When my September 2014 issue of the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, better known as JETS, came in the mail today, it carried with it a pleasant surprise: an article on the passages in Hebrews that discuss falling from grace by a Reformed-Arminian biblical scholar.
That scholar is Matthew McAffee, who teaches biblical and theological studies (and is program coordinator for Theological Studies) at Welch College and serves as Campus Pastor. The 17-page article is entitled “Covenant and the Warnings of Hebrews: The Blessing and the Curse.”
I had read an earlier manuscript of this article and knew it would be coming out in JETS, but I just didn’t know when. Professor McAffee is just the sort of person we need writing articles and books from the vantage point of Reformed Arminianism utilizing the tools of biblical theology. He combines a strong emphasis in biblical languages, culture, and exegesis with an interest in systematic theology.
Mr. McAffee’s graduate education, after he received his M.Div. from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, has been in Ancient Near Eastern studies at the University of Chicago. He has an M.A., and is nearing the completion of his Ph.D. dissertation, from that university. On our campus, his teaching load combines biblical studies (Bible survey, Greek, Hebrew, exegesis, hermeneutics) with one course in systematic theology that covers the doctrines of Christ, salvation, and the church. Thus, he is tailor-made to write an article like this most recent one in JETS.
This article demonstrates Welch College’s commitment to high-level theological scholarship that is well-done, taken seriously in the wider academy, and furthers the confessional theology of the Free Will Baptist Church. Welch College continues to live up to its reputation as the name you can trust for sound theological education at the highest level, and the combination of scholarship with spiritual formation.
I encourage my readers to look up the article. Information on how to obtain a copy of JETS is available at http://www.etsjets.org/JETS_current_non