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‘The Making of Biblical Womanhood’ – 1

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The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth, by Beth Allison Barr, Brazos Press, 2021.

I realise that Dr Barr is first and foremost a historian (with Religious Studies as her second area of academic expertise).  I know that she frequently appeals, in her book, on personal adecdote (often in involving her students).  However, I am sure that she would agree that her case for egalitarianism stands or falls on a convincing interpretation of the biblical text. …

Genesis 1:27 – a hint of male headship?

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Genesis 1:27 God created humankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them,
male and female he created them.

Raymond Ortlund argues that this Scripture, in referring to the human race as ‘man’ (and not ‘woman’, or ‘person’) is hinting at male headship. (Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, p97f.).  This view is repeated by the Kostenbergers (God’s Design for Men and Women).

Although I regard this view as rather speculative, I think that Giles (What the Bible Really Teaches on Women) is quite wrong to dismiss it as ‘special pleading’, and not based on ‘serious scholarship’.…

Notes, or no notes?

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For many years I was tightly bound to rather full notes in my preaching.  However, I came to se that this is to walk with crutches, and that it would be better to do without them.

Jeffrey Arthurs discusses the pros and cons of preaching from notes.

He quotes Fred Cradock:-

Every method pays a price for its advantages. Those who prefer the freedom and relationships available to the preacher without notes will not usually rate as high on careful phrasing and wealth of content.

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Only the Trinity can create

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At the end of a long and interesting article examining hints of the triunity of God in the creation narrative of Genesis 1, Peter Leithart concludes:

The Bible never teaches a merely-mono theism, not even for a single verse. As soon as God is named, we have a hint of plurality within the life of the Creator. As we read the account of creation, that whisper becomes more audible. And those hints of divine plurality provide the only coherent ground for the biblical teaching concerning creation.

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Acts 1:6 – a misguided question?

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Acts 1:6 So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

1. Misguided?

For many commentators, the disciples’ question was misguided.  It amounted to an expectation of a political kingdom of Israel with Jesus as King.  This would be equivalent to the request of the mother of James and John in Mt 20:21.

Edersheim:

‘Such questions became them not. Theirs was to be work, not rest; suffering, not triumph.

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Psalm 24 – Are you a confident Christian? – sermon notes

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A sermon preached at Holy Trinity, Norwich, on Sunday 8th August, 2021.

 

Are you a confident Christian?

I know of no better recipe for confident Christianity than this ancient psalm.

It teaches us that we can be

1. Confident in our mission, v1-2

 A Trinitarian truth, Gen 1:1f.

In the New Testament, it is especially the role of the Son that is brought forward for our attention and admiration:

Jn 1:3 – ‘Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.’…

John 14:2 – “Many dwelling places”

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John 14:2 – “There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house.”

AV: ‘Many mansions’; NRSV: ‘Many dwelling places’; RSV, NIV, ESV, GNB: ‘Many rooms’.

Bruner paraphrases: ‘On my Father’s estate there are many homes.’

1. Not ‘many stopping places along the way’…

The meaning of this underlying word (monē) is disputed.  It was translated as ‘mansiones‘ in the Vulgate, (and then into ‘mansions’ in the AV).

The traditional translation of ‘mansions’ is misleading. …

Christ has dealt with the guilt, power, and presence of sin

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1. The guilt of sin. This is justification, ‘the very hinge and pillar of Christianity’, (Thomas Watson).

John Stott has said, ‘Nobody understands Christianity who does not understand…the word “justified”.’

Spurgeon tells the story of a man who was so constantly in debt and continually being arrested by the police, that once, when going by a fence, having caught his sleeve on one of the rails, he turned around and said, “I don’t owe you anything sir.”…

Trinitarian personalism and preaching

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We preach Christ, and not just the benefits that he offers.  This is part of the commitment to ‘Trinitarian personalism’ advocated by Scott R. Swain.  He concludes:

Often the commitment to being “Christ-centered” in preaching leads to sermons whose central point is the atonement or justification. Now mind you, one cannot preach Christ without preaching the atonement and justification. But there is a marked difference between preaching the crucifixion and preaching “Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2).

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Is the Trinity a biblical doctrine?

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Challenged by a Jehovah’s Witness heckler to find the doctrine of the Holy Trinity in the Bible, J.I. Packer responded along the following lines:

Jesus

(i) endorsed Old Testament monotheism (Mark 12:29), yet
(ii) regarded Himself as ‘the Son’ in a unique sense (Matt. 11:27; Mark 12:1-12; 13:32), and prescribed and accepted worship of Himself as Son of God, treating this as a proper expression of faith (John 5:23; 9:35-38; 20:28); and
(iii) promised the Holy Spirit as ‘another Comforter’ in succession to Himself, to carry on His own many-sided ministering role (John 14:16); and
(iv) bracketed Father, Son and Spirit together as the triune ‘name’ (singular, note, not plural) into which – that is, into a relationship with which – future disciples were to be baptized (Matt.

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