An International Journal for Students of Theological and Religious Studies Volume 44 Issue 2 August 2019
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
An International Journal for Students of Theological and Religious Studies Volume 44 Issue 2 August 2019 EDITORIAL: Fulfill Your Ministry by Brian J. Tabb 211 STRANGE TIMES: Never Say ‘the Phones Are Quiet’ 216 by Daniel Strange The Mystery Revealed: A Biblical Case for Christ- 226 Centered Old Testament Interpretation by Jason S. DeRouchie The Gospel as Interpretive Key to 1 Corinthians 10:31– 249 11:16: On Christian Worship, Head Coverings, and the Trinity by Peter R. Schemm and Andreas J. Köstenberger A Review of the Christian Standard Bible by Mark L. Strauss 258 “Striving for Glory with God”: Humility as the Good Life 278 in Basil of Caesarea’s Homily 20 by Coleman M. Ford Can We Hasten the Parousia? An Examination of Matt 291 24:14 and Its Implications for Missional Practice by C. J. Moore The Doctrine of Scripture and Biblical Contextualization: 312 Inspiration, Authority, Inerrancy, and the Canon by Jackson Wu The Insights and Shortcomings of Kantian Ethics: 327 Signposts Signaling the Truthfulness of Christian Ethics by Zachary Breitenbach Hebrews and the Typology of Jonathan Edwards by Drew 339 Hunter Book Reviews 353 DESCRIPTION Themelios is an international, evangelical, peer-reviewed theological journal that expounds and defends the historic Christian faith. Its primary audience is theological students and pastors, though scholars read it as well. Themelios began in 1975 and was operated by RTSF/UCCF in the UK, and it became a digital journal operated by The Gospel Coalition in 2008. The editorial team draws participants from across the globe as editors, essayists, and reviewers. Themelios is published three times a year online at The Gospel Coalition website in PDF and HTML, and may be purchased in digital format with Logos Bible Software and in print with Wipf and Stock. Themelios is copyrighted by The Gospel Coalition. Readers are free to use it and circulate it in digital form without further permission, but they must acknowledge the source and may not change the content. EDITORS BOOK REVIEW EDITORS General Editor: Brian Tabb Old Testament Systematic Theology Bethlehem College & Seminary Peter Lau David Garner 720 13th Avenue South Malaysian Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary Minneapolis, MN 55415, USA Seremban, Malaysia 2960 Church Road [email protected] [email protected] Glenside, PA 19038, USA [email protected] Contributing Editor and President: New Testament Donald A. Carson David Starling Ethics and Pastoralia Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Morling College Rob Smith 2065 Half Day Road 120 Herring Road Sydney Missionary and Bible College Deerfield, IL 60015, USA Macquarie Park, NSW 2113, Australia 43 Badminton Road [email protected] [email protected] Croydon NSW 2132, Australia [email protected] Contributing Editor: Daniel Strange History and Historical Theology Oak Hill Theological College Geoff Chang Mission and Culture Chase Side, Southgate Hinson Baptist Church Jackson Wu London, N14 4PS, UK 1315 Southeast 20th Avenue International Chinese Theological [email protected] Portland, OR 97214, USA Seminary [email protected] East Asia Administrator: Andy Naselli [email protected] Bethlehem College & Seminary 720 13th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55415, USA [email protected] EDITORIAL BOARD Gerald Bray, Beeson Divinity School; Hassell Bullock, Wheaton College; Lee Gatiss, Wales Evangelical School of Theology; Paul Helseth, University of Northwestern, St. Paul; Paul House, Beeson Divinity School; Hans Madueme, Covenant College; Ken Magnuson, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Gavin Ortlund, First Baptist Church, Ojai; Jonathan Pennington, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Mark D. Thompson,Moore Theological College; Paul Williamson, Moore Theological College; Mary Willson, Second Presbyterian Church; Stephen Witmer, Pepperell Christian Fellowship; Robert Yarbrough, Covenant Seminary. ARTICLES Themeliostypically publishes articles that are 4,000 to 9,000 words (including footnotes). Prospective contributors should submit articles by email to the managing editor in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) or Rich Text Format (.rtf). Submissions should not include the author’s name or institutional affiliation for blind peer-review. Articles should use clear, concise English and should consistently adopt either UK or USA spelling and punctuation conventions. Special characters (such as Greek and Hebrew) require a Unicode font. Abbreviations and bibliographic references should conform to The SBL Handbook of Style (2nd ed.), supplemented by The Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.). For examples of the the journal's style, consult the most recent Themelios issues and the contributor guidelines. REVIEWS The book review editors generally select individuals for book reviews, but potential reviewers may contact them about reviewing specific books. As part of arranging book reviews, the book review editors will supply book review guidelines to reviewers. Themelios 44.2 (2019): 211–15 EDITORIAL Fulfill Your Ministry — Brian J. Tabb — Brian Tabb is academic dean and associate professor of biblical studies at Bethlehem College & Seminary in Minneapolis, an elder of Bethlehem Baptist Church, and general editor of Themelios. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. (2 Tim 4:5) here’s a big difference between starting and finishing, but one word carries both meanings. The word commencement is used in two common ways: the ceremony where degrees are conferred on graduates, and the beginning of a process.1 Each year in May, schools hold commencement Tor graduation services. Commencement is the finish line for which students labor and toil—some for many years—in hopes of donning an awkward robe and funny hat and walking across the stage to shake hands with the president or dean, pose for a photo, and receive their coveted diploma. However, gradu- ation is not—or at least should not be—the ultimate goal of students’ studies. It is rather the conclusion of their academic preparation for something else. Those who enroll in seminary typically do so in order to be equipped for ministry. At Christian institutions, a commencement service celebrates the faithful- ness of God, recognizes the achievement of those students who have “fulfilled” all of the requirements for their degrees, and then commissions them to carry out the good works to which God has called them. While commencement looks back and marks the close of one chapter, it also marks the beginning of a new one. Thus, I frequently charge seminarians who have fulfilled the requirements of their degree programs to “fulfill your ministry.” Not everyone who begins seminary fulfills the requirements of their degree. Financial difficulties, health crises, family pressures, academic challenges, personal burnout, changes in calling, moral failings, or other factors may lead seminarians to withdraw before completing their program. Similarly, not all seminary graduates continue in faithful ministry. One study, Pastors in Transition, surveys seven motivating factors for why pastors leave their local churches: 1. they preferred another kind of ministry; 2. they need to care for children or family; 3. they had conflict in the congregation; 4. they had conflict with denominational leaders; 5. they were burned out or discouraged; 6. they left due to sexual sin; 1 “Commencement,” English Oxford Living Dictionary, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/com- mencement. 211 Themelios 7. they left due to divorce or marriage problems.2 A recent Lifeway study cites change in calling (37%) and conflict in the church (26%) as the top reasons for pastoral attrition, followed by family issues (17%), moral or ethical issues (13%), poor fit (13%), burnout (10%), personal finances (8%), and illness (5%).3 Paul David Tripp cautions that “what we often call ‘ministry burnout’ … is often the result of pastors’ seeking in their own ministry what cannot be found there”—namely, one’s true security, identity, and heart rest.4 Ironically, multiple prominent Christian leaders who endorsed Tripp’s excellent book on the dangers confronting pastors have resigned or been removed from their pastorates in the past several years, illustrating the need for all of us to examine ourselves and take heed, lest we fall. Some pressures and pitfalls are unique to pastoral ministry, such as the constant anxiety for the spiritual well-being of others and the great responsibility of teaching God’s Word (2 Cor 11:28; Jas 3:1). Others are intensified versions of the challenges facing every would-be disciple who must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Christ (Luke 9:23). Is our commitment to Christ even deeper than our commitment to our family (Luke 14:26)? Do we love and cling to Christ more than to possessions and the pleasures of this life (Luke 8:14; 18:22–25)? Do we crave the approval of others more than the reward of God, who sees in secret (Matt 6:1–6)? The Lord summons us to “sit down and count the cost” of being his disciple lest our lives resemble an unfinished tower that workers abandoned due to lack of planning (Luke 14:28–30). Those who apply to seminary and who interview for pastoral positions and other ministry positions should “count the cost,” lest they fail to continue in faithful discipleship and gospel ministry. As one well acquainted with the trials