Even More Books on the Origins of the New Testament Canon
As I noted in a previous blog post, it seems that the issue of the origins of the biblical canon continues to garner quite a bit of scholarly attention. And this is good news. There’s always more issues to be explored and debated.
Let me mention four new volumes sitting on my desk, the first two of which I was able to endorse.
Tomas Bokedal, Christ the Center: How the Rule of Faith, the Nomina Sacra, and Numerical Patterns Shape the Canon (Lexham, 2023).
While I always appreciate new books on the canon, sometimes it seems that we are rehashing the same topics over and over. Not … Continue reading...
How Did We Get the Bible?
I recently did a weekend conference for Christ Covenant Church in Atlanta, GA, on the topic of where the Bible came from, and why we can trust it. Here’s a video of my lecture, followed by a video of an interview I did with Jason Dees, the senior pastor of Christ Covenant. Enjoy!
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New Book on Canon Formation
My interest in the origins of the New Testament canon began probably 30 plus years ago. At the time, there was a general interest in the subject, but it was still pretty niche. One had to dig around to find works on the canon that went beyond the well-known volumes by the likes of Bruce Metzger or F.F. Bruce.
But thankfully things have changed in the last bit of time. Now the topic of canon has garnered quite a bit of attention—at both scholarly and lay levels. New work is being done, and fresh avenues are being explored.
One example of fresh work is the new volume of collected essays … Continue reading...
6 Ways that Christian Students Can Prepare for College: #3 What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger
I am in the middle of a 6-part series helping Christian students think through how to prepare for life at a big university. This topic is particularly relevant, I hope, given the number of high school seniors who are in the middle of deciding where they will go to college in the fall.
This little series is based on a recent lecture I gave to the Regents School in Austin, Texas, where I laid out 6 principles designed to help rising college students think more clearly about what’s ahead. It’s also based on my book, Surviving Religion 101. You can read the prior installments here and here.
We now … Continue reading...
6 Ways that Christian Students Can Prepare for College: #1 Take This Transition Seriously
Well, it’s that time of year. By now, many high school seniors have heard where they have been accepted to college. Others are still waiting. But all are beginning to think about the next stage of their life post-high school.
And for Christian students this time of anticipation can be particularly acute. It is natural for them to wonder, How am I going to survive at a big university as a Christian? Am I ready to handle the challenges coming my way? What if I don’t have all the answers?
Of course, this sort of angst is not just felt by the students. It is also felt (and maybe felt … Continue reading...