Mike Wittmer

Category: Theology

  • wright and wrongs

    I know I should probably return to Wright’s “Justification” and give a full review, but I am so disappointed by his lack of clarity (per our last discussion) that I’m not sure it’s worth it.  I think it’s a good book and I’m thankful for it, but I’d prefer to save my time for when…

  • what to read for the reformation and modern church

    Again, feel free to add your recommendations.  And I apologize for the formatting issues. 4. Reformation Church a. Survey George, Timothy.  Theology of the Reformers.  Nashville:  Broadman Press, 1999. MacCulloch, Diarmaid.  The Reformation:  A History.  New York:  Penguin Books, 2003.   Hillerbrand, Hans J.  The Reformation:  A Narrative History Related by Contemporary Observers and Participants.  New…

  • what to read in the early and medieval church

    A pastor asked me what he could read for a basic understanding of historical theology.  Out of all the great books out there, here is what I recommended.  I don’t claim that this is an exhaustive list, but it will give someone a solid foundation in the important theologians and the history of doctrine.  I…

  • wright at the helm

    Here is a link to the first of four posts by Paul Helm on Wright’s Justification. Helm does a good job of explaining that, for all its good points, Wright’s book isn’t as clear on key points as it should have been.

  • lost in translation

    I have been off the web for about a week–it started late last week when the Amish hotel where I was staying knocked me off its free Internet service and messed up something deep inside my computer.  Beware of Amish people bearing technological gifts!  For those who may be interested, here is my ode to…

  • bracketology

    {On [multiple occasions in the past month] I have heard people defend a [heretical] statement by saying that the author told them that he doesn’t necessarily believe everything he writes. According to them, this author, let’s call him [Pete Rollins]—a man who is extremely likeable—can pretty much say anything [e.g., we have no revelation; Jesus…

  • is this Protestant?

    I love Tom Wright. He is the only Christian leader I have paid to hear speak, and I considered it money well spent. I once heard him lecture on worship, and I realized that I had probably never worshipped before in my life. I read his stuff on God’s cosmic plan of redemption, and I…

  • sign of the times

    The Reformed Church of America is meeting this week, and an item in yesterday’s GR Press from their report on Synod caught my attention.  Does anyone else find this interesting?  “Also on tap today:  An official declaration of racism as a sin, a report on a three-year homosexuality dialogue and a reconsideration of Friday’s decision to…

  • if it walks like a duck

    What do these two quotes have in common?  1. Harry Emerson Fosdick was a liberal pastor who wrote this in The Modern Use of the Bible (1924):  “From naïve acceptance of the Bible as of equal credibility in all its parts because mechanically inerrant, I passed years ago to the shocking conviction that such traditional…

  • no answer

    I know of three things today which have no answer:  the Cleveland Cavaliers, Roland Burris, and those who oppose penal substitution.  The first two are self-explanatory if you are following the news, but I should explain the third.  It hit me recently that those who deny penal substitution are unable to explain exactly how the…