Common Mistakes Every Student of the Bible Must Avoid

William D. Barrick, professor of Old Testament at The Master's Seminary, delivers a sound exhortation to all Bible students, originally presented at the 2006 Shepherd's Conference. For those of you familiar with D. A. Carson's Exegetical Fallacies, Barrick's paper is offered as a sort of supplement to Carson. Barrick distills lessons learned from several decades of preaching and teaching experience.

Young brothers and sisters, Barrick's insights will prove helpful as you grow toward maturity in the faith. Many times we evangelicals are tempted to be shallow and slapdash when dealing with the holy text. This is a deadly, dangerous temptation. We cannot build a theological house of cards on a foundation of sand and expect faith to weather the hurricanes of physical, mental, and moral disaster which abound on every hand.

Culture and Cultus

Carl Trueman is a good author and a helpful theologian. He shares his thoughts on a tangent to the present Waltke brouhaha.

What is the Principal Exercise of Faith?

Pastor Ian Hamilton writes a brief contemplation to stir our affections for Christ. His reference to Paul in Philippians applies to our current series walking through that letter.

It is part of our humanity, and of our redeemed humanity, that we give our minds and affections to the people and places and 'things' that have most captured our imagination and impacted our lives. Think of how obsessive many men (and women) are today about football. They even talk about their favourite players as 'gods' and 'messiahs'. They cannot stop thinking about, speaking about, singing about their heroes. Their hearts rise and fall depending on the success or failure of their 'first love'. When you read the New Testament and especially Paul's Letters, you cannot help being struck by his obsession with Jesus Christ. He tells the Philippians, 'For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.' He tells them that he is 'a one thing I do man': 'One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind . . . I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.' He tells the Corinthians that Jesus is God's 'indescribable gift'. He tells the Ephesians that God the Father has blessed believers 'with every spiritual blessing in Christ'. Is it any wonder Paul was obsessed with his Saviour?

You can read the full article here.