Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Why You (Usually) Can’t Persuade Someone They’re Wrong
I recently finished Mapping The Origins Debate by Gerald Rau (which is excellent by the way). My review is forthcoming, but I wanted to go ahead an highlight a hugely important point that Rau makes, almost as an afterthought. After presenting 6 models of the beginning of everything (not one by one, but through different…
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10 Attributes of God in Natural Revelation
As promised, you’re getting some insights from my “plodding.” Actually, that’s twice this week! Anyway, as I was plunging into Joel Beeke & Mark Jones’ A Puritan Theology, I ran across Stephen Charnock’s list of 10 attributes of God that “can be recognized by the light of nature” (17): The power of God in creating…
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Building A Theological Library: Pentateuch
A while back I gave you an overview of general Old Testament resources I found helpful. Today, we’ll start into the book divisions with the Pentateuch. Just to reiterate, these are my preferences and what make up my library. There are definitely some great resources I’ve overlooked. What I’m trying to do here is give…
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Paul’s Letter To The Romans (PNTC)
Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter To The Romans (PNTC). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, July, 2012. 672 pp. Hardcover, $52.00. Buy it: Amazon | Westminster Read an excerpt Visit the publisher’s page Thanks to Eerdmans for the review copy! Thanks to Eerdmans sending Paul’s Letter To The Romans (PNTC), my Pillar New Testament Commentaryseries is once again complete. This however is the first hard copy I have (the rest are…
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Doctrine: What Christians Should Believe
Last night we kicked off our Doctrine class at CrossPointe Waterford Lakes. We had a pretty good turnout, even Voldemort was there judging by the signup sheet (although I distinctly do not remember seeing him). This post is mainly for people in the class, but if that’s not you, feel free to eavesdrop. We’re using…
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The Dangers of Seminary and Some Post-Graduation Pastoral Solutions
A while back, I mentioned that Paul Tripp’s Dangerous Calling is a book for people who like lists. We looked at his diagnosis of how a pastor descends into disaster. In the third chapter of the book, Tripp presents several downsides of “academized Christianity” which is an unnecessary byproduct of getting a thorough seminary education.…
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8 Criteria For Worldview Evaluations
In his Christian Apologetics (which remember is under $5 on Kindle), Douglas Groothuis presents 8 criteria for evaluating worldviews. Though not a presuppositionalist himself, and he explains (unconvincingly) why on 62-64, this kind of worldview evaluations is very presuppositional. According to Groothuis, “the best method of apologetic reasoning is hypothesis evaluation and verification” (49). Toward that…
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God’s Saving Grace: A Pauline Theology
Frank J. Matera, God’s Saving Grace: A Pauline Theology. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, November, 2012. 283 pp. Paperback, $28.00. Buy it: Amazon Visit the publisher’s page Thanks to Eerdmans for the review copy! Frank J. Matera is Andrews-Kelly-Ryan Professor of Biblical Studies at The Catholic University of America, Washington D.C. He has previously written a NT theology, and commentaries on Romans, Galatians, and 2…
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9 Reasons We Need The Gospels
If you remember, I used my Westminster gift certificate to order Jonathan Pennington’s Reading The Gospels Wisely: A Narrative and Theological Introduction (along with these others). In chapter 3, “Why Do We Need The Gospels? (or Why Saint Paul Is Not Enough)” Pennington gives us 9 reasons we need the Gospel narratives (38-48): They have been…
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Paul’s Missionary Methods: In His Time and Ours
Robert L. Plummer & John Mark Terry eds., Paul’s Missionary Methods: In His Time and Ours. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, January, 2013. 252 pp. Paperback, $22.00. Buy it: Amazon Visit the publisher’s page Thanks to IVP Academic for the review copy! Just over 100 years ago, Roland Allen wrote a book called Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? Though it took a few…
Got any book recommendations?