Monthly Archives: August 2016

The Jeremiah option

Posted on August 31, 2016 by theoutwardquest

In retirement I have come to count on preaching on Memorial Day Sunday and Labor Day Sunday. Settled pastors don’t want to preach then. They may take a vacation day to be with their families. Members of the congregation often … Continue reading →

Posted in Ethics, Seasonal | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Beale-concluding thoughts

Posted on August 29, 2016 by theoutwardquest

Because G. K. Beale talks, toward the end of The Temple and the Church’s Mission, about the Apocalypse and other last-things literature, it would be easy to get side tracked into a discussion of the various schools of millenialism. Beale … Continue reading →

Posted in Church, Theology | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beale-the buggy/car analogy

Posted on August 26, 2016 by theoutwardquest

When I retired I wanted to continue to do good.  Some retired clergy that I knew worked as volunteers with charitable organizations–Habitat for Humanity, for example.  This kind of work did not appeal to me at all because they put … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Church, Theology | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Beale-the riddle of Hebrews

Posted on August 24, 2016 by theoutwardquest

The Book of Hebrews obviously has an important place in understanding early Christian thinking about the temple.  G. K. Beale in The Temple and the Church’s Mission make this statement about it: “Hebrews inform us of something that was not … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Beale-futurist eschatology and the spiritual temple

Posted on August 22, 2016 by theoutwardquest

In the Temple and the Church’s Mission G. K. Beale deals with 2 Thessalonians 2:4. The passage talks about  a “man of lawlessness” who, opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Paul, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beale-Paul’s temple and garden

Posted on August 18, 2016 by theoutwardquest

One of the perplexing passages in the letters of Paul is 1 Corinthians 3:10-15: 10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Church, Paul | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Beale-St. Stephen’s speech

Posted on August 17, 2016 by theoutwardquest

A professor of preaching in my youth used to mock sermons that he said were “a Cook’s tour of the Bible.” Thomas Cook was one of the first travel agents in mid 19th century England. He was famous for organizing … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Beale-new takes on some familiar passages

Posted on August 16, 2016 by theoutwardquest

I am still writing about G. K. Beale’s  The Temple and the Church’s Mission. A standard feature of prophecies of destruction in the Hebrew Bible is cosmic dissolution language. The sun and moon are darkened; the stars fall; the earth … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Theology | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ramses III in the context of Egypt’s decline and Israel’s rise

Posted on August 12, 2016 by theoutwardquest

This morning we had a power outage for several hours.  I did not know whether I would be able to get online today or not.  So instead of reading more of G. K. Beale, I read a paper I had recently … Continue reading →

Posted in Ancient Egypt, Ancient Israel | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beale-the universal mission

Posted on August 10, 2016 by theoutwardquest

G. K. Beale in The Temple and the Church’s Mission has a section where he talks about the Qumran Scrolls and Jewish non-biblical wisdom writings.  He finds all these consistent with the “all consuming nature of the later-day temple.”  But … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Paul, Theology | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment