Articles By: David Nilsen

David Nilsen received his B.A. in Philosophy from Biola University in 2008. He is currently a student at Westminster Seminary in California, studying to receive an M.A. in Historical Theology. David has been blogging about Theology, Philosophy and Politics since 2004, and is hopeful about the ability of New Media technologies to further the Gospel of Christ and to allow Christian thinkers an open venue in the marketplace of ideas. David's passion is to help spark a reawakening of Classical Western thought in America (especially through education) and to help bring about a new Reformation in the church.

In Defense Of Complementarianism: A Response To Allen Yeh (Part 3)

In my last post I gave several theological arguments designed to undermine the presuppositions of egalitarianism, show that Christianity is inherently patriarchal, and prove that there does not need to be any inherent opposition between equality and hierarchy. Now I will examine three important Biblical...
December 3rd, 2009 | Culture, Evangelicals, Protestant, Religion | Read More

In Defense Of Complementarianism: A Response To Allen Yeh (Part 2)

A few weeks ago I wrote this blog post as a response to this post by Dr. Allen Yeh on the Scriptorium, which was a non-theological case for egalitarianism. Now Dr. Yeh has written his second post, which purports to be a theological defense of egalitarianism. I am obliged to point out, however, that...
November 18th, 2009 | Evangelicals, Philosophy, Religion | Read More

Is Christianity a Metanarrative?

Lyotard famously summed up postmodern philosophy as “incredulity toward metanarratives.” Despite the varying strands of postmodernism that have emerged in recent decades, one unifying factor is a suspicion of the “metanarrative.” This leads naturally to the question, “What is a metanarrative?”...
November 4th, 2009 | Other, Outtakes, Philosophy, Postmodernism, Religion | Read More

In Defense of Complementarianism: A Response to Allen Yeh (Part 1)

Last week on The Scriptorium Dr. Allen Yeh made a non-theological case for egalitarianism. The theologian in me immediately wants to respond by asking, “Why bother? If there is a theological case to be made, who cares what culture has to say?” Indeed, I am concerned that Dr. Yeh chooses to lead...
October 8th, 2009 | Culture, Religion | Read More

Morality And The Wrath Of God

One of the major objections to Christianity raised by some atheists is that the God of the Bible does not seem to be a good God. In contrast to the popular portrayals of a benign and merciful Jesus who loves everyone, God (the Father) seems wrathful and angry. Nothing epitomizes this wrathful attitude...
October 5th, 2009 | Apologetics, Ethics, Philosophy, Religion | Read More

Why Calvin? Why Now?

No one in the history of the church has been so equally reviled and adored by so many as John Calvin. Some of the greatest pastors, theologians and missionaries in both Great Britain and America have considered themselves Calvinists. And yet for the majority of modern American Evangelicalism, Calvin...
September 29th, 2009 | Culture, Evangelicals, Know Your Evangelicals, Protestant | Read More

Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince

With a 5-day opening weekend of $159 million, there is no question that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has successfully cast its spell. There is a lot of talk about this film being “darker” than the previous films, but only in tone and not in substance. The filmmakers did a superb job creating...
July 20th, 2009 | Art & Literature, Book Reviews, Culture, Film | Read More

The Power of Twilight

A few weeks ago, millions rejoiced as the first trailer for New Moon, the second book-turned-film in the Twilight saga, premiered at the MTV Movie Awards. These wildly successful books continue to draw a loyal following that rivals that of Harry Potter. This is remarkable when one considers how counter-cultural...
July 1st, 2009 | Book Reviews, Culture, Ethics, Film, Philosophy | Read More

America’s Christless Christianity

Back in the 1940’s Donald Grey Barnhouse, a Presbyterian pastor, asked the question, “What would it be like if Satan took over a city?” Barnhouse speculated that if Satan took over Philadelphia, all of the bars would be closed, pornography banished, and pristine streets would be filled with tidy...
May 10th, 2009 | Book Reviews, Media, The Gospel | Read More

Village Green: A Proper Understanding of Mere Christian Evangelicialism (Guest Post)

In a 2001 issue of Christian Scholar’s Review Dr. Michael Horton asks the question, “Is Evangelicalism Reformed or Wesleyan?” This question may seem strange to some, especially those who would not think to identify Evangelicalism solely with either tradition. This is exactly the...
March 25th, 2009 | Evangelicals | Read More