What, an Update? Blog Review.

What a new post... yes, I know your feed readers are burning...

Anyways The Seeking Disciple over at Arminian Today posted a blog about the differences between Calvinism and Arminianism entitled "Discipleship: Where Arminianism and Calvinism Clash." This is my response.

In paragraph 3 He says: "Calvinists would insist that the person was saved by irresistible grace whereas the Arminian would say that the sinner was saved by surrendering to the grace of God that they could have resisted but instead surrendered to (Acts 16:14-15, 30-34)." Actually a Calvinist would agree with both of those statements. A member of the elect can resist God's saving grace it is just God's saving grace can over come all resistance. Furthermore a Calvinist will say that all the elect will surrender to God's saving grace, though the reason for this would differ from that which Arminianism gives.

In paragraph 4 he says that "the Calvinist would encourage the person to abandon a life of sin (at least I hope they would and feel confident many would do so)" but wouldn't by definition "stress that true repentance is not just feeling sorry for our sins but actually leaving a life of sin and pressing toward the higher calling of Christ Jesus". It seems that he is creating a strawman, I hope unknowingly. I agree that the issue of the mortification of sin in the believer is different between the Calvinist and the Arminian, but not at this point. The Calvinist will say that this side of heaven no sin will ever be slain completely but must continually be mortified. There will never be a day when anyone wakes up and says, "Yes! I mortified all my sins completely so now I do not have to continue to fight sin." For more on this from the Calvinistic Prospective see The Mortification of Sin in the Believer by John Owen.

In paragraph 5 he states that: "Jesus didn't die to preserve sinners in sin but He died to make saints out of sinners". This seems to be a complete misunderstanding, or misrepresentation of the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints. A brief summery of the doctrine would state that "when we speak of “once saved, always saved,” we are not taking into account the full scope of salvation. We have been saved (justification), was are being saved (sanctified), and we will one day be saved (glorified). You cannot claim to have been “saved” (justified) unless you are being sanctified. Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord." (Michael Horton, Putting the Amazing Back into Grace, 171) Thus according to the Calvinistic position God continuely works in the lives of those who are elect that they might grow in holiness.

Finally in paragraph 1 he assumes Calvinism to prove his Arminianism. Allow me to explain. He stated that part of the Gospel is that a person places their "personal faith in the Lord Jesus for the remission of sins (Ephesians 2:8-9) and that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6)." However wouldn't this coming to faith be an act that pleased God? How is it that the carnal minded unbeliever pleases God by coming to have faith without first having faith? You must either assume Calvinism, that God is the one who gives the faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), or deny Romans 8:7-8 and ironically Hebrews 11:6, not to mention the words of Jesus in John 6:35-51,8:39-47,10:25-29,17:9ff.

Just one more thought. Antinominism is a problem that has plagued both Arminianism and Calvinisim in the past and that both theologies must fight it and it's brother legalism in order to remain within the Faith.

Too Poor for Seminary

For those of us who love theology and learning theology but are unable to afford to go to seminary at this time for any number of reasons I have compiled a list of FREE online theology courses and other resources to keep oneself sharp. Oh, this list is in no way, shape, or form exhaustive, and if you have anything you think would be good to add just leave it in the comments.

Theology:
Gordon-Conwell Theological's foundational teaching in the areas of Old and New Testament, Biblical Interpretation, Church History, Theology, and Missions and Evangelism. - http://ockenga.gordonconwell.edu/ockenga/dimensions/

Biblical Training Institute Foundational Classes - http://www.biblicaltraining.org/foundations

Wayne Grudem's Lectures about his Systematic Theology, a project five years and counting - http://www.christianessentialssbc.com/messages/

Covenant Theological Seminary's Free Seminary Courses in their Worldwide Classroom - http://worldwide-classroom.com/

Biblical Training Institute - http://www.biblicaltraining.org/

Reformed Theological Seminary on iTunesU - http://itunes.rts.edu/

Concordia Seminary on iTunesU - http://itunes.csl.edu/

The History and Theology of Calvinism by Dr. Curt Daniel - http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/histtheocalvin.html

The White Horse Inn with Dr. Michael Scott Horton - http://www.whitehorseinn.org/

John Piper on Monergism - http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/bio/johnpiper.html

Greek:
Bill Mounce's Resource site that is complementary to his Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar - http://www.teknia.com/

Jonathan Robie's Greek Course - http://www.ibiblio.org/koine/

A list of the best Greek grammar text books - http://www.ntgreek.org/books/grambook.htm

A list of online Greek grammar learning tools and study aids - http://www.biblicalgreek.org/grammar/

Hebrews - Introduction

The letter written to the Hebrews is often one of the most mysterious books in the bible to westerners. We Americans as a whole are rather biblically illiterate, rather ironic since we also have the most "bible onlyist" churches in the world. So let's take a look at Hebrews.

What better place to start than at the beginning? Well perhaps before the beginning? The author of this book is not explicitly or even implicitly known. Some in the past have suggested Pauline authorship however since this book does not follow the Pauline framework found in his other epistles this is most likely not the case. However whoever wrote this letter probably did have direct contact with Paul and was familiar with his teaching style. (A comparison of Hebrews and Romans shows us this much.) They also had an intimate knowledge of the Old Testament since it is quoted, alluded to, made reference to, and summarized far more extensively than most other biblical books. (Matthew references the Old Testament more but is also twice as long.) So we can say with some confidence that this letter was written by a learned in both the Old Testament and Pauline Theology and was perhaps written by Apollos. (Acts 18:24ff)

The book was likely written to Jewish believers, though it may have been to the Hellenic Jews. The concepts that this book speaks to would suggest this since the Greco-Judaic mind loved issues such as the veneration of Moses, Mediation of angles, the Old Covenant Law, and the role of Wisdom in creation. Further this book was addressing those who were seeking to return to the synagogue or temple system, which Gentile Christians wouldn't be returning to but coming to the first time. (See also Galatians) Furthermore this was letter was very likely addressed to the Jews of Rome, since in the farewell the author mentions greeting from those in Rome who are not of Rome.(13:24) Finally the concept of "leaders" (hegoumenoi) is mentioned a concept subsequent church leaders from Rome will pick up on and use. So to recap this letter was probably written to a community of Jewish Believers in Rome who were struggling with Christianity and remaining within Christianity.

The overarching goal of the book of Hebrews is to encourage the believers to endure in the faith. The author does this by moving back and forth from a theological concept to how we ought to live in light of such a concept, with the basic point as Jesus is the best(only) basis for relating to God and enduring in a relationship with Him. Those who reject Jesus are in trouble!!!

Finally this Book was probably written before the fall of the temple in Jerusalem but after Christianity had been well established in Rome. This is because there is no mention of the temple falling, which would have been another key that the writer assuredly would have picked up on. At the same time there had been Christians there for some time so (5:11-6:3) therefore we can safely assume that this letter was probably written sometime in the mid 60's.

Hopefully that helps. Next time we dive into Chapter 1.

Soteriology - Quick and Dirty

Often when one is in an unwanted place it is good to change places. Thus when affliction sets in within the mind it may be good to get away into a good bit of theology; and what better topic than one that will start a heated debate among almost everyone I know? Instead I think I will simply summarize (emphasis on simply) the differing views of soteriology (doctrines of salvation) that have rooted their heads within the Christendom.

Heretical Systems:
Pelagianism - Named for a Fourth century British Monk named Pelagius who first formalized this teaching. (Pop culture reference, King Arther's hero in the 2004 film starting Clive Owen, which on this point was historically inaccurate.) Pelagius taught that men were not corrupted in any way by Adam's sin, he was merely a bad example for us. Christ was a good example who taught us how to live morally. Through hard work following Christ's good example rather than Adam's bad example one might achieve salvation. Furthermore without grace or faith man can choose to move toward God without any prompting by the Holy Spirit. Therefore in this view of salvation man is the effectual agent, but he is also the only acting agent, faith and grace are unnecessary. This does not mean that the atonement of Christ was unnecessary for the forgiveness of sins, however, it did not compel anyone to actually seek the forgiveness of those sins, nor does it play a role in sanctification.

Semipelagianism - After Pelagius was defeated in debate by St. Augustine, a new breed of his teaching popped up. This view held that man was still in most ways unrestricted in what he can and cannot do with his relationship to God. The difference between this view and the fully Pelagian view is that man cannot make it to God apart from grace. This view does hold however that man can turn to God apart from any act of Grace on God's behalf. Again in this view the effectual agent of salvation is man. Both Pelagianism and Semipelagianism were condemned as damnable heresy by the Council of Orange in 529 AD.

Hyper-Calvinism - Hyper-Calvinism is not John Piper sitting in starbucks after five vente lattes. This is a view that believes the command of the Gospel is not for every single person but only for the elect. Further this system also denies God's love for mankind as a whole and that evangelism is necessary at all because God has predestined some to life and others to death.

American Decisionism - This view picks and chooses what it likes from all of the major views and rejects what it doesn't like. Therefore it is often hard to pin down what this view is actually espouses. However the majority takes Arminian or Palegian free choice and combines it with half of the Calvinist's Perseverance of the Faith. This creates the mentality that "I chose Christ at one time in my life so I'm saved and can live like a pagan if I so choose," or as I call it "decisional once saved always savedism," or "conditional unconditionalism" e.g. that salvation is by a one time admittance that Jesus is Lord that being said I can do whatever I want. One could liken this position to the argument, "well my spouse loves me unconditionally so its okay if I go and have an adultery."

Systems Within Orthodoxy:
Arminianism (Wesleyanism) - A theological system named for Jacob Arminius and better articulated by John Wesley. Far to often zealous, though well meaning Calvinists, will wrongly overgeneralize this position labeling it as semipelagian or even pelagian. (Though sometimes this analysis is correct of the individual or group.) However this seems to come from a lack of knowledge of what this system actually teaches. There is much that Arminians and Calvinists agree on, first that men are born spiritually dead, unable to come to God outside of His grace, and that salvation is only possible by grace through faith. They also agree that men must actually choose to follow Christ. Finally they agree that if one is saved they must continue in the faith. However after this the two part ways.
The Arminian believes that while all men are dead in their tresspasses and sins that through prevenient grace, (common grace) can be made alive by submitting to it rather than resisting it. (The Calvinist also believes in common grace, but believes it serves a different function.) This prevenient grace is granted to all men allowing all the capacity to turn from their wickedness to righteousness. On the cross Christ died for all men in the same way so that, among other things, this grace could be given to all men. However as fore mentioned this grace can be resisted and rejected, and by this condition one obtains their election. Finally in this system one who does not continue on in the faith loses the salvation they once had. So in this view while the major agent of salvation is God, the ultimate agent of salvation is the individual man who continually makes the choice not to resist the grace of God so that they are able to choose Him.

Calvinism (Reformed) - This theological system named for John Calvin, which was greatly influenced by St. Augustine, and was later made into an acronym by those tulip obsessed dutch. This view is often wrongly overgeneralized by zealous, well meaning, Arminian Christians as Hyper-Calvinism, which I believe again comes simply from ignorance of the system. (Though sometimes this analysis is correct of the individual or group.) As mentioned in the above paragraphs about Arminianism, Calvinists believe that all men are born spiritually dead, unable to come to God outside of His grace, and that salvation is only possible by grace through faith. However for the Calvinist there is no prevenient grace in the sense that it quickens men to life. Rather the common grace of God to all men is displayed in every good thing that every man has. God does grant some men the gracious gifts of repentance and belief to the elect. Now to be sure these gifts of grace can be resisted and rejected but the Holy Spirit can overcome any resistance man might build up.
This factors into the way in which the Calvinist views the atonement; Christ died for all men, to be sure however he did not die for all men in the same way. He did not die for Judas the same way He died for Peter, so while the cross of Christ is sufficient for all the world, it is effective for only the elect, therefore election is not based upon the condition of "making a decision for Christ." That being said, if you remember I wrote both Calvinists and Arminians believe that once a Christian is saved they must remain in the faith. Where they differ is that while the Arminian believes one can lose their salvation, since they might fail to continue, the Calvinist does not, because God will continue to work in the Christian transforming him into the image of Christ. This however does not mean that a Christian will never stumble, only that when he does he will be granted the grace of Repentance and Belief again.

Modified View, 4 Point Calvinism - There are many forms of this and to try to touch on all of them here would be quite a task however what they all try to accomplish, some more than others is a bridge between Arminiansm and Calvinism. This group might also include the Lutheran view though putting it here seems funny to me.

Yaayy for Quick and Dirty - Unfortunately far to many within the American Church fall outside the realm of orthodoxy on this core issue of the Gospel. Work for reformation in those churches and pray for their revival. Oh also if my facts are mistake please feel free to comment, however try not to turn this into a huge debate over which view is most correct. There are plenty of other places for that.

Soli Deo Gloria!

What is "that"?

τῇ γὰρ χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι διὰ πίστεως: καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν, θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον: οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων, ἵνα μή τις καυχήσηται. - Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB)

In these words, the Apostle Paul destroys all notions of salvation by works. We are saved by the grace of God which is received through faith, and works play no part at all. As the next verse (v.10) makes clear, God has indeed planned for believers to do good works, but as this and many other passages in scripture would affirm, the works are the fruit and not the root of our salvation. True believers do good works, but works play no role at all in how we receive salvation, for it is "not as a result of works."

This much is clear, but questions have arisen as to what exactly is meant by the one word "that" in Ephesians 2:8. We know that whatever it is, it is the gift of God, but can we determine exactly what this gift is?

Some say that the gift is "faith" while others say it is "grace" and still others say it is "salvation." What may be a point of dispute from the reading of the English translations becomes settled when looking into the original Greek text.

Putting it in terms we can hopefully all understand, the Greek word for "that" is transliterated into English as touto (τοῦτο) and is in a neuter form. The way to determine what it refers to is to look for the other neuter in the immediate context. That's how the issue would normally be resolved, except that in this particular case, there isn't one. "Grace" is feminine; "have been saved" is masculine, and "faith" is also in a feminine form. In this case then, what the "that" refers to is all in the preceding clause. The grace, the salvation and the faith - all of these things - is the gift of God.

Paul is making it clear that nothing in our salvation comes from ourselves. Salvation, grace and faith - from start to finish, all of this is the gift of God, not as a result of works. God has designed salvation in this way for the very purpose of eliminating all grounds for human boasting. Boasting is not merely discouraged, or kept to a minimum, it is completely removed. That is because the entire work of salvation is God's work from start to finish - "this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God" as the ESV renders it. The grace by which we are saved and the faith that is the mechanism through which we receive it - yes, even this faith - is the gift of God. Salvation is of the Lord and all the glory for it goes to God alone.

HT : Reformation Theology

Romans 1:24-25

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
- Romans 1:24-25

If you long to see your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, or anyone else naked rather than see them grow in holiness these verses are describing you. P.S. you don't love them you lust them, repent.

Just a quickie!

The Nicene Creed and Definition of Chalcedon According To Scripture!

Rob Bowman of The Religious Researcher.org recently posted a blog with a portion dedicated to outlining the Nicene Creed and the Definition of Chalcedon with their scripture references. Here is the relevant portion:


The Nicene Creed (381)
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. [Matt. 23:9; Acts 4:24; 17:24; 1 Cor. 8:6a; 2 Cor. 6:18; Heb. 11:3; Rev. 21:22]

And in one Lord, Jesus Christ [1 Cor. 8:6b; 12:4; Eph. 4:5],
the only-begotten Son of God [John 1:12, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9],
begotten of the Father before all ages [John 1:14, 18; 5:26; 6:57; 17:5; Gal. 4:4],
God of God [John 1:1, 18; Titus 2:10, 13; 2 Peter 1:1-2],
Light of Light [John 1:4-5; Heb. 1:3],
true God of true God [John 1:1, 18; Col. 2:9; 1 John 5:20],
begotten, not made [John 1:14, 18],
being of one substance with the Father [John 1:14; Heb. 1:3],
by whom all things were made [John 1:3, 10; Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:2, 10];
who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven [John 13:3; 16:28],
and was incarnate [John 1:14; Rom. 8:3; 1 John 4:1]
by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary [Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:35],
and was made man [Phil. 2:6-7],
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate [Matt. 27; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 18-19].
He suffered [Matt. 16:21 par.; 17:12 par.; Luke 22:15; 24:26, 46; Acts 1:3; 3:18; 1 Pet. 3:18]
and was buried [Matt. 27:57-66 par.; Acts 13:29; 1 Cor. 15:4],
and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures [Luke 24:44-46; 1 Cor. 15:5],
and ascended into heaven [Acts 1:9-11],
and sits at the right hand of the Father [Mark 14:62; Luke 22:69; Acts 2:33, 34; 5:31; 7:55-56; Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1 Pet. 3:22].
And he shall come again with glory [Matt. 16:27; Heb. 9:26-28; Titus 2:13; etc.]
to judge both the living and the dead [Matt. 25:31-46; John 5:22-23, 28-29; Acts 10:42; 17:31; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Thess. 1:7-8; Rev. 2:23];
whose kingdom shall have no end [Luke 1:33; Eph. 1:19b-21; Heb. 1:8; Rev. 11:15].

And we believe in the Holy Spirit [Matt. 28:19],
the Lord [2 Cor. 3:16-17]
and Giver of Life [Ps. 104:30; Ezek. 37:14; John 3:5-8; 6:63; Rom. 8:2, 6, 10-11; 2 Cor. 3:6; Gal. 5:25],
who proceeds from the Father [John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7],
who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified [Matt. 28:19; Phil. 3:3; cf. Matt. 12:31-32; Mark 3:29],
who spoke by the prophets [Acts 1:16; 28:25-27; Heb. 3:7-11; 10:15-17; 1 Pet. 1:11].
And we believe one holy catholic and apostolic church [Eph. 2:18-22; 3:5-6; 4:4].
We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins [Luke 24:47; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Eph. 4:5].
And we look for the resurrection of the dead [John 5:29; 11:24-25; Acts 4:2; 23:6; 24:15; Rom. 8:11; 1 Cor. 15; etc.],
and the life of the world to come [Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; 20:34-35; etc.].
Amen.

The Definition of Chalcedon (451)
We, now, following the holy Fathers [Matt. 16:18; 28:20; 2 Tim. 2:2; Jude 3]
all with one consent [1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 4:5, 11-16],
teach men to confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ [2 Cor. 11:4; Eph. 4:5],
the same perfect in Godhead [Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:3]
and also perfect in manhood [Phil. 2:7-8; Heb. 5:8-9];
truly God [John 1:1, 18; 20:28; Acts 20:28; Rom. 9:5; Tit. 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:1]
and truly man [Acts 2:22; 1 Cor. 15:21; Heb. 2:5-9],
of a reasonable [logikes] soul [Matt. 26:38-39; John 11:33; 12:27; Acts 2:27, 31]
and body [Matt. 26:12; 27:56-59; John 2:21; Heb. 10:10];
consubstantial [homoousion] with the Father according to the Godhead [theoteti, Grk.; deitate, L.] [John 1:1; 10:30; 14:9; Col. 1:19, cf. 2:9; Heb. 1:3];
and consubstantial with us according to the Manhood [John 1:14; Acts 2:31; Rom. 1:3; 8:3-8; 1 John 4:2];
in all things like unto us, without sin [Heb. 2:14, 17; 4:15; 5:8-9];
begotten before all ages of the Father according to the Godhead [John 1:14, 18; 5:26; 6:57; Gal. 4:4],
and in these latter days [Heb. 1:1-2],
for us and for our salvation [Luke 2:10-11],
born of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God [theotokos], according to the Manhood [Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:27, 31, 34-37, 43; 2:7];
one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-Begotten [Luke 2:11; John 1:14-18],
to be acknowledged in two natures [phuseon] [Rom. 1:3-4; 9:5; Phil. 2:6-8; Col. 2:9],
inconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably [Heb. 1:10-12; 13:8];
the distinction of natures being by no means taken away by the union, but rather the property of each nature being preserved, and concurring in one Person [prosopon] and one Subsistence [hupostasis] [Luke 8:22-25; John 8:57-58; 1 Cor. 2:8; Gal. 4:4; Phil. 2:6-8; Heb. 2:14-18],
not parted or divided into two persons [Eph. 4:5],
but one and the same Son, and only-begotten, God the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ [John 1:1-3, 14-18];
as the prophets from the beginning have declared concerning him [Heb. 1:1-13];
and the Lord Jesus Christ himself has taught us [Matt. 28:19-20; John 3:16],
and the Creed of the holy Fathers has handed down to us [1 Tim. 3:16; Jude 3].


Grace and peace.