Jesus came to save sinners, adding “Of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul qualifies as chief of sinners because he was a “blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor” (v. 13). That Jesus would save this sinner is a . . . . Continue Reading »

God-breathed

Craig Allert’s A High View of Scripture? The Authority of the Bible and the Formation of the New Testament Canon (Evangelical Ressourcement: Ancient Sources for the Church’s Future) is mostly about the implications of the history of canon-formation for our understanding of what the . . . . Continue Reading »

Pursuing Riches

Paul ends 1 Timothy with some quite striking warnings about the dangers of wealth.  Godliness involves contentment, contentment with food and clothing; Paul reminds Timothy that wealth neither came with us nor goes with us when we die (6:6-8).  Ungodliness is discontent with God’s . . . . Continue Reading »

Fall of Adam?

Did Adam “fall” into sin?  If we follow the strict language of Scripture, it would seem not.  So far as I can find, Adam is never said to have “fallen.”  Adam sinners, transgressed, committed an act of transgression, and by his action sin and death entered the . . . . Continue Reading »