Our next topic will be the Holy Spirit. In traditional theology this subject is called "Pneumatology" based on the Greek word pneuma, or 'spirit.'
Last time, when we considered salvation, we covered the topic of the application of the work of Christ to the believing sinner. This is technically one aspect of the work of the Holy Spirit; he is the one who takes the benefits of the work of redemption and applies them to the elect. As a result, when we consider the Holy Spirit this week, we are going to concentrate more on the Person of the Spirit - he is not a misty cloud or an 'it'; rather the Spirit is referred to in Scripture by the masculine pronoun, 'he.' He also has the elements of personality: intellect, emotions, and will.
This time I am providing only one article that is relatively easy. It is one chapter from the book "Baptism and Fulness" by John R. W. Stott. Reading it will give a good background to understanding the Person of the Holy Spirit as well as his work in the lives of believers.
Article: "Baptism and Fullness: The Work of the Holy Spirit Today, by John R. W. Stott; Chapter 2, "The Fullness of the Spirit," pp. 47-75.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Summer Bible Institute # 4 - Salvation
The study of salvation is called "soteriology" from the Greek word for salvation. It is sometimes difficult to narrow down the content of this area of study because it really touches on many different areas of theology. For example, I am including in our study some aspects of the "Work of Christ" which really is a part of the study of Christ, the Redeemer. I'm also including some information on "The Application of the Work of Redemption" which involves the work of the Holy Spirit in applying the saving work of Christ to each individual believer which usually falls into the study of the Holy Spirit.
Salvation is the whole work of God in planning, securing, and applying redemption to fallen human beings so you can see why it is hard to contain it within one topic.
This week I have chosen for our readings three authors writing specifically about the subject of the "atonement" which is part of the work of Christ. The Bible teaches, and Christians believe, that when Jesus Christ died on the cross he provided an atonement for our sins through his death as a sacrifice in our place. These three writings are written at three different levels; they don't all communicate the same information, nor do they present competing views but they are all about the atonement of Christ.
Relatively Easy: "Major Bible Themes"(Chafer and Walvoord): Chapter 9: God the Son - His Substitutionary Death.
Moderately Hard: "The Problem of Forgiveness" - Chapter 4 from The Cross of Christ, by John R. W. Stott.
Downright Difficult: "The Death of Christ" - Chapter 4 from On The Incarnation of the Word of God, by Saint Athanasius (third century AD).
Salvation is the whole work of God in planning, securing, and applying redemption to fallen human beings so you can see why it is hard to contain it within one topic.
This week I have chosen for our readings three authors writing specifically about the subject of the "atonement" which is part of the work of Christ. The Bible teaches, and Christians believe, that when Jesus Christ died on the cross he provided an atonement for our sins through his death as a sacrifice in our place. These three writings are written at three different levels; they don't all communicate the same information, nor do they present competing views but they are all about the atonement of Christ.
Relatively Easy: "Major Bible Themes"(Chafer and Walvoord): Chapter 9: God the Son - His Substitutionary Death.
Moderately Hard: "The Problem of Forgiveness" - Chapter 4 from The Cross of Christ, by John R. W. Stott.
Downright Difficult: "The Death of Christ" - Chapter 4 from On The Incarnation of the Word of God, by Saint Athanasius (third century AD).
Friday, July 2, 2010
Summer Bible Institute # 3 - The Person of Christ
The third topic of our 2010 Summer Bible Institute is "The Person of Christ." This area of study is usually called "Christology" (which means the study of Christ, the Messiah). Christology is often divided into two broad categories:
First, the Person of Christ - this includes his pre-existence, his relation to the Old Testament, his virgin birth, and his earthly life and ministry. The concentration of this subject is on his two natures as both God and Man in one person and how these natures relate to one another.
Second, the Work of Christ - this includes his obedience to the law which qualified him to be the Redeemer (this is called his "active obedience") and his submission to death in our place as the Redeemer (his "passive obedience"). This subject focuses on what Christ accomplished in his death and resurrection. Important biblical concepts are studied, for example, atonement, reconciliation, redemption, and so on.
In our next study together on July 14, we are only going to consider the first topic of Christology - the Person of Christ. The work of Christ is related to our Salvation, which we will take up next on July 28.
This week I have uploaded some readings about Christ, particularly about his deity. This is usually the hardest topic of Christology. In the early church (from the time of the apostles until 325 AD), there was debate within the church about whether Jesus Christ is both God and Man. The Arians took a position similar to modern Jehovah's Witnesses that Christ was a supremely good man endowed by a high degree of god-consciousness but that he was not God. The long and destructive debate, which led to the council of Nicea in 325 AD, allowed Christian teachers and pastors to carefully study and articulate the Bible's teaching on this point. This led to the clarity which has prevailed to the present day among the different groups of Christendom, including Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and Evangelical Protestants. Whatever differences we might have, we agree that Jesus is the God-Man.
Again, the readings range from simple to difficult about the topic:
Relatively Easy: Major Bible Themes by Lewis Sperry Chafer and John F. Walvoord (Zondervan, 1974). Chapter 7 - "God the Son: His Deity," and Chapter 8 - "God the Son: His Incarnation" (pp. 52-58).
Somewhat Difficult: Jesus Christ Our Lord by John F. Walvoord. Chapter 7 - "The Person of the Incarnate Christ" (pp. 106-122).
Downright Difficult: Christian Theology, by Millard Erickson. Chapter 32 - "The Deity of Christ" (pp. 683-704).
First, the Person of Christ - this includes his pre-existence, his relation to the Old Testament, his virgin birth, and his earthly life and ministry. The concentration of this subject is on his two natures as both God and Man in one person and how these natures relate to one another.
Second, the Work of Christ - this includes his obedience to the law which qualified him to be the Redeemer (this is called his "active obedience") and his submission to death in our place as the Redeemer (his "passive obedience"). This subject focuses on what Christ accomplished in his death and resurrection. Important biblical concepts are studied, for example, atonement, reconciliation, redemption, and so on.
In our next study together on July 14, we are only going to consider the first topic of Christology - the Person of Christ. The work of Christ is related to our Salvation, which we will take up next on July 28.
This week I have uploaded some readings about Christ, particularly about his deity. This is usually the hardest topic of Christology. In the early church (from the time of the apostles until 325 AD), there was debate within the church about whether Jesus Christ is both God and Man. The Arians took a position similar to modern Jehovah's Witnesses that Christ was a supremely good man endowed by a high degree of god-consciousness but that he was not God. The long and destructive debate, which led to the council of Nicea in 325 AD, allowed Christian teachers and pastors to carefully study and articulate the Bible's teaching on this point. This led to the clarity which has prevailed to the present day among the different groups of Christendom, including Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and Evangelical Protestants. Whatever differences we might have, we agree that Jesus is the God-Man.
Again, the readings range from simple to difficult about the topic:
Relatively Easy: Major Bible Themes by Lewis Sperry Chafer and John F. Walvoord (Zondervan, 1974). Chapter 7 - "God the Son: His Deity," and Chapter 8 - "God the Son: His Incarnation" (pp. 52-58).
Somewhat Difficult: Jesus Christ Our Lord by John F. Walvoord. Chapter 7 - "The Person of the Incarnate Christ" (pp. 106-122).
Downright Difficult: Christian Theology, by Millard Erickson. Chapter 32 - "The Deity of Christ" (pp. 683-704).
Friday, June 25, 2010
Summer Bible Institute # 2 - Humanity and Sin
The second topic of our "Basic Theology" course for the Summer Bible Institute is the Bible's teaching on nature of Humanity. Theologians call this subject "Anthropology" which comes from the Greek word for human.
Unlike the secular discipline called "Anthropology" the Bible's teaching is much more full. The reason is that the secular study only deals with the nature of human beings in the various cultures of this world, while the Bible deals with human nature in at least four states of existence:
Unlike the secular discipline called "Anthropology" the Bible's teaching is much more full. The reason is that the secular study only deals with the nature of human beings in the various cultures of this world, while the Bible deals with human nature in at least four states of existence:
- The human before sin entered the life and environment - we might call this human nature in its original holiness.
- The human in the present state of sin -- this can be subdivided into two categories: Humans under the domination of sin (the lost) and humans under the reign of grace (the saved).
- The human between death and resurrection - this is called 'the intermediate state.'
- The redeemed human in the eternal state - we might call this, human nature in confirmed holiness.
The readings I have chosen for this week focus on the nature of sin in the human being. Again I have chosen readings that are relatively easy, moderately difficult, and very difficult.
Relatively Easy: Chapters Five and Six from Basic Christianity by John Stott on "The Fact and Nature of Sin" and "The Consequences of Sin."
Somewhat Difficult: Chapter 29, "The Magnitude of Sin," from Christian Theology by Millard Erikson
Downright Difficult: Systematic Theology by Louis Berkof; "Man in the State of Sin: Chapter 4-Sin in the Life of the Human Race."
Friday, June 11, 2010
Summer Bible Institute # 1 - The Attributes of God
On Wednesday, June 16 I will teach the first week of our Summer Bible Institute class on "Basic Theology."
The first class will cover the Bible's teaching on the Existence and Attributes of God. In theology this subject is called "theology proper." Since the word theology means "the study of God" then any study of the Person of God is, properly speaking, what theology is all about...or "theology proper."
For each class, I plan to put some articles on the web about the topic. While reading them beforehand is not a requirement of participating in this class, if you have a chance to read any of them, it will help you as a preparation for the class. Today, I have put three articles to the web that are available below - I intend to do this for each one of the topics we will cover this summer. The articles range from relatively easy, to somewhat demanding, to downright difficult. You will note that people writing about theology tend to use an "in-house" language which can be sort of like listening to your family doctor talk about a medication - it can be a little off-putting at first. Theological writing is a mixture of terms and phrases from philosophy, the Bible, Latin, and the discipline's own language. One helpful thing to know is that most theological words (unlike most medical terms) are properly defined in a standard English dictionary so you don't have to look very far to find out the meaning of the words.
The topic for the first class is the attributes (characteristics) of God which can be divided up and viewed in many different ways. The three articles are not three way of looking at the topic, though there are some differences between the writers; rather they are written at three levels of difficulty:
Relatively Easy: Chapters Three and Four from "The God You Can Know" by Dan DeHaan on "The Perfections of God."
Somewhat Difficult: The article on "God, Attributes of" written by G. R. Lewis from "The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology" edited by Walter A. Elwell.
Downright Difficult: Chapters vi and vii on the "Communicable" and "Incommunicable Attributes of God" from Systematic Theology by Louis Berkof.
When you click on one of the above titles, you will be taken to a webpage and allowed to download that article to your computer (you do not need to sign up for anything!). Choose which article you want to read...and read away.
See you on Wednesday, June 16 in the Impact Room at the White Lake Campus for our first class on "Basic Theology."
The first class will cover the Bible's teaching on the Existence and Attributes of God. In theology this subject is called "theology proper." Since the word theology means "the study of God" then any study of the Person of God is, properly speaking, what theology is all about...or "theology proper."
For each class, I plan to put some articles on the web about the topic. While reading them beforehand is not a requirement of participating in this class, if you have a chance to read any of them, it will help you as a preparation for the class. Today, I have put three articles to the web that are available below - I intend to do this for each one of the topics we will cover this summer. The articles range from relatively easy, to somewhat demanding, to downright difficult. You will note that people writing about theology tend to use an "in-house" language which can be sort of like listening to your family doctor talk about a medication - it can be a little off-putting at first. Theological writing is a mixture of terms and phrases from philosophy, the Bible, Latin, and the discipline's own language. One helpful thing to know is that most theological words (unlike most medical terms) are properly defined in a standard English dictionary so you don't have to look very far to find out the meaning of the words.
The topic for the first class is the attributes (characteristics) of God which can be divided up and viewed in many different ways. The three articles are not three way of looking at the topic, though there are some differences between the writers; rather they are written at three levels of difficulty:
Relatively Easy: Chapters Three and Four from "The God You Can Know" by Dan DeHaan on "The Perfections of God."
Somewhat Difficult: The article on "God, Attributes of" written by G. R. Lewis from "The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology" edited by Walter A. Elwell.
Downright Difficult: Chapters vi and vii on the "Communicable" and "Incommunicable Attributes of God" from Systematic Theology by Louis Berkof.
When you click on one of the above titles, you will be taken to a webpage and allowed to download that article to your computer (you do not need to sign up for anything!). Choose which article you want to read...and read away.
See you on Wednesday, June 16 in the Impact Room at the White Lake Campus for our first class on "Basic Theology."
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Psalm 150
This final Hymn of Praise closes out the Psalter. The book ends with a final call to all of creation to give exuberant, ceaseless, loud, and submissive praise to the living God. Here, not only God’s people but “everything that has breath” (v 6) is called to praise God with every means imaginable.
At first sight, the entire psalm is simply a call for everything and everyone to praise the LORD, but a more careful reading reveals that, even in this command to praise, the reasons for praise are touched upon.
First, we should “Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in the mighty heavens” (Psalm 150.1). One question that arises is what sanctuary is being spoken of here, since even the Old Testament saints knew that the earthly temple was but an image of the heavenly abode of God (Exodus 25.40; Hebrews 8.5). In its Old Testament context, however, the psalm seems to be speaking of the Most Holy Place of the tabernacle / temple in which the blood of atonement was sprinkled (Leviticus 16). We are called to praise God because, though he is the living God of infinite holiness, he has provided a way for sinners to be forgiven and accepted before him. For us today, of course, we praise him that “his sanctuary” and the “mighty heavens” are one and the same place, the heavenly temple where the blood of Christ pleads for sinners.
Also, we are to “Praise him for his mighty deeds” (v 2a). These are his great acts of redemption—the Exodus and the Passover under the old covenant; the cross and the empty tomb under the new covenant. His mighty deeds are a reflection of what the sanctuary refers to—mercy, judgment and redemption are not just a theory and a reality of the divine nature.
And, finally, we are to “Praise him according to his excellent greatness” (v 2b). All of the attributes of God work together to exhibit who he is and what he does—God’s people experience his character in their redemption, adoption, and destiny.
As the Psalter closes, we are called to praise the LORD in a way that has not yet happened in its fullness. The call is still appropriate (we could sing this every day!) but it looks forward to a reality that will only occur when the final chapter of God’s story has been fulfilled. That will be when what God predicted through the prophet Isaiah has finally come to pass:
At first sight, the entire psalm is simply a call for everything and everyone to praise the LORD, but a more careful reading reveals that, even in this command to praise, the reasons for praise are touched upon.
First, we should “Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in the mighty heavens” (Psalm 150.1). One question that arises is what sanctuary is being spoken of here, since even the Old Testament saints knew that the earthly temple was but an image of the heavenly abode of God (Exodus 25.40; Hebrews 8.5). In its Old Testament context, however, the psalm seems to be speaking of the Most Holy Place of the tabernacle / temple in which the blood of atonement was sprinkled (Leviticus 16). We are called to praise God because, though he is the living God of infinite holiness, he has provided a way for sinners to be forgiven and accepted before him. For us today, of course, we praise him that “his sanctuary” and the “mighty heavens” are one and the same place, the heavenly temple where the blood of Christ pleads for sinners.
Also, we are to “Praise him for his mighty deeds” (v 2a). These are his great acts of redemption—the Exodus and the Passover under the old covenant; the cross and the empty tomb under the new covenant. His mighty deeds are a reflection of what the sanctuary refers to—mercy, judgment and redemption are not just a theory and a reality of the divine nature.
And, finally, we are to “Praise him according to his excellent greatness” (v 2b). All of the attributes of God work together to exhibit who he is and what he does—God’s people experience his character in their redemption, adoption, and destiny.
As the Psalter closes, we are called to praise the LORD in a way that has not yet happened in its fullness. The call is still appropriate (we could sing this every day!) but it looks forward to a reality that will only occur when the final chapter of God’s story has been fulfilled. That will be when what God predicted through the prophet Isaiah has finally come to pass:
“By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance’” (Isaiah 45.23).And the apostle Paul, we of the New Testament church, confess today that we, too, look forward to that day when,
“at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2.10–11).Even so, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22.20).
Friday, April 9, 2010
Psalm 149
The previous psalm calls all the world to praise the LORD and it ends with the fact that one its many nations is the object of God’s special love and grace. Israel had been given the knowledge of God in a unique way to become the avenue of blessing to the nations of the earth. Psalm 149 pictures the earthly kingdom of God of the old covenant expanding as God’s people take vigorous action to extend the kingdom throughout the world.
This Hymn of Praise divides into two surprising parts that may be seen in this way:
It is an honor for all God’s people to be a part of extending his gracious rule into the lives of people all over the world (Psalm 149.9). We do this as our righteous lives and words shine the light of the gospel to both reveal the disfiguring effects of sin in people’s lives and to show them the way to God.
This Hymn of Praise divides into two surprising parts that may be seen in this way:
- (vv 1–4) Let us praise God with song
- (vv 5–9) Let us praise God with a sword
The first half invites God’s people to “Sing to the LORD a new song!” because he is both our Maker and our King. This should lead to exuberant worship in which each worshiper plays a part in giving honor to God. In this exhilarating exercise even dance has a place (this is practiced among Orthodox Jews; the movie “Fiddler on the Roof” is a good example of this kind of praise).
To understand the second half of the psalm, which begins in verse 5, we must keep in mind the differences between the kingdom in its Old Testament and New Testament forms. In the Old Testament, the kingdom of God is a visible and earthly realm; Israel is God’s chosen nation whose national life and worship are meant to reveal what it means for God to rule over his people. In the Old Testament as in the New Testament, the ‘sword’ could refer not only to the physical weapon of warfare but to God’s Word, the unique possession of God’s people (Psalm 45.2–3; Isaiah 49.2; Ephesians 6.17). While there is little doubt that Israel was compelled to use the sword in defensive and offensive ways in the establishment of the Old Testament kingdom, they saw the Word of God as the means by which God expanded his kingdom.
In other words, to the worshipers in the temple, this psalm reminded them of their responsibility to establish and to expand God’s rule. They did this as they brought foreign kings into submission, executing vengeance on the nations and taking captive their leaders (vv 7–8).
The church is given a similar missionary charge, to extend the kingdom of Christ throughout the earth (Matthew 28.18–20). While our power is not military, it is by means of the same Word of God that we engage in this work. Military metaphors are used throughout the New Testament to picture this work:
“For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete” (2 Cor. 10.3-6; see also Ephesians 6.13–17).It is important for us to remember that when Jesus announced his public ministry in Nazareth, he read in the synagogue meeting from the Isaiah scroll:
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor” (Isaiah 61.1–2a).He ended his reading in the middle of verse 2, not reading the remainder of the verse:
“…and the day of vengeance of our God” (Isaiah 61.2b).He didn’t finish the sentence not because vengeance is not a part of his commission as the Messiah-King, but because that is part of his second appearance, not his first. He came in humility the first time to “seek and save the lost” (Luke 19.10); he will appear a second time “in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus” (2 Thessalonians 1.8).
It is an honor for all God’s people to be a part of extending his gracious rule into the lives of people all over the world (Psalm 149.9). We do this as our righteous lives and words shine the light of the gospel to both reveal the disfiguring effects of sin in people’s lives and to show them the way to God.
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