Parchment & Pen Blog

(Lisa Robinson)

I’ve been exposed to a variety of preaching, from the very topical where a new subject is introduced each week, to series on a topic or on a series of going through an entire book of the bible.   I’m sure every pastor has their preference but if the goal is to equip the body for the work of ministry, I think going through whole books of the bible is the best way.  I’m sure there are other lists out there, but here are my reasons;

1)  It connects the narrative or letter to the whole meta-narrative of scripture from Genesis to Revelation.  This is really what we should want people to understand anyway.  No matter what book it is, the pastor will be forced to make correlations to give a fair and honest treatment to the book.  A good systematized topical study may be able provide this treatment, when done thoughtfully and that does require several sessions regardless of the topic.  It would be most difficult to do this in a topical, week-by-week sermon.

2)  It anchors the congregation in one theme of thought for an extended period of time.   The biblical writers had a particular theme when writing in a particular genre to a particular audience.  Going from start to finish through one book is able to better capture the author’s purpose and give an appreciation for a fuller development of understanding.  As stated, in #1, making to connections to the biblical meta-narrative is key and necessary.  This is in contrast to the new-topic-every-week.  A steady diet of this keeps people bouncing around and grasping for whatever they can to help them out, and ultimately does a disservice.

3)  It treats the bible as it should be treated as a complete revelation of God instead of a self-help guide or manual for living.  In this day and age, where contemporary Evangelicalism has been drawn to pragmatism with instantaneous results, people are already prone to grab for verses that will help out their life concerns.   Application is important, but not without an understanding of the foundation.

4)  It teaches people how to approach scripture on their own.  It’s a case of monkey-see-monkey-do.  When people are exposed to methodically going through a whole book, this is what they will most likely emulate.  If they are exposed to explanation of what the author is communicating and how that connects to the complete meta-narrative, it will influence how they approach scripture.  On the other hand, if people are exposed to finding a topic, then finding supporting passages, it teaches them to go home and do the same, most likely ignoring the context. Continue Reading »

Sometimes I feel like I rise up with wings like eagles only to fall with wings like penguins.

I must preempt my conversation here with an apology to many of my Christian friends who are going to see this post and cry out in protest. I understand your concern, and it is valid. However, this is a blog and there are certain liberties that can be taken within the blog genre that are not available in other venues. The primary attribute of a blog that expresses such liberties is the ability to engage personal emotions without a governor.

Looking in the mirror today, I saw the same face as yesterday. I found my eyes to be worn and tired. They did not look good. I saw within them the residue of hurt, pain, and failure. I found myself downcast with shame for the testimony they give to others. I thought of many friends I want to see. I thought of those whom I love here in Oklahoma who need Jesus. I want to see them, but I don’t want them to see me. I have a message for them, but I don’t know if it is written in my eyes. My eyes tell a different story. They tell a story, for many people, of why we should NOT become Christians. “You want to look like that?” someone may say as they look breifly into my eyes. “I don’t. He looks more defeated than anyone I have ever seen. Look at his eyes. Let us pity him, not follow him.”

Isn’t it funny how eyes tell a story? Everyone - everything - looks into your eyes before they look anywhere else. Even animals somehow know to look into our eyes. Old friends do not come up to you and devote attention to your hands or ears. They don’t ask you to open your mouth so that they can examine the history told by your teeth. They look into your eyes and find the exposed nudity of your soul.

I used to have green eyes. My green eyes used to be an endearing and attractive means by which I lured many young ladies to my side. I don’t know what color they are now. They may still be green. I am not sure. No one knows. It is hard to notice color anymore when the life in my eyes does not offer to tell such things anymore. It gives a more vivid history that overwhelms such incidentals as color.

My eyes tell a story and the story is true. But you have to look deeply into them to get the whole story. Continue Reading »

Coffee with Scholars - J.P. Moreland [ 31:49 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Join Michael Patton and Tim Kimberley as they welcome Dr. J.P. Moreland to Credo House for our continuing “Coffee with Scholars” series.

Some evangelicals could very well define “church history” as “the study of how everybody misinterpreted the Bible until we came along.” In fact, on several occasions I’ve heard people actually say, “I don’t care if I’m the first person in history to read the Bible this way. If that’s what Scripture says, then I’m going to accept it.” We should admire this confidence in Scripture. However, that statement places lot of unquestioned confidence in one’s own abilities to properly interpret the Bible. Don’t get me wrong. I believe in the sufficiency of Scripture, but I don’t believe in the sufficiency of self. The kind of arrogance that makes a person completely abandon the contributions from the past is what C. S. Lewis called “chronological snobbery.” He defined chronological snobbery as “the uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate common to our own age and the assumption that whatever has gone out of date is on that account discredited. You must find why it went out of date. Was it ever refuted (and if so by whom, where, and how conclusively) or did it merely die away as fashions do? If the latter, this tells us nothing about its truth or falsehood. (C. S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life [San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1955], 207–8)

Grown men often look back over their lives and reflect on how far they’ve come and the progress they’ve made throughout. But poet Thomas S. Jones, presents the opposite perspective: what if the younger version of me were to peer forward and see what kind of person I have become? Continue Reading »

1. Irenic

Being irenic means that we approach people peacefully. It is the opposite of being quarrelsome. It is wonderful when individuals are passionate about their beliefs but, ironically, these passions can often make a person so militant and hostile no one else wants to listen to him speak! A good theologian always keeps his cool. He does not let the polemics of others cause him to sacrifice his level-headed calmness. When correction is necessary, tact is defined by gentleness. We have to love truth so much that we are gentle.

2 Timothy 2:24-26
And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil. 25 with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. (2Ti 2:25-26)

1 Peter 3:15
But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; 16 and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. (1Pe 3:15 NAS)

2. Honesty

For the theologian this includes the willingness to admit it, when you don’t know things. The mark of a theologian’s influence is not simply in how much he (or she) knows, but how much he realizes he doesn’t know. The theologian’s job is not to have an answer for every question, but to be able to handle questions in an honest way, since he has wrestled with the issue himself. A good theologian always recognizes his finitude in the face of an infinite God and it shows. Are you a perplexed theologian? Good. Join Paul and Peter.

2 Cor 4:7-9 7
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; 8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.

2 Pet. 3:15-16
And regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16 as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand . . . Continue Reading »

In this 3-minute video, I provide a few thoughts for Christians facing suffering:

(Lisa Robinson)

I have just completed my 4th year of the ThM program (minus internship duties through August).   I also just completed my first year of Hebrew and let me tell you this second semester was no cake walk.  If you saw some of my Facebook statuses you would know the struggles that led me to liken my dealings with Hebrew to a bad marriage.  There were fights, misunderstandings, one-way communication,  periods of rejection, elevated emotions and yelling.  I loved going through Jonah this past semester but the mechanics of those crazy verbs nearly drove me crazy.  In the midst of it all, we also had a word study assignment to address the meaning of the verb, translated “to grieve” in Genesis 6:6.  This basically entailed identifying everywhere else in the OT that verb or it’s cognate was used.  I pulled up a list of 15 or so.  Simple, right? After all, I had done these in my Greek exegesis classes as part of 20 page single space exegetical papers, that included writing a commentary, working out textual critical issues and validation problems.  What was a little few verse word study then?

For whatever reason, every time I sat down to complete this assignment, I experienced some major mental blocks.  It got to the point where I knew I would have to turn it in late.  The prof had told me no problem.  And still the “blocks” continued.  Given the difficulty I was already having with the mechanics of Hebrew, I got to the point where I just decided I would take a zero and a hit on my grade whether than continue with this dance of frustration.  The second to the last week of class, when asking about a make-up quiz I had missed because I was sick, she then said very calmly “and you do have a word study assignment coming, right?”  What?  Did my ears deceive me?  I was getting a second chance.  How could I not do the assignment now.

Ok, pause.   I think anyone who has spent any amount of time around bible-based teaching has heard countless illustrations like this of grace, receiving something we don’t deserve (or at least I hope so!).  But let’s keep going.  Even after this second chance I still kept struggling with this assignment every time I sat down to do it.  What on earth was going on?  This was not really rocket science and have certainly worked through far more complicated assignments on various topics.  Up until the end of the very last week I could turn it in, I struggled. Continue Reading »