Phil Gons

Bible & Tech

Download a Free Album from Rhapsody

by

Rhapsody just launched an MP3 store. They are giving out a free album to the first 100,000 people to sign up for a free account. You can choose from anything that they sell. I just grabbed an album—and one for my wife.

You’ll have to act fast. The promotional lasts only a few more days.

Your account will be credited with $10 to be used on your first album by midnight Pacific time, July 4, 2008, if eligible.

Firefox 3 Coming Soon

by

I’ve been using Firefox 3 since Beta 1. After 5 betas, it is now at RC 2 3, which is going to be the version that “ships” sometime this month on Tuesday, June 17th. (Mozilla hopes to set a world record for the most downloads ever in a 24 hour period.)

There’s no point in waiting to update to version 3, except perhaps for add-on support. About half of my add-ons aren’t working yet. But the improved functionality of Firefox 3 makes the temporary loss of a few add-ons worth it.

[Read more…] about Firefox 3 Coming Soon

“John Owen Today” Conference

by

The nine speakers are set for the John Owen Today conference, which will be held on 19–22 August 2008 at Westminster College in Cambridge.

[Read more…] about “John Owen Today” Conference

New Covenant Commentary Series (NCCS)

by

Michael Bird announces a new commentary series called The New Covenant Commentary Series (NCCS). The series will be edited by Craig Keener and Michael Bird and published by Wipf & Stock between 2009 and 2014.

Here are the projected volumes and authors:

  • Matthew, Joel Willitts (North Park University, Chicago)
  • Mark, Kim Huat Tan (Trinity Theological College, Singapore)
  • Luke, Jeannine Brown (Bethel Seminary, St. Paul)
  • John, Jey Kanagaraj (Hindustan Bible Institute & College, India)
  • Acts, Youngmo Cho (Asia Life University, South Korea)
  • Romans, Craig Keener (Palmer Seminary, Philadelphia)
  • 1 Corinthians, Bruce Winter (Queensland Theological College, Australia)
  • 2 Corinthians, David deSilva (Ashland Theological Seminary, Ohio)
  • Galatians, Brian Vickers (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville)
  • Ephesians, Lynn Cohick (Wheaton College, Wheaton)
  • Philippians, Linda Belleville (Bethel College, Indiana)
  • Colossians, Philemon, Michael Bird (Highland Theological College, Scotland)
  • 1-2 Thessalonians, David Garland (George W. Truett Theological Seminary, Texas)
  • Pastoral Epistles, Aida Besancon-Spencer (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Massachusetts)
  • Hebrews, Tom Thatcher (Cincinnati Christian University, Ohio)
  • James, Pablo Jimenez (Pastor, Puerto Rico)
  • 1 Peter, Eric Greaux (Winston-Salem State University, North Carolina)
  • 2 Peter, Jude, Andrew Mbuvi (Shaw University Divinity School, North Carolina)
  • 1-3 John, Sam Ngewa (Nairobi Evangelical Graduate School of Theology, Kenya)
  • Revelation, Gordon Fee (Regent College, Canada)

[Read more…] about New Covenant Commentary Series (NCCS)

Before You Buy Online . . .

by

Before you make your next online purchase, you may want to use Live Search Cashback. Microsoft will pay you anywhere from 2–10% cash back—those are the numbers I’ve seen—on any qualifying purchases from participating stores. No strings attached. Before cashing in on your rewards you have to wait 60 days and accrue at least $5 of cash back rewards. Once you meet both of those stipulations, you can get your funds sent to you via (1) PayPal, (2) a bank account, or (3) a paper check in the mail.

This is Microsoft’s attempt to get Googlers to start using their Live search. I’m not about to switch permanently from Google, but why not save a little more on my online purchases?

Update: Just got an email, 60 days after my purchase, notifying me that my $13.74 in cashback rewards are ready to be claimed. I visited my page, clicked Pay Me, entered my bank information, and got this message:

Your cashback is on its way! Microsoft will initiate a payment of $13.74 to your Bank account XXXX in approximately 14 days. We will send an e-mail message to you at philgons@gmail.com with these details.

“When I’m stumped . . . I go to Henry Alford.”

by

Dan Phillips, who blogs at Biblical Christianity and Pyromaniacs, emailed me about a month ago and asked me about making Henry Alford’s The Greek Testament: With a Critically Revised Text; a Digest of Various Readings; Marginal References to Verbal and Idiomatic Usage; Prolegomena; and a Critical and Exegetical Commentary available for Libronix. In that email he told me that “John Piper names it as the one he always consults.” Recently I asked him if he knew the source for Piper’s statement. He didn’t, but said he’d do some hunting. He asked his blog readers for help, and it was Pilgrim Mommy to the rescue.

I think it might be . . . during the Q&A at the end of Piper’s talk on John Owen.

I just listened to the end of Piper’s biographical lecture on Owen, and here’s what he says in the Q&A in response to a question about commentaries that he finds helpful:

[Read more…] about “When I’m stumped . . . I go to Henry Alford.”

More Thoughts on Regret

by

About two months ago I wrote a blog post on the subject of regret, in which I raised some questions about whether regret will be a part of the experience of the glorified in the new creation. I suggested with some uncertainty that I’m inclined to think that it will not be. My thoughts were in response to some of the things that Piper said in the second chapter of Life As a Vapor, “Suffering, Mercy, and Heavenly Regret.”

Recently, David Wayne, the JollyBlogger, picked up my post and expressed basic agreement with my concerns.

Just tonight Jon Bloom’s latest post at the Desiring God blog, 2 Kinds of Regret: Godless and Godly, caught my eye. Jon doesn’t address regret after this life, but some of his comments make me wonder if he’d agree with Piper. Here’s his conclusion:

[Read more…] about More Thoughts on Regret