Publications

What Is Faith in Luke 18:1-8

This article examines Jesus statement in Luke 18:1-8, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth.” Was He referring to faith as doctrinal knowledge (truth assertions about the content of the faith)? Or did He refer to His disciples’ being found faithful to Him when He returns?

Bibliotheca Sacra July-September 2010-3

A New Kind of Christian – A Review

This article provides a critical review of McLaren’s thesis that modernity has so impacted evangelicalism that a new (or neo) kind of post-modern view of truth is necessary for ministry today. The review critiques this thesis by interacting with his fictional characters Neo and Dan as Neo seeks to lead Dan into a new post-modern view of truth and ministry.

Bibliotheca Sacra July-September 2004-2

Heresy in the Pastorals

This article overviews the nature of the heresy that Paul addressed in the pastoral epistles concluding that errorists were a threat to the very existence of the Ephesian church.

Bibliotheca Sacra October-December 1999-3

The Discipline of a Sinning Elder

This article interacts with key interpretive views regarding elder discipline in 1 Timothy 5:19-20 and other passages concluding that elders who sin are to be rebuked before the congregation for sins that violate elder qualifications and this rebuking serves as a public reminder of the seriousness of sin.

Bibliotheca Sacra July-September 1997-1

The New Testament Elder Pastor and Overseer

This article demonstrates that the Greek words for elder, overseer, and pastor all refer to the same office and office-holder while emphasizing ministry functions.

Bibliotheca Sacra April-June 1997-1

The Elder in the Old and New Testament

This article discusses the relationship of the Old Testament elder to the New Testament Church elder as well as how elders are to function. Additionally, the view that Eldership is two separate offices (Ruling and teaching) is rebutted.

Bibliotheca Sacra January-March 1997-1

A Biblical and Theological Critique of Stanley’s book, Irresistible

This article critically interacts and refutes the thesis of Andy Stanley’s Irresistible: Reclaiming the New that Jesus Unleashed from the World. The article demonstrates the biblical theological, hermeneutical, and methodological errors in Stanley’s thesis and argument. The article interacts and critiques Stanley’s incorrect thesis that the church in America is impotent due to integrating Old Testament truth into the New Testament Church as he proposes that the church needs to be “unhitched” and “unmixed” from the Old Testament thereby eliminating the need to defend the historical reliability of the Old Testament.

JMAT (Winter 2019)

What Should Christian do with Andy Stanley’s, Irresistible

Because of the popularity of Andy Stanley’s new book, Irresistible, I have asked my good friend and colleague, David Mappes to write a review of this book. As a biblical scholar steeped in the theological method, I wanted David not only to point out the book’s obvious errors (which many reviews have already accomplished) but to show how his incorrect theological method leads to careless theological practices such as jettisoning the OT. As the editor of the JMAT, it was my pleasure to sit down with David to discuss the book.

interview with Dr. David Mappes in JMAT (Winter, 2019)

Importance of using Properly Weighted Scholarly Material

This article provides an example of how evangelical scholars critique and evaluate post-conservative scholars using appropriately weighted scholarly material and provides bibliographies of this debate.

JMAT (Fall 2104)

How to Think about and Practice Theology

This article provides a non-technical discussion of how to use a proper Hermeneutical and Theological Method with a responsible doctrinal taxonomy to carefully interpret the Scripture and practice theology promoting Scriptural foundationalism (not to be confused with enlightenment foundationalism).

JMAT (Spring 2014)

Love Wins by Rob Bell A Biblical and Theological Critique

This article provides an extensive biblical and theological examination of Bell’s post-modern commitments and his attempt to post-modernize Christianity. Bell’s post-conservative theological method along with a brief survey of the book is provided.

JMAT (Spring 2012)

An Overview and Analysis of Apocalyptic Views Relating to the Year 2011 as the End of the World

This article critiques the 2012 doomsday sayers (New Age thinkers, historians, a few Mayan cultural anthropologists, and professing Christians who posit that December 2012 marks the end of the world as it is currently known. Special attention is given to how these detractors deny Biblical teaching about date setting and misrepresent fulfillment in Biblical prophecy.

JMAT (Spring 2011)

Nobility and Knowability of Truth Part One

This article provides extensive examination and analysis of how post-conservative evangelicals are promoting errant views of truth, the knowability of truth, inadequate views of language, and the non-foundational views of doctrine as a regulative norm.

JMAT (Spring 2009)

8 Reasons to Reject Stanley’s Irresistible

This article interacts and rebuts Andy Stanley’s thesis that the church is ineffective because the Old Testament canon is mixed into its belief system. In his book Irresistible: Reclaiming the New that Jesus Unleashed from the World, Stanley argues that the church with its modern version of faith is ineffective and too easily resisted. He conjectures that people resist the modern church and Christianity because the Old Testament is mixed into it. Consequently, when believers defend the Old Testament’s historicity and accuracy, they alienate what he refers to as “post-Christians.”

July-Agust 2019

Stanley’s Irresistible Is a Dangerous Disappointment

published in Baptist Bulletin Digital Edition MayJune-2019

Literal Interpretation and Theological Method by David Mappes

Ariel Ministeries Winter 2017

Contending with Sin in Pastoral Ministry

This article presents a pastoral overview of the threefold sense of salvation to engender a redemptive environment for followers of Jesus Christ while promoting that Justification by Faith is based upon imputation alone and not upon infusion or imputation of righteousness.

Baptist Bulletin Digital Edition September-October 2017

Prioritizing and Revising Articles of Faith

This article overviews how to use, update and prioritize the “Articles of Faith” within a church context and how to avoid common pitfalls along with surfacing recent destructive trends in the doctrinal formulation.

Baptist Bulletin July August 2016

Fostering a Christly Marriage in an Upside-down World

This pastoral article focuses on centralizing a personal relationship with God through Christ lest one deify marriage leading to idolatry.

Paraklesis Spring 2016

Biblical Apologetics and Ministry Today

This pastoral article discusses the meaning and practice of reasoned and biblical apologetic while avoiding sheer pragmatism, ant intellectualism, or philosophical intellectualism.

Paraklesis Spring 2013

Influence and Allusions of Wealth

This pastoral article discusses principles regarding the allusions and influences of wealth and intrinsic self-worth as God’s image-bearers. Additional issues of stewardship and protecting wealthy church members are discussed.

Paraklesis Fall 2011

Sorting Out the Players in the Certainty Debate

This pastoral article clarifies why post conservatives deny models of interpretive certainty and single meaning of a text.

Baptist Bulletin Nov-Dec 2010

Current Trends in Hermeneutics and Theology Certainty and Simplicity

This pastoral article clarifies why post conservatives deny models of interpretive certainty and single meaning of a text. The loss of certainty primarily results from post conservatives who separate God’s revelation from Scripture and promote a communal view of truth.

Paraklesis Summer 2010

Two Sermons of Major Impact

This small excerpt portrays the early controversies of theological liberalism as seen in Harry Emerson Fosdick’s infamous sermon, “Shall the Fundamentalist Win” and Clarence Macartney’s sermon, “Shall Unbelief Win?” who argued the context of Scripture alone should determine meaning.

Inspire, The Cedarville University Alumni Magazine Winter 2005

Of Infinite Value

This article presents a pastoral overview of how each child including the special needs population has inherent worth as being created in the image of God and how parents of special needs children can best advocate for their special needs children. Co-authored by my wife Karin Mappes and myself

Inspire, The Cedarville University Alumni Magazine Summer 2003.