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Some Books I Will Be Reading in 2023

3/1/2023

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My extended no-pay leave from the seminary has begun, and this gives me a bit of freedom to catch up with some reading. Here is a list of books I will be reading and engaging with in the months to come. 

What about your list?
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New Malaysian Project to be Published Soon

24/7/2021

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A group of Malaysian scholars currently in Malaysia and other parts of the world come together to contribute to a book project entitled, "From Malaysia to the Ends of the Earth: Southeast Asian and Diasporic Contributions to Biblical and Theological Studies." This volume is edited by my colleague, Elaine Wei-Fun Goh, and others including Kah-Jin Jeffrey Kuan, Jonathan Yun-Ka Tan, and Amos Wai-Ming Yong. This project is now in the final proof reading stage and should be published by Claremont Press in the autumn of 2021.

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I make a small contribution to this project where I examine Paul's understanding of ethnic relations between Jews and Gentiles gleaned from his letters, and offer some contemporary reflections for nation building in Malaysia.

My essay is entitled, "“For All of You Are One in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28): Paul’s Social Vision Beyond Inclusivity and Diversity", in pages 83-116. This bulk of the essay was written when I was on sabbatical in the second half of 2019. In light of the current political climate and the COVID-19 pandemic, I have made further reflections on what I have written. Perhaps a short follow-up piece might be needed.

I look forward to seeing this significant project in print soon. 

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Following the Footsteps of Apostle Paul in Turkey

18/7/2021

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  • Do you know that 6 out of the 13 letters of Paul were written to churches/individuals located in modern Turkey?
  • Have you wondered what the cities and places the Apostle Paul preached the gospel look like? 
  • What was his hometown, Tarsus, like?
  • What happened to Antioch, the city where the followers of the Way were first called "Christians"?
  • Why did Paul choose top visit Pisidian Antioch in his First Missionary Journey?
  • What are some archaeological evidences that help us understand the challenges and opportunities for Paul's Gentile mission?
  • What was the impact of the gospel in a major city of Ephesus where Paul spent more than 2 years during his Third Missionary Journey?


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While it may not be possible to visit all these places in Turkey physically with our borders still closed, you can join me in a virtual tour as we follow the footsteps of Paul in Turkey, read the Scriptures in sites where the events took place, and reflect on some of the lessons we can apply in our context today.

Please register for the course by clicking on this link:
https://forms.gle/8kvpWNyJBzMwcoHz9
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Take a sneak peak of what we will cover in our sessions by viewing the slideshow below.

This event is organised by Footprint Travel Planner and Beit Shalom.
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Review of Metaphors and Social Identity

22/4/2018

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Christopher A. Porter from Ridley College, Melbourne, recently reviewed my book on Metaphors and Social Identity Formation in Paul's Letters to the Corinthians. His review is published by Review of Biblical Literature in April 2018.

Porter comments that my work "presents a robust social-scientific assessment of metaphorical usage in the Corinthian correspondence, and in this scope the volume admirably succeeds in its goal of looking at metaphor in the Corinthian corpus."

He further acknowledges the positive contribution of this book towards the development of methodological framework: "...the contributions Lim has made to the methodological framework for analysis of metaphor...helpfully extend the assessment of metaphor in a social-scientific frame."
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Finally, Porter believes that my book "will undoubtedly provoke further investigation of metaphor use in identity formation in the Corinthian correspondence and elsewhere. This work is a valuable resource for anyone considering the social-scientific analysis of metaphors and their use in the Corinthian correspondence."

Overall, the review by Porter on my work is generous and encouraging, his critique on the weaknesses of the book is fair and courteous, and his comment on my methodological framework for analysis on metaphor is positive and welcoming.
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Please click on the file below to read the review.
review_by_porter.pdf
File Size: 746 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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Metaphors and Social Identity Formation: AUTHOR'S STOCK SOLD OUT

2/10/2017

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I am very pleased to inform that all copies of my recent publication (Metaphors and Social Identity Formation in Paul's Letters to the Corinthians) that are in my stock have all been sold. 

I would like to thank everyone in Malaysia for your continuous support for my work and ministry. 

For those who are still interested to purchase the book, please click here for options of how to order the book. I will not be holding anymore stock in future.

My other publication, Jesus the Storyteller: Hearing the Parables Afresh Today, is still available at RM45 per copy. Please get in touch with me if you are keen on purchasing this book.

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Book Cover for my Upcoming Publication

1/5/2017

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The cover design for my upcoming publication has been finalised by the publisher, Pickwick Publications. The book, Metaphors and Social Identity Formation in Paul’s Letters to the Corinthians, is due to be published in the middle of the year.  I will provide further details of the book in the weeks to come.

I am very pleased that I am able to use a photograph that I took when I visited ancient Corinth in 2015 for the cover.

Special thanks to Brian Tucker, Kathy Ehrensperger, and Bill Campbell for the blurbs. 
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"Paul the Economist?" Article Now Published

17/12/2016

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In the latest issue of Evangelical Review of Theology (Jan 2017, Vol 41/1) with a special theme on Economy and Marketplace, I contribute an essay on "Paul the Economist? Economic Principles in Pauline Literature with the Jerusalem Collection as a Test Case." This piece is an extension of my earlier essay, "Generosity from a Pauline Perspective," published in the same journal in the Jan 2013 Vol 31/1 issue.

In this article, I examine why the Apostle Paul was deeply concerned with the inequality of income distribution in the Roman Empire and how this propelled him to care for the poor. By taking a closer look at Paul’s collection for the Jerusalem poor, there are a number of economic principles that guided him in his quest for remembering the poor: the principle of grace and generosity, the principle of equality, and the principle of sharing recourses as a family. All these principles were revolutionary in nature as they were against the prevailing social conventions of the Greco-Roman world. Paul used these principles to construct a new economic structure to achieve an equality of possessions through voluntary redistribution of wealth between persons of different classes – rich and poor; different geographical locations – Judea and the Mediterranean world; and of different ethnic groups – Jews and Gentiles.
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The rest of the essays in this issue include the following:
Theology of Jubilee: Biblical, Social and Ethical Perspectives by Chris Wright

TGIF! A Theology of Workers and Their Work by Myk Habets and Peter McGhee

The Church as Civil Society: an African Ecclesiology by Emiola Nihinlola

Economic Growth vs The Environment: The Need for New Paradigms in Economics, Business Ethics, and Evangelical Theology by John Jefferson Davis

Work, Spirit, and New Creation by Miroslav Volf
I am very pleased to know that John Jefferson Davis, my former theology professor at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary also has an article in this issue. Apart from Davis, this issue also includes contribution from authors who originate from Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe, apart from those who are from the developed nations - a truly global contribution indeed.

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Grant from TRS assists in Research and Publication

1/11/2016

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Theological Research Scheme (TRS) aims to assist Malaysian scholars by providing modest research grants towards their research and publication. In September this year, I signed a publishing contract with Wipf & Stock Publishers where I will be contributing an essay, “The Fellowship of Christ’s Suffering: Suffering and Identity Formation in Philippians,” to be included in a volume titled Suffering in Paul edited by Siu Fung Wu, an Australian New Testament scholar. 

​Our theological institutions have somewhat limited resources where many specialised academic books are not available. These books are expensive (no thanks to the unfavourable exchange rate) and our financial resources are limited. Subscribing to digital access is beyond the means of our institutions. This means that our research may, at times, be frustrated because of limited access to books that are needed, unless we travel overseas to visit some of the better theological libraries.
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​This is where TRS comes into the picture by providing the much needed research grants for scholars like us.  The trustees of TRS approved my application for a grant to purchase a total of ten monographs on Philippians as seen in the photo above that are currently not available in our library. Upon the completion of my essay, all these books will be donated to the library of Seminari Theoloji Malaysia where I teach with the hope that these resources will be made available for other students, researchers, and the wider community. This is where TRS not only serves to help local scholars in their research and publication but also contributes to building up the modest resources we currently have.
 
Our long year-end vacation has just started. Until the next academic year begins in January, I will busy working on my essay for the next couple of months, and I hope to have a rough draft ready by the end of the year.

​Many thanks to TRS for their contribution, and to all the donors who have contributed to this scheme that makes my research possible.
 
For more information on TRS, please visit their website by clicking here.
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New NIGTC Romans Commentary

26/4/2016

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The long awaited commentary by Richard Longenecker on Romans under the NIGTC series is now finally published by Eerdmans. Longenecker earlier on in 2011 published a 500-page volume just on the introductory issues to Romans, and this has certainly heightened the expectation of the full commentary. I must say this is one commentary on Romans that is high on my anticipation list after learning much from Robert Jewett's massive commentary of the same book in the Hermeneia series. 

I will be making my order for the commentary soon and will be looking forward to interacting with Longenecker and also benefitting from his wisdom and insights on Romans. I am certain Longenecker's exegesis will challenge some of my own understanding and interpretation of Romans. Much of what I will learn from this commentary will certainly make its way to the course on Romans I will be offering at the Bible College of Malaysia later this year and at Seminari Theoloji Malaysia next year. 

As a teaser, Eerdmans publishes Longenecker's 6 major theses for Romans, and I have taken the liberty to reproduce the summary here below:

Thesis 1
Believers in Jesus at Rome in Paul’s Day Looked to the Mother Church at Jerusalem for their Christian theology, piety, and ethics.

Thesis 2:
Paul had at least five purposes in writing to the believers in Jesus at Rome: To give to the believers in Jesus at Rome what he calls in 1:11 his “spiritual gift.”; To seek the assistance of the Christians at Rome for the extension of his Gentile mission to Spain (cf. 1:13; 15:24);  To defend himself against certain criticisms of his person and various misrepresentations of his message that the Christians at Rome seem to have heard from others (and possibly somewhat believed); To counsel regarding a certain dispute that had arisen among the Christians at Rome, who evidently, on one side of the dispute, called themselves “the Strong,” while on the other side of this dispute there were other Christians who were being called “the Weak”; To counsel regarding certain attitudes of the Christians at Rome with respect to the city’s governmental authorities and the responsibilities of believers in Jesus to pay their city’s taxes and revenues. 

Thesis 3:
Paul writes to the Christians at Rome in a manner that rather closely corresponds to a “Logos Protreptikos” form of ancient philosophical letter writing (that is, a “Word [or, ‘Speech’] of Exhortation”).

Thesis 4:
Paul sets out for his readers (1) three major “Body Middle” Sections (i.e., 2:16–4:25; 5:1–8:39; 9:1–11:36), each of which sets out the Gospel for three somewhat different types of people (Jews, pagan Gentiles, and a body of Jewish and Gentile believers) all of which is followed by (2) a fourth major “Body Middle” Section (i.e., 12:1–15:33) consisting of general Christian ethical exhortations that the apostle had evidently proclaimed in his earlier Christian mission to pagan Gentiles — together with a further section of exhortations having to do with how believers in Jesus should live together in their respective Christian congregations.

​Thesis 5:
In the four sections of the apostle’s “Word/Speech of Exhortation” in the “Body Middle” of Romans 1:16-4:25, 5:1-8:39, 9:1-11:36, and 12:1-15:33 Paul uses material that he had previously preached (1) to Jews (in 1:16–4:25), (2) to Gentiles without any Jewish contacts or instruction (in 5:1–8:39), and (3) to mixed congregations of both Jewish and Gentile backgrounds at Syrian Antioch (in 9:1–11:36) — as well as in the fourth ethical section of the letter (I.e., 12:1–15:33) he contextualizes the Christian Gospel both generally and then quite specifically.

Thesis 6:
​In these contextualizations of the apostle’s letter to first century Christians at Rome, Paul is both (1) encouraging believers in Jesus today to do likewise in their Christian thinking, lives, and ministries, and (2) setting out paradigms for our doing similar in our own philosophical and cultural situations today.
I think the 6 theses are enough to whet my appetite for now until I hold the commentary in my hands. I hope Amazon will not disappoint in the speed of delivery!
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New Books on Paul for Autumn/Winter 2015

28/9/2015

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The next few weeks will be one of the most exciting seasons for Pauline studies. A number of significant books have been/will be published by senior scholars, reflecting the fruit of their labours. 

For those of us in Malaysia, we could only wish that Ringgit had not been heading south!

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Reading Romans in Context: Paul and Second Temple Judaism, by Ben C. Blackwell, John K. Goodrich, and Jason Maston (Zondervan, 2015, already released)

This is a helpful book suited for students struggling to make sense of Romans in light of Second Temple Jewish literature. In this collection of essays, a major unit of Paul’s letter to the Romans is paired with a related Jewish text, and this allows readers to understand how these comparative texts shape Paul’s thoughts and illuminate our understanding of Romans.

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Paul and His Recent Interpreters, N.T. Wright (Fortress, forthcoming, Oct 2015).  

This is the 3rd volume of Wright’s Paul and the Faithfulness of God. In this volume, Wright engages with interpreters of Paul, and I will be interested to see how Wright respond to his critiques and the reactions to this work. 

How can one live without Wright, considering that there are now a total of 2,744 pages in his volume on Paul in the Christian Origins and the Question of God series! (Am I the only one who think that Wright needs to learn the art of "ringkasan karangan"?) 

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Paul: The Apostle’s Life, Letters, and Thought, by E.P. Sanders (Fortress, forthcoming, Dec 2015). 

E.P. Sanders, a household name in NT studies who changes the tide of Pauline scholarship with his Paul and Palestinian Judaism (Fortress Press, 1977), now offers an expansive introduction to the apostle (600 pages!). This will certainly be a useful book to be included in the reading list for my class. 

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Paul and the Gift, John M.G. Barclay (Eerdmans, 2015, already published).


 John Barclay from Durham, examines Paul’s theology of grace in this book, a product of many years of the study of Paul. Barclay sees Paul’s theology of grace from the perspective of ancient notions of gift. This book will surely be an important reading on Paul and Pauline theology and I am looking forward to reading it.

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God and the Faithfulness of Paul: A Critical Examination of the Pauline Theology of N. T. Wright, Michael F. Bird, Christoph Heilig and J. Thomas Hewitt, eds. (Mohr Siebeck, forthcoming, Nov 2015)

This volume brings together a group of scholars to critically evaluate N. T. Wright’s Paul and the Faithfulness of God, covering wide-ranging issues including methodology, first-century contextual issues, exegetical considerations, and theological implications. This volume will not only be a great companion to Paul and the Faithfulness of God but also bring readers into dialogue with current Pauline scholarship. 

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The Epistle to the Romans, by Richard N. Longenecker (Eerdmans, forthcoming, Dec 2015). 

This is the long-awaited commentary from a season and matured scholar. While the list of commentaries on Romans is already long enough, I still believe there is room for one more. I look forward to interacting with Longenecker and learning from his insights. I am contemplating using this commentary for my Exegesis of Romans class in future.

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    Lecturer in New Testament Studies at Seminari Theoloji Malaysia. You can find out more about me by clicking here. 


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    My engagement in conversation with issues, reflections, and concerns related to my vocation as a seminary lecturer and theological education in general. Opinions expressed in this blog are strictly my personal views and do not represent the official position of the seminary


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