Issue
The Great Announcement
Vol. 20, No. 1 • Jan/Feb 2011
We are thrilled to bring you the first issue of our 2011 series on the Great Commission. All this year we will move through Jesus’ sending of the disciples as we find recorded in Matthew 28. Our decision to take up this topic was an organic one, growing out of a natural progression from “Guilt” […]
All Articles (18)
In this Issue
We are thrilled to bring you the first issue of our 2011 series on the Great Commission. All this year we will move through Jesus’ sending of the disciples as we find recorded in Matthew 28. Our decision to take up this topic was an organic one, growing out of a natural progression from “Guilt” […]
The Return of the King
Jesus had waited a long time for his first public sermon. During the first thirty years of his life he was relatively silent, growing in “wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:52) and laboring in obscurity as a carpenter (Mark 6:3). The fact that the Gospel accounts give us precious little information about this phase of his […]
The Mission Statement
Any conversation about the Matthew 28:18-20 “Great Commission” must begin with the essential acknowledgement that the missional activity of the church (that is, the sending, the going, the making of disciples by baptizing, the forming of Christians through teaching, the enduring presence, and so forth) is the work of God. No, not in the sense […]
The Difference a Comma Makes
There’s an old joke about a panda that walks into a café. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air. “Why?” asks the confused waiter, as the panda makes toward the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife manual and tosses it over his shoulder. […]
A Theology of Missions
There is something about the topic “The Great Commission” that tests our resolve that Word and Sacrament ministry is the lifeblood of a growing and expanding church. This is probably because missions is an immensely practical task, and so frequently the connection between theology and mission is obscured in contemporary evangelicalism. In this issue we […]
“Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church” by N. T. Wright
N. T. Wright’s book Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church is a running complaint about the dominance of fundamentalist and liberal approaches to death, the resurrection, the intermediate state, and the mission of the church. Surprised by Hope is more polemical than insightful, too condescending to be comforting, […]
The Bible
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What Did Jesus Write in the Ground? The Controversy and Mystery in John 8
“The Pharisees were guilty of the same kind of sin they wanted to see this woman executed for. And that’s why they walk away from the scene with their tails between their legs. The story ends with Jesus showing mercy to the woman and calling her to repentance, highlighting the fact that contrite sinners make […]
How God’s Promise to Abram Is Fulfilled in Christ
There is more to the Abrahamic covenant than just this family and just that land. As will become clear from the rest of Genesis and from the New Testament, Abram knew that the earthly land of Canaan was just a picture of heaven itself (Heb 11:10). Likewise, he came to understand that the key to becoming a vast nation was a single son. From the one, special boy of Abram, the blessings would flow to the nations, who is Jesus Christ (Gal 3:7–9). By faith in Christ, we become the heirs of these ancient promises.
Our Victory Is Between the Flags of Sound Doctrine
Following sound doctrine requires our eyes to remain fixed on Jesus. It also requires that our faith rests in him. Faith opens the door to God’s plan and allows us to accomplish his will for our lives. It does so chiefly because it fosters a heart that yields to the counsel and leading of God. In this way, we remain on the road of truth.
Four Tips for Reading the Bible’s Prophetical Books
The Prophets are not just abstract apocalyptic literature, included in the canon of Scripture because of their audience or subject matter. No, they—like the rest of Scripture—are the divinely inspired word of God. They are included in the unfolding of God’s redemptive plan and written within the covenant context of God and his people for a theological purpose, reflecting a specific historical and geographical context.
