Collin Hansen has an important article in CT on the translation of the phrase “Son of God” in Arabic Bibles. He reports that many Muslims have come to faith in Christ as a result of Arabic Bible translations that avoid the phrase “Son of God.” He also reports that a number of evangelical scholars and missionaries disagree with the aversion towards the ancient Trinitarian moniker (e.g., Jack Collins, Darrell Bock, Vern Poyrthress, and Scott Horrell). I think Robert Yarbrough, however, underscores what is the fundamental difference between Christianity and Islam and on this point. He says,

I have a short article in the latest issue of Tabletalk Magazine. It’s titled “Does the Church Know Her Commission?.” I argue that the Great Commission, “summons us to invite the nations to treasure Christ in such a way that even if they lose everything — even their lives — it is okay so long as they have Him [Matthew 13:44]. That is why making disciples involves not just the entry-level rite of baptism but also the obligation of ‘teaching them to obey all that I commanded you.’ Where this framework is missing, so is the Great Commission.” Do our churches understand that the task of evangelism is the task of…

Marvin Olasky editorializes in World magazine about the new NIV 2011. Although Zondervan does not reveal overall stats, its Bible market share is probably less than half what it was in 1997… I doubt that the new NIV will win back readers from other translations. For the record, blogger John Dyer found that 91 percent of the words in the new NIV, expected to hit bookstores in March, are unchanged from the old version. Most-removed words: “He,” “his,” or “him” 2,700 times, “man” or “men” 1,600 times, and “fathers,” “forefathers,” or “brothers” 500 times. Olasky concludes his article by saying that he is not a fan of the NIV 2011.…

Katherine Phan of The Christian Post interviewed me yesterday about reading the Bible through annually. Phan was particularly interested to know why I thought Christians should be reading their Bibles. You can read the article here.

Here’s a schedule for reading the New Testament over the course of a year. For the most part, it tracks pretty closely with Lee Irons’ excellent schedule for reading the Greek New Testament in a year. My plan, however, varies a little bit. Because John’s writing is simpler Greek, my schedule goes through John’s Gospel at a faster pace than Irons’. As a result, there are no readings scheduled at the end of the year from Christmas Eve to New Year’s Eve. These open dates at the end can be used as catch-up days. The schedule is given in two formats below. DOC – Read the Greek NT in a…

In years past, my usual mode for reading the Bible through every year involved starting in Genesis and reading right through to Revelation. I estimated that about four chapters per day would get me through in under a year’s time. The method worked reasonably well, but it wasn’t without its problems. Sometimes I would miss a day (or days) and get behind, and I had no way to keep up with my progress. I needed a schedule so that I could keep myself accountable for finishing in a year.

The latest issue of JBMW was released yesterday, and I am going to highlight some of the articles in it over the next week or so. The first essay that I want to bring to your attention is by Heath Lambert, professor of biblical counseling at Boyce College. The article is titled “Breaking the Marital Impasse: How Authority and Submission Work When Spouses Disagree.” This article is one of the most practical articles I’ve ever read on how headship works when husband and wife disagree. He opens the piece by describing a real life counseling situation that he faced on this very issue. He writes,

Last week I wrote briefly about Rachel Held Evans’ year of living biblically. Her stated aim is to live out what the Bible teaches about womanhood. Today she writes about her difficulty in adopting the “gentle and quiet spirit” commanded in 1 Peter 3:4. To help develop such a spirit, she has incorporated contemplative prayer into her morning routine, “particularly breathing exercises, lectio divina, and centered prayer.” She appeals to the teaching of contemplative masters—both Buddha and the Proverbs—as sources for learning how to master “the volatile human spirit.” Just a reminder, Thomas Nelson has agreed to publish her book in 2012.

Trevin Wax has an insightful post on those who avoid the term “inerrancy” because of its “baggage.” He writes: “No label comes without baggage. The question is not whether we will claim labels for ourselves, but whether we will be courageous enough to stake out our positions clearly. “If I uphold the idea of inerrancy but want nothing to do with the term, I’m unintentionally loading myself up with a different kind of baggage. Sure, people may equate an affirmation of inerrancy with a literalist interpretation of Scripture. But disavowing the term inerrancy also has baggage. I group myself with people who may not believe in the historicity of miracles,…