It was funny. I was working on a research paper for my Greek class today, so I spent a fair amount of time at the library. Actually, the nice thing about research nowadays is that I can do a good 75% of it from the comfort of my own home thanks to the fact that more articles and books are being placed online digitally. But there will always be those reference books that you can't bring yourself to buy because of the exorbitant price but are always really useful. TDNT is one of those books.Theologisches Wörterbuch zum Neuen Testament or Theological Dictionary of the New Testament for those who don't spreken. I needed to consult one of the nine volumes in order to get a better understanding of "mustard" in the Ancient Near East. Yup, mustard. I found what I needed and closing up the book I saw the check-out card in the front cover. We no longer use the stamped cards but many books still have them inside, perhaps as a monument to Melvin Dewey and his decimal system that has plagued youth for years. One entry caught my eye in particular.
One A. Hultberg had checked out the book on May 27, 1988. The reason it caught my eye is because Dr. Alan Hultberg is an Assistant Professor of Bible Exposition & New Testament at Talbot. As I sat there looking at the card, it dawned on me that Dr. Hultberg had been studying this very text as he too was close to finishing his M.Div at Talbot nearly 20 years ago. Many times its hard to imagine your professors being in your place, sitting in your seat in a class full of students. You wonder which student they were, because only 2 kinds make it in the PhD world: brilliant or hard-working. I'd give hard-working the upper hand any day.
Have I ever said I've thought about Doctorate work before? Problem is, I'm neither of my two prerequisites.
