Andy Naselli

The Best Part about Knowing the Biblical Languages

Andy Naselli — March 7, 2012 — 5 Comments

Scott J. Hafemann, “Is it genuinely important to use the biblical languages in preaching, especially since there are many excellent commentaries and pastors will never attain the expertise of scholars?” Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 3:2 (1999): 86–89 (formatting added):

One hour with the text is worth ten in secondary literature. . . .

But I have saved the best for last. Knowing the biblical languages enables us to do something very few commentaries ever do: trace the flow of the argument of the text. Continue Reading…

In Exegesis Greek, Hebrew, preaching

Soothing, Brilliant Cello Music

Andy Naselli — March 5, 2012 — 5 Comments

This is drive-the-evil-spirit-out-of-Saul kind of music.

I’ve listened to this 2.1-hour album a few hundred times. It doesn’t get old.

In Other Music

Arguing Like Jesus

Andy Naselli — March 2, 2012 — 2 Comments

Four helps for learning from Jesus’ rhetoric:

1. Joe Carter and John Coleman. How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion from History’s Greatest Communicator. Wheaton: Crossway, 2009.

In Practical Theology preaching

Don’t Be a Loner

Andy Naselli — February 29, 2012 — Leave a comment

Paul writes Timothy in 2 Tim 2:22,

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (NIV)

But keep away from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faithfulness, love, and peace, in company with others who call on the Lord from a pure heart. (NET)

Ray Van Neste observes in the ESV Study Bible,

The pursuit of right is not to be done alone but along with other believers. Connection with the community of faith is essential for both progress in sanctification and perseverance in the faith.

Similarly, the NET Bible note observes,

In company with others who call on the Lord from a pure heart alludes to the value of the community of believers for the development of Christian virtues.

In Exegesis church, sanctification

Resources on Worldview

Andy Naselli — February 27, 2012 — 1 Comment

The book I highlighted last Friday concludes with an annotated bibliography:

Douglas S. Huffman and Philip E. Lueck. “For the Biblical Worldview on Academic Disciplines.” Pages 171–223 in Christian Contours: How a Biblical Worldview Shapes the Mind and Heart. Edited by Douglas S. Huffman. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2011.

The first part is entitled “General Reading on the Biblical Worldview” (pp. 172–76), and Kregel gave me permission to share it here. They explain, “The books we mark as classics in their fields (‡) need not represent what we think is the best perspective. Our goal for this bibliography is to encourage interactive reflection on the biblical worldview and not merely to list books we agree with.”

Bertrand, J. Mark. (Re)Thinking Worldview: Learning to Think, Live, and Speak in this World. Wheaton: Crossway, 2007.

A seminar leader on Christian worldview, Bertrand covers worldview as the story of creation, fall, and redemption (part 1). He focuses on wisdom (part 2) and witness (part 3) as essential for intentional living, including treatments on critical reading, apologetics, and cultural contribution. Continue Reading…

In Systematic Theology Books

Worldview

Andy Naselli — February 24, 2012 — 1 Comment

This book came out this month:

Douglas S. Huffman, ed. Christian Contours: How a Biblical Worldview Shapes the Mind and Heart. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2011.

Huffman explains,

For several decades, the integration of faith and learning has been a major topic for Christian higher education. Robert Harris argues correctly that Christians need to think about this intentionally. But such intentionality is actually artificial, made necessary only by our sinfulness. Humans naturally integrate everything, trying to make things fit into a coherent system.

If I told you that I had breakfast on Mars this morning, you would try to fit this claim into the beliefs you already hold about the universe. Perhaps you would select one of these options:

(a) Huffman had breakfast at a new restaurant called “Mars”;

(b) Huffman had breakfast while riding a horse named “Mars”; or

(c) Huffman is deluded.

Your set of beliefs about the world as you know it would not allow you to believe that I actually had breakfast on the planet called Mars.

This illustrates our propensity to combine all of our knowledge and beliefs into one overarching system. Continue Reading…

In Systematic Theology Books