About four years ago, politically conservative news commentator Dennis Prager posted 11 short videos about the Ten Commandments.[1] Since then Prager has received an astonishing 2-4 million views on each video. A friend at my church recently asked what I thought of these videos. So, for his sake I listened to them and wrote him … Continue reading Dennis Prager on the Ten Commandments: A Few Reflections
Category: Theology
A Liturgy for Fasting and Prayer
I recently participated in A Call to Fast and Pray at Biola. This event was the vision of Peter Brown (a current graduate student at Biola). Fifty or so Biola students gathered to eat dinner together at the start of the fast and to listen to a message by Biola professor Jon Lunde. At evening’s … Continue reading A Liturgy for Fasting and Prayer
Speaking in Tongues in Church
A few years ago I received an email from a former student (now a young pastor) asking some questions about speaking in tongues during corporate worship. Let me excerpt his email and then include my reply (with his permission). ------------------ Dr. Berding, I am emailing you because I have a question about ‘service of worship’ … Continue reading Speaking in Tongues in Church
On Heaven (and Hell): Alan Gomes and Randy Alcorn
Ever since the day God got a hold of my life as a teenager, I have wanted to learn everything I could about heaven. In fact, thinking about the brevity of life in comparison to the length of eternity was what got me on track and motivated me to really follow Christ as a teenager. … Continue reading On Heaven (and Hell): Alan Gomes and Randy Alcorn
The Not-So-Sacred Enneagram: A Book Review of The Sacred Enneagram by Chris
Several of my college students in recent days have asked for my opinion about the Enneagram of Personality. It turns out that while I’ve had my nose stuck in my Greek New Testament, the Enneagram has become all the rage. So I decided to hunker down and educate myself about the Enneagram. My initial take … Continue reading The Not-So-Sacred Enneagram: A Book Review of The Sacred Enneagram by Chris
Ask God for What? Paul Weighs in on the Content of Petitionary Prayers
I am regularly vexed by how shallow my prayers can become. When I pray for something—and I know that all prayer is not for things—what should I pray for? Only for my family? For someone I know who is ill? For God to help me in the day ahead? For God to resolve whatever problem is currently … Continue reading Ask God for What? Paul Weighs in on the Content of Petitionary Prayers
“But that’s legalism!” What Legalism Is and Isn’t
“But that’s legalism!” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard those words. A Christian friend suggests that it’s unwise to smoke marijuana, and they get blasted with: “But that’s legalism!” A pastor preaches on the importance of generosity, and he receives a terse note with three words on it (or four, if you … Continue reading “But that’s legalism!” What Legalism Is and Isn’t
After the Apostles Died: Six Guest Blogs and a Podcast about The Apostolic Fathers
Have you ever wondered what happened just after the period of the apostles? This past summer I guest-blogged about the Apostolic Fathers six times for Credo Magazine and recorded a podcast about the same for Think Biblically. Here are the links in case you’d like to listen and read: Podcast at Think Biblically: Learning from … Continue reading After the Apostles Died: Six Guest Blogs and a Podcast about The Apostolic Fathers
What the Bible Teaches About Fasting
Starting last night and continuing into this evening a group of Biola students has gathered together to fast and pray. These precious students wanted to fast and call out to God to do a work of the Holy Spirit on Biola’s campus during the coming year. But they wanted to know what the Bible taught … Continue reading What the Bible Teaches About Fasting
Why Translators Shouldn’t Translate “Walk” as “Live” in Ephesians 4-5
Recent Bible translations have increasingly opted to translate the Greek word peripateo, whenever it is used metaphorically to describe one’s way of life, with the English word “live.” The other option at translators’ disposal is to retain the metaphor and translate it into English as “walk.” The motivation for the decision to translate with the … Continue reading Why Translators Shouldn’t Translate “Walk” as “Live” in Ephesians 4-5
