realmealministries (Brian Russell)

Genesis 1-2 root the biblical narrative in God’s original creational intentions rather than in the world as it is today. This is crucial. Genesis 3 onwards focuses on the current fallenness of creation, but the Bible opens in a setting that is very good and one in which rest and relationship are valued over work [...]

Thanks to the generosity of Asbury Theological Seminary I am enjoying a sabbatical from teaching and administrative duties for the remainder of 2010 in order to focus on completing a book on missional hermeneutics. I will be posting regular updates as well as sharing bits and pieces of the work in its draft form. Why am [...]

The Seven Days account of Creation reaches its true climax in Sabbath (2:1-3). After six days of crafting, molding, and filling the formless void of Gen 1:2 with life, God rests. “Very goodness” is not the destination of time—rest is. The God of the Bible has woven rest in the fabric of his handiwork. God [...]

Judges 10:6-9 Israel finds itself in familiar territory: actively engaged in the sin of idolatry. Judges simply describes this as doing evil in the sight of the LORD. Verse six emphasizes the extent of Israel’s idolatrous ways. Earlier they had “only” worshipped the Baals and the Asherahs (cf. 2:13 and 3:7). Now they are worshipping a [...]

J.R. Daniel Kirk, Fuller Seminary NT Prof, blogs about Hell. Derek Oullette’s On the Slander of Open Theism. Roger Olson Open Theism: a test case for Evangelicals

Here are some notes on the Gideon Narrative in Judges 6-8. Judges 6:1-40 The Gideon story opens with the familiar refrain of Israel doing evil and God handing them over to their enemies (6:1-6). This time it is the Midianites whom God uses to oppress Israel. Midian deals harshly with God’s people for [...]

Christianity Today interview with Anne Rice on “Following Christ without Christianity” David Fitch on “The Timeless Hauerwas” Book Review by two Fuller Profs of Leonard Sweet’s latest: Nudge: Awakening Each Other to the God Who’s Already There .

We are now accepting applications into the 2nd Cohort of our Doctor of Ministry degree in Transformational Innovation. I teach a course on missional hermeneutics as part of the program. Here is the latest information on Asbury Theological Seminary - Florida’s new Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree: View above in pdf. We are hosting an Open House this [...]

Last week’s Scripture lessons (Judges 2; 21:21) focused on an overview of Israel’s pattern of disobedience during the time of the Judges. The book of Judges serves as an ongoing warning to God’s people of the dangers of idolatry, but it also offers a sustained witness to the faithfulness and mercy of God who acts [...]

If the book of Joshua highlighted the triumphant entry of God’s people under the faithful leadership of Joshua into the land of Canaan as promised by God, the book of Judges narrates the tragic aftermath of Israel’s subsequent generations who struggle to maintain themselves in the land due to a recurring cycle of disobedience. Judges 2:1-5 Our [...]

Judges 21:25 The book of Judges ends with a solemn and provocative summation of the state of God’s people: In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes (cf. Judges 17:6). The period of the Judges was a troubling and tumultuous time. God’s people acted [...]

If our study of Joshua 6 last week was one of triumph and celebration, Joshua 7 explores the costliness and danger of disobedience. 7:1-15 The Failure of Israel Israel had just celebrated a dramatic victory over Jericho. God had delivered the entire city over to God’s people. However, Joshua 7 begins with [...]

Here are notes on Joshua 5:13-6:27. I’ve tried to include some missional reflections where appropriate. In particular a missional hermeneutic will highlight the role of Rahab in the narrative. 5:13-15 A Chance Encounter Israel is poised to take possession of the land of Canaan. God has brought God’s people miraculously across the Jordan, [...]

Lesslie Newbigin was a missionary in India during the middle of the 20th century. When he returned to the United Kingdom after a lifetime of missionary service in Asia, he was confronted with the reality that his homeland was now less Christian than it was when he had left to serve on the “mission field.” [...]

Joshua 2 narrates the actions of two spies whom Joshua sends ahead of Israel into the land of Canaan. The spies do their work but they must rely upon the daring hospitality of Rahab to complete a narrow escape. They return to Joshua and Israel with a positive confession of the victory that awaits them. 2:1-11 [...]

Allen Yeh wrote a great post on evangelism yesterday: Despite the fact that I am a missiologist (missions = evangelism + social justice in a cross-cultural setting), I find that some of the toughest people to reach with the Gospel are right here in my own context: postmodern Western atheists. Let me offer the way that [...]

In Joshua 1, the LORD commissions Joshua to succeed Moses as leader of God’s people (1:1-9), Joshua orders God’s people to prepare to take possession of the land promised by God (1:10-15), and God’s people pledge their loyalty to Joshua’s leadership (1:16-18). Josh 1:1-9 The LORD’s Commission to Joshua 1:1-6 For detailed notes on Joshua 1:1-6, review the [...]

In the book of Joshua, God fulfills his promise to God’s people of life in the land of Canaan. God originally promised the land to Abram at the time of Abram’s initial call (Gen 12:1, 7). This promise was reaffirmed to Abram’s descendants Isaac and Jacob and remained a central theme of the Pentateuch (Genesis [...]

The June 2010 issue of Encounters Mission Ezine is now available. Its theme is “The Psalms and Mission.” It focuses broadly on missional hermeneutics as related to reading the Psalter. A missional hermeneutic is an approach to Scripture that privileges God’s mission as the key lens for reading the Bible. It features an essay by [...]

I will be speaking several times this week: Tonight (6/21) I am continuing my six week series at Winter Park First United Methodist Church (6/14, 6/21, 6/28, 7/12, 7/19, 7/26). The study meets from 7 PM to 8:30 PM. They offer dinner at 6 PM (reservations needed). 6/22 Preaching on Ps 73 at the University of [...]