The Trinity in the Book of Revelation with Madison Pierce

Today’s episode features a discussion about my new book with Madison Pierce of Western Theological Seminary. You can purchase the book here and also preorder my next one, The Biblical Trinity, here.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible and Cedarville University’s Graduate School. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Thomas Weinandy on Christology in the Gospels and the Mystery of the Incarnation

This episode is a conversation with Fr. Thomas Weinandy. We discuss the making of the Jesus Becoming Jesus series (1:50), the Synoptic Gospels’ contribution to Christology and Trinitarian theology (11:14), Christology and Trinitarian theology in John’s Gospel (22:49), immutability and impassibility in the incarnation (42:50), and more. Read Thomas’s books.

Check out Brandon’s new book: The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible and Cedarville University’s Graduate School. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Lewis Ayres’s Foreword to “The Trinity in the Book of Revelation”

In honor of the release day for The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse, I’m posting Lewis Ayres’s foreword to the book. Aside from the kind words about my book at the end, I was encouraged by his comments about the current rise of retrieval among evangelicals. Ad fontes!

It is a commonplace that theologians today—especially younger theologians—work in a more ecumenical mode than did previous generations. theologians who are deeply embedded in their tradition—as Brandon Smith is in his, and I am in mine!—nevertheless find dialogue partners far beyond what might seem their natural community. Those who manage to keep this balance over great hope for the future. That future is, of course, in God’s providential, benevolent, and mysterious hands—not in ours. All that those of us who attempt to argue faithfully can do is to seek to enter the truth more deeply and attempt to share it respectfully and lovingly with others.

Perhaps the most significant feature of this new ecumenical outlook is that, despite our significant and currently unresolvable doctrinal differences, many from widely divergent traditions have come to recognize that the deep Christian tradition offers us the resources needed to think through the mighty theological mysteries that confront and dazzle the student of Christian theology. By “the deep Christian tradition” I mean the history of responses of men and women to God’s call over the long centuries since the resurrection and ascension of our Lord, and since the sending of the Spirit at Pentecost. We will necessarily view this tradition from a variety of perspectives and with different understandings of its authority in view. But for many now, it is in turning to that tradition that we best find resources for describing God’s action among us and resources for reading the Scriptures. And from this long tradition, it is the early, vibrant centuries of the Christian church that have drawn the attention of perhaps the widest group of theologians.

Further, perhaps nowhere is this new interest more apparent than in work on trinitarian theology and scriptural exegesis. It should surprise no one that Orthodox and Catholic theologians turn to this deep tradition as they seek to articulate classical trinitarian theology, but it is noteworthy that a host of theologians in (for example) the Baptist and Presbyterian traditions have also begun to turn toward early Christian theology as a key resource for explaining and exploring God’s revelation to us of the triune life. In some ways this is no new development—there is a number of Baptist church historians who have made important contributions over the past few decades to our understanding of early Christian theology. What does seem to be new is the rise of a new generation of younger Baptist theologians who wish to use the resources of the early church to present a fully scriptural account of the divine being and economy.

Many of these figures have been caught by the sheer power and beauty of the expositions of Scripture that they have found from this period. Many have come to recognize that older narratives—in which this period sees the overcoming of true Christian faith by “Greek philosophy”—hold little water, and that early Christian theology is both deeply exegetical and philosophically engaged (rather as is Paul’s own engagement with the Jewish Scripture!). As we seek to avoid the perennial danger of reinventing the wheel in every generation, it is only right that we turn again to the figures who played such an elemental and foundational part in drawing from Scripture one of its most central themes—the inseparable unity and yet irreducibility of Father, Son, and Spirit.

It is within these contexts that Smith writes. In the first place his theology is deeply informed by attention to the heritage of early Christian thought. In the second place his goal is to read Scripture, in this case the book of Revelation, in aid of a compelling presentation of God’s self-revelation. The book unfolds as a dialogue between careful engagement with modern scholarship on Revelation and the manner in which pro-Nicene trinitarian patterns of scriptural reading may lead us to understand the possibilities of this complex and mysterious text more fully. As the book proceeds, Smith draws us deep into the text of Revelation by careful study of key passages. At the end we are left with an important challenge: to read this text anew as an integral part of Scripture’s revelation of the simple and undivided life of Father, Son, and Spirit. His work should be welcomed by all interested in the constant renewal of Christian thought.

My 5 Favorite Books of 2022

If you’re looking for a few ideas for last second Christmas money/gift card redemption, here’s a few ideas. You can also check out my past lists: 2015 and 2016 lists at my old Patheos blog, and my 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 lists posted here at Biblical Reasoning.

Please forgive my shameless plug upfront, but beyond these five fantastic books below, I have two books to briefly plug:

  • Out tomorrow(!) is an academic monograph with IVP Academic entitled The Trinity in the Book of Revelation, which brings together pro-Nicene retrieval and engagement with modern biblical scholarship. Order here.
  • Out in May, you can preorder my next book with Lexham Press entitled The Biblical Trinity, which is an introductory book to the Trinity in Scripture for pastors and thoughtful laypeople. Order here.

Thanks for considering! And now, in no particular order, here are my five favorite books that I read in 2022.

Hermeneutics and the Rhetorical Tradition by Kathy Eden

This book was recommended to me by several friends as a necessary read for working in early Christian theology and exegesis, and I see why. It is an excellent introduction to the larger contextual influences on early reading cultures and their intersection with/influence on early Christian writings. Order here.

The Trinity by Thomas Joseph White

I simply do not have enough superlatives for this book. Just read it and reference it over and over. Listen to our conversation on tough Trinity questions here. Order here.

Jesus Becoming Jesus (vol. 2) by Thomas G. Weinandy

This three-volume series (see also: vol. 1 and vol. 3) is a treasure trove of theological interpretation of the Gospels. Aside from Jesus himself, of course, Weinandy’s prose is the star of this book. I devoured each volume rather quickly due to how effortlessly Weinandy blends beautiful writing with deeply engaging insights, but I especially enjoyed volume 2. I’ll be revisiting these often. Listen to our conversation on the trilogy here. Order here.

Post-Hellenistic Philosophy by G. R. Boys-Stones

This book is not an easy read, but well organized and gets straight to the point regarding the major philosophical developments in and around early Christianity. The discussion toward the end on Christian appropriations of philosophy is worth the price of the book. Order here.

Sprawlball by Kirk Goldsberry

I know everyone tells me to read more fiction, but I typically reserve my “free time” reading for sports books. I really enjoyed this one on the evolution of the modern NBA game by Kirk Goldsberry, a pioneer in NBA advanced analytics. Order here.

William Marsh on Luther’s Hermeneutics and Reformation Truths and Myths

This episode is a conversation with Dr. William Marsh of Cedarville University. We discuss truths and myths regarding the late medieval church and Luther’s concerns (3:03), Luther’s hermeneutics and their relationship to the Christian tradition (19:37), the Reformers on reading and preaching Scripture (31:57), how the Reformation can help the church today (40:09), and more. Buy William’s books here, here, and here.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible and Cedarville University’s Graduate School. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

You can preorder Brandon’s new book, The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Darian Lockett on Reading the Catholic Epistles and the Biblical Canon

This episode is a conversation with Dr. Darian Lockett of Talbot School of Theology. We discuss how the Catholic Epistles fit together in the biblical canon (1:22), faith and works in Paul and James (22:52), scholarship on James (28:05), scholarship on 2 Peter and Jude (34:17), and more. Buy Darian’s books.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

You can preorder Brandon’s new book, The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Biblical Reasoning (Part 2): Bobby Jamieson on Theology and Exegesis

This episode is a conversation with Dr. Bobby Jamieson of Capitol Hill Baptist Church. We discuss the benefits of theological resources in doing exegesis (2:15), partitive exegesis as a rule for reading Christologically (19:28), things that “need to die” in biblical studies scholarship (38:06), and more. Buy Bobby’s books for the church and for the academy.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

You can preorder Brandon’s new book, The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Biblical Reasoning (Part 1): Tyler Wittman on Theology and Exegesis

This episode is a conversation with Dr. Tyler Wittman of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. We discuss the relationship between theology and exegesis (2:18), honoring God in exegesis (9:34), the Trinity and the New Testament (20:07), inseparable operations and appropriations (27:23), and more. Buy Tyler’s books.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

You can preorder Brandon’s new book, The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.

Matthew Bingham on Baptist Origins, Historiography, and Being “Reformed”

This episode is a conversation with Dr. Matthew Bingham of Oak Hill College. We discuss how to understand Baptist history (1:28), the shared identity of 17th-century baptistic churches in the context of the English Reformation (4:50), the development of a Baptist identity (25:57), popular Baptist history truisms (30:37), what it means to be a “Reformed” Baptist (45:46), and more. Buy Matthew’s books.

Church Grammar is presented by the Christian Standard Bible. Intro music: Purple Dinosaur by nobigdyl. Producer: Katie Larson.

You can preorder Brandon’s new book, The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse (IVP Academic, 2022).

Brandon D. Smith is Assistant Professor of Theology & New Testament at Cedarville University, a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and writes things. You can follow him on Twitter at @brandon_d_smith.

*** This podcast is designed to discuss all sorts of topics from various points of view. Therefore, guests’ views do not always reflect the views of the host, his church, or his institution.