Theology

Theology is the study of God and the nature of religious truth. What you will find here is an attempt to define in plain everyday language some of the terms associated with the Christian faith. This section of the website also contains my opinion on a variety of topics related to faith, life, and practice as well as a few comments on things that particularly interest me - and in some cases, that are controversial. There is no particular significance to the order or the subjects presented, but you should test everything against God's Word.

Choose Your Weapons:
America, the militarily most powerful nation on earth is losing the war in Iraq and it may be because they are using the wrong weapons! When you have GOOD (though not everything in America is good) fighting against EVIL (and not everything in Iraq is evil) you have to choose your weapons carefully. "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God..." (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 KJV). Perhaps America would begin to win this war if Christians throughout the world got on their knees and started to pray. Prayer is a POWERFUL weapon and far more effective than any laser-guided bomb.

The Bible:
The Bible is the Word of God. It contains everything God wanted man to know about man's predicament and God's solution. It is a book worthy of a lifetime of study. Every word of the original text was precisely what God wanted said. The Bible is the final authority in all things.

Fundamental Truths (from a 7-year old):
The Good News of the Gospel is so simple even a child can grasp it. The following pictures, drawn by my daughter in her little scrapbook convey some incredible theology. Click here to see the drawings - opens a new page so you can return to this screen. These were scanned in right from her wire-bound notebook.

Angels and Demons:
There exists an innumerable host of powerful, intelligent, and highly organized spirit beings. Created by God, originally all were good, but due to a rebellion in heaven, some chose to join with the one who rebelled and have become the enemy of God and of man. We call the good spirit beings angels, and the evil, rebellious ones we call devils or demons. You can read about the rebellion in Isaiah 14:12-17 and in Ezekiel 28:11-19. Satan, the demonic leader, has been defeated at Calvary but is currently allowed to be ruler of the world (John 12:31). He will be crushed in the future and removed from his current position. Angels serve God and assist in the administration of God's kingdom and His creation. God provides "armor" that believers can put on to protect themselves from the attacks of Satan and his demons - unfortunately, many believers don't use the armor (Ephesians 6:10-18) so have been "neutralized" by Satan in their effectiveness for God.

God (The Father):
There is a God. He exists in three persons, Father, Son, and Spirit. God is infinite, eternal, unchangeable, all-wise, all-powerful, all-knowing, personal, holy, loving, just, gracious, good, and true. He is present everywhere, yet he is not part of his creation. Do you want proof God exists? Here's one of many: Consider the Jew. A people created, sustained, and supernaturally protected by God despite the Diaspora. What other ethnic group still exists and remains racially pure after 2000 years of being scattered across the face of the earth? The Jews are - in a very special sense - God's people. He is protecting the Jew and their nation because He has a plan for them that they will fulfill in the future. Need another reason? look around you - look at nature and the universe - do you really think all this just assembled itself without any input or creative force?

Jesus Christ (The Son):
The Second Person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ is God. He is fully man and fully God - He is the "God-man" described in the pages of Scripture. He existed, with God, in eternity past. At God's appointed time He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, and died as the only and all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. He died, was buried, rose from the dead, appeared to witnesses, ascended to heaven, now intercedes for believers, and is coming again in great power and glory. If you want to know more about God, study the life of Christ. Start in the Bible, New Testament, Gospel of John.

The Holy Spirit (The Spirit):
The Third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is God. He convicts people of sin and works in their lives to produce repentance and salvation. He restrains evil in the present world. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in the believers life, and guides, teaches, and leads the believer. He fills the believer with power and enables the believer to live a life of obedience that is pleasing to God. He gives believers gifts to serve the church and man, such gifts to be used in a proper and orderly manner, in love and without causing division, and not for self-promotion. Some gifts from the Holy Spirit to the early church (prophetic, healing, miracles, 'tongues') were for the authentication of the church and are not in effect today.

Other Religions:
There are many religions in the world that compete for our attention and our devotion. The five major religions are Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Each of these can be further divided into many branches or sects. Christianity, for example, can be divided in Roman Catholic and Protestant, and each of these has its own divisions. Can each person find his or her way to God? Some have viewed the path to God as a huge map, with any road ultimately leading to God. The Bible - our Final Authority - is not in any way unclear or ambiguous. It gives specific advice. It can speak for itself: "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 2:5). "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12).  Isn't that rather narrow-minded? You bet it is! I'm just glad God provided one way! "... wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." (Matthew 7:14-15). "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." (Proverbs 16:25). There you have it: the denominational label we put on a person is not so important - what counts is that a person be born again, regenerated by the Holy Spirit. Without that, a person is dead in trespasses and sin and will never see heaven. "He who has the Son has life; He who does not have the Son of God does not have life." (1 John 5:12).

The Use of Alcohol:
The use of alcoholic beverages is not condemned in the Bible (although drunkenness is) and anyone who tries to make a case for abstinence based on the Bible would have a difficult time. However, it should be noted there is a great difference in the strength of alcohol described in the Bible and the strength of alcohol that is in use today. Alcohol is a known poison and why anyone would want to consume a poison I find difficult to comprehend. The best position is to simply avoid the consumption of alcohol.

The Use of Tobacco:
It is unwise to use tobacco, whether it is a cigarette, a pipe or a cigar. Or even if you chew it. Does anyone still do that? Ugh! That tobacco is a carcinogen is a well established fact. There is no doubt at all it is detrimental to your health. Will smoking a cigarette keep you out of heaven? No, it won't. In fact, as one pastor said, "it may get you there sooner." John R. Rice (1895-1980), a fundamental Baptist evangelist and author spoke strongly about the evils of alcohol, tobacco, movies, and (if he was alive today), I'm sure, some aspects of the Internet.

Christians - Two Types:
A Christian is one who has been regenerated - or been "born again" - by the Spirit of God. Some profess to be Christians but are not. Sometimes we can tell when a person has been regenerated - an inward change results in an outward change - but other times, for a variety of reasons, we simply cannot tell. But for all those who have been born-again, we fall into one of two categories. John 15 describes these two types of Christians and Jesus illustrates with a vine and its branches. If we "abide in him" (first type) we will bear much fruit. If we are carnal Christians (second type) we are 'cut-off' and bear no fruit. And then what follows is an astounding promise (think about it!) from the lips of Jesus Himself: "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you." (John 15:7).

Christian Terms - Some Simple Definitions:

• SIN is any act or thought that violates divine law.
• SALVATION is that act by which a person is brought into a right relationship with God. Although this definition is vastly oversimplified, it involves God's grace, the forgiveness of sins, being adopted as a child of God, and given eternal life.
• JUSTIFICATION is the gracious act of God by which He grants the sinner full pardon from all guilt, full release from the penalty of sin, and full acceptance as a child of God.
• REDEMPTION is the act whereby Jesus Christ redeemed, or rescued us, from bondage to sin. He did this through His own substitutionary death, thereby satisfying the just demands of a Holy God for payment of the price for sin.
• RECONCILIATION is the act whereby God removes the enmity between Himself and the sinner. "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself" (II Cor. 5:19).
• REGENERATION is a spiritual rebirth caused supernaturally by the Holy Spirit. The term is often used synonymously with such terms as being saved, being born-again, or being converted.
• SANCTIFICATION is the act, process, or experience of purification by which a person is changed and made holy and acceptable to God through the supernatural working of the Holy Spirit. On the part of the Christian, it involves willing separation from impurities in the world and a renunciation of sins. The goal of sanctification is to conform us to the image of Christ.
• GLORIFICATION takes place at the final resurrection when the believer is then fully conformed to the image of Christ.

Heaven:
First of all, it is a real place - just as real as New York, London, Paris, or any other city. Heaven is the future home of those who have placed their trust in Jesus Christ. Jesus has promised us pleasures there far beyond what this life has to offer. It is permanent, enduring, and promises to be exciting - but the real joy will be the presence of Christ forever. He will be our God and we will be His people.

Hell:
Hell - also a place just as real as heaven or any earthy city - is the future home of the unrighteous - of all people who reject God's gracious offer of salvation in Christ. Jesus issued many warnings in the New Testament regarding both the horrors and permanence of hell. I reject completely the annihilation theory, where a person ceases to exist at the point of death and that is 'hell.'  Although the idea of a permanent abode in hell is difficult to comprehend and very unpalatable, it nevertheless is what the Bible teaches.

Attributes of God:
God is an invisible, personal, living and active Spirit, distinguished from all other spirits by several kinds of attributes. Thanks to Walter Elwell in his Evangelical Dictionary of Theology for the following on the attributes of God... reading his dictionary gave me a new high and lofty view of God - I hope it will do the same for you.

• Metaphysically - God is self-existent, eternal, and unchanging.
  • God is different from all other spirits because he is self-existent: He does not depend upon the world or anything in it for His existence. The world depends upon him. God has life in himself (John 5:26) and not in anything in the space-time world. He has no beginning, no growth, no old age, and no end. Although God is not limited by space or time, he created a world with space and time.
• Intellectually - God is omniscient, faithful, and wise.
  • God's intellectual capabilities are unlimited, and God uses them fully and perfectly. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. God is faithful even when we are unfaithful because he cannot disown Himself (II Tim. 2:13). God is perfectly wise - he knows all the relevant data on any subject, and acts in harmony with his purposes. He not only chooses the rights ends, but also chooses them for the right reason.
• Ethically - God is just, holy, righteous, merciful and loving.
  • God is morally spotless in character and action, upright and pure, and untainted by evil desires, motives, thoughts, words or actions. God is holy, and as such is the standard for what is right. God values purity and detests impurity. God is just or righteous - his judgment is not capricious or arbitrary but principled and without respect of persons. In mercy and grace God gives undeserved benefits to whom he chooses.
• Emotionally - God detests evil, is longsuffering, and compassionate.
  • God is one who delights in justice, righteousness and holiness. Although God is slow to anger, he will in no way leave the guilty unpunished (Nah. 1:3). God is properly jealous for the well-being of the objects of his love. God is angry at injustices done to his people but suffers without losing heart. Because of God's great love and compassion, we are not consumed. The Father who Jesus disclosed is deeply moved by everything that hurts his children.
• Existentially - God is free, authentic, and omnipotent.
  • God is free! From all eternity, God is not conditioned by anything other than himself contrary to his purposes. Good things are purposed with divine pleasure. Evil things are permitted with divine displeasure. God is not free to approve sin, to be unloving, to be unwise, to ignore hard facts of reality, to be unfaithful, to be uncompassionate or unmerciful. God is self-conscious - knows who he is and what his purposes are. He has a keen sense of identify, meaning, and purpose.
• Relationally - God is transcendent in being, immanent universally in providential activity, and immanent with his people in redemptive activity.
  • God's character is holy, humanities character fallen and sinful. God's desires are consistently against evil yet long-suffering and compassionate; human desires fluctuate inconsistently and often intermingle evil with good. God's energy is untiring and inexhaustible; the world's energy is subject to depletion through entropy.

Calvinism:
John Calvin (1509-1594) has often been called the "systemizer of the Reformation" because he brought together biblical doctrine in a way no one before him had done. A remarkable man, the writing of his Institutes of the Christian Religion will stand as a masterpiece of organized exposition. In the Institutes, every doctrine is presented as part of the whole. Others (such as Luther) had defended the truth and exposed error but did so on an ad hoc basis. Calvin, on the other hand, takes the whole written Word of God as one indivisible declaration of truth. Nowhere in this remarkable work will one find selections of bits of truth being built into a pre-conceived idea. Rather, his treatise is complete and harmonious in every way. No other author to Calvin's place in history had treated the Bible as a complete work.

The Institutes is not all that makes Calvin a remarkable man, but it would have sufficed. Calvin, an author, preacher, lecturer, and politician also wrote commentaries on every book of the Bible except the Revelation. These were written with the same careful attention to detail as is seen in his Institutes. Calvin regarded the Bible as sacred - it was as sacred to him as if he had heard its words spoken by the Author Himself. All of his writing stands unrivalled for depth and clarity.

Calvin's essential beliefs can be summed up in five points, quite appropriately referred to as the Five Points of Calvinism.

The acrostic "T-U-L-I-P" makes them easy to remember:

• T - Total Depravity:
  When Calvinists speak of humanity as being totally depraved, this does not mean that every person exhibits the worst of all possible sinful extremities. (This is probably the most misunderstood of Calvin's points). Total depravity is an extensive statement, not an intensive one. The effect of the fall of man is that sin has extended to his entire being - his will, his emotions, his thinking.  It is not that mankind is intensely sinful (although in some cases this clearly is the case), but that sin has extended to his entire being. Because man is "dead in trespasses and sin" he is unable to initiate any action that would help to save himself.
• U - Unconditional Election:
  This is the doctrine which states that God chose those to whom he was pleased to bring a knowledge of himself, and it was not based on any merit shown by the object of his grace and also not based on his looking forward to discover who would accept the offer of the gospel. God has elected, entirely through his own will, some people for glory. He did this before the world was formed. Because man is spiritually dead, he is unable to initiate a response to God and so in eternity past God elected certain people to salvation.
• L - Limited Atonement:
  This doctrine is intended to answer the question "For whose sins did Christ atone?" Although a tenet of Calvinism, this doctrine finds many objections among evangelical Christians. (The doctrine has also been referred to as "particular redemption"). Did Christ die for all people of every generation? Or only for the 'invisible church,' for those that would be saved? We know He died to make the church holy. Did Christ atone for all men? If so, why are all men not saved? Does that make his death only partially effective? How does this reconcile with the free will of man (see next point) and "whosoever will may come." Because God determined that certain people should be saved, he also determined that Christ should die for the elect. Of this we can be sure: Christ will not lose any the Father has given to him, John 6:37.
• I - Irresistible Grace:
  Men will come to Christ in salvation when the Father calls them, and the Spirit of God will lead His loved one's to repentance. The result of God's grace is the certain response by the elect to the inward call of the Holy Spirit, at a time when the outward call is given by the evangelist or minister to the Word of God. God "makes man willing" to come to him - when God calls, man responds.
• P - Perseverance of the Saints:
  This doctrine states that the saints will remain safely and securely in God's hand until they are glorified and brought to abide in the Father's home in heaven. When a person has been truly regenerated by the Spirit of God, they will continue in the faith and remain securely in God's providential care, and he will see them safely home. The "called ones" are eternally secure.

Eternal Security:
Some Christians believe that once they are saved they will have to work hard at remaining saved! You didn't have to work to get saved - except to agree with God about your desperate condition - so why would you have to work to stay saved? It just doesn't make sense - but there are deeper reasons to believe that once you are saved, you are saved for all eternity! Here's a few:

• God promised to glorify those that He predestined, called, and justified. If only one person in that group was lost, then God's promise would be broken - which is not possible. Romans 8:30.
• God's power will keep the believers safe and secure, not our own power. John 10:28 & 29 says no one can be snatched from the Father's hand. No one means not one!
• If someone can lose his salvation, then it implies that Christ's death was insufficient payment for his sins, yet Christ's resurrection proved that the penalty of sin had been paid in full.
• John 6:39-40 states that everyone who believes in Christ will be raised at the last day - everyone who believes - not everyone who believes and 'keeps himself saved.'
• Eternal security is God's work, not man's. Once you are saved - you're saved! Praise God!

The Church:
When we talk about the church, we're not talking about hundreds-of-years-old stone buildings with towering marble columns! We're not talking about magnificent stained glass windows and opulent organ music! That may describe a building where the church meets, but the church - as described in the Bible - is invisible! The true church is composed of believers in Jesus Christ - those born-again ones - from every generation from the Day of Pentecost to the end of time when our Lord calls us home at the rapture. Christ is the head of the church, and the church exists to carry out - through the power of the Holy Spirit - Christ's work in the world. The purpose of the church is to worship, praise and glorify God by proclaiming the Gospel to the world. The church is to teach God's Word and equip God's people to walk and serve in the power of God's Spirit. God ordained two ordinances for the church: Baptism is a public testimony of a believers faith in Christ and identifies the believer with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. The Lord's Supper - or communion - is the believer's remembrance of our Lord's death. It is preceded by careful examination and humble submission to the Lord. Churches are organized and governed according to the instruction given in God's Word. Those in this leadership role are to guard the purity of doctrine, shepherd the flock, and oversee church matters.

Interpretation of Scripture:
If Scripture is our final authority, and it is, then we must interpret the Bible properly if we are to practice and live by God's Word. With the Holy Spirit as our guide, I believe the following time-tested principles are appropriate:

• normal - understand the words of Scripture in their common usage unless the context indicates otherwise.
• literal - understand the words of Scripture in their normal sense unless the context requires a figurative or other interpretation.
• grammatical - use standard rules of grammar to interpret the text.
• historical - understand the words of Scripture recognizing the times in which they were written.
• systematic - categorize and compare the teaching of Scripture with the whole of the Bible in view (compare Scripture with Scripture).

additional topics to follow...

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