Thank you to everyone who visited reformedforum.org/donate throughout the year. We are tremendously grateful for your generous support. Be assured that we’re setting the stage for another big year as our board continues to think and pray about our next steps.

We’re looking forward to another full year of Christ the Center. January 25 marked our 10th anniversary. Jeff, Jim, and I recorded that first episode during my first year in seminary—three homes and three children ago. Things have changed over the years, but our goal has stayed the same. Our mission is to present every person mature in Christ (Col. 1:28).

Episodes

• 524 — Marcus Mininger, Uncovering the Theme of Revelation in Romans 1:16–3:26
• 533 — Michael Kruger, How the Second Century Shaped the Future of the Church
• 540 — The Nature of Apostasy in Hebrews 6
• 542 — Bill Dennison, Karl Marx
• 551 — The Impeccability of Jesus Christ
• 555 — Darryl Hart, Still Protesting
• 556 — The Deeper Protestant Conception
• 566 — Glen Clary, The Liturgies of Bucer, Calvin, and Knox
• 570 — Danny Olinger, Geerhardus Vos: Reformed Biblical Theologian, Confessional Presbyterian
• 571 — Cory Brock and Nathaniel Gray Sutanto, Bavinck’s Philosophy of Revelation

Participants: Adam York, Bill Dennison, Camden Bucey, Cory Brock, Dan Ragusa, Danny Olinger, Darryl G. Hart, Glen Clary, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, Lane G. Tipton, Marcus Mininger, Michael Kruger, Nathaniel Gray Sutanto

Michael J. Kruger joins us to speak about his book, Christianity at the Crossroads: How the Second Century Shaped the Future of the Church in which he examines how Christianity took root in the second century, how it battled to stay true to the vision of the apostles, and how it developed in ways that would shape both the church and Western culture over the next two thousand years. Dr. Kruger is President and Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is the author of several books including, Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books (Crossway, 2012), The Early Text of the New Testament (Oxford, 2012; edited with Charles Hill), and The Question of Canon: Challenging the Status Quo in the New Testament Debate.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Michael Kruger

On this episode, we are joined by Nathaniel Gray Sutanto, who speaks about the Theological Interpretation of Scripture (TIS). Gray is a PhD Candidate at New College, University of Edinburgh. His article, “On the Theological Interpretation of Scripture: The Indirect Identity Thesis, Reformed Orthodoxy, and Trinitarian Considerations” was published in The Westminster Theological Journal, Vol. 77, No. 2. TIS is an approach to reading biblical texts that explicitly considers the theological nature of the texts and embraces the influence of theology on interpretation. Sutanto focuses on Francis Watson and his relationship to Karl Barth’s doctrine of revelation. He concludes that, “. . . the uniqueness of TIS depends upon the assumption of the validity of Kant’s turn in philosophical history along with its attendant ideological implications.” A NOTE ON THE AUDIO: After recording this episode, we discovered that our studio mixer is no longer supported on the current version of our operating system. While it still recorded, it did not record true to the inputs. This is most inconvenient… Furthermore, we can’t do anything about what we recorded. We humbly bring to you what sounds like a most unusual conversation among pre-pubescent theologians.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Nathaniel Gray Sutanto

Episodes

• 425 — David VanDrunen, God’s Glory Alone
• 428 — Vern Poythress, The Miracles of Jesus
• 441 — John Galbraith and Danny Olinger on John Galbraith’s Life and Ministry
• 443 — Alan Strange, Charles Hodge and the Spirituality of the Church
• 444 — Iain Murray, J. C. Ryle
• 445 — Lane Tipton, Trinity, Processions, and Missions: The Pactum Salutis
• 449 — Rob McKenzie and Bob Tarullo, Dispensationalism
• 452 — Michael Kruger, A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the New Testament
• 453 — Dennis Johnson, Walking withe Jesus through His Word
• 455 — Richard Gaffin, Jr., Calvin and the Sabbath
• 461 — Gregg Allison and Chris Castaldo, The Unfinished Reformation
• 464 — Mark Vanderhart and Cornelis Venema, The Reformed Church in Latvia
• 467 — Patricia Clawson and Diane Olinger, Choosing the Good Portion: Women of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church

Participants: Adam York, Alan Strange, Camden Bucey, Chris Castaldo, Cornelis Venema, Danny Olinger, David VanDrunen, Dennis Johnson, Diane Olinger, Glen Clary, Gregg Allison, Iain Murray, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, John Galbraith, Lane G. Tipton, Mark Vander Hart, Michael Kruger, Patricia Clawson, Richard B. Gaffin Jr., Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo, Vern Poythress

Jared Oliphint and Camden Bucey speak about a newly published set of the Bible designed to enhance readability. The ESV Reader’s Bible, six-volume set. For a limited time, you can save 50% by purchasing the set at WTSBooks.com. Introducing the ‘ESV Reader’s Bible, Six-Volume Set’ from Crossway on Vimeo.

Links

• Publisher’s page
• ESV Reader’s Bible (a similar, yet single volume edition)
• Tony Reinke, “A Short History of Bible Clutter“

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

Dr. Michael J. Kruger speaks with us about A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the New Testament. This volume introduces each New Testament book in the context of the whole canon of Scripture, helping a wide range of readers with a rich, redemptive-historical guide to each book. Dr. Kruger is President and Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received his B.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, his M.Div. from Westminster Seminary California, and his Ph.D. from New College, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the author of three books on the issue of canon, Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books (Crossway, 2012), The Early Text of the New Testament (Oxford, 2012; edited with Charles Hill), and The Question of Canon: Challenging the Status Quo in the New Testament Debate. In addition to his faculty duties, he currently serves part-time as the Pastor of Teaching at Uptown Christ Covenant Church in downtown Charlotte. Dr. Kruger has spoken on Christ the Center episodes 217 and 283, and his wife, Melissa Kruger, has spoken on episodes 276, 297, and 301.

Links

• Romans Bible study video series

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Michael Kruger

Will Wood develops a biblical theology of clothing, drawing a thread [pun somewhat intended] through the Old Testament to Paul’s discussion of the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10–17.

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. ¹⁴ Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; ¹⁷ and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:10–17, ESV)

Will is a PhD student in Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia and recently delivered a lecture titled, “Clothed in the Image of the Resurrected and Ascended Christ: A Biblical-Theological Analysis of Eph. 6:10–17.” He writes:

Ephesians 6:10–17 culminates a Biblical-Theological trajectory of being clothed (or, more particularly to the postlapsarian context, re-clothed) in the image of God, with a particular referent to the new-creational image of the resurrected and ascended Christ in our already-not yet eschatological context of conflict with the Satanic forces. The main point of this passage, then, is that you would be able to withstand Satanic opposition by means of being clothed in the Spirit-given armor of the resurrected and ascended Christ.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Will Wood

K. Scott Oliphint, Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, explains the role of evidences in a Reformed apologetic by turning to Cornelius Van Til’s book Christian-Theistic Evidences. Dr. Oliphint provides a foreword and explanatory notes in this re-typeset syllabus, originally from Cornelius Van Til’s Christian Evidences class at Westminster Seminary. As he addresses unbelieving philosophies of science, Van Til presents an uncompromising Christian philosophy and methodology for defending the faith that presupposes the absolute authority of the triune God of Scripture.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, K. Scott Oliphint

Jared Oliphint speaks about Crossway’s new ESV journaling bible, interleaved edition, which includes entire blank pages in between the pages of Scripture. This is a perfect edition for writing notes, reflections, and prayers in conjunction with your Bible reading. Download an excerpt of this edition.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

• 370 — Donald Macleod, Understanding the Atonement
• 373 — Rita Cefalu, The Sons of God and Daughters of Man in Genesis 6
• 376 — Vern Poythress, Redeeming Mathematics
• 378 — Carl Trueman, Luther on the Christian Life
• 391 — Chris Castaldo, Talking with Catholics about the Gospel
• 393 — Tony Reinke, Newton on the Christian Life
• 398 — Bill Edgar, The History and Legacy of the Huguenots
• 400 — Jim Cassidy, Jeff Waddington, and Camden Bucey, Polemical Theology
• 403 — Kevin Chiarot, The Unassumed Is the Unhealed
• 408 — Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., The Eschatological Aspect of the Pauline Conception of the Spirit
• 411 — Daniel Strange, A Theology of Religions
• 415 — John Bolt, Bavinck on the Christian Life

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carl Trueman, Chris Castaldo, Daniel Strange, Donald Macleod, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, John Bolt, Kevin Chiarot, Richard B. Gaffin Jr., Rita Cefalu, Tony Reinke, Vern Poythress, William Edgar

Each of us uses multiple tools each day as part of a variety of workflows that help us accomplish tasks throughout the day. We dive into the workflow tips and tricks to share several of our favorites for reading, writing, and managing information.

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Filson, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack

In this episode, we survey several biblical texts and explore the biblical theological features that unfold throughout God’s Word. We consider a biblical theology of the darkness upon Christ’s crucifixion, the use of vineyard imagery for covenant blessings and curses, the glory of the Lord upon the temple, among many other rich biblical themes.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack, Mark A. Winder

Jonathan Brack explains a Reformed ecclesiology which spans Old and New Testaments. He touches upon covenant theology, polity, and other foundational issues as he speaks about important books on ecclesiology.

• George Gillespie, Aaron’s Rod Blossoming, or the Divine Ordinance of Church Government Vindicated
• Stuart Robinson, The Church of God as an Essential Element of the Gospel
• Douglas Bannerman, The Scripture Doctrine of the Church
• James Bannerman, The Church of Christ

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack, Mark A. Winder

Reformed Forum turns to the mailbag, answering several of the questions we’ve received over the last few months. In this episode, we get into covenant apologetics, biblical theology, baptism, different translations of Calvin.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack, Mark A. Winder

Camden Bucey and Jonathan Brack discuss Douglas Wilson’s book, Writers to Read: Nine Names That Belong on Your Bookshelf (Crossway), a helpful volume to introduce readers to several key writers of the 20th century. From the publisher:

In Writers to Read, Doug Wilson—someone who’s spent a lifetime writing, reading, and teaching others to do the same—introduces us to nine of his favorite authors from the last 150 years, exploring their interesting lives, key works, and enduring legacies. In doing so, Wilson opens our eyes to literary mentors who not only teach us what good writing looks like, but also help us become better readers in the process.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack

Reformed Media Review turn their attention beyond our typical discussions about theological books to speak about podcasts. Reformed Forum has been producing podcasts since 2008. But we’re not merely producers, we love to listen to podcasts ourselves. We look at our podcast clients and speak about some of our favorite programs, including 99% Invisible and Radiolab. While many of our favorites are not theological in nature, they often discuss matters of interest to Reformed theologians. Listen to our fun conversation, and be sure to tell us your favorite podcasts by commenting.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack

Today we speak with Dr. K. Scott Oliphint, Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania about Cornelius Van Til’s book Common Grace and the Gospel (P&R Publishing). Dr. Oliphint has annotated a new edition of Van Til’s important work. In the trajectory of other recently annotated volumes of Van Til, such as The Defense of the Faith and An Introduction to Systematic Theology, this edition will help readers to understand the ecclesiastical and theological context of Van Til’s work and its enduring value.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, K. Scott Oliphint

Tony Reinke joins us to speak about Newton on the Christian Life: To Live Is Christ, a new book in Crossway’s Theologians on the Christian Life series. Newton was a brilliant letter writer, and his vision for the Christian life shines brightly in these personal correspondences to friends and the people of his congregation. Listen as Tony Reinke unfolds this miraculous life in order to demonstrate fully the grace and truth of our savior Jesus Christ. Tony is a staff writer and researcher for desiringGod.org. He has also written Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books. You can follow Tony on Twitter and read his updates regarding his several other writing projects.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Tony Reinke

Dr. Nathan Shannon, Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology at Torch Trinity Graduate University in Seoul, Korea, talks with us about his new book, Shalom and the Ethics of Belief: Nicholas Wolterstorff’s Theory of Situated Rationality. Dr. Shannon is joined by Nathan Sasser, PhD student in philosophy at the University of South Carolina.

Participants: Jared Oliphint, Nate Shannon, Nathan Sasser

In this episode, we recap our time at the Gospel Coalition 2015 National Conference. The conference was titled Coming Home: New Heaven and New Earth, and the sessions focused on eschatology. To start off, Erica Bucey speaks about several sessions and related books dealing with women’s ministry including Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin and the forthcoming Word-Filled Women’s Ministry edited by Gloria Furman and Kathleen B. Nielson. Jared Oliphint then details one of the conference sessions, which was convened by Westminster Theological Seminary. The session, hosted by RTS Chancellor J. Ligon Duncan, featured Lane Tipton, Greg Beale, and Jeff Jue. In this riveting session, the panelists discussed different facets of Reformed eschatology. While the session should eventually be available through The Gospel Coalition, we thought we’d share some related content. Dr. Jeffrey K. Jue currently serves as Provost of Westminster Theological Seminary and is the Stephen Tong Associate Professor of Reformed Theology at Philadelphia, PA. Dr. Jue joined us on Christ the Center episode 31 to speak about the eschatological views of the Westminster divines. We include a segment from that interview as it touches upon the subject matter of his panel discussion at #TGC15.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Erica Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Jue

Jared Oliphint and Nathan Shannon discuss Brian Leftow’s God and Necessity (Oxford University Press). In this volume, Leftow seeks to offer a metaphysic of modality. This leads him into a discussion of necessity and possibility, truth making, God’s nature, and divine simplicity. It’s a wide-ranging title, but one that offers many important themes for consideration. Dr. Shannon has written a review of the book that will appear soon in the Westminster Theological Journal.

Participants: Jared Oliphint, Nate Shannon

Michael Allen and Scott Swain discuss whether Christians and churches can be both catholic and Reformed. In their book Reformed Catholicity: The Promise of Retrieval for Theology and Biblical Interpretation (Baker Academic), Allen and Swain suggest Reformed Christians can commit not only to the ultimate authority of Scripture but also to receiving Scripture within the context of the apostolic church. This manifesto presents a case that to be Reformed means to go deeper into true catholicity rather than away from it. At the same time, it means holding fast to sola Scriptura. Michael Allen is Associate Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology and Dean of Students and Scott Swain is Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Academic Dean at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Michael Allen, Scott Swain

Nathaniel Gray Sutanto joins us to speak about apologetics and his recent article titled, “Covenantal Apologetics and Common-Sense Realism: Recalibrating the Argument from Consciousness as a Test Case” in JETS, 57/4 (2014) 773–91. In this article, Gray offers a covenantal and presuppositional criticism of common-sense realism.

Links

• Covenantal Thoughts

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Nathaniel Gray Sutanto

Jared Oliphint reviews Beyond the Control of God? Six Views on the Problem of God and Abstract Objects, edited by Paul Gould.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

• Episode 318 — Michael Kruger, The Question of Canon
• Episode 322 — James Anderson on worldviews
• Episode 326 — Matt Perman on gospel-driven productivity
• Episode 329 — Randall Pederson on the Puritan family resemblance
• Episode 331 — Lane Tipton on the Tree of Life and the goal of eschatology
• Episode 335 —Shai Linne on hip-hop, the gospel, and cultural contextualization
• Episode 345 — Marcus Peter Johnson on union with Christ and the incarnation
• Episode 351 — Charles Hill on the New Testament, the early church and Bart Ehrman’s book How Jesus Became God
• Episode 357 — Glen Clary on Zwingli, church tradition, and Reformed worship

Participants: Camden Bucey, Charles Hill, Glen Clary, James Anderson, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, Lane G. Tipton, Marcus Johnson, Matt Perman, Michael Kruger, Randall Pederson, Shai Linne

Dr. Vern Poythress comes to the program today to speak about his book, Redeeming Philosophy. In today’s discussion, Dr. Poythress helps us examine the roots of Western philosophy, uncover some of its limitations, and find answers to our questions in dependence upon God’s word. Dr. Poythress is the author of a number of books, including Redeeming Science, In the Beginning Was the Word, Redeeming Sociology, and Logic. He has also spoken on Christ the Center episodes 52, 98, 188, 235, 332, and 356, and on Philosophy for Theologians episode 20.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Vern Poythress

Jared Oliphint and Camden Bucey explore the latest version of Logos Bible Software discussing new features and personal use cases. Here are just a few of the new features:

• The Gold Edition includes 1,034 books
• Textual Variants tool
• Lexham Textual Notes on the Bible
• Online Textual Variants Manuscripts
• Facsimile Resources (Books.Logos.com)
• All of the Atlas maps (3 volumes)
• Psalm browser (called “Form and Structure of the Psalms” in the software)
• Proverbs browser (called “Proverbs in the Hebrew Bible” in the software)
• Lexham Glossary of Semantic Roles, Sense Section

You can save 15% by using our partner page: http://www.logos.com/reformedforum

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

Drs. Michael J. Kruger and Charles E. Hill speak about a book to which Dr. Hill contributed, How God Became Jesus: The Real Origins of Belief in Jesus’ Divine Nature, a response to Bart D. Ehrman’s How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee. The thesis of Dr. Ehrman’s book is that the doctrine of Jesus’ divinity was an early accretion onto the original truth of Jesus identity – neither Jesus nor Jesus’ disciples believed he was divine. How God Became Jesus is the first book-length response to Ehrman’s latest, and includes a contribution by Dr. Chuck Hill. Their thesis is that Jesus and his disciples rightly believed him to be divine, and that the later formulations of this doctrine reflected that early and accurate tradition. Dr. Charles Hill is John R. Richardson Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at Reformed Theological Seminary, Orlando, Florida. His most recent publications include Who Chose the Gospels? Probing the Great Gospel Conspiracy (Oxford University Press, 2010) and The Early Text of the New Testament (Oxford University Press, 2012), edited with Dr. Kruger. He contributed to How God Became Jesus, which also features contributions by Michael Bird, Craig Evans, Simon Gathercole, and Chris Tilling. Dr. Michael Kruger is President and Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. He received his Ph.D. from New College, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the author of Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books (Crossway, 2012), The Early Text of the New Testament (Oxford, 2012; edited with Dr. Hill), and The Question of Canon (Intervarsity, 2013). Dr. Kruger has spoken on Christ the Center episodes 217 and 283 and 318.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Charles Hill, Jared Oliphint, Michael Kruger

Jared Oliphint reviews Molinism: The Contemporary Debate, edited by Ken Perszyk. Book review mentioned: link

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

Once again, we are joined by Dr. Marcus Johnson, author of One with Christ: An Evangelical Theology of Salvation. This time Dr. Johnson spells out the implications of the doctrine of union with Christ for the application of salvation and for Christ’s body, the church. For the first part of our interview with Dr. Johnson, click here. Dr. Johnson is Associate Professor of Theology at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL. He received his M.A. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and his Ph.D. from Trinity College, University of Toronto. Camden Bucey reviewed One with Christ on a recent episode of Reformed Media Review. Link to Austin theology conference.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, Marcus Johnson

Dr. Marcus Johnson speaks about One with Christ: An Evangelical Theology of Salvation, his recent book, published by Crossway. While many books have been published recently on the topic of union with Christ, Dr. Johnson’s book stands out for its up-to-date analysis and unique approach. One with Christ charts a via media between federalist and realist approaches to the doctrine of union with Christ, a way which Johnson calls Christological realism. Listen to understand Dr. Johnson’s unique but scriptural treatment of the doctrine of union with Christ. Dr. Johnson is Associate Professor of Theology at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL. He received his M.A. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and his Ph.D. from Trinity College, University of Toronto. Camden Bucey reviewed One with Christ on a recent episode of Reformed Media Review.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, Marcus Johnson

Nancy Guthrie joins us to talk about seeing the Lord Jesus in the Old Testament prophets. The Word of the Lord: Seeing Jesus in the Prophets is the fifth in her Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament series, and in it she explores everything from the suffering servant of Isaiah and the love of the prophet Hosea for his unfaithful wife, to Daniel’s stone that crushes every human kingdom and Ezekiel’s vision of the heavenly temple.

Nancy Guthrie’s website is http://www.nancyguthrie.com/. Nancy has spoken on Christ the Center about the first three books in this series, The Promised One: Seeing Jesus in Genesis, The Wisdom of God: Seeing Jesus in the Psalms and Wisdom Books, and The Son of David: Seeing Jesus in the Historical Books.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Nancy Guthrie

Today we welcome to the program hip-hop recording artist Shai Linne to speak about his brand new album Lyrical Theology: Doxology, part two of a three-part hip-hop album series. Shai’s album is based on the conviction that all thinking about God should lead to worship of him. Our discussion covers cultural engagement and contextualization, with Shai’s music as a prime example, as well as the theology that underlies this album and Shai’s other albums. Shai Linne is a hip-hop artist with Lamp Mode Recordings and a member of Capitol Hill Baptist Church. His album Lyrical Theology: Doxology can be found on iTunes and Amazon, and on Youtube, a music video of his track “Be Glorified (Psalm 55).” Timothy Brindle is a student at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA, and his record label is Lamp Mode Recordings. We interviewed Timothy about his music in episode 300.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Shai Linne, Timothy Brindle

Dr. David Garner comes to the program to speak about the topic of his new booklet, “How Can I Know For Sure?” from the Christian Answers to Hard Questions Series, published by P&R Publishing. Church members and especially college students are breathing in the air of popular postmodernism, and the question of certainty requires an answer. Dr. Garner argues that to find answers we must look to the Bible as God’s authoritative word for mankind. Dr. Garner is Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA.

Participants: A. Craig Troxel, Camden Bucey, David Garner, Jared Oliphint

Dr. Vern S. Poythress, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA, speaks about his new book, Chance and the Sovereignty of God: A God-Centered Approach to Probability and Random Events (Crossway). The fifth in a series of “God-Centered Approaches,” Chance and the Sovereignty of God explores the mathematics of probability as well as the relationship of God’s sovereignty to chance events. Today, Dr. Poythress explains how Christians can approach chance in practical events as well as in academic study, whether scientific or mathematical. Dr. Poythress is the author of a number of books, including Redeeming Science, In the Beginning Was the Word, Redeeming Sociology, and Logic. He has also spoken on Christ the Center episodes 52, 98, 188, and 235, and on Philosophy for Theologians episode 20.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint

K. Scott Oliphint, Jared Oliphint, and Camden Bucey review the Logos Reformed Base Package.

• List of resources in Platinum package.
• Previous post on the package from Jared Oliphint.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, K. Scott Oliphint

Justin Taylor joins us to speak about The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived, which he has coauthored with Dr. Andreas Köstenberger. Mr. Taylor speaks about the book not only as an author but also as a publisher and editor at Crossway Books. The conversation highlights the format of the book, the gap the book fills in the literature on Easter, and some of the authors’ conclusions about the biblical accounts of Jesus’ last week. Justin Taylor is vice president of book publishing and an associate publisher at Crossway, and a PhD candidate at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has edited and contributed to several books including A God-Entranced Vision of All Things and Reclaiming the Center, and he blogs at Between Two Worlds—hosted by the Gospel Coalition.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Justin Taylor

Dr. James N. Anderson speaks about his recent book What’s Your Worldview?: An Interactive Approach to Life’s Big Questions, published by Crossway. The book takes the reader through important theological and philosophical questions in a “Choose Your Own Adventure” style, leading to a label and description of the reader’s own worldview. Dr. Anderson explains the setup of the book and a number of ways it might be used, and also discusses the idea of a worldview and what important elements constitute one. Dr. Anderson is associate professor of theology and philosophy at the Charlotte campus of Reformed Theological Seminary. He received his Ph.D. at the University of Edinburgh, writing about paradox in Christian theology. That study became his book, Paradox in Christian Theology: An Analysis of Its Presence, Nature, and Epistemic Status, which was the subject of a previous episode of Christ the Center.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carlton Wynne, James Anderson, Jared Oliphint

Today’s panel recently attended the 2014 Desiring God Pastors’ Conference titled, “The Pastor, the Vine, and the Branches: The Remarkable Reality of Union with Christ,” as representatives for Reformed Forum and Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, PA. The group speaks about the opportunity to spread the ministry of Reformed Forum beyond the bounds of Presbyterianism and the relationship of confessional Reformed theology to the broader, more loosely Reformed community. This episode also features an interview with David Mathis and Jonathan Parnell of Desiring God Ministries about their recent book, How to Stay Christian in Seminary. David Mathis is executive editor at desiringGod.org and an elder at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN. He has edited several books and is co-author of How to Stay Christian in Seminary. Jonathan Parnell is a writer and content strategist for Desiring God Minstries and co-author of How to Stay Christian in Seminary. The book was inspired by a series of blog posts at desiringGod.org. B.B. Warfield’s The Religious Life of Theological Students

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Mathis, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Brack, Jonathan Parnell

Dr. Richard B. Gaffin Jr. joins us to speak about his book By Faith, Not by Sight: Paul and the Order of Salvation, now in its second edition and published by P&R Publishing. This study in Paul’s theology begins with the recognition that what is of first importance for Paul is the history of salvation, Christ crucified and raised. But the history of redemption does not exclude the application of redemption to believers. Rather, the application of redemption is grounded in its once-for-all accomplishment. Listen in to hear an exciting discussion about an illuminating book. Dr. Gaffin is Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology, Emeritus at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. He is also the author of numerous articles and books, including Resurrection and Redemption, Calvin and the Sabbath, Perspectives on Pentecost, By Faith, Not By Sight and he has edited a collection of the shorter writings of Geerhardus Vos, Redemptive History and Biblical Interpretation. In May of 2008 Dr. Gaffin entered into honored retirement and was the recipient of a festschrift entitled Resurrection and Eschatology co-edited by Lane G. Tipton and Jeffrey C. Waddington. Christ the Center has featured Dr. Gaffin on several episodes. Dr. Gaffin’s book was given to the attendees at the 2014 Desiring God Conference for Pastors. The topic of the conference was union with Christ. To introduce the attendees of that conference to Reformed Forum, we compiled many of episodes and links to resources on the doctrine. Please visit our union with Christ page. Lectures by Dr. Gaffin on union with Christ at Calvary OPC, Ringoes, NJ. Lectures at Matthews OPC. iTunes U: By Faith, Not by Sight. Also available is a PDF version of “The Puritans on Justification, Union with Christ, and Regeneration” in A Puritan Theology, edited by Joel Beeke and Mark Jones.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Richard B. Gaffin Jr.

Dr. Michael J. Kruger speaks with Christ the Center about his recent book, The Question of Canon: Challenging the Status Quo in the New Testament Debate. The book deals not with why we have the books we do in the canon but with the question of the very definition of “canon” and the origin of the idea. Contemporary biblical scholars insist that the idea of canon was a late development in the construction of the New Testament, which imbued with authority texts whose authors did not think of them as authoritative. Dr. Kruger insists that the concept of a set of authoritative books for the New Covenant era of redemptive-history existed from a very early date in the ancient church. Dr. Michael Kruger is President and Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. He received his B.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, his M.Div. from Westminster Theological Seminary in California, and his Ph.D. from New College, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the author of three books on the issue of canon, Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books (Crossway, 2012), The Early Text of the New Testament (Oxford, 2012; edited with Charles Hill), and now, The Question of Canon.  In addition to his faculty duties, he currently serves part-time as the Pastor of Discipleship Training at Uptown Christ Covenant Church in downtown Charlotte. Dr. Kruger has spoken on Christ the Center episodes 217 and 283, and his wife, Melissa Kruger, has spoken on episodes 276, 297, and 301.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Michael Kruger, Nick Batzig

• Ep. 265 – Gospels Harmonization with Vern Poythress
• Ep. 267 – The Reorganization of Old Princeton with Darryl G. Hart
• Ep. 268 – Regeneration and Redemption-History with Scott Wright
• Ep. 270 – Calvin’s Company of Pastors with Scott Manetsch
• Ep. 273 – Francis Schaeffer’s Spirituality with William Edgar
• Ep. 274 – The Plan of Salvation with Lane Tipton
• Ep. 277 – What Every Christian Needs to Know about the Qu’ran with James White
• Ep. 281 – The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament with John Currid
• Ep. 289 – Covenantal Apologetics with K. Scott Oliphint
• Ep. 291 – The DSM-V with Mike Emlet
• Ep. 299 – Jesus on Every Page with David P. Murray
• Ep. 300 – Communicating the Gospel through Hip Hop with Timothy Brindle
• Ep. 307 – Definite Atonement with Jonathan Gibson, David Gibson, and Carl Trueman

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carl Trueman, Carlton Wynne, Darryl G. Hart, David Gibson, David Murray, James White, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, John Currid, Jonathan Gibson, K. Scott Oliphint, Lane G. Tipton, Michael Emlet, Nick Batzig, Scott Manetsch, Scott R. Wright, Timothy Brindle, Vern Poythress, William Edgar

Dr. Mark Jones returns to Christ the Center to revive seventeenth-century wisdom about antinomianism from his forthcoming book Antinomianism: Reformed Theology’s Unwelcome Guest?. Antinomian thinking is rooted in a weak view of the person of Christ and leads to reducing sanctification to justification. Dr. Jones addresses Martin Luther’s relationship to antinomianism, the relationship between theology and practice, and the necessity of good works for salvation. Dr. Mark Jones is the minister of Faith Presbyterian Church, a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is also Research Associate in the Faculty of Theology at University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. Mark’s Ph.D. is from Leiden Universiteit (Oct. 2009) and his doctoral dissertation was entitled, “Why Heaven Kissed Earth: The Christology of the Puritan Reformed Orthodox theologian, Thomas Goodwin (1600–1680).” Dr. Jones has spoken on Christ the Center 249 and 218.

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Filson, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, Mark Jones

The doctrine of definite atonement is the subject of this week’s episode, which features guests David Gibson and Jonathan Gibson, editors of the forthcoming From Heaven He Came and Sought Her: Definite Atonement in Historical, Biblical, Theological, and Pastoral Perspective (Crossway), and Carl Trueman, a contributor to the book and former guest on Christ the Center. The 700-page book features essays from twenty-one scholars and pastors and is intended to be a definitive treatment of the topic. In the episode, we consider definite atonement in church history, in the scriptural witness, in relation to the doctrine of the trinity, with a view to common objections. David Gibson ministers at Trinity Church in Aberdeen, Scotland and received his Ph.D. from the University of Aberdeen. Gibson has also written Rich: The Reality of Encountering Jesus and Reading the Decree: Exegesis, Election and Christology in Calvin and Barth. Jonathan Gibson is currently working on a Ph.D. in Hebrew Studies at Cambridge University. He studied at Moore Theological College, in Sydney, Australia, and has been published in Themelios, in the Journal of Biblical Literature, and in the NIV Proclamation Bible.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carl Trueman, David Gibson, Jared Oliphint, Jonathan Gibson

Dr. Jason B. Hood speaks about the imitation of Christ, based on the biblical theological study found in his book, Imitating God in Christ: Recapturing a Biblical Pattern. The teaching of imitation is sometimes clouded by a “gospel-centered” focus on justification that loses sight of the importance of sanctification in salvation. Dr. Hood clears away these misconceptions to show how the indicative of Christ’s person and work is consistent with the imperative of imitation of Christ. The episode also deals with the concept of the image of God, the imitation of the saints, and the biblical theological basis of imitation from Old Testament to New. Dr. Hood will soon be pastor of St. Margaret’s Anglican Church in Moshi, Tanzania, as well as a professor at Munguishi Bible College, part of the Anglican Diocese of Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. He has also served as an adjunct faculty member at Reformed Theological Seminary in Washington, DC and taught biblical theology of mission with the Memphis Fellows Initiative. Imitating God in Christ is published by IVP Academic.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jason B. Hood

Kevin DeYoung speaks about his recent book Crazy Busy: A [Mercifully] Short Book about a [Really] Big Problem, published by Crossway Books. Pastor DeYoung diagnoses the causes of busyness, some of which are innocent, but many sinful. The book touches on practical concerns like social media and technology, but goes deeper, exposing the pride in our hearts. Kevin DeYoung is the Senior Pastor at University Reformed Church (RCA) in East Lansing, Michigan and the author of several books including Don’t Call it a Comeback: The Old Faith for a New Day and The Hole in Our Holiness: Filling the Gap Between Gospel Passion and Pursuing Godliness. He also posts regularly at his blog. DeYoung has spoken on Christ the Center several times, including episodes 206 and 211.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Kevin DeYoung

…to fuel modern reformation in the African American community and with a multi-ethnic mindset by providing biblically-faithful resources, by connecting Christians who adhere to Reformed doctrines–especially African Americans, and by building theology in community from a Reformed and African American perspective as well as with others from diverse ethnic backgrounds.

Participants: Jared Oliphint, Jemar Tisby, Phillip Holmes

For Christ the Center’s 300th episode, we welcome hip hop artist Timothy Brindle to speak about his work in Christian hip hop and the recent musical movement as a whole. The episode explores hip hop’s stylistic capability to communicate the gospel and reformed theology and includes clips from Timothy’s recordings. Timothy is a student at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, and his record label is Lamp Mode Recordings. Download “The Daily Gospel” by Timothy Brindle for free. The first 300 episodes of Christ the Center are available for download as a 7.3GB .zip file. We may not be able to maintain this link into perpetuity. Download the file while the link still lives.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Nick Batzig, Timothy Brindle

David Murray speaks about seeing Christ in the Old Testament based on his book Jesus on Every Page: 10 Simple Ways to Seek and Find Christ in the Old Testament. Dr. Murray’s book is an accessible presentation of Christ-centered reading of “the Law and Prophets.” The interview explores the New Testament foundations for this approach to the Old Testament, challenges an implicitly dispensational view of the Old Testament, and responds to common challenges to this approach. Dr. David Murray is Professor of Old Testament and Practical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. He is a pastor in the Free Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, MI. He also blogs at Head Heart Hand. He has previously spoken on Christ the Center regarding “Technology and the Christian Life.” Links: http://jesusoneverypage.com http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2013/june/ popularity-pitfalls-and-practice-of-christ-centered-interpr.html

Participants: Camden Bucey, David Murray, Jared Oliphint, Nick Batzig