Speaking of Good Instructors

In the previous post, I mentioned the importance of good instructors for any theological institution. In addition, I spoke of how thankful I was for my own good instructors during college and seminary.

Well, I just happened to see where one of those instructors (Gerald Bray, one of my primary professors from seminary) was featured on Justin Taylor's blog today (I assure you J.T. and I are not in cahoots). He discusses three questions to ask of biblical texts, and then he answers those questions in regards to a difficult text like the genealogies of 1 Chronicles.

See the post (and Dr. Bray's questions) here.

HT: Justin Taylor

The Importance of Good Instructors

Lately, I have been doing quite a bit of reading on the history of Princeton Theological Seminary and about the men who made "Old Princeton" such a bastion for historic Christian orthodoxy. I came across the following quote in my reading this week that reminded me of the significance of a strong faculty at any theological institution:

The strength of an educational institution is not merely in its name, but in the character and gifts of those who serve as its instructors.

Let those of us who received so much from our instructors be grateful for them and be mindful to pray for them in their labors. I know I am certainly thankful for the excellent instructors I had at both Union University and Beeson Divinity School.

B.B. Warfield on "The Religious Life of Theological Students"

Third Millenium Ministries has re-printed an excellent article by B.B. Warfield on "The Reilgious Life of Theological Students" (first delivered as an address at Princeton Theological Seminary in 1911). It is lengthy, but it is well worth the time of all seminary students and pastors (and even undergraduate theological students desiring to attend seminary). Here is a brief excerpt:

A minister must be both learned and religious. It is not a matter of choosing between the two. He must study, but he must study as in the presence of God and not in a secular spirit. He must recognize the privilege of pursuing his studies in the environment where God and salvation from sin are the air he breathes. He must also take advantage of every opportunity for corporate worship, particularly while he trains in the Theological Seminary. Christ Himself leads in setting the example of the importance of participating in corporate expressions of the religious life of the community. Ministerial work without taking time to pray is a tragic mistake. The two must combine if the servant of God is to give a pure, clear, and strong message.

Read the whole thing here.