Theology

Non-Christians and Christians alike often give the same answer to difficult questions like these: Why did God allow sin in the first place? Why does God save some people and not others? Why does God send people to hell? Why can living like a Christian be so frustrating? The immediate solution often...

The Theology of John Calvin By Charles Partee 376 p. Westminster John Knox (October 2008) If all's well that ends well, then all is well with this new study of Calvin's theology. Which is to say, I find myself in agreement with much of the brief conclusion of this long book, a book revealing a...

Ecclesial theology has fallen on hard times as of late--not absolutely, but pervasively. But what is ecclesial theology? It is, I would suggest, more than ecclesiology; and defining it over and against academic theology is a start, but more needs to be said. Earlier this year, I was hired as the...

Ecclesial theology has fallen on hard times as of late--not absolutely, but pervasively. But what is ecclesial theology? It is, I would suggest, more than ecclesiology; and defining it over and against academic theology is a start, but more needs to be said. Earlier this year, I was hired as the...

There are few things as refreshing as a large glass of pure orange juice. However if you forget to obey the advice on the carton - best drunk shaken - the experience is rather less than it could be. Without a vigorous shake, one pours only a disappointing glass of orange-tinted water. The theology...

What is evil? There are two kinds of evil: moral and natural. Moral evil is sin, such as murder, rape, abuse, terrorism, or genocide. Natural evil is what causes suffering and unpleasantness; it is the result of moral evil. For example, every human dies, animals suffer, natural disasters like...

James D.G. Dunn once referred to the epistle of James as "the most Jewish, the most undistinctively Christian document in the New Testament." [1] We all know that Martin Luther had serious concerns about the content of the epistle of James referring to it as "an epistle of straw" and noting that it...

Finding God in the Shack: Seeking Truth in a Story of Evil and Redemption By Roger E. Olson 160 p. IVP (February 2009) Roger Olson's Finding God in the Shack (IVP Books, 2009) is an extended review and discussion of the theology articulated by William Young in his earlier novel The Shack. It is an...

One question that I have now been asked more times than I care to remember is "How do you cope with all the nastiness that's come your way on the internet over the last few years?" The answer is pretty simple: it generally doesn't come my way because I generally don't read it. I simply do not have...

Editor's Note: This begins part two of the article. Part one can be found here . Argument #4: The future judgment of believers consists only of reward and praise. Those who support future justification according to works will cite the numerous Bible passages that in one form or another state that...