To order any of the books mentioned below, please contact the Sacred Page bookstore.

Exegetical reflection on three Psalm texts in Lectionary Commentary Series, Year B, Vol. IV (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 2007).

Calvin, Participation, and the Gift: The Activity of Believers in Union with Christ (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007).

This book explores John Calvin’s theology of salvation as “participation in Christ” by the Spirit. Engaging critics of Calvin who claim that Calvin has a coercive view of God, this book gives a fresh reading of Calvin’s theology in light of his underappreciated theology of participation as it is displayed in his account of the sacraments, the Christian life, and ethics.

“John Calvin: United to God through Christ,” in Partakers of the Divine Nature: The History and Development of Deification in the Christian Tradition, ed. M. Christensen, J. Wittung (Madison, NJ: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2007), 200-218. Reprinted by Baker Academic in 2008.

“God became human so that humans could become [like] God.” This idea is not only prominent in patristic and Eastern Orthodox writings, but it is present in the writings of Calvin as well.

“What Makes a Church Missional? Freedom from Cultural Captivity Does Not Mean Freedom from Tradition,” Christianity Today (March 2008), 56-59.

Underneath the title “missional church” are varied – and often conflicting – notions of what the church is. This article gives an account of some of this conflicting usage, and suggests a way forward for the missional church discussion.

“On Giving and Receiving: How Can Christians Live Out the Commands of Matthew 25 – Without the Pity,” Sojourners Magazine (April, 2007), 48-51. 

This article explores how acts of Christian love can avoid the condescension that so often accompanies giving to those in need.

“Emergent Church: New Links, Old Traditions,” The Church Herald, April 2007, 5-7.

Why are notions such as “tradition” and “mystery” making a comeback among the younger generations in the RCA? This article explores the answer to this question in relation to some streams of the Emergent Church movement. 

“The Problem with Mere Christianity: We Jettison ‘Nonessential’ Theology at Our Own Peril,” Christianity Today, February 2007, 46-47. Reprinted as “Featured Article” on ChristianBibleStudies.com website (July 2007).

"In essentials, unity. In nonessentials, liberty. In all things, charity." While there is value to this proverb, this article argues that setting aside church distinctives as “nonessentials” is a mistake that actually separates Christians from one another and from the work of the Holy Spirit in the past.

“Science-Fostering Belief – Then and Now,” Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 59 (Sep. 2007), 171-81.

Two distinct beliefs regarding the comprehensibility of the natural world occur in the writings of early modern scientists like Johannes Kepler. Kaiser discusses some of the forms those beliefs took in medieval Christianity and in Reformers like Philip Melanchthon in order to show their specifically theological character. Kaiser also illustrates the survival and vitality of these beliefs in modern scientists like Albert Einstein, Henry Margenau, and Paul Davies.

Toward a Theology of Scientific Endeavour: The Descent of Science (London: Ashgate, 2007).

The aim of this book is to describe four foundations on which scientific work depends, to explore some of the paradoxes and theological questions they raise, to articulate resulting challenges to contemporary theology, and to draw on the wider resources of theology in an attempt to address these challenges and to draw some tentative conclusions.

“Is there Biblical Warrant for Evangelism?”  Republished in The Study of Evangelism: Exploring a Missional Practice of the Church, ed. by Paul W. Chilcote and Laceye C. Warner (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008). 

“No Astrologers or Ad-men, Please: Ancient-Future Evangelism, Dynamic Equivalence and the Professional Scrutinies of the Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus,” Doxology 24 (2007) 53-91. 

“Veering off the Via Media: Emerging Church, Alternative Worship, and New Media Technologies in the USA and the UK,” Liturgy 23.3 (July 2008), 39-47. With Doug Gay.    

“Standing on Holy Ground: Pastoral Prayer as Pastoral Care,” Reformed Worship 87 (March 2008) 16-17.

“Songs for the Season: Songs for Worldwide Communion,” Reformed Worship 88 (June 2008) 12-15. (From July-Sept 08 you'll need the password "Supper" to look at the article).

“The Shape of Soteriology and the pistis Christou Debate,” Scottish Journal of Theology 61/2 (2008): 137-157.

The Greek phrase “pistis Christou” occurs in theologically crucial sections of Paul’s letters, sections which provided the foundation for the Reformation understanding of “justification by grace through faith.” The question is whether “faith” in these phrases refers principally to the believer’s “faith in Christ” or to “the faith of Christ.” Stubbs argues that a theological vision that includes three facets – a Christ-centered understanding of the pistis Christou passages, a broader understanding of faith, and a soteriology centered around the idea of participation in Christ – is the most convincing lens for reading Paul. He also points out the important implications this has for contemporary theology.

“The Church in Evangelical Theology and Practice,” in The Cambridge Companion to Evangelical Theology, ed. Timothy Larson and Daniel J. Treier (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007). 

“The Second Word: Response,” in The Ten Commandments for Jews, Christians, and Others (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2007).

“Extra-New Testament Sources for the Study of Jesus,” in Craig Evans, ed. Encyclopedia of the Historical Jesus (London: Routledge, 2008).

“The Vexed Question: Hope College and Theological Education in the West,” in A Goodly Heritage: Essays in Honor of the Reverend Dr. Elton J. Bruins at Eighty, ed. Jacob E. Nyenhuis (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2007).