The Heresy of Orthodoxy: Who is Walter Bauer and Why Write a Book About Him?
In 1934, the German scholar Walter Bauer wrote a landmark work entitled Orthodoxy and Heresy in Earliest Christianity. The problem was that no one yet knew it was a landmark work. The Germans (and the world) had other things on their mind during this phase of European history.
But, in 1971 the book was translated into English. And with all the new found (largely American) fascination with apocryphal Gospels like the Gospel of Thomas, the English translation proved to be well timed.
Bauer’s core thesis was that early Christianity was profoundly diverse in terms of its theological commitments. Various Christian groups believed all sorts of contradictory things about … Continue reading...
My New “Go To” Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles
When it comes to finding good commentaries, one of the challenges is that most commentaries are limited by the the niche they are designed to fill.
Some commentaries are devotional. Some are exegetical. Some are practical/pastoral. And others are highly academic.
Rare is the commentary that can, at least at some level, address all of these important needs. While no commentary can do this perfectly (especially under 1000 pages!), some come closer than others.
One of those rare and exceptional volumes is the new commentary on the Pastoral Epistles–1 & 2 Timothy and Titus–by my friend Andreas Köstenberger. Andreas is the senior research professor of New Testament at Southeastern Baptist … Continue reading...
A Conversation on Inspiration and Inerrancy with Darrell Bock and Andreas Köstenberger
Last December (2014), I had the privilege of participating in a podcast interview with Darrell Bock and the Dallas Theological Seminary program The Table. I was joined by my friend Andreas Köstenberger (co-author of The Heresy of Orthodoxy).
The interview covered a wide range of topics related to inspiration and inerrancy, particularly last year’s popular blog series by Peter Enns entitled “Aha Moments.” That series highlighted evangelical scholars who have discovered things in their biblical research that have caused them to change their views about inerrancy.
In response, I offered a brief series on my own website entitled “Does the Bible Ever Get it Wrong? Facing Scripture’s Difficult … Continue reading...
Does the Bible Ever Get it Wrong? Facing Scripture’s Difficult Passages (#4): Andreas Köstenberger
In a prior post (see here), I announced a new blog series designed to address problematic passage in the Bible. This new series will feature guest posts from other evangelical scholars and is largely a response to the series by Peter Enns’ entitled, “Aha moments: biblical scholars tell their stories.”
The contributor for this installment is my friend Andreas Köstenberger (Ph.D., Trinity Evangelical Divinity School). Andreas is the Senior Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and the author of numerous books. A few notables are: A Theology of John’s Gospel and Letters, John (Baker Exegetical Commentary), and The Heresy
Continue reading...