John Piper’s Tribute to Tom Steller

October 16, 2015 by Andy Naselli

In this picture from September 1, 2015, John Piper has his arm around Tom Steller. They are in a staff meeting for Bethlehem Baptist Church, and John Piper is praising God for Tom Steller’s serving Bethlehem for 35 years. Here’s a transcript of what Piper said:

I taught Bible at Bethel for six years, 1974–1980. Tom took six of my courses, four in Greek and two exegesis courses. (I know that because it’s in my journal.) And at the end of those six courses the die was cast for a lifetime of partnership in Christian Hedonism, and the Piper-Steller fabric began to be woven. We have loved and praised and served the same glorious God on the same basis of glorious Scripture for 40 years together. [Read more…] about John Piper’s Tribute to Tom Steller

C. S. Lewis on His Church’s Hymns: “fifth-rate poems set to sixth-rate music”

October 16, 2015 by Andy Naselli

“Is attendance at a place of worship or membership with a Christian community necessary to a Christian way of life?” The way C. S. Lewis answers that question could be far more compelling, but what strikes me is how he describes the hymns of his day and how he responded.

Assignment: Apply the bold words below to your own context. (This is from C. S. Lewis, “Answers to Questions on Christianity,” in God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics, ed. Walter Hooper [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970], 51–52, bold added.)

That’s a question which I cannot answer. My own experience is that when I first became a Christian, about fourteen years ago, I thought that I could do it on my own, by retiring to my rooms and reading theology, and I wouldn’t go to the churches and Gospel Halls; and then later I found that it was the only way of flying your flag; and, of course, I found that this meant being a target. It is extraordinary how inconvenient to your family it becomes for you to get up early to go to Church. It doesn’t matter so much if you get up early for anything else, but if you get up early to go to Church it’s very selfish of you and you upset the house. If there is anything in the teaching of the New Testament which is in the nature of a command, it is that you are obliged to take the Sacrament [footnote quotes John 6:53–54], and you can’t do it without going to Church. I disliked very much their hymns, which I considered to be fifth-rate poems set to sixth-rate music. But as I went on I saw the great merit of it. I came up against different people of quite different outlooks and different education, and then gradually my conceit just began peeling off. I realized that the hymns (which were just sixth-rate music) were, nevertheless, being sung with devotion and benefit by an old saint in elastic-side boots in the opposite pew, and then you realize that you aren’t fit to clean those boots. It gets you out of your solitary conceit. It is not for me to lay down laws, as I am only a layman, and I don’t know much.

3 Reasons for a Pastor-Theologian to Get a PhD

October 13, 2015 by Andy Naselli

Gerald Hiestand and Todd Wilson give three reasons for a pastor-theologian to get a PhD. This is from their book The Pastor Theologian: Resurrecting an Ancient Vision (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015), 104–5:

Strategy One: Get a PhD

We begin with this not because it is the most important strategy, but because it is a critical part of the preparation we believe is necessary for ecclesial theologians. The costs of a PhD—financial, emotional, familial—are significant and not to be taken lightly. For some, a PhD may not be possible or prudent. Yet those who aspire to be ecclesial theologians should think seriously about pursuing a PhD. True, Karl Barth didn’t have PhD. But until you’ve written something remotely akin to his Römerbrief, you should probably get on with getting one; it will almost certainly be necessary for pursuing the sort of vision we’ve laid out for the ecclesial theologian. We say this for at least three reasons. [Read more…] about 3 Reasons for a Pastor-Theologian to Get a PhD

Should You Be a Pastor or a Professor?

October 6, 2015 by Andy Naselli

In his post “Should You be a Pastor or a Professor? Thinking through the Options,” Michael Kruger lays out six options in a chiasm:

1. The Pastor

2. The Pastor-Scholar

3. The Pastor-Scholar who is active in scholarly world

4. The Scholar-Pastor who is active in the church

5. The Scholar-Pastor

6. The Scholar

Kruger’s taxonomy (and the way he explains it) is insightful and helpful. [Read more…] about Should You Be a Pastor or a Professor?

Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for Reading the New Testament

September 29, 2015 by Andy Naselli

This is a book well worth reading if you teach Greek or if you are a relatively advanced Greek student:

Constantine R. Campbell. Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for Reading the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015.

Many modern grammars seem like they are stuck in the late 1800s or early 1900s, and Con Campbell skillfully explains how Greek grammar has advanced in the last hundred years or so. Topics he addresses include linguistic theories, lexical semantics and lexicography, deponency and the middle voice, verbal aspect and Aktionsart, and discourse analysis. [Read more…] about Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for Reading the New Testament

Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts

September 24, 2015 by Andy Naselli

Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts with the New York Philharmonic are excellent. Bernstein recorded these for CBS from 1958 to 1972.

My three daughters and I just finished watching all 25 programs in this Special Collector’s Edition 9-DVD Set. Each program is a little under an hour, and we watched one together each Saturday morning. [Read more…] about Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts

The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden

September 22, 2015 by Andy Naselli

Kevin DeYoung. The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015.

This book targets children ages 5–12. As with Kevin DeYoung’s other publications, he writes clearly, creatively, and soundly. It’s short enough that I read the whole book in one sitting to my three girls (at the time ages 7, 4, and almost 3). They followed it intently. And a few months later my wife read it to the girls in several sittings.

This book isn’t ideal to use to teach children the Bible’s detailed storyline; it’s too brief for that. It makes more sense if you already know the Bible’s basic storyline so you can follow the witty story-telling and fill in the gaps. But what it does, it does very well. No wasted words. Compact. Crisp. Compelling.

Kevin explains the book’s background here.

Praying the Bible (Not the Same Old Things about the Same Old Things)

September 15, 2015 by Andy Naselli

“Since prayer is talking with God, why don’t people pray more? Why don’t the people of God enjoy prayer more? I maintain that people—truly born-again, genuinely Christian people—often do not pray simply because they do not feel like it. And the reason they don’t feel like praying is that when they do pray, they tend to say the same old things about the same old things.”

That’s from page 11 in this book:

Donald S. Whitney. Praying the Bible. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015.

In Praying the Bible, Whitney says more winsomely and practically what I argue for in this essay:

Andrew David Naselli. “12 Reasons You Should Pray Scripture.” Themelios 38 (2013): 417–25.