Andy Naselli

Thoughts on Theology

Practical Theology

Wayne Grudem on the Jason Bourne Films

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Bourne_0Wayne Grudem evaluates the Jason Bourne films (his critique applies to The Bourne Legacy as well) when he discusses the CIA in Politics—According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 424–25:

THE CIA

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the primary organization that gathers and analyzes information about other countries, especially about potential enemies of the United States. In other words, the CIA coordinates America’s spy network abroad. [Read more…] about Wayne Grudem on the Jason Bourne Films

Keller and Carson: Greco-Roman Slavery ≠ Race-Based Slavery

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Update: On February 8, 2026, I preached a sermon titled “Does the Bible Promote Slavery?” (51:05 min.). In that sermon, I take a different position than the one below.

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Many modern readers assume that slavery in the New Testament is equivalent to the race-based slavery of the African slave trade. While not defending the Greco-Roman institution of slavery, Tim Keller and Don Carson explain why it’s important not to equate it with the race-based slavery that we may be more familiar with.

Tim Keller

KellerTimothy Keller, Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work (New York: Dutton, 2012), 213–14, 280–83.

Paul is speaking to servants and masters [in Ephesians 6:5–9], and this raises many questions in the minds of modern readers about the Bible’s depiction of the evil of slavery. While much can be said about this subject,* it is important to remember that slavery in the Greco-Roman world was not the same as the New World institution that developed in the wake of the African slave trade. Slavery in Paul’s time was not race-based and was seldom lifelong. It was more like what we would call indentured servitude. But for our purposes, think of this passage as a rhetorical amplifier and consider this: If slave owners are told they must not manage workers in pride and through fear, how much more should this be true of employers today? And if slaves are told it is possible to find satisfaction and meaning in their work, how much more should this be true of workers today? [Read more…] about Keller and Carson: Greco-Roman Slavery ≠ Race-Based Slavery

Keeping Holiday: “You don’t find the Founder; he finds you. He’s not just the Founder; he’s the Finder, too.”

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Meade_0I recently read this book to my daughter Kara, and she hung on every word:

Starr Meade. Keeping Holiday. Illustrations by Justin Gerard. Wheaton: Crossway, 2008. 192 pp.

Here’s what Jenni and I wrote about it in 2008 in a Themelios review entitled “Theology for Kids: Recommending Some Recent Books for Younger Children”: [Read more…] about Keeping Holiday: “You don’t find the Founder; he finds you. He’s not just the Founder; he’s the Finder, too.”

Critiquing William Webb’s Redemptive-Movement Hermeneutic

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Reaoch - coverFive months ago I highlighted Don Carson’s critique of William Webb’s trajectory hermeneutic (copied at the end of this post).

Now there’s a more comprehensive, book-length critique:

Benjamin Reaoch. Women, Slaves, and the Gender Debate: A Complementarian Response to the Redemptive-Movement Hermeneutic. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2012.

It revises Reaoch’s PhD dissertation at Southern Seminary under Tom Schreiner, who writes the foreword.

Reaoch makes several arguments:

  • Slavery and the role of women are two critically different issues.
  • The NT neither condemns nor commends slavery.
  • Gender passages apply transculturally because they are rooted in creation.

[Read more…] about Critiquing William Webb’s Redemptive-Movement Hermeneutic

Alleviating Poverty

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Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert. When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor—and Yourself. 2nd ed. Chicago: Moody, 2012. 272 pp.

From David Platt’s foreword:

[T]his book is virtually required reading for everyone in our church who is intentionally engaging the poor here and around the world. I cannot recommend it highly enough for anyone who is passionate about spreading and showing the love of Christ to the “least of these.” [Read more…] about Alleviating Poverty

This Is How We Pray for Our Children

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crowleyGuest post by J. D. and Kim Crowley

[The Crowleys have six children, and J. D. is a pioneer missionary-linguist in Cambodia.]

For around 30 years Kim and I have prayed for our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and their spouses (often during a time of fasting and prayer during the Tuesday or Wednesday lunch hour). Besides praying for individual requests as needs arose, we have prayed the same general requests below, week after week, year after year—and we’re constantly amazed how God faithfully answers. [Read more…] about This Is How We Pray for Our Children