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THEOLOGY OF CHRISTIANITY 2016 ALEXANDER DELLIDIS 1 2016 by ALEXANDER DELLIDIS All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-for example, electronic, photocopy, recording-without the prior written permission of ALEXANDER DELLIDIS. 2 THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO THE DELLIDIS FAMILY CONTENTS 1. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THEOLOGY 2. THE BIBLE’S MESSAGE 3. GENERAL REVELATION OF GOD 4. THE UNDERSTANDING OF GOD 5. THE BIBLE IS INSPIRED 6. THE FULL INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE 7. GOD IS THE AUTHORITY 8. QUALITIES OF GOD 9. HOLINESS OF GOD 10. GOD’S PRESENCE 11. THE TRINITARIAN VIEW OF GOD 12. GOD IS GUIDING HISTORY TO HIS GOAL 13. THE CREATION 14. GOD MAINTAINS HIS CREATION 15. EVIL IN THE WORLD 10 12 16 21 25 28 30 34 37 43 46 53 56 58 62 3 16. ANGELS 17. HUMANITY 18. THE CREATION 19. GOD CREATED MAN IN HIS OWN IMAGE 20. HUMAN CONSTITUTION 21. CHARACTERISTICS OF RACE 22. SIN 23. ASPECTS OF SIN 24. CONSEQUENCES OF SIN 25. SIN IS UNIVERSAL 26. THE EVIL THAT COMES THROUGH THE WORLD 27. CHRISTOLOGY 28. THE DEITY OF CHRIST 29. CHRIST’S HUMANITY 30. UNITY OF THE TWO NATURES OF CHRIST 31. THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST 32. CHRIST’ TEACHING 33. ATONEMENT 34. A VIEW OF THE ATONEMENT 35. EXTENT OF THE ATONEMENT 36. THE HOLY SPIRIT 37. THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 38. SALVATION 39. PREDESTINATION 40. GOD’S WORK OF SAVING US 41. OBJECTIVE ASPECTS OF SALVATION 42. THE CONTINUATION OF SALVATION 66 70 73 80 83 87 98 101 104 111 116 121 123 136 140 144 152 159 161 165 171 181 195 200 206 216 224 4 43. COMPLETION OF SALVATION 44. EXTENT OF SALVATION 45. THE CHURCH 46. THE FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH 47. THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CHURCH 48. RITES OF THE BAPTISM 49. RITE OF THE CHURCH THE LORD’S SUPPER 50. THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH 51. ESCHATOLOGY 52. INDIVIDUAL ESCHATOLOGY 53. THE SECOND COMING AND THE CONSEQUENTS 54. MILLENNIAL AND THE TRIBULATIONAL VIEWS 55. FINAL STATES 231 238 246 256 261 266 272 277 285 292 305 319 327 ABBREVIATIONS IN THIS BOOK 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 1. Gen. Genesis 2. Exod. Exodus 3. Lev. Leviticus 4. Num. Numbers 5. Deut. Deuteronomy 6. Jud. Judges 7. Sam. Samuel 8. Chron. Chronicles 9. Neh. Nehemiah 10. Ps. Psalms 11. Prov. Proverbs 12. Eccl. Ecclesiastes 13. Sol. Solomon 14. Jer. Jeremiah 15. Ez. Ezekiel 16. Dan. Daniel 17. Hos. Hosea 18. Jon. Jonah 19. Mic Miah 20. Hab. Habakkuk 21. Hag. Haggai 22. Ma. Malachi 23. Est. Esther 24. Zech. Zechariah 25. Matt. Matthew 26. Rom. Romans 27. Cor. Corinthians 28. Gal. Galatians 29. Eph. Ephesians 30. Phil. Philippians 31. Thess. Thessalonians 32. Tim. Timothy 33. Phile. Philemon 34. Hebr. Hebrews 35. Rev. Revelation. 5 INTRODUCTION From beginning to end the Bible’s message is God. Before there was anything as we know it, there was God. The Bible begins by telling how the eternal God created the world and everything in it. His special creation was people. He gave them a beautiful place to live, authority over all the other creatures, almost complete freedom to do what they wanted. He talked with them, and they with Him. That glorious beginning, however, was marred by mankind’s disobedience, a pathetic attempt to take a course not designed by God that brought terrible loss, to the earth, its creatures, and man himself. Even so, God did not abandon His disobedient creatures; He set out to reclaim fallen people, much as a shepherd sets out to restore loss sheep to the fold. So a pattern of God’s activity began, a pattern seen throughout the Old Testament. God, being just, must punish sin (rebellion against Him) but, being also loving He Himself provided the way of escape. In time, God chose Abraham as the father of His people Israel. To those people He gave the Law, an integral part of the divine plan to bring Human beings back to God. The Law showed Israel (and the whole world) that, because of the broken relationship between God and man, it was impossible for people to please God or to meet the requirements. The Old Testament provides many references to a special individual who would provide salvation for His people. Moses spoke of a “prophet” like himself Who would be “an Israelite, a man to Whom you must listen and Whom you must obey” (Deut. 18:15). King David was promised that one of his sons would sit on an eternal 6 throne. Because of that promise, God’s deliverer was called the “Messiah,” which in Hebrew means “the anointed one” (one of David’s titles). The special individual, the Messiah, was not to be merely a man, however, for man could not mend the broken relationship on His own. As Paul Said: “But I can’t help my-self … It is sin inside me that is stronger than I am that makes me do those evil things” (Rom. 7:17-18). The Messiah was to be “Immanuel,” which in Hebrew means “God with us” (Is. 7:14, 8:8). The Old Testament pointed to a Messiah Who would be Both God and man, and those prophecies were fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus was born a descendant of King David (Luke, 2:4) in David’s city Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2). He was conceived by a virgin (Is. 7:14; Matt. 1:18; Luke, 1:35). He lived a totally blameless life (Hebr. 4:15; 7:26). Yet Jesus, the Son of God, was arrested like a common criminal, tried on a trumped-up charge, and crucified and died, though He had done nothing wrong (Matt.27; Mark, 15; Luke, 23; John, 18 and 19). He was buried in a tomb. On the third day God raised Him from the dead and with that act the acceptable Sacrifice Himself for our sin was completed (Matt. 28:5-7; Rom. 4:23-25), the relationship between God and man, broken by Adam and Eve, was restored. When Jesus Sacrifice Himself for our sin, He also removed all guilt produced by sin. “But because Jesus lives forever, His teaching last forever, Therefore He is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him, He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf” (Hebr. 7:24-25). To receive the salvation, “tell others with your own mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord, and 7 believe in your own heart that God has raised Him from the dead.” Then, You will be saved. For it is by believing in his heart that a man becomes right with God, and with his mouth he tells others of his faith, confirming his salvation” (Rom. 10:9-10). Salvation means that the new life, promised in the Bible to those who trust Jesus, will be yours. As you read the Bible (and this Book) you will find what God wants you to have–a life that is pleasing to God and fulfilling for yourself. “My purpose is to give life in all its fullness” (John, 10:10). The Theological lodestar in this Book has been a rigid Christian position. 8 PREFACE “The Book you hold in your hands contains a fraction of what is written in the Bible. So, please read the Bible. May God Bless you through Jesus Christ, Amen.” God wants each of us to experience a life that has meaning, direction, love and peace. God makes this kind of life possible through a personal relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ. 9 TOPIC 1 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THEOLOGY Theology in a Christian context is a discipline that seeks to understand the God revealed in the Bible, and to provide a Christian understanding of reality. It seeks to understand God’s creation, particularly human beings, and their condition, and God’s redemptive work in relation to Human kind. Biblical Theology provide insights and understandings that help lead toward a coherent whole. Theology has practical value in providing guidance, for the Christian life and teaching. Theology is important, because, correct doctrinal beliefs, are, essential to the relationship between the believer and God. One of these beliefs deals with God‘s existence, and character. The writer to the Hebrews, in describing those who, like Abel and Enoch, pleased God, stated: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him, (Hebr. 4:4-11). The author does not mean that one who attempts to approach God may be rejected because of lack of such a faith in Him, but that one would not even attempt to approach God without this belief. Belief in the deity of Jesus Christ also seems essential to the relationship. After Jesus had asked his disciples what people thought of Him, He also asked, “Who do you say I am?” Peter’s response, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” met with Jesus’ resounding approval (Matt. 16:13-19). It is 10 not sufficient to have a warm, positive, affirming feeling toward Jesus. One must have correct understanding and belief. Similarly, Jesus’ Humanity is important. First John’s letter was written to combat the teachings of some who said that Jesus had not really become Human. These “duettists” maintained that Jesus’ Humanity was merely an appearance. John pointed out the importance of belief in the Humanity of Jesus when he wrote: “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every Spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, (has the Spirit of God), but every Spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.” (That spirit is not from God) (1 John, 4:2-3). Finally, In {Rom. 10:9-10} Paul ties “belief in Christ resurrection (both a Historical Event and a doctrine) goes directly into the Salvation experience”. “If you confess with your Mouth; Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you will be saved. For it is with your heart you believe and are justified and it is with your Mouth that you confess and are saved”. 1. George A Lindbeck. The Nature of Doctrine Religion: and Theology in a Postliberal Age (Philadelphia:Westminister, 1984). 2. John Hich, God has Many Nations (Philadelphia Westminister, 1992). . 11 TOPIC 2 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE BIBLE’S MESSAGE The world of the Bible and this present world are very different. It is important to state the Bible message in terms that will be understood in today’s world. Many Theologians have tried to do this in order to make the message palatable to the modern mind. Some Theologians have not merely changed the form of expression, but the substance as well. The goal for contemporizing the Christian message is to retain the Content and Biblical doctrine while making the message more understandable today. Five criteria are presented to assess the integrity of the message. The crucial task of Theology will be, to identify the timeless truths, the essence of the doctrine, and to separate them from the temporal form in which they were expressed, so that a new form may be created. There are a number of criteria by which the permanent factors or the essence of the doctrine may be identified: (1) constancy across cultures,(2) universal setting, (3) a recognized permanent factor as a base, (4) indissoluble link with an experience regarded as essential, and (5) final position within progressive revelation. 1. One illustration of constancy across cultures is the principle of sacrificial atonement, and with it the rejection of works righteousness. We find this principle present in the Old Testament sacrificial system. We also find it in the New Testament teaching regarding the atoning death of Christ. Another example is the 12 centrality of belief in Jesus Christ, which spans any gap between Jew and Gentile. Peter teaches it at Pentecost in Jerusalem to Jews from various cultures. Paul declared it in a Gentile setting to the Philippian jailer (Acts 16:31). 2. Universal Setting, another criterion by which to determine the essence of a doctrine is to note what elements are put forth in a universal fashion. Baptism is mentioned not only with reference to the specific situations where it was practiced, but also in the universal setting of the Great Commission: “All authority in haven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:18-20). In John 13 Jesus did say, “you also should wash one another’s feet (John, 13:14), He said, “I have set you an example, that you should do as I have done for you” (John, 13:15). The underlying reason for His action appears in His statement regarding the servant’s not being greater than the master (John, 13:16). What He was attempting to in still within His disciples was the attitude of a servant; humility and a willingness to put others ahead of on self. We conclude that the attitude of Humility is the permanent component in Christ teaching. 3. A Recognized Permanent Factor as a Base, a teaching may itself be permanent. Jesus bases His teaching about the permanence of marriage on the fact that God made man as male and 13 female and pronounced them to be one (Matt. 19:4-6, citing, Gen. 2:34). The antecedent is assumed to be a once for all occurrence having permanent significance. From this, the permanent nature of the marriage relationship is deduced. Similarly the priesthood of all believers is based on the fact that our great High Priest has once for all “gone through the heavens”. We therefore can “approach the throne of grace with confidence” (Hebr.4:14-16). Moreover, because Jesus is a priest forever (Hebr. 7:21, 34) it is always the case that all are saved who draw near to God through Him (Hebr. 7:21-25). 4. Indissoluble Link with an Experience Regarded as Essential is independent of the History (the question of whether Jesus actually was raised). But Paul asserts that the experience is dependent on Christ’s resurrection. He says. If “Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile: you are still in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:17). If our experience of the resurrection is real and permanent, the resurrection of Christ must be factual, permanent, and universal. Final Position within Progressive Revelation is the sacrificial work of Christ. Whereas the Old Testament called for continual offerings of sacrifice in the court, twice-daily offerings of incense in the outer tent, and an annual sacrifice by the high priest in the inner place, the Holy of Holies (Hebr. 9:1-10), Christ brought this process to an end by fulfilling it (Hebr.9:12). His offering of His own blood was once for all. Furthermore, Jesus often said, “You have heard that it was said …but I say to you that …” In these instances Jesus was making a statement of the essences of the doctrine to replace earlier approximations of it. It is the Bible statements themselves from which 14 we must draw out the essence, and they are the continuing criteria of the validity of that essence. 1. Paul van Burren, The Secular Meaning of the Gospel (new York : Macmillan,1963). 2. 3. Fosdick, The Modern Use of the Bible. Harry E. Fosdick, The Modern Use of the Bible (New York: Macmilan, 1933). . 15 TOPIC 3 GOD IS IN CONTROL GENERAL REVELATION OF GOD God’s Revelation of Himself to Humanity has been classified in two ways: general revelation and special revelation. The general revelation of God has been found in three areas nature, history, and Humanity. Theologians concerned with the comprehensiveness of general revelation have developed what is known as natural Theology. Theology is the way in which God’s existence is known outside the Biblical source, specifically through the use of reason. Philosophers, and later, certain Theologians rejected natural Theology and general revelation. More recently, it has been noted that their Biblical interpretation is questionable. There is general revelation without natural Theology, but the effect of sin prevents the unbeliever from coming to the knowledge of God. The salvation of the individual through God’s general revelation can only be measured by faith. There are two basic classifications of revelation. General Revelation is God’s communication of Himself to all persons at all times and in all places. Special Revelation involves God’s particular communications and manifestations of Himself to particular persons at particular times, communications and manifestations that are available now only by consultation of certain sacred writings. Nature Revelation: because Humans are finite and God is infinite, if they are to know God it must come about by God’s manifestation of Himself. 16 General Revelation of God, are: Nature, History, and Humanity. 1. The first General revelation is Nature: The Bible itself proposes that there is knowledge of God available through the created physical order. The psalmist says, “The heavens are telling the glory of God” (Ps. 19:1) And Paul says, “Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely, His internal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20). 2. The second general revelation is History: The Bible indicates in numerous places that God is moving the course of history, controlling the destinies of nations (Job.12:23; Ps. 47:7-8; 66:7; Isa. 10:5-13; Dan. 2:21 and Acts. 17:26) 3. The third general revelation is God’s highest earthly creation, the Human: It is, however, in the moral and spiritual qualities of Human kind that God’s character is best perceived. Paul speaks of a law written on the hearts of persons who do not have the specially revealed law (Rom. 2:11-16). The general revelation does not enable the unbeliever to come to the knowledge of God. Paul’s statements about general revelation (Rom. 1:2) must be viewed in the light of what he says about sinful Humanity (Rom. 3), all persons are under sin’s power; none is (righteous) and the urgency of telling people about Christ (Rom. 10:14): “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how are they to hear without someone teaching to them?” Thus in Paul’s mind the possibility of constructing a full scale natural Theology seems seriously in question. 17 What is necessary, then, is what Calvin calls “the spectacles of faith.” He draws an analogy between the condition of the sinner and a person with a sight problem. The latter looks at an object, but sees it only indistinctly. Spectacles clarify the view. Similarly, the sinner does not recognize God in the creation. But when the sinner puts on the spectacles of faith, spiritual sight improves and God can be seen in His handiwork. But what of the judgment of Human kind, spoken of by Paul in Romans 1 and 2 if it is just for God to condemn Humans, and if they can become guilty without having known God’s special revelation, does that mean that without special revelation they are able to avoid God’s condemnation? In (Rom. 2:14), Paul says: “When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.” Is Paul suggesting that they could have fulfilled the requirements of the law? But that is not possible even for those who have the law (Gal. 3:10-11 as well as Rom. 3). Paul also makes clear in (Gal. 3:23-24), that the law was not a means of justifying us, but a (paidagogos) to make us aware of our sin and to lead us to faith by bringing us to Christ. Now the internal law unbelievers have perform much the same function as does the law Jews have. From the revelation in nature (Rom. 1), people ought to conclude that a powerful, eternal God exist. And from the revelation within (Rom. 2), they should realize that they do not live up to the standard. While the content of the moral code will vary in different cultural situation, all Humans have an inner compulsion that there is something to which they ought to adhere. And everyone should reach the conclusion that he or she is not fulfilling that standard. The knowledge of God which all Humans have if they do not suppress it 18 should bring them to the conclusion that they are guilty in relationship to God. What if someone then were to throw himself or herself upon the mercy of God, not knowing on what basis that mercy was provided? Would not such a person in a sense be in the same situation as the Old Testament believers? The doctrine of Christ and His atoning work had not been fully revealed to these people. Yet they knew that there was provision for the forgiveness of sins, and that they could not be accepted on the merits of any works of their own. They had the form of the Bible without its full content. And they were saved. Now if the god known in nature is the same as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (as Paul seems to asserts in (Acts, 17:23), then it would seem that persons who come to a belief in a single powerful God, who despair of any work righteousness to place this Holy God, and Who threw themselves upon the mercy of this good God, would be accepted as were the Old Testament believers. The basis of acceptance would be the work of Jesus Christ, even though the person involved is not conscious that this is how provision has been made for his or her salvation. We should note that the basis of salvation was apparently the same in the Old Testament as in the New Testament. Salvation has always been appropriated by faith (Gal. 3:6-9); this salvation rest on Christ’s deliverance of us from the law (Gal. 3:10-14, 19-29). Nothing has been changed in that respect. What inference are we to draw, then, from Paul’s statement in (Rom. 2:1-16)? Is it conceivable that one can be saved by faith without having the special revelation? Paul seems to be laying open this possibility. Yet we have no indication from the Bible how many, if any, actually experience salvation without having special revelation. Paul suggests in Romans 3 that no one does. 19 Paul urges the necessity of teaching the Bible so that people may believe. Thus it is apparent that in failing to respond to the light of general revelation which they have, Humans are fully responsible, for they have truly known God, but have wilfully suppressed that truth. That there is a possibility of somehow entering a relationship of favour with God on this basis seems to be required by Paul’s words, “So that [they] are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20). Thus in effect the general revelation serves, as does the law, merely to make guilty, not to make righteous. 1.Francis Schaeffer,The God who is there: (Downers Grove,iii: Inter Varsity, 1968). . 2. Karl Barth, in Revelation, ed. John Basille and Hugh Martin (New York: Macmillan 1973). 20 TOPIC 4 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE UNDERSTANDING OF GOD Most people need a more personal understanding of God than is available through nature, and general history. God has provided particular revelation of Himself. The way by which personal revelation of God is fashioned includes God’s dealing with persons, everyday Human experience, and language and understanding that He uses. The modalities that God uses included historical events, divine speech, and the incarnation of God in Christ. Theologians have disagreed as to whether special revelation is propositional or personal. The Bible provides both cognitive and affective knowledge of God. Historical Events; God‘s self-revelation is to be found in His personal action in history or His “Mighty Deeds,” This is appropriate, for God has been at work in concrete historical ways within our world, affecting what occurs. The Bible emphasizes the whole series of divine events by which God has made Himself known. From the prospective of the people of Israel. The call of Abraham, to whom they looked as the father of their nation. The major event for Israel, still celebrated by Jews, was the deliverance from Egypt through the series of plagues culminating in the Passover and the crossing of the Red Sea. Revelation is not seen as the communication of information to Humanity. Rather, it is God’s presentation of Himself. Revelation is a personal encounter between God and Human. In the incident of the burning bush (Exod. 3). Moses actually met with God 21 and new Him in a direct way. And in the year King Uzziah died, Isaiah saw God in all His majesty and grandeur (Isa. 6). And a particular striking occurrence is the incidence reported in (John 12). When the Father spoke from heaven, some said that an angel had spoken to Jesus. Some said it had thundered. Only a few actually met with God as a result. Moreover, Jesus maintains that there was an objective revelation associated with historical events. Thus He said in response to Philip’s request to be shown the Father, “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John, 14:9). Furthermore, Jesus placed responsibility on those who had heard Him (and had also seen His miracles): “He who has ears, let him hear” (Matt. 11:15). He inveighed against the Pharisees for attributing to Beelzebub the deeds he had done, which were actually the Holy Spirit’s work through Him. Thus He seemed to be saying that the historical events actually were revelation. For that matter, the Psalmists and prophets speak as if they and the people of Israel had actually seen God’s works (Ps. 78). In the New Testament we find an example in Paul’s message (Acts 13: 16-41), which begins with the patriarchs, continues through David to Jesus Christ. Divine Speech; is God’s speech. A very common expression in the Bible and especially in the Old Testament is the statement, “The word of the Lord came to me…” (Jer. 18:1; Ezek. 12:1, 8, 17, 21, 26, Hos. 1:1Joel.1:1; Amos 3:1).The Prophets had a consciousness that their message was not of their own creation, but was from God. In writing the Book of Revelation, John was attempting to communicate God’s message. The writer to the Hebrews noted that God has spoken often in times past, and now had particularly spoken 22 through His Son (Heb.1:1-2). God does not merely demonstrate through His actions what He is like; He also speaks, telling us about Himself, His plans, His will. Paul occasionally indicates that he “things” he has the Spirit of God (1 Cor. 7:40), at other times he is more definite that he has received his message from the Lord (1 Cor. 11:23). There are also some cases where Paul does not indicate consciousness of God’s directing his writing, although God was doubtless doing so. The Incarnation here is that Jesus’ life and speech were a special revelation of God; that God directly present in unmediated form. But since God does not have a Human form, Christ’s Humanity must represent a mediation of the divine revelation. It was the means that conveyed the revelation of deity. The Bible specifically states that God has spoken through His Son. (Hebr. 1: 1-2), Jesus even dared to place His message over against what was written in the Scriptures, not as contradicting, but as going beyond or fulfilling them. {Matt. 5:17). When the prophets spoke, they were bearers of a message from and about God. When Jesus spoke, it was God Himself speaking. There was directness about His message. Here revelation as act and as word come together Jesus both spoke the Father’s word and demonstrated the Father’s attributes. He was the most complete revelation of God, because He was God. John could make the amazing statement. “That which was from the beginning which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands toughed” (1 John 1:1). And Jesus could say, “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Special revelation, we mean God’s manifestation of Himself to particular persons at definite times and places, enabling 23 those to enter into a redemptive relationship with Him. When Moses asked who he should say had send him to the people of Israel, Jehovah responded by giving His Name, “I AM WHO I AM [or I WILL I BE, WHO I WILL I BE,]” (Exod. 3:14). Moreover, God entered into personal covenants with individuals, Noah, Abraham and with the nation of Israel. And note the benediction Aaron and his sons were to pronounce upon the people: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace” (Num. 6:24-26). The psalms contain numerous testimonies of personal experience with God: and the goal of Paul’s life was a personal acquaintance with God: “I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death” (Phil. 3:10). And what God reveals is primarily Himself as a person, and especially those dimensions of Himself that are particularly significant for faith. 1. G. Ernest Wright, God who acts; Biblical theology as Recital (London, SCM. 152). 2. 3. Revelation as History. Bernard Ramm, Special Revelation and the Word of God (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1961). 24 TOPIC 5 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE BIBLE IS INSPIRED Inspiration is necessary because it confirms the nature of God’s special revelation through the Bible. An important part of Biblical Theology is the formulation of a theory of the extent to which the Bible is inspired. A variety of theories have been propounded. These are scrutinized and evaluated. Over centuries the Biblical writers support a high view of inspiration. While in the proper sense, inspiration is of the writers, in the derivative sense we may also say that the writings themselves are inspired. By inspiration of the Bible we mean that Supernatural influence of the Holy Spirit, on the Bible writers, which rendered their writings on accurate record of the revelation or which resulted in what they wrote actually being the word of God. The Bible witnesses to its divine origin in several ways. One of these is the view of New Testament authors regarding the Bible of their day, which we would today term the Old Testament. (2 Peter, 1:20-21) “Above all, you must understand that no prophesy of the Bible came about by the prophet’s own inspiration. For prophesy never had its origin in the will of man, but man spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” Here Peter is affirming that the prophecies of the Old Testament were not of Human origin. They were not produced by Human will or decision. They were moved or borne along (phenomenoi) by the Spirit of God. The impetus that led to the 25 writing was from the Holy Spirit. A second reference is that of Paul in (2 Tim. 3:16): “All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” Paul assumes Timothy is familiar with the “Holy Bible” (Tim. 3:15); and urges him to continue in them since they are divinely inspired or “God breathed.” The inspiration here is that they are divinely produced, just as God breathed the breath of life into the Human (Gen. 2:7). They therefore carry value for building up the believer into maturity in order to be “thorough equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:17).When we turn to the early church’s teaching, we find a similar understanding of the Old Testament. In (Act s, 1:16) Peter says, “Brothers, the Bible had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ego through the mouth of David…”and then proceed to quote from (Ps. 69:25 and 109:8). Regarding the fate of Judas. The same thought, that God spoke by the mouth of the prophets, is found in (Acts 3:18, 21, and 4:25). The (kerigma), then, identifies “it is written in the Bible” with “God has said it.” This fits well with the prophets’ own testimony. Again and again they declared. “Thus says the Lord.” Micah wrote: “Every man will sit under his own vine and under his own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the Lord Almighty has spoken” (Micah, 4:4). Jeremiah said: “These are the words the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah” (Jer.30:4). Isaiah affirmed: “The Lord spoke to me…He said…” (Isa. 8:11). Amos declared: “Hear this word the LORD has spoken against you. O people of Israel” (Amos, 3:1). And David said: “The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; His word was on my tongue” (2 Sam. 23:2). Statements like these, which appear over and over again in the prophets, indicate that they were aware of being “carried along by the 26 Holy Spirit” (2 Peter, 1:21; John 10:35). In His discussion and disputes with His opponents, He (Jesus) repeatedly quoted from the Bible. He spoke of the authority and permanence of the Bible; “the Bible cannot be broken;” (John 10:35); “until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matt. 5:18). Two objects were regarded as sacred in the Israel of Jesus day, the temple and the Bible. He did not hesitate to point out the transiency of the former, (Jerusalem) for not one stone would be left upon another (Matt. 24:2). Paul wrote that the Good News received by the Thessalonians had come by the Holy Spirit (1 Thess. 1:5), and had been accepted by them as what it really was, the word of God (1 Thess.2:13). 1. James Martineau, A Study of Religion: Its Sources and Countents (Oxford: Clarendon . 1889. 2. Dewcy Beegle, Scriptur, Tradition and Infalliability (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1973). 27 TOPIC 6 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE FULL INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE Inerrancy is the doctrine that the Bible is fully truthful in all of its teachings. Theologians have argued over the levels to which the Bible is inerrant. If the Bible is not inerrant, then our knowledge of God may be inaccurate and unreliable. Inerrancy is a corollary to the full inspiration of the Bible. Theologians have employed a number of strategies to explain the apparent discrepancies between Biblical passages. While detailed scientific descriptions or mathematically exact statements are not possible, inerrancy means that the Bible, when judged by the usage of its time, teaches the truth without any affirmation of error. The term inerrancy means different things to different people, who contend over which position properly deserves to be called by that name. Absolute inerrancy holds that the Bible, which includes rather detailed treatment of matters both scientific and historical, is fully true. Full inerrancy also holds that the Bible is completely true. Inerrancy of purpose holds that the Bible inherently accomplishes its purpose. The purpose of the Biblical revelation is to bring people into personal fellowship with Christ, not to communicate truths. It accomplishes this purpose effectively. The Bible assertions are fully true when judged in accordance with the purpose for which they were written. 28 We often find approximations in the Bible. There is no real conflict between the statement in (Numb. 25:9); that 24.000 died by the plague and Paul’s statement in (1 Cor. 10:8); that 23.000 died. There is a problem with the Bible’s chronology at several points as well. The reigns of the kings of Israel, for example, are dated in terms of the reigns of the kings of Judah, but here some real discrepancies occur. The Israelites’ stay in Egypt (they were enslaved for four hundred years (Acts, 7:6); does not coincide with the account in Exodus. There are several problems with numbers as well. In parallel passages, in (2 Samuel, 10:18); speaks of 700 chariots where in (1 Chronical, 19:18); has 7.000; in (2 Samuel, 8:4); refers to 1,700 horsemen and 20.000 foot soldiers where in (1 Chronical, 18:4); has 7.000 horsemen and 20.000 foot soldiers. All are approximations, and for the purpose involved, are adequate and therefore may be regarded as true. 1. Harold Lindsell, The Battle for the Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1976). 2. Paul King Jewett, Man as Male and Female (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975). 3. Dewcy Beegle, Scripture, Tradition, and Infallibility (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1973). 4. Orr, Revalation and Inspiration. 29 TOPIC 7 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD IS THE AUTHORITY As Creator and Source of all Truth, God has the right to command, belief and obedience from all Human beings. Although in some cases God exercises authority directly, He normally uses other means. One way He accomplishes this is through other Human beings. God communicates His message to Human beings. He has the right to command Human actions and speech. When appropriately interpreted, this occurs through the Bible. Some persons have attempted to separate the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit and the objective content of the Bible. Rightly understood, the Holy Spirit illuminates, convicts, and applies the teaching of the Bible to both the Human understanding and the heart. The Bible is historically authoritative, that is, it tells us correctly what God expected or required from specific persons at particular times and places. Some of the Bible is also normatively authoritative. That means that those parts of the Bible are to be applied and obeyed in the same fashion in which they were originally given. From the Christian standpoint, God is the authority in these matters because of Who He is. He is the highest being, the one who always has been, who existed before we or any other being came into existence. He is the only being having the power of His own existence within Himself, not dependent on anyone or anything else for His existence. He is the authority because of what He has done. He 30 has created us as well as everything else in the entire world and redeemed us. He is also rightfully the authority, the one who has a right to prescribe what we are to believe and how we are to act, because of His continuing activity in the world and in our lives. He maintains His creation in existence. He continues to give us life, cares for us, and provides for our needs. In (John, 1:1-5). John rights: In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. Paul, in (Philip. 2:611). Rights: Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, He gave His divine privileges. He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a Human being. When He appeared in Human form. He humbled Himself in obedience to God, and died a criminal- death in a cross. Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honour and gave Him the name above all other names, that 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. In (Matt. 16:1316): When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is? The disciples replied: “Some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” Jesus asked them, “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered. “The Christ the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus replied. “You are blessed, Simon son of 31 Jonah,” because My Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any Human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means rock), and upon this rock I will build my Church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.” In (John, 10:30) “The Father and I are one.” In (John. 14:8-11) Philip said “Lord Shaw us the Father, and we will be satisfied. Jesus replied. “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. So why are you asking Me to show Him to you? Don‘t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words I speak are not My own, but My Father Who lives in Me. Does His work through Me. Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me. Or at least believe because of the work you seen Me do. In (John, 10:31-38) Once again the people picked up stones to kill Him. Jesus said. At my Father’s direction, I have done many good works for which one are you going to stone Me? They replied. “We are stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy. You a mere man, claim to be God.” Jesus replied.”… Why do you call it blasphemy when I say, “I am the Son of God?” After all…Then you will know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father. The Holy Spirit is needed if the Human is to understand the meaning of the Bible and be certain of its truth. In (Matt. 13:13-15) and (Mark, 8:18). Jesus speaks of those who hear but never understand and see but never perceive. In (Matt.13:15). They know God but do not Honour Him as God, and so they have become futile in 32 their thinking and their senseless minds are darkened. In (Rom. 1:21; Rom. 11:8 and 1. Cor. 2:14) Paul tells us that the natural person has not received the gifts of the Spirit of God. From all of these considerations, it appears that Paul is not saying that unspiritual person understand but do not accept. But this condition is overcome when the Holy Spirit begins to work within us. There is also, however, a continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, a work particularly described and elaborated by Jesus in His message to His followers. In (John, 14:16). Jesus promises the coming of the Holy Spirit. In (John, 14:26; 15:26; 16:7 and 16:13). The Holy Spirit was to take Jesus place and to perform His own functions. The Holy Spirit will teach the believers all things and bring to their remembrance all that Jesus had taught them (John, 14:26). The Holy Spirit will witness to Jesus. The disciples will also be witnesses to Jesus, because they have been with Him from the beginning. (John, 15:26-27). The Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. (John, 16:8). In (John, 16:13) The Holy Spirit will guide believers into all truth. He will not speak on His own authority, but will speak whatever He hears. In (John, 16:14) The Holy Spirit will also glorify Jesus. In (John, 14:17). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. 1. Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans , 1953). 2. Bernand Ramm, The Pattern of Authority (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1957), pp. 10-12. Augustine, The City of God. 33 TOPIC 8 GOD IS IN COMMAND QUALITIES OF GOD We must make an important distinction between the acts of God and the attributes of God. Several methods have been employed to classify the attributes or qualities of God. We have chosen to follow the classification that differentiates His greatness and His goodness. Sometimes these attributes have been called His natural attributes and His moral attributes, respectively. We concentrate on His greatness, that is, that God is personal, all Powerful, Eternal, Spirit, present everywhere within His creation, and unchanging in His perfection. God is Spirit; that is, He is not composed of matter and does not-possesses a physical nature. This is most clearly stated by Jesus in (John, 4:24) “God is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship in Spirit and in Truth,” and is also implied in various references to His invisibility, in (John, 1:18; 1 Tim. 1:17, and 6:15-16). One consequence of God’s spirituality is that He does not have the limitations involved with a physical body. For one thing He is not limited to a particular location geographical or spatial location. This is location in Jesus’ statement, “a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem” (John, 4:21). Also Paul’s statement in (Acts, 17:24): “The God-who made the world and everything in it, is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.” Further- more, He is not destructible, as is material nature. 34 God has a personality, is indicated in several ways in the Bible. One is the fact that God has a name, when Moses wonders how he should respond when the Israelites will ask the name of the God Who has sent him God identifies Himself as “I AM” or “I WILL BE” (Yahweh, Jehovah, the Lord). (Exod. 3:14). God is characterized by life. This is affirmed in the Bible in several different ways. It is found in the assertion that He is. His very name “I AM” (Exod. 3:14). In (Hebr. 11:6), says that anyone who “comes to Him must believe that He exist and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” In (John, 5:26), speaks of God as having life in Himself, and in (1 Thess. 1:9), for they keep talking about…how you turned away from idols to serve the living and true God. God’s life is different from that of every other living being. While all other being have their life in God, He does not derive His life from any external source. He is never depicted as having been brought into being. In (John, 5:26), says, that He has life in Himself. Further, we are told that “in the beginning,” before anything else came to be, God was already in existence (Gen.1:1). Thus, He could not have derived His existence from anything else. Moreover, the continuation of God’s existence does not depend on anything outside Him. All other beings, insofar as they are alive, need something to sustain that life. Nourishment, warmth, protection, all are necessary. In (Matt. 6:25-33), Jesus notes that the birds and the flowers depend on the Father’s provision. God, however, has no such need. God is infinite. This means not only that God is unlimited, but that He is inimitable. In (Matt. 28:19-20 and Acts, 1:8) Thus He in effect indicated that He is not limited either by space or by time. In (Acts, 17:24-25). Paul‘s statement that God does not dwell in man-made shrines, because He is the Lord 35 of heaven and earth; He made the world and everything in it. In (Rev. 1:8) “I am the Alpha and the Omega”-“the beginning and the end” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come-the Almighty One.” 1. Charnock.Existence, and Attributes of God. Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology, (Westwood, N.J. : Revell, 1907). 2. Berkhol. Systematic Theology. 36 TOPIC 9 GOD IS IN COMMAND HOLINESS OF GOD The goodness of God may be discovered in all of His relationships with His creations. It is most effectively demonstrated in His moral attributes of purity, integrity and the entire complex of characteristics that are identified as His love. Sometimes these attributes are viewed as conflicting with each other, as in the case of justice and love. When correctly viewed, however, this is not the case. Some have suggested other methods for understanding the nature of God. But the method of drawing inferences from Biblical statements about God is the most satisfactory method. Moral Purity we are referring to God’s absolute freedom from anything wicked or evil. His moral purity includes the dimensions of (1) Holiness, (2) Righteousness, and (3) Justice. Holiness, there are two basic aspects to God’s Holiness. The first is His uniqueness. He is totally separate from all of creation. In (Exod. 15:11). “Who among the gods is like, You O Lord: In (1 Samuel, 2:2 and Isa, 57:15). Isaiah saw the Lord “seated on a throne, high and exalted.” The foundations of the thresholds shook, and the house was filled with smoke. The Seraphim cried out, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord Almighty” (Isa. 6:1-4). In the incident of the burning bush Moses was told to take off his shoes since the ground on which he stood was holy (Exod. 3). In like manner, when God came down on Mount Sinai, it was separated from the Israelite encampment. No one but Moses was to go up into the mountain or even touch the border of it (Exod. 19). 37 Similar restrictions applied to the tabernacle and later the temple. The Most Holy Place was veiled off from the Holy Place (Exod. 26:33; 1 Kings, 6:16). Access was barred to all but the high priest, and he entered only once a year. Proper reaction to God’s Holiness, His separateness, is one of owe, reverence, and silence, “Let them praise Your Great and Awesome Name He is Holy” (Ps. 99:3). 1. The other aspect of God‘s Holiness is God’s perfection: is the standard for our moral character and the motivation for religious practice. The whole moral code follows from His Holiness. The people of Israel were told, “I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy because I am Holy. Do not make your selves unclean by any creature that moves about on the ground. I am the LORD Who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am Holy” (Lev. 11:44-45). The same thought is expressed in (Lev. 19:2 and Matt. 5:48); Because of God’s flawlessness, a similar quality is expected of those objects or persons set apart unto Him. Priests are to be without any physical blemish. The same is true of sacrificial animals, but perfect ones without any blemish (Lev.1:3, 10; 3:1 and 6; 4:3). God’s absolute purity or goodness. This means that He is untouched and unstained by the evil in the world. In Habakkuk: “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; You cannot tolerate wrong.” In (Matt. 5:48). God not only is personally free from any moral wickedness or evil. He is unable to tolerate its presence. The second dimension of God‘s moral purity is His Righteousness: This is as it were, God‘s Holiness applied to His relationships to other beings. The Lord Himself says, “I am the LORD, 38 who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for in this I delight” (Jer. 9:24). Justice is His official righteousness. The Bible makes clear that sin has definite consequences, which must eventually come to pass, whether sooner or later. In (Gen. 2:17), God’s warning to Adam and Eve: “You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” In (Rom. 6:23). Paul states “The wages of sin is death.” In (Ps. 58:11 and Rom. 12:19). All indicate that God will punish sin, intrinsically deserves to be punished. In (Sam. 8:3 and Amos, 5:12).The reason for the condemnation was that they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice. Integrity relates to the matter of truth. There are three dimensions of truthfulness; (1) genuineness being true; (2) veracity telling the truth; and (3) faithfulness proving true. God’s genuineness means that He is a real God. In (John, 17:3). Jesus addresses the Father as the only true God. There are similar references in (1Thess. 1:9; 1 John, 5:20; Rev.3:7 and 6:10). Divine Veracity means that God represents things as they really are. In (Titus. 1:2). Paul speaks of the God “Who does not lie.” In (Hebr. 6:18). We read that when God added His Oath to His promise, there were “two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lay.” In (John, 17:17) Jesus spoke of the word of God as being the truth. His faithfulness means that He proves true. God keeps all His promises. In (1Thess. 5:24). Paul is more concise: “The One Who calls you is faithful and He will do it.” Similar descriptions of God as 39 faithful are to be found in (1 Cor. 1:18-22; 2 Timothy 2:13; and 1 Peter 4:19). Love, is the basic attribute, the very nature or definition of God. In (1John, 4:8 and 16), we read: “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is Love… And so we know and rely on, the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever, lives in love, lives in God, and God in Him.” In (2 Cor. 13:11), speaks of “the God of love and peace.”…love has always been present among the members of the Trinity, even before here were any created beings. Jesus said, “but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded Me” (John, 14:31). And in (Matt. 3:17), reports that a voice from heaven said of Jesus, “This is My Son, Whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.” The basic dimensions of God’s love to us are: (1) benevolence, (2) grace, (3) mercy, and (4) persistence. Benevolence is a basic dimension of God’s love. He unselfishly seeks our ultimate welfare. In (John, 3:16) “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Grace is another attribute that is part of the manifold of God’s love. He deals with them on the basis of His goodness and generosity. In (Exod. 34:6) God says of Himself “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” In (Eph. 1:5-8). Paul attributes our salvation to the grace of God: “In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ. In accordance with His pleasure and will to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given to us in the One He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, 40 in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.” The final dimension of the love of God is persistence. In (Ps. 86:15; Rom. 2:4; 9:22; 1 Peter, 3:20; and 2 Peter, 3:15). In all of those verses God is pictured as withholding judgment and continuing to offer salvation and grace over long period of time. In (John, 2:7-11; 3:11-18). John insisted that the absence of practical acts of concern is an indication that one supposed Christian experience is not genuine and that God’s love does not abide in him. God’s mercy is His tender hearted, loving compassion for His people. It is His tenderness of heart toward the needy. In (Exod. 3:7). He heard their cry and knew their sufferings. In (Mark, 1:41). It is also seen in the compassion Jesus felt, when people suffering from physical ailments came to Him. In (Matt. 9:36). Their spiritual condition also moved Him. In (Exod. 3:7), the attribute of mercy is seen in the pitying concern of Jehovah for the people of Israel who were in bondage to the Egyptians. He heard their cry and knew their sufferings. In (Matt. 9:35-36). When Jesus saw the crowds were helpless like sheep without a shepherd, He had compassion on them. So He went about “teaching in their synagogues, the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.” 1.Strong, Systematic theology. . 2. Nels Ferre, The Christian Understanding of God. (New York: Harper &Brothers, 1951. 3. Berhof, Systematic Theology. 41 42 TOPIC 10 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD’S PRESENCE The Bible teaches that God is both immanent and transcendent. God is present and active within His creation, but superior to and independent of anything that He has created. These Biblical ideas must be kept in balance. The tendency to emphasize one or the other will lead to a faulty conception of God. While they are not attributes of God as such, they both affect His greatness and His goodness. There are significant practical implications that follow an understanding of these doctrines. By immanence we mean God’s presence and activity within nature, human nature, and history. In (Jer. 23:24), emphasizes God’s presence throughout the whole of the universe. “Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him; declares the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth; declares the LORD.” In (Acts, 17:27-28), Paul told the philosophers on Mar’s Hill in Athens: “He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our beings. As some of your own poets have said. We are His offspring’s.” There are also passages which note that God’s Spirit originates and/or sustains all things; are dependent on Him The Book of Job includes several references to the indwelling and sustaining Spirit or breath of God: “as 43 long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils” (Job, 27:3). “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life” (Job, 33:4); “If it were, His intention and He withdraw His Spirit and His breath, all mankind would perish together and man would return to the dust” (Job, 34:14-15). And in (Gen. 1:2), The Spirit of God is pictured as moving or brooding upon the face of the waters. In (Gen. 2:7), we read that God breathed into the man, and he became a living being. In (Micah, 3:8, and Haggai. 2:5), note that God’s Spirit dwells within or among His people. In (Matt. 5:45; 6:25-30 and 10:2930). The sending of sunshine and rain, the feeding and protecting of the birds of the air and the clothing of the flowers are all credited to the Father. A number of Biblical passages affirm to concept of divine transcendence. In (Isa. 55:8-9)”For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the LORD. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.” In (Isa. 6:1-5). The Lord is depicted as “seated on a throne, high and exalted. “The seraphim call out, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD Almighty,” an indication of His transcendence, and add,” the whole earth is full of His Glory,” In (Ps. 123:1). He is described as the one “whose throne is in heaven.” In (John, 8:23). Jesus draws a contrast between Himself and His hearers; “You are from bellow; I am from above. You are of this world I am not of this world.” While God is never fully within our grasp since, He goes far beyond our ideas and forms, yet He is always available to us when we turn to Him. 44 1. John A.T. Robinson, Honest to God (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1963). 2. Rudolf Otto, The Idea of the Holy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1958). 3. Martin Heinecken, The Moment Before God (Philadelphia: Muhlenberg, 1956). 45 TOPIC 11 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE TRINITARIAN VIEW OF GOD The Bible does not explicitly teach the Trinitarian view of God, but the teaching that God is One and that three persons are God clearly imply this view. Christianity is the only major religion that makes this claim about God. Numerous attempts have been made to understand this profound truth. Some have led to distortions of this very important doctrine. While we may never fully comprehend this difficult doctrine, there are analogies that can help us understand more fully. Properly understood, this doctrine has profound practical implications for the Christian life. The unity of God: That God is one; was revealed to Israel at several different times and in various ways. The Ten Commandments, begin with the statement, “I am the LORD your God, 46 who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me [or besides ME]” (Exod. 20:2-3). It is clearly assumed throughout the Old Testament In that there is but one God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exod.3:13-15). And in (Deuteronomy, 6:4). “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one.” The teaching regarding God’s oneness is not restricted to the Old Testament. In (James, 2:19), commends believe in one God. In (Cor. 8:4, 6). Paul writes: there is no God but one…the Father, from Whom all things came and for Whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through Whom all things came and through Whom we live. ”Here Paul excludes idolatry on the ground that there is only one God. Similarly, Paul writes to Timothy: (1 Tim. 2:5-6): “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, Who gave Himself as a ransom for all men. ”All this evidence, if taken by it would no doubt lead us to a basically monotheistic belief. What, then, moved the church beyond this evidence? It was the additional Biblical witness to the effect that three persons are God. The deity of the first, the Father, is scarcely in dispute. In Paul’s writings, just cited (1 Cor. 8:4-6 and 1 Tim. 2:5-6), we may note the case where Jesus refers to the Father as God. In (Matt. 6:26), He indicates that “your heavenly Father feeds [the birds of the air].” In parallel statement He indicates that “God cloths the grass of the field.” In (Matt. 6:30), and in verses 31-32, he states that we need not ask about what we shall eat or drink or wear because “your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” It is apparent that, for Jesus, “God” and “your heavenly Father” are interchangeable expressions. And in numerous other references to God, Jesus obviously has the Father in mind (Matt. 19:23-26; 27:46; 47 Mark 12:17, 24-27). A key reference to the deity of Christ Jesus is found in (Phil. 2:5-11); Paul has taken what was in all likelihood hymn of the early church and used it as the basis of an appeal to his readers to practice Humanity. He speaks of Christ Jesus: “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped.” In (Phil.2:6). For Paul, an orthodox Jew trained in the ribboning teaching of strict Judaism, is indeed an astonishing statement. Reflecting the faith of the early church, it suggests a deep commitment to the full deity of Christ. This commitment is indicated not only by the use of (morfi) but by the expression (isa) equal, with God.” And one Who is equal with God must be God. Another significant passage is (Hebrews 1). He is writing to a group of Hebrew Christians. He makes several statements that strongly imply the full deity of the Son. A final consideration is Jesus’ own self-consciousness. We should note, that Jesus never directly asserted His deity. Yet several threads of evidence suggest that this indeed He understood Himself. He claimed to possess what properly belongs only to God. He spoke of the angels of God (Luke, 12:8-9; 15:10), as His angels (Matt.13:41). He regarded the kingdom of God (Matt. 12:28; 19:14; 21:31, 43), and the elect of God (Mark, 13:20), as His own. Further, He claimed to forgive sins, and they consequently accused Jesus of blasphemy. He also claimed the power to judge the world (Matt. 25:31), and to reign over it (Matt. 24:30 and Mark, 14:62). 2. The Deity of Jesus: In (John. 1:1-5). John says in the first verse of the book: “The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to everything that 48 was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” Here is an indication of the divinity of the Word; while the Son is distinct from the Father, yet there is fellowship between them. There are other ways in which this Bible stresses the closeness and unity between the Father and the Son. In (Matt. 16:13-16), when Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is…Then He asked them. ”But who do you say I am;” Simon Peter answered. “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “You are blessed son of Jonah, because My Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any Human being.” In (John, 1:45-51), Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him we have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote, His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth. “Nazareth?” exclaimed Nathanael. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” “Come and see for yourself” Philip replied. As they approached Jesus said. ”Now here is a genuine son of Israel, a man of complete integrity.” How do You know about me? Jesus replied “I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you.” Exclaimed, “Rabbi You are the Son of God the King of Israel.” Jesus asked him. Do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this Then He said “I tell you the truth you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the One who is the stairway between heaven and earth.” In (John, 10:30) Jesus says, “I and the Father are one.” And in (John, 14:9): “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.” In (Matt. 26:63-64; and In Mark, 14:61-62; and In Luke. 22:70-71).Then 49 the High Priest asked Him. “Are You the Messiah, the Son of God?” Jesus said “I am and you will see Me sitting at the right hand of God, and returning to the earth in the clouds of heaven.” In (Matt.26:63-65 and John, 20:26-29). Eight days later (after the resurrection) the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The door’s, were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them and greeting them. Then He said to Thomas. “Put your finger into My hands. Put your hand into My side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe.” My LORD and My GOD:” Then Jesus told him, you believe because you have seen Me. But blessed are those who have not seen Me and believe.” In (John, 17; 21). “I pray that they will all be one; just as You and I are one as You are in Me, and I am in You. And may they be in us so that the world will believe You sent Me.” 3. The Deity of the Holy Spirit as God: There are passages where references to the Holy Spirit occur interchangeably with references to God. In (Acts, 5:3-4). “Ananias and Sapphire held back a portion of the proceeds from the sale of their property, misrepresenting when they lay at the apostles feet, as the entirety. Here, you are lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts, 5:3): You were not lying to us but to God.”(Acts, 5:4). And in (John, 16:8-11).The Holy Spirit is also described as having the qualities and performing the works of God. The Holy Spirit convicts people of sin, righteousness, and judgment. In (John, 3:8), regenerates or gives new life. In (1 Cor.12:4-11). It is the Spirit who conveys gifts to the Church and who exercises sovereignty over who receives those gifts. In addition, He receives the Honour and Glory reserved to God. In (1 Cor.3:16-17). Paul reminds believers that they are God’s temple and His Spirit dwells within them. In (1 50 Cor.19:20). He says that their bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit within them. “God” and “Holy spirit” is put on an equal footing with God. One is the baptismal formula of Matthew. In (2 Cor. 13:14). “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you All.” In (1 Peter, 1:2). Peter addresses his readers as “chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with His blood.” 4. The Trinity is in (John, 5:7). “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” One of these is the baptismal formula as prescribed in the great Commission in (Matt. 28:19-20): baptizing in (or into) the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Yet another direct linking of the three names in unity and apparent equality is the Pauline benediction in (2 Corinthians, 13:14). “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you All.” In (Luke, 1:5). The angel tells Mary that her child will be called Holy, the Son of God, because the Holy Spirit will come upon her. In (Matt. 3:16-17). At the baptism of Jesus, all three persons of the Trinity are present. The Son is baptized, the Spirit of God descends like a dove, and the Father speaks words of commendation of the Son. “This is My beloved Son, and I am wonderfully pleased with Him.” In (Matt. 12:28), Jesus relates His doing of miracles to the power of the Spirit of God, and indicates that this is evidence that the Kingdom of God has come. In (Luke, 24:49), the threefold pattern can also be seen in Jesus statement that He will send the promise of the Father upon the disciples. In (Acts, 2:33, 38). 51 Peter’s message at Pentecost also links all three: “Exalted to the right hand of God, He has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear… Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 1. Theodor Vriezen, An Outline of Old Testament Theology (Oxford: B. Blackwell, 1958). 3. Arthur W. Wainwright, The Trinity in the New Testament (London: SPCK, 1962). 4. George S. Hendry, The Holy Spirit in Christian Theology (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1956). 52 TOPIC 12 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD IS GUIDING HISTORY TO HIS GOAL God has a definite plan for history. This is supported in both the Old and New Testaments. A distinction needs to be made between the term foreordain, which is the broader term, and the term predestinate, which is the narrower term having to do with election or reprobation or both. There are at least nine conclusions that may be drawn both from the Biblical references to God’s plan. Calvinism and Arminianism pose different solutions to the problem of whether God’s plan or Human action is logically prior. From our analysis, we conclude that a moderately Calvinist position is the most Biblically based. Finally, there are a variety of views of history, but the Biblical view posits that God is guiding history to His goal and that we can have assurance that if we align ourselves with His purpose, we will be moving to an assured outcome of history. 53 God’s plan is from all eternity. In (Ps. 139:16). The Psalmist spoke of God’s having planned all of our days before there were any of them. In (Isa. 22:11). Isaiah spoke of God’s having “planned it long ago.” The Lord says, in (Isa. 14:24, 27): “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand…For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?” In (Isa.46:10). He says, the LORD. He will not change His mind, nor will be discover hitherto considerations that will cause Him to alter His intentions. “My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.” In (Ps. 33:11), because the counsel of the Lord is from all eternity and is perfect, it will never fade nor be replaced; it endures forever: “But the plans of the LORD stands firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.” The plan and purpose of God are also prominent in the New Testament. In (Luke, 21:20-22), Jesus saw the events of His life and events in the future as necessarily coming to pass because of God’s plan. Jesus affirmed that God had planned not only the large, complex events, such as the fall and destruction of Jerusalem: But details as well, such as the apostasy of and betrayal by Judas and the faithfulness of the remaining disciples (Matt. 26:24; Mark. 14:21; Luke. 22:22 and John, 17:12; 18:9). The fulfilment of God’s plan and Old Testament prophesy is a prominent theme in the writings of (Matt. 1:22; 2:15, 23; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; 21:4; 26:56 and of John, 12:38; 19:24, 28, 36). Paul In (Eph. 1:4; 3:11), indicates that God “chose us in Him [Christ] before the creation of the world.” And later in the same letter Paul speaks of “His [God’s] eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” In (2 Tim. 1:9-10), Paul writes to Timothy that God has “saved us 54 and called us to a holy life not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time.” These decisions are not made as history unfolds and events occur. God manifests His purpose within history. But they have always been God’s plan, from all eternity, from before the beginning of time. In the Arminian view this aspect of God’s plan is conditional on Human decision; and In the Calvinistic view, God’s plan is unconditional. Finally there is the Christian doctrine of the divine plan, which affirms that, an all wise, all powerful, good God has from all eternity planned what is to occur and that history carrying out His intention. There is a definite goal toward which history is progressing. History, then, is not moved merely by chance happenings, impersonal atoms, or blind fate. The force behind it is, a loving God with Whom we can have a personal relationship. We may look forward with assurance, toward the attainment of the (telos-the end) of the universe. And we may align our lives with the assured outcome of history. 1.Louis Berkfhol, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1953). 2. B. B. Worfield, “Predestination,” in Biblical Doctrines (New York: Oxford University Press, 1929). 3. Henry C. Thiessen, Introductory Lectures in Systematic Theology Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1949). 55 TOPIC 13 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE CREATION God created all things without the use of pre-existing materials. There are at least five elements to the Biblical teaching on creation. From the Biblical teaching we may deduce at least seven Theological conclusions. Several theories have been proposed to harmonize the age of creation and development within creation. The age-day theory seems to be the most plausible answer to the age of creation. The more adequate position of progressive creationism helps explain development within creation. The Christian can have confidence in the greatness of God in His creation of the universe and all that is within it. The very first statement of the Bible is. (Gen. 1:1). “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” It is one of the first assertions in the Book of John, the most Theologically oriented of the New testament Book. (John, 1:3), writes: “In the beginning was the 56 Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.” The five elements are: 1.It is creation out of nothing. 2. The creation was not direct and immediate. 3. Mediate, or derivative creation. 4. God’s subsequent work development. 5. Fashioning what He had originally brought in existence. The seven Theological conclusions are: 1.The doctrine of creation is first, a statement that there is no ultimate reality other than God. 2. The original act of divine creation is unique. 3. The doctrine of creation also means that nothing made is intrinsically evil. Everything has come from God. In (Gen. 1:10, 12, 18, 21, 25,). And the creation narrative says five times that He saw that it was good. Then, when He completed His creation of the Human, we are told (Gen. 1:31) That God saw everything He had made, and it was very good. There was nothing evil within God’s original creation. 4. The doctrine of creation also thrust a responsibility on the Human race. 5. The doctrine of creation also guards against depreciating the incarnation of the second person of the Trinity (Jesus Christ). 6. In (Matt. 6:26-30; 10:29), Jesus indicates in an explicit statement that God loves and cares for all of His creation. 7. According to the doctrine of creation, God simply wills things into existence out of nothing. The individual elements of the world are genuine creatures dependent on God their Creator. Nothing other than God is self-sufficient or eternal. Everything else, every object and every being, derives its existence from Him. It exists to do His will. Only God deserves our worship. Everything else exists for His sake, not He for its sake. 57 1. Langdon Gilkey, Maker of Heaven and Earth (Garden City, N.Y. : Doubleday, 1965). 2. Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology (Westwood, N.J.: Revell, 1907). TOPIC 14 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD MAINTAINS THE CREATION The providence of God means the continuing action of God in preserving His creation and guiding it toward His intended purposes. Preservation means that God maintains the creation that He brought into existence. Government means that God is actively engaged in achieving His purposes in His creation and that sin cannot thwart those purposes. There are at least seven features of God’s governing activity. While prayer does not change God, it brings the Christian in line with God’s purposes, thus enabling God to accomplish those purposes. God does choose on occasion to counteract the natural law to fulfil His purposes; this occurs in a miracle. For the believer, God is ever present and active in caring for him or her. Numerous Biblical passages speak of God’s preserving the creation as a whole. In (Nehemiah, 9:6), Ezra says, “You alone are the LORD God. You made the heavens, the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven 58 worship You.” After a statement about the role of Christ in creation, Paul links Him to the continuation of the creation as well: “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17). The writer to the Hebrews speaks of the Son as “sustaining all things by His powerful word” (Hebr. 1:3). The disciples concerned about the necessities of life what they would eat and what they would wear. Jesus reassured them that the Father feeds the birds of the air and clothes the flowers of the fields…Jesus argument moves to Humans; they are of more value than the birds (Matt. 6:26), and flowers (Matt.6:29-34). But what is the price of two sparrows-one coin? Not one of them can fall to the ground without the Father knowing it. Even the hairs of our heads are numbered so great is the Father’s knowledge of what transpires within His creation. (Matt.10:28-34). During a severe storm, He spoke only the words, “Quiet. Be still.” And the storm abated. (Mark, 4:38-39). The disciples asked themselves, “Who is this. He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him.” (Luke, 8:22-25). And in (Ps. 104:2129)…God guides and directs the animal creation, the beasts from the young lions to the teeming sea creatures, are depicted as carrying out His will and as depending on Him for their provisions. In (1 Kings. 17:4), Jehovah tells Elijah that He will provide for him during the coming drought: “You will drink from the brook, and I ordered the ravens to feed you there.” Paul in his Mars; Hill, in Athens address, said that “From one man He [God] made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.” (Acts, 17:26), Paul asserts that even before He was born God had set Him apart for His task (Gal. 1:15-16). 59 1. God’s governing activity is universal. In (Rom. 8:28). Paul wrote, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” 2. God’s providence does not extend merely to His own people. In (Matt. 5:45). Jesus said this quite openly. “He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” 3. God is good in His government. In (Rom. 8:29). “The good is associated with God’s purpose, and that in turn identified as the conforming of His children to the image of His Son.” 4. God is personally concerned about those who are His. In (Luke, 15:3-7).Because of the size and complexity of the kingdom of God we might be tempted to draw this conclusion. But various pictures Jesus gives us of the Father indicate the personal dimension of His care. He cares about the one lost sheep. In (John, 10:3-6, 14, 27). And searches until He finds it. The good shepherd knows His sheep and calls them by name. They recognize His voice and come, whereas they would disregard the voice of a stranger. In (John, 10:11). The shepherd watches over His sheep, protects them, even gives his life for them if needs be. 5. Our activity and God’s activity are not mutually exclusive. We have no basis for laxity, indifference, or resignation in the face of the fact that God is at work accomplishing His goals. As we have seen, His providence includes Human action. In (Matt. 26:42). And (Luke, 2:1). Sometimes Humans are conscious that their actions are fulfilling divine intention, as when Jesus said that He 60 must do the Father’s will. At other times there is an unwitting carrying out of God’s plan. 6. God is sovereign in His government. In (Judg. 6:36-40).This means that He alone determines His plan and knows the significance of each of His actions. It is not necessary for us to know where He is leading. We need to be careful, then, to avoid dictating to God what He should do to give us direction. 7. We need to be careful as to what we identify as God’s providence. We have seen that the doctrine of providence is not an abstract conception. It is the believer’s conviction that he or she is in the hands of a good, wise, and powerful God Who will accomplish His purpose in the world. 1. Strong, Systematic Theology. 2. C.S. Lewis, Miracles (New York: Macmillan, 1947). 3. Berkourwer, Providence of God. 61 TOPIC 15 GOD IS IN CONTROL EVIL UN THEWORLD Probably the most difficult intellectual challenge to the Christian faith is the problem of how there can be evil in the world. If God is all-powerful and all-loving, how can evil be present in the world? Although the problem will never be fully resolved within this earthly life, there are Biblical teachings that help alleviate it. A cardinal doctrine of the Theology is the fact of racial sin. This does not mean the sin of race against race, but rather the fact that the entire Human race has sinned and is now sinful. In its head, Adam, the entire Human race violated God’s will and fell from the state of innocence in which God had created the Human race. Consequently, all of us begin life with a natural tendency to sin. The Bible tells us that with the fall, the first sin, a radical change took place in the universe. Death came upon Humanity (Gen. 2:7; 3:2-3, 19). God pronounced a curse on Humanity, which is represented by certain specifics: anguish in childbearing (Gen. 3:16), male domination over the wife (Gen, 3:16), toilsome labour (Gen. 3:17), thorns and thistles 62 (Gen. 3:18), probably merely a sample of the actual effects on the creation. Paul in (Rom. 8) says that the whole creation has been affected by Human sin, and is now in bondage to decay. It waits for its redemption from the bondage. Thus, it appears likely that a whole host of natural evils may also have resulted from the sin of Humans. We live in the world that God created, but it is not quit as it was when God finished it; it is now a fallen and broken world. An important question that must be asked here is how sin could have happened in the first place. If Humans were created good, or at least without any evil nature, made in the image of God, and if the creation God had made was “very good” (Gen.1:31), then how could sin have occurred? What could have motivated such sin? Here we have recourse to the account of the Adamic fall. In (Genesis 3) we read that the serpent tempted Eve. Apparently sometime between the completion of the creation, which God pronounced, “very good” and the temptation of Eve, the fall of Satan had occurred. Thus, an evil force was present within the creation, whose appeal stirred. Within Adam and Eve the desire that led them to sin. “God is in control of all that occurs.” He has a plan for the entire universe, and all of time, and is at work, bringing about that good plan.” “Then God looked over all He had made and he saw that it was very good” (Gen. 1:31).And in (Rom. 8:29). For God knew His people in advance, and He chose them to become like His Son, so that His Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. In (2Cor. 4:17; Hebr. 12:2 and Peter, 1:6-7), writes: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” In (Gal. 6:7-8), “The one who sows to please his 63 sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” In a fair number of cases, we bring evil on ourselves by our own sinful or unwise actions. We must be very careful here. Job’s friends tended to attribute his misfortunes solely to his sins (Job.22). But Jesus indicated that tragedy is not always the result of a specific sin. When His disciples asked concerning a man who had been born blind. “Rabbi who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus replied, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned …but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life” (John, 9:2-3). Jesus was not denying that the man and his parents had sinned, but He was refuting the idea that the blindness was the result of a specific sin. It is unwise to attribute misfortunes as punishments sent from God, and either to feel guilty or to blame God for being unjust in sending a punishment we feel, we do not deserve. The question “Why?” often reflects the mistaken idea that God sends each event as a direct response to our actions. If God sends His sunshine and rain on the unjust and the just alike, then in a world in which sin has brought ravages of nature and disease, misfortune, may also fall on the just and unjust alike. To be sure, God has rendered certain all of what happens, but He has not necessarily targeted every specific ill as a response to some specific sin. But having given caveat, we need to note that there are instances of sin bringing unfortunate results on the individual sinner. A case in point is David, whose sin with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah resulted in the death of the child of David and Bathsheba as well as conflict in David’s own household. This perhaps should be thought of more in terms of the effects of certain acts than 64 in terms of punishment from God. We do not know what was involved, but it may well be certain conditions pertaining at the time of the act of adultery resulted in a genetic defect in the child. In the case of the rape of Tamar by Amnon, and Absalom’s murder of Amnon and sedition against David, it may well be that the seeds were sown by the children’s knowledge of their father’s sin, or by the failure of David to exercise discipline with his children in view of his own sense of guilt, and the feeling that it would be hypocritical on his part to rebuke his sons for doing what he had done. David’s sin may have led to indulgence with his own children, which in turn let to their sins. Much of the evil recounted in the Bible come upon people as a result of their own sin, or that of someone close to them. A prime example is Achan and his family, all of whom were stoned because of his sin, for hiding in the ground beneath his tent, a gold bar and silver, at Jericho (Josh, 7:24-25). 1. Alvin Plantinga, God, Freedom, and Evil (New York ; Harper & Row, 1974). 2. John Hick, Evil and the God of love (New York : Harper & Row, 1966). . 3. Feinberg, Theologies and Evil. 65 TOPIC 16 GOD IS IN CONTROL ANGELS Angels are superhuman, but not divine beings who work within Human history. Some of these, who remained faithful to God, carry out His work. Others, who fell from their created state of holiness, live to oppose God and His children, God’s care and concern for His creation is evident in the ministrations of good angels. By contrast, Satan and his minions seek to thwart the purpose of God. But God has limited their powers. Medieval Christianity engaged in extensive discussion about angels. The major impetus was provided by the work of pseudonymous fifth or sixth-century writer claiming to be Dionysius the Areopagite, who had been converted by Paul in Athens (Acts, 17:34). He classified angels into three groups: (1) thrones, cherubim, seraphim; (2) might’s, dominions, powers: (3) principalities, archangels, angels. The first group, closest to God, enlighten the second group, who in turn enlighten the third group, Dionysius made a great deal of the concept of hierarchy, which he believes to be inherent in all of reality. Basing his argument on Paul’s 66 statement that the law was given by angels (Gal. 3:19). Dionysius maintained that Humans, as a lower order, have no direct access to or manifestation of God, but only through the angels. Human orders, and particularly the church, should reflect a similar hierarchical structure. The Bible does not explicitly state that angels were created nor are they mentioned in the creation account (Gen. 1:2). That they are created is, however, clearly implied in (Ps. 148:2, 3, 4, 5). “Praise Him, all His angels, praise Him, all His heavenly hosts…Let them praise the name of the LORD, for He commanded and they were created.” The angels, as well as the celestial objects mentioned in verses 3 and 4, are declared in (Col. 1:16). Paul seems to identify the heavenly forces as invisible. “For though Him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through Him, and for Him. Apparently the angels were all created directly at one time, since they presumably do not have the power to propagate themselves in the normal fashion and we are told of no new direct creation by God after the original creative effort was completed (Gen. 2:2-3). Jews and Christians have long believed and taught that angels are immaterial or spiritual beings. On the other hand, angels have appeared in the form of Human beings with material bodies. Here, as with the matter of their creation, explicit evidence is not abundant. Indeed, one might conclude that angels and spirits are being distinguished from one another in (Acts, 23:8-9), although angels may be part of the genus of spirit. The clearest statement regarding the spiritual nature of angels is found in (Hebr. 1:14), 67 where the writer, obviously referring to angels (Hebr. 5:13), says: “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” In (Matt. 22:30): “For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven.” And they do not die (Luke 20:34-36). That, angels are spirits seems to follow from Jesus assertion that angels do not marry (Matt. 25:31). The angels will be involved in the second coming. They will accompany the Lord at His return (Matt. 13:39-42). Just as, they were present at other significant events of Jesus life, including His birth, temptation, and resurrection. They will separate the wheat from the weeds (Matt. 24:31 and 1 Thess. 4:16-17). Christ will send forth His angels with a loud trumpet call to gather the elect from the four winds. (Matt. 18:10). “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you, that, their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father in heaven.” Angels continually praise and glorify God (Job 38:7; Ps. 103:20 and Rev. 5:11-12; 7:11; 8:14). While this activity usually takes place in God’s presence, on at least one occasion it took place on earth at the birth of Jesus the angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth” (Luke, 2:13-14). Angels reveal and communicate God’s message to Humans of the Word. Angels were particularly involved as mediators of the law (Acts, 7:53; Gal. 3:19 and Hebr. 2:2). The New Testament frequently depicts them as conveyers of messages from God, Gabriel to Zachariah (Luke, 1:13-20) and to Mary (Luke, 1:26-38). Angels also spoke to Phillip (Acts, 8:26). Cornelius (Acts, 10:3-7). Angels minister to believers. This includes protecting believers from harm. In the earth church, it was an angel that delivered the apostles (Acts, 5:19). 68 When the maid Rhoda told the others in the house that Peter was at the gate, they said, “It must be his angel” (Acts, 12:15, Genesis 2:1 and Job 38:7), indicate that the angels were part of the original creation, but these texts are not sufficiently clear to be utilized as a foundation for that belief. Apparently the angels were all created directly at one time, since they presumably do not have the power to propagate themselves in the normal fashion and we are told of no new direct creation by God after the original creative effort was completed (Gen. 2:2-3). And in (Luke, 16:22), Jesus could have called twelve legions of angels; several angels carried Lazarus’s soul to Abraham bosom. 1. Billy Graham, Angels: God s secret Agents (Garden City, N.Y. Doubleday. 2. Wilson, “Angels,” p134. 69 TOPIC 17 GOD IS IN CONTROL HUMANITY There are five reasons the Christian view of Humanity is important. The Christian view of Humanity holds that a Human being is a creation of God, made in the image of God. This contrasts with seven contemporary views of Humanity. The Biblical answer to the meaning of Humanity is the most satisfying answer among the possible views. 1. Since the Human is the highest of God’s earthly creatures. For only Humans are said in the Bible to have been made by God in His own image and likeness (Gen. 1:26-27). Thus a direct clue to the nature of God ought to emerge. 2. The doctrine of Humanity is a point where the Biblical revelation and Human concerns converge. Theology is here treating an object that everyone admits exist. 3. There is a heightened interest in Human problems ethical issues dominate discussions, particularly among the young. Is material prosperity more important than good education? Is economic security to be valued more than freedom of choice? These are issues that really pose the question, “What is Human nature?” and “What is the good for Human beings?” 70 Because of the increasing number of academic discipline focusing on Humanity, Christian Theology is an opportune position to enter into dialogue with other scholarly perspective methodologies. Just as in a highly personal discussion with an individual, it is also vital in academic dialogue that we have a thorough and accurate understanding of Human been from the standpoint of Theology. We must know how the Human is perceived by these other approaches and how these views compare and contrast with the Theological views.4. The doctrine of Humanity is important because of the present crisis in Human selfunderstanding. The quest for identity has always been part of the normal process of maturation, of forming one’s independent outlook on life, one’s own values and goals. 5. The doctrine also affects how we minister. Our conception of Human beings and their destiny will greatly affect how we deal with them and what we seek to do for them. The Bible, however, indicates that everyone is valuable and is known to God: every hair of our head is numbered (Matt. 10:28-31). Jesus spoke of the shepherd who, although he had ninety-nine sheep safely in the fold, went and sought the one that was missing (Luke, 15:3-7). That is how each Human is regarded by God. We cannot discover our real meaning by regarding ourselves and our own happiness as the highest of all values, nor find happiness, fulfilment, or satisfaction by seeking it directly. Our value has been conferred on us by a higher source, and we are fulfilled only when serving and loving that higher being. It is then that satisfaction comes, as a by-product of commitment to God. We are contending here that the Christian view of Human is more pertinent to them than is any competing view. The image of Humanity accounts for the full range of Human phenomena 71 more completely and with less distortion than does any other view. And this view more than any other approach to life enables us to function in ways that are deeply satisfying in the long run. The Psalmist asked: “What is man that you are mindful of him, the Son of Man that you care for Him? You made Him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned Him with Glory and Honour. You made Him ruler over the works of your hands; You put everything under His feet” (Ps. 8:4-6). 1. Paul Tillch, Systematic Theology (Chicago: Press, 1951), vol. 1. 2. Sigmund Freud, Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis (New York: Norton, 1933). 3. C. S. Lewis, Mrere Christianity {New York: Macmillan, 1962). 72 TOPIC 18 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE CREATION The purpose for the placement of Humans on earth goes beyond the simple explanation for the physical existence of Human and is set forth in the Biblical revelation. In the light of (Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15), we must view Adam and Eve as literal persons. Of the five positions regarding Human beginning, progressive creationism seems to present the fewest problems. Similarly, the evidence seems to support a position that culture can be dated to about thirty thousand years ago through the beginning of language. There are five views of the Neolithic elements in Genesis 4. No definitive answer may be given. Finally, nine conclusions were reached about the Theological meaning of creation. Genesis contains two accounts of God’s creation of Humans. The first, in (Gen. 1:26-27), records (1) God’s decision to make Humans in His own image and likeness, and (2) God’s action implementing this decision. Nothing is said about the materials or method He used. The first account places more emphasis on the purpose or reason for the creation of the Humans; namely, they were to be fruitful and multiply. (Gen. 1:28), 73 and have dominion over the earth. The second account: In (Gen. 2:7). Is quite different: “The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” Here the emphasis seems to be on the way in which God created. In (Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15), Paul relates Human sinfulness to Adam in a way that makes it difficult to regard “Adam” as merely a representative term, In (Rom. 5:12-21). Paul refers several times to the trespass of “one man” He also refers to the obedience, grace, and righteousness of “the one man Jesus Christ.” Paul is drawing a parallel between the one man Adam and the one man Jesus Christ. Note that the negative side of Paul’s doctrinal exposition rest on the facticity of Adam. Sin, guilt, and death are universal facts of Human existence; they are essential parts of Paul’s doctrine of Humanity. “The heir to David’s throne will come and He will rule over the Gentiles. They will place their hope on Him.”… The five positions are: 1.The pre-Adamic theory says that Adam was the first Human in the Biblical sense, but was not the first Human in Anthropological sense. 2. Cain and Abel were not immediate descendants of Adam. They may have been several generations removed from him. 3, in the creation account (Gen. 1:26-27). The Hebrew word (adam), Adam which is often used symbolically of the entire Human race, refers to the first Human, who is anonymous. In other passages (Gen. 4:1; 5:3) it is a proper noun pointing to a specific individual who came later. 4. Perhaps Cain and Abel were not really domesticators of plants and animals but in the language of Moses, and particularly of our translations, would only appear to be such. 5. The domestication of plants and animals may be much more remote in 74 time than the Neolithic period. Thus Adam and his descendants could have practiced agriculture thirty thousand years ago. First view Is, the Naturalistic Evolution: This is an attempt to account, for the Human species as well other forms of life, without appealing to a supernatural explanation. Immanent processes within nature have produced Humans and all else that exist. There is no involvement by any divine persons, either at the beginning or during the process. All that is needed, according to naturalistic evolution, is atoms in motion. A combination of atoms, motion, time, and chance has fashioned what we currently have. No attempt is made to account for these givens they simply are there, the basis of everything else. 2. Fiat creationism: This is the idea that God, by a direct act, brought into being virtually instantaneously everything that is. Note two features of this view. One is the brevity of time involved, and hence the relative regency of what occurred at creation. While there were various stages of creation, one occurring after another, no substantial amount of time elapsed from the beginning to the end of the process.3. Deistic Evolution: God began the process of evolution, producing the first matter and implanting within the creation the laws its development has followed. Thus, He programmed the process and then withdrew from active involvement with the world, becoming, so to speak, Creator emeritus. The process of the created order is free of direct influence by God. He is the Creator of everything, but only the first component in the process was directly created. All the rest of God’s creating has been done indirectly. God is the creator, the ultimate cause, but evolution is the means, the proximate cause. Thus, except for its view of the very beginning of matter, deistic evolution is 75 identical to naturalistic evolution, for it denies that there is any direct activity by a personal God during the ongoing creative process.4. Theistic evolution: has much in common with deistic evolution, but goes beyond it in terms of God’s involvement in and with His creation. God began the process by bringing the first organism to life. He then continued by working internally toward His goal for the creation. At some point, however, He also acted supernaturally, to modify the process, but employing already existing materials. God created the first Human being, but in doing so utilized an existing creature. God created a Human soul, and infused it into one of the higher primates, transforming this creature into the first Human. Thus, while God specially created the spiritual nature of Adam, His physical nature was a product of the process of evolution. 5. Progressive Creationism: Sees the creative work of God as a combination of a series of de novo creative acts and an immanent or progressive operation. On those occasions He did not make use of previously existing life, simply modifying it While He might have brought into being something quite similar or one already existing creation, there were a number of changes and the product of His work was a completely new creature. According to progressive creationism, when the time came to bring the first Human into existence, God made him directly and completely, not out of some lower creature. Rather, both Adam’s physical and spiritual nature, were specially created by God. The Bible tells us that God made him from the “dust” of the ground. Theological Meaning of Human Creation: several points need special attention. 1. That Humans are created by means that they have no independent existence. They came into being because God 76 willed that they should exist and acted to bring them into being and preserve them. But their very life and each breath they continue to take from God. 2. Humans are part of the creation. As different as they are from God’s other created beings, they are not, so sharply distinguished from the rest of them as to have no relationship with them. Like the other creatures, the Human was brought into existence on one of the days of creation, the same day as were the land animals. 3. The Human, however, has a unique place in the creation. As we have noted, we are creatures and thus share much with the rest of the creatures. They are all said to be made “according to their kind.” The Human, on the other hand, is described as made in the image and likeness of God. 4. There is a brotherhood among Humans. The doctrine of creation and of the descent of the entire Human race from one original pair means that we are all related to one and other. In a sense, each of us is a distant cousin to everyone on this earth. 5. Humanity is not the highest object in the universe. Our value is great, for what we are, with the exception of the angels, the highest of the creatures. This status is conferred upon us, however, by the highest Being, God in (Exod. 20:3-11). Even love for fellow Humans must not compete with love for God, for the first commandments pertain to our relationship to God (Matt. 22:37-40; Mark, 12:28-34 and Luke, 10:2728). And the command to love one’s God with all one’s being precedes the command to love one’s neighbour as one’s self. Indeed, love for God is part of the motivation for love for Humans, who are created in God’s image. 6. There are definite limitations upon Humanity. Humans are creatures, not God, and have the limitations that go with being finite. Only the Creator is infinite. 7. Limitation is not inherently bad. 77 There is a tendency to be moan the fact of Human finiteness. Same, indeed, maintain that this is the cause of Human sin. If we were not limited, we would always know what is wright and would do it. We are Humans not encumbered by finiteness, they could do better (Gen. 1:31). The Bible indicates that having made the Human with the limitations that go with creature hood, God looked at the creation and pronounced it “very good.” 8. Proper adjustment in life can be achieved only on the basis of acceptance of one’s own finiteness. The fact of our finiteness is clear. Adam and Eve’s fall consisted at least in part of an aspiration to become like God (Gen. 3:4-6), to know what God knows (Jude 6). A similar aspiration underlay the fall of the evil angels. We ought to be willing to let God be God, not seeking to tell Him what is right and true, but rather submitting to Him and His plan for us. 9. Humans are the highest among them, the only ones made in the image of God. The fact that the Lord of the entire universe made us simple, adds to the grandeur of Humanity by giving us a trademark as it were. We are not simply, a chance production of a blind mechanism, or a by product or scraps thrown off in the process of making something better, but on expressly designed product of God. The Human has been made by the best and wisest of all beings, God Who could make such a wondrous creature as a Human being is a great God indeed (Ps. 100:3-5). For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations. 1. 2. 3. August H. Strong, Systematic Theology, N.Y. : Revell, 1907), Emil Brunner, Man in revolt (Philadelphia: Westminister, 1947). Leonard Verduin, Samewhat Less Than God: The Biblical View of Man 78 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970).. 4. Seeley, “Adam and Anthropology. 79 TOPIC 19 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD CREATED MAN IN HIS OWN IMAGE The image of God in humanity is critical to our understanding of what makes us Human. The substantive, relational, and functional views of the image of God are not completely satisfying explanations. We must reach our conclusions about the image of God by making inferences from the Biblical data. The implications of the image of God should inspire us and set the parameters for our view of all Humanity. Several Biblical passages speak of the image of God. The best known is probably Genesis. In (Gen.1:26-27). “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” Beyond this we find no other explicit references in the Old Testament to the image of God, although two passages in the Apocrypha mention it, (Wisdom of Solomon 2:23; And Ecclesiasticus, 17:3). Two New Testament passages mention the image of God in connection with the creation of the Human (1 Cor. 11:7), Paul 80 says, “A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.” Paul does not say that woman is the image of God, but merely points out that she is the glory of man as man is the glory of God, and in (James 3:9), on the grounds that Humans are made in the likeness of God. In (Acts, 17:28), although the term is not actually used: ‘“For in Him we live and move and have our beings.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘we are His off springs.’” In addition, several passages in the New Testament refer to the believers becoming the image of God through the process of salvation (Rom. 8:29), note that they are being conformed to the image of the Son: “For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers.” In (2 Cor. 3:18), we read, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, Who is the Spirit.” In (Eph. 4:23-24), Paul urges his readers, “to be made new in the attitude of their minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. ”Finally, in (Col, 3:10), Paul refers to putting on “the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” Jesus had perfect fellowship with the Father. While on earth He communed with and frequently spoke to the Father. Their fellowship is most clearly seen in the high teaching prayer (John, 17:2122). Jesus spoke of how He and the Father are one. He had glorified and would glorify the Father. (John, 17:1, 4), and the Father glorified and would glorify Him (John, 17:1; 5, 22. 24). Jesus obeyed the Father’s will perfectly, In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed, “Father, if 81 you are willing, take this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but yours be done” (Luke, 22:42). Indeed, throughout His teaching His own will was subordinate: “My food is to do the will of Him Who sent Me, and to finish His work” (John, 4:34); “For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him Who sent Me” (John, 6:38). Jesus always displayed a strong love for Humans. Note, for example, His concern for the lost sheep of Israel (Matt. 9:36). His compassion for the sick (Mark, 1:41), and the sorrowing (Luke, 7:13). His patience with and forgiveness for those who failed. God intends that a similar sense of fellowship, obedience, and love characterize Humans’ relationship to God, and that Humans be bound together with one another in love. We are completely Human only when manifesting these characteristics. Every Human being is God’s creature made in God’s own image. God endowed each of us with the powers of personality that make it possible for us to worship and serve Him. 1.Charles Ryder Smith, The Bible Doctrine of Man London: Epworth; 1956). 2. Cairns, Image of God. 3. Snaith “Image of God.. . 82 TOPIC 20 GOD IS IN CONTROL HUMAN CONSTITUTION There are three traditional views of the Human constitution: trichotomies, dichotomies, and nomism. A careful discussion of the Biblical and philosophical considerations would lead one to reject the three traditional views. In place of these, an alternative model provides for conditional unity of the person, which has five implications. Trichotomies: A human is composed of three elements. The first element is the physical body, something Humans have in common with animals and plants. But there is a difference of degree, as Humans have a more complex physical structure. The second part of the Human is the soul. This is the psychological element the basis of reason, emotion, social interrelatedness, and the like. Animals have rudimentary soul. Possession of the soul is what distinguishes Human and animals; from plants. While the Human soul is much more involved and capable than that of the animals, their souls are similar in kind. What really distinguishes the Human from the animals is not a more complex and advanced soul, but a third element, namely, a spirit. This religious element enables Humans to perceive spiritual matters and respond to spiritual stimuli. It is the seat of the spiritual qualities of the individual, whereas personality traits reside in the soul. Actually the 83 major foundation of the trichotomies is certain the Bible passages that either enumerate three components of Human nature or distinguish between the soul and the spirit. A primary text is (1 Thess. 5:23). “May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through; May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Hebrews 4:12) describes the word of God as “living and active. Sharper than any double edged sword it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebr. 4:12). Beyond that, a threefold division seems to be implied in (1 Cor. 2:14-3:4), where Paul classifies Human persons as “of the flesh” (sarkikos), “unspiritual” (psuchikos-literally, “of the soul” or “spiritual” “pneumatikos”). These terms seem to refer to the different functions or orientations, if not to different components, of Humans. (1 Cor. 15:44), also distinguishes between the natural body and the spiritual body. Dichotomies: The Human is composed of two elements a material aspect (the body) and an immaterial component (the soul) or spirit. Dichotomism was commonly held from the earliest period of Christian thought. Following the Council of Constantinople in 381, however, it grew in popularity (Luke 10:27). Jesus says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all yourmind.” Monism: The Humans are not to be thought of as in any sense composed of parts or separate entities, but rather as a radical unity. In the monistic understanding, the Bible does not view a Human as body, soul, and spirit, but simply as self. A Human is never treated in the Bible as a dualistic being. According to monism, to be Human is to be 84 or have a body. Consequently, to monism there is no possibility of post death existence in a disembodied state. Immortality of the soul is quite untenable. Not only, then, is there no possibility of a future life apart from bodily resurrection, but any sort of intermediate state between death and resurrection is ruled out as well. We must now evaluate monism in the light of the whole of the Biblical data. For there are some issues, especially in the area of eschatology, that the total monistic view has difficulty dealing with. Certain passages seem to indicate an intermediate state between death and resurrection, a state in which the individual lives on in conscious personal existence. One of these passages is Jesus’ statement to the thief on the cross, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Another is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke, 16:19-31). Some have thought that this is not a parable but the record of an actual event, since it would be unique among parables in naming one of the characters within the story. We are told that a rich man and a poor man died. The rich man went to Hades, where he was in great torment in the flames, while the poor man, Lazarus, was taken to Abraham’s bosom. Both were in state of consciousness. A third consideration pointing to an intermediate state is Paul’s reference to being away from the body and at home with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). The apostle expresses a dread of this state of nakedness (2 Cor. 5:3-4). Desiring to be reclothed (2 Cor. 5:4). A prominent instance is Jesus’ statement in (Matt. 10:28): “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in Hell.” 85 The five implications are: 1. Humans are to be treated as unities. Their spiritual condition cannot be dealt with independently of their physical and psychological condition. 2. A Human is a complex being, whose nature is not reducible to a single principle. 3. The different aspects of Human nature are all to be attended to and respected. There is to be no depreciating of the body emotions, or intellect. 4. Religious development or maturity does not consist in subjugating one part of Human nature to another. No part of the Human makeup is evil per se. Total depravity means that sin infers all of what a Human is, not merely the body or mind or emotions. Thus, The Christian does not aim at bringing the body under the control of the soul. 5. Human nature is not inconsistent with the Biblical teaching of a personal conscious existence between death and resurrection. 1.Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1953). 86 TOPIC 21 GOD IS IN CONTROL CHARACTERISTICS OF RACE The characteristics of race, gender, economic status, age, the unborn fatal state, and marital status become incidental to one’s basic Humanity. God has regard for all persons. Since God takes that view, it is incumbent upon the believer to adopt a similar view and to practice a godly reverence for all Humanity. This is especially true for those who may be subject to discrimination. The Human’s response or destiny is to know, love, and serve God. God made Humans able to know Him and respond to Him. This is the fundamental distinguishing characteristic shared by all Humanity. The first point to be noted is that all races are included in God’s Human family, and thus are objects of His love. One of the most common pseudotheological arguments advanced was that the traits of Noah’s three sons will characterize their descendants until the end of time. It was contended that Ham was born black; hence his descendants are the black race. A curse was placed upon Ham because of his wickedness; this curse involved the servitude of his son Canaan to the descendants of Shem and Japheth. Thus all blacks are to be understood as under the curse of God, and slavery is justified because God intended it. Another variety of this argument was the contention 87 that Cain, who was cursed for murdering his brother Abel, was placed in servitude and turned black (Gen. 4:13-15). Ham supposedly married a descendant of Cain, so that Ham’s son Canaan was doubly cursed. Yet another contention was that the black is actually not part of Adam’s race. An additional argument was that blacks are to be understood as two–footed beast. Since blacks are present with us today, they must have been in the ark. There were only eight souls saved in the ark, however, and they are fully accounted for by Noah’s family. As one of the beasts in the ark, the black has no soul to be saved. Here we have the ultimate justification for racial discrimination and even slavery: blacks are not Humans; consequently, they do not have the rights that Humans have. Our response will consist of two approaches: refuting the case made for such positions, and advancing the positive Biblical evidence that God’s conferral of Humanness extends to all races. There is no Biblical support for the position that blacks (or any other race) are less than fully Human or inferior Humans. There, is no evidence to suggest that Ham was black. The same is true of the claim that the mark of Cain was blackness. In the Bible especially in terms of Jewish and Gentile relationships; one might conclude from Israel’s status as the chosen nation that God’s concern for and interest in Humanity are limited to the Jewish people. Yet it is apparent that the Jews were chosen not to be exclusive recipients of God’s blessing, but to be recipients and transmitters of it. Even within the Old Testament era, there was room for outsiders to become proselytes to the faith of Israel, Rahab and Ruth the Moabites are prominent instances and are even found in Jesus’ genealogy (Matt. 1:5). Within Jesus teaching, we find openness to those who were not 88 of the house of Israel. His concern for the Samaritan woman (John, 4) and His offer of the living water to her indicate that salvation was not restricted to Jews alone. The Syrophoenician woman’s request for the deliverance of her daughter from demons possession was granted (Mark, 7:24-30). Perhaps the most remarkable incident is the Roman centurion, who came requesting healing for his paralysed servant (Matt. 8:5-13). Jesus marvelled at this man’s faith, which exceeded anything He had found in Israel. (Matt.8:10). Jesus granted the man’s request, but before He did, He made a remarkable prediction: “I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 8:11-12). Here is certainly anticipation of a time of extending God’s grace to countless people regardless of their race. The universality of God’s grace is most apparent. Peter’s vision (Acts, 10:916), in which he was commanded to eat not only clean but also unclean animals, was the sign for him to extend the message of salvation to Gentiles, first of all to the centurion Cornilius (Acts, 10:1733). Peter gave expression to the new understanding: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favouritism but accepts men from every nation who fear Him and do what is right” (Acts, 10:34-35). When he taught the Good News to the group gathered at Cornilius’s house, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He had previously fallen upon the Jews (Acts, 10:44-48). This event gave impetus to the teaching to the Gentiles, which was implemented particularly by Paul and his associates. The teaching of Paul included many incidents that 89 are instructive for us in regard to the status of non-Jews. One of the most significant is his encounter with the Athenian philosophers in (Acts, 17). The basic thrust of his message to them is universalistic in nature. God made the earth and everything in it (Acts, 17:24). He has given life and breath and everything to all men (Acts, 17:25). Paul particularly stresses the unity of the Human race when he states, “From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the time set for them and the exact places where they should live” (Acts, 17:26). His declaration to the Athenians that the “unknown god” whom they worship is actually the God Whom he teaches (Acts, 17:23), is based upon the assumption that all people are part of the Human race that God created and has provided with the means of salvation. There is to be no division between Jew and Gentile within the church (Eph. 2:14). Paul asserts that. Christ has broken down the wall of partition between them. In (Gal.3:6-9), Paul argues that all who have the faith of Abraham are heirs of Abraham, regardless of nationality. Not only is salvation for all, but there is to be no discrimination based on nationality (Rev. 5:9). The Lamb is said to have redeemed persons from “every tribe and language and people and nations.” Sexes: In the creation account we find indication of woman’s status. In (Gen. 1:26-27), there is a special emphasis, seemingly to ensure our understanding that woman possess the image of God, just as does man. The same emphasis is found In (Gen.5:1-2), “When God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. Jesus’ attitude toward women, and His treatment of them, are also instructive 90 although a Jew ordinarily had no dealings with Samaritans, and particularly not with the blatant sinners among them, Jesus engaged the Samaritan woman in conversation because He cared about her spiritual condition (John, 4). Jesus commended the woman with a haemorrhage who touched the edge of His cloak for her faith (Matt. 9:20-22). Mary and Martha were among Jesus’ closest friends. The woman who anointed Jesus at Bethany (Matt. 26:6-13), would be remembered for her act of devotion whenever and wherever the Good News were taught (Matt. 26:10-13). Mary Magdalene was the first person to whom Jesus appeared following His resurrection, and He instructed her to tell His disciples that He was risen (John, 20:14-18). Indeed women played a significant role from the very beginning of Jesus’ life and teaching. It was Mary, not Joseph, who gave expression of praise to God in connection with the announcement of the coming birth of Jesus (Luke, 1:46-55). Elizabeth also praised and blessed the Lord (Luke, 1:41-45). Anna was probably the first woman disciple of Jesus (Luke, 2:36-38). The faithfulness of the women around Jesus in the time of crisis is striking. We see them at the cross (Luke, 23:49); they sought to anoint Jesus’ body (Luke, 23:55-56); they discovered the empty tomb, heard the message of the two angels, and told the news to the apostles (Luke, 24:1-11). Even Paul, who is sometimes accused of being rigidly opposed to the involvement of women in the work of the church, speaks positively of women in positions of leadership. He writes of Phoebe, “I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me” (Rom. 16:2). Priscilla and Aquila are spoken of as “my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. 91 They risk their lives for me” (Rom. 16:3-4). Although we know no details about Mary (Rom. 16:6), and Persis (Rom. 16:12), we do know that they “worked very hard in the Lord.” Paul also greets Tryphaena and Tryphosa, “those women who work hard in the Lord” (Rom. 16:12), Rufus’s “mother, who has been a mother to me, too” (Rom. 16:13), Julia, and Nereus and his sister (Rom. 16:15). People of all Economic Status: The Bible has a great deal to say about the poor. The Old Testament indicates that God has a special concern for the poor, as in His deliverance of the Israelites from the bondage and poverty they experienced in Egypt. Jesus Himself was one of the poor. This is made clear in the account of His being brought as an infant to Jerusalem for the ritual of purification. The law prescribed that a lamb and a turtledove or pigeon were to be sacrificed; however, “If she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean” (Lev. 12:6-8). The fact that Jesus’ family offered “a pair of doves or two young pigeons” (Luke, 2:24), than a lamb is an indication of their poverty, while Jesus in His teaching apparently did not suffer actual hardship and deprivation, He certainly did not have abundance and evidently depended often upon the hospitality of others, such as Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. He referred to this lack of means when He said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head” (Matt. 8:20). Jesus’ teaching include a great deal about the poor and poverty, by quoting (Isa. 61:1-2), He indicated that He had come to teach Good News to the poor (Luke, 4:18, 21). Concern for the poor lay at the very core of His teaching. He spoke of the blessedness of the 92 poor (Luke, 6:20). Among the wonders He wanted to be reported to John was the fact that the poor had the Good News teaching to them (Luke, 7:22). Jesus also pointed out repeatedly the danger of wealth: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark, 10:25). In the parable of the rich man and poor Lazarus, the rich man after death is in the place of torment, but Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham, Abraham says to the rich man, “Son, remember that in your life time you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony” (Luke, 16:25). It should be noted that wealth per se is no more of a cause for discrimination than is poverty. It is preoccupation with riches (Mark, 10:17-31; Luke, 8:14 and 1 Tim. 6:10), or the abuse of wealth that is the target of Jesus’ warnings and condemnation. The age: The Bible also makes clear that all ages, including the very old, are fully Human and valuable to God. The Hebrews held old age in honour. Respect for the age was required: “Rise In the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the LORD” (Lev. 19:32). A sign of Israel’s degradation at the time of Jeremiah was its disregard of the elders “elders are shown no respect” (Lam. 5:12). In the Old Testament era old age was not feared or despised but was greatly desired as a sign of divine blessing. The Book of proverbs favourably contrasts the assets of old age with those of the young man: “The glory of young men is their strength, grey hair the splendour of the old” (Prov. 20:29). Old age was considered a gift from God, additional opportunity to serve Him. “With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation” (Ps. 91:16). The believer was given the assurance of God’s presence 93 with Him to old age: “Even to your old age and grey hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you” (Isa. 46:4). The promise of longevity (long life) to those who honour their parents is found in both the Old Testament (Exod. 20:12), and the New Testament (Eph. 6:1-3). One reason for the high status accorded persons of old age was the belief that age carries with it wisdom. This belief is reflected in (Job,12:30). “He [God] silences the lips of trusted advisers and takes away the discernment of elders.” The decline in the physical strength that had made men valuable to their community was compensated for by an increase in wisdom that contributed another type of value. For this reason Peter advises: “Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older” (1 Peter, 5:5). The unborn: For ethics, concerns the status of the unborn or, more specifically, of the foetus still in the mother’s uterus. Is the foetus to be regarded as Human, or merely as a mass of tissue within the mother’s body; if the former, abortion is indeed the taking of Human life and has serious moral consequences; If the latter, abortion is simply a surgical procedure involving the removal of an unwanted growth like a cyst or a tumour. A New Testament passage thought by some to bear upon this issue is (Luke, 1:41-44), Elizabeth, pregnant with John the Baptist, is greeted by her kinswoman Mary, bringing the news that she, Mary, is to give birth to the Messiah. Luke reports: “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: ‘Blessed…as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.’” Another New Testament passage sometimes cited 94 in connection with the issue of the status of the foetus is (Hebr. 7:910), the account of Abraham’s meeting and paying a tithe to Melchizedek. The writer concludes by commenting: One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor.” Taken at face value, this comment would argue for the Humanity not only of an unborn foetus, but even of person who have not yet been conceived, since Levi was a great grandson of Abraham. The passage most discussed in connection with the issue of the Humanity of the foetus is probably (Exod. 21:22-25). The bible regards the unborn child as a person, if no harm is done in the case of a child born prematurely because its mother was hurt by men struggling against one another there is no penalty other than a fine. If, however, there is harm, the principle of a life for life and an eye for an eye is to be enforced. The Unmarried: There is a tendency in many societies to regard marriage as the normal state of the Human being. While there has been a decline in the popularity of marriage, with more and more persons choosing not to marry or postponing marriage, our culture still regards the marital state as more desirable and more natural. And within the church, the unmarried person often does not fit Church programs frequently are designed for families. The single person may be left out or at least feel left out. The Bible, however, does not look upon singleness as a second class condition. Our Lord never married, although some have attempted to offer reconstruction of history to establish that He did. Further, we have Paul’s personal example, and direct teaching commending the unmarried state. He wishes that all 95 were as he is (1 Cor. 7:7). He advises the unmarried and the widows to remain single as he does (1 Cor. 7:8). Those who are married should remain married; the single should remain unmarried (1 Cor. 7:27). While it is certainly permissible for a widow to remarry, in Paul’s judgment it is better to remain unmarried (1 Cor. 7:39-40). The married person must be concerned about pleasing his or her spouse as well as the Lord, whereas single people can devote themselves totally to pleasing the Lord (1 Cor. 7:32-35). It may well be that Paul’s recommendation to remain single was related to a definite cultural situation of his time. A consideration sometimes raised against the single state is Paul’s prescription that bishops (1 Tim. 3:2), elders (Titus, 1:6).and deacons (1 Tim. 3:12), be “the husband of but one wife.” We have noted that the distinguishing mark of Humanity, which is designed by the expression “the image of God,” is far reaching, extending to all Humans. In the sight of God, all Humans are equal. The distinction of race, social status, and sex are of no significance to Him (Gal. 3:28). Salvation, eternal life, and fellowship with God are available to all persons. And because this is the case, Christians should show the same important interest in and concern for all Humans, regardless of the incidentals of their lives (James, 2:9). 1. Paul King Jewett. Man as Male and female (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans. 1975). pp. 35-48. 2. Karl Barth. Church Dogmatics. (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1958). Vol. 3. Part 1. pp. 194-97. 3. Josiah Priest, Bible Defence of Slavery: Origin, Fortunes and History of the Negro 96 . 97 TOPIC 22 GOD IS IN CONTROL SIN The doctrine of sin is important to us since it affects and is affected by all other doctrines. The analysis of the Biblical data provides the best understanding of sin and its consequences. The causes of sin, character of sin, results of sin, the terms for sin, are set forth in the Bible. Sin is any evil action or evil motive that is in opposition to God. Simply stated, sin is failure to let God be God and placing something or someone in God’s rightful place of supremacy. We have seen that, there is a wide variety of terms for sin, each emphasizing a different aspect. Sins are variously characterized in the Bible as, unbelief, rebellion, perversity, missing the mark. But what is sin? Sin is the idea that sinner has failed to fulfil God’s law. There are various ways in which we fail to meet His standard of righteousness. We may go beyond the limits imposed, or “transgress.” We may fall short of the standard set, or not do at all, what God commands and expects. In the Old Testament, sin is to a large extent a matter of external actions or outward lack of conformity to the requirements of God. Inward thoughts and motives are not completely ignored in the Old Testament conception, but in the New Testament they become especially prominent, being virtually as important as actions. So Jesus, condemned anger and lust as vehemently as He did murder and adultery (Matt. 5:21-22, 27-28). He also, condemned outwardly good 98 acts done primarily out of a desire to obtain the approval of Human rather than to please God (Matt. 6:2, 5, 16).Yet sin is not merely wrong acts and thoughts, but sinfulness as well, an inherent inner disposition including us to wrong acts and thoughts. We are not simply sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. We offer, then, this definition of sin: “Sin is any lack of conformity, active or passive to the moral law of God. This may be a matter of act, of thought, or of inner disposition or state.” Sin is failure to live up to what God expects of us in act, thought, and being. In Paul’s famous catalogue of sins in (Gal. 5:19-21), many are indeed “works of the flesh” in the literal sense; sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, drunkenness, and orgies. But several are definitely more “spiritual” in nature; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy. The view that sin is sensuality has to maintain that contact of the soul or spirit with a corrupted body produces these “spiritual” sins. Other sins may be present, including pride. The sinful nature repressed in one area, simply forces expression in some other area. One, might ask what is the major factor in our failure to love, worship, and obey God, is unbelief. Anyone who truly believes God to be what he says he is. Failure to do so is sin. The Ten Commandments begin with the command to give God His proper place. “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exod. 20:3), is the first prohibition in the law. Similarly, Jesus affirmed that the first and great commandment is. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all, your mind and with all your strength” (Mark, 12:30). 1. Charles Ryder Smith. The Bible Doctrine of sin and of the ways of God Sinners (London : Epworth, 1953). 99 2. Smith Doctrine of Sin. 100 TOPIC 23 GOD IS IN CONTROL ASPECTS OF SIN There are many theories about the source of sin. The animal nature, anxiety of finiteness, Existential estrangement, struggle, is the view of the liberation Theologians. Individualism and competiveness. None of these views adequately represents the Biblical perspective. Sin is sensuality, living merely in terms of some particular impulses of one’s own nature. While these impulses may be of many varieties, they all represent Human descent to the level of the animal, or capitulation to nature’s determination of Human behaviour. In either direction, denial of own finiteness or one’s freedom the sin is occasioned, but not caused, by the state of anxiety. Human finitude in itself is not sinful. But being finite and also being able to imagine and aspire to the infinite places one in a position of tension which can become either faith or sin. Those who place their trust in God will find complete security. Thus, orthodoxy has regularly regarded unbelief, lack of trust, as the root of sin. This is why Jesus said, “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For…Your heavenly Father knows that you need [all these things]” (Matt. 6:31-32). To generate and maintain faith by one’s own effort would require Human ability which experience belief, to say nothing of the Bible. Even the most vital Christian frequently finds it necessary to pray. “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” (Mark, 9:24)! 101 It is important to note first that sin is not caused by God. James very quickly dispose of, this idea, which would probably be quite appealing to some: “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone” (James, 1:13). Rather, responsibility for sin is placed squarely at the door of Humans themselves: “Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (James, 1:14-15). The desire to enjoy things, God has implanted certain needs in each of us. Not only is the satisfaction of those needs essential, but, it can also bring enjoyment. The need for food and drink must be satisfied because life is impossible without them. When food and drink are pursued, however, merely for the pleasure of consumption, and in excess of what is needed, the sin of gluttony is being committed. The sex drive is essential for sustaining and continuing the Human race. Any improper satisfaction of a natural desire is an instance of “the cravings of sinful man” (1 John, 2:16). Jesus had fasted for forty days and nights and consequently was hungry. This was a natural need that had to be satisfied if life was to be preserved. It was right for Jesus to be fed, but not through some miraculous provision and probably not before the completion of His trial. It was proper for Jesus to desire to come down safely from the pinnacle of the temple, but not to require a miraculous display of power by the Father. It was right for Jesus to lay claim to all the kingdoms of the earth. For they are His, He had created them (John, 1:3), and even now sustains them (Col. 1:17). For those of us who live after the fall (of Adam and Eve) and are not Jesus, there is a further 102 complicating factor. There is something termed “the flesh,” which strongly influences, what we do, Paul speaks of it in numerous passages, (Rom. 7:18). “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Gal. 5:16-24), he speaks vividly of the opposition between the flesh and the Spirit, and of the works of the flesh, which constitutes a whole catalogue of evils. By “flesh” Paul does not mean the physical nature of the Human being. There is nothing inherently evil about the Human bodily makeup. Rather, the term designates the self-centred life, denial or rejection of God. A second view is that sin is essentially selfishness the “choice of self as the supreme end which constitutes the antithesis of supreme love to God.” Selfishness may also appear as unbelief, turning away from the truth of God. Or it may be manifested as enmity to God. Thus, sin is whatever form is selfishness. It is, preferring one’s own ideas to God’s truth. It is, preferring the satisfaction of one’s own will to doing God’s will. It is, loving on selfmore than God. An alternative preferably to the views that sin is basically sensuality or selfishness is that the essence of sin is simply failure to let God be God. Sin might well be thought of as hatred, bitterness, lack of love for the oppressor. For Jesus commanded us to love our enemies. (Matt. 5:44). Sin is the choice of the person who commits it. 1. Frederic F. Tennant, The concept of sin (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1912); The Origin and Propagation of Sin (Cambrige: Cambridge University Press, 1902). The Sources of the Doctrine of the Fall and Original Sin (New York: Schocken, 1968). 103 TOPIC 24 GOD IS IN CONTROL CONSEQUENCES OF SIN Sin has very serious consequences when it comes to the relationship between the sinner and God. These results include divine disfavour, guild, punishment, and death. Physical death, spiritual death, and eternal death flow from the consequences of sin. Sin also has consequences that affect the individual sinner. These include enslavement, flight from reality denial of sin, self-decent, insensitivity, self-centeredness, and restlessness. These effects on the sinner also have social implications in competition, inability to empathize, rejection of authority, and inability to love. Sin is a very serious matter both to God and to Humanity. Sin produced an immediate transformation in Adam and Eve’s relationship with God (Gen.3:6-7). They had evidently been on close and friendly terms with God. They trusted and obeyed Him, on the basis of (Gen. 3:8), it can be concluded that they had customarily fellowship with God. He loved them and provided everything they needed; we are reminded of the friendship of which Jesus spoke in (John 15:15). Now, because they had violated God’s trust and command, the relationship became quite different. They had placed themselves on the wrong side of God, and had in effect become His enemies. It was not God, Who had changed or moved, but Adam and Eve. In the Old Testament, God is said to hate sinful Israel. In (Hosea, 9:15), God says, “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal, I 104 hated them there. Because of their sinful deeds, I will drive them out of My house. I will no longer love them; all their leaders are rebellious.” On two other occasions God is said to hate the wicked (Ps. 5:5; 11:5). The Old Testament frequently describes those who sin and violate God’s law as enemies of God. Yet only very rarely does the Bible speak of God as their enemy. (Exod. 23:22; Isa. 63:10 and Lament. 2:45). In the New Testament to sin is to make on self an enemy of God. In (Rom. 8:7), and (Col. 1:21), Paul describes the mind that is set on the flesh as being “Hostile to God.” In (James, 4:4) we read that “Friendship with the world is hatred toward God.” God, however, is not the enemy of anyone; He loves all and hates none. He loved enough to send His Son to die for us while we were yet sinners and at enmity with Him (Rom. 5:8-10). He epitomizes what He commands. He loves His enemies. Although God is not the enemy of sinners nor does He hate them, it is also quite clear that God is angered by sin. In (John, 3:36), Jesus says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.” (Rom. 1:18), teaches that “the wrath is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” Another result of our sins that affects our relationship with God is guilt. God has placed Humans in charge of the creation and commanded them to rule over it (Gen. 1:28). As the Almighty and completely Holy one, God has asked for our worship and obedience in return for His gifts. But we have failed to do God’s bidding. Entrusted with the wealth of the creation, we have used it for our own purposes, like embezzlers. (Rom. 1:21). We have spurned God’s offer of friendship and love, and, in the most extreme 105 case, the salvation accomplished through the death of God’s own Son. These offenses are magnified by Who God is? He is the Almighty Creator. Further, we are ungrateful for all that God has done for us and given us. Hence He has an absolute claim upon us. And the standard of behaviour He expects us to emulate in His own Holy perfection. As Jesus Himself said, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). Liability to God’s punishment, then, is another result of our sin. There is definitely a dimension of divine retribution in the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament. “There is no doubt that in Hebrew thought punishment is retributive. The use of the death penalty is enough to show that.” This is seen particularly in the passage like (Gen. 9:6); “Whoever sheds the blood of a man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.” There are numerous references, particularly in the Major Prophets, to the retributive dimension of God’s punishment of sinners. Found, in (Isa. 1:24; 61:2; 63:4; Jer. 46:10; Ezek. 25:14 and Ps. 94:1). God is spoken of as the “God Who avenges.” In these cases, the punishment envisioned is to take place within historical time rather than in some future state. Although less frequently than in the Old Testament, the idea of retributive justice is also found in the New Testament. In (Rom. 12:19) and (Hebr. 10:30). “It is written: ‘It is Mine to avenge; I will repay.”’ In Romans Paul’s purpose is to deter believers from attempting to avenge wrongs done to them. God is a God of justice, and wrongs will not go unpunished. The psalmist’s recalling of what happened to the generation that perished in the wilderness (Ps. 95:811). The stoning of Achkan and his family was partly retribution for what he had done. Indirect punishment may also take the form of 106 external conflicts issuing from one’s sin and the psychological laws God has ordained. David may be a case in point. (Nathan the prophet came to David after David had committed adultery with Basheba. David wrote a psalm): (Have mercy on me O God, because of You’re an failing love. Have pity upon me take away the awful stain of my sin. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. For I recognize my shameful deed…I bring to sacrifice upon Your altar (Ps. 51:1-19). Because of his sin of adultery with Basheba and his murder of Uriah, David was told that trouble would come upon his house (2 Sam. 12:1012). The rape of Tamar, Absalom’s murder of Amnon, and Absalom’s revolt against David were fulfilments of the prophecy. One of sin’s obvious results is death. This truth is first pointed out in God’s statement forbidding, Adam and Eve to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: “for when you eat of it you will surely die” (Gen. 2:17). It is also found in (Rom. 6:23): “The wages of sin is death.” The mortality of all Humans is both an obvious fact and a truth taught by the Bible, in (Heb. 9:27), says, “Just as man is destine to die once and after that to face judgment” Paul in (Rom.5:12), attributes death to the original sin of Adam. Yet while death entered the world through of Adam’s sin, it spread to all humans because all sinned. This raises the question of whether Humans were created mortal or immortal. Would they have died if they had not sinned? Calvinist havebasically taken the negative position, arguing that physical death entered with the curse (Gen. 3:19). The Pelagian view, on the other hand, is that Humans were created mortal. Just as everything about us dies sooner or later, so it is and has always been with Humans. The principle of death and decay is a part of the whole of creation. The 107 Pelagians point out that if the Calvinist view is correct, then it was the serpent who was right and Jehovah was wrong in saying, “for when you eat of it you will surely die,” for Adam and Eve were not struck dead immediately upon committing their sin. Physical death, in the Pelagian view, is a natural accompaniment of being Human. The Biblical references to death as a consequence of sin are understood as references to spiritual death, separation from God, than physical death. The problem is not as simple as it might at first appear. The assumption that morality began with the fall, and that in (Rom. 5:12), and similar New Testament references to death are to be understood as references to physical death, may not be warranted. A road block to the idea that physical mortality is a result of sin is the case of Jesus. Not only did He not sin Himself (Heb. 4:15), but He was not tainted by the corrupted nature of Adam. Yet He died. First, we must observe that physical death is linked to the fall in some clear way. In (Gen.3:19), would seem to be not a statement of what is the case and has been the case from creation, but a pronouncement of a new situation. “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” In Paul’s writings, (1 Cor. 15:55-56), is that physical death has been defeated through Christ’s resurrection. Humans still die, but death’s finality has been removed. Paul attributes to sin the power that physical death possesses in the absence of resurrection. But with Christ’s overcoming of physical death, sin itself is defeated. Spiritual death is both connected with physical death and distinguished from it. It is the separation of the entire person from God. God, as a perfectly Holy being, cannot look upon sin or tolerate its presence. Thus sin is a 108 barrier to the relationship between God and Humans, bringing them under God’s judgment and condemnation. The essence of spiritual death can be seen in the case of Adam and Eve. “For when you eat of it [the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil] you will surely die” did not mean that they would experience immediate physical death. It did mean that, their potential morality would become actual. It also means spiritual death, separation between them and God. And indeed, after Adam and Eve ate the fruit, they tried to hide from God because of their shame and guilt, and God pronounced severe curse upon them. Sin results in alienation from God. This is the wages of sin of which Paul speaks in (Rom. 6:23). The Bible frequently states that people apart from Christ are dead in trespasses and sin. Eternal death is in a very real sense the extension and finalization of spiritual death. If one comes to physical death still spiritually dead, separated from God, that condition becomes permanent. As eternal life is both qualitatively different from our present life and unending, so eternal death is separation from God which is both qualitatively different from physical death and everlasting in extent. In the last judgment the person who appears before God’s judgment seat will be divided into two groups. Those who are judged righteous will be sent into eternal life (Matt. 25:34-40, 46).Those judged to be unrighteous will be sent into eternal punishment or eternal fire.(Matt. 25:41, 46). In Revelation 20 John writes of a “second death.” The first death is physical death, from which the resurrection gives us deliverance, but not exemption. Although all will eventually die the first death, the important question is whether in each individual case the second death has been overcome. Those who participate in the first resurrection are spoken of 109 as “blest and holy,” Over such the second death is said to have no power (Rev. 20:6), death and Hades are cast in to the lake of fire (Rev 20:13-14), into which the beast and the false prophets were earlier cast (Rev. 19:20).This is spoken of as the second death (Rev. 20:14). Anyone whose name is not found written in the book of life will be cast into the lake of fire. This is the permanent state of what the sinner chose in life. 1.Charles Ryder Smith. The Bible Doctrine of Sin and of the Ways of God with sinners (London: Epworth, 1953), p. 43. 3. Smith, Doctrine of Sin.. 110 TOPIC 25 GOD IS IN CONTROL SIN IS UNIVERSAL It is evident from both the Old and New Testament descriptions of sin that sin is universal. Both Testaments further affirm the depth and breadth of sin in all Humans. Three historical views of original sin include Pelagianism, Arminianism, and Calvinism. Pelagianism shows the list affinity to Scripture. The author presents a contemporary understanding of the magnitude of sin that incorporates a Biblical perspective and the best elements of traditional views. In the time of Noah, the sin of the race was so great and so extensive that God resolved to destroy everything (with the exception of Noah, his family, and the animals taken on board the ark). The description is vivid. “The LORD saw how great men’s wickedness on the earth had become, that every inclination of the thoughts of His heart was only evil all the time” (Gen. 6:5-11). God regretted having made Humanity and resolved to blot out the entire Human race, together with all other living things, for the corruption was world-wide: “Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence” (Gen. 6:11). Noah appears to be on exception; he found favour in the eyes of the LORD, being described as a “righteous man, blameless among the people of his time” (Gen. 6:9). Yet while he stands out in contrast to those surrounding him, he was guilty of the sin of drunkenness (Gen.6:21) which is condemned elsewhere in the Bible (Hebr. 2:15 and Eph. 5:18). Even after the flood, He destroyed the 111 wicked of the earth. God still characterizes “(every inclination of [man’s] heart [as being] evil from childhood)” (Gen. 8:21). A categorical statement about human sinfulness is found in (1 Kings, 8:46); “For there is no one who does not sin” (Rom. 3:23). The same idea is implied in (Ps. 130:3; 143:2); “If You O LORD kept a record of sins, O LORD who could stand?” Ecclesiastes says, “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins” (Eccles. 7:20). Paul makes mention of the fact that “The Bible declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin.” (Gal. 3:22). Similarly in (1 John, 5:19), indicates that “the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” Not only does the Bible frequently assert that all are sinners; it also assumes it everywhere. The commands to repent relate to everyone. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent” (Acts, 17:30). Although Jesus never needed to confess sin or repent, it is necessary for everyone else to do so, for it is obvious that all sin. In speaking to Nikodemus about being born again, Jesus made His statement universal: “I tell you the truth no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit” (John, 3:5). It is apparent that in the New Testament each person, by virtue of being Human, is regarded as a sinner in need of repentance and new birth. Every speech in Acts, even Stephen’s and every epistle just assumes that men have all sinned. But what is more impressive is that even the good people, the righteous, the heroes of Bible, are presented as sinners. We have already pointed to several Old Testament examples-Noah, Abraham, Moses, David. And in the New Testament we read of the shortcomings of Jesus disciples. Peter’s sin brought him several 112 rebukes from Jesus, the most severe being, “Get behind Me Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Matt. 16:23). An additional proof of the universality of sin is that all persons are subject to the penalty for sin, namely, death (Rom. 3:23). “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” In ( Rom. 6:23); “The wages of sin is death.” In (Matt. 15:1819); “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.” In Paul’s thinking, then, as in Jesus’, sins are the result of Human nature. In every Human being there is a strong inclination toward evil, an inclination with definite effects (Rom. 7:19-21). Pelagianism: The views of the relationship between individual Humans and the first sin of Adam, is that of Pelagius. He was a British monk, who had moved to Rome to teach. When, as a result of Alaric’s invasion, he left Italy for Carthage in North Africa in 409, conflict with Augustine’s teachings was almost inevitable. Pelagius was moralist; his primary concern was people to live good and decent lives. Pelagius strongly emphasized the free will. Humans were created free of the controlling influence of the universe. Humans are free of any determining influence from the fall. Pelagius maintained that the soul, created by God especially for every person is not tainted by any supposed corruption or guilt. Adam’s influence, if any, upon his descendants is merely that of a bad example; there is no other direct connection between Adam’s sin and the rest of the Human race. Humans have no congenital spiritual fault. Hence, Baptism does not remove the sin of adults. Pelagius spoke of “grace,” he meant free will, apprehension of God through reason, and the law of Moses and Jesus’ 113 instruction. There is also the grace of forgiveness given to adults in Baptism. Grace is available equally to all persons. Pelagius rejected anything even faintly resembling the predestination taught by Augustine. Pelagius did not eliminate infant Baptism. Pelagius disciples namely, Coelestius taught that children may have eternal life even without Baptism, and Adam was created mortal and would have died whether he sinned or not. Arminianism: James Arminius was a Dutch Reformed pastor and Theologian. Unlike Pelagianism, Arminianism holds that we receive from Adam a corrupted nature. We begin life without righteousness. Thus all Humans are unable, without special divine help, to fulfil God’s spiritual commands. This inability is physical and intellectual, but not volitional. Arminians say that, “guilt” is also part of the original sin. Orton Wiley says, although that depravity is of the essence of sin; its culpability, we maintain, was removed by the free gift of Christ. This prevented grace is extended to everyone, and in effect neutralizes the corruption received from Adam. Calvinism: has given attention to Adam’s sin, his sin is not just the sin of an isolated individual, but is also our sin. Furthermore, all persons are guilty of Adam’s sin. Death, the penalty for sin, has been transmitted from Adam to all Humans. Thus, whereas in the Pelagian view God imputes neither a corrupted nature nor guilt to Humanity, and in the Arminian view God imputes a corrupted nature but not guilt, in the Calvinist scheme He imputes both a corrupted nature and guilt. Augustine’s view is that is nothing unfair or improper about our receiving a corrupted nature and guilt from Adam, for we are receiving the just result of our sin. 114 1.Charles Ryder Smith, The Bible Doctrine of Sin and of the Ways of God with sinners (London : Epworth , 1953). 2. Smith, Doctrine of Sin. 3. Strong, Systematic Theology. 4. Berkhof, Systematic Theology. 115 TOPIC 26 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE EVIL THAT COMES THROUGH THE WORLD Social sin is prevalent in our society and exists alongside individual sin. Persons who oppose sin on a personal level may be drawn into the corporate nature of sin through the evil acts of government, economic structures, or other forms of group identification. The Bible identifies the evil that comes through the world, the powers, and corporate personality which draws both believers and nonbelievers into the evil of society. Our hope lies in Christ, Who has overcome the world. But we also need to be proactive in opposing social sin by finding strategies that will respond to social sin. There are numerous references to the enmity, hostility, opposition that the world displays toward Christ, the believer, and the Church, Jesus said. “The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify that what it does is evil” (John, 7:7). “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you” (John, 15:18-19). The same idea is repeated in Jesus’ prayer (John, 17:14). Paul says the world and the believer have totally different understandings of things. The things of God are foolish to the world (1 Cor. 1:2, 27); they are low and despised in the world (1 Cor.27:28). God has, on the contrary, made foolish the wisdom of the world (1 Cor. 1:20; 3:19). This is because different “spirits” are involved: “We have 116 not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us” (1 Cor. 2:12). The things and gifts of the Spirit of God are not received by the “unspiritual man” because they must be spiritually discerned (1 Cor.2:14). They are foreign to such a person, and therefore he or she cannot accept them. The idea of inability to perceive or understand is also found in Jesus’ words about the world’s not receiving Him or the Spirit. Jesus promised His disciples “the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you” (John, 14:17). After a little while the world would see Him no more, but He would manifest Himself to His disciples and they would know Him (John, 14:19, 22); This is in keeping with the fact that the world knew neither the Father (John, 17:25) nor the Son when He came (John, 1:10-11); The world represents an organized force, a power or order that is the counterpoise to the kingdom of God. Paul in (Ephesians 2), describes this structure that controls the unbeliever. The Ephesians had been dead through the trespasses and sins in which they “used to live when you followed the ways of the world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient” (Eph. 2:2). In their former state, “All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts; like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath” (Eph. 2:3). There is a permeating order of the world, a structure that affects and governs Human kind. This order is also referred to as “the basic principles of this world” (Col.2:8); Paul urges the Colossians not to let themselves be made a prey of these elemental spirits, or of 117 “hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on Human tradition.” Having died with Christ to these elementals spirits, the Colossians must not now submit to these forces, living as if they still belonged to the world. These elemental spirits are the operating principles according to which the world is governed. Paul also writes to the Galatians of their having formally been “slaves to those who by nature are not gods,” and then questions how they, who now know God, can turn back again to become slaves of “those weak and miserable principles” (Gal. 4:8-9). This cosmos or evil system is under the control of the devil “the ruler of the kingdom of the air” (Eph. 2:2). John wrote that “the whole world is under the control of the devil one” (1 John, 5:19); Just prior to His betrayal Jesus said to His disciples, “the prince of this world is coming” (John, 14:30). Jesus proclaimed and demonstrated Himself to be separated from the evil attitudes and practices of the world. His followers are to do likewise. James lists both positive and negative criteria of true religion: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (James, 1:27). There is a basic mentality associated with being of the world: “Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God” (James, 4:4). Perhaps the sharpest warning is in (1 John, 2:15-17). Here John commands his readers not to love the world or the things in the world, for those who love the world do not have love for the Father in them. “For everything in the world the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does comes not from the Father but from the world” (1 John, 2:15-16). 118 The warning is a sober one, for the issue is a matter of eternal destiny. “The world and its desires pass a way, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John, 2:17). The one whose loyalty is to that which is permanent will also abide forever. The believer need not and indeed will not be overcome by the world. John says of the spirit of antichrist, of which there already are many manifestations in the world, “You dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them” (1 John, 4:4-5). It is by faith that the world is overcome. “For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world; only he, who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John, 5:45). This is not unlike Jesus’ command to His disciples to “let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matt.5:16). There is a basic mentality associated with being with the world: “Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God” (James, 4:4). Paul speaks of the cosmic character of sin. The whole creation was subjected to futility. It is presently waiting for the time when it “will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. If the sin of Humankind has distorted the entire creation, certainly its social structures are included” (Rom. 8:18-25). 119 1. 2. Berkhof. Christ and the Powers. Yoder. Politics of Jesus. 120 TOPIC 27 GOD IS IN CONTROL CHRISTOLOGY In the history of the church, the most heated debate in Christology has been over the understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Some recent Theologians have determined that Christ cannot be both Human and God, and they try to historically research the life of Jesus using the understanding. Certain researches, believe that the story of Christ is surrounded by myth to find how Jesus influenced His disciples and the people around Him. However, a perspective utilizing faith to interpret the history of Jesus, found through reason, may provide the most adequate Christological methodology. The Bible tells us very little about Jesus’ early life. There is a Biblical basis for this contention. For example, the Pharisees saw Jesus perform miraculous healings through the power of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 12:22-32; Mark 3:20-30 and Luke 11:14-23). Although they certainly were familiar with the Jewish traditions and presumably had observed Jesus for quite some time, their appraisal was, “By the prince of demons He is casting out demons.” Even those closest to Jesus failed to know Him fully Judas betrayed Him. The other disciples did not realize the significance of His crucifixion and even His resurrection. The religious authorities obviously knew that the tomb was empty, but did not interpret this fact correctly. On a more positive note, for example, when in response to Jesus’ question, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living 121 God.” Jesus commented, “This was not revealed to you by man, but My Father in heaven” (Matt. 16:15-17). Another case in point is John the Baptist. In prison he began to wonder about Christ. And so he sent two of his disciples to ask the Lord; “Are You the one Who was to come, or should we expect someone else?” (Luke 7:19). John may have been expecting some concrete historical event (perhaps his own release from prison?) as evidence that Jesus was indeed, as John knew Him to be, the Christ. Jesus’ answer was to point to the deeds He had been performing: “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear the dead are raised and the Good News is taught to the poor” (Luke, 7:22). The historical Jesus was the confirmation of the Christ of faith. 1..Adolf von Harnack, What is Christianity? (New York : Harper & Brothers, 1957). 122 TOPIC 28 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE DEITY OF CHRIST The deity of Christ sits at the pinnacle of controversy and belief concerning the Christian faith. While some have overemphasized the deity of Christ, others such as the Ebionites and the Arians, have portrayed Christ as a unique Human not possessing a divine nature. Relevant Biblical passages clearly indicate that this is not the case. More recently, “functional Christology” has developed, focusing on the actions of Jesus rather than His nature. Again, Biblical evidence does not support this view. The deity of Christ has real value to the believer concerning knowledge of God, new life, personal relationship with God, and the ability to worship Christ for Who He is. In looking at the Biblical evidence for the deity of Christ, we begin with Jesus. It is true that Jesus did not make an explicit and overt claim to deity. He did not say in so many words, “I am God.” What we do find, however, are claims that would be inappropriate if made by someone who is less than God. For example, Jesus said that He would send “His angels” (Matt. 13:41); elsewhere they are spoken of as “the angels of God” (Luke 12:8-9; 15:10). That reference is particularly significant, for He spoke not only of the angels but also of the kingdom as His: “The Son of man will send out His angels, and they will weed of His kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.” This kingdom is repeatedly referred to as the kingdom of God, even in Matthew’s Book, where one would expect to find “kingdom of heaven” instead. 123 More significant yet are the prerogatives Jesus claimed. In particular, His claim to forgive sins resulted in a charge of blasphemy against Him. When the paralytic was lowered through the roof by his four friends, Jesus did not respond with a comment about the man’s physical condition or his need of healing. Rather, His initial commend was, “Son, your sins are forgiven” (Matt. 2:5). The reaction of the scribes indicates the meaning they attached to His words: “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Matt. 2:7). They interpreted Jesus’ comment “as exercising of a divine prerogative, the power to actually forgive sins.” “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Get up take your bed and walk?” But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…He said to the paralytic, ‘I tell you, get up, take your bed and go home”’ (Matt. 2:8-10). Jesus claimed other prerogatives as well. In (Matt. 25:31-46); He speaks of judging the world. He will sit on His glorious throne and divide the sheep from the goats. The power of judging the spiritual condition and assigning the eternal destiny of all people belongs to Him. Certainly this is the power only God can exercise. Jesus made other direct claims. The authority Jesus claimed and exercised is also clearly seen with respect to the Sabbath; God had established the sacredness of the Sabbath (Exod. 20:8-11). Only God could abrogate or modify this regulation. Yet consider what happened when Jesus’ disciples picked heads of grain on the Sabbath, and the Pharisees objected that the Sabbath regulations were being violated. Jesus responded by pointing out David had violated one of the laws by eating of the bread reserved for the priests. Then, turning directly to 124 the situation at hand, Jesus asserted: “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath” (Mark, 2:27-28). He was clearly claiming the right to redefine the status of the Sabbath, a right that belongs only to someone virtually equal to God. We see Jesus also claiming an unusual relationship with the Father, particularly in the saying reported in John. For example, Jesus claims to be one with the Father (John, 14:7-9). There is a claim to pre-existence in His statement in (John, 8:58). “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, “I am.” Note that rather, than saying, “I was,” He says, “I am.” It is quite possible that Jesus is alluding to the “I Am formula” by which the Lord identified Himself in (Exodus, 3:14-15). For in the case, as in Exodus, the “I am” is a formula denoting existence. Another allusion to preexistence is found in (John, 3:13), where Jesus asserts, “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven-the Son of man,” There is also a claim to simultaneous and coterminous working with the Father: “If anyone loves Me, he will obey My teaching. My Father will love him and We will come to him and make our home with him” (John, 14:23); “I tell you the truth, any- one who obeys My teaching will never die.” The people said. “Now we know you are possessed by a demon. Even Abraham and the prophets died, but You say; ‘Anyone who obeys My teaching will never die!’ Are You greater than our father Abraham; He died and so did the prophets; Who do You think You are;” Jesus answered. “I wand glory for My Self, it doesn’t count, but it is My Father Who glorify Me; you say, ‘He is our God, but you don’t even know Him. I know Him, if I said otherwise I would be as great a liar as you.” But I do know Him and obey Him; your 125 father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to My coming he saw it and was glad.” The people said. “You aren’t even fifty years old. How can You say You have seen Abraham.” Jesus answered. “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born. I Am.” (John, 8:51-58), Jesus claiming His pre-existence. Matthew reports at the entire high council, the high priest to have said at the trial “I charge You under oath in the name of the living God tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” (Matt. 26:63). Jesus replied. “it is as you say.” “But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of God and coming on the clouds of heaven.” This is as clear a declaration of His deity as one can find in the Bible (Matt. 26:64-66). Not only did Jesus not dispute the charge that He claimed to be God, but He also accepted His disciples’ attribution of deity to Him. The clearest case of this is his response to Thomas statement, “My Lord and My God!” (John 20:28). Perhaps the most emphatic statement is found in His words to Martha: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies” (John, 11:25). Jesus understood Himself as equal with the Father and as possessing the right to do things that only God has the right to do. One group, known as the Ebionism, was originally applied to all Christians; later, only to Jewish Christians; and then, to a particular sect of heretical Jewish Christians. (The ward Ebionite derived from a Hebrew; word meaning “poor”). The roots of Ebionism can be traced to Judaism movements within the apostolic or New Testament period. Paul’s letter to the Galatians was written to counter the activity of one of such group. Judaizers had come to the Galatian Christians and were attempting to undermine Paul’s apostolic 126 authority. They taught that in addition to accepting by faith the grace of God in Jesus, it was necessary to observe all regulations of Jewish law, s such as circumcision. The Ebionites were a continuation of or offshoot from the Judaism. Being strongly monotheistic, they focused their attention upon the problematic deity of Christ. They rejected the virgin birth, maintaining that Jesus was born to Joseph and Mary in normal fashion. Jesus was, according to the Ebionites, an ordinary Human possessing unusual but not superhuman or supernatural-gifts of righteousness and wisdom. He was the predestined Messiah, although in a rather natural or Human sense. At the Baptism the Christ descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove. This was understood more as the presence of God’s power and influence within the man Jesus as a personal, metaphysical reality. Near the end of Jesus’ life, the Christ withdrew from him. Thus Jesus was a primarily a Human. Arianism, a much more thoroughly developed and subtle view sprang up in the fourth century around the teaching of an Alexandrian presbyter named Arius. It became the first major threat to the views implicitly held by the church regarding Jesus deity. This movement had a real chance of becoming the official view. Although it was condemned by the church at the Council of Nicaea in 325 and at subsequent Councils, it lingers on to our day in various forms, most notably the movement known as Jehovah’s Witnesses. A central conception in the Arian understanding of Jesus is the absolute uniqueness and transcendence of God. God is the one source of all things, the only uncreated existent in the whole universe. He alone possesses the attributes of deity. Further, He cannot share His being or essence with anyone else. Was He able to impart something of His 127 essence to any other being, He would be divisible and subject to change; that is, He would not be God. If any other being participated in the divine nature, it would be necessary to speak of a duality or multiplicity of divine beings. But this would contradict the one absolute certainty of monotheism, the uniqueness and oneness of God. Nothing else that exists, then, can have originated as some sort of emanation from the essence or substance of God. Everything other than God has, rather, come into being through an act of creation by which He called it into existence out of nothing. Only God (by which Arius meant the Father) is uncreated and eternal. The Father, however, while creating everything that is, did not directly create the earth. It could not bear His direct contact. Rather, the Father worked through the Word, the agent of His creation of and continuing work in the world. The Word is also a created being, although the first and highest of the beings. He is not an emanation from the Father, but a fiat creation out of nothing. The Word must have had a beginning at some finite point. The Arians’ slogan therefore became, “there was a time when He was not.” It seemed to the Arians that if the Word were co-eternal with the Father, there would be two self-existent principles. This would be irreconcilable with monotheism, the one absolute tenet of their Theology. The Son has no communion with or even direct knowledge of the Father. Although He is God’s Word and Wisdom, He is not of the very essence of God; being a creature, He bears these titles only because He participates in the word and wisdom of the Father. Totally different in essence from the Father, the Son is liable to change and even sin. 128 The function of Christology, by this is meant an emphasis upon what Jesus did, rather, than upon what He is. Basically, functional Christology claims to work on the basis of purely New Testament grounds than the more metaphysical or speculative categories of a later period of reflection. One clear example of functional Christology is that concerned with the person or nature of Christ. These concerns centred on two issues, first, the relationship between the nature of Jesus and that of God; second, the relationship between Jesus’ divine and Human natures. These, however, are not the issues with which the New Testament is concerned. The fourth and fifth century church was wrestling with problems resulting from the Hellenising of the Christian faith, the rise of Gnostic doctrines, and the views advocated by Arius, Nestorius, Eutychis and others. These problems simply did not arise in New Testament times. The church fathers had to combat the views of heretics, related primarily to the nature of Christ or His person. Consequently the church fathers at the Council of Nicaea in 325 formed the Creed (the Symbol of Faith), which read as follows: I believe in one God Father Almighty. Maker of heaven and earth and all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ. The only begotten Son of God. Begotten of the Father before all ages. Light from light. True God from true God. Begotten not made, of one essence with the Father. 129 Through Him all things were made. Who for us and for our salvation. Came down from heaven. And was incarnate of the Holy Spirit. And the Virgin Mary. And became Human. And was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate. And suffered and was buried. And rose on the third day according to the Scriptures. And ascended into heaven. And is seated at the right hand of the Father. And will come again in glory. To judge the living and the dead. And His Kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, The Lord, the giver of life. Who proceeds from the Father. Who together with the Father and the Son, Is worshiped and glorified. And Who spoke through the prophets. And in one Holy Catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the age to come Amen. Soon yet another religious controversy to rage across the Byzantine world. On the surface it was a disagreement over the use 130 of icons, that is images. But at a deeper level it was a disagreement over which things were sufficiently sacred or holy to deserve worship. Christian clergy are set apart ordination; hence, they are. Church buildings are set apart by dedication; they are holy. The martyrs and heroes of the faith are set apart by their deeds, and they are normally called ‘saints’ (which means ‘holy ones’). Do they not deserve the same reverence as the clergy? And as the martyrs became holy by their selfsacrifice, so monks sacrificed the normal routines of everyday life. Do they, too, deserve worship? The holiness of the saints was supported by the miracles reported as taking place in connection with the saint’s tomb, relics, or even icons. Examples include Saint Demetrius of Thessalonica, the miraculous Christ-icon of Edessa, and the miracleworking icon of Mary, the Virgin Hodegetria, of Constantinople. Disputes concerning the Person of Christ did not cease with the council of 681, but were extended in a different form into the eighth and ninth centuries. The struggle centred on the Holy Icons, the pictures of Christ, the Mather of God, and the saints, which were kept and venerated both in Churches and in privet homes. The Iconoclasts or icon-smashers, suspicious of any religious art which represented Human beings or God, demanded the destruction of icons, the opposite party, the Iconodules or venerators of icons, vigorously defended the place of icons in the life of the Church. The struggle was not merely a conflict between two conceptions of Christian art. Deeper issues were involved: the character of Christ’s Human nature, the Christian attitude towards matter, the true meaning of Christian redemption. 131 The Iconoclasts may have been influenced from outside by the Jewish and Muslim ideas, But Iconoclasm was not simply imported from outside; within Christianity itself there had always existed a ‘puritan’ outlook, condemned icons because it saw in all images a latent idolatry. When the Isaurian Emperors attacked icons found plenty of support inside the Church. The Iconoclast controversy, which lasted some 120 years, falls into two phases. The first period opened in 726, when Leo III (717-41) launched an attack on the use of icons, perhaps motivated by a sense of the nation’s guilt. Christianity taught that God punished the children of Israel because of their idolatry; the humiliating defeats and losses of the previous century, as well as the calamitous earthquake early in Leo’s reign, intended to bring ‘God’s new chosen people’ to their senses. Leo openly declared his opposition to icons for the first time and ordered the icon of Christ over the Chalke Gate to be replaced with a cross, Under Leo the III and his son Constantine V (74175), those supporting icons were vigorously persecuted. The pope at Rome dared officially to condemn iconoclasm, that is, the destruction of icons. The Emperor retaliated by removing Sicily, southern Italy, and the entire western part of the Balkans and Greece from the patriarchate of Rome and claiming these areas for the patriarchate of Constantinople. This as much as anything else, forced the bishop of Rome to seek the support and protection of the Franks. A synod of bishops met at Hieria in 753 and described all use of icons in the area as idolatry. All remaining icons were destroyed, and supporters of icons in the area around Constantinople were excommunicated, mutilated, and sent into exile. Constantine V deliberately destroyed 132 the reputation and influence of monks in general and the popular, highly venerated ascetics in particular. An estimated 50,000 of these holy men fled from the region immediately around Constantinople to escape persecution and humiliation. The Emperor also attempted to limit the practice of saint-worship by destroying relics and condemning prayers made to saints. The iconoclasts wanted to replace the religious icons with the traditional Christian symbols of the cross, the Bible, and the elements of the Lord’s Supper. These objects alone were to be considered holy. Beyond this, only ordained clergy and dedicated buildings possessed a kind of holiness. Constantine V argued that, when consecrated, the elements of the Lord’s Supper were the true icon of Christ, apparently believing that the consecrated bread and wine were identical in substance with the flesh and blood of the divine and Human Christ. A proper icon must consist of the same substance as what it stands for. Constantine V’s son and successor Leo IV (775-80), was not an energetic iconoclast, and his widow Irene, regent for their son Constantine VI (780-97), overturned the dynasty’s iconoclastic policy. Under her instigation the seventh ecumenical council assembled at Nicaea in 787 and condemned the whole iconoclastic movement, affirming the position taken by John of Damascus. Irene suspended the persecution. The Iconodule position was upheld by the seventh and last Ecumenical Council (787), which met, as the first had done, at Nicaea. Icons, the council proclaimed, they are to be kept in Churches and honoured with the same relative veneration as is shown to other material symbols, such 133 as the ‘precious and life-giving Cross and the Bible. A new attack on icons, started by Leo V, the Arminian in (813-20), decided that iconoclasm should again become the official policy of government. A synod of Church leaders in 815 reaffirmed the position taken by the anti-icon synod of 754-exept that they no longer regarded the icons as idols. Theodora, widow of Theophilus and regent for their son Michel III (842-67), determined that her son must abandon the iconoclastic policy to retain the widest support for his rule. A synod early in 843 condemned all iconoclasts, this time permanently, by Empress, Theodora. The final victory of the Holy Images in 843 is known as ‘the Triumph of Orthodoxy’, and is commemorated in a special service celebrated on ‘Orthodoxy Sunday’, the first Sunday in Lent. The chief champion of the icons in the first period was St. John of Damascus (675-749), in the second St. Theodore of Studios (759-826). John was able to work more freely because he dwelt in Muslim territory, out of reach of the Byzantine government. One of the distinctive features of Orthodoxy is the place which it assigns to icons. An Orthodox Church today is filled with them: dividing the sanctuary from the body of the building, there is a solid screen, the iconostasis, entirely covered with icons, while other icons are placed in special shrines around the Church; and perhaps the walls are covered with icons in fresco or mosaic. An Orthodox prostrates himself before the icons, he kisses them and burns candles in front of them; they are censed by the priest and carried in processions. When an Orthodox kisses an icon or prostrates himself before it, he is not guilty of idolatry. The icon is not an idol but a 134 symbol, the veneration shown to images is directed, not towards stone, wood and paint, but towards the person depicted. This had been pointed out some time before the Iconoclast controversy by Leontius Neopolis (died about 650): ‘We do not make obeisance to the nature of wood, but we revere and do obeisance to Him Who was crucified on the Cross … When the two beams of the Cross are joined together I adore the figure because of Christ Who was crucified on the Cross, but if the beams are separated, I throw them away and burn them.’ 1. Robert H Stein, The Method of Jesus’ Teaching (Philadelphia: Westmiinster, 1978). 2. George E. Ladd, The New Testament and Criticism Grand Rapids: Eerdman,1967). 3. Tim Dowley, Introduction to the History of Church, Second Edition. 4. Timothy Ware, The Orthodox Church . New Edition.. 5. The History of Christianity, Second Edition, Tim Dowley, pp. 209-213. 135 TOPIC 29 GOD IS IN CONTROL CHRIST HUMANITY While the doctrine of the Humanity of Christ is less controversial than the doctrine of His divinity, there have been several ancient heresies and more modern views that deny or diminish His Humanity. The issue of the sinlessness of Jesus creates a special problem. Some maintain that Jesus could not have been Human if He did not sin. This conclusion does not necessary follow. There are several implications that follow from accepting the orthodox position of Jesus Humanity. There is ample Biblical evidence that the man Jesus was a fully Human person, not lacking any of the essential elements of Humanity that are found in each of us. The first aspect is that He had a fully Human body. He was born. He did not descend from heaven and suddenly appear upon earth, but was conceived in the womb of a Human mother and nourished prenatally like any other child. Not only Jesus’ birth, but also His life indicates that He had a physical Human nature. We are told that He grew “in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and man” (Luke, 2:52). He grew physically, nourished by food and water. He did not have unlimited physical strength. Yet His body may have been more nearly perfect in some respects than ours, because there was in Him none of the sin (neither original sin nor the personal sin common to every Human) that affects health. Jesus had the same physical limitations as other Humans. Thus He experienced 136 hunger when He was fasted (Matt. 4:2). He also experienced thirst (John, 19:28). In addition, He experienced fatigue when He travelled (John, 4:6), and presumably on many other occasions as well. Thus, He was justifiably dismayed when His disciples fell asleep while He was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, for He experienced the same type of weariness they did. He was asking of them nothing that He did not require of Himself (Matt. 26:36, 40-41). Finally, Jesus suffered physically and died, just like everyone else. This is evident in the entire crucifixion story, but perhaps most clearly in (John, 19:34), where we read that a spear was thrust into His side, and water and blood mingled came out, indicating that He had already died. Surely He had felt physical suffering (as genuinely as would you or I) when He was beaten, the crown of thorns was placed on His head, and the nails were driven through His hands (or wrists) and feet. That Jesus had a physical body is evident in the fact that His contemporaries had a genuine physical perception of Him. John puts it very vividly in (1 John, 1:1): “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.” John is here establishing the reality of the Human nature of Jesus. He actually heard, saw, and touched Jesus. When we examine His personality of Jesus, we find the full gamut of Human emotions. He loved, of course. One of His disciples is referred to as the disciple “whom Jesus loved” (John, 13:23). When Lazarus was ill and Mary and Martha sent for Jesus, their message was. “Lord, the one You love is sick” (John, 13:3). When the rich young man asked about inheriting eternal life, Jesus looked upon him and “loved him” (Mark, 10:21). Jesus had compassion 137 or pity on those who were hungry, ill, or lost (Matt. 9:36; 14:14; 15:32; 20:34). Jesus reacted to differing situations with appropriate emotions. He could be sorrowful and troubled, as He was just before His betrayal and crucifixion (Matt. 26:37). He also experienced joy (John, 15:11; 17:13 and Heb. 12:2). Jesus marvels at the faith of the centurion (Luke, 7:2-10). He could be angry and grieved with people (Mark, 3:5), and even indignant (Mark, 10:14). He actually felt the necessity and importance of His mission, “how distressed I am until it is completed” (Luke, 12:50). Awareness of what it would entail troubled His soul (John, 12:27). In the garden of Gethsemane, He was obviously in struggle and in stress, and apparently did not want to be left alone (Mark, 14:32-42). On the cross, His outcry, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mark, 15:34), was a very Human expression of loneliness. One of Jesus most Human reactions occurred at the death of Lazarus. Seeing Mary and her companions weeping, Jesus “was deeply moved in spirit and troubled,” (John, 11:33); He wept (John, 11:35); at the tomb He was “once more deeply moved” (John, 11: 38). Obviously Jesus possessed a Human nature capable of feeling sorrow and remorse as deeply as we do. He knew the past, present, and future to a degree not available to ordinary Human beings. For example, He knew the thoughts of both His friends (Luke, 9:47). And His enemies (Luke, 6:8). He could read the character of Nathanael (John, 1:47-48). He “did not need man’s testimony about man, for He knew what was in a man” (John, 2:25). He knew that the Samaritan woman had five husbands and was presently living with a man to whom she was not married (John 4:18). He knew that Lazarus was already dead (John, 11:14). He 138 knew that Judas would betray Him (Matt. 26:25), and that Peter would deny Him (Matt. 26:34). Indeed Jesus knew all that was to happen to Him (John, 18:4). Truly He had a remarkable knowledge of the past, the present, the future, Human nature and behaviour. One further important issue concerning Jesus’ Humanity is the question of whether He sinned or, indeed, whether He could have sinned. John said, “In Him is no sin” (1 John 3:5). Paul also affirmed that Christ “had no sin” (2 Cor. 5:21). His Humanity, true and unadulterated, is the standard by which we are to be measured. 1. Rudolf Bultmann, Theology of the New Testament (New York: Scribner, 1951). 2. James Orr, Revelation and inspiration (Grand Rapids; Eerdmans, 1952). 139 TOPIC 30 GOD IS IN CONTROL UNITY OF THE TWO NATURES OF CHRIST The doctrine of the person of Jesus Christ does not end at the point of describing His divine and Human natures. The unity of these two natures has extensive implications for the understanding of Christian Theology. Through anthropological understanding, Humans have attempted to disclaim or overemphasize the view of the unity of Jesus Christ. However, the Biblical and historical material supports the view that Christ has both a Human and divine nature united in one person. This does not come directly from a Human perspective, for Humanity cannot comprehend such a joining of two natures. There are references in the Bible that allude to both the deity and Humanity of Jesus, yet clearly refer to a single subject. Among these are in (John, 1:14,) (“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us…Full of grace and truth”); In (Gal. 4:4), “(God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under law;”) and in (1 Tim. 3:16). “He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was taught among the nations, was believed in the world, was taken up in glory.” There are other references that focus upon the work of Jesus in such a way as to make it clear that it is the function not of either the Human or the divine exclusively, 140 but of one unified subject. For example, Paul says of the atonic work of Christ that it unites Jews and Gentiles and “in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and taught peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit” (Eph. 2:16-18). And in reference to the work of Christ, John says, “But if anybody does sin, we have one Who speaks to the Father in our defence Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John, 2:1-2). This work of Jesus, which assumes both His Humanity (John, 4:2) and deity (4:15; 5:5), is the work of one person, who is described in the same epistle as the Son Whom the Father has sent as the Saviour of the world (John, 4:14). Throughout all of these references, one unified person whose acts presuppose both Humanity and deity is in view. Further, several passages in which Jesus is designated by one of His titles are highly revealing, for example, we have situations in the Bible where a divine title is used in reference to Jesus’ Human activity. Paul says, “None of the rulers of this age understood it [the secret and hidden wisdom of God], for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8), in (Col. 1:13-14). Paul writes, “For He [the Father] has rescued as from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in Whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” Here 141 the kingly status of the Son of God is juxtaposed with the redemptive work of His bodily crucifixion and resurrection, conversely, the title “Son of Man,” which Jesus often used of Himself during His earthly teaching, appears in passages pointing to His heavenly status; for instance, in (John, 3:13). “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven the Son of Man.” Another reference of the same type is in (John, 6:62): “What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?” Nothing in any of these references contradicts the position that the one person, Jesus Christ, was both an earthly human and a preexistent divine being Who became incarnate. Nor is there any suggestion that these two natures took turns directing His activity. The church denounced all the heresies that appeared within the first four Christian centuries. They either deny the genuineness (Ebionism) or the completeness (Arianism was condemned at the Council of Nicaea in 325) of Jesus’ deity, deny the genuineness (Docetism) or the completeness (Apollinarianism was condemned at the Council of Constantinople in 381) of the Humanity, divide His person (Nestorianism was condemned at the Council of Ephesus in 431), or confuse His nature (Eutychianism was denounced at the standing Synod of Constantinople in 433). The succession of a new Emperor sympathetic to the position that Jesus had two natures led to the convening of yet another Council, in Chalcedon in 451.This council affirmed the Nicene Creed, and issued a statement that was to become the standard for all Christendom. Regarding the relationship 142 between the two natures, the statement speaks of one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only begotten, made known in two natures without confusion, without change, without division, without separation, the difference of the natures being by no means removed because of the union, but the property of each nature being preserved and coalescing in one [prosopon] and one [hupostasis-not parted] or divided into two [prosopa] but one and the same Son, only-begotten, divine Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, as the prophets of old and Jesus Christ Himself have taught us about Him and the [creed of our fathers] has handed down). All departures from the Orthodox Doctrine of the person of Christ are simply variations of one of these heresies. The Councils declared that “Jesus was fully God and fully Human.” 1. 2. 3. 4. Baillie. God was in Christ. G. C. Berkouwer, The Person of Christ Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1955). Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines. Donald Baillie, God Was in Christ (New York: Scribner, 1948). 143 TOPIC 31 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST After the resurrection the virgin birth is the most contested event in the life of Jesus Christ. Near the turn of the twentieth century, the virgin birth became an issue that tested people’s belief in the supernatural. While the terminology “virginal conception” more accurately explains the meaning of a conception that is supernatural than does “virgin birth,” the latter has become the most common expression in referring to this doctrine. The two Biblical references that discuss the virgin birth, Matthew 1 and Luke 1, satisfy Scripture’s consistency in the belief of the virgin birth. As a key 144 element of Christology, belief in the virgin birth is necessary for Christian Theology. The doctrine of the virgin birth is based upon two explicit Biblical references Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-15). (“This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a Son and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” All of this occurred to fulfil the Lord’s message through His prophet: “Look! The virgin will conceive a child. She will give birth to a Son. And they will call Him Immanuel, which means God with us.” When Joseph wake up he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named Him Jesus. Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time three wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We saw His star as it rose, and we have come to worship Him. King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” And you O Bethlehem in the land of Judah are not least among the ruling cities of 145 Judah, for a ruler will come from you. Who will be the shepherd for My people Israel. “Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. Then he told them. Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find Him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship Him too.” After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. They entered the house and saw the child with His mother, Mary and they bowed down and worshiped Him. When they opened their treasure chests and gave Him gifts of gold, frankincense and mirth. When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had worn them in a dream not to return to Herod. After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. Get up flee to Egypt with the child and His mother, the angel said. Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill Him. That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary His mother and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet. “I called My Son out of Egypt.”) And (Luke 1:26-38; 2:1-20). (“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God send the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee. To a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favoured woman! The Lord is with you.” Confused and disturbed tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her. “For you have found favour 146 with God. You will conceive and give birth to a Son and you will name Him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of God. The Lord God will give Him the throne of his ancestor David. And He will reign over Israel forever, His Kingdom will never end.” Mary asked the angel. “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of God will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be Holy and He will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age. People use to say she was barred, but she has conceived a son and she is now in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God. Mary responded. “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her…At that time the Roman Emperor, Augustus decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. [This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.] All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea. David’s ancient home. He travelled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancé who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a Son. She wrapped Him swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. That night there were-shepherds stain in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them and the radiance of the Lord’s Glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. I bring you good news that will bring great 147 joy to all people. The Saviour yes, the Messiah, the Lord has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David. And you will recognize Him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others the armies of heaven-praising God and saying. “Glory to God in the highest. And on earth peace and good will toward men.” When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other. “Let’s go to Bethlehem. Let’s see this wonderful thing that has happen, which the Lord has told us about. They harried to the village and found Mary and Joseph, and there was the baby lying in the manger. After seeing Him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about the child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them”). There are other passages in the New Testament which refer to the virgin birth. God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary…Don’t be frightened, Mary...very soon now, you will become pregnant and have a baby, and you are to name Him ‘Jesus,’ He shall be very great and shall be called the Son of God…Mary asked the angel, “But how can I have a baby? I am a virgin.” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you and the power of God shall overshadow you; so the baby born to you will be utterly Holy and He will be called the Son of God” (Luke, 1:28-35). Luke’s references to the story of Zechariah, Elizabeth (Luke, 1:39-45), and the birth of John the Baptist (Luke, 1:5766). And in (Luke, 2:8-12), suddenly, the angel was joined by a host of 148 others the armies of heaven praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace on earth” (Luke 2:13-14), the presentation of the infant Jesus in the temple, and Jesus’ teaching there at age twelve. Matthew, on the other hand, has the story of the Magi’s being guided to the child by the star, (Matt. 2:1-12), the slaughter of the infants by Herod, (Matt.2:14-16) and the flight into Egypt (Matt.2:12). And there is the prophesy of (Isa. 7:14), which is cited by (Matt. 1:23). We might simply stop at this point and assert that since the Bible affirms the virgin birth not once but twice, that is sufficient proof. Since we believe that the Bible is inspired and authoritative ( Matthew 1 and 2, Luke 1 and 2), convince us that the virgin birth is fact. We note, first, the basic integrity of the two pertinent passages. Both of the explicit references, and specifically (Matt. 1:20-21 and Luke 1:34), are integrant parts of the narrative in which they occur; they are not insertions or interpolations. Miraculous icon of Axion Esti Within discussions of Orthodoxy, the Holy Mountain of Mt. Athos does get mentioned many times. Mt. Athos itself is what we call a “Spiritual Republic.” It is an independent state which pledges allegiance only to Almighty God. Mt. Athos which is perched on a peninsula 20 miles long and seven miles wide is off the Macedonian Coast. The monasteries there are among the oldest in Christendom. Mongs, hermits and holy men have lived there since the third century. During the Byzantine era, the total population exceeded 50.000. No women have ever been allowed on Mt. Athos. 149 The Blessed Ever-Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, is the “Patron Saint” of the Spiritual Republic of Mt. Athos. In one of the magnificent monasteries there is a huge icon on the Blessed Virgin Mary which has been titled “Axion Esti,” meaning “IT IS WORTHY TO BLESS THEE, THE VIRGIN,” This beautiful icon was painted in the seventh century and has since graced the sacred walls of the Cathedral of Mt. Athos. Today we commemorate the anniversary of the miracle which took place in front of the icon over 1,000 years ago, on June 11. During the celebration of the Divine Liturgy every Sunday, we hear the beautiful and inspiring hymn called “Axion Esti” which follows the prayer (as we kneel) called the “Epiclesis.” This hymn was written originally in the year 720 AD by St Cosmas, one of the greatest hymnographies’ of the Christian Church. The hymn, however, began with the words “Thee that art more honourable than the Cherubim (Tin Timioteran ).” It was well over one hundred years later that this hymn was added to the Divine Liturgy, but with an added beginning as the result of the following miraculous event: On June 11, 980 AD, as a group of monks were conducting an all-night vigil before the icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, they suddenly noticed a monk standing on the right of the icon whom they did not recognise at all. He was unknown to the monks and no one could explain his abrupt presence. This unidentified monk began to chant the beautiful hymn written by St. Cosmas, but rather began with the words “Axion Esti os Alethos Macarizin Se Tin Theotocon,” which means “It is very meet to bless Thee, Theotokos the ever blessed and most pure Virgin and Mother of God.” The monk then explained to the others that he was the Archangel Gabriel and that these words 150 should be added to the hymn. The Archangel then vanished from their sight, living the monks amazed at the power of God. Since that day on June 11, 980 AD, the additional words to the hymn of St. Cosmas have been sung by all Orthodox Christians around the world. The icon of the Blessed Mother Axion Esti is still venerated today in the Cathedral of Mt. Athos. “It is meet indeed to bless Thee, the ever-blessed and most pure and Mother of our God. Thee that art more honourable than the Cherubim, and incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim, who without spot of sin didn’t bear God the Word; Thee, verily the Mother of God, we magnify.” 1.Orr. Virgin Birth. 2.Brown, Birth of the Messiiah Bith=h of the Messiah. 3.Miraculous Icon of Axion Esti Commemorated June 11, 1980AD. By Fr. Poulos. 151 TOPIC 32 GOD IS IN CONTROL CHRIST TEACHING Christ work is uniquely suited for the role that He maintains in the Trinity. Traditionally, the work of Jesus has been classified in terms of three basic functions He performs: His revelatory role, His rule, and His reconciling work. Temporally, there are two main stages of Christ’s work: the humiliation and the exaltation. The work of Christ is not limited to the areas, but these titles for the work of Christ help us identify and give meaning to what Christ has done for Humanity. Many references to Christ teaching stress His revelation of the Father and of heavenly truth. And indeed, Jesus clearly understood Himself to be a prophet, for when His teaching, in Nazareth was not received, He said, “Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honour” (Matt. 13:57). That He was a prophet was recognized by those who heard Him teaching, at least by His followers. Moreover, at the time of His triumphal entry into Jerusalem the crowds said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee” (Matt. 21:11). When, at the end of a discourse later that, the 152 Pharisees wanted to arrest Him, they feared to do so because the multitudes held Him to be a prophet (Matt. 21:46). The two disciples on the road to Emmus referred to Jesus as “a prophet, powerful in word and deed” (Luke, 24:19). The Book of John tells us that, the people spoke of Jesus as “the prophet” (Luke, 6:14; 7:40). The blind man whom Jesus had healed identifies Him as a prophet (Luke, 9:17). And the Pharisees responded to Nicodemus, “Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee” (Luke, 7:52). They were evidently trying to refute the opinion that Jesus was a prophet. That Jesus was a prophet was in itself a fulfilment of prophesy, Peter specifically identifies Him with Moses’ prediction in (Deut. 18:15): “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people” (Acts, 3:22). Thus the prophesies about Jesus spoke of Him as the successor not only to David as king, but also to Moses as prophet. Jesus’ prophetic teaching was like that of the other prophets in that He was sent from God. Yet there was a significant difference between Him and them. He had come from the very presence of God. His pre-existence with the Father was a major factor in His ability to reveal the Father, for He had been with Him. So John says, “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, Who is at the Father’s side, has made Him known” (John 1:18). Jesus Himself made the claim of pre-existence: “before Abraham was born, I am!” (John, 8:58); When Philip requested that to the disciples be shown the Father, Jesus answered, “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John, 14:9). He told Nicodemus, “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven-the Son of Man” (John, 3:13). The uniqueness of Jesus’ prophetic teaching not- withstanding, in a number 153 of respects it was similar to the work of the Old Testament prophets. His message in many ways resembled theirs. There was declaration of doom and judgment, and there was proclamation of good news and salvation. In (Matt. 11:20-24), Jesus declares woes upon Corazon, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, much like those of Amos against Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Moapa, and other places, finally culminating in the denunciation of Israel (Amos, 1-3). In Matthew 23 Jesus pronounces judgment upon the scribes and Pharisees, calling them hypocrites, serpents, vipers, Certainly His prophetic message of condemnation of sin was prominent in His teaching. Jesus also proclaimed good news. Among the Old Testament prophets Isaiah in particular had spoken of the good tidings from God (Isa. 40:9; 52:7). Similarly, in (Matthew 13) Jesus describes the kingdom of heaven in terms that makes it indeed good news: the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field (Matt. 13:44) and like a pearl of great price (Matt.13: 46). But even in the midst of these glad tidings there is a word of warning, for the kingdom is also like a net that gathers all kind of fish to be sorted, the good being kept in the boat, but the bad thrown away (Matt. 13:47:50). There is also good news in Jesus’ comforting message in (John 14): after going to prepare a place He will come and take His followers to be with Him (Matt. 14:1-3); those who believe in Him will do greater works than He does (Matt. 14:12); He will do whatever they ask in His name (Matt. 14:13-14); He and the Father will come to those who believe (Matt. 14:18-24); He will give them His peace (Matt. 14:27). The tone of this passage is very much like that of (Isaiah 40), 154 which begins with “Comfort, comfort my people,” and goes on to assure them of the Lord’s presence blessing, and care. Some have noted a similarly of style and type of material between Jesus’ teaching and the utterances of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus also followed and went beyond the Old Testament prophets in the use of parables. In one case He even adapted a parable of Isaiah (Isa. 5:1-7; Matt. 21:33-41). Christ revealing work covers a wide span of time and forms. He first functioned in a revelatory fashion even before His incarnation. As the Logos, He is the light that has enlightened everyone coming into the world; thus, in a sense all truth has come from and through Him (John, 1:9). There are indications that Christ Himself was at work in the revelations that came through the prophets who bore a message about Him. Peter writes that the prophets who foretold a coming salvation were “trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the suffering of Christ and the glories that would follow” (1 Peter, 1: 11). Although not personally incarnate, Christ was already making the truth known. It is also quite possible that the Second Person of the Trinity was involved in the Theophany of the Old Testament. A second and most obvious period of Jesus’ revelatory work was of course His prophetic teaching during His incarnation and stay on earth. Here two forms of revelation come together. He spoke the divine word of truth. Beyond that, however, He was the truth and He was God, and so that He did was an exhibition, not merely a proclamation, of the truth and the reality of God. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews declares that Jesus is the Highest of all the revelations of God (Hebr. 1:1-3). God, 155 Who had spoken by the prophets, had now in the last days, spoken by His Son, Who is superior to angels (Hebr. 1:4) and even to Moses (Hebr. 3:3-6). For Jesus not only has a word from God, but bears the very stamp of His nature, reflecting the glory of God (Hebr. 1:3). Christ’s continuing revealing teaching through His church. He promised them His presence in the ongoing task (Matt. 28:20). He made clear that in many ways His teaching would be continued and completed by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit would be sent in Jesus name, and would teach His followers all things and bring to remembrance all that He had said to them (John, 14:26). The Spirit would guide them into all truth (John, 16:13). But the revealing work of the Holy Spirit would not be independent of the work of Jesus. For Jesus said that the Spirit “will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is Mine and make it known to you” (John, 16:13-15). In a very real sense, Jesus was to continue His revelatory work through the Holy Spirit. Perhaps this is why Luke makes the statement that his first Book pertained all that Jesus “began to do and to teach” (Acts, 1:1), Another suggestion of Jesus’ continue revelatory work is to be found in assertions like “apart from Me you can do nothing” (John, 15:5), which occurs in connection with the imagery of Jesus as the vine and His disciples as the branches. We conclude that when the apostles proclaimed the truth, Jesus was carrying out His work of revelation through them. The final and most complete revelatory work of Jesus lies in the future. A time is coming when He will return; one of the words for the second 156 coming of Christ is “revelation.” At that time we will see clearly and directly (1 Cor. 13:12); we shall see Him as He is (1 John, 3:2). Then all barriers to a full knowledge of God and of the truths of which Christ spoke will be removed. For if one examines with care the content of Jesus’ revelatory teaching, it becomes apparent that much of it deals with His own person and teaching, and specifically with either His kingdom or the reconciling death He was to undergo. At His trial He spoke of His kingdom (John, 18:36). Throughout His teaching He had proclaimed, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matt. 4:17). He said that He had come “to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark, 10:45). Thus, in Jesus’ own view His revelatory function is inextricably bound with His ruling and reconciling functions. It is true that there are some teachings of Jesus that do not deal directly with His kingdom or His atoning death ( the parable of the prodigal son speaks primarily of the Father’s love); yet, the whole Biblical picture of Jesus is taken into account, His work as revealed cannot be split from His work as ruler and reconciler. Indeed, the work of Christ did not finish at the cross and at the tomb, but there is a reference to a descent into hell or Hades. On the basis of certain Biblical texts, primarily (Ps. 16:10; Eph. 4:8-10; 1 Tim. 3:16; 1 Peter, 3:18-19; 4:4-6 and the statement in the creed), it maintains that an actual descent by Jesus into hell or Hades during the period between His death on the cross on Friday and His resurrection from the tomb on Sunday midnight (12 A.M). Jesus descended into Hades; there He taught to the imprisoned spirits before He was removed on the third day; declaring the Good News of His victory over sin, and hell. 157 1.Dale Moody, The Word of Truth: A Summary of Chtistian Doctrine Based on Biblical Revelation (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981). 2. Adolf von Harnack, What is Christianity? (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1957). 158 TOPIC 33 GOD IS IN CONTROL ATONEMENT The most recognizable symbol of Christianity is the cross. Its significance is found in the atoning work of Christ. It is the doctrine of the atonement that becomes the transition point from the objective doctrines of God, Humanity, sin, and the person of Christ, to the subjective doctrines. This transition point is the key element in balancing Christian Theology to make it relevant to the believer. Historically, the meaning of the atonement has been controversial. Differing theories of the atonement have covered different elements. Many of these theories do not integrate all of the elements. The elements of truths that certain theories present include the following: the example of Christ, the demonstration of the extent of God’s love, the severity of God’s righteousness and the seriousness of sin, the victory over sin and death, and the satisfaction for our sins. These truths are all evident in the atonement, and should be included in the explanation of the atonement. In the atonement, we come to crucial point of Christian faith, because it is the point of transition, as it were, from the objective to the subjective aspects of Biblical Theology. Here we shift our focus from the nature of Christ to His active work on our behalf; here systematic Theology has direct application to our lives. The atonement has made our salvation possible. Jesus’ resurrection is important 159 because it is the confirmation of His teaching and promises. For proof that the meaning of Christ’s death rest in its effect as an example to us (1 Peter, 2:21). “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in His steps.” Other passages appealed to include (1 John, 2:6). “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” Only in (1 Peter, 2:21), however, do we find an explicit connection drawn between Christ’s example and His death. Jesus did not simply tell us that the first and great commandment is to “Love your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all, your mind” (Luke, 10:27); He also demonstrated what that involves, and has proven that a Human being can do it. The death of Jesus is that, the perfect illustration and realization of what He sought to teach throughout His life. Jesus’ aim is found in His own Words: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke, 19:10) “In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth” (John, 18:37). Paul said that “God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ” (2 Cor. 5:19). Christ’ death makes it clear that God has sensitivity to the pain that sin brings upon us. 1. Leon Morris, The cross In The New Testament (Grand Papids: Eerdmans, 1965). P. 5. 2. Fastus Socinus, De Jesu Christo Servatore. 160 TOPIC 34 GOD IS IN CONTROL A VIEW OF THE ATONEMENT The doctrine of the atonement relies heavily upon the perspective of several background doctrines. The doctrines of the nature of God, the status of the law, the Human condition, Christ, and the Old Testament sacrificial system have great influence on a view of the atonement. In the New Testament, Jesus Christ refers to Himself as a ransom, a substitute, and the giver of life to Humanity. Paul described Christ’s work of the atonement as propitiation or the appeasement of God’s wrath for the sins of Humanity. Therefore, we may understand the atonement to involve sacrifice, propitiation, substitution, and reconciliation in the relationship of God to Humanity. It is the penal substitution theory that best describes this relationship for the atonement. Our understanding of Christ’s nature is crucial here. He is the eternal pre-existent, Second Person of the Trinity. He is God in the same sense and to the same degree as is the Father, a sense in which no other Human has ever been or will ever be divine. To His deity He added Humanity. He did not give up His deity in any respect. In our understanding, Jesus’ Humanity means that His atoning death is applicable to Human beings. Because Jesus was really one of us, He was able to redeem us. He was not an outsider attempting to do something for us. He was a genuine Human being representing the rest of us. This is implied in what Paul says in (Gal. 4:4-5); “God sent forth His Son … born under law, to redeem those under law.” Jesus’ death is 161 of sufficient value to atone for the entire Human race. The death of an ordinary Human could scarcely have sufficient value to cover his or her own sins, let alone those of the whole race. But Jesus’ death is of infinite worth. As God, Jesus did not have to die. In dying He did something God would never have to do. Because He was sinless, He did not have to die in payment for His own sins. Thus, His death can atone for the sins of all of Human kind. In (Isaiah, 53), the prophet makes an allusion to Christ’s sacrifice: “We all like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). The iniquity of sinners is transferred to the suffering servant just as in the Old Testament rites the sins were transferred to the sacrificial animal. The laying on of hands was an anticipation of the believer’s active acceptance of Christ’s atonic work. The New Testament is much more detailed on the subject of Christ’s atonement. Jesus had a profound sense that the Father had sent Him to do the Father’s work. He declares in (John, 10:36), that the Father had sent Him into the world. In (John, 6:38): He says. “For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me.” The apostle John expressly relates the sending by the Father to the Son’s redemptive and atoning work: “For God did not sent His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John, 3:17). The purpose of the coming was atonement, and the Father was involved in that work. Jesus had a powerful conviction that His life and death constituted a fulfilment of Old Testament prophesies. In particular, He interpreted His own life and death as a clear fulfilment of (Isa. 53). At the last Supper He said, “It is written: ‘And He was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell 162 you that this must be fulfilled in Me. Yes, what is written about Me is reaching its fulfilment” (Luke, 22:37). He was citing (Isa. 53:12), thus, identifying Himself as the suffering servant. His frequent references to His suffering make it clear that He saw His death as the primary reason for His having come. He plainly told His disciples that the Son of Man must suffer many things, be rejected by the religious authorities, and be killed (Mark, 8:31). Even early in His teaching He alluded to his suffering by speaking of the time when the bridegroom would be taken away (Matt. 9:15; Mark, 2:19-20). And indeed, upon descending from the mount of transfiguration, at one of the high points in His teaching, He said, “In the same way [like Elijah] the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands” (Matt. 17:12). Jesus saw His death as constituting a ransom. Jesus indicated that His giving of His life was to be the means by which many would be freed from bondage (Matt. 20:28 and Mark, 10:45) Christ also saw Himself as our substitute. Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that, He lay down His life for His friends” (John, 15:13). He was of course, stating a principle of broad application. There are other indications that Jesus saw Himself in the role of a sacrifice. He said in His great high teaching prayer: “For them I sanctify My self that they too may be truly sanctified” (John, 17:19). John the Baptist’s statement at the beginning of Jesus’ teaching carries similar connotations “Look, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!” (John, 1:29). The apostle John also records Caiaphas’s sneering remark: “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man dies for the people than that, the whole nation perish” (John, 11:49-50). It is noteworthy that John calls attention to this remark of Caiaphas a second time (John, 18:14). Jesus 163 had a profound sense that He was the source and giver of true life. He says in (John, 17:3), “Now this is eternal life: that they may know You the only true God, and Jesus Christ, Whom You have sent. “ The giving of eternal life is here linked to both the Father and the Son. In (John, 6), He speaks of “the true bread” (John, 17:32), “the bread of life” (John, 17:35, 48), “the bread that comes down from heaven” (John, 17:50). He then makes clear that He has been talking about: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live for ever. This bread is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” (John, 17:51). To have eternal life, we must eat His flesh and drink His blood (John, 17:52-58). Jesus saw a close identification between Himself and His Father. He spoke regularly of the Father’s having sent Him He and the Father are one, and so the work that the Son did was also the work of the Father. Jesus came for the purpose of giving His life as a ransom a means of liberating those people who were enslaved to sin. He offered Himself as a substitute for them. Paradoxically, His death gives life; we obtain it by taking Him into ourselves. His death was a sacrifice typified by the Old Testament sacrificial system. These various motifs are vital elements in our construction of the doctrine of the atonement. 1. Gustave F. Oehler, Theology of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1950). 2. C. K. Barrett, The Gospel According to St. John, 2 nd . Ed. (Philadephia: Westminster, 1978). 3. George E. Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974). 164 TOPIC 35 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE EXTENT OF THE ATONEMENT 165 There has been some disagreement over the extent of the atonement. For some, the atonement has a limited intent for those whom God had chosen to be saved. The conflicting view states that salvation is available for all through the atonement. In light of the evidence for both arguments, it seems most reasonable to suggest that God logically decides first to provide salvation for all of Humanity then elects some to receive it. The question of what the atonement was intended to accomplish has become more prominent in the twentieth century. It is important to note, in the atonement, sickness and sin were not both borne by Christ on the cross. Rather, healing is a supernatural act introduced like any other miracle. It cannot be expected that each instance of a request for healing will be granted in the same manner as the forgiveness of sins. For the believer, the earthly body is temporary. First, there are the Bible passages that teach that Christ’s death was “for His people;” from such passages particular infer that Christ did not die for everyone. One of these is the angel’s promise to Joseph in (Matt. 1:21): “She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” There is also a whole collection of statement by Jesus regarding His sheep, His people, His friends In (John, 10), Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep” (John, 10:11); “I lay down My life for the sheep” (John, 10:15). In verses (John, 10: 26-27), Jesus makes clear who “the sheep” are: “but you do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.” Jesus gives His 166 life for those who respond to Him. Moreover, in urging His disciples to emulate His love, Jesus does not speak of dying for the whole world, but for one’s friends: “Greater love has no one than this that He lay down His life for His friends” (John, 15: 13). Christ is also spoken of as having died for the church or for His church. Paul urged the Ephesian elders: “Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood” (Acts, 20:28). The same apostle encouraged husbands to love their wives “as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her” (Eph. 5:25). And Paul wrote to the Romans that God “did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all” (Rom. 8:32). It is apparent from both the preceding (Rom. 8:28-29) and the following (Rom. 8:33) contexts that those for whom God gave up His Son are those who believe in Him, that is, the elect. John the Baptist introduced Jesus with the words, “Look, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world” (John, 1:29). The apostle John explains the coming of Christ in universal terms: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17). Paul speaks in a similar fashion of Jesus’ dying for all: “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him Who died for them and was raised again.” (2 Cor. 5:14-15); and in (1 Tim. 4:10), he speaks of the living God, “Who is the saviour of all men, and especially of those who believe.” There are in (1 John) two statements reminiscent of the Book of John in that they refer to Christ’s death as being for the 167 world: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one Who speaks to the Father in our defence Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John, 2:1-3); “the Father has sent His Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John, 4:14). Two additional passages are to be noted as being especially significant. The first class is the prophetic passage in (Isa. 53:6): “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” This passage is especially powerful from a logical standpoint. It is clear that the extent of sin is universal; it is specified that every one of us has sinned. It should also be noticed that the extent of what will be laid on the suffering servant exactly parallels the extent of sin. It is difficult to read this passage and not conclude that just as everyone sins, everyone is also atoned for, equally compelling is (1 Tim. 2:6), where Paul says that Christ Jesus “gave Himself as a ransom for all men. ”This is to be compared with the original statement in (Matt. 20:28), where Jesus had said that the Son of men came “to give His life as a ransom for many.” A second class Biblical material is those passages that seem to indicate that some of those for whom Christ died will perish. Two passages speak of a brother’s being injured or ruined or destroyed by the actions of a believer: In (Rom. 14:15), Paul says, “If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died.” Similarly, in (1 Cor. 8:11), concludes, “So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge.” An even stronger 168 statement in (Hebrews, 10:29): “How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified Him, and who has insulted the Spirit of Grace?” While there may be some dispute as to both the exact spiritual condition of the person referred to in these verses and the precise results for them of the acts therein described, in (2 Peter, 2:1), seems to point out most clearly that people for whom Christ died may be lost: “But there were also false prophets among the people, as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord Who bought them bringing swift destruction on themselves.” The third class of the Bible passages appealed to be the proponents of universal or unlimited atonement consists of passages indicating that the Bible is to be universally proclaimed. Prominent examples are in (Matt. 24:14). “And this Bible of the kingdom will be taught in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come,” and in (Matt. 28:19). “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” In (Acts, 1:18), two significant passages bear upon this issue: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” And in (Acts, 17:30); “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent.” In (Titus, 2:11). Paul affirms that “the Grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” Jesus said in (Matt. 11:28). “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, 169 and I will give you rest.” Peter describes the Lord as in (2 Peter, 3:9), “not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone, to come to repentance.” In (John 3:16): “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that who-ever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” In (Rom. 5:6-8).When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though some one might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. “But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” This love for one’s enemies is seen particularly in Christ’s conduct on the cross when He implored the Father, “Father Forgive them for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke, 23:34). 1. 2. 3. R. B. Kuiper, For Whom Did Chtist Die? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1959). Charles Hodge, Systematic: Theology (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 1952). Strong, Systematic : Theology. 170 TOPIC 36 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE HOLY SPIRIT Because the Holy Spirit is not systematically described in the Bible, the doctrine of the Third Person of the Trinity has been controversial. The Spirit is important, since He provides contact between the believer and God. This has led to difficulties in understanding Him and His work. At various stages in history the doctrine of the Spirit has ascended or waned in prominence. From the Biblical evidence, we can discover His deity and personality. We begin our closer examination of the nature of the Holy Spirit with His deity. This is as easily established as is the deity of the Father and the Son. It might well be said that the deity of the Father is simply assumed in the Bible that of the Son is affirmed and argued, while that of the Holy Spirit must be inferred from various indirect statements found in the Bible. There are, however, several bases on which one may conclude that the Holy Spirit is God in the same fashion and to the same degree as are the Father and the Son. First we should note that various references to the Holy Spirit are interchangeable with references to God. In effect, then, these passages speak of Him as God. A prominent instance is found in (Acts, 5:1-4). Ananias and Sapphire had sold a piece of property and represented the money they brought as the whole of what they had received. In rebuking Ananias, Peter asked, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for 171 yourself some of the money you received for the land?” (Acts, 5:3). In the next verse he asserts, “You have not lied to men but to God.” It seems that in Peter’s mind “lying to the Holy Spirit” and “lying to God” were interchangeable expressions. It could, of course, be argued that two different referents were in view so that Peter was actually saying, “You have lied both to the Holy Spirit and to God.” The statement in verse 4, however, was apparently intended to make it clear that the lie was told not to Humans, to someone less than God, but to God Himself. Thus, we are led to the conclusion that the second statement is an elaboration of the first, emphasizing that the Spirit to Whom Ananias had lied was God. Another passage where “Holy Spirit” and “God” are used interchangeably is Paul’s discussion of the Christian’s body. In (1 Cor. 3:16-17), he writes, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.” In (1 Cor. 6:19-20), he uses almost identical language: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own: you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your body.” It is clear that, to Paul, to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit is to be inhabited by God. By equating the phrase “God’s temple” with the phrase “a temple of the Holy Spirit.” Paul makes it clear that the Holy Spirit is God. Further, the Holy Spirit possesses the attributes or qualities of God. One of these is omniscience: “but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the 172 man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:10-11). Also observe Jesus’ statement in (John, 16:13): But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come.” The power of the Holy Spirit is also spoken of prominently in the New Testament. In (Luke, 1:35), the phrase “the Holy Spirit” and “the power of the Most High” are in parallel or synonymous construction. This is, of course, a reference to the virgin conception, a miracle of the first magnitude. Paul acknowledged that the accomplishments of His teaching were achieved “by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit” (Rom. 15:19). Moreover, Jesus attributed to the Holy Spirit the ability to change Human hearts and personalities: it is the Spirit Who works conviction (John, 16:8-11), and regeneration (John, 3:5-8), within us. Jesus had elsewhere said with respect to this ability to change Human hearts: “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:25-26). While these texts do not specifically affirm that the Spirit is omnipotent, they certainly indicate that He has power that presumably only God has. Yet another attribute of the Spirit that brackets Him with the Father and the Son is His eternality. In (Heb. 9:14), He is spoken of us “the eternal Spirit” through Whom Jesus offered Himself up. Only God, however, is eternal (Heb.1:10-12), all creatures being temporal. So the Holy Spirit must be God. In addition to having divine attributes, the Holy Spirit performs certain works that are commonly ascribed to God. He was and continues to be involved with the creation, in both originating it 173 and providentially keeping and directing it. In (Gen. 1:2), we read that the Spirit of God was brooding over the face of the waters. (Job, 26:13), notes that the heavens were made fair by the Spirit of God. The psalmist says. “When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth” (Ps. 104:30); the most abundant Biblical testimony regarding the Holy Spirit’s role concerns His spiritual working upon or within Humans. We have already noted Jesus’ attribution of regeneration to the Holy Spirit (John, 3:5-8). This is confirmed by Paul’s statement in (Titus, 3:5): “[God our Saviour] saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” In addition, the Spirit raised Christ from the dead and will also raise us, that is, God will raise us through the Spirit: “And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, Who lives in you” (Rom. 8:11). Giving the Bible is another divine work of the Holy Spirit. In (2 Tim. 3:16), Paul writes, “All the Bible is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness." ”Peter also speaks of the Spirit’s role in giving us the Bible, but emphasizes the influence on the writer rather than the end product: “For prophesy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter, 1:21). Our final consideration arguing for the deity of the Holy Spirit is His association with the Father and the Son on a basis of apparent equality. One of the best known evidence is the Baptismal formula prescribed in the great Commission: “Therefore go and make disciples 174 of all nations; Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). The Pauline benediction in (2 Cor. 13:14), is another evidence. “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” And in (1 Cor. 12:4-6), as Paul discusses spiritual gifts, he coordinates the three members of the Godhead: “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.” Peter likewise, in the salutation of his first epistle, links the three together, noting their respective roles in the process of salvation: “[To the exiles of the dispersion] chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood” (1 Peter, 1:2). The Bible makes clear in several ways that the Holy Spirit is a person and possesses all the qualities which that imply. The first evidence of the Spirit’s personality is the use of the masculine pronoun in representing Him. Since the word (pneuma) is neuter and since pronouns are to agree with their antecedents in person, number, and gender, we would expect the neuter pronoun to be used to represent the Holy Spirit. Yet in (John, 16:13-14), we find an unusual phenomenon. As Jesus describes the Holy Spirit’s teaching, He uses a masculine pronoun (ekeinos) where we would expect a neuter pronoun. The only possible antecedent in the immediate context is “Spirit of Truth” (John, 16:13). Either John in reporting Jesus’ discourse made a grammatical error at this point (this is unlikely since we do not find any similar error elsewhere in the 175 Bible), or he deliberately chose to use the masculine to convey to us the fact that Jesus is referring to a person, not a thing. A similar reference is (Eph. 1:14), where, in a relative clause modifying “Holy Spirit,” the preferred textual reading is (hos)-“[Who] is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possessions to the praise of the glory.” A second line of evidence of the Holy Spirit’s personality is a number of passages where He and His work are, in one way or another, closely identified with various persons and their work. The term (paraklitos) (Paracletos) is applied to the Holy Spirit in (John, 14:26; 15:26; and 16:7), in each of these contexts it is obvious that it is not some sort of abstract influence that is in view. Jesus is also expressly spoken of as a (parakletos) (1 John, 2:1). Most significant are his words in (John, 14:16), where he says that He will pray to the Father Who will give the disciples another (parakletos) the word for “another” here is (allos), which means “another of the same kind.” In view of Jesus’ statements linking the Spirit’s coming with His own going away (John, 16:7), this means that the Spirit is a replacement for Jesus and will carry on the some role. The similarity in their function is an indication that the Holy Spirit, like Jesus, must be a person. Another function which both Jesus and the Holy Spirit perform, and which, accordingly, serves as an indication of the Spirit’s personality, is that of glorifying another member of the Trinity. In (John, 16:14), Jesus says that the Spirit “will bring glory to Me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” A parallel is found in (John, 17:4), where in His prayer Jesus states that during His teaching on earth He glorified the Father. 176 The most interesting groupings of the Holy Spirit with personal agents are those in which He is linked with both the Father and the Son. Among the best known of these are the Baptismal formula in (Matt. 28:19), and the benediction in (2 Cor. 13:14). There are other instances, however, Jude enjoins. “But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most Holy Faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life” (2 Cor. 13:20-21). Peter addresses his readers as those who are “chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood” (1 Peter, 1:2). Earlier in His message at Pentecost, He had proclaimed, “Exalted to the right hand of God, He [Jesus} has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear…Repent and be Baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts, 2:33, 38). Paul also coordinates the working of the three, for example, in (Gal. 4:6): “Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, Abba, Father.” A similar reference is (2 Cor. 1:21-22): “Now it is God Who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit guaranteeing what is to come.” Other examples are (Rom. 15:16; 1 Cor. 12:4-6; Eph. 3:14-17; and 2 Thess. 2:13-14). The Holy Spirit is also linked with the Father and the Son in various events of Jesus’. At the Baptism of Jesus (Matt. 3:16-17), all three persons of the Trinity were present. As the Son was Baptized 177 the Father spoke from heaven in commendation of the Son, and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in visible form. Jesus said His casting out of demons was related to the Father and the Spirit: “But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28). The conjunction of the Holy Spirit with the Father and the Son in these events is an indication that He is personal, just as are they. The Holy Spirit’s personality can also be seen in passages that group Him with Humans. We will site but one example. The letter from the apostles and elders at Jerusalem to the church at Antioch contained a very unusual expression: “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements” (Acts, 15:28). This coordinated working of the Spirit and Christian leaders is an indication that the Spirit possesses some of the very qualities found in Human personality. And as a matter of fact, the Spirit’s possession of certain personal characteristics is our third indication of His personality. Among the most notable are intelligence, will, and emotions, traditionally regarded as the three fundamental elements of personhood. Of various references to the Spirit’s intelligence and knowledge, we cite here (John, 14:26), where Jesus promises the Spirit, “But when the Father sends the Advocate as My representative-that is, the Holy Spirit-He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.” Similarly in (John, 15:26); “But I will send you the Advocate-the Spirit of truth, He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about Me.” The will of the Spirit is attested in (1 Cor. 12:11), which states that the recipients of the various spiritual gifts are “the work of one and the same Spirit, 178 and He gives them to each one, just as He determines.” That the Spirit has emotions is evident in (Eph. 4:30), where Paul warns against grieving the Spirit. The Holy Spirit can also be affected as is a person, thus displaying personality passively It is possible to lie to the Holy Spirit, as Ananias and Sapphire did (Acts, 5:3-4). Paul speaks of the sins of grieving the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30), and quenching the Spirit (1 Thess. 5:19). Stephen accuses his adversaries of always resisting the Holy Spirit (Acts, 7:51). While it is possible to resist a mere force, one cannot lie to or grieve something that is impersonal. And then, most notably, there is the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Matt. 12:31) and Mark, 3:29). This sin surely cannot be committed against something impersonal. In addition, the Holy Spirit engages in moral actions and teachings that can be performed only by a person. Among these activities are teaching regenerating, searching, speaking, interceding, commanding, testifying, guiding, illuminating, revealing. One interesting and unusual passage is (Rom. 8:26): “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness .We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” Surely, Paul has a person in view. And so does Jesus whenever He speaks of the Holy Spirit, as, for example, in (John, 16:8): “When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.” All of the forgoing considerations lead to one conclusion. The Holy Spirit is a person, not a force, and that person is God just as fully and in the same way as are the Father and the Son. 179 1.Kendrick, Promise Fulfilled. 2. Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1953). 3. Klaude Kendrick, The Promise Fulffiled: (Springfiejd, Mo. : Gospel, 1961). 180 TOPIC 37 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT The Holy Spirit was at work throughout the Old Testament era. He was particularly evident in the life and teaching of Jesus. He continues to work in the lives of persons whom God calls to repentance and faith. He guides the believer from spiritual birth to maturity. With the changes in attitude toward the gifts of the Spirit in recent years, the miraculous gifts have assumed a significant role. It is often difficult to identify the Holy Spirit within the Old Testament. There are, however, some cases where the New Testament makes it clear that an Old Testament reference to the “Spirit of God” is a reference to the Holy Spirit. One of the most prominent of these New Testament passages is (Acts, 2:16-21) where Peter explains that what is occurring at Pentecost is the fulfilment of the Prophet Joel’s statement. “I will pour out My Spirit on all people” (Acts, 2:17). Surely the events of Pentecost were the realization of Jesus’ promise. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts, 1:8).In short, the Old Testament “Spirit of God” is synonymous with the Holy Spirit. There are several major areas of the Holy Spirit’s working in Old Testament times. First is the creation. We find in the creation account a reference to the presence and activity of the Spirit of God: “Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the 181 waters” (Gen. 1:2). God’s continued working with the creation is attributed to the Spirit Job writes “By His breath [or spirit] the skies became fair; His hand pierced the gliding serpent” (Gen. 26:13). Isaiah looks to a future outpouring of the Spirit as a time of productivity within the creation, there will be desolation “till the Spirit is poured upon us from on High, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest” (Isa, 32:15). Another general area of the Spirit’s work is the giving of prophecy and the Bible. The Old Testament prophets testified that their speaking and writing were a result of the Spirit’s coming upon them. (Ezekiel, 2:2; 8:3; 11:1; 24), offers the clearest example: “As He spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard Him speaking to me.” The Spirit even entered such unlikely persons as Balaam (Num. 24:2). As a sign Saul was God’s anointed, the Spirit came mightily on him and he prophesied (1 Sam. 10:6; 10). Peter confirmed the testimony of the prophets regarding their experience: “For prophesy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter, 1:21). In addition, the Book of Acts gives witness that the Holy Spirit spoke by the mouth of David (Acts, 1:16; 4:25).Since the Holy Spirit produced the Bible, they can be referred to as “God breathed (Theopneustos-2 Tim. 3:16). Yet another work of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament was in conveying certain necessary skills for various tasks. For example, we read that in appointing Bezalel to construct and furnish the tabernacle, God said, “and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts to make 182 artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of craftsmanship” (Exod. 31:3-5). It is not clear whether Bezalel had previously possessed this set of abilities, or whether they were suddenly bestowed upon him for this particular task. Nor it is clear whether he continued to possess them afterward. When the temple was rebuilt by Zerubbabel after Babylonian captivity, there was a similar endowment: “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, ’says the LORD Almighty” (Zech. 4:6). Administration also seems to have been a gift of the Spirit. Even Pharaoh recognized the Spirit’s presence in Joseph: So Pharaoh asked them, ‘Can we find anyone like this man, one in who is the spirit of God?” (Gen. 41:38). When Moses needed assistance in leading the people of Israel, part of the Spirit was taken from him and given to others: “Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and He took of the Spirit that was on him and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did not do so again” (Num. 11:25). Here the gift of administration was accompanied by or involved the gift of prophesying. While it is not clear whether Joshua’s capacity for leadership was especially related to the working of the Spirit of God, there does seem to be an allusion to that effect: “Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the Spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites listened to him and did what the LORD had commanded Moses” (Deut. 34:9). In the time of the judges, administration by the power and gifts of the Holy Spirit was especially dramatic. This was a time when there was very little national leadership. Much of what was done 183 was accomplished by what we would-today call “charismatic leadership.” Of Othniel it is said: ”The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, so that he became Israel’s judge and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him” (Judg. 3:10). There is a similar description of the call of Gideon: “Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him” (Judg. 6:34). The Spirit’s working at the time of the judges consisted largely of granting skill in waging war. The Spirit came upon Othniel, and he went out to war. The Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he, having deed assured that Israel would be delivered by his hand, went out to war: His soldiers proved unusually effective, out of all proportions to their numbers, Similarly, Samson was filled with extraordinary strength when the Spirit came upon him, and he was able to perform supernatural feats: “Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon him in power. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of their belongings and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle” (Judg. 14:19). The Spirit also endowed the early kings of Israel with special capabilities. We have already noted that Saul prophesied when the Spirit came upon him (1 Sam. 10:10). David’s anointing was likewise accompanied by the coming of the Spirit of God: “So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power” (1 Sam. 16:13). The Spirit is seen not only in dramatic incidents, however. In addition to the qualities of national leadership and the heroics of war he was present in Israel’s spiritual life. In this connection he is referred to as a “good Spirit.” Addressing 184 God, Ezra reminded the people of Israel of the provision made for their ancestors in the wilderness: “You gave your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold Your manna from their mouths, and You gave them water for their thirst” (Nech. 9:20). The psalmist beseeches God: “Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; may Your good Spirit lead me on level ground” (Ps. 143:10).The goodness of the Spirit is seen also in two references to him as a “Holy Spirit.” In each of these instances there is a contrast between the sinful actions of Humans and the Holiness of God. Asking that his sin be blotted out, David prays, “Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps. 51:11). And Isaiah refers to the people who have “rebelled and grieved [the Lord’s] Holy Spirit” (Isa. 63:10). The good and Holy quality of the Spirit becomes clearer yet in light of the work He does and its results. He is described as producing the fear of the Lord and various qualities of righteousness and judgments in the promised Messiah (Isa. 11:2-5). When the Spirit is poured out (Isa. 32:15), the result is justice, righteousness, and peace (Isa. 11:16-20). Devotion to the Lord results from outpouring of the Spirit (Isa. 44:3-5; Ezekiel, 36:26-28), a passage that adumbrates the New Testament doctrine of regeneration, speaks of a careful obedience and a new heart as accompaniments of God’s giving His Spirit. The forgoing considerations from the Old Testament depict the Holy Spirit as producing the moral and spiritual qualities of holiness and goodness in the person upon whom He comes or in whom He dwells. In cases in the Book of Judges, His presence seems to be intermittent and related to a particular activity or teaching. The Old Testament witness to the Spirit anticipates a coming time when the teaching of the Spirit is to be more complete. 185 Part of this relates to the coming Messiah, upon Whom the Spirit is to rest in unusual degree and fashion, as noted in (Isa. 11:1-5). Similar passages include (Isa. 42:1-4 and 61:1-3). (“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to teach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners…”) Jesus quotes the opening verses of Isaiah 61 and indicates that they are now being fulfilled in Him (Luke, 4:18-21). There is a more generalized promise, however, one that is not restricted to the Messiah. This is found in (Joel, 2:28-29): “And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on My servants, both men and women, I will pour out My Spirit in those days.” At Pentecost Peter quoted this prophesy indicating that it had now been fulfilled. In Jesus’ life we find a pervasive and powerful presence and activity of the Spirit. Even the very beginning of His incarnate existence was a work of the Holy Spirit. Both the prediction and the record of Jesus’ birth point to a special working of the Spirit. After informing Mary that she was to have a child, the angel explained, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy one to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke, 1:35). After the conception had taken place, the angel appeared to Joseph, who was understandably troubled, and explained, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 1:20). The opening words of the narrative are: “This is how the birth of 186 Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they come together, she was found to be with a child through the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 1:18). The announcement of Jesus’ teaching by John the Baptist also highlights the place of the Holy Spirit. The Baptist had himself been filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb (Luke, 1:15). His message emphasized that, unlike his own baptism, which was merely with water, Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit (Mark, 1:8; Matthew 3:11 and Luke, 3:16) add “and with fire.” John does not himself claim to have the Spirit; and in particular, he makes no claim to give the Spirit. He attributes to the coming Messiah the giving of the Spirit. The Spirit is present in dramatic form from the very beginning of Jesus’ public teaching, is identified with His Baptism, when there was a perceivable coming of the Holy Spirit upon Him (Matt. 3:16; Mark, 1:10; Luke, 3:22 and John, 1:32). John makes clear that John the Baptist also saw the Spirit and bore witness to the fact. None of the accounts mention any particular immediate manifestations, that is, visible effects or anything similar. We do know, however, that immediately afterward, Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit” (Luke, 4:1). The writers in effect leave us to infer from ensuing events just what the works of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus were. The immediate result of Jesus’ Being filled with the Spirit was the major temptation, or series of temptations, at the inception of His public teaching. Jesus was directed by the Holy Spirit into the situation where the temptation took place. In (Matt. 4:1 and Luke, 4:1-2), Jesus is described as being led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness. Mark’s statement is more forceful: “At once the Spirit sent Him out into the desert” (Mark, 1:12). Jesus is virtually “expelled” by 187 the Spirit. What is noteworthy here is that the presence of the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ life brings Him into direct and immediate conflict with the forces of evil. The antithesis between the Holy Spirit and the evil in the world apparently had to be brought to light. The rest of Jesus’ teaching as well was conducted through the Spirit’s power and direction. This was obviously true of Jesus’ teaching Luke tell us that following the temptation “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through the whole countryside” (Luke, 4:14). He proceeded then to teach in all the synagogues. Coming to His hometown of Nazareth, He went into the synagogue and stood up to read. He read from (Isa. 61:1-2), and asserted that it was now fulfilled in Him (Luke, 4:18-21), thus claiming that this teaching was a result of the working of the Holy Spirit in and upon Him. What is true of Jesus’ teaching is also true of His miracles, particularly His exorcism of demons. Here the confrontation between the Holy Spirit and the unholy forces at work in the world is manifest. On one occasion the Pharisees claimed that Jesus cast out demons by the prince of demons. Jesus pointed out the internal contradiction within this statement (Matt. 12:25-27), and then countered, “But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28). His condemnation of the Pharisees’ words as “blasphemy against the Spirit” (Matt. 12:31), and His warning that “anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven” (Matt. 12:32), are evidence that what He had just done was done by the power of the Holy Spirit. Not only His teaching and miracles, but Jesus’ whole life at this point was “in the 188 Holy Spirit.” When the seventy returned from their mission and reported that even the demons were subjected to them in Jesus’ name (Luke, 10:17). Jesus was “full of joy through the Holy Spirit” (Luke, 10:21). Even His emotions were “in the Holy Spirit.” This is a description of someone completely filled with the Spirit. There certainly were times when He was seized by a sense of the urgency of the task which was His as when He said, “As long as it is day, we must do the work of Him who sent Me. Night is coming, when no one can work” (John, 9:4). In Jesus’ teaching we find an especially strong emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit in initiating persons into the Christian life. Jesus taught that the Spirit’s activity is essential in both conversion, which from the Human perspective is the beginning of the Christian life, and regeneration, which from God’s perspective is its beginning. Conversion is the Human’s turning to God. It consists of a negative and a positive element repentance, that is abandonment of sin; and faith, that is, acceptance of the promises and the work of Christ. Jesus spoke especially of repentance, and specifically of conviction of sin, which is the prerequisite of repentance. He said, “When He [the Counsellor] comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin because men do not believe in Me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see Me no longer; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned” (John, 16:8-11). Without this work of the Holy Spirit, there can be no conversion. 189 Regeneration is the miraculous transformation of the individual and implantation of spiritual energy, Jesus made very clear to Nicodemus that regeneration is essential to acceptance by the Father. “I tell you the truth no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again…no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh give birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to Spirit” (John, 3:3, 5-6). Clearly, regeneration is a supernatural occurrence, and the Holy Spirit is the agent Who produces it. The flesh is not capable of effecting this transformation. Nor can this transformation even be comprehended by the Human intellect. Jesus in fact likened this work of the Spirit to the blowing of the wind: “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit” (John, 5:8). The work of the Spirit is not completed when one becomes a believer on the contrary, it is just beginning. He performed a number of other roles in the ongoing Christian life. One of the Spirit’s other roles is empowering. Jesus probably left His disciples flabbergasted when He said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John, 14:12). These greater works were apparently depended on both His going and the Holy Spirit’s coming, for the two events were closely linked. Indeed, when the disciples were evidently grieved at the thought of His living, Jesus said: “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will sent Him to you” (John, 16:7). It probably seemed incredible to 190 the disciples, who by now were very much aware of their own weaknesses and shortcomings, that they would do greater works than the Master Himself had done. Yet Peter taught on Pentecost Sunday and three thousand believed. Jesus Himself never had that type of response, as far as we know. Perhaps He did not gather that many genuine converts in His entire teaching! The key to the disciples’ success was not in their abilities and strengths, however, Jesus had told them to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts, 14:5), who would give them the power that He had promised, the ability to do the things that He had predicted: “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts, 14:8).This enabled them to succeed in their task at that time, and a resource still available today to any Christian wishing to serve the Lord. Another element of Jesus’ promise was that the Holy Spirit would indwell and illuminate the believer: “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counsellor to be with you foreverthe Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you” (John, 14:16-17). Jesus had been a teacher and leader, but His influence was that of external word and example. The Spirit, however, is able to affect one more intensely because, dwelling within, He can get to the very centre of one’s thinking and emotions, and lead one into all truth, as Jesus promised. Even the name used for the Spirit in this context suggests this role: “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears and He will tell you what is yet to 191 come. He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you” (John, 16:13-14). The Spirit evidently has a teaching role. Earlier in the same discourse we read that He would bring to mind and clarify for the disciples the words Jesus had already given to them: But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John, 14:26). Jesus also pledged that “When the Councillor comes, Whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth Who goes out from the Father, He will testify about Me” (John, 15:26). This teaching of the Holy Spirit was not merely for that first generation of disciples, but also includes helping believers today to understand the Bible. Illumining us is a role that falls to the Spirit, for Jesus is now permanently at work carrying out other functions mentioned in the same passage, He is preparing a place for believers (John, 14:2-3). Another point of particular interest is the intercessory work of the Holy Spirit. We are familiar with Jesus’ intercession, as the High Priest, on our behalf. Paul also speaks of a similar intercessory prayer by the Holy Spirit: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will” (Rom. 8:26-27). Thus believers have the assurance that when they do not know how to pray, the Holy Spirit wisely intercedes for them that the Lord’s will be done. 192 The Holy Spirit also works sanctification in the life of the believer. By sanctification is meant the continued transformation of the moral and spiritual character so that the believer’s life actually comes to mirror the standing he or she already has in God’s side. While justification is an instantaneous act giving the individual a righteous standing before God, sanctification is a process making the person holy or good. In the earlier part of (Romans 8), Paul duels on this work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit has liberated us from the law (Rom. 8:2). Hence forth believers do not walk and live according to the flesh, their old nature, but according to the Spirit (Rom, 8:4), having their minds set on the Spirit (Rom. 8:5). Christians are in the Spirit (Rom. 8:9), and the Spirit dwells in them, a thought that is repeated three times (Rom. 8:11 twice). As the Spirit indwells believers, He guides and leads them, and the deeds of the flesh are, accordingly, put to death (Rom. 8:13). All those who are thus “led by the Spirit of God are sons of God” (Rom. 8:14). The Spirit is now at work giving them life, witnessing that they are sons rather than slaves, and thus supplying clear evidence that they are truly in Christ (Rom. 8:15-17). This life in the Spirit is what God intends for the Christian. Paul contrasts life in the Spirit with life in the flesh. He instructs his readers to walk by the Spirit instead of gratifying the desires of the flesh (Gal. 5:16). If they heed this instruction, the Spirit will produce in them a set of qualities collectively referred to as the “Fruit of the Spirit” (Gal.5:22). Paul list nine of these qualities: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23). These qualities cannot in their entirety be produced in Human lives by unaided self193 effort. They are a supernatural work. They are opposed to the works of the flesh-a list of sins in verses (Gal.5:19-21), just as the Spirit Himself is in opposition to the flesh. The work of the Holy Spirit in sanctification, then, is not merely the negative work of mortification of the flesh (Rom. 8:13), but also the production of a positive likeness to Christ. The Spirit also bestows certain special gifts on believers within the body of Christ. In Paul’s writings there are three different lists of such gifts, there is also a brief one in (1Peter, 4:11), is really a listing of various offices in the church, or of persons who are God’s gifts to the church. (Rom. 12:6-8 and 1 Peter, 4:11). Paul made regarding both the nature of the gifts and the way in which they are to be exercised. In (1 Corinthians 12 and 14). (1).The gifts are bestowed on the body (the church). They are for the edification of the whole body, not merely for the enjoyment or enrichment of the individual members possessing them (1 Cor.12:7: 1 Cor.14:5, 12). (2). No one person has all the gifts (1 Cor.12:14-21), nor is any one of the gifts bestowed on all persons (11 Cor.12:28-30). Consequently, the individual members of the church need each other. (3). Although not equally conspicuous, all gifts are important (1 Cor. 12:22-26). (4). The Holy Spirit apportions the various gifts to whom and as He wills (1 Cor. 12:11). 1. Eduard Schweizer, The Holy Spirit, trans. Reginald H. and Ilee Fuller (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1980). 2. Wood, Holy Spirit. 3. George Smeaton, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit (London: Banner of Truyh Trust, 1958). 194 TOPIC 38 GOD IS IN CONTROL SALVATION Differing conceptions of salvation have developed over many years, emphasizing various aspects of salvation. Five conceptions of salvation are most prominent. Liberation theology emphasizes a new social and economic order. Existential theology emphasizes a change in the individual’s outlook on life. Secular theology believes that salvation comes when individual separate from religion to solve their own problems. Contemporary Roman Catholicism and Orthodox have developed a much broader view of salvation over the traditional view. The evangelical position holds that salvation is a total change in an individual that progresses through sanctification toward glorification. Salvation is the application of the work of Christ to the lives of Humans. Accordingly, the doctrine of salvation has particular 195 appeal and relevance, since it pertains to the most crucial needs of the Human person. This is particularly apparent to those who understand the Biblical teaching regarding sin. Indeed, because of the primacy of this need within the life of the individual, some recent Theologies have dealt first with salvation, and then have turned back to the person and work of Christ. While this approach has a definite apologetic value in teaching, it has limitations as a format for Theology, for it assumes that the Human is the best judge of his or her own problem, and may even lead to a situation in which the world dictates the terms on which its dialogue with the church conducted. The meaning of the term salvation may seem somewhat obvious to persons familiar with it. Yet even within Christian circles there are rather widely differing conceptions of what salvation entails. There are various opinions as to how salvation is related to time. It is variously thought of as a single occurrence at the beginning of the Christian life, a process continuing throughout the Christian life, or a future event. Some Christians regard salvation as basically complete at the initiation of the Christian life. They tend to say, “We have been saved.” Others see salvation as in process “We are being saved.” Yet others think of salvation as something that will be received in the future “We shall be saved.” It is of course, possible to combine two or all these views. In that case, the separate aspects of salvation, justification, sanctification, glorification, are understood as occurring at different times. The evangelical position on salvation is correlated closely with the orthodox understanding of the Human predicament. In this understanding, the relationship between the Human being and 196 God is the primary one. When that is not right, the other dimensions of life are adversely affected as well. In the traditional view, the Human’s basic deficiency is thought of as being vertical, as separation from God. As violation of the will of God, sin results in enmity toward God. What is needed is to restore the broken relationship between God and the Humans. This is the evangelical view of salvation. It is characterized by terms like “conversion,” “forgiveness,” “reconciliation,” and “adoption.” A second view is that the primary Human problem is horizontal. This may mean a deficient individual adjustment to others, or a fundamental lack of harmony within society as a whole. Salvation involves the removal of ruptures within the Human race, the healing of personal and social relationships. “Relational Theology” is concerned with this process on the level of individual maladjustments and small group problems. The extent of salvation is an issue for those who think of salvation as applying to individual persons rather than to society. Liberation theologies are concerned with the conflicts between different racial or economic classes, the fact that the whole of society is so structured as to deny certain of its members some of the basic necessities of life. The primary Human problem is also thought to be internal. The individual is plagued with feelings that must be eradicated, gilt, inferiority, insecurity; adjustment self- understanding, self-acceptance, and growth in self-esteem are catchwords here. What then, authentic existence or salvation? The word of God “calls man away from his selfishness and from the illusory security which he has built up for himself. It calls him to God, Who is beyond the world and beyond scientific thinking. At the same time, it calls man to true self.” The fact that people are outside the visible Christian church does not 197 mean that all of them are apart from the grace of God. Christ died for them as well, and we should not deny this grace. Jesus made clear that the eternal spiritual welfare of the individual is infinitely more important than the supplying of temporal needs. Note, His advice in (Matt. 5:29-30): “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” His rhetorical question in (Mark, 8:36), makes the same point: “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” God’s preoccupation with Human’ eternal spiritual welfare and the Biblical picture of sin are compelling evidence for the Christian view of salvation. The official Catholic and Orthodox position has long been that the church is the only channel of God’s grace. This grace is transmitted through the sacraments of the church. Those outside the official or organized church cannot receive it. Basic also to this traditional view is a clear distinction between nature and grace. Nature in Humanity consist of two parts, a passive capacity for grace and a desire or longing for grace. Humans, however, are quite unable to satisfy these aspects of their nature by their own accomplishments. That requires the grace of God, which is understood to be divine life imparted to Humanity by God. The traditional Catholic and Orthodox position has been that union with the church is necessary for salvation, because the church possesses the means of salvation. If actual union is not possible, God will accept in its stead a sincere desire for it. While 198 actual union with the church is not indispensable, complete separation is not acceptable. 1. Walter Lowe, Christ and Salvation , (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982). 2. Gustavo Gutierrez, A Theology of Liberation, trans. (Meryknoll, N.Y. Orbis, 1973). 3. Paul van Baren, The Secular Meaning of the Gospel, (New York Macmillan, 1963). 199 TOPIC 39 GOD IS INCONTROL PREDESTINATION Predestination is God’s choice of persons for eternal life or eternal death. Historically the doctrine originated with the controversy between Augustine and Pelagius. It received new impetus in the Reformation and continues to the present. A meaningful solution is suggested and four implications of the doctrine are identified. Of all the doctrines of the Christian faith, certainly one of the most puzzling and least understood is the doctrine of predestination. It is necessary to define precisely what is meant by the term “predestination.” Although some use it interchangeably with “foreordination” and “election,” for our purposes here “predestination” is midway in specificity between “foreordination” and “election.” We will regard “foreordination” as the broadest term, denoting God’s will with respect to all matters that occur, whether that, be the fate of individual Human persons or the falling of a rock. “Predestination” refers to God’s choice of individuals for eternal life or 200 eternal death. “Election” is the selection of some fore eternal life, the positive side of predestination. The doctrine, of predestination was held in somewhat undeveloped form until Augustine. His personal experience of, God’s grace enable him to see more clearly than did others the teaching of the Bible on these matters. He stressed that Adam had begun life truly free, the only limitation on his will and actions were the inherent limitations imposed by the very nature of Humanity. Thus there was the possibility of change, which included the possibility of turning away from the good. When Adam sinned, his nature became tainted. Now inclined toward doing evil, he transmitted this propensity for sin to his descendants. As a result, the freedom to abstain from evil and do Good has been lost. This is not to say that freedom of will in general is gone, but rather, that freedom in ways contrary to God’s intention for us. Without divine assistance we are unable to choose and do the good. The views of Pelagius sharpened Augustine’s thinking, forcing him to extend it beyond its previous bounds. He emphasized the seriousness of Adam’s, blaming it solely on Adam’s own act of will. But that sin was not merely Adam’s. All of us were one with him and thus participated in his sin. Pelagius, a British monk, had relocated to Rome and become a fashionable teacher there. He was primarily a moralist rather than a Theologian per se. Pelagius developed his system from this basic principle. His first tenet is that each person enters the world with a will that has no bias in favour of evil. Adam’s fall has no direct effect on each Human’s ability to do the right and the good, for every individual is directly created by God and therefore does not inherit from Adam either evil or a tendency to evil. Surely the God 201 who forgives each person his or her own sin would not hold any of us responsible for the act of someone else. Augustine’s outspoken attacks let to the condemnation of Pelagianism by the council of Ephesus in 431, A.D. one year after Augustine’s death. Calvinists thing of the whole Human race as lost in sin. The concept of total depravity means that every individual is so sinful as to be unable to respond to any offer of grace. This condition, which we fully deserve, involves both moral corruption and liability to punishment (guilt). All persons begin life in this condition. For this reason it is called “original sin.” Some hold that Adam was our representative and that, accordingly, his sin is imputed or charged to us. Others adopt Augustine’s view that the entire Human race was actually present in Adam germenally or seminally, so that we did in fact sin. Election, according to Calvinism, is God‘s choice of certain persons for His special favour. It may refer to the choice of Israel as God’s special covenant people or to the choice of individuals to some special office. The sense that primarily concerns us here, however, is the choice of certain persons to be God’s spiritual children and thus recipient of eternal life. One Biblical evidence that God has selected certain individuals for salvation is found in (Eph.1:4-5): “For He [the Father] chose us in Him [Jesus Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.” Jesus indicated that the initiative had been His in the selection of His disciples to eternal life. “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name” 202 (John, 15:16). The ability to come to Jesus depends on the Father’s initiative: “No one can come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John, 6:44; 65). Conversely, all who are given to Jesus by the Father will come to Him. “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never reject him (John, 6:37). Furthermore, In (Acts, 13:48), we read that “when the Gentiles heard this [the offer of salvation], they were glad and honoured the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.” Arminius maintained that Humans are sinful and unable to do Good in their own strength. Arminianism also includes conventional Roman Catholicism and Orthodox with its emphasis on the necessity of works in the process of salvation. There is a logical starting point: the concept that God desires all persons to be saved. Arminians point to some definite assertions of the Bible. In the Old Testament God made clear that He did not desire the death of anyone, including the wicked (Ezek. 33:11). Similarly, (2 Peter, 3:9; 1 Tim. 2:34). Can we draw some conclusion regarding the nettle some matter of the degree of God with respect to salvation? Logically prior to the Bible’s teaching that God has specially chosen some to have eternal life is its vivid picture of the natural lost, blindness, and inability of Humans to respond in faith to the opportunity for salvation. In (Rom. 3), Paul depicts the Human race as hopelessly separated from God because of their sin. They are unable to do anything to extricate themselves from this condition, and in fact, being quite blind to their situation, have no desire to do so. Calvinist and conservative Arminians 203 agree on this. It is not merely that Humans cannot in their nature state do, good works of a type that would justify them in God‘s sight. Beyond that they are afflicted with spiritual blindness (John, 6:44; Rom. 1:18-23; 2 Cor. 4:3-4) and insensitivity. Jesus described their plight vividly when He explained that He spoke in parables to fulfil Isaiah’s prophesy: “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them” (Matt. 13:14-15): Quoting (Isa. 6:9-1). Paul makes clear that the Bible is a universal condition true of Jews and Gentiles alike: “What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God” (Rom. 3:9-11). Jesus had asked the disciples who men said that He was, and they had recited the varied opinions-John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets (Matt. 13:14). Peter, however, confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). Jesus’ comment is instructive: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by My Father in heaven” (Matt. 16:17). It was a special action of God that made the difference between the disciples and the Spiritually blind and deaf. This is in accordance with Jesus’ statement, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John, 6:44), and “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John, 15:16). Jesus also tells 204 us that this drawing and choosing are efficacious: “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me and whoever comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John, 6:37). “Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to Me” (John, 6:45). The concept that our belief depends on God’s initiative also appears in the Book of Acts, where Luke tells us that when the Gentiles at Antioch of Pisidia heard of salvation, “they were glad and honoured the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed” (Acts, 13:48). 1.E. g. Benjamin B Warfield “Predestination,” in biblical Doctrines (New York: Oxford University Press, 1929). 2. Augustin, The City of God. 205 TOPIC 40 GOD IS IN CONTROL GOD’S WORK OF SAVING US AND REGENERATING US Salvation consists of three steps: effectual calling, conversion, and regeneration. Through the Holy Spirit, God calls the unbeliever to salvation. The Human response to that call involves turning from sin to faith in Christ. Faith also includes belief. God responds by regenerating the person to new life in Christ. We can only stand in awe of God’s work of saving us and regenerating us as Spiritual beings. It is apparent from the Bible that there is a general calling to salvation, an invitation extended to all persons. Jesus said, Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). There is a universal dimension to Isaiah’s “Turn to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth” (Isa. 45:22a). This passage combines an emphasis on the exclusiveness of God and the universality of His offer. Further, when Jesus said, “For many are invited, but few are chosen” (Matt.22:14), He was probably referring to God’s universal invitation. But note the distinction here between calling and choosing. Those who are chosen are the objects of God’s special or effectual calling. Several New Testament references to God’s calling imply that not everyone is being called. In (Rom. 8:30), Paul writes: “And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also 206 justified; those He justified, He also glorified.” He also alludes to the efficacy of this calling in (1 Cor. 1:9). “God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.” Other references to God’s effectual special calling include (Luke, 14:23; Rom. 1:7; 11:29; 1 Cor. 1:23-24; Eph. 1:18; Phil. 3:14; 1 Thess. 2:12; 2 Thess. 2:14; 2 Tim. 1:9; Heb. 3:1; 2 Peter, 1:10). We see Jesus issuing special invitations to those who became the inner circle of disciples (Matt. 4:18-22; Mark, 1:16-20; John, 1:35-51). He singled out Zacchaeus for particular attention (Luke, 18:1-10). We see another approach by God in the conversion of Saul (Acts 9:1-19). In this instance God made a unique entreaty. Sometimes His calling takes a quieter form, as in the case of Lydia: “One of these listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (Acts, 16:14). It also involves the Holy Spirit’s work of conviction, of which Jesus spoke in (John, 16:8-10). This working of the Spirit is necessary because the depravity characteristic of all Humans prevents them from grasping God’s revealed truth. Commending on (1 Cor. 2:61-16), and in (2 Cor. 5:19), Paul writes: “For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And He gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.” And in (1 Cor. 12:3), Only by the illumination of the Spirit can men understand the meaning of the cross; only by the Holy Spirit can men therefore confess that Jesus Who was crucified is also the Lord. 207 Nonetheless, the Biblical evidence favours the position that conversion is prior to regeneration. Various appeals to respond to the Bible imply that conversion results in regeneration. Among them is Paul’s reply to the Philippian jailer (we are here assuming that regeneration is part of the process of being saved): “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved you and your household” (Acts, 16:31). Peter makes a similar statement in his Pentecost sermon: “Repent and be Baptized every one of you, in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of you sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts, 2:38). The image of turning from sin is found in both Old and New Testaments. In the Book of Ezekiel we read the word of the Lord to the people of Israel: “Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declare the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offences: then sin will not be your downfall. Rid your selves of all the offences you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” (Ezek. 18:30-32). Later Ezekiel is told to warn the wicked to turn from their way (Ezek. 33:7-11). In (Eph. 5:14), Paul uses deferent imagery, but the basic thrust is the same: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” In Acts, we find Peter advocating a change in direction of life: “Repent, then, turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out. Then times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts, 3:19). For some people conversion was something more of a process. Nicodemus probably came to commitment to Christ in this fashion (John, 19:39). Similarly, the emotional accompaniments of conversion can vary greatly. Saul’s 208 decision was under highly dramatic circumstances. He heard a voice speaking to him from heaven (Acts, 9:4-7) and even became blind for three days (Acts, 9:17-18). By contrast, as we observed earlier, Lydia’s turning to Christ seems to have been very simple and calm in nature: “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (Acts, 16:14). On the other hand again, just a few verses later we read of the Philippian jailer who, still trembling with fear upon hearing that none of the prisoners had escaped after the earthquake, cried out, “What must I do, to be saved? (Acts, 16:30) The conversion experiences of these two people were very different, but the end result was the same. Repentance had a prominent place in the teaching of Jesus. In fact, it was the opening note of His teaching: “From that time Jesus began to teach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matt. 4:17). And at the close of His teaching He indicated that repentance was to be paramount topic in the disciple’s teaching. Shortly before His ascension He told them: “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be taught in His name to all nations. Beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke, 24:46-47). Peter began to fulfil this charge on Pentecost. And Paul declared in his message to the philosophers on Mars Hill in Athens: “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent” (Acts, 17:30). It is not enough simply to believe in Jesus and accept the offer of grace; there must be a real alteration of the inner person. If belief in God’s grace were all that is necessary, who would not wish to become a Christian? But Jesus said, “If anyone would come after Me he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Luke, 209 9:23). After Jesus gave assurance that the many sins of the woman who had washed His feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair were forgiven, He made the comment that “he who has been forgiven little loves little” Then Jesus said to the woman “Your sins are forgiven” (Luke, 7:47-48). Faith is at the very heart of the Bible, for it is the vehicle by which we are enabled to receive the grace of God. Jesus’ Statement to the Centurion, “Go! It will be done just as you believed it would” (Matt. 8:13). Greatly impressed, Jesus rewarded the Centurion’s Belief that his servant could be healed. Jesus bade Jairo’s believe that his daughter would be well (Mark, 5:36; Luke, 8:50), and asked the blind man who followed Him from Jairo’s’ house, “Do you believe that I am able to do this [heal you]?” (Matt. 9:28). These and numerous other instances establish that faith involves believing that something is true. Indeed, the author of Hebrews declares that faith in the sense of acknowledging certain truths is indispensable to salvation: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebr. 11:6). On the basis of the foregoing considerations, we conclude that the type of faith necessary for salvation involves both believing that and believing in or assenting to facts and trusting in a person. But faith, once engaged in, enables us to reason and to recognize various supporting evidences. This means that faith is a form of knowledge; it works in concert with, not against, reason. Pertinent here is Jesus’ response to the two disciples whom John the Baptist sent to ask, “Are You the one Who was to come, or should we expect someone else?” (Luke, 7:19). Jesus responded by 210 telling them to report to John the miracles they had seen and the message they had heard. Jesus in effect said to John, “Here is the evidence you need in order to be able to believe.” A close inspection reveals that the cases cited in arguing that faith does not rest on any kind of evidence do not really support that conclusion. One is the case of Thomas, who not having seen with the other disciples when the resurrected Jesus appeared, did not believe. Thomas stated that unless he could see the nail prints in Jesus’ hands, put his finger in the mark of the nails, and place his hand in Jesus’ side, he would not believe (John, 20:25). When Jesus appeared, He invited Thomas to satisfy his doubts. And when Thomas confessed, “My Lord and my God!” (John, 20:28), Jesus responded, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John, 20:29). Had Jesus expected Thomas to believe blindly, without any evidential basis? Remember that Thomas had lived with Jesus for three years, had heard His teaching, and had seen His miracles; he knew of Jesus’ promise and claim that He would rise from the dead, He already had sufficient basis for believing the testimony of his fellow disciples, whose integrity he had long experienced. He should not have required additional evidence. Similarly, when Abraham was called on to offer Isaac, he was not being asked to act blindly. True, there was no sacrificial animal in sight; he simply had to trust God. But although there was no visible evidence at the moment, Abraham had known Jehovah for a long time. He had found in the past that God was faithful in providing the land and the son that He had promised. The faith that Abraham exercised in being willing to sacrifice his son was an extrapolation into unknown future of his experience of God in the past 211 (Gen. 22:7-12). Although we have depicted conversion as a Human response to divine initiative, even repentance and faith are gifts from God. Jesus made very clear that conviction, which is presupposed by repentance, is the work of the Holy Spirit: “When [the Spirit] comes, He will convict the world of gilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in Me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see Me no longer, and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned” (John, 16:8-11). Jesus also said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John, 6:44). This work of the Father is effective: “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never reject him…Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to Me” (John, 6:37, 45). Thus Humanly exercised repentance and faith are also gracious works of God in the life of the believer. Conversion refers to the Human being’s response to God’s offer of salvation and approach to the Human. Regeneration is the other side of conversion. It is completely God’s doing. It is God’s transformation of individual believers. He is giving a new spiritual vitality and direction to their lives when they accept Christ. The best known and most extensive exposition of the concept of the new birth is found in Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus in (John, 3:12, 13-26), Jesus told to Nicodemus, “no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” At a later point in the discussion He made the comment, “You should not be surprised at My saying, ‘You must be born again.” That again or “anew” is the 212 correct rendering here, however, is seen from Nicodemus’s response, “How can a man be born when he is old? Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” Nicodemus understood Jesus to be saying that one must be born again. Although the terminology varies, the idea is found elsewhere in the New Testament. In the same conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus spoke of being “born of Spirit” (John, 3:5-8). He had in mind a supernatural work transforming the life of the individual. This work, which is indispensable if one is to enter the kingdom of God, is not something that can be achieved by Human effort or planning. It is also spoken of as being “born of God” or “born through the word of God” (John, 1:1213; James, 1:18; 1 Peter, 1:3, 23; 1 John, 2:29; 5:1, 4). Whoever undergoes this experience is a new creation: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (1 Cor. 5:17). Paul speaks of the renewing in the Holy Spirit (Titus, 3:5), of being made alive (Eph. 2:1, 5), and of resurrection from the dead (Eph. 2:6). The same idea is implicit in Jesus’ statements that He had come to give life (John, 6:63; 10:10, 28). We ought not to be surprised that the new birth is difficult to understand, however, Jesus indicated to Nicodemus, who was having great difficulty grasping what Jesus was talking about, that the concept is difficult. It is like wind although one does not know where it comes from or where it goes, one hears it sound (John, 3:8). For one side of regeneration involves putting to death or crucifying existent qualities. Contrasting the life in the Spirit with that in the flesh, Paul says: “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit” (Gal. 5:24-25). 213 Other references to the death of the individual or of certain aspects of the individual include (Rom. 6:1-11) and (Gal. 2:20; 6:14). As a putting to death of the flesh, the new birth involves a counteracting of the effects of sin. This is perhaps most clearly seen in Paul’s statement in (Eph. 2:1-10). The deadness that requires a transformation is a result of the sin in which we live, being let by the prince of the power of the air. The new birth is the restoration of Human nature to what it originally was intended to be and what it in fact was before sin entered the Human race at the time of the fall. It is simultaneously the beginning of a new life and a return of the original life and activity. The Bible speaks of believers as “born again” or “having been born again” rather than “being born again” (John, 1:12-13; 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:1, 5-6; James, 1:18; 1 Peter, 1:3, 23; John, 2:29; 5:1, 4). Regeneration is the beginning of a process of growth that continues throughout one’s lifetime. In (Eph. 2:10), Paul adds, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” He speaks in (Phil. 1:6), continuing and completing what has been began: “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Regeneration is a beginning, but there is much more yet to come. The manifestation of this spiritual ripening are called “fruit of the Spirit.” They are the direct opposite of the fruit of the old nature, the flesh (Gal. 5:19-23). Christianity is very optimistic: with supernatural and Humans can be transformed and restored to their original goodness. It was in regard to God’s ability to change Human hearts, enabling us to 214 enter His kingdom, that Jesus said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26). 1. George E. Ladd, A Theology of the new Testament (Grand Rapidds: Eerdmans, 1974). 2. Charls M. Horn, Salvation (Chicago Moody, 1971). 215 TOPIC 41 GOD IS IN CONTROL OBJECTIVE ASPECTS OFSALVATION There are three essential elements among the objective aspects of salvation: union with Christ, justification, and adoption. Union with Christ is a generally inclusive term for all salvation. It is also specific, referring to an intimate relationship with Christ, also to the marriage relationship between husband and wife. In justification God imputes the righteousness of Christ to the believer, which cancels God’s judgment on the believer. Finally, adoption means that the justified believer actually receives favoured status with God and is adopted into the family of God. Union with Christ is an inclusive term for the whole of salvation. The most basic references in this connection depict the believer and Christ as being “in” one another. On the one hand, we have many specific references to the believer’s being in Christ; in (2 Cor. 5:17): “therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” There are two such phrases in (Eph. 1:3-4). “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.” Two verses later we read “to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He 216 loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding” (Eph. 1:6-8); Paul tells us that we have been created anew in Christ: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph. 2:10). The grace of God is given to us in Christ: “I always thank God for you because of His grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in Him you have been enriched in every way in all your speaking and in all your knowledge” (1 Cor. 1:4-5). Deceased believers are called “the dead in Christ” (1 Thess. 4:16), and our resurrection will take place in Christ: “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22). The other side of this relationship is that Christ is said to be in the believer. Paul says, “To [the saints] God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of the mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Cor. 1:27). There is also Jesus’ analogy of the vine and branches, which emphasizes the mutual indwelling of Christ and the believer: “Remain in Me and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5). It is apparent that all that the believer has spiritually is based on Christ’s being within. Our hope of glory is Christ in us. Our spiritual vitality is drawn from His indwelling presence. Jesus’ promises to be present with the believer (Matt. 28:20; John, 14:23). Finally the believer is said to share a whole host of experiences “with Christ”: suffering (Rom. 8:17); crucifixion (Gal. 2:20); burial (Rom. 6:4); 217 quickening (Eph. 2:5); resurrection (Col. 3:1); glorification and inheritance (Rom. 8:17). In (Gal. 2:20), where Paul says, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” For Paul goes on to say, “The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Here it is Paul who lives he lives by faith in Christ. Jesus statement in (John, 14:12):“anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” Similarly He said at the time of His departure from the earth. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts, 1:8). Being one with Christ also means that we will suffer. The disciples were told that they would drink the cup that Jesus drunk, and be baptized with the same baptism as He (Mark, 10:39). Jesus had told them not to be surprised if they encountered persecution: “Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed My teaching, they will obey yours also” (John, 15:20). Paul did not shrink from this prospect; indeed, one of his goals was to share Christ’s sufferings: “For whose sake I have lost all things…I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death” (Phil. 3:8-10). Peter urged his readers, “But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed” (1 Peter, 4:13). We also have the prospect of reigning with Christ. The two disciples who asked for positions of authority and prestige were instead promised suffering (Mark, 10:35-39). But Jesus also told the 218 entire group that because they had continued with Him in His trials, they would eat and drink at His table in His kingdom, “and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Luke, 22:30). Paul made a similar statement: “If we endure, we will also reign with Him” (2 Tim. 2:12). And for those who suffer with Christ, a glorious future lies ahead. In the Old Testament, justification involves ascertaining that a person is innocent and then declaring what is indeed that he or she is righteous, that is, has fulfilled the law. In (Ps. 9:4; Jer. 11:20). God is the Judge of Human beings. Those who have been acquitted have been judged to stand in right relationship to God, that is, to have fulfilled what was expected of them in that relationship. In (Gen. 18:25): God is the ruler of all and the source of all criteria of rightness. As Abraham confessed, “Will not the judge of all the earth do right?” In the New Testament, justification is God’s declarative act by which, on the basis of the sufficiency of Christ’s atonic death, He pronounces believers to have fulfilled all of the requirements of the law that pertain to them. In (Rom. 8:33-34): “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is He that condemns? Christ Jesus, Who died more than that, Who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” A similar passage is (Matt. 12:37), where Jesus, speaking of the day of judgment when everyone will give account for every careless word uttered, says, “For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Luke reports that upon hearing Jesus’ teaching, “all the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right” (Luke, 7:29). 219 Jesus used the term in the same way when He responded to the attempts of the Pharisees and lawyers to justify their rejection of Him. Numerous passages of the Bible indicate that justification is the gift of God. One of the best known is (Rom.6:23): “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Another in (Eph. 2:8-9): “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast,” Abraham, the father of Jews, Paul points out that Abraham was not justified by works, but by faith. He makes this point both positively and negatively. He affirms that Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Gal.3:6). [Paul] He rejects the idea that we can be justified by works: All who rely on observing the law are under a curse…Clearly no one is justified before God by the law” (Gal. 10:11). So God has not introduced a new means of salvation. He has always worked in the same way. Justification is intimately linked with union with Christ. If we have become one with Christ, then we will not live according to the flesh, but rather by the Spirit (Rom. 8:1-17). The union with Christ that brings justification also brings the new life. It is referred to in several passages in the New Testament. Perhaps the best known is (John, 1:12): “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” Paul notes that our adoption is a fulfilment of part of the plan of God: He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will” (Eph. 1:5). And in (Gal. 4:4-5), Paul links adoption with justification: “But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, 220 born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full right of sons.” There are several important characteristics of our adoption. This is made clear in the words that follow in (John, 1:12), which is a key reference to the adopted children of God:” born not of natural descent, nor of Human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” Adoption involves a change of both status and condition. That we are by creation God’s children is strongly implied in Paul’s statement in (Acts, 17:24-29), culminating in verse 29; “Therefore since we are God’s off springs…”It is also implied in (Hebr.12:5-9), where God is pictured as a Father disciplining His sons. In (James, 1:17), similarly views God as the Father of all Humans: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, Who does not change like shifting shadows.” Probably the clearest and most strait forward of the texts in this regard is in (Malachi, 2:10): “Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us? Why do we profane the covenant of our fathers by breaking faith with one another?” Malachi is here referring only to the people of Israel and Judah. Despite the fact that they have one Father, having all been created by one God, they have been faithless to one another and the covenant. In (1 John, 3:1). “How great is the love, the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are.” The unbeliever simply does not have, and cannot experience, the type of filial relationship the believer experience. In light of the fact that God has forgiven us, in (Eph.4:32). Paul urges us to forgive others: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ 221 God forgive you.” In (Deut. 5:10; Ps. 103:8-14).We are to be kind and tender hearted, since God our Father has not been grudging in forgiving us. He delights in forgiving; He is merciful, tender hearted, and kind. He is not a stern, harsh, or severe Father. He is not to be feared, but trusted. In (Rom. 5:1): We have peace with God, as Paul pointed out: Our adoption and God’s forgiveness are eternal.” In (Rom. 8:14-16). The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” And in (Gal. 3:10-11). A similar thought is expressed. We are not obligated to the law in quite the way in which a slave or a servant is. There are always some who pervert their freedom. Paul gave warning to such people: in (Gal. 5:13-16). “You, my brothers, we are called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summoning up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Jesus said in (John, 15:14-15). “You are My friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from My Father I have made known to you.” And in (John, 14:15-21). “If you love Me, you will obey what I command…Whoever has My commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves Me. He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I too will love him and show Myself to him.” Adoption means that the Christian is the recipient of God’s fatherly care. In (Rom. 8:16-17). Paul noted that, “we are God’s children. Now, if we are children, then we are heirs, heirs of God and 222 co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His suffering in order that we may also share in His glory.” As heirs we have available to us the unlimited resources of the Father. In (Phil. 4:19), Paul pointed this, out to the Philippians: “And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” The believer can pray confidently, knowing that there is no limitation on what God is able to do. In (Matt. 6:25-34). According to Jesus, the Father Who feeds the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the fields cares even more for His Human children. In (Luke, 11:11-13).His provision is always wise and kind. He is ours and we are His, and He through adoption extends to us all the benefits His measures love can bestow. 1. Murray, Redemption. 2. George E, Ladd; A Theology of the New Testament (Grand Rappids: Eermans, 1977. 223 TOPIC 42 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE CONTINUATION OF SALVATION After the miraculous work of salvation, God continues the transforming process to make the believer into the image of Christ. Sanctification is the process of being set apart from sin toward becoming holy and toward the goal of leading a sinless life. While this is not realized in this life, it is the goal. God’s sanctifying work is carried out through several processes, including union with Christ and separation. Sanctification is found in the New Testament. Peter refers to his readers as “a chosen people, a holy nation a people belonging to God” (Peter, 2:9). Paul addresses the persons in the church at Corinth in this way: “To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ their Lord and ours” (1 Cor. 1:2). Jesus emphasized that, we are children of God. We belong to God and consequently should show a likeness to Him. We should share His Spirit of love: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matt. 5:43-45). To Jesus, who is My mother? Who are My brothers? Then He looked at those around Him and said: Look these are My mother and 224 brothers. Anyone who does God’s will is My brother and sisters and mother” (Mark, 3:33-35). We must first emphasize that sanctification is a supernatural work: it is something done by God, not something we do our selves. Thus it is not reform that we are speaking of. Paul wrote, “May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:23). Other references stressing that it is God Who works our sanctification include (Eph. 5:26; Titus, 2:14; and Hebr. 13:20-21). When we say that sanctification is supernatural, we mean that it is something nature cannot produce or account for. It is also supernatural in the sense that it is a special, volitional work or series of works by the Holy Spirit. It is not just a matter of His general providence as universally manifested. Further, this divine working within the believer is a progressive matter. This is seen, in Paul’s assurance that God will continue to work in the life of the Philippians: “being confident of this, He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). Paul also notes that the cross is the power of God “to us who are being saved” (1 Cor. 1:18). That this activity is the continuation and completion of the newness of life began in regeneration is evident not only from (Phil. 1:6), but also from (Col. 3:9-10). “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator.” The aim of this divine working is likeness to Christ Himself. This was God’s intention from all eternity: “For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His 225 Son, That He might be firstborn among many brothers” (Rom. 8:25). Sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit. In (Gal.5:27), Paul speaks of the life in the Spirit: “Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature” (Rom. 8:16); “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit” (Rom. 8:25). He also lists a group of qualities He designates collectively as “the fruit of the Spirit”-“love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and selfcontrol” (Rom. 8:22-23). Similarly, in (Rom. 8:27), Paul says much about the Spirit and the Christian. Christians walk according to the Spirit (Rom. 8:14) set their minds on the things of the Spirit (Rom. 8:5), are in the Spirit (Rom. 8:9); the Spirit dwells in them (Rom. 8:9); by the Spirit they have put to death the deeds of the body (Rom. 8:13); they are led by the Spirit (Rom. 8:14); the Spirit bears witness that they are children of God (Rom. 8:16); the Spirit intercedes for them (Rom. 8:2627). It is the Spirit Who is at work in the believer, bringing about likeness to Christ. The believer is constantly exhorted to work and to grow in the matters pertaining to salvation. Paul writes to the Philippians : “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God Who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose” (Phil. 2:12-13). Paul urges both practice of virtues and avoidance of evils (Rom. 12:9; 16-17). We are to put to death the works of the body (Rom. 8:13), and present our bodies a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:1-2). So while sanctification is God’s work, the believer has a role as well, entailing both removal of sinfulness and development of holiness. Ample Biblical texts support such a view, that it is possible not to sin, and that some believers actually do abstain from all 226 evil. One of them is (Matt.5:48), Jesus tells His hearers. “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Paul notes that leaders will be provided to equip the saints for building up the body of Christ “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). He prays for the Thessalonians, “May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Thess. 5:23). The writer to the Hebrews similarly prays that “the God of peace…equip you with everything good for doing His will, and may He work in us what is pleasing to Him, through Jesus Christ” (Heb. 13:20-21). Certain passages indicate that we cannot escape sin. One of the more prominent of these passages is (1 John, 1:8-10): “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word has no place in our lives.” That this passage was written to believers tenders the statement that there is sin in all of us the more cogent. In (Rom. 7:18-19), where Paul describes his own experience. On the assumption that Paul has in view his life after conversion this passage appears to be a vivid and forceful testimony to the effect that the believer is not free from sin. Paul puts it powerfully: “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; nor, the evil I do not want to do that I keep on doing,” This word came from one of the greatest of all Christians, indeed, many would say, the 227 greatest Christian of all time. If even he confessed having great difficulty with sin, certainly we must conclude that perfection is not to be experienced in this life. We begin by noting again the nature of sin. It is not merely acts of one external nature. Jesus made it quite clear that even the thoughts and attitudes that we have are sinful if they are less than perfectly in accord with the mind of the Almighty and completely Holy God. (Matt. 5:21-28). Thus, sin is of a considerably more pervasive and subtle character than we might tend to think. Jesus made this quite evident in His imagery of the vine and the branches: “Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches, If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing” (John, 15:4-5). Jesus viewed union with Him, which is closely linked to keeping His commandments (John, 5:10), as the key to the believer’s whole Christian life. Fruit bearing (John, 5:5), Prayer (John, 5:7), and ultimately joy (John, 5:11) depend on it. The idea of the law came to overshadow the covenant. Observance of the law came to be regarded as the basis on which God passes judgment upon Humanity. It was said to be the grounds of hope, justification, righteousness, salvation, resurrection, and life. It was maintained that obedience to the law would bring in the kingdom and transform the world. “Thus the law attains the position of an intermediary between God and man.” Jesus Himself says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them” (Matt. 5:17). Similarly, Paul speaks of 228 the law as “God’s law” (Rom. 7:22-25). It is not sin (Rom. 7:7): it is holy, just, and good (Rom. 7:12); it is spiritual (Rom. 7:14). In (Gal. 5:3); He insisted, that to be righteous one has to obey the law in all of its particulars. Failure to keep any part of it is violation of all of it (Gal. 3:10). On this point he was in agreement with the teaching of James. For the same God Who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but not commit adultery, you have still broken the law (James, 2:11).By revealing Humans’ sinful condition, the law establishes them as sinners. The law does not actually cause us to sin, but it constitutes our actions sin by giving God’s evaluation of them. Thus we cannot in ourselves fulfil the law and thus be justified by it, does not mean, however, that the law is now abolished. (Rom.3:20; 5:13; 20; Gal. 3:19). For in Christ, God has done what the law could not do: sending His own Son for sin, He has condemned sin in the flesh, so that what the law requires is now fulfilled by those who walk by the Spirit (Rom. 8:3-4). As faith in Christ frees us from the law, we are actually being enabled to uphold the law (Rom. 3:31). The law, then, continues to apply. In (John, 15:14); Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will obey what I command.” We are not at liberty to reject such commands; to do so would be an abuse of Christian freedom. Paul notes that we can fulfil several specific commandments of the law by love (Rom. 13:8-10). He reiterates the importance of the command to love one’s father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise (Eph. 6:1-2). The promise of Moses in (Deut. 30:1-6). “The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descent, so that you may love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live.” The 229 contrast is between those who are circumcised of heart and those who are not. Paul clarifies this expression: In (Rom.2:28-29); “A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God.” It is significant that in the Old Testament we find prominent cases of what the New Testament terms “the fruit of the Spirit.” Note, that Noah and Job were both righteous men, blameless in conduct (Gen. 6:9; Job, 1:1, 8). Special attention is given to Abraham’s faith, Joseph’s goodness, Moses’ meekness, Solomon’s wisdom, Daniel’s self-control. While these men did not experience the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, were certainly under His influence. The presence of God was visibly represented by the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and temple. The law was an external written code rather than the Spirit’s imparting of truth to the heart, as would later be the case (John, 14:26). The Holy Spirit did not dwell within, but exerted an external influence, through the written and spoken word. 1.Horset Secbass, “Holy Consecrate, Sanctify, Saints, Devout,” in the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, ed. Colin Brown (Grand Rappids: Zondervan, 1976). . 2. Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology (Westwood, N.J. : Revell, 1907). 230 TOPIC 43 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE COMPLETION OF SALVATION The Completion of salvation is found in the two doctrines of perseverance and glorification. Perseverance means that God will enable the believer to remain in the faith through the remainder of his or her life. It also means that the believer needs to demonstrate salvation through becoming more like Christ. Glorification 231 will be accomplished in the life to come, when we will become all that God intends us to be. Two major topics remain, related to the completion of the Christian life on earth and into the life to come. First, the Christian, kept by the grace of God, will successfully endure all the trials and temptations of this life, and remain true to the Lord until death. This we term “perseverance.” The doctrine of perseverance is important to the faith of the believer. The question arises: Will the believer who has genuinely been regenerated, justified, adopted by God, and united with Jesus Christ persist in that relationship? Will a person who becomes a Christian always remain such? And if so, on what-basis? The issue is of considerable importance from the standpoint of practical Christian living. If, on the one hand, there is no guarantee that salvation is permanent, believers may experience a great deal of anxiety and insecurity that will detract from the major tasks of the Christian life. On the other hand, if our salvation is absolutely secure, if we are preserved quite independently of our lives or actions, then there may well be, as a result, a sort of lassitude or indifference to the moral and Spiritual demands of the Bible; the end result may even be libertinism. Therefore, determining the Biblical teaching concerning the security of the believer is worth the necessary time and effort. Second, the life beyond will not be merely an extension of the current quality of life but the perfecting of it. The limitation we currently experience will be removed. This we term “glorification.” Glorification provides hope, encouragement, and joy to the believer. The Bible does not justify identifying every person who makes an outward profession of faith as genially regenerate. Jesus 232 warned of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing, but who are ravenous wolves (Matt. 7:15). They are to be evaluated by their fruits rather than by their verbal claims (Matt. 7:16-20). In the day of judgment such people will call Him “Lord, Lord,” and claim to have prophesied, cast out demons, and done many mighty works in His name (Matt.7:22). All of these claims will presumably be true. It will not, however, be these individuals who enter the kingdom of heaven, but rather those who do the Father’s will (Matt. 7:21). Jesus’ final word regarding the shame believers will be, “I never know you. Away from Me, you evildoers!” (Matt. 7:23). The parable of the sower (Matt. 13:19, 18-23), is another indication that what appears to be genuine faith may be something quite different. It may be but a superficial and temporary response: In light of what Jesus says in (Matt. 7: 16-20), it appears that the only ones who are truly regenerate believers are those who bear fruit, whether thirty, sixty, or a hundred fold (Matt. 13:23). Similarly, in speaking of eschatology matters, Jesus indicated that endurance is the distinguishing mark of the true believer: “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved” (Matt. 24:12-13; also in Matt. 10:22; and Mark, 13:13). Finally, we note that Jesus never regarded Judas as regenerate. For to Peter’s confession of faith, “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God” (John, 6:68-69), Jesus responded, “Have I not chosen you, the twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (John, 6:70). From the foregoing consideration it is clear that, in Jesus’ view not all who appear to be believers are truly that. We 233 conclude that those who appear to have fallen away were never regenerate in the first place. Glorification: In (Rom. 8:29-30), Paul’s words, those whom God “foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son…And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.” Glorification is the point at which the doctrine of salvation and the doctrine of the last things overlap, for it look beyond this life to the world to come. It also involves the perfecting of the bodies of all believers, which will occur at the time of the resurrection in connection with the second coming of Christ. It even involves transformation of the entire creation (Rom. 8:18-25). In the New Testament, we find glory attributed to Jesus Christ, just as it was to God in the Old Testament. Jesus prayed that the Father would glorify Him as He had glorified the Father (John, 17:1-5). It is especially in the resurrection of Christ that we see His glory. Peter proclaimed that in rising Jesus from the dead God has glorified Him whom the Jews had rejected (Acts, 3:13-15). Similarly, Peter wrote in his first letter: “Through Him you believe in God, Who raised Him from the dead and glorified Him, and so your faith and hope are in God” (1 Peter 1:21) Paul asserted that: “We were therefore buried with Him through Baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Rom. 6:4). He also spoke of Christ’s glorious resurrection body (Phil. 3:21). Paul saw Christ’s glorification in the ascension as well He was “taken up in glory” (1 Tim. 3:16). In addition, the apostles taught that Christ is new exalted at the right hand of God (Acts, 2:33; 5:31). 234 The second coming of Christ is also to be an occasion of His glory, Jesus Himself has drawn a vivid picture of the glorious nature of His return: “They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:30); “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His throne in heavenly glory” (Matt. 25:31). One petition in Jesus’ teaching prayer was that His disciples might see His coming glory: “the glory you have given Me because you loved Me before the creation of the world” (John, 17:24). Paul spoke of “the blessed hope the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ (Titus, 2:13). Paul writes in (Rom. 8:18): “I consider that our present suffering is not worth compering with the glory that will be revealed in us.” He makes a similar statement, in (2 Cor. 4:17): “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” Peter also in (1 Peter, 5:1-4), links present suffering with the future revelation of glory. As “a witness of Christ’s suffering and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed,” he exhorts his fellow elders to tend the flock of God so that,“ when the Christ Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” Paul contemplates the future judgment and asks who will bring any charge against the elect; in view of the fact that Christ died for us and now intercedes for us, no one will (Rom.5:33-34). Neither things present nor things to come can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Rom.5:38-39). The judgment will be the final declaration of the believer’s justified status (Matt. 25:31-46). In glorification the individual will also be perfected, morally and spiritually. Several Biblical references point to a future completion of 235 the process began in regeneration and continued in sanctification. One of the most direct of these statements is (Col. 1:22); “But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation.” The concept of future flawlessness or blamelessness is also found in (Eph. 1:4 and Jude 24). In (Rev. 20:7-10). Our moral and spiritual perfection will be attained in part through the removal of temptation, for the source of sin and evil and temptation will have been conclusively overcome. The future glorification will also bring fullness of knowledge. In (1 Cor. 13:12), Paul contrasts the imperfect knowledge we now have with the perfect which to come: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror: then we shall see face to face…the Lord; and as John says, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John, 3:2). In (Phil. 3:20-21), Paul says, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our powerfully bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.” In (2 Cor. 5:1-5), Paul envisions the body that we will have, a body eternal in nature, not made by Human hands but coming from God. It will be our heavenly dwelling. That which is mortal will be swallowed up by life (2 Cor. 5:4). The third passage is (1 Cor. 15:38-50). Paul draws a comparison between the body we are to have and our present body. The present body is perishable, subject to disease and death. The present body is sown in dishonour; the resurrection body will be glorious. The present body is weak; the resurrection body is 236 powerful. The present body is physical; the resurrection body will be spiritual. The nature of the transformation that is to take place is stated more specifically in (Rev. 21:1-2): “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” At that time God will declare, “I am making everything new!” (Rev. 21:6). Humanity’s original dwelling was in the paradisiacal setting of the Garden of Eden; his final dwelling will also be in a perfect setting, the New Jerusalem. Part of the glorification of the Human will be the provision of a perfect environment in which to dwell. It will be perfect, for the glory of God will be present. The doctrine of glorification promises that something better lies ahead. We will be everything that God has intended us to be. In part our glorification will take place in connection with death and our passage from the limitations of this earthly existence; in part it will occur in connection with Christ’s second coming. That we will thereafter be perfect and complete is sure. 1.SamuelWakefield, A Comlete System of Christian Theology (Cincinnati: Hichcock & Wilson, 1869). 2. Marshall, Power of God. 237 TOPIC 44 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE MEANS AND EXTENT OF SALVATION There are two issues. The first is the means by which salvation is obtained. There are three Theological views: Liberation, Sacramental, and Evangelical. The second issue is the question of the extent of salvation. Universalists claim that all will eventually be saved. The Bible refutes the Universalist position. One’s view of the means by which salvation is obtained depends to a considerable extent on one’s understanding of the nature of salvation. Yet even among people with basically the same understanding of the nature of salvation, there are different views of the means. 238 To understand liberation, we must first look at its view of the nature of Theology. Originally, Theology was simply a meditating on the Bible; its aim was wisdom and spiritual growth. Then Theology came to be viewed as rational knowledge, a systematic and critical reflection on the content of the Christian faith. Love is at the centre of the Christian life and of Theology. Spirituality is not monastic contemplation, in the world, with emphasis placed on the profane dimensions of life. Political freedom, economic sufficiency, and physical health, are important as they are, secondary to spiritual destiny. This is an implication of Jesus’ statement: “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown in to hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown in to hell” (Matt. 5:29-30). If our analysis is correct, the shortcoming of liberation Theology is not in what it says, but in what it does not say. Not nearly enough is said about what the New Testament clearly indicates to be the primary dimension of salvation. We must also comment on liberation Theology’s advocacy of violence by the deprived and down trotted. It is notable that this position appears to conflict with some of Jesus’ statements, such as His exhortations to turn the other cheek (Matt. 5:39; Luke, 6:29), and love one’s enemies (Matt. 5:44; Luke, 6:27, 35).While it is possible to make a sound case for the use of force in a good cause, the liberation Theologians have not established an adequate argument for using force in the present situation. 239 A second major view of the means of salvation is that salvation is transmitted and received through the sacraments of the Church. Several important characteristics of sacraments are noted in this brief statement. These acts are necessary for the justification of the sinner. Justification is not merely an internal and invisible occurrence, but it depends on and requires particular external rites. These rites are actual means of grace. They symbolize the changes that take place within the individual, but they are not merely symbols. They actually effect or convey grace. They are, in other words, efficacious signs. Proponents of the position of the Council of Trent argue that the Bible gives evidence of an essential causal connection between sacramental signs and grace. A most prominent example is (John, 3:5): “no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” Other texts cited as supporting the contention that the water of Baptism cleanses sin include (Acts, 2:38; 22:16; Eph.5:26; and Titus, 3:5). Moreover, on the basis of various texts, efficacy is claimed for the other sacraments as well; confirmation (Acts, 8:17), the Eucharist (John, 6:56-58); penance (John, 20:22-23); extreme unction (James, 5:14-16); holy orders (2 Tim. 1:6). In addition, the testimony of the church fathers is cited as support for the view that the sacraments are means of grace. The type of faith that is required in order to receive the grace of God is much more active, (James, 2:18-26), where faith that involves only mental assent without accompanying works is termed dead. The faith for which the apostle’s appeal in the Book of the Acts is: They call for a positive seizing upon God’s promises and for total commitment. 240 According to Evangelical construction of Theology, are the means of salvation or, more broadly put, the means of grace. In the Evangelical view, the Word of God plays an indispensable part in the whole matter of salvation. In (Rom. 3:9-20); Paul describes the predicament of persons apart from Christ. They have no righteousness; they are totally unworthy of His grace and salvation. How, then, are they to be saved? They are to be saved by calling upon the name of the Lord (Rom. 3:13). For them to call, however, they must believe, but they cannot believe if they have not heard; therefore someone must tell them or teach to them the good news (that is the church); Greek Orthodox Church, Catholic Church, Protestant Church and other denominations. (Rom. 3:14-15). Paul also writes to (2 Tim. 3:15-17); regarding the importance of the Word of God. The sacred writings known to Timothy from his youth “are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. The whole Bible is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Peter also speaks of this instrumental role of the Word of God: “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God…And this is the word that was taught to you” (1 Peter, 1:23-25). In (Ps. 19); David extols the virtues and values of the law of the LORD: it revives the soul (Ps. 7): it informs (Ps. 7, 8); it warns against wrong (Ps. 11). There is a rich series of images depicting the nature and function of the Word of God. The issue of who will be saved. And specifically, will all be saved? The church’s usual position throughout history has been 241 that while some or even many will be saved, some will not. The church took this position not because it did not want to see everyone saved, but because it believed there are clear statements in the Bible to the effect that some will be lost. Universalism has had a long history; Origen was properly its first major proponent. He conjectured that the punishment of the wicked of which the Bible speaks will not be some form of eternal external suffering inflicted upon them by God, but a temporary eternal anguish occasioned by their sense of separation from Him. Its purpose is to be purification. That end can be realized without eternal punishment. The theory of universal conversion holds that all persons will be saved via the route stipulated by the Bible repentance and faith. The theory of universal atonement holds that Christ died not merely for a certain portion of the Human race, but for all Humans. This is not true universalism, although it is sometimes regarded as such by those who hold to particular or limited atonement. The theory of universal opportunity holds that every person within his or her lifetime has an opportunity to respond in a saving fashion to Jesus Christ. The opportunity to be saved is not limited to those who actually hear the Bible proclaimed, who have been afforded some knowledge of the content of the special revelation. Rather everyone, discussed in (Psalms, 19, Romans 1 and 2), and else whare in the Bible, may exercise implicitly the requisite faith in Jesus Christ. The theory of universal explicit opportunity holds that everyone will have an opportunity to hear the Bible in an overt or explicit fashion. Those who do not actually hear it during their lifetime here upon earth will have an opportunity in the future. There will be a second chance. After death, they will be enabled to hear some 242 proponents of this theory believe that even those who have heard and have rejected will be confronted with the claims of Christ in the life hereafter. This view is difficult to reconcile with Jesus’ teaching about afterlife (Luke, 16:19-31), especially (Luke. 16:26). The theory of universal reconciliation maintains that Christ’s death accomplished its purpose of reconciling all Humankind to God. The death of Christ made it possible for God to accept Humans and He has done so. The theory of universal pardon maintains that God, being Loving God, will not hold unswervingly to the conditions He has laid down. While this might seem unfair to those who have believed and acted to accept the offer of salvation, they should remember Jesus’ parable of the labourers in the vineyard. Those who came late in the day received the same pay as did those who began to work early in the morning. The theory of universal restoration is the view put forth by Origen. At some point in the future, all things will be restored to their original and intended state: there will be full salvation. Existing reality will be altered or transformed. It will not be possible to examine and evaluate each of the varieties of universalism we have just sketched. Insofar as they are theories of universal salvation, however, they are built on similar arguments of the belief that salvation is universal. Some are based on or relate to a particular text of the Bible. Others more Theological in nature. The latter type of argument is presented by Nels Ferre. He built his own Theology on the central thought of divine love. In his consideration of eschatology, this concept is powerful and determinative. Ferre rest his perception of God on but one divine attribute. Asking why some people insist on teaching and preaching 243 the concept of one eternal hell, he suggests that those who do so have never really understood the love of God. He bases his conclusion on the assumption that love and punishment, heaven and hell, joy and grief, are mutually exclusive. He cites certain specific texts as teaching that all Human beings will be saved: “God is the Saviour of all men, especially of those who believe” (1 Tim. 4:10); “every knee should bow and…every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Phil. 2:10-11); “God has bound all men over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them all” (Rom. 11:32). It was not any specific verses that led to his ultimate conclusion on the matter. Ferre arrived at a Universalist position. His exposition of eschatology appears in a treatise on the doctrine of God, for it is his understanding of God as love. He does not claim to understand how universal salvation will be brought about. But whatever the means, God’s sovereign love will bring the process to complete victory. There are many texts that seem to contradict universalism. “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matt. 25:46); “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John, 3:16); “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out-those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned” (John, 5: 28-29); “What if God, choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the objects of His wrath prepared for destruction?” (Rom. 9:22). Numerous other passages could be cited, among them (Matt. 8:12; 25:41; 26:24; Mark, 3:29; Rom. 2:5; 2Thess. 1:9; Rev. 21:8). Indeed, simply on the basis of numbers, there appear 244 to be considerably more passages teaching that some will be eternally lost than that all will be saved. One possibility advanced by Universalists is to regard those passages which suggest that the wicked will be lost as descriptions of a hypothetical rather than actual situation. They are descriptions of what would happen if we were to reject Christ. Paul is talking about Israel’s rejection of God and the subsequent offer of salvation to the Gentiles. God’s mercy has been Shawn to all Humans, but only those who accept it will experience and profit from it. Indeed, Paul points out that some have rejected God’s mercy and, accordingly, have not received His salvation. Thus, although salvation is universally available, it is not universal. Not everyone will be saved. This is not a conclusion we state with satisfaction, but it is most faithful to the entirety of the Biblical witness. 1.Gustavo Gutierrez, A Theology of Liberation; History, Politics, and Salvation, trans.Sister Caridad Inda and John Eagleson (Maryknoll, N,Y. Orbis, 1973). 2.Joseph Pohle, The Sacraments: A Dogmatic Treatise, ed. Arthur Preuss (St. Louise: B. Herder. 1942). 3. Donald Bloesch, Essential Evangelical Theology (New York: Harper&Row, 1978). 4. Origen, De principiis.. 5. Nels Ferre, The Christian Understanding of God (New York: Harper&Brothers, 1951. 245 TOPIC 45 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE NATURE OF THE CHURGH The church is one of the few visible forms of a corporate relationship among believers. It is best defined by the Biblical-philological method. The Bible employs a number of images to describe the church. Among the more important are the people of God, the body of Christ, and the temple of the Holy Spirit. Each contributes to our understanding. Four special problems, related to the church, were noted as well. The word {Church] and cognate terms in other languages (e. g. Kiriche) are derived from the Greek word (Kuriakos), “belonging to the Lord.” They are, however, to be understood in light of the New Testament Greek term (ekklesia). Paul uses the word (ekklesia) more than does any other New Testament writer. Paul’s letters addressed to “the church of God in Corinth” (1 Cor. 1:2; 2; Cor. 1:1). “The church in Galatia” (Gal. 1:2) “the church of the Thessalonians” (1 Thess.1:1). In Acts also use the term (ekklesia). The church of a city such as Jerusalem (Acts, 5:11; 8:1); or Antioch (13:1). Paul wrote of God’s decision to make believers His people: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their 246 God and they will be My people” (2 Cor. 6:16). The church is constituted of God’s people. They belong to Him and He belongs to them. The concept of the church as the people of God emphasizes God’s initiative in choosing them. In the Old Testament, He did not adopt as His own an existing nation, but actually created a people for Himself. He chose Abraham and then, through him, brought into being the people of Israel. In the New Testament, this concept of God’s choosing a people is broadened to include both Jews and Gentiles within the church. So Paul writes to the Thessalonians: “But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our teaching, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess. 2:13-14; and also 1 Thess. 1:4). Among the Old Testament texts in which Israel is identified as God’s people (Exod. 15:13, 16). Singing to the Lord after the crossing of the Red Sea, Moses notes that God has redeemed Israel and they are His people: “In your unfailing love You will lead the people You have redeemed. In Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling (Numb. 14:8). Paul applies the statement in Hosea to God’s taking in of Gentiles as well as Jews: but also from the Gentiles. As He says in (Hosea, 1:10), ‘I will call them “My people” who are not My people; and I will call her “My loved one” who is not My loved one,’ and “It will happen that in the very place where it was said to them “You are not My people,” they will be called “sons of the living God.’’” The concept of Israel and the church as the people of God contains several implications. God takes 247 pride in them. He cares for and protects His people; He keeps them “as the apple of His eye” (Deut. 32:10). Paul writes, “No a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code” (Rom. 2:29; Phil. 3:3). Whereas in the Old Testament, or under the old covenant, the people of God was not, in the New Testament, based upon nation identity: “For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel” (Rom. 9:6). It is inclusion within the covenant of God that distinguishes the people of God; they are made up of all those “whom He also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles” (Rom.9:24). For Israel the covenant was the Abrahamic covenant; for the church it is the new covenant wrought and established by Christ (2 Cor. 3:3-18). A particular quality of holiness is expected of the people of God. God had always expected Israel to be pure or sanctified. As Christ’s bride the church must also be holy: “Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless” (Eph.5:25b-27). The most extended image of the church is its representation as the body of Christ. Indeed, some apparently regard the image as virtually a complete definition of the church. While it is a very full and rich statement, it is not the whole of the account. This image emphasizes that the church is the locus of Christ’s activity now just as was His physical body during His earthly teaching. The image is used both of the church universal and of 248 individual local congregations. In (Eph. 1:22-23), illustrates the former: “And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be head over everything for the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills everything in every way.” Paul’s statement to the Corinthians in (1 Cor. 12:27), illustrates the latter: Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” The image of the body of Christ also emphasizes the connection of the church, as a group of believers, with Christ. Salvation, in all of its complexity, is in large part a result of union with Christ. Christ in the believer is the basis of belief and hope. Paul writes, “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this teaching, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27; and Gal. 2:20). Christ is the head of this body (Col. 1:18), of which believers are individual members or parts. For through Him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see, such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. All things were created in Him, through Him, and for Him (Col. 1:16). Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation (Col. 1:15). “God purported to bring at the write time all things in heaven and on earth together under the authority of Christ (Eph. 1:10). Believers, united with Him, are being nourished through Him, the head to which they are connected (Col. 2:19). This image is virtually parallel to Jesus’ image of Himself as the vine to which believers, as the branches, are connected (John, 15:1-11). As the head of the body (Col. 1:18), He also rules the church: “For in Christ all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given 249 fullness in Christ, Who is the head over every power and authority” Col. 2:9-10). Christ is the Lord of the church. Paul develops the concept of the interconnectedness of the body, especially in terms of the gifts of the Spirit. Here He stresses the dependence of each believer upon every other. He emphasizes that “through all its parts are many, they form one body” (1 Cor. 12:12). They all, whether Jew or Greek, have been Baptized by one Spirit into one body, and have been made to drink of one Spirit (1Cor. 12:13). All of the various members have been given gifts not for personal satisfaction, but for the edification of the body as a whole (1 Cor. 14:4-5, 12). Paul also wrote on another occasion: There is one body and one Spirit-just as you were called to one hope when you were called one Lord, one faith, one Baptism; one God and Father of all, is over-all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:4-6). The body of Christ is also universal. All barriers have been removed, as Paul indicated: “Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian. Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all” Col. 3:11). The same idea, with special reference to eliminating divisions between Jews and Gentiles within the body, is found in (Rom. 11:2526, 32; Gal. 3:28 and Eph. 2:15). As the body of Christ, the Church is the extension of His teaching. Having indicated that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him (Matt. 28:18), Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach, promising them that He would be with them always, even to the end of the age (Matt. 28:19-20). He told them that they were to carry on His work, and would do so to an amazing degree. «I tell you the truth, anyone who 250 has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John, 14:12).The work of Christ, then, if it is done at all, will be done by His body, the church. Filling out Paul’s Trinitarian concept of the church is the picture of the church as the temple of the Spirit. It is the Spirit who brought the church into being at Pentecost, Where He Baptized the disciples and converted three thousand, giving birth to the church. And He was continued to populate the church: “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Cor.12:13). The church is now indwelt by the Spirit, both individually and collectively. Paul writes to the Corinthians, “Don’t you know that you, your selves are God’s temple, (1Cor. 3:16-17). Paul later tells them, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God? You are not your own?” (1 Cor. 6:19). Paul describes believers as “a holy temple in the Lord…a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit” (Eph. 2:21-22). And in a context where we find the image of Christ as the cornerstone of the temple, Peter speaks of believers as “a spiritual house” (1 Peter, 2:5). Dwelling within the church, the Holy Spirit imparts His life to it. Those qualities which are His nature and which are spoken of as the “fruit of the Spirit” will be found in the church: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). The presence of such qualities is indicative of the activity of the Holy Spirit and thus, in a sense, of the genuineness of the church. It is the Holy Spirit who conveys power to the church. Jesus so indicated in (Acts, 1:8): “But you 251 will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Because of the imminent coming of the Spirit with power Jesus could give His disciples the incredible promise that they would do even greater works than He had done (John, 14:12). Thus Jesus told them, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will sent Him to you” (John, 16:7). It is the Spirit who does whatever is necessary to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John, 16:8). The promise was very soon fulfilled. Not only did three thousand persons respond to Peter’s teaching at Pentecost (Acts, 2:41), but the Lord daily added to their number people who were being saved (Acts, 2:47). Filled with the Spirit, the disciples testified to Jesus’ resurrection with boldness and great power (Acts, 4:31. 33). One simply cannot account for the effectiveness of those early believers’ teaching on the basis of their abilities or efforts. They were not unusual persons. The results were a consequence of the teaching of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, dwelling within the church, also creates a sensitivity of the Lord’s leading, Jesus had promised to continue to abide with His disciples (Matt. 28:10; John, 14:18, 23). Yet He had said as well that He had to go away so that the Holy Spirit could come (John, 16:7). We conclude that the indwelling Spirit is the means of Jesus’ presence with us. So Paul wrote: “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness” (Rom. 8:9-10). 252 Paul uses interchangeably the ideas of Christ’s being in us and the Spirit’s dwelling in us. As the Spirit indwelt Jesus’ disciples, He brought to their remembrance the Lord’s teachings (John, 14:26), and guided them into all truth (John, 16:13). This work of the Spirit was dramatically illustrated in the case of Peter. In a vision Peter was told to kill and eat certain unclean beast that had been led down to earth in something like a great sheet (Acts, 10:11-13). Peter’s first response was, “Surely not Lord” (Acts, 10:14), for he was well aware of the prohibition upon eating unclean animals. Tradition told him to abstain. Peter soon realized, however, that the essence of the message of the vision was not that he should eat unclean animals, but that he should bring the teaching to the Gentiles as well as to the Jews (Acts, 10:1748). The Holy Spirit renders believers who are set in their ways responsive and obedient to the leading of the Lord. The Spirit is in one sense also the sovereign of the church. For it is He who equips the body by dispensing gifts, which in some cases are persons to fill various offices and in other cases are special abilities. He decides when a gift will be bestowed, and upon whom it is to be conferred. Paul writes, “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines” (1 Cor. 12:11). Finally the Holy Spirit makes the church holy and pure. For just as the temple was a holy and sacred place under the old covenant because God dwelt in it, so also are believers sanctified under the new covenant because they are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19-20). There is obviously a close connection between the kingdom and the church. In fact, Jesus, having announced that He 253 would build His church and that the powers of death would not prevail against it, immediately went on to say to Peter: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 16:18-19). From this one might infer that the church is a synonym for the kingdom. The issue concern the relationship of Israel to the church: Paul stressed this point in Romans and Galatians, he writes “A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision meanly outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code” (Rom. 2:28-29). To the Galatians he wrote, “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Gal. 3:29). Other pertinent passages include (Rom. 4:11, 16, 18; and 9:7-8). Peter and the others were asked, “Brothers, what shall we do?” (Acts, 2:37), the reply was, “Repent and be Baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts, 2:38). Peter’s message was the same in (Acts, 3:12-26 and 4:712). Paul’s reply to the Philippian jailer’s question, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts, 16:30), was straightforward: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved you and your household” (Acts, 16:31). In none of these instances is there any suggestion that relationship to a group is determinative, Jesus’ statement to the Samaritan woman indicates that worshiping in a particular place is of less importance than worshiping in spirit and truth (John, 4:20-24). While perfect purity of the membership is an ideal that cannot be realized within this life (Matt. 13:24-30), open unbelief and sin are not to be tolerated. 254 1. Schmidt, ekklesia. 2. Coenen, Church. 3. E. G. Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 1953). 255 TOPIC 46 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE ROLE OF THE CHURCH The church has been charged to carry out Christ’s teaching in the world. To accomplish this, certain functions must be met. A balance of these functions is essential to the spiritual health and well-being of the body. The Bible is at the very heart of the teaching of the church and is implicit in all of the functions of the church. When the Bible is modified, the church ceases to be balanced. To continue its existence, it is necessary for the church to be willing to serve, be adaptable in methodology, and be adaptable to its environment. The one topic emphasized in both accounts of Jesus’ last words to His disciples is to teach the Bible; in (Matt. 28:19-20); He instructed them: “Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, Baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and then teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you; and be sure of this-that I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” In (Acts, 1:8), He says: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This was the final point Jesus made to His disciples. It appears that He regarded the teaching of the Bible as the very reason for their being. The call to teach the Bible is a command. Having accepted Jesus as Lord, the disciples had brought themselves under His 256 rule and were obligated to do whatever He asked. For He had said, “If you love Me, you will obey what I command” (John, 14:15); “Whoever has My commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves Me” (John, 14:21); and “You are My friends if you do what I command” (John, 15:14). If the disciples truly loved their Lord, they would carry out His call to teach the Bible. It was not an optional matter for them. The disciples were not sent out merely in their own strength, however, Jesus prefaced His commission with the statement, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” (Matt. 28:18). The major function of the church is the edification. Jesus laid greater emphasis on teaching, the edification of believers is logically prior, Paul repeatedly spoke of the edification of the body. In (Eph. 4:12), he indicates that God has given various gifts to the church “to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” Believers are to grow up into Christ. From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16). The potential for edification is the criterion by which all activities, including our speech, are to be measured: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Eph. 4:29). The church also edifies its members through instruction or teaching. This is part of the broad task of disciplining. One of Jesus’ commands in the Great Commission was to teach converts “to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:20). To this end, one of God’s gifts to the churches is “priests and teachers” (Eph. 4:11), to prepare and equip the people of God for service. A 257 beautiful picture of this truth is seen in (Acts, 18:26). Apollos, a learned and eloquent Jew who had come to the knowledge of Jesus, was speaking powerfully in the synagogue of Ephesus. There Priscilla and Aquila heard him, where upon they invited him to their home and “explained to him the way of God more adequately.” He then continued his teaching with even greater effectiveness. To the end of mutual edification God has equipped the church with various gifts apportioned and bestowed by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:11). The Holy Spirit in His wisdom has given just what is needed, so that the body as a whole may be properly built up and equipped. The early church came together to worship on a regular schedule, a practice commanded and commanded by the apostle Paul. His direction to the Corinthians to set aside money on the first day of every week (1 Cor. 16:2)., intimates that they regularly gathered for worship on that day. The writer to the Hebrews exhorts his readers not to neglect the assembling of themselves together as was the habit of some (Hebr. 10:25). Although worship emphasizes God, it is also intended to benefit the worshipers. This we infer from Paul’s warning against prayers, songs. And thank giving’s that fail to edify because no one is present to interpret their meaning to those who do not understand (1 Cor. 14:15-17). Worship, the praise and exaltation of God, was a common Old Testament practice, as can be seen particularly in the Book of Revelation and elsewhere, the people of God are represented as recognizing and declaring his greatness. In this aspect of its activity, the church centres its attention on Who and what God is, not on itself. It aims at appropriately expressing God’s nature, not at satisfying its own feelings. 258 Cutting across the various functions of the church is its responsibility to perform acts of Christian love and compassion for both believers and non-believers. It is clear that Jesus cared about the problems of the needy and the suffering. He healed the sick and even raised the dead on occasion. If the church is to carry on His teaching, it will be engaged in some form of teaching to the needy and the suffering. That Jesus expects this of believers is evident in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke, 10:25-27). Jesus told this parable to the lawyer who, understanding that one can inherit eternal life by loving God with one’s whole being and one’s neighbour as oneself, asked who his neighbour was. In answering the question, Jesus also explained what it means to love one’s neighbour as one self. Jesus suggests in (Matt. 25:31-46), that the one sign by which true believers can be distinguished from those who make empty professions is acts of love done in Jesus’ name and emulating His example. Concern for the fatherless, the widow, and the so journey is appropriate for those who worship a God who himself displays such concern (Deut. 10:17-19). James is particularly strong in stressing practical Christianity. Consider, his definition of religion: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep one self from being polluted by the world” (James, 1:27). He speaks out sharply against showing favouritism to the rich, an evil that occurred even within the church (James, 2:1-11). He excoriates verbal encouragement unaccompanied by action:” Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it 259 is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James, 2:15-17). John is equally pointed: “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let as not love with words or tongue but with action and truth” (1 John, 3:17-18). The half-brother of Jesus and the beloved disciple had learned well what Jesus had taught to be the meaning of “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Jesus entrusted to the believers the good news that had characterized His own teaching from the very beginning. It is significant that, in the book of Mark, the first recorded activity of Jesus after His Baptism and temptation is His teaching the Bible in Galilee: After John was put in prison. Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,’ He said, the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark, 1:14-15). Similarly, Luke records that Jesus inaugurated His teaching in Nazareth by reading from (Isaiah, 61:1-2) and applying the prophecy to Himself: “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me because He has anointed Me to teach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour” (Luke 4:18-19). And when John the Baptist inquired whether Jesus was really the one who had been prophesized. Jesus’ reply included as evidence the fact that “the good news is taught to the poor” (Luke, 7:22). Matthew characterizes the teaching of Jesus as “teaching in their synagogues, teaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness” (Matt. 9:35). Furthermore, Jesus linked fidelity to the Bible very closely with commitment to Him: “I tell you the truth,’ Jesus replied, ’no one 260 who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for Me and the Bible will receive a hundred times as much in the present age and in the age to come, eternal life” (Mark, 10:29-30). He also declared that the good news must be taught to all nations, throughout the world so that all nations will hear it, and then the end will come (Matt. 24:13-14; Mark, 13:10). 1.michael Green, Evangelism in the Local Church (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970).. 2. James E. Carter, The mission of the Church (Nashaville: Broadman, 1974). TOPIC 47 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CHURCH As the church has developed, several forms of church government have appeared. The four most basic forms include: episcopal, Presbyterian, congregational, and a form of nongovernment. While the Episcopal and Presbyterian forms both hold offices of authority within their structure, the offices differ in the number of persons holding that office. In a congregational church, the 261 congregation is the authority of government. A nongovernment church claims the authority of the Holy Spirit as its form of government. Considering that most national democracies are representative forms of democracy, the Presbyterian and congregational models of church government would seem to work best and most efficiently in the local church. In the episcopal form of church government, authority resides in the bishop (episcopos). There are varying degrees of episcopacy, that is to say, the number of levels of bishops varies. The simplest form of episcopal government is found in the Methodist church, which has only one level of bishops, somewhat more developed is the governmental structure of the Anglican or Episcopal Church, while the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church has the most complete system of hierarchy. In the Roman Catholic Church authority being vested in the supreme pontiff based in Rome (Italy). Whereas in the Orthodox Church authority being vested on five Patriarchate of the old order. The Canon xxviii of Chalcedon confirmed Canon iii of Constantinople, assigning to New Rome the place next in honour after Old Rome. Leo the IX repudiated this Canon. Indeed, the two churches of Rome and Constantinople had been drifting apart since 800 Hundred, before the final Schism (Split), chief causes of the break are: 1 Belief in Father Son and Holy Spirit, was defined by the Council of Nicaea in 325 and the Council of Constantinople in 381. Declaring that the Son of the same essence as the Father and that the Son comes from the Father and that the three Persons are One God. The two Churches Rome and Constantinople disagreed as to how the Holy Spirit proceeds. 2 The phrase called (Filioque) that the Roman 262 church added to the Nicene Creed [that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son. Where the Nicene Creed read the Holy Spirit proceed from the Father. (John, 15:26, 14:26 and 14:16-17). The East Church has ever since recognized its validity]. 3 The Roman Papal claims to authority over the entire church. 4 In 1054 delegates from Rome Leo IX issued an anathema (excommunication) against the Patriarch Photius of Constantinople. The Patriarch summoned a Council that excommunicated the Papal delegation. In 1964 Patriarch Athenagoras I met Pope Paul VI in Jerusalem and in 1965 the two religious leaders lifted the mutual anathema of 1054. The council of Constantinople freed Jerusalem from the jurisdiction of Caesarea and gave it the fifth place among the great sees. The system later known among Orthodox as the ‘Pentarchy’ was now complete, whereby five great sees in the Church were held in particular honour, and a settled order of precedence was established among them: Patriarch of Alexandria Egypt, Patriarch of Jerusalem Israel, Patriarch of Antioch Syria, Patriarch of Rome Italy, who is now called Pontiff or Pope, and Patriarch of Constantinople (Istanbul) Turkey, who is the Oecumenical Patriarch today. All five claimed Apostolic foundation. The bishop in each of these cities received the title ‘Patriarch.’ The five Patriarchates between them divided into spheres of jurisdictions the whole of the known world, apart from Cyprus, which was granted independence by the Council of Ephesus and has remained self-governing ever since. There are also five Patriarchate of the new order, these are: Patriarch of Moscow Russia, Patriarch of Bucharest Romania, Patriarch of Sofia Bulgaria, Patriarch of Belgrade Serbia and Patriarch of Tbilisi Georgia. 263 The episcopal system is that authority is fixed in a particular office, that of the bishop. The most common Liturgy in the Orthodox Church today is: of St. John Chrysostom and St. Basil. Orthodox priests are divided into two distinct groups the ‘white’ or married clergy, and the ‘black’ or monastic, Ordinands must make up their mind before ordination to which group they wish to belong, for it is a strict rule that no one can marry after he has been ordained to a Major Order. Those who wish to marry must therefore do so before they are made deacon. Those who do not wish to marry are normally expected to become monks prior to their ordination; but in the Orthodox Church today there are now a number of celibate clergy who have not taken formal monastic vows. These celibate priests, however, cannot afterwards change their minds and decide to get married. If a priest’s wife dies, he cannot marry again. Unlike, the Orthodox Church, in the Catholic Church clergy do not marry, they stay celibate. The Presbyterian system of church government places primary authority in a particular office as well, but there is less emphasis on the individual office and office holder than on a series of representative bodies that exercise that authority. The key officer in the Presbyterian structure is the elder, a position with a background in the Jewish synagogue. The Congregational church government stresses the role of the individual Christian and makes the local congregation the seat of authority. Two concepts are basic to the congregational scheme: autonomy and democracy. By autonomy we mean that the 264 local congregation is independent and self-governing. By democracy we mean that every member of the local congregation has a voice in the affaires. In the congregational system is that decisions within interchurched associations are made on a representative basis. Among the major denominations that practice the congregational form of government are the Baptists, Congregationalists, and most Lutheran groups. Nongovernment groups, such as the Quakkas (Friends) emphasize the concept of “inner light.” Since church membership has strictly minimal significance, and the Plymouth Brethren, virtually eliminate the visible church. They hold that the church exists on earth primarily in its invisible form, deny that the church has a need for a concrete or visible form. Accordingly, they have virtually eliminated all governmental structure. They stress instead the inner working of the Holy Spirit, who exerts His influence upon and guides individual believers in a direct fashion rather than through organizations or institutions. 1.A.G. Hebet, The Form of the Church(London: Faber & Faber, 1944). 2. S. L. Greenslade, “The Ministry of the Church,” in the Ministry of the Church (London: Canterbury, 1947). 3. The World Book Encyclopaedia, 2016. Pp.45-46; 446. 4. The Story of Christianity, Jean-Pierre Isbouts, pp.135-143, 5. The Hiustory of Christianity Second Edition, Tim Dowley 1988, pp.209-213. 265 TOPIC 48 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE RITE OFTHE CHURCH BAPTISM Since all Christian churches perform the rite of Baptism, Baptism plays a significant role in the life of the church. Three basic views are maintained by different groups of Christians. The first group maintains that salvation comes through Baptism. The second group views Baptism as a sign of the covenant that God made with Abraham. The third group takes the position that Baptism is a token of salvation. In resolving these issues, it is important to consider the meaning of Baptism, the subjects of Baptism, and the mode of Baptism. Virtually all Christian churches practice the rite of Baptism. They do so in large part because Jesus in His final commission commanded the apostles and the church to “go and make disciples of all nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). It is almost universally agreed that Baptism is in some way connected with the beginning of the Christian life, with one’s initiation into the universal, invisible church as well as the local, visible church. The act of Baptism in water conveys grace to the person Baptized. Baptism is the Holy Spirit’s work of initiating people into the church. “For we are all Baptized by one Spirit into one body 266 whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Cor. 12:13). And in (Rom. 6:1-11), is crucial to the sacramentalists’ view of Baptism. In their interpretation of this passage Baptism is not simply a picture of our being united with Christ in His death and resurrection. It actually unites us with Christ. When Paul says: “All of us who were Baptized into Christ Jesus were Baptized into His death” (Rom. 6:3), he means that Baptism unites us with Christ’s death and His resurrection (Rom. 6:5). The sacrament of Baptism has an effect on the believer. This effect will last throughout life, even though Baptism is administered only once. Believers will often be reminded of it. This in fact, is what Paul is doing in (Rom. 6:3-5, and Gal. 3:26-27). And in Mark, 19:13-16), children were brought to Jesus to be touched. In (Acts, 2:41, and 8:36-38), “Those who believed what Peter said were Baptized and added in the church that day about 3.000 in all.” In addition, we read in (Acts, 11:14, 16:15, 31-34 and 18:8), that whole households were Baptized, in these households were not composed exclusively of adults. Children are part of the people of God, just as surely as, in the Old Testament they were part of the nation of Israel. To maintain that, it is the faith of the parents that is involved, when a child is baptized. Some would even say that, the church has faith, on behalf of the child. Baptism as a sign of the covenant is significant, the subject of Baptism are in many ways the same as in the sacramentalists’ view. On the one hand, all believing adults are to be Baptized. In the Bible are those who responded to Peter’s invitation at Pentecost, believed, and were Baptized (Acts, 2:41), and the Philippian 267 jailer (Acts, 16:31-33). On the other hand, the children of the believing parents are also to be Baptized. The Baptism of children is implicitly taught. God made a spiritual covenant with Abraham and with his seed (Gen. 17:7). Also of significance is the all-embracing character of the Old Testament conception of Israel. Children were present when the covenant was renewed (Deut. 29:10-13). Circumcision was the sign of the covenant in the Old Testament, so is Baptism in the New Testament. It is clear that circumcision has been put away; it no longer avails (Acts, 15:1-2 and 21:22; Gal. 2:3-5; 5:2-6 and6:12-15). Baptism has been substituted for circumcision as the initiatory rite into the covenant. It was Christ who made this substitution. He commissions His disciples to go and make disciples and Baptized (Matt. 28:19). Baptism as a token of salvation. The Bible makes it clear that personal, conscious faith in Christ is prerequisite to Baptism. In the Great Commission, the command to Baptize follows the command to disciple (Matt. 28:19). John the Baptist required repentance and confession of sin (Matt. 3:2, 6). In the conclusion of his Pentecost sermon, Peter called for repentance, then Baptism (Acts, 2:37-41). Belief followed by Baptism is the pattern (Acts, 8:12; 18:8; and 19:1-7). All these considerations lead to the conclusion that responsible believers are the only people who are to be Baptized. The means of Baptism, in (Mark, 16:16), we read: “Whoever believes and is Baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Also In (John, 3:5), “no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” Note that the emphasis throughout the passage is on the Spirit, the key factor is 268 the contrast between the supernatural (Spirit) and the natural (flesh): “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John, 3:6). Jesus explains that to be born anew is to be born of the Spirit. This working of the Spirit, like the blowing of the wind, is not fully comprehensible (John, 3:7-8). Peter writes, in (1 Peter, 3:21): “this water symbolizes Baptism that now saves you not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” A number of passages in the Book of Acts link repentance and Baptism. Probably the most crucial is Peter’s response on Pentecost, “Brothers what shall we do?” (Acts, 2:37). He replied, “Repent and be Baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38). And three thousand received his word then they were Baptized (Acts, 3:17-26). Baptism is a symbol, not a mere sign, for it actually pictures the believer’s death and resurrection with Christ. The subject of Baptism: the issue here is whether to hold to infant Baptism or believer’s baptism, the position that Baptism should be restricted to those who have confessed faith in Christ’s atonic work. With regard to (Acts, 11:14; 10:48; 16:15; 16:31-34; 18:8; and 1 Cor. 1:16), he states: “In all five cases, it shows plainly that it is the complete family including all its members which receives Baptism.” No doubt the meaning of (Acts, 10:44-48): all the house of Cornelius heard the word, all received the Spirit, all spoke with tongues, all were Baptized; the infants present also heard the word, received the Spirit, spoke with tongues and were Baptized. To this no exception is permissible! In support of infant Baptism is that the children who were 269 brought to Jesus that He might lay His hands on them (Matt. 19:13-15; Mark, 10:13-16 and Luke, 18:15-17), were actually being brought to be Baptized. Jesus’ expression “little ones who believe in Me” (Matt. 18:6) signifies that they had been “Baptized into Christ” (Gal. 3:27). The report further sought to demonstrate that (Matt. 18:3; Mark, 10:15; and Luke, 18:17), are parallel to (John, 3:3 and 3:5), and that all have reference to Baptism. The meaning of Baptism requires us to hold to the position, as does the fact the New Testament nowhere offers a clear case of one individual’s being Baptized before exercising faith. The mode of Baptism: it is not possible to resolve the issue of the proper mode of Baptism on the basis of linguistic data alone. We should note, however, that the predominant meaning of (baptizo) is “to dip or to plunge under water.” There are several considerations that argue that immersion was the Biblical procedure. John the Baptist at the Aenon “because there was plenty of water” ( John, 3:23). When Baptized by John, Jesus came “up out of the water” (Mark, 1:10). Upon hearing the good news, the Ethiopian Eunurch said to Phillip, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be Baptized?” (Acts, 8:36). Then they both went down into the water. Phillip Baptized him, and they came up out of the water (Acts, 8:38-39). And in (Rom. 6:3-5) Paul appears to be contending that there is a significant connection between how Baptism is administered (one is lowered into the water and then raised out of it) and that symbolizes (death to sin and new life in Christ and beyond that, Baptism symbolizes the basis of the believer’s death to sin and new life: the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ). 1.Frenz Pieper, Christian dogmatics (St. Louis: Concordia, 1953). 270 2.Louis Barkhof, Systematic Theology(Grand Rapids:Eerdmans, 1953). 3.Hodge, Systematic Theology. 271 TOPIC 49 GOD IS IN CONTROL RITE OF THE CHURCH THE LORD’S SUPPER The Lord’s Supper is vital to all Christian groups. It continues what Baptism began in initiating one into the Christian faith. There are at least six points of essential agreement among Christian groups and at least five points of disagreement. A resolution for each of these issues is proposed. The establishment of the Lord’s Supper goes back to Jesus Himself. The evidence includes the fact that the three Synoptic Books all attribute to Him the words inaugurating the practice (Matt. 26:26-28; Mark, 14:22-24 and Luke, 22:19-20). Although there are some variations in the details, the common core in the Synoptic argues for an early inclusion in the oral tradition. Paul in (1 Cor. 11:23-29), gives a similar account of the instituting of the Lord Supper. He states that he received from the Lord (paralambano) what he now passes on (paradidomi) to his readers. It is reasonable to infer that they included the Lord’s Supper in their Bible because Jesus intended it to be a continuing practice for future generations. In that case, the inclusion of the Lord’s Supper in the narratives of Matthew and Mark is evidence that the rite is to be repeated regularly, even though those two writers record no command to that effect. 272 Paul specifically indicated that the Lord’s Supper is a form of proclamation: For, whenever, you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26). A Spiritual benefit to the believer: All agree, however, that we do not take the bread and the cup merely because the Lord’s command obligates us to do so. Believing leads to salvation. Restriction to Followers of Christ: restriction of the Lord’s Supper to believers is also borne out by Paul’s statement about self-examination, which we noted. It is necessary for a person to examine himself, so, anyone who eats this bread and drinks this cup of the Lord. Must be not only a believer but a practicing believer, anything less is a sin (1 Cor. 11:27-34). The Lord’s Supper represents the Lord’s body. It is also for the body, that is, the church. In (1 Cor. 10:15-17), Paul argues that since we all partake of one loaf, which is Christ’s body they are all one body. This is the background to Paul’s statement in (1 Cor. 11:17-22). The presence of Christ has been the most prominent point of discussion. The issue pertains to whether, and in what sense, the body and blood of Christ are actually present in the communion. That is, how are we to interpreted the statements “This is My body” and “This is My blood”? Several answers have been given. 1. The bread and wine are the physical body and blood of Christ. 2. The bread and wine contains the physical body and blood. 3. The bread and wine contain spiritually the body and blood. 273 4. The bread and wine represent the body and blood. The efficacy of the rite, is actually conveys grace to the communicant. The rite has within it the power to effect spiritual changes that would not otherwise occur. The Lord’s Supper serves to bring the believer in contact with the living Christ. He is present spiritually, and we benefit from, thus encountering Him. When the Lord’s Supper is observed; it is necessary to have a priest an ordained person for the rite to be valid. Sacramentalism is the doctrine that, the sacraments in and of themselves convey grace and can even accomplish to the believer salvation. In Greek Orthodox and Roma Catholic dogma, only a priest ordained into apostolic succession can administer the Eucharist. If any other person should take the same physical communion and pronounce the same words over them, they would remain bread and wine. Those who receive the communion would be partaking not of the Eucharist, but simply a meal. The appropriate Recipients are, only those who are Baptized and a particular state of spiritual readiness is often required, it may be necessary to go to confession or to fast before taking communion. Major Views: The Greek Orthodox and the Roman Catholic views are: Transubstantiation is the doctrine as the administering priest consecrates the communion, an actual metaphysical change take place. The substance of the bread and wine what they actually are changed into Christ’s flesh and blood, respectively. The whole of Christ is fully present within each of the particles of the host. All the believers who participate in the Lord’s 274 Supper, or Eucharist as it is termed. Literally take the physical body and blood of Christ into themselves. In the Orthodox Church, communion is given to the laity in a spoon, containing a small piece of the Holy Bread together with a portion of the Wine; it is received standing. The priest mentions the Christian name of each person as he administers the sacraments. When giving Holy Communion, he says: ‘The servant of God … [name] partakers of the Holy Body and Blood of Our Lord’. Orthodox Church insists on strict fast before communion, and nothing can be eaten or drunk after waking in the morning. Many Orthodox at the present day receive communion infrequently – perhaps only three or four times a year – not from any disrespect towards the sacrament, but because they have been taught from childhood to approach only after lengthy and careful preparation. The Lutheran view is that, differs from the Catholic view. Luther retained the Catholic conception that Christ’s body and blood are physically present in the communion. Luther is reputed to have repeatedly stressed the words “This is My body.” He took the words of Jesus quite literally at this point. What Luther denied was the molecules are not changed into flesh and blood, they remain bread and wine. But the body and blood of Christ are present. The Reformed View is that: The Lord’s Supper is the Calvinistic or Reformed view. While the term Calvinism usually stirs up images of a specific view of predestination that is not what we have in mind here. We are referring to Calvin’s Supper. Calvin’s emphasis on the dynamic or influential presence of Christ is not far different from Luther’s view. Zwingli, on the other hand, taught that Christ is merely 275 spiritually present. Calvin held that Christ spiritually present in the elements, Zwingli maintained that the elements are merely symbols of Christ; He is neither physically nor spiritually present. If this interpretation of their respective positions is correct, it was Calvin’s view that was accepted by the reformed churches. The reformed view holds that Christ is present in the Lord’s Supper but not physically. His presence in the sacrament is spiritual or dynamic. Calvin asserted that Christ is present influentially. The Zwingli’s View is that: The Lord’s Supper is merely a commemoration. What is prominent is his strong emphasis on the role of the sacrament in bringing to mind the death of Christ and its efficacy on behalf of the believer. While Zwingli spoke of a spiritual presence of Christ, some who in many respects adopted his position. Denied the concept of a physical or bodily presence so energetically as to leave little room for any type of special presence. They pointed out that Jesus is spiritually present every-where. There is little difference between the views of Zwingli and Calvin. 1.Joachim Jeremias, The Eucharist Words of Jesus (New York: Macmillan,1955). 2. Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology (Westwood, N.J. Revel, 1907). 276 TOPIC 50 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH There are many sound Biblical Theological, and practical reasons for the church to be unified. But serious problems arise when we begin to define the type of unity envisioned. This is particularly true for any type of “Organing unity.” The Ecumenical movement has been one attempt over the years to achieve unity. Evangelicals have raised a number of substantive issues that oppose Ecumenism. Guidelines help a believer respond appropriately. Biblical Teaching Regarding the Unity of the Church: Among the reasons why the church must strive for unity are didactic passages in the New Testament that specifically teach that the church ought to be, actually is, or will be one. Probably the most persuasive is the prayer of Jesus. “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as 277 We are one: I in them and You in Me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You Me” (John, 17:20-23). The unity between the Father and the Son is a model for the unity of believers with one another. The unity of believers with each other and with God will testify to the world that the Father has sent the Son, Paul in (Eph. 4:1), begging his readers to lead a life worthy of their calling. He urges them to be “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Paul, 4:3). He follows this appeal with a list of fundamentals that unite believers. “There is one body and one Spirit just as you were called to one hope when you were called one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God the Father of all, Who is over all and through all and in all” (Paul, 4:4-6). Since all believers confess the same body, Spirit, Hope, Lord, faith, Baptism, God and Father, they ought to display a unity of the Spirit. As Paul concludes his case, he urges his readers to grow up into Christ. “From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Paul, 4:16). When the church unites under Christ as its head, there is a maturing Christian experience. Thus Paul’s appeal for unity undoubtedly circulated over a large area. Paul makes a somewhat similar appeal in (Phil. 2:2), where he urges his readers to be “one in spirit and purpose.” The key to developing this attitude is humility and concern for others (Phil. 2:3-4). And the perfect model is Christ’s self-emptying action (Phil. 2:5-8). Following His example will lead to true unity among the members of the church. Spiritual unity: emphasizes that all Christians are one by virtue of being committed to and serving the same Lord. They are 278 jointed together in the invisible church, of which Christ is the head. One day there will be an actual gathering of this body in visible church. In the meantime, the unity of the church consists in the fact that there is no hostility among believers. All believers love other believers, even those with whom they have no actual contact or interaction. The existence of separate denominations of the visible church, even in the same area, does not constitute a challenge to the unity. Organic unity: is what we referred to the merging of differing denominations. The final view is that church unity means the actual creation of one organization in which separate identities are surrendered. Membership and ordination are joint. When denominations unite in this fashion there is often a merging of local congregations as well. Here there is an agreement to allow diversity of practice or to base the union on some lowest common denominator. A prime example is the United Church of Canada, a single denomination formed in 1925 by the uniting of Methodist, Presbyterians, and Congregationalists. Another example is the Church of South India In the early 1960s, the Consultation on Church Union began to plan the merger of several denominations into what they decided to call the Church of Christ uniting. The ultimate goal was the combination of all Christian churches. Greek-Orthodox, Roman-Catholic and Protestant, into one common church. The National Council of the churches of Christ has seemed to alternate between conciliar and organic unity. We have noted that rather major mergers of this type have occurred in Canada and India. More limited mergers that have taken place in the United States are those of the Congregational Church, Evangelical and Reformed Church to form the United Church of Christ, and of the 279 Methodist Episcopal Church and the Evangelical United Brethren to form the Methodist Church. More people face the issue of organic unity at this level than at any, of the others. Issues Raised by Evangelicals are: Evangelist will not consider union with any group that fails to subscribe to certain basic doctrines, the supreme authority of the Bible as the source of faith and Christian practice; the deity of Jesus Christ, including the miracles, atoning death, and bodily resurrection; salvation as a supernatural work of regeneration and justification by grace through faith, the second coming of Christ. It appears to the Evangelical that with regard to the Theological basis fellowship, the Ecumenical movement has often settled for the lowest common denominator. As a result, the Evangelical group suspects that some members of the fellowship may not be genuine Christians. There is also the question of what doctrinal standards, if any, are to be followed, and their status or authority. The Methodist Issue is that: Since a major reason for founding the Ecumenical monument was to overcome the drawbacks of a divided witness, there is real pertinence to a pragmatic question raised by Evangelicals: Just how effective is the Ecumenical movement in carrying out the task of evangelizing the world? The United Church of Canada was characterized by declining membership and a reduction of missionaries at a time when other denominations were showing growth and progress in these areas. In light of the origin of the Ecumenical movement, its failure in the area of world mission is particularly significant. Evangelicals have frequently criticized the World Council of Churches on this score. 280 The Orthodox Church in Eastern Europe Russia: About the year 860, Rostislav, Prince of Moravia requested the Byzantine Emperor Michael III to send missionaries to instruct its people in the ways of Christ. The Moravians, of the modern Chechs, belonged to the Slavic race, which had come from Asia and spread throughout the eastern plains of Europe. Rostislav wrote a letter to the Byzantine Emperor Michael III saying: “we Slaves are a simple people.” “Therefore,” Rostislav suggested, “we pray you send us someone capable of teaching us the whole truth.” In response, to Prince Rostislav: Patriarch Photius provided two Greek brothers Cyril (827869) and Methodius (815-885), who were both clerics, were promptly dispatched to Moravia. The two brothers had grown up near Slavs who had settled in Macedonia (Thessalonica) and therefore they knew the Slavic language. Before embarking upon their mission, the Evangelists and ‘Apostles of the Slavs’, began to prepare an Alphabet for the hitherto unwritten language, to that, the converts could have the Bible and liturgy in their native tongue. This script, known as Cyrilic, after the younger brother. Soon a veritable Slavic Church began to emerge. By this means, Orthodox Christianity, and with it the culture of Byzantium spread among the Slavic tribes. King Boris (852-889), succumbed to Byzantine and agreed to be Baptized according to the eastern rite but on one condition that the Bulgarian Church would be fully autonomous, governed by an Archbishop. Boris son Simeon I (893927), took the next step in 917, when he declared the Bulgarian Church to be fully independent from Constantinople, giving the Archbishop the title of “Patriarch”. Simeon was the first ruler to take the title of Tsar – meaning “Caesar.” The Serbian Church gained a partial independence 281 under St. Sava (1176-1235), the greatest of Serbian national saints, who in 1219 was consecrated at Nicaea as Archbishop of Serbia. In 1346 a Serbian Patriarchate was created, which was recognized by the Church of Constantinople in 1375. The Romanian people were apparently converted to Christianity by the Bulgarians in the late nine or ten century. But the full conversion of the two Romanian principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia did not occur until the fourteenth century. The Georgian Church broke away from the Arminian Church and reunited with the Eastern Orthodoxy in the 7th century, and the Georgian Patriarchate was created. The Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church rejected monophysitism and promoted mia-physitism, which holds that both Divinity and Humanity are equally present in the Person of Jesus Christ. The Coptic Church, observes the liturgy and sacraments of the ancient Alexandrian rite. In 950, Queen Olga ruler of Kiev, Russia, allowed herself to be baptized by German missionaries, but proselytizing efforts were limited. It was her grandson Vladimir I (956-1015), to send emissaries on a fact finding mission. The envoys to Muslim lands reported that these nations were devoid pleasure, for the people could neither drink alcohol nor eat pork (one of Kiev’s great culinary specialists). Those sent to the European north also came back with disappointing news reporting the rather dry and joyless nature of German liturgy. But the emissionaries to Byzantium brought back enthusiastic reports of the splendour of the Byzantine court and the breath taking beauty of the Agia Sophia. Impressed Vladimir, agreed to embrace Byzantine Christianity. By the report of those who returned from Constantinople, (missionaries).Vladimir was converted to Christianity and married 282 Anna, the sister of the Byzantine Emperor. Orthodox became the State Religion of Russia. The (emissionaries), declaring that when they attended the mass in the great Church of Agia Sophia: We did not know whether we were in heaven or on earth. For on earth there is no such splendour, nor such beauty, that we are at loss to describe. The year 988 is still celebrated as the founding year of the Russian Orthodox Church. Next, the population of Kiev was converted en masse. When Kiev was conquered by the Mongols in the 13th Century. The leaders of of the Russian Church fled north to Moscow. As a result, Moscow became the undisputed centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, killing the Byzantine Emperor and making the Ecumenical Patriarch a virtual prisoner of the Muslim conquerors. Shortly after Ivan the III of Moscow married Sophia Palaiologina, niece of the last Emperor. Ivan adopted the Byzantine double –headed eagle as the symbol of his power. The Russian rulers declared themselves to be the legitimate heirs of the Byzantine Empire. Russian Church theorists saw profound Theological significance in the events. Moscow, they declared, had become “The Third Rome”. They claimed that the Church of Rome fell because of its heresy and was succeeded by Constantinople, the Second Rome. But the city, too, was punished by God by means of the infidel Turks. The monk Philotheus wrote to Ivan’s son: The church of Moscow, the new ‘third Rome’, shine throughout the entire world more brightly than the sun … Two Rome’s have fallen, but the third stands and a fourth can never be. The new thoroughly national Russian Church thus claimed to be chief protector of Eastern Christianity: PAUL D. STEEVES. 283 Byzantine emblem of the double headed eagle, representing the fusion of Church and State, was incorporated in the Russian Imperial Standard. 1.stig Hanson, The Unity of the Church in the New testament: Colossians and Effecians (Lexingcton, Ky: American Theological Library Association, 1963). 2. World Book of Encyclopedia, 2016, pp718a-718b, 1045. 3. Hanson, Unity of the Church. 4. Penguin Encyclopedia New Edition, 284 TOPIC 51 GOD IS IN CONTROL ESCHATOLOGY Eschatology has evoked a variety of responses among believers, ranging from virtual avoidance to total preoccupation with the doctrine. Neither extreme is desirable. A balanced view is advocated. A variety of systems exist, including modernized, DE modernized, realized, existentialized, politicized, and systematized. At least nine conclusions may be drawn about eschatology. Eschatology as the word indicates, deals with the last things. Questions concerning the consummation of history, the completion of God’s working in the world. At times eschatology has become a topic of debate, resulting in accusations and acrimony among Christians. This is not the purpose for which God revealed eschatological truths. Paul indicates his reason for writing about the second coming. Some believers whose loved ones had died were experiencing a grief that was, at least to a degree, unhealthy and unnecessary. Paul did not want them to sorrow like unbelievers, who have no hope for their departed loved ones (1 Cor. 4:13). After describing the second coming and assuring his readers of its certainty, he counsels; “Therefore encourage each other with these words” (1 Thess. 4:18). It is sometimes easy to forget that the eschatological 285 truths in God’s Word, like the rest of His revelation, are intended to comfort and assure us. Modernized Eschatology: Jesus message was really quite simple, Jesus emphasized the Fatherhood of God, Who has created all Humans and Who watches over and protects them, as He does all parts of His creation. The infinite value of a Human soul was another major teaching of Jesus. God has made Human the highest object of His creation and His love, so we should love our fellow Humans. The kingdom of God was another basic topic of Jesus’ teaching. Whereas this kingdom had traditionally been understood as a future earthly reign of Christ that would be established by His dramatic second coming. Liberals pointed out, that Jesus had said to His disciples, “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. Heal the ones who are there and tell them, “The kingdom of God is near you” (Luke, 10:8-9). The kingdom then is not something far removed, either spatially or temporally. It is same thing near, something into which Humans can enter. It is not something external imposed from without. It is simply the reign of God in Human hearts wherever obedience to God is found. DE modernized Eschatology: Jesus was thoroughly eschatological, futuristic, and even apocalyptic in His outlook. Jesus did not look for a gradual spread of the kingdom of God as an ethical rule in the hearts of Humans, but for a future kingdom to be introduced by a dramatic action of God. A key factor in Jesus’ message was His future coming. Not only was this eschatological teaching basic and central to Jesus’ teaching; it was also the original plan. 286 Realized Eschatology: Jesus’ message was not of a future coming and a future kingdom; rather, with the advent of Jesus the kingdom of God had already arrived. The triumph of God was evident when Jesus saw Satan fall from heaven (Luke, 10:18). With the coming of Christ, the judgment has already taken place (John, 3:19). Eternal life is already our possession (John, 5:24). The New Testament writers saw the end times as having already come. Peter’s witness at Pentecost is also of significance: “So, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams”’ (Acts, 2:16-17). There really is no need to look ahead for the fulfilment of prophesies like Joel’s. They have already been fulfilled. Existential Eschatology: The New Testament does not tell us primarily about specific occurrences but about the very nature of existence. The same is true of eschatology, which does not refer to literal events that will occur. Paul in particular writes of current experience rather than future events. He thinks of salvation as bearing upon present existence: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor.5:17). Resurrection, too, is a present existence: “Death has been swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54). John tells us that Jesus spoke of judgment as a present phenomenon as well: “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out” (John, 12:31). John likewise reports similar words of Jesus regarding eternal life and resurrection: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on 287 him” (John, 3:36). “I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who listen will live” (John, 5:25). “For John the resurrection of Jesus, Pentecost and the parousia of Jesus are one and the same event, and those who believe have already eternal life.” Even a purely eschatological event like the coming of the spirit of antichrist is existentially true at all times; “but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world (1 John, 4:3). The next verse declares that the children of God have overcome these spirits. When we speak of the Systematizing of Eschatology, we have in mind not only that the data have been organized to facilitate understanding, but also that conclusions in some areas automatically follow from tenets in others. The Bible is to be interpreted literally. This does not mean obviously metaphorical passages are to be taken literally, but that if the plain meaning makes sense, one must not look further. Application of this principle leads to rejection of both allegorical interpretations and the liberal attempts to explain away the supernatural elements in the Bible, for example, the miracles. It also means that prophesy is interpreted very literally and often in considerable detail. Specifically, “Israel” is always understood as a reference to national or ethnic Israel, not the church. Despite the stress on literal interpretation, however, there is also a tendency toward a typological understanding of some narrative and poetical portions that at times approaches the old allegorizing method. An example is the frequent explanation of the Song of Solomon as a 288 picture of Christ’s love for the church, in spite of the fact that the book says nothing explicit about either Christ or the church. Proceedings of the principle of literal interpretation, puts great stress on the distinction between Israel and the church. Conclusion Regarding Eschatology: 1. Eschatology is a major topic in Systematic Theology. Consequently, we dare not neglect it as we construct our Theology. It is one doctrine among several, not the whole of Theology. We must not convert our entire doctrinal system into Eschatology, nor allow our Theology to be distorted by an undue emphasis on it. 2. The truths of eschatology deserve careful, intense, and thorough attention. At the same time, we must guard against exploring these matters merely out of curiosity. And when striving to understand the meaning of difficult and obscure portions of God’s Word, we must also avoid undue speculation. 3. We need to recognize that eschatology does not pertain exclusively to the future. Jesus did introduce a new age, and the victory over the powers of evil has already been won, even though the struggle is still to be enacted in history. 4. We must pair with this insight the truth that there are elements of predictive prophesy, even within Jesus’ teaching which simply cannot be regarded as already fulfilled. We must live with an openness to and anticipation of the future. 5. The Biblical passages regarding eschatological events are far more than existential descriptions of life. They do indeed have existential significance, but that significance is dependent upon, and an 289 application of, the factuality of the events described. They really will come to pass. 6. We as Humans have a responsibility to play a part in bringing about those eschatological events which are to transpire here upon earth and within history. Some see this responsibility in terms of teaching; we must also be mindful that eschatology pertains primarily to a new realm beyond space and time, a new heaven and a new earth. This kingdom will be inhered in by a supernatural work of God; it cannot be accomplished by Human effort. 7. The truths of eschatology should arouse in us watchfulness and alertness in expectation of the future. But preparation for what is going to happen will also entail diligence in the activities that our Lord has assigned to us. We must not become impatient nor prematurely abandon our tasks. We should study the Bible intensively and watch developments in our world carefully, so that we may discern God’s working and not be misled. We must not become so brash, however, as to dogmatically identify specific historical occurrences with Biblical prophecy or predict when certain eschatological events will take place. 8. As important as it is to have convictions regarding eschatological matters, it is good to bear in mind that they vary in significance. Agreement is essential on such basic matters as the second coming of Christ and the life hereafter. A specific position on less central and less clearly expounded issues, such as the millennium or the tribulation, should not be made a test of orthodoxy or a condition of Christian fellowship and unity. Emphasis should be placed on the points of agreement, not the points of disagreement. 290 9. When we read the doctrines of eschatology, we should stress their spiritual significance and practical application, they are incentives to purity of life, diligence in service, and hope for the future. They are to be regarded as resources for teaching, not topics for debate. 1.Hames Orr, The Progress of Dogma (Grand Rappids: Eerdmans, 1952, reprints ). 2. Harnack, What is Christianity. 291 TOPIC 52 GOD IS IN COTROL INDIVIDUAL ESCHATOLOGY For all people there exists the personal eschatological reality of death. While all persons participate in physical death, only those who are not believers will also experience spiritual death. The difficult problem of the intermediate state is addressed from the perspective of three contemporary views. A solution to the difficulties is proposed. Implications and conclusions about death and the intermediate state are drawn and should provide some answers surrounding death and the intermediate state. The Reality of Death: An undeniable fact about the future of every person is the inevitability of death. There is a direct assertion of this fact in (Hebr. 9:27): “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” The thought also runs through the whole of (1 Cor. 15:54-56), where we read of the universality of death and the effect of Christ’s resurrection. While death is said to have been defeated and its sting removed by His resurrection, there is no suggestion that we will not die. In (2 Cor. 5:1-10; Phil. 1:19-26): Paul certainly anticipated his own death. Death is simply the end of the process, the final stage of life, and we must accept it. The Christian agrees as to its reality and inescapability. Paul acknowledges that death is ever present in the world: “For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that His life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at 292 work in us, but life is at work in you” (2 Cor. 4:11-12). Death does not come upon us suddenly. It is the end of the process of decay of our mortal, corruptible bodies. We reach our physical peak and then deterioration begins. In little ways we find our strength ebbing from us, until finally the organism can no longer function. What is death, however? How are we to define it? Various passages in the Bible speak of physical death, that is, cessation of life in our physical body. In (Matt. 10:28), for example, Jesus contrasts death of the body with death of both body and soul: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” The same idea appears in (Luke, 12:4-5): “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you Whom you should fear: Fear Him Who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him.” Several other passages speak of loss of the (Greek- psyche-“life”-soul). An example, is in (John, 13:37-38); “Peter asked, ‘Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for You.’ Then Jesus answered, ‘Will you really lay down your life for Me?’” Other references of this type include (Luke, 6:9 and 14:26). Finally, death is referred to in (Eccl. 12:7), as separation of body and soul (or spirit): “and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.” This passage is reminiscent of (Gen. 2:7), (the Human originated when God breathed the breath of life into dust from the ground) and in (Gen. 3:19), (the Human shall return to dust). In the New Testament, (James, 2:26); also speaks of death as separation of body and spirit: “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” 293 What we are dealing with here is cessation of life in its familiar bodily state. This is not the end of existence, however. Life and death, according to the Bible, are not to be thought of as existence and non-existence, but as two different states of existence. Death is simply a transition to a different mode of existence; it is not, as some tend to think, extinction. In addition to physical death, the Bible speaks of spiritual and eternal death. Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body; spiritual death is the separation of the person from God; eternal death is the finalizing of that state of separation-one is lost for all eternity in his or her sinful condition. The Bible- clearly refers to a state of spiritual deadness, which is an inability to respond to spiritual matters or even a total loss of sensitivity to such stimuli. This is what Paul has in mind (Eph. 2:1-2): “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” When the Book of Revelation refers to the “second death,” it is eternal death that is in view. An example is found in (Rev. 21:8): “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all others their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur. This is the second death.” This second death is something separate from and subsequent to normal physical death. We know from (Rev. 20:6), that the second death will not be experienced by believers: “Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them. But they will be priests of God and Christ and will reign with Him 294 for a thousand years.” The second death is an endless period of punishment and of separation from the presence of God, the finalization of the lost state of the individual who is spiritually dead at the time of physical death. It is our position that physical death was not an original part of the Human condition. But death was always there as a thread should the Human sin, that is, in (Gen. 3:3), “God said, you must not eat of or touch the forbidden tree you will die.” While the death which was threatened must have been at least in part spiritual death, it appears that physical death was also involved, since the man and woman had to be driven out of the Garden of Eden lest they also eat of the tree of life, and live for ever (Gen. 3:22-23). Some of the Bible passages that have been offered as evidence that physical death is the result of Human sin actually prove no such thing. A case in point is (Ezekiel, 18:4, 20): “The soul who sins is the one who will die.” The reference here is to spiritual or eternal death, for the text goes on to say that if the sinner turns from his wicked ways, he shall live and not die (Ezekiel, 18:21-22). Since both believer and unbeliever experience physical death, the reference here cannot be to physical death. The same holds true of (Rom. 6:23): “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That it is eternal life which is contrasted with death suggests that the result of sin in view here is eternal death, not physical death. In (1 Cor. 15:21), however, Paul is clearly referring, at least in part, to physical death when he says, “For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.” For physical death is one of the evils countered and overcome 295 by Christ’s resurrection. He was Himself delivered from physical death. This verse then is proof that physical death come from Humans sin; it was not part of God’s original intention for the Human race. Since physical death is a result of sin, it seems probable that the Humans were created with the possibility of living forever. They were not inherently immortal, however, that is they would not by virtue of their nature have lived forever. Rather, if they have not sinned, they could have partaken of the tree of life and thus have received everlasting life. They were mortal in the sense of being able to die; and when they sinned, that potential or possibility became a reality. We might say that they were created with contingent immortality. They could have lived forever, but it was not certain that they would. Upon sinning they lost that status, death, then, is not something natural to Humans. It is something foreign and hostile. Paul pictures it as an enemy (1 Cor. 15:26).And there is little doubt that God Himself sees death as an evil and a frustration of His original plan. God is Himself the giver of life; those who thwart His plan of life by shedding Human blood must forfeit their own lives (Gen. 9:6). His sending death is an expression of His disapproval of Human sin, our frustrating His intention for us. This was the case with the flood that God sent to do away with all flesh (Gen. 6:13), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:1-29), the punishment of Korah and those who rebelled with Him (Numb.16:1-50), and the numerous other instances of the death penalty. In each case, this was the unnatural consequence which they had to pay for their sin. The psalmist vividly depicts death as an expression of God’s anger: “You sweep men away in the sleep of death, they are like the new grass of the morning, 296 though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered. We are consumed by Your anger and terrified by Your indignation” (Ps. 90:5-7). Yet God is also compassionate. Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus (John, 11:35), and on other occasions as well restored the dead to life. For the unbeliever death is a curse, a penalty, an enemy. For although death does not bring about extinction or the end of existence, it cuts one off from God and from any opportunity of obtaining eternal life. But for those who believe in Christ, death has a different character. The believer still undergoes physical death, but its curse is gone. Because Christ Himself became a curse for us by dying on the cross (Gal. 3:13), believers, although still subject to physical death, do not experience its fearsome power, its curse. As Paul put it, “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’ ‘Where, O death is your victory?’ ‘Where, O death is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:54-57). Looking on death as indeed an enemy, the non-Christian sees nothing positive in it and recoils from it in the fear: Paul, however, was able to take an entirely different attitude toward it. He saw death as a conquered enemy, a foe that now is forced to do the Lord’s will. So Paul regarded death as desirable, for it would bring him into the presence of the Lord. He wrote to the Philippians: “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. 297 For to me, to live as Christ and to die is gain…I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far” (Phil.1:20-23). This was the Paul who, as Saul of Tarsus, had heard the dying Stephen exclaim that he could see heaven and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God (Acts, 7:56). Stephen had been prayed simply, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts, 7:59). And Paul had undoubtedly been told the tradition of the Lord Himself, who had said at the end of His life. “Father into Your hands I commit My Spirit” (Luke, 23:46). For Paul, as for Stephen and Jesus, death was no longer an active enemy, but a conquered enemy who now serves not to condemn and destroy, but to free us from the dreadful conditions, sin has introduced the believer can thus face the prospect of death with the knowledge that its effects are not final, for death itself has been destroyed. Although the final execution of this judgment upon death is yet in the future, the judgment itself is already accomplished and assured. Even the Old Testament contained prophesies regarding the victory over death: “He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove the disgrace of His people from all the earth. The Lord has spoken” (Isa. 25:8). “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death is your plagues? Where, O grave is your destruction? I will have no compassion” (Hos. 13:14). And in (1 Cor. 15:55), Paul cites the latter passage, and in (Rev. 21:3-4), John picks up the former: “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them, They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things 298 has passed away.” In (Rev. 20:14), John writes, “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.” Passages such as these make it clear that death has been defeated and will ultimately be destroyed. Death is the culmination of the chastisements God uses to sanctify His people. While acknowledging that death evidently is not indispensable to the accomplishment of sanctification, since Enoch and Elijah did not die, nonetheless we see it as a means by which believers can identify with their Lord, Who also went through sufferings and death on the way to His glory. It is necessary to distinguish here between the temporal and the eternal consequences of sin. Although the eternal consequences of our own individual sins are nullified when we are forgiven, the temporal consequences, or at least some of them, may linger on. This is not a denial of the fact of justification, but merely evidence that God does not reverse the course of history. What is true of our individual sins is also true of God’s treatment of Adam’s sin or of the sin of the race as well. All judgment upon and our guilt for original and individual sin are removed, so that spiritual and eternal death are cancelled. We will not experience the second death. Nonetheless, we must experience physical death simply because it has become one of the conditions of Human existence. It is now a part of life, as much as is birth, growth, and suffering, which also ultimately takes its origin from sin. One day every consequence of sin will be removed, but that day is not yet. The Bible, in its realism, does not deny the fact of universal physical death, but insists that it has different significance for the believer and the unbeliever, death is like birth. 299 Soul sleep: rest in large measure on the fact that the Bible frequently uses the imagery of sleep to refer to death. Stephen’s death is described as sleep: “When he had said this he fell asleep” (Acts, 7:60). Paul notes that “when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep” (Acts, 13:36). Paul uses the same image four times in (1 Cor. 15:6, 18, 20, 51), and three times in (1 Thess. 4:13, 14, 15). Jesus Himself said of Lazarus, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up” (John, 11:11), and then indicated clearly that He was referring to death (John, 11:14). Literal understanding of this imagery has led to the concept of soul sleep. There are several Biblical references to personal, conscious existence between death and resurrection. The most extended is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke, 16:19-31). While it was not Jesus’ primary intent here to teach us about the nature of the intermediate state, it is unlikely that He would mislead us on this subject. Another reference is Jesus’ words to the thief on the cross. “I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23: 43). In addition dying persons speak of giving up their spirits to God. Jesus Himself said, “Father, into your hands I commit My Spirit” (Luke, 23:46); and Stephen said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts, 7:59). Instantaneous Resurrection, An Instant Reclothing: This is the belief that immediately upon death; the believer receives the resurrection body that has been promised. Paul had two different conceptions concerning our resurrection. In (1 Corinthians 15) Paul is thinking of future resurrection of the body. In (2 Corinthians 5), 300 however, we have more advanced understanding of the subject. The initial stages of the age to come had already appeared in the resurrection of Jesus. Paul realizes that, having died and raised with Christ, he is already being transformed and will receive his new or heavenly body at the moment of physical death. The fear of being unclothed, which he speaks of in verse (2 Cor.5:3), has been supplanted by the realization that on both this side and the other side of death, he will be clothed. Death is to be expected by all, believers and unbelievers, except those who are alive when the Lord returns. We must take this fact seriously and live accordingly. Although death is an enemy (God did not originally intend for the Humans to die), it has now been overcome and made captive to God. It therefore need not be feared, for its curse has been removed by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It can be faced with peace, for we know that it now serves the Lord’s purpose of taking to Himself those who have faith in Him. There is between death and resurrection an intermediate state in which believers and unbelievers experience, respectively, the presence and absence of God. While these experiences are less intense than the final states, they are of the same qualitative nature. In both this life and the life to come, the basis of the believer’s relationship with God is grace, not works. There need be no fear then, that our imperfections will require some type of post death purging before we can enter the full presence of God. 301 Purgatory: is a Roman Catholic teaching, in that Theology, immediately upon death, the individual’s eternal status is determinant. The soul becomes aware of God’s judgment upon it. This is not so much a formal sentence as it is a clear perception of whether one is guilty or innocent before God. The soul is then “moved of its own accord to hasten either to Heaven or to Hell, or to Purgatory, according to its deserts.” The text on which this view rest is (Hebr. 9:27): “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” The juxtaposition of these two events is understood as an indication that immediately after death there is a judgment that determines the destination of each individual. Those who have died in a state of wickedness go directly to hell, where they immediately realize that they are irrevocably lost. Their punishment, eternal in nature, consists of both the sense of having lost the greatest of all goods and actual suffering. The suffering is in proportion to the individual’s wickedness and will intensify after the resurrection. On the other hand, those who are in a perfect state of grace and penitence, who are completely purified at the time of death, go directly and immediately to heaven, which, while it is described as both a state and place, should be thought of primarily as a state. Those who, although in a state of grace, are not yet spiritually perfect go to Purgatory. But there are also three means by which the souls in Purgatory can be assisted in which progress toward heaven by the faithful still on earth, the Mass, prayers, and good works. These three means reduce the period of time necessary for Purgatorial suffering to have its full effect. When the soul arrives at spiritual perfection, no venial sin remaining, it is released and passes into heaven. 302 Orthodox is convinced that Christians here on earth have a duty to pray for the departed, and they are confident that the dead are helped by such prayers. The Orthodox Church holds ritual in commemoration for the departed (dead) called (coleva-KOLIBA). Boiled wheat symbolizing death and resurrection. (Matt.13:1-24, 13:25-30, 13:1-32and 13:36-45). But precisely in what way do our prayers help the dead? What exactly is the condition of souls in the period between death and the Resurrection of the Body at the Last Day? Here Orthodox teaching is not entirely clear, and has varied somewhat at different times. In the seventeenth century a number of Orthodox writers - most notably Peter of Mochila, and Dositheus in his Confession – upheld the Roman Catholic doctrine of Purgatory, or something very close to it.’ (According to the normal Roman teaching, at least in the past, souls in Purgatory undergo expiatory suffering, and so render ‘satisfaction’ for their sins.) Today most if not all Orthodox Theologians reject the idea of Purgatory, at least in this form. The majority would be inclined to say that the faithful departed do not suffer at all. Another school holds that perhaps they suffer, but if so, their suffering is of a purification but not an expiation character; for when a person dies in the grace of God, then God freely forgives him all his sins and demands no expiatory penalties: Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, is our only atonement and satisfaction. Yet a third group would prefer to leave the whole question entirely open: let us avoid detailed formulation about the life after death, they say, and preserve instead a reverent and agnostic reticence. When St. Antony of Egypt was once worrying about divine providence, a voice came to him, saying: ‘Antony, attend to yourself; 303 for these are the judgements of God, and it is not for you to know them.’ 1.Berkhof, Systematic Theology.. 2. Emil Brunner, The Christian Doctrine of the Church, Faith and the Consummation (Philadelphia: Westminsrer, 1962). 304 TOPIC 53 GOD IS IN CONTROL THE SECOND COMING AND THE CONSEQUENTS The Bible has outlined three specific events that will occur at the time of the second coming. Besides the event of the second coming itself, there will also be a resurrection that precedes the event of the final judgment. The purpose and guidance of these events are under the care of God alone. However, the hope that believers hold in the knowledge of God will be realized at the time of these events. The Bible indicates clearly that Christ is to return. In His great discourse on the end times (Matt. 24:25), Jesus Himself promises that He will come again: “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:10). Several other times in the same speech He mentions the “coming of the Son of Man” (Matt. 24:27, 37, 39, 42, 44). Toward the end of the discussion we read: “And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other” (Matt. 24:30-31 and Mark, 13:26-27). All of these teachings in His speech, including the parables, presuppose the second coming. Indeed, Jesus delivered the discourse in response to His disciple’s request. “Tell us, when will this happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming end of the end of the age?” (Matt. 24:3). Later that week, in His hearing before Caiaphas, 305 Jesus said, “It is as you say. But I say to all of you; In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of God and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt. 26:64). While Matthew records more than do the other Book writers, Mark, Luke, and John also include some of Jesus’ comments on the second coming. We find in (Mark, 13:26, and Luke, 21:27), for example, almost identical declarations that the people living in the last days will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with power and glory. And John tells us that in the upper room Jesus promised His disciples, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am” (John, 14:3). In addition to Jesus’ own words, there are numerous other direct statements in the New Testament regarding His return. As Jesus’ ascension, two men in white robes, presumably angels, said to the disciples, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? The same Jesus, Who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven” (Acts, 1:11). The second coming was part of the apostolic Kerygma: “Repent then…that [God] may send the Christ, Who has been appointed for you Messiah Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as He promised long a go through His holy prophets” (Acts, 3:19-21). Paul wrote of the second coming on several occasions. He assured the Philippians, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body” (Phil. 3:20-21). Paul gives the clearest and most direct statement 306 in (1 Thess. 4:15-16): “According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” Other direct statements are found in (2 Thess. 1:7, 10 and Titus, 2:13). In addition, we find in Paul many less elaborate references to the second coming: (1 Cor. 1:7; 15:23; 1 Thess. 2:19; 3;13; 5:23; 2 Thess. 2:1, 8; 1 Tim. 6:14 and 2 Tim. 4:1-8). Other authors also mention the second coming: (Hebr. 9:28; James, 5:7-8; 1 Peter, 1:7, 13; 2 Peter, 1:16; 3:4, 12 and 1 John, 2:28). Certainly the second coming is one of the most widely taught doctrines in the New Testament. While the fact of the second coming is very emphatically and clearly asserted in the Bible, the time is not. Indeed, the Bible makes it clear that we do not know and cannot ascertain the exact time when Jesus will return. Although God has set a definite time that time has not been revealed. Jesus indicated that neither He nor the angels knew the time of His return, and neither would His disciples: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn” (Mark, 13:32-33, 35 and Matt. 24:36-44). Apparently the time of the return was one of the matters to which Jesus was referring when, just before His ascension, He responded to His disciples’ question, whether He, 307 would now restore the kingdom of Israel: “It is not for you to know the time or dates the Father has set by His own authority” (Acts, 1:7). Instead of satisfying their curiosity, Jesus told the disciples that they were to be His witnesses worldwide. That the time of His return is not to be revealed explains Jesus’ repeated emphasis on its unexpectedness and the consequent need for watchfulness (Matt. 24:44, 50; 25:13 and Mark, 13:35). That Christ’s second coming will be personal in character is not the subject of any extensive discussion. Rather, it is simply assumed throughout the references to His return. Jesus says, for example, “I will come back and take you to be with me, that you also may be where I am” (John, 14:3). Paul’s statement that “the Lord Himself will come down from heaven” (1 Thess. 4:16), leaves little doubt that the return will be personal in nature. The word of the angels at Jesus’ ascension, “The same Jesus, Who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven” (Acts, 1:11), establishes that His return will be just as personal as was His departure. Although the second coming will be preceded by several signs-the desolating sacrilege (Matt. 24:15), great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), darkening of the sun (Matt. 24:29), they will not indicate the exact time of Jesus’ return. Consequently, there will be many for whom His return will be quite unexpected. It will be as in the days of Noah (Matt. 24:37). Although Noah spent some time in the construction of the ark, none of his contemporaries, except for his own family, prepared themselves for the flood. People will be feeling secure, but sudden description will come upon them (1 Thess. 5:2-3). 308 Jesus’ teaching-suggest that because of a long delay before the second coming, some will be lulled into inattention (Matt. 25:1-13; 2 Peter, 3:3-4). When the (Parousia) finally occurs, however, it will happen so quickly that there will be no time to prepare (Matt. 25:8-10). Jesus will come on the clouds with great power and great glory (Matt. 24:30; Mark, 13:26 and Luke, 21:27). He will be accompanied by His angels and heralded by the archangel (1 Thess. 4:16). He will sit on His glorious throne and judge all the nations (Matt. 25:31-46). The Bible clearly promises resurrection of the believer. The Old Testament gives us several direct statements, the first being (Isa. 26:19): “But your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead.” (Daniel, 12:2), teaches resurrection of both the believer and the wicked: “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.” The idea of resurrection is also asserted in (Ezekiel, 37:12-14): “Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, My people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put My Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken and I have done it, declares the LORD.”’ In addition to direct statements, the Old Testament intimates that we can expect deliverance from death. (Ps. 49:15), says, 309 “But God will redeem my life from the grave He will surely take me to Himself.” (PS. 17:15), speaks of awaking in the presence of God: “And I in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.” While we must exercise care not to read too much of the New Testament revelation into the Old Testament, it is significant that Jesus and the New Testament writers maintained that Old Testament teaches resurrection. When questioned by the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, Jesus accused them of error due to lack of knowledge of the Bible and of the power of God (Mark, 12:24), and that went on to argue for the resurrection on the basis of the Old Testament: “Now about the dead rising have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the bush, what God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?’ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!” (Matt. 22:29-32; Mark, 12:24-27; Luke, 20:34-38; Peter, Acts 2:24-32; Paul, Acts, 13:32-37; saw Ps. 16:10), as a prediction of the resurrection of Jesus (Hebr. 11:19), comments Abraham’s belief in God’s ability to raise persons from the dead: “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.” [Abraham-reason that, if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. Abraham did receive his son back from the dead. Hebrew, 11:19]. The New Testament, of course, teaches the resurrection much more clearly. John, reports several occasions when Jesus spoke of the resurrection. One of the clearest declarations is in (John 5:25 and 28-29): “I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has 310 now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live…Do not be amazed on this , for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.” Other affirmations of the resurrection are found in (John, 6:39-54), and the narrative of the raising of Lazarus (John, 11:24-25 and 11:44). Paul clearly believed and taught that there is to be a future bodily resurrection. In (1 Cor. 15:51-52): “Listen, I tell you: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” The resurrection is also clearly taught in (1 Thess. 4:13-16 and implied in 2 Cor. 5:1-10). And when Paul appeared before the council, he created dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees by declaring. “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee, I stand on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead” (Acts, 23:6): he made a similar declaration before Felix (Acts 24:21). John also affirms the doctrine of resurrection (Rev. 20:4-6, 13). All of the members of the Trinity are involved in the resurrection of believers. Paul informs us that the Father will raise believers through the Spirit: “And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He Who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, Who lives in you” (Rom. 8:11). There is a special connection between the resurrection of Christ and the general resurrection a point Paul particularly emphasized in (1 Cor. 15:12-14): “But if it is taught that Christ has been 311 raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our teaching is useless and so is your faith.” And in (Col. 1:18), Paul refers to Jesus as “The head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy.” And in (Rev. 1:5), John similarly refers to Jesus as the firstborn from the dead.” Paul in (Col. 1:15): Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation.” The resurrection of Christ is the basis for the believer’s hope and confidence. Paul writes, “We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him” (1 Thess. 4:14). Peter ties the new birth and the living hope of the believer to Christ’s resurrection and then looks to the second coming when genuine faith will result in praise, glory and honour (1 Peter, 1:3-9). Several passages in the New Testament affirm that the body will be restored to life. One of them is (Rom. 8:11): “And if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He Who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit Who lives in you.” And in (Phil. 3:20-21), Paul writes, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.” In (1 Cor. 15:44), he says, “It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.” Paul also makes clear that the 312 view that resurrection has already occurred, that is in the form of a spiritual resurrection not incompatible with the fact that the bodies are still lying in the graves, is a heresy. He makes this point when he condemns the views of Hymenaeus and Philetus, “who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some” (2 Tim. 2:18). In addition, there are inferential or indirect evidences of the bodily nature of the resurrection. The redemption of the believer is spoken of as involving the body, not merely the soul: “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies” (Rom. 8:22-23). In (1 Cor. 6:12-20), Paul points out the spiritual significance of the body. This is in sharp contrast to the view of the Gnostics who minimized the body, that the body being evil is spiritually irrelevant, and hence engaged in licentious behaviour. Paul, however, insists that the body is holy. Our bodies are members of Christ (1 Cor. 6:15). The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.6:19). “The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord and the Lord for the body” (1 Cor. 6:13). “By His power God raised the Lord from the dead, and He will raise us also” (1 Cor. 6:14). “Therefore honour God with your body” (1 Cor. 6:20). Jesus’s resurrection was bodily in nature. When Jesus appeared to His disciples they were frightened, thinking that they were seeing a spirit. He reassured them by saying, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at My hands and My feet. 313 It is I Myself! Touch Me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Luke 24:38-39). And when He later appeared to Thomas, who had expressed scepticism about the resurrection. Jesus said, “Put your finger here; see My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side, Stop doubting and believe” (John, 20:27). That Jesus was seen and heard and recognized by the disciples suggests that He had a body similar to the one He had possessed before. The fact that the tomb was empty and the body was never produced by the opponents of Christ is a further indication of the bodily nature of His resurrection. The special connection which, as we have already noted, exists between the resurrection of Christ and that of the believer argues that our resurrection will be bodily as well. Lazarus and the others restored to life by Jesus eventually died again and were buried. Yet Paul speaks of the new body as “imperishable,” in contrast to “perishable” body that is buried (1 Cor. 15:42). “Natural body” that is sown and the “spiritual body” that is raised (1 Cor. 15:44). There is a significant difference between the two, but we do not know the precise nature of that difference. Further, there are explicit statements that exclude the possibility that the resurrection body will be purely physical. Paul says near the end of his discussion of the resurrection body, “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable” (1 Cor. 15:50).Jesus’ retort to the Sadducees, “At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven” (Matt. 22:30). It should be borne in mind that Jesus’ exultation was not yet complete. The ascension, involving a transition from this space-time universe to the spiritual realm of heaven, may well have produced yet another 314 transformation. Our resurrection body will be like Jesus’ present body, not like that body He had between His resurrection and ascension. The same will have the living like Jesus, at the second coming of Jesus. Jesus pictured Himself as sitting on a glorious throne and judging all nations (Matt. 25:31-33). Although God is spoken of as the judge in (Hebrews, 12:23), it is clear from several other references that He delegates this authority to the Son. Jesus Himself said, “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son…And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man” (John, 5:33, 27). Peter told the gathering in Cornelius’s house, “[Jesus] commanded us to teach to the people and to testify that He is the one Whom God appointed as to judge of the living and the dead” (Acts 10:42). Paul informed the Athenians that God “has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead” (Acts, 17:31). And Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what-ever we deserve for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10). And in (2 Tim.4:1), states that Christ is to judge the living and the dead. In (Matt. 19:28, and Luke, 22:28-30), Jesus says that the disciples will judge the twelve tribes of Israel. We are also told that believers will sit on thrones and judge the world (1 Cor. 6:2-3; Rev. 3:21 and Rev. 20:4). All Humans will be judged (Matt. 25:32; 2 Cor. 5:10 and Heb. 9:27). Paul warns that “For we will all stand before God’s judgments seat” (Rom. 14:10). Every secret will be revealed; all that has ever occurred will be evaluated. 315 In addition, the evil angels will be judged at this time. Peter writes that “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell [Tartarus] putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment” (2 Peter, 2:4 and Jude 6), makes an almost identical statement. The good angels will participate in the judgment by gathering together all who are to be judged (Matt. 13:41 and Matt. 24:31). Those who appear will be judged in terms of their earthly lives. Paul said that we will all appear at the judgment, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what-ever we deserve for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10). Jesus said that at the resurrection all will “come out those who have done good rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned” (John, 5:29). And in (Matt. 25:31-46), that it is the doing of good deeds that makes the difference, Jesus indicated that some who claim and who even appear to have done good deeds will be told to depart (Matt. 7:21-23). The standard on the basis of which the evaluation will be made is the revealed will of God. Jesus said, “There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not accept My words; that very word which I spoke will condemned him at the last day” (John, 12:48). Even those who have not explicitly heard the law will be judged: “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law” (Rom. 2:12). Once passed, the judgment will be permanent and irrevocable. The righteous and the ungodly will be sent away to their respective final places. There is no hint that the verdict can be 316 changed. In concluding His teaching about the last judgment. Jesus said that those on His left hand “will go away to the eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matt. 25”46). Bishop Kallistos Ware, writes: There are, however, at least three things that we are entitled to affirm without ambiguity, that Christ will come again in glory; that at His coming we shall be raised from the dead and judged; and that “of His kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke, 1:33). The Second Coming according to Orthodox Church: The world will grow gradually better and better until mankind succeeds in establishing God’s Kingdom upon earth. The Christian view of world history is entirely opposed to this kind of evolutionary optimism. What we are taught to expect are disasters in the world of nature, increasingly destructive warfare between men, bewilderment and apostasy among those who call themselves Christians (Matt. 24:3-27). This period of tribulation will culminate with the appearance of “the man of sin” ( 2 Thess. 2:3-4) or Antichrist, who, according to the interpretation traditional in the Orthodox Church, will not be Satan himself, but a Human being, a genuine man, in whom all the forces of evil will be concentrated and who will for a time hold the entire world under his way. The brief reign of Antichrist will be abruptly terminated by the Second Coming of the Lord, this time not in a hidden way, as at His birth in Bethlehem, but” sitting on the right hand of power, and drawing near upon the clouds of heaven” (Matt. 26:64). So the course of history will be brought to a sudden and dramating end, through a direct intervention from the divine realm. First, then, the Bible and Holy Tradition speak to us repeatedly about the Second Coming. The 317 precise time of the Second Coming is hidden from us: “It is not for you to know the times and the seasons, which the Father has determined by His own decision” (Acts, 1:7). The Lord will come “as a thief in the night” (1 Thess. 5:2). This means that, while avoiding speculation about the exact date, we are to be always prepared and expectant. “What I say unto you I say unto all: Watch” (Mark, 13:37). For, whether the End comes late or soon in our Human time-scale, it is always imminent, always spiritually close at hand. We are to have in our hearts a sense of urgency. In the words of the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete, recited each lent: My soul, O my soul, rise up! Why art thou sleeping? The End draws near, and soon shall thou be troubled. Watch, then, that Christ thy God may spare thee. For He is everywhere present and fills all things. 1. Harold DeWolf, A Theology of the living Christ (New York: Harper &Row, 1960). 2. Ladd Blest hope. 3. Berkhof, Systematic Theology.. 4. Walvoord, Return of the Lord. 5. Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete: In the Lenten Triodion. 6. Bishop Kallistos Ware, Orthodox. 318 TOPIC 54 GOD IS IN CONTROL MILLENNIAL AND THE TRIBULATIONAL VIEWS The millennium refers to the earthly reign of Jesus Christ. Three main millennial views have developed concerning the end times. A millennial view takes the position that there will be no earthly reign of Christ, and that the Bible passages that are debated only concerned the individuals at the time of the writer. The postmillennial view regards the millennium to be in progress preceding the second 319 coming of Christ. The final view, premillennialism, has gained the most respect among current Christians. This view holds that the second coming will precede the millennium (earthly rule of Christ). The premillennial view has also created controversy about the role of the tribulation and the church. Those who advocate pretribulationism believe that Christ will rapture the church before the great tribulation on earth. Another view is the postribulationism view, which maintains that Christ’s coming will occur after the great tribulation. Other views have been offered, but the evidence of the Bible seems to agree most with the posttribulationist view. Postmillennialism: rest on the belief that the teaching of the Bible will be so successful that the world will be converted. The reign of Christ, the locus of which is Human hearts, will be complete and universal. The petition, “Your kingdom come, your will be done as it is in heaven and on earth,” will be actualized. Peace will prevail and evil will be virtually banished. Then, when the Bible has fully taken effect, Christ will return. In the Old Testament, (Ps. 47, 72, 100; Isa. 45:22-25 and Hosea, 2:23), makes it clear that all nations will come to know God. In addition, Jesus said on several occasions that the Bible would be taught universally prior to His second coming. A prime example, of this teaching is found in (Matt. 24:14). Inasmuch as the Great Commission is to be carried out in His authority, Jesus came and told His disciples. “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples 320 to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always even to the end of the ages” (Matt. 28:18-20). Premillennialism: is committed to the concept of an earthly reign by Jesus Christ of approximately a thousand years Unlike postmillennialism, premillennialism sees Christ as physically present during this time; it believes that He will return personally and bodily to commence the millennium. The key passage for premillennialism is (Rev. 20:4-6)…”And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded…They come to life and reined with Christ a thousand years. This is the first resurrection…The second dead has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.” A millennialism: is the idea that there will be no millennium, no earthly reign of Christ. The great final judgment will immediately follow the second coming and issue directly in the final states of the righteous and the wicked. A millennialism is a simpler view than either of the others that we have been considering. (Postmillennialism and Premillennialism). Its advocates maintain that it is built on a number of relatively clear eschatological passages, whereas premillennialism is based primarily on a single passage, and an obscure one at that. We must now address the question of which millennial view to adopt. We note here that there are no Biblical passages with which premillennialism cannot cope. We have seen, that the references to two resurrections (Rev. 20), gives a millennialism difficulty. Their explanations that we have here two different types of resurrections or two spiritual resurrections strain the usual principals 321 of hermeneutics. The premillennialist case appears stronger at this point. Paul writes, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn; Christ, the first fruits; then, when He comes, those who belong to Him; then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority and power” (1 Cor. 15:22-24). It appears that just as the first coming and resurrection of Christ were distinct events separated by time, so will there be an interval between the second coming and the end. There are other passages that hint at either a resurrection of a select group (Luke, 14:14; 20:35; 1 Cor. 15:23; Phil.3:11 and 1 Thess. 4:16), or a resurrection in two stages (Dan. 12:3 and John, 5:29). In (Phil. 3:11), Paul speaks of attaining “the resurrection from the dead.” These texts fit well with the concept of two resurrections. Accordingly, we judge the premillennial views to be more adequate than a millennialism. Tribulation: is the relationship of Christ’s return to the complex of events known as the great tribulation. The question is whether there will be a separate coming to remove the church from the world prior to the great tribulation or whether the church will go through the tribulation and be united with the Lord only afterward. The view that Christ will take the church to Himself prior to the tribulation is called pretribulationism; the view that He will take the church after the tribulation is called posttribulationism. Pretribulationist: hold that it will be a period of transition concluding God’s dealings with the Gentiles and preparing for the millennium and the events that will transpire therein. The tribulation is not to be understood as in any sense a time for 322 disciplining believers or purifying the church. A second major idea of pretribulationism is the rupture of the church. Christ will come at the beginning of the great tribulation (or just prior to it), to remove the church from the world. This coming in a sense will be secret. No unbelieving eye will observe it. The rupture is pictured in (1 Thess. 4:17): “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with [the dead in Christ] in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” Note that in the rapture Christ will not descend all the way to earth, as He will when He comes with the church at the end of the tribulation. pretribulationism, then, maintains that there will be two phases in Christ’s coming or one could even say two comings. There will also be three resurrections. The first will be the resurrection of the righteous dead at the rupture, for Paul teaches that believers who are alive at the time will not precede those who are dead. Then at the end of the tribulation there will be a resurrection of those saints who have died during the tribulation. Finally, at the end of the millennium, there will be a resurrection of unbelievers. This all means that the church will be absent during the tribulation. We can expect deliverance because Paul promised the Thessalonians that they would not experience the wrath, God will pour out upon the unbelievers: “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:9); Jesus…rescues us from the coming wrath” (1 Thess. 1:10). In (Matt. 24:3), which indicate that some of the elect will be present during the tribulation. The disciples asking what would be the sign of Jesus’ coming and of the end of the age. Also (Acts, 1:6), occurred within a Jewish framework. And accordingly, Jesus’ discussion here pertains 323 primarily to the future of Israel. There is, finally, within pretribulationism a strong emphasis that the Lord’s return is imminent. Jesus urged watchfulness upon the hearers, since they did not know the time of His return (Matt. 25:13). The parable of the ten virgins conveys this message. Just as in the time of Noah, there will be no warning signs (Matt. 24:43), or like the master who returns at an unexpected time (Matt. 24:45-51). There will be sudden separation. Two men will be working in the field; two women will be grinding at the mill. In each case, one will be taken and the other left. What clearer depiction of the rapture could there be? Since it can occur at any moment, watchfulness and diligent activity are very much in order. There is another basis for the belief that Christ’s return is imminent. The church can have a blessed hope (Titus 2:13), only if the next major event to transpire is the coming of Christ. If the Antichrist and the great tribulation were the next items on the eschatological agenda. Paul would have told the church to expect suffering, persecution, anguish. But instead he instructs the Thessalonians to comfort one and other with the fact of Christ’s second coming (1 Thess. 4:18). Since the next event, to which the church is to look forward with hopeful anticipation, is the coming of Christ for the church, there is nothing to prevent it from happening at any time. Posttribulationism: maintain that the coming of Christ for His church will not take place until the conclusion of the great tribulation. They avoid use of the term rapture because (1) it is not a Biblical expression and (2) it suggests that the church will escape or be delivered from the tribulation, a notion that runs contrary to the essence of posttribulation. 324 According to posttribulation, the church will be present during and experience the great tribulation. The term elect in (Matt. 24), after the tribulation, the angels will gather the elect (Matt.24:2931), should be understood in the light of its usage elsewhere in the Bible, where it means “believers.” Since Pentecost, the term elect has denoted the church. The Lord will preserve the church during, but not spare it from, the tribulation. Posttribulation draw a distinction between the wrath of God and the tribulation. The wrath (orge) of God is spoken of in the Bible as coming upon the wicked “whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remain on him” (John, 3:36). “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Rom. 1:18; 2 Thess. 1:8; Rev. 6:16-17; 14:19; 16:19 and 19:15). On the other hand, believers will not undergo the wrath of God “we [shall] be saved from God’s wrath through [Christ]” (Rom. 5:9); “Jesus…rescues us from the coming wrath (1 Thess. 1:10); “God did not appoint us to suffer wrath” (1 Thess. 5:9). The Bible makes it clear, however, that believers will experience tribulation. The noun (thlipsis) refer to tribulation saints endure. The noun is used to denote persecution of the saints in the last times (Matt. 24:9, 21, 29; Mark, 13:19, 24 and Rev. 7:14). This is not God’s wrath, but the wrath of Satan, Antichrist, and the wicked against God’s people. Tribulation has been the experience of the church throughout the ages. Jesus said, “In the world you will have trouble” (John, 16:33). Other significant references are (Acts, 14:22; Rom. 5:3; 1 Thess. 3:3; 1 John, 2:18, 22; and 2 John, 7). Posttribulationism: acknowledge that the Bible speaks of believers who will escape or be 325 kept from the impending trouble. In (Luke, 21:36), Jesus tells His disciples, “Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” Posttribulationists also see the complex of events at the end as basically unitary. They believe that this complex of events is imminent, although they usually do not mean that the coming itself is imminent in the sense that it could occur at any moment. Their blessed hope is not an expectation that believers will be removed from the earth before the great tribulation, but rather a confidence that the Lord will protect and keep believers regardless of what may come. 1.Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology (Grand Rabids: Eerdmans, 1952). 2. Floyd Hamilton, The Basis of Millenial Faith Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1942). 3.Walvoord, Rapture Question. 4. George E. Ladd, “Historic Premillennialism,” in meaning of the Millnnium. 5. Gundry, Church and the Tribulation. 326 TOPIC 55 GOD IS IN CONTROL FINAL STATES The future condition of the Human individual is largely determined by the decision made in the present life. These decisions affect the outcome for each individual for all eternity. For the righteous, eternal life in the presence of the Lord will be the result. For the wicked, eternal punishment constituting the banishment from the presence of God will be the consequence. The judgment of both the righteous and the wicked will also include degrees of reward and punishment. The term “Heaven,” In the creation account we are told, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail, of God’s law will disappear, until its purpose is achieved” (Matt. 5:18; 24:35 and Luke, 16:17). He referred to the Father as “Lord of heaven and earth” (Matt. 11:25). Heaven 327 (ouranos) is the firmament in which the stars are set (Matt. 24:29), the air (Matt. 6:26), the place where lightning (Luke, 17:24) and rain (Luke, 4:25) originate. Second, “heaven” is a virtual synonym for God. Among examples are the prodigal son’s confession to His father, “I have sinned against heaven and against you” (Luke, 15:18, 21); Jesus’ question to the Pharisees, “John’s Baptism where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?” (Matt. 21:25) and John the Baptist’s declaration. “To this John replied: “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven” (John, 3:27). Most notable is Matthew’s repeated use of the expression “Kingdom of heaven” where Luke in parallel passages has “Kingdom of God,” Writing to a Jewish audience, who would not pronounce the name Yahweh Matthew used “heaven” as a synonym for God. The third meaning of the word heaven and the one most significant for our purposes is the abode of God. Thus, Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Our Father in heaven may Your name be kept Holy. May Your kingdom come. May Your will be done as in heaven and on earth. Give us the daily bread, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Amen. (Matt. 6:9). He often spoke of “Your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16, 45; 6:1; 7:11 and18:14), and “My Father Who is in heaven.” (Matt. 7:21; 10:32-33; 12:50; 16:17 and 18:10-19). The expression “heavenly Father” conveys the same idea (Matt. 5:48; 6:14, 26, 32; 15:13 and 18:35). Jesus is said to have come from heaven: “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven-the Son of Man” (John, 3:13; 3:31; 6:42-51). Angels come from heaven (Matt. 28:2 and Luke, 22:43), and return to heaven (Luke, 2:15). They dwell in heaven (Mark, 13:32), 328 where they behold God (Matt. 18:10), and carry out the Father’s will perfectly (Matt. 6:10). They are even referred to as a heavenly host (Luke, 2:13). It is from heaven that Christ is to be revealed (1 Thess. 1:10; 4:16 and 2 Thess. 1:7). He has gone away to heaven to prepare an eternal dwelling for believers. We do not know the precise nature of this activity, but it is apparent that He is readying a place where believers will fellowship with Him. “In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am” (John, 14:2-3). As God’s abode, heaven is obviously where believers will be for all eternity. For Paul said: “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with [the dead in Christ] in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thess. 4:17). We know that this Lord with Whom we shall ever abide in the heaven, in the presence of the Father: “I am returning to My Father and your Father, To My God and your God” (20:17; Acts, 1:10-11). He is now there: “For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence” (Heb. 9:24). Consequently, to be with Christ is to be with the Father in heaven. The believer is to make preparation for heaven: “Do not store up for your self’s treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matt. 6:19-20). Peter writes that believers have been both anew “and into one inheritance that can never perish, 329 spoil or fade kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:4-5). Paul similarly speaks of “the hope that is stored up for you in heaven” (Co. 1:5), and of a future time when all things in heaven and on earth will unite in Christ: God has a will “to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfilment to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under the authority of Christ” (Eph. 1:10). Heaven is the first and foremost, the presence of God. In (Rev. 21:3), the new heaven is likened to the tabernacle, the tent where God had dwelt among Old Testament Israel, a great voice from the throne said: “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.” God’s intention from the beginning, to have fellowship with Humans, led first to His creating the Human race, then to His dwelling in the tabernacle and temple, then to His coming in the incarnation, and finally to His taking Humans to be with Him (heaven). Sometimes, especially in popular presentations, heaven is depicted as primarily a place of great physical pleasures, a place where everything we have most desired here on earth is fulfilled to the ultimate degree. Thus heaven seems to be merely earthly (and even worldly) conditions amplified. The correct perspective, however, is to see the basic nature of heaven as the presence of God, from which all of the blessings of heaven follow. Paul makes the comment that at present “we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears…Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; 330 then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Cor. 13:9-12). John speaks of the effect God’s presence will have on the believer: “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John, 3:2). Heaven will also be characterized by the removal of all evils. Being with His people, God “will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev. 21:4). The very source of evil, the one who tempts us to sin, will also be gone: “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulphur, where the beast and the false prophets had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever” (Rev. 20:10). The presence of the perfectly Holy God and the spotless Lamp means that there will be no sin or evil of any kind. Since glory is of the very nature of God, heaven will be a place of great glory. The announcement of Jesus’ birth was accompanied by the words: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favour rests” (Luke, 2:14). Similar words were spoken at His triumphal entry into Jerusalem: “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest” (Luke, 19:38). The second coming of Christ will be in great glory (Matt. 24:30), and He will sit on His glorious throne (Matt. 25:31). Jesus told the multitude that He would come “in His Father’s glory with the holy angels” (Mark, 8:38). Images suggesting immense size or brilliant light depict heaven as a place of unimaginable splendour, greatness, excellence, and beauty. The New Jerusalem that 331 will come down out of heaven from God is described as made of pure gold (even its streets are pure gold) and decorated with precious jewels (Rev. 21:18-21). It is likely that while John’s vision employs as metaphors those items which we think of as being most valuable and beautiful, the actual splendour of heaven far exceeds anything that we have yet experienced. There will be no need of sun or moon to illumine the new Jerusalem, for “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb its lamp” (Rev. 21:23). Our life in heaven: Rest, Worship, and Service. Rest, is the term is used in Hebrews, is not merely a cessation of activities, but the experience of reaching a goal of crucial importance. Thus, there are frequent references to the pilgrimage through the wilderness end route to the “rest” of the Promised Land (Hebr. 3:11, 18), attainment of which was the completion of an extremely difficult and toilsome endeavour. A similar rest awaits believers: “There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rest from his own work, just as God did from His. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience” (Hebr. 4:9-11). The people being addressed here are the “holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling” (Hebr. 3:1). Heaven, then, will be the completion of the Christian’s pilgrimage, the end of the struggle against the flesh, the world, and the devil. There will be work to do, but it will not involve fighting against opposing forces. Another facet of life in heaven is worship. A vivid picture is found in (Rev. 19:1-4). After I heard what sounded like the 332 roar of a great multitudes in heaven shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are His judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of His servants.” And again they shouted: “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.” The twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshiped God, Who was sitting on the throne. And they cried: “Amen, Hallelujah!” Then a voice from the throne exhorted the multitude to praise God (Rev.19:5), and they did so. “Praise our God, all His servants all who fear Him, from the least to the greatest” (Rev. 19:6-8). In (Isa. 6:3), Isaiah recounts a vision he had of the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up. One seraph called to another, saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory.” From these sketches of heaven it appears that its inhabitants regularly praise and worship God. Consequently, we may expect that the redeemed will be engaged in similar activity following the Lord’s coming, the great judgment, and the establishment of His heavenly kingdom. In this sense, genuine believers will continue activity they engaged in while on earth. Our worship and praise here and now are preparation and practice for future employment of our hearts and voices. There will evidently be an element of service in heaven as well. For when Jesus was in the region of Judea beyond the Jordan, He told His disciples that they would judge with Him: “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matt. 19:28). Later, at the 333 last Supper, He said, “You are those who have stood by Me in My trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as My Father conferred one on Me, so that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Luke, 22:28-30). It is not clear just what is involved in this judging, but apparently it is service or work done on behalf of the king. There may well be a parallel here to the dominion the Humans were originally intended to exercise in the Garden of Eden. They were to serve as under lords or vicegerents, carrying out God’s work on His behalf. In the parable of the three Servants, in (Matt. 25:14-30), the reward for work done faithfully is greater opportunity for work. Because that parable occurs in an eschatological setting, it may well is an indication that the reward for faithful work done here on earth will be work in heaven. (Rev. 22:3) tells us that the Lamb will be worshiped by “His servants.” There is also a suggestion that in heaven there will be some type of community or fellowship of among believers: “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the first born, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (Heb. 12:22-24). Note also the reference to “the spirits of righteous men made perfect” heaven is a place of perfected spirituality. The question regarding heaven is whether it is a place or a state. On the one hand, it should be noted that the primary 334 feature of heaven is closeness and communion with God, and that God is pure spirit (John, 4:24). Since God does not occupy space, which is a feature of our universe, it would seem that heaven is a state, a spiritual condition, rather than a place. On the other hand, there is the consideration that we will have bodies of some type (although they will be “spiritual bodies”) and that Jesus presumably continues to have a glorified body as well. While placelessness may make sense when we are thinking of immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body seems to require place. In addition, parallel references to heaven and earth suggest that, like earth, must be a locale. The most familiar of these references is, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name, Your kingdom come, Your Will be done as in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 6:9-10). We must be mindful, that heaven is another realm, another dimension of reality, so it is difficult to know the features of the world apply as well to the world to come, and what the term (place) means to the eschaton. The question of physical pleasures: Jesus indicated that there will be in the resurrection, presumably the life hereafter, no marrying or giving in marriage (Matt. 22:30; Mark, 12:25 and Luke, 20:34-36). Jesus replied, Marriage is for people here on earth. But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. And they will never die again, in this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection. What of eating and drinking? (Rev. 19:9) refers to the “wedding supper of the Lamb.” And Jesus said to His disciples at the Last Supper: “I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in 335 My Father’s kingdom” (Matt. 26:29). In view of the fact that the references to Christ and the church as bridegroom and bride are symbolic, as is Christ as the Lamb, the marriage supper is presumably symbolic as well. Although Jesus ate in His resurrection body (Luke, 24:23 and John, 21:9-14), it should be borne in mind that He was resurrected but not yet ascended, so that the transformation of His body was probably not yet completed. It should be understood that the experiences of heaven will far surpass anything experienced here. Paul said, ‘“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’ but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God” (1 Cor. 2:9-10). There also is the question of how much the redeemed in heaven will know or remember. Will we recognize those close to us in this life? Will we remember sinful actions done and godly deeds omitted in this life? If so, will not all of this lead to regret and sorrow? With regard to these questions we must necessarily plead a certain amount of ignorance. It does not appear, from Jesus’ response to the Sadducees’ question about the woman who had outlived seven husbands, all of them brothers (Luke, 20:27-40), that there will be family units as such. On the other hand, the disciples were evidently able to recognize Moses and Elijah at the transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-8; Mark, 9:2-8 and Luke, 9:28-36). This fact suggests that there will be some indicators of personal identity by which we will be able to recognize one another. But we may infer that we will not recollect past failures and sins and missing loved ones, since that would introduce sadness incompatible with. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. 336 There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev. 21:4). A question is whether there will be varying rewards in heaven. That there apparently will be degrees of reward is evident in, the parable of the talants (Luke, 19:11-27). Ten servants were each given one talant by their master. Eventually they returned differing amounts to him and were rewarded in proportion to their faithfulness. Supporting passages include (Dan. 12:3). (“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever”), and in (1 Cor.3:14-15) (“If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames”). The Bible employs several images to depict the future state of the unrighteous. Jesus said, “Then He will say to those on His left. ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels’” (Matt. 25:41). He likewise described their state as outer darkness: “But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 8:12). The final condition of the wicked is also spoken of as eternal punishment (Matt. 25:46), torment (Rev. 14:10-11) the bottomless pit (Rev. 9:1-2, 11), the wrath of God (Rom. 2:5), second death (Rev. 21:8), eternal destruction and exclusion from the face of the Lord (2 Thess. 1:9). The Finality of the future Judgment. Indeed, there are some passages of the Bible that seem to indicate that all will be saved. Paul, wrote, “And He made known to us the mystery of His will 337 according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the time will have reached their fulfilment bring all things in heaven and on earth together under the authority of Christ” (Eph. 1:9-10). And speaking of the future, He declared “that 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” (Phil. 2:10-11). In addition, there are several instances where words like “everlasting,” “eternal” and “forever” are applied to nouns designating the future state of the wicked: fire or burning (Isa.33:14; Jer. 17:4; Matt. 18:8; 25:41 and Jude, 7), contempt (Dan. 12:2), destruction (2 Thess. 1:9), chains (Jude, 6), torment (Rev. 14:11 and 20:10), and punishment (Matt.25:46). “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” God does not send anyone to hell. He desires that none should perish (2 Peter, 3:9). God created Humans to have fellowship with Him and provided the means by which they can have that fellowship. It is a Human’s choice to experience the agony of hell. We should observe, finally, that Jesus’ teaching suggests that there are degrees of punishment in hell. He upbraided those cities that had witnessed His miracles but fail to repent: “Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! ... If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the Day of Judgment than for you” (Matt. 11:21-24). There is a similar hint in the parable of the faithful and faithless servant: “That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or 338 does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke, 12:47-48). The principle here seems to be, the greater our knowledge, the greater our responsibility, and the greater will be our punishment if we fail in our responsibility. It may well be that the different degrees of punishment in hell are not so much a matter of objective circumstances as of subjective awareness of the pain of separation from God. This is parallel to our conception of the varying degrees of reward in heaven. To some extent, the different degrees of punishment reflect the fact that hell is God’s leaving a sinful Human with the particular character that the person fashioned for himself or herself in this life. The misery one will experience from having to live with one’s wicked self eternally will be proportionate to one’s degree of awareness of precisely what one was doing when choosing evil. King of Heaven, prepare the table of Your Word, that we may hear Your invitation to come in, and sit in Your Presence, together with Jesus Christ, Your Son Amen 1. Leon Morris, The Lord from Heaven (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1958). 2. Bernand Ramm, Them He Glorified: A Systematic Study of the Doctrine of Glorification (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1963), 3. J. A. Motyer, After Death: A Sure and Certain Hope? (Philadelphia: Westminster , 1965).. 339 4. Simon. Heaven. 5. Leon Morris, The Biblical Doctrine of Judgment (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1960). 340 341 INDEX A Abraham, 126, 310 Adam’s race, 88 Adam was the first Human, 74 Adoption, 222-223 Actual descent by Jesus into Hell or Hades, 157 Agia Sophia, 283 All authority in Heaven and on Earth, 13 All Scripture is God’s breathed, 26 All Humans will be judged, 315 Ananias and Sapphire, 171 Angels, 66-68, 91, 146-149, 150-151, 166, 334 Angels are spirits, 68 Approximation in the Bible, 29 Arians, 123, 128 Arianism, 127 Arminianism, 114, 203 Arminius, 203 Aspects of sin, 101 Atonement, 159-161 Authority resides in the Bishop, 262 Axion Esti, 149-150-151 B Baptism in water conveys grace, 266 Baptized into Christ, 267 Baptizing them, 175-178, 250, 320 Before the Creation, 235 Believers, 214, 226, 260 Benediction, 24 Biblical Message, 28 Biblical Support, 88 Birth to the Messiah, 95 Bishop Kallistos, 317 Burning Bush, 22 342 C Cain and Abel, 74 Calvinism, 114 Calvinist, 114 Catholic Church, 241, 262, 274 Catholic Priests, 264 Cessation of Life, 294 Change of human Hearts, 173 Characteristics of Race, 87 Children of God, 120 Christian view of Humans, 71 Christ’ Humanity, 136 Christology, 121, 129 Christ’s Bride the Church, 248-249, 250, 258 Christ’ Teaching, 152 Christ will Suffer, 209 Circumcision of the Heart, 254, 268 Coleva, 303 Come to the knowledge of Jesus, 258 Congregational Church, 264, 279 Conveyers of Messages, 68 Conversion, 212 Could Read the Character of Nathanael, 138 Creation, 73 Creed, 129 D David and Bathsheba, 64-65 Death is to be Expected, 301 Degrees of Punishment338-339 Dichotomies, 84 Dionysius the Areopagite, 66-67 Distorted the Entire Creation, 120 Divine Speech, 22 E 343 Eastern Orthodox Church, 281-282 Ebionism, 123, 126-127 Election, 201 Enemy of God, 118-119 Eschatology, 285, 289, 290-292 Eschaton, 335 Eternal Death, 109 Eternal Life, 109, 164, 205, 261 Eternal Punishment, 327, 337 Evangelical Church, 196-198, 241, 279-280, Every Human is God Creature, 82 Evil in the World, 62 Existential Eschatology, 287 Extent of the Atonement, 165-166 F False Prophets, 169 Filioque, 262 Forgiving Each Other, 221 Full Salvation, 243 Future Judgment, 235 G General Revelation of God, 16-17 Glorification, 234, 237 Glory to God in the Highest, 148-149 God and Human, 22 God does not Dwell, 36 God has a Personality35 God is a God of Justice, 106 God is Guiding History to His Goal, 53 God is Infinite, 78 God is Present, 43 God is the Authority, 30 God is the Savour of all men, 244 God Keeps all Promises, 40 God’s Ability to Change Hearts, 214 God’s Creation, 73 344 God’s Law, 229 God’s Mercy245 God’s Spirit, 44 God’s Temple, 172 God’s Work, 206 God will Raise us through the Spirit, 174 Great Glory, 331 Greek Orthodox Church, 241, 262, 274 H Heaven is Worship, 332 Holiness of God, 37 Holy Communion, 275 Holy Spirit, 207, 212, 218, 252-253, 262 Holy Spirit Personality, 178 Humans are Creatures not God, 77 Human Constitution, 83 Humanity, 70-71 Human’s Relationship to God, 82 I Icons, 131-135 Iconoclasts, 132-133 Iconodules, 132-134 Idolatry, 133 I Know that Nothing Good Lives in me, 227 I Lay Down My Life for the Sheep, 166 In Heaven Will Know or Remember336 In Him is no Sin, 139 Instantaneous Resurrection, 300 Intermediate State, 301 Introduction, 6 It is Written, 162 J Jesus as the Vine, 156 Jesus Describes the Kingdom of Heaven, 154 345 Jesus Did Not Have to Die, 162 Jesus had a Physical Body, 137 Jesus had Perfect Fellowship with the Father, 81 Jesus has the Father in Mind, 47 Jesus is Lord, 11 Jesus Suffered Physically, 137 Jesus Taught His Disciples to Pray, 328 Jesus Teaching, 189 Jesus was a Prophet, 153 Jesus was Full God and Full Man, 143 John the Baptist, 187, 210-211 K Kingdom of God, 112, 178-188, 190, 240 Kingdom of Heaven, 124, 154 King of Heaven, 339 L Last Supper, 163 Leontius Neopolis, 135 Liberation, 239 Little Ones Who Believe in Me, 270 Liturgy, 264 Living Water, 89 Logos, 155 Lord is from all Eternity, 54 Lord of Heaven and Earth, 327 Lord’s Supper, 133 Love Your God, 160 Lutheran View, 275 M Man in Our Image, 89-81 Marriage, 95-96 Mary and Martha, 96, 137 Millennialism, 321 Millennium, 319, 321 346 Modernized Eschatology, 286 Monism, 85 Moral Purity, 39 Mother of God, 151 My Brothers and My Sisters, 225 My God My God Why Have You Forsaken Me, 138 My Teaching will Never Die, 125 Mt. Athos, 149 N Naturalistic Evolution, 75 Nels Ferre, 243 New Birth, 214-214 Nicodimus, 112, 208, 213 Noah’s Family, 87 No Branch Can Bear Fruit by Itself, 228 Not to Condemn the World, 167 Not Wanting Anyone to Perish, 170 O Organic Unity, 279 Original Sin, 107 Orthodox Church, 281, 317-318, Orthodox Kisses, 135 Orthodox Priests, 264 Orthodox Priests, 264 Orthodox Prostrates, 135 Our Life in Heaven, 332 Our Moral and Spiritual Temptation, 236 Our Salvation is Absolutely Secure, 232 P Paracletos, 176 Patriarch, 263 Pelagius, 200-201 Pelagianism, 108, 111-114, 202 Pentarchy, 262 347 Pentecost, 13 Perfection of God, 38 Permanence of Marriage, 13 Peter the Apostle, 10, 31-32, 113-114 Physical Death, 108-109, 110, 294-299 Physical Pleasures, 330, 335 Pope, 262 Postmillennialism, 320-326 Powerful God Exist, 18 Praise Our God, 333 Predestination, 200-201 Preface, 9 Premillennialism, 320-323 Pretribulationism, 323-324 Prodigal Son, 332 Prophecy, 182 Prophetic Teaching, 155 Pseudotheological Arguments, 87 Pure Gold 332 Purgatory, 302-303 R Raised to Life, 210 Ransom, 168 Reality of Death, Realized Eschatology, 287 Redemption, 217 Regenerate Believers, 233 Reigning with Christ, 218 Remain in Me, 217 Repent Turn to God, 208-209 Responsibility for Sin, 102-103 Reward in Heaven, 339 Rich Man to Enter the Kingdom of God, 93 Ritual of Purification, 92 Russian Orthodox Church, 282-284 348 Q Quakkas, 265 Qualities of God, 34 S Sacraments, 240 Sacrificial Work of Christ, 14 Salvation, 195-198, 205, 216, 224-229 Salvation appropriated by Ffaith, 10, 231 Samaritan Woman, 254 Sanctification, 224 Second Death, 110, 294-295 Second Coming of Christ, 235, 305-309, 317-318 Service in Heaven, 333 Sexes in the Creation, 90, 96 Stn, 98-99, 194, 154-166 Sinful Deeds, 105 Single Person, 96 Sin is Universal, 111 Son of God, 147 Son of Man, 72 Soul Sleeps, 300 Sovereign Lord, 208 Spiritual Death, 109 Split or Schism, 262 St. Andrew of Crete, 318 St. Antony of Egypt, 303 St. Cyril and St. Methodius, 281 St, Demetrius of Thessalonica, 131 St. Vladimir and St. Olga, 282 T The Bible is Inspired, 25 The Bible Massage, 12 The bible States, 23 The Birth of Christ, 144 349 The Black Race, 87 The Case of Thomas, 211 The Church 24-28, 25-226, 261 The Church Denounced All the Heresies, 142 The Creation, 56-57, 63 The Cross, 159 The Deity and Humanity of Christ, 140 The Deity of Christ, 123 The Deity of the Holy Spirit, 50 The Divine Plans, 55 The Father’s Knowledge, 59 The Glory of God The Father, 338 The Grace of God, 232, 240, 303 The Holy Spirit, 32,m171-179, 181-189, 190, 234-236, 256 The Holy Spirit Ability to Change Human Hearts, 173 The Holy Spirit Must Be God, 173 The Holy Spirit Proceed From The Father, 263 The Judge of All Men, 334 The Kingdom of God, 48 The Kingdom of Heaven is Near, 157 The Lamb of God, 163 The Lord’s Body, 273 The Lord’s Supper, 271-272 The Messiah, 49, 126 The Man Jesus was Fully Human Person, 136 The most Recognized Symbol of Christianity is the Cross, 159 Theology, 10 The Rite of the Church’ Baptism, 266 The Power of The Holy Spirit, 173 The Plan of God, 220 The Presence of Christ, 273 The Presence of God, 330 The Present Body, is Perishable, 236 The Resurrection Body Will be Glorious, 236, 313 The Sabbath, 124 The Sacrament of Baptism, 267 The Samaritan Woman, 138-139 The Shepherd Watches Over His Sheep, 60 The Son of God, 126 The Son of the Living God, 10, 122 The Son of Man, 49, 72, 121-124, 160-163, 298, 306, 350 The Spirit of God, 117 The Spirit of the Lord, 26 The Spirit of the Lord, 26 The Spirit of the Lord, 26 The Spirit’s Personality, 176 The Spirit Searches, 336 The Symbol of Faith, 129 The Trinitarian View of God, 31, 46 The Trinity, 51, 311 The Unbeliever’s Death, 297 The Unborn, 94 The Unity of The Church, 277 The Virgin Birth, 145 The World and Its Desires, 119 The Work of the Holy Spirit, 181 Tribulation, 322-325 Trichotomies, 83 Trinitarian Concept, 251 Triumph of Orthodoxy, 134 U Understanding of God, 21 Unity of the Two Natures of Christ, 140 Universalism, 242 Union With Christ, 198-199, 216 Until Heaven and Earth Disappear, 27 V Varying Rewards, 337 Virgin Named Mary, 146, 149, 150 W What is Death, 293 When Adam Sinned, 201 When the Church Unites Under Christ as Its Head, 278 Who Raised Him From The Dead, 230 Withholding Judgments, 41 351 Women in the Work of the Church, 91-92 Z Zwingli’s View, 276 352