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THEO201 Dr.
Gnanakan
Theology Survey I (Liberty
University)
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Thomas Aquinas: God (theos) + meaningful words (logia): taught by God, teaches of
God that leads to God.
Anselm: Faith seeking understanding. (Theology)
- The Biblical God: personal, rational and relational who exists as trinity
● The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - coeternal, coexistent and
coequal Theology: Right thinking about God
1. Theology is something we are taught by God.
2. It teaches OF God.
3. Theology leads us to
God. Goal of Theology is
Doxology
We cannot know God until God makes himself
known to us. Systematics: the Biblical God is at
work in His world
- Historical theology of the Church; more descriptive than prescriptive.
- Ecumenical approach that seeks to unite Christians across traditions.
- Creedal: 325 AD Nicaea essential statement of faith of Bible narrative.
- Eschatological: God in Christ by Spirit bringing His kingdom on earth.
Augustine: Within every human heart, there is a God shaped vacuum.
Hebrews 11:6
Without Faith it is impossible to know and
please God The object of Faith is God
Aquinas: Theology is actually being taught by God
Blackwell and Hatchet (B&H): Engaging Theology
(ET) Theology is 3 things:
- Biblical
● About God’s story
- Historical
●
- Practical
●
Theology Proper: about God the Father and
his work Christology: about Jesus and his work
Pneumatology: about the Holy Spirit/Ghost and his
work Trinity: God is 3 in 1
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Ortho
(Right/proper)
- Doxy (beliefs)
- Praxis (practice)
- Pathy (feelings)
What you believe determines how you will behave
Credibility: we have a credibility crisis
1. Foundational theology
2. Ethics
3. Morality
John 13:17
Father, you have given me the truth and I have passed it on to these disciples so
that they may be one.
Ecunism: we are united as one
- Doctrine, what you believe
- Obedience of faith
- Blessing of life
Eschatology:Study of end
things Holistic Eschatology
First 500: Patristics of the age of the fathers
Next 500 years, church split: Medieval era and
Byzantine era Why the church is divided: filique (And
the Son/Son also)
1500:
Protestantism
The main thing is to keep the main thing as the main thing (the gospel)
William Temple: “If your concept of God is wrong, the more religion you get the more
dangerous you become to yourself and to others.”
Readers are
leaders
Information is
power
Sound Doctrine (Orthodox)
Heretics/Heresy (opposite of
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orthodoxy)
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How to train in this class:
1. Story
2. Draw out doctrine, what is true? Doctrinal exposition/Truth
3. So what? Relevance
4. What’s next? Application/Practice
Nicaea 325AD
When it was decided why and how Jesus is god. Proved the deity of Jesus
Split into East (Greek) and West (Latin) over Jesus
Second split (Great Schism) 1054, over who Jesus comes from (Holy Spirit or the
Father), forms Eastern Orthodox
Protestant Reformation 1517, church split over
authority Vatican 2 1962-65, Pentacostal
Church divisions:
1. Roman Catholic
2. Eastern Orthodox
3. Protestant
4. Pentacostal (modern)
Pentacostal’s have a desire to experience God rather than follow strictly the Bible
Truth or tradition
—-
Tradition is good because we can learn from what God has done in history,is the
living faith of our fathers.
traditionalism is the dead faith of living people
The Enlightenment - Modernism (16th century), has to do with the mind: human
reason/rationalism
Individualism - my mind, I can figure it out
Deism - Belief that there is a god, a non-systematic
god 19th century - Postmodernism: relativism -
truth is relative
Pluralism - multiple truths that lead to the same goal/more than one way to God
Universalism - folk religion/pop-culture: tell me what to believe and I will make my
own “religion” Unorthodox Cults
Nonnegotiable beliefs of Christianity:
1. What the Father has said in his Word
2. What the Son has done on the Cross
3. What the Spirit alone can do in our
hearts
Revelation/Redemption/Regeneration
World Religions
Judaism - Strict monotheism: Torah, temple, tradition, Moses-law, Maimonides 13
articles
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Islam: Allah-Mohammad-Quran; 5 pillars, 6 articles; prophet
Isa, Injil? Hinduism: oldest diversified; samsara-karma;
moksha-margas, avatar
Buddhism - The only other missionary faith, fastest and most growing spirituality in
America: “Axial Age” Gautama, suffering; 4 Noble truths, 8-fold path
Cult, why are they dangerous?
APOL 325 (on cults) RLGN 350 (9 religions)
1. Distorts truth
2. Deceives believers
3. Disgraces
4. Destroys
Orthodoxy, Sects,
Cults
1. Revelation
- We cannot know God until he makes himself known to us
- The bottom live is that Revelation is redemptive
2. Reason (Mind)
3. Redemption (Salvation)
God has
spoken It is
written
Theological method:
Thomas Aquinas vs Carl
Barth Reason vs revelation
Approach/method, what is your starting point?
Aquinas
- Became a monk
- Brilliant theologian
- Non-dualism mystic
Theology is the queen of all sciences
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Plato
- There are somethings that are perfect, and there are things that
are realistic Dualism - having two things
The Bible - Science
—---------- —---------
2 books:
-God’s word
-His Living World
Carl Barth
- A pastor
- Came out of the holocaust
- Be careful when you are all reason and don’t trust
god’s word Are you willing to embrace things you cannot
explain?
4 Sources
1. Reason
2. Tradition
3. Experience
4. Scripture
Terms:
- Epistemology, how do we know what we know
- Analogy
- Metaphor
- Mystery
- Paradox
- Contradiction
Doctrine:
- Unity in diversity
- Practice of belief
- Community in conversation
Romans 10:17
The heart has reasons that the mind doesn’t know
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Love always gives, gives, gives, and
forgives Lust always gets, gets, gets,
and forgets
Scripture will always be a
counterculture Counterculture
- The Scripture’s Supremacy vs my sovereign, subjective Self
If a fish is flowing with the current, it is
dead. A living fish swims against the
current.
Divine Revelation is a form of communication
Revelation has a particular Nature, content and scope
- General/Special/Universal
God speaks to us through
nature 3 Modes:
1. Heavens nature
2. History events
3. Human mind
We can know God only because he chooses to reveal himself to us
Our mind, though marred, is God’s gift. We are created in his image
(Imago Dei) Natural theology - knowing God through nature
Seeing God through nature shows us:
1. His wisdom
2. His power
Humans must respond to general revelation and take
responsibility Faith - dependence on God
Words to remember
1. Revelation is redemptive
2. Science and the Bible don’t need to be against each other
3. Good people don’t go to heaven, only perfect ones
Wacky words
1. Theory - scientifically explains something
2. Mystery - a truth that has been hidden/veiled that in time will be
revealed/unveiled
3. Metaphor -
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4. Paradox - Something seems to contradict something else, but they can be
resolved
5. Contradiction - Something is A and it is not A at the same time and
in the same relationship
6. Analogy
John 17:3 - And this is eternal life that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus
Christ whom you have sent
Hebrews 1:1-2 - Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our
fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by His Son,
whom he has appointed as heir of all things, through whom also created the world.
God does not save us, Jesus saves us. God guides us to
Jesus Prodigal = someone who is extravagant
Language -we need language to talk
about God Words - words have meaning
Meanings can be misunderstood, and if you are misunderstood you will be misjudged
Epistemology: how to “know” and “speak” about God
Approach 1: univocal = using words with exact meaning
Approach 2: equivocal = words with completely different
meaning
Approach 3: analogical = resembling yet incomplete and imperfect with
(dis)similarities, not exhaustively yet relates meaningfully
Analogy = When you use a word in order to compare, but it resembles the other in a
non-exact way
Christianity is the only religion to call God father, because of the Son.
Thomas Aquinas saw God’s reason mysteriously coded into
creation’s fabric Barth rejected natural theology, so analogy was
an “idolatrous” tool
Both engage with God, preserve mystery. Do theology from
above “Don’t develop a theory for what the Bible calls a
‘mystery’!” - Dr. G
The difference from theology from below (using human reason) and theology from
above is humbly receiving God’s revelation
3 Styles: God’s special ways to come down to humans
1. Personal - We can know God’s person, ways and will by His covenantal
name and participate in His saving purpose
2. Anthropic - God communicates in human categories, e.g. language so we may
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encounter or experience God’s voice in visions and dreams
3. Analogical - we qualitatively share some of God’s attributes: wisdom, power,
etc. in kind but in degree God’s is higher, perfect, and absolute
Divine Dynamism - God is at
work Cataphatic
Apathetic
Hebrews 1:1-2, God speaks through his Son, Jesus
God primarily speaks through what he has spoken, i.e. the Word of God, the Bible.
God still speaks. (Divine Dynamism) the collective voice of the Holy Spirit is shrined
in the Holy Creed
● Metaphors in the bible are poetic comparisons to help us understand and
trust the God’s person and ways without violating his character
● Theologia is our contemplation of the story of God at work economia
- Our response to God’s story at work
● Approaching an infinite God as the subject of theological reflection
1. Apophatic: what God is not
2. Cataphatic: What He is
● Paradox: an “apparent” contradiction that can be resolved some time
● Contradiction: something is A and non-A at the same time/relation- goes
against laws of logical, impossible to resolve by God or humans
Economia - has to do with how we manage
God in his economia (his economy) comes
to us Mystery, meaning, and means of
grace
Sign -
Symbol - a sign with no words that implies strong meaning(s)
Sacrament - a sign that becomes a symbol of God’s enabling or powerful grace that
can change my mind, heart, and behavior
5 C’s of Divine Revelation
1. Creation - declares God’s glory (His wisdom and power)
2. Conscience - senses what God wants as a moral being
3. Commands - the Scriptures; God’s will is in God’s Word
4. Christ - God’s full and final Word that saves is Jesus
5. Church is Christ’s Body - what’s the Gospel according to Christians?
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What does God require of us to do with what we know? (Duet 29:29)
There are “secret things”, but revelation is for us to trust and
obey Special revelation reveals God’s Grace that brings
Salvation, Titus 2:11
God personally communicates but what he says becomes propositional truth (what
he said is written down)
All truth is God’s truth
5 P’s of Particular revelation:
1. It is Personal
2. It is Propositional
3. It is Progressive
4. It is Preserved
5. It is Potent
Rupertus Meldenius
- Studying theology, the queen of sciences, all truth is God’s truth
- What is central and certain? So, fundamentalism claims in theology
everything is essential; but for postmodernism, nothing is essential
- Does/can theology change over time and adapt to different settings?
- How much do we allow one’s experience and other sources to shape it?
- Mystery, skepticism, the role of doubt and the opposite of faith is doubt
- PM = loss of Absolutes
The Trinity: God’s Three-in-Oneness
God’s revelation is progressive, he unveils these mysteries over time
Even the Christian God is community, we need one each other
The main challenge maintain the oneness of God and validate and identify
his threeness Oneness: Has to do with his being, his essence, who he is.
Threeness: In his persona, three distinct persons:
- Existent
- Equal
Order of revelation
[Economy] The story of
the Bible
The nature of His being, who he
is What we do comes out of who
we are
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Bottom line:
1. Your identity as a Chirstian
- Could Jesus save us if he wasn’t God?
2. It affects how we work with other people
- Ecumenicity (the quality of state of being drawn close to
others through ecumenism.
3. Worship
- We were created for worship
- Missions exist because there is not worship
We do not need to feel the presence of the Holy Spirit to acknowledge it
The church that was poor and persecuted was the church that was pure
and powerful Nicea 325 AD: Athanasius vs Arius
Athanasius: Became the Bishop of
Alexandria Arius: Did not like Athanasius
Bishop of Mirah in Turkey: Will Smith’d Arius in front of the other
bishops Saint Nicholas
Jesus is made of the same essence of
God Economic aspect of the Trinity
-
Immanent aspect of the Trinity
- God’s being
- Any attribute in one part of God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) is in the other two
The truth of the trinity is the unique contribution of the Chirstian faith that sets us
apart from others
Only God can save
Jesus can save
Therefore, Jesus is
God
Analogies can be helpful, but they will eventually fail
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You cannot use finite resources to fully understand something that is infinite
God does not intentionally make the Trinity difficult to understand because it is
who he is, and any other description would be in accurate
The Trinity in the Old Testament and New Testament:
● Revealed by God Himself
● Repeated by humanity – through meetings, councils, writings
● Resounded by the angels
You need to understand the holiness of
God Three Major Errors/Heresies
debunked
1. The Trinity is NOT TRI-THEISM
- Tritheism teaches the Godhead is 3 separate beings forming three
separate gods
- Often misplaced by cults for the doctrine of the Trinity
2. The Trinity is NOT MODALISM
- Modalism - God is not three distinct persons; the Father, Son, and
Spirit were merely modes or roles that the one real God took on
3. The Trinity is NOT SUBORDINATIONISM
- Subordinationism - The approach to the Trinity, sometimes called
dynamic monarchianism, pictures the Father as the “full octane God’
- the monarch - and the Son as a lesser and different god (a semi-
divine being) who serves the Father. And the Spirit is an even lesser
god
- Denies that the Spirit and the Son are equal with the Father and thus
are not fully divine
Frequency - do it frequently and
short Recency - do it close to the
day
Shield of Faith: The Father is not the Son and the Son is not the Holy Spirit and the
Holy Spirit is not the Father, but they are all God
Trinitarian: Father is the begetting of the Son and the Procession of the Spirit
- Son: Incarnation
- Spirit: Pentecost
There was a time that Jesus was not
human Nature of his being/essence/ousai
(Ontology)
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The Rule of Faith: the early Church’s summary of essential Christian doctrines. A
body of materials that summarized the non-negotiables
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All these church father’s that met in Nicea all believed in the Bible. Why do
they disagree? Misinterpretation
Non-negotiables:
1. Salvation in Christ
2. Worship
The greatest apologetic proof that the gospel works, is a life that is
changed. Story, the King (Father) sent the Son who sends the Holy
Spirit
As the story unfolds, God reveals himself more
and more. It is immanent
Any one person’s work (in the Trinity), all three participate.
We know God via economia, the mission of the Son (Incarnation) and Spirit
(Baptism) Because of the Trinity
Immane
nt
Economi
c
God is with
us God is in
us God is for
you
Liberal Theology (Schleiermacher) with experiential relativism has developed a
private “tolerant” notion of “God” in whoever our one nation trusts. Not good.
Making experience above the Bible.
Relativism: if it feels good for you, then it must be
right. This causes the Bible to not be absolute.
Modelism: A large unknown supreme being is split into the Father….. The Son….. The
Spirit Subordination: Father, the supreme god…. Son, a lesser god…. The Spirit, an
even lesser god
Elohim is the “plural” name of the One, true eternal God who has progressively
revealed Himself in three persons engaged redemtively “together” in His world
The Bible begins by affirming God’s existence
Scripture does not go out of its way to prove God’s existence, it affirms God’s
existence
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The Holy Spirit is a person. Not a force, voice or virtue
like love. Mind, emotions, and will.
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God is separate from all His creation. Not one with (monism) or in it
(panentheism) Monnism, all is one
Panentheism, everything is god and god is everything
Terms that misrepresent the Bible’s teachings on the trinity:
Monarchianism: Rigorously retains the sole, singular sovereignty of the God of the
Bible Tritheism: Three distinct “gods”, lends itself to many/polytheism or one
fav/henotheism Modalism: Sabellius’ God appeared in three successive modes:
creator Father, redeeming Son, empowering Spirit
Arianism: Arius’ heresy held by Jehovah Witnesses says that Jesus was created by
God the Father to save people
Patripassianism: God the Father Himself becomes incarnate to suffer for us and to
suffer as the Son of Man
Adoptionism: God the Spirit at Jesus’s water baptism descends to empower him to
become God the Son
Deviant religions that distort the trinity to derail us from orthodoxy:
Judaism: Advocates strict monotheism, finds identity in tradition and articulates 13
principles of faith.
Islam: Champions radical monotheism as taught by the prophets with a faith
upheld by five pillars.
Hinduism: The oldest, most diversified of religions believes in the cycle of life and
checks “credit karma”.
Buddhism: This faith seeks escape from suffering and proposes four noble truths with
an eightfold path.
Mormonism: This polytheistic group believes God has a human body and humans
eventually become “gods”
Jehovah Witnesses: This group: like Arius, teaches the Son was created and is the
same as Michael the archangel
John 1:14
John 17:3
Romans 10:13
Hebrews 1:2
Hebrews 11:6
1 Timothy 3:16
Aquinas
Anssim
Athanasius
Arius
Barth
Phase 2:
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Divine Revelation - God’s self-disclosure
1. General - through universal acts of creation
- Common
- Universal
● The heavens declare the glory of God
● History reveals his works through events
● The glory of God is revealed through our senses
2. Special - through his will at a particular time at a particular place to a
particular people
- It is about God’s Son
- About salvation
- Through the Bible
● The Proclaimed Word - somebody shared the gospel
● The Written Word - the Bible
● The Living Revealed Word/Incarnation - A word that came alive, Jesus Christ
Verse 1: Titus 2:11
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all
people.” Grace - a person, embodied, bringing salvation
Salvation comes to us in the person of Jesus
1. (Creation) God reveals himself in creation (such as the star that leads to Jesus)
2. (Conscience) We can know God because we are made in his image (Imago
Dei)
3. (Commands) God reveals his character through his commands/laws
4. (Christ) God reveals himself through Christ
Natural Theology - 1&2, Brings us to 3, which leads us to 4
General/universal revelation compliments and guides seeker to the
special/saving The Word of God:
1. It was written by over 40 different authors
2. It was originally written in 3 languages, Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic
Verse 2: 2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is:
1. Reliable
2. Profitable
3. Able to save
Irenaeus (AD 140-202) Bishop of Lyon
- He was well connected to the Apostles
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- He was a Defender of the Faith
● He defended what was right
● He wrote about what the Apostles said
- He taught what was wrong that was spreading, against Heresies
- He was a Unifier
● He united the Word of God, showed the continuity between the Old
and New Testament
● He united the church to have one faith
- Known for the 3 C’s, which united the church:
1. Clergy
2. Creed
3. Canon
- Irenaeus dealt with divisive Marcion
- Irenaeus dealt with Gnosticism
1. Dualism - God is spirit and good, the earth is material and bad.
2. Emanations - some things come from the spirit and become
material, which means they become bad. This implies that Jesus is
not God because Jesus is material
3. You have to have a special knowledge to know God. Only a few elite
people have this knowledge
The Church of the Colossians - dealt strongy with gnosticism
- Colossians 1:19 - The spirit of the Lord is with us, and we are
complete in Christ You don’t need more of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit
needs more of you.
The Father has a
plan The Spirit
makes it clear
The Son works on salvation
3 statements that involve the authority of the modern translations of the Bible:
1. We don’t have the original autographs, so we can’t trust any of the versions
that we have today
2. God’s Word, properly interpreted for today, is absolutely true in all that
it claims and affirms
3. My English Bible translation is without any error and can be scientifically
proven to be the Word of God
The new is in the old contained, and the old is in the new revealed
The issue is not with the Word of God, it is with those who interpret the
Word of God Slide 6 has 10 questions:
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1. Revelation is God taking the initiative to reveal himself, top-down
2. Inspiration means to breathe out. It is a process by which the Spirit
guides human authors to share God’s words
3. Inerrancy - the original autographs are without factual errors, there are no
mistakes, but translations may have errors
4. Infallibility - The Bible cannot have anything false. It is God’s absolute truth.
5. Illumination - The Holy Spirit guides/helps believers to understand and apply
the Bible
6. Interpretation - To make sense of it (hermeneutics) and Draw out its meaning
(exegesis)
7. Canon - A standard or a rule
8. Canonicity - The 66 books. It is not something the church came up with
God has two books:
1. His World
2. His
Word
[Author]ity
Verse 3: 2 Peter 1:19-21
Inspiration follows Revelation
- Inspiration relates primarily to the book’s writer and in a derived sense to
their writings which have been providentially preserved
- The Spirit accommodated the authors’ human experiences and culture
that come through elements of their personality, style, grammar, word
choice etc., which is not dictated
- God’s sovereign providence is both in the act (Preservation) and in
the process (Transmission) of how we have a reliable Bible
The Word is 100% divine
Scripture does not bypass the human
instrument 5 theories of inspiration:
1. Intuition theory: very specially gifted humans wrote the 66 books
2. Illumination: all authors had a high degree of inner perception
3. Dynamic: God’s thoughts being expressed through the writers
4. Verbal: God exactly selected every word used
5. Dictation: What God said the authors like secretaries transcribed
Inspiration is God’s Spirit enabling human authors to record only what He
desired/wanted that’s preserved in the Bible
Integrative approach:
- The Spirit providentially led writers to use words that are particular and
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precise to convey
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God’s intended message with both clarity and translatability
Canonicity
Canon - a rule or a standard
The Church did not create, but recognized, received, and
submitted to it Apocrypha:
- The Council of Carthage, AD 397, the 66 books were already considered canon
- Apocrypha means, hidden. It was not obvious so it was not included in the 66
books
3 Criteria for Canonicity:
1. Apostolicity: was it written by an apostle or would an apostle vouch for it.
- An apostle is someone who witnessed Jesus’s resurrection and lived
with him
● Luke was the only non-Jewish apostle
● Paul did not witness the resurrection, but he did witness the
resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus which gives him
credibility
2. Universality: Globally accepted by “ecumenical” churches
3. Unity & Harmony: It’s authenticity depends on its unicity to the other books
Circular reasoning - going back to the source of credibility based on what the
source of credibility said
The Bible is Credible since it can be and has been shown to have:
1. Clarity: reasonable logic without any internal Contradictions
2. Coherence: its many truths “hold together” as one message
3. Consistency: in its internal, external, and existentially truth claims
- Internal - within the text
- External - outside of the text
- Existential -
4. It is Self-Critical: Acts 1:16 Luke records Peter quoting David who by the
same Spirit of Scriptures, confesses Jesus as Lord
- The Bible is the only book open for criticism, even within the text itself
3 Sources that provide credibility externally:
1. Historical evidence
2. Archaeological evidence
3. Geographical evidence
The type of evidence comes through a multi-disciplinary process
- Legal testimony
- Secular historicity
- Archeology
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Peter calls Paul’s writings “Scripture” and confessed it is difficult (1 Peter 3:16)
Hermeneutics: the Science, art/craft of making sense of
the text 3 steps:
1. Observation
- What does it say?
2. Interpretation
- What does it mean?
3. Application
- What should I do with what it says?
Over-emphasizing one at the expense of the others
1. Tradition: leads to Reformed theology
2. Reason: leads to Liberal theology
3. Experience: leads to Post-modern and Charismatic theology
3 Bad forms of authority
1. Papal authority
- The church is what God called us, so we are the authority
2. “Prophetic” words
- Using non-prophetic words as prophecies
3. Pentecostal visions
- Using “signs/”visions” as if they are God speaking to them. “I saw two
birds in the sky, which means you should give me money”
5 Exam Verses:
The Nature of Revelation, that it is inspired: 2 Timothy 3:16 Insipiration
God chooses to use human writers: 2 Peter 1:21 Inerrancy
We cannot understand what the writer wanted because these things are spiritually
determined: 2 Corinthians 12:14 Illumination
The gospel of grace, Jesus is the living word: Titus 2:11-12 Incarnation
There is a warning for anyone who says the Scripture is incomplete. Do not add or
subtract to the Bible: Revelation 21:18 add/subtract/Incomplete
Divine Revelation
Special Revelation
- The Bible is part of what we call special revelation
- Special revelation is special because it leads to salvation
- It is the believer’s supreme authority
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The Bible is:
1. Inspired
2. Inerrant
3. Infallible
General revelation is truth that God has revealed in all of our hearts and all of
creation Historic - Grammatical
- The method that we use to make sense of the scriptures
- What did the author intend for his original audience?
Galatians 1:8 - if an angel tells you another gospel (heterous), tell him to
go to hell Monotheism: The belief in one true God
Judaism: Do this and you shall live! (people of the book)
- The Jewish faith is about obedience to the Law
- “The Oral Torah” Moses taught things only through his mouth that were
based down through the generations rather than being written
- Mishnah, ask the Rabbi
- Talmud, how to understand the Law
Islam:
- Came from “revelations” from Mohammad across 23 years
- Words of God have to be Arabic
- Hadith, is the gospel/life of Mohammad, WWMD (What would Mohammad do?)
- The Quran overrules the Bible
- The Bible has been corrupted
- Mohammad is the comforter that Jesus promised to send
- Allah is the one and only god
- 3 things they would confirm:
1. The Torah
2. The Zabur (Psalms)
3. Gospel Injil
Hinduism:
- Sanskrit Vedas - means knowledge
- Upanishads - philosophical
- Gita, songs of the gods, it is oral canon
Buddhism:
- Tripitaka, 3 baskets of insights. The Sutra is the most important
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● Lotus Sutra - rebirth, Lotus
Jehovah’s Witness
- They subtract from the Scriptures
Mormons
- They add to the
Scriptures CH4.4 last slide
Exam stuff.
If Dr. G wants one gift for us and himself, it is the gift of discernment
“Why does bad thing happen to good people”
- book Providence
- Pro (before) Video
- Governance
● To rule
- Sustenance
● He provides
- God upholds and sustains us
- General Providence
● God governs the flow of history and its destiny
- Special Providence
● God governs that specific details within history
Agency
- The means by which God works
- Noncompetitive Agency
● God is involved 100% and science/humans are also 100%
Theodicy
3 Views on how God works:
1. Supernaturalism
- God created and is active governing-sustaining His world even against
nature
2. Providentialism
- God put a system within nature that does not need His miraculous
intervention
3. Occasionalism
- God consistently acts out His will each moment
ism = a problem
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Bad things to good
people:
Natural
causes:
- Diseases
- Weather destruction
Moral causes:
- Causes you bring upon yourself (smoking addiction leading to cancer)
You are free to choose what you want, but you are not free to choose the
consequences of those choices
3 aspects of God’s will:
1. Perfect (sovereign decree) God will bring it to pass, nothing can stop it
2. Prescriptive (revealed to obey) God gives us laws and we have the ability
but not the right to break
3. Pleasurable (desire) God shows us what is pleasing to Him, He allows evil
but does not approve it
Our problem is not that we don’t know what to do, it is that we don’t do what we
know to do Explaining the Presence of Evil and Suffering in God’s World:
1. Augustine: It is the result of human failure to obey
- Everytime we fail to meet God’s will, we are punished
2. Irenaeus: It is required for human progress
- It is how we learn to trust God and live more like Christ
3. Erikson/Gnanakan: Evil is a “necessary accompaniment” for freewill
- It is necessary for us to be able to make decisions
Independence
- Can become so individualistic that we “don’t
need” God Dependence
- You are trusting someone/something, you have expectations which
might lead to disappointment
- A constant trust for God /
Faith Codependence
- We have the ability to do something, but we expect others to do it, including
God
- Can be addicting
We need to realize that there is a love that is willing to wait.
Sometimes God gives you what you want, then you don’t want what
you’ve got. God always gives His best to those who give the choice to
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Him.
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To be human is to have the gift of freewill.
Challenging dilemma of a God who is both all powerful and all loving at once:
● If God is willing to prevent evil but not able to, then He must be impotent
● If God is able to stop evil but is not willing to, then God is malevolent
● If God is both willing and able, where is evil from or why do people suffer?
A God who is omnipotent but
vulnerable The Nature and Purposes
of a God who is:
1. Vulnerable: He chooses to endow freewill so we be able to reject His will
2. Victim: Jesus who knew no sin, suffers unjustly on the Cross for sinners
3. Victorious: Now/not yet Christ’s death-resurrection defeats sin, the 1st
cause of evil If God already knew our choices, why did he create or allow evil in
His world?
I’ve often been out of God’s will, but I’ve never been out of
God’s care. Story of 3 Trees:
The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
- Reveals/brings moral/natural
decay, Sin The Tree of Life
- Fixes our estate to our irresponsible choice, God’s
grace/Eternal life The Cross
- Jesus died “between the two trees”, defeating death/sin
God did not create sin. He provided the options that are necessary for us to
choose Him. We chose not to obey, which is why sin exists in the world.
God sent Jesus to free us from sin.
Where is God? He is with us when we suffer, and He suffers
with us. Jesus would have made
- Furniture
- Yoke
- Crosses
Satan tempts us to trip us or trap us. God tests us to prove us.
How do you know that you will obey God if you do not have the opportunity to do so.
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Suffering can be redemptive
How the other religions’ “gods” engage with the world:
Judaism
- The Creator acts providentially in answer to the believers’ prayers
Of all the major world religions, Judaism is the fastest shrinking religion
Islam
- Radically monotheistic submits to Allah’s predetermined will
- Inshallah
- Islam means submission
Islam is the most aggressive and fastest growing religion
Hinduism
- There is no divide between Creator or creation
- The soul loses its
individuality Buddhism
- There is no “god” outside of self
The litmus test of the christian faith is the belief in the resurrection: Christology,
what they say about Jesus
Cults:
Deism
- Mechanistic: based on reason
- Miraculous: cuts God out of the system and explains supernatural things
as miracles Jehovah Witnesses
- Discounts the deity of
Christ Mormonism
- God was a human being before becoming God
- We will become
gods 2 Corinthians 5:19
Cosmogony: How the universe began
Faith is required to believe in Creation
If you discount faith and only use your mind, then you need Evolution
Young-Earth Creationism - God made the world in a short amount of time, the Earth
is 6000~ years old
Old-Earth Creationism: Good made the world in billions of years and Adam and Eve
recently Evolutionary Creation: God superintended the evolutionary process
Naturalistic Evolution: Biological life naturally evolved, no “act of God”
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Providence: God guiding details of natural events
Pray: God always answers and provides for human needs
Miracles: 1. Glorifies God 2. Manifestes his powers 3. Authenticates his Word
Exam 2:
Revelation is God making himself known to us.
Revelation is top down.
Speculation - What you think about
God Speculation is bottom up
General Revelation - everyone, everywhere, has
access Special Revelation - given by writing,
Scripture
5 Modes of Revelation:
1. Creation
2. Conscious
3. Commandments
4. Christ
5. Church/Christianity (Christ in us)
Natural Theology: theology of reason that is from nature
The knowledge about God that we get from nature using
human reason The word became Carnia, Christ, flesh
Christ is all we need to know God
4 I’s of
Revelation:
1. Inspiration
- God breathed out
- Spoken by God
2. Inerrancy
- Without error
- No errors in God’s Word
3. Infallibility
- It won’t fail
- There is no falsehood
- Totally reliable
4. Illumination
- The Holy Spirit
- The Spirit sheds light
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Canon
- standard rule
- Which books belong in the
Bible Canonicity
- The process in which they established and chose the books of the Bible
Over 1500 years to put together the Bible
● 40 Authors
● 3 Languages
● 3 Continents
Agency: The means/instruments in which God uses to fulfill his work
Noncompetitive Agency: Things in the Bible that seem to contradict actually work
together Trinity:
1. The Father is the God of covenant, the covenant maker and keeper
2. The Son is the incarnate redeemer, the God who saves us
3. The Holy Spirit is the empowering presence
God’s grace not only saves us, it teaches us to live
righteously 2 Things about God and Creation:
1. Whatever God made, it has rationality
2. God is still at work
5 Major world views:
1. Gnosticism
- Everything in Spirit is good, and everything physical is bad
- Dualism - good and evil creates balance
2. Deism
- God is disconnected
3. Pantheism
- God is in everything
4. Humanism
- It is all about me
- Using human reason to determine truth
5. Monism
- All is one
Irenaeus
- Known for defending the faith and wrote against gnosticism
- He was a unifier of the church, the old and new testament
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Marcim
- The God in the old testament is a judge, but the God of the new
testament is a loving father.
Lottie Charlotte Moon
- Known for the lordship of Jesus Christ. He is lord of all the Earth
- God is still at work in His
world Martin Luther
- Reformation
- Diagram of 3 concentric circles
- A mighty fortress is our
God Karl Barth
- Challenged/advocated against natural theology
Faith comes by hearing, and hearing comes from the Word of
God Providence
- God will
provide
Providentialism
- God has already put a system into the world that it is able to take care of itself
- We do not need God’s intervention
- Excludes miracles
Occasion
- What is happening
now Occasionalism
- God is governing all things at every moment
Supernaturalism
- God is able to work in nature, but He is able to override it if he needs to do so
Young-Earth Creationism - God made the world in a short amount of time, the Earth
is 6000~ years old
Old-Earth Creationism: God made the world in billions of years and Adam and Eve
recently Evolutionary Creation: God superintended the evolutionary process
Naturalistic Evolution: Biological life naturally evolved, no “act
of God” Books of other religions: 4.4 slides
6 Verses:
- 2 Timothy 3:16
● All Scripture is given by God
- 2 Peter 1:21
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● The Holy Spirit moved the writers in a way that they wrote what
God wanted them to write.
- 1 Corinthians 2:11
● There is one person who understands the mind/will of God, the Holy
Spirit
- Titus 2:11
● The grace of God appeared in the flesh, bringing salvation
- Ephesians 3:20
- Revelation 22:18
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Phase 3:
The most important question that was ever asked: who is Jesus? (Matthew 16:15)
Colossians 1:15, Jesus is the express reflection of the image of God and the firstborn
of all creation
Jesus Christ lived before he was born, and he was born
expressively to die He died to rise again, and he lives to give
believers eternal life
5 Propositional Truths:
1. There is no Christianity without Jesus Christ
2. Jesus is 100% man and is also worshiped as 100% God, hypostatic union
- Who was the first one to address Jesus as God? Thomas (John 20:28)
3. Incarnation – God put on flesh/Jesus became human
- The first heresy addressed in the Bible – Jesus is not from God (1 John
4:2)
- Incarnation is not about a human who became God, it is the opposite
4. Intercessor – Jesus shares our humanity
- What is the singular sign/the litmus test/what makes us human? We
suffer and we die
-Jesus could suffer and die to be our substitute and Savior (3 S’s)
5. Not a man who ascends to be god, but God who descends in the flesh on
mission’
Cyril, Bishop of
Alexandria
- Biblical scholar
- Defied weak theology
- Back to the Bible
- Apostolic Authority vs. Imperial politics: power with God = Word
- Confronted the Jews, pagans, and impractical moral philosophy
- Against Arian subordinationism – Word made flesh is immutable
● Immutability – God doesn’t change
● Cyril – Jesus/God did not change
● Impassibility – God cannot
suffer Antioch in Syria
- Chrisitans wanted political influence/power
Nestorius, Bishop of
Constantinople
- Idealistic preacher/reformer
- Rejected theotokos
● Mary, Mother of God (bad)
● Christotokos – Mary, Mother of Christ (better)
- Divided Jesus’ 1 person
● God Jesus and Human Jesus are separate persons
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- God is impassible, so he experienced suffering “in Christ” to save us
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● Inchristos – God was in Christ
Jesus had to be human to die in our place, but he has to be God to forgive our sins
Cyril wins because he did not split Jesus. He stood with the Word
of God Nestorius was condemned and exiled, and he died in exile
How to find out who Jesus was
1. Theology from behind
- Messianic Expectations
- Covenant – God makes Covenants (Adamic, Abrahamic, Davidic)
- Adamic – God is going to use humanity to bring the Messiah, and the
Messiah is going to destroy the serpent (Satan/sin)
- Abrahamic – Through you all the nations will be blessed
- Davidic – The Messiah will come from the line of David. His kingdom
will reign forever
- God promised and fulfilled
- Jesus as the Son of God, the Son of Man (Daniel 7), and as Christ the
Lord
2. Theology from below
- What do you think?
- Who is this “man”, what authority?
- Jesus had a biological growth, but performed miracles that validated
him being the Messiah
- What sets Jesus apart is his bodily resurrection
3. Theology from above
- What God thinks/has revealed
- In Jesus’s character, Jesus is God
- Ousia – His being/natura
- Persona – His
person 431AD 6.1 slides
The Council of Ephesus, AD 431
- Leaders divide, enter politics, and lose love for one another
- Cyril, who was Bible-based wins council
- Nestorius, who divided Jesus-Christ was condemned
- God is immutable
- The Son of God passible can/did suffer not by nature but by choice
Immutable – God does not
change Passible – Suffer
Impassible – God cannot sin
Incarnation – When God became flesh, he could suffer because he shared our
humanity
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Christology from behind, below, and above reinforce each other
The Kenosis – A confession hymn: Philippians 2:7 “yet Chirst Jesus emptied Himself,
taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of humans”
Christ “emptied Himself”
- Of what?
● He veiled His divine glory, but did so temporarily
● He accepted the limitations of being human
● He voluntarily gave up the independent use of the full scope of
his divine attributes
- Why?
● For you and me
- How?
● Jesus is Lord
Pliny’s letter AD113 to Emperor Trajan; Church Fathers, Justin Martyr
The spirit of submission is always the spirit of
Christ The biggest problem of our society is
entitlement
Jesus learned obedience through sufferings, and He tasted death for us all
Christological Heresies Misunderstandings that denied/limited Christ’s fully divine or
human nature:
1. Ebionism
- Jesus is the Messiah
- As a human, He justified Himself by the works of the Law and set an
example
- His followers can do the same
- His DNA is not really divine
- Questions the genuineness of God
2. Arianism
- Jesus Christ is (hetro-ousia) not of the same substance of God
- The “first created” being
- Questions the completeness of God in Christ
- Jehovah Witnesses
3. Docetism
- Christ’s humanity was merely an “appearance” not a reality
- Jesus was fully God and only seemed to be a human
- Questions the humanness of the Son
4. Apollinarianism
- Jesus’s human spirit was replaced with the divine Logos
- His soul was fully divine, but His body was completely physical.
Therefore it did
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not possess a completely human soul and body
- Questions the fullness of God
Two more complex heresies (451AD Chalcedonian Commitment)
1. Nestorianism
- Jesus was half and half
- The Logos (Christ) indwelt the man Jesus only morally, not essentially,
to split or did drive a distinct wedge between Jesus’s natures resulting
in two persons
- These two natures were working in sync
2. Eutychianism
- You cannot separate the humanity from the deity, so there is a 3rd
person (A God-Man)
- Christ’s humanity is collapsed into his Deity therefore the 1 person of
Christ now has essentially blended
- Third nature (Docetic, seems like a human but a god)
Emphasis on non-deity:
- Ebionism: Jesus was not God
- Arianism: Jesus was not fully God
Emphasis on non-man:
- Docetism: Jesus was not human
- Apollinarianism: Jesus was not fully human
One person
- Nestorianism: Jesus was two distinct persons
Two Natures
- Eutychianism: Jesus had blended
nature Slide 6.2 charts
451AD Council of Chalcedon, Chalcedonian Fence
- Since the Incarnation, both natures exist as 1 person
- Do not overemphasize 1 nature or the other
- Adoptionism: Jesus is God’s adopted son, divine
- Christians partake of Christ’s nature yet are not “Christ”
4 Words of the
fence
1. In-confusedly
- Do not confuse
2. Unchangeably
- Do not change
3. Indivisibly
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- Do not divide
4. Inseparably
- Do not separate
Chirst laid aside the right to exercise His divinity, allowing Himself to be led by the
Spirit to suffer on the cross and die as our Savior
The uniqueness of Jesus, what makes him one of a
kind? The relevance of Jesus, so what?
The finality of Jesus, does he determine my destiny?
Deism (distant God): Jesus adopted
- He was setting an example of God’s love
- They do not believe his orthodoxy: God the Son, died for us, belief in him
gives us life eternal
Jehovah Witnesses: subordination, a lesser being
- The first created, therefore not equal to the Father because he was created
- New World Translation
Mormonism: exaltation, Jesus was a man who was exalted
- God became man
- Jesus was a man
- Jesus was made a god/exalted
- We will be made a
god/exalted All cults are
counterfeit
-“Prophets” create christs and gospels offering false salvation
- Galatians 1:8 “even if an angel comes and shares with you any other
gospel, tell the angel to go to Hell”
Judaism
- Jesus is not God
- False messiah/teacher
- Good rabbi who died for a good cause/a martyr
- Messianic Jews – Jesus might be the
messiah Islam
- Muslims call Jesus Isa
- Muslims believe more truth about Jesus than Jews would accept about Jesus
● They believe in the virgin birth
● They believe Jesus lived a sinless life and performed miracles
● They believe Jesus died/the crucifixion
● They believe Jesus will come again and convert the whole world to Allah
Hinduism
- Avatar: something divine that takes on human form
- Krishna: the biggest of the avatar’s
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- Avatars are many, but there is only one God. Jesus is the only one who can
forgive sins Buddhism
- Jesus is more than an avatar
- Buddhism is about enlightenment
- Jesus is an enlightened teacher
- A Bodhisattva (a little Buddha)
The problem with Hinduism and Buddhism is Jesus Only. Exclusive
The singular doctrine that separates Jesus from all other religions doctrines: the
Resurrection John 14:19 “because I live, you shall live also
T/F on Exam:
- Jesus Christ is the only founder of a faith that claimed to be equal with God
(John 8:58; 10:38)
- Jesus authoritatively said and did things only God could (Mark 2:5-7)
- Jesus claimed that He is the Only Way to God the Father (John 14:6)
- Jesus is the only name by which one can be saved and the only Mediator
between God and humans (Acts 4:12; 1 Timothy 2:5)
- Jesus’ resurrection is the greatest proof of His claims (Romans 1:14)
- Christ did not shed away His human nature at His resurrection, so we
worship a glorified “Person” who is both God and human
Impeccability – Jesus knew no sin. He was tempted yet he had no sin (Hebrews 4:15)
- Issue because if Jesus was 100% human, he could sin, but if Jesus was 100%
God, he could not sin
- The issue is if he could, not if he would
- 2 Corinthians: Jesus knew no sin, but God made him to be sin
- Jesus could be tempted, but could he yield to it?
Penal Substitution – Jesus died in our place as our substitute
- 1 Peter 2:22-24 : Jesus committed no sin, yet bore our sins in His body on the
tree
- His sinless life qualified Him for our substitution
- Since He took on our sins, He had to die
- Since He could not sin, death could not
hold Him When He was on the cross, I was on his
mind
1 Peter 3:18
On the cross, Jesus died with shame from guilt
Whose cross did Jesus carry?
- Barabass’s cross
We are not only saved from sin, we are saved from the wrath of God
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Therefore, let’s consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ (Romans
6:1-6)
God’s Nature: Holy
- His holiness sums up His character
- 2 Aspects of Holiness:
1. Righteousness
2. Just
God’s Law:
- Expresses His character
- An expression of His heart of love
Justice: disobedience leads to God’s wrath
- Legal
punishment Human
predicament
- We transgressed
- Total depravity
Solution:
- Sacrifice
- Jehovah Jireh: God will provide for Himself
- “Christ is our passover”
- Jesus appeared to put away sins to sacrifice Himself
The 5 Theories of Atonement:
1. Socinian
- Christ’s perfect example of sacrificial love
- Example of God’s love
2. Moral Influence
- God’s reconciling love draws us
- Influences us
3. Government
- Divine justice has ruled, respond to it
- Jesus took our punishment
4. Ransom
- The price Jesus paid (to Satan) for Victory
- Jesus was the ransom to save us from sin and everything that Satan
has a hold of
5. Satisfaction
- The Father God’s honor is fully restored
- It's not about Satan or us, it's about
God’s glory No one of these theories is sufficient
The At-One-ment of Christ – “The Cross has said it all.. The highest price was paid,
for our
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greatest need, to bring us the deepest comfort, and truest Joy! Here is holy
ground, here my Hope is found!” – Dr. G
Justification: Just as if I’ve never
sinned Polycruciology
- God’s wrath to punish sin is revealed alongside Christ’s constraining love
- God was “in Christ” redeeming & reconciling (buying & bringing) us to himself
- God’s justice required, yet his holy-love provided for our atonement in Christ
- God’s punishment for sins was laid on Christ who is our
mercy-seat/propitiation to satisfy God’s wrath; this Lamb’s blood cleanses
from sin to justify us
- So, God remains the Just One yet becomes the Justifier of all who trust in
Christ
10 Key Terms 6.4 Slides
- Propitiation (Mercy Seat): An offering that mercifully turns away God’s wrath
toward sin
Exam Questions:
Question 1:
Jesus is:
1. In my heart
2. In the tomb
3. In heaven above
4. In this
church Question
2:
What was Jesus’s last command?
1. Stop
2. Wait
3. Yield
4. Go
John 14:16 – Jesus promised the Holy
Spirit Trinity: Up Close and Personal
(within me)
Holy Spirit according to Dr. G: para (alongside) kletos (to call) – God alongside us
3 nouns in the Bible to define the Holy Spirit:
1. Comforter
2. Encourager
3. Counselor
We are not sinless, but we sin
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less 3 A’s of Trinity:
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1. The Father is the author of the Bible
2. Jesus is the actor of God’s will
3. The Holy Spirit is the activator of God’s people
William Seymour
- Born to slaves
- Smallpox took his left eye
- Influenced by healing evangelist, Charles Parham
1. Pentecostal movement
- Emphasis on speaking in tongues as the Holy Spirit empowering
you
2. Charismatic movement
- Healing and prophecy was the sign of the Holy Spirit empowering
you
3. Holiness movement
- It was evangelistic
- It was ecumenical: the Spirit of unity. They cared for and
helped each other
- The unity was brought across race, class, and gender
Spirit manifests “signs”:
1. Tongues
2. Miracle healings
3. Prophec
y Pentecostal
love:
1. Poor yet pure-powerful
2. Evangelistic
3. Missional movement
4. Ecumenical
Dr. G on Spiritual gifts: I am cautious yet open to the Holy Spirit using all the gifts for
ministry
Pneumatology – the works of the Holy Spirit
No early council or elaborate creed relating to the
Holy Spirit The knowledge is incomplete and
confusing
Lack of concrete imagery
- Use of “Ghost” form; breathe/air, fire, water, wind
Very little available material
The only place to find any systematic teaching is what Jesus taught His disciples in
the upper- room: John 14-16
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Is the Spirit subordinate to the Father and the Son ? (Cause of the Great Schism)
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Filioque
Charismatic controversies:
- The Spirit is not only the Spirit of unity, it has always been the Spirit of
charity and humility
The greatest proof of the present of the Holy Spirit is that he produces fruit
in your life The Holy Spirit:
1. He is Eternal
2. He is God
3. He is Omnipresent
4. He is Omniscient
5. He is equal with the Father and the Son
- At Christ’s baptism
- At Christ’s temptation
- As declared by Jesus Himself
● In the upper-room John 14:16, 26; 15:26
● On the Mount of Olives Matthew 28:19=20
- Luke, Acts 2:33, Peter, 1 Peter 1:2; 4:18; Paul, Romans 8-23, 2
Corinthians
13:14, Ephesians 2:18
Is the Holy Spirit a person?
M: Mind – searches human
minds E: Emotions – forbids
and permits W: Will – loves
and grieved
The Holy Spirit speaks and
intercedes Romans 8:9
The Holy Spirit prays for
you The Holy Spirit is a
person
3 Places where the Trinity is all together:
1. The Baptism
2. Commission
3. Benedicti
on 7.1 slide
7
Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
- God’s empowering presence
- Present at creation “hovering over the water”
- Fills and empowers craftsmen, judges, kings, and prophets (Exodus 31:1-5)
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- The Word of God is inspired by the Holy Spirit (2nd Peter 1:21)
Holy Spirits is a person, not merely an “act” of God or “force” of God
- Mind, Will, Emotions
- Grieving as a person (Isaiah 48:16, 63:10-14)
Holy Spirit in the New Testament
● Holy Spirit upon the ministry of Jesus
- Jesus becomes incarnate through the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke
1:35)
- Spirit is present at Jesus’ baptism – Triune divine approval
- Jesus and His ministry is empowered by the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:18,
Isaiah 61:1- 11)
● Comforter/Advocate – Promised to Jesus’ followers
- Teach, encourage, empower, convict
- Spirit poured out on “all people” (Acts 2:14-41, Joel 2)
- Holy Spirit is poured out on all believers and dwells within them forever
- Contrast with OT Spirit
empowerment 9 Ways the Holy Spirit works in the
lives of believers:
1. The Holy Spirit points us to Jesus (John 16:13-15)
2. The Holy Spirit regenerates us/gives us new life (John 3:5-6, Titus 3:5-6)
Incoming
3. The Holy Spirit makes our hearts His permanent home (1st Corinthians
3:16-17, 6:19- 20) Indwelling
● Spirit Baptism: happens at our conversion/moment of belief in Jesus
● The Spirit dwells in us and He baptizes us into the church
● 1st Corinthians 12:12-13
4. The Holy Spirit fills/empowers us for ministry (Acts 1:8, Ephesians 5:18-21)
Infilling
● Being filled in the Holy Spirit looks like:
1. Speak to one another in songs, hymns, and spiritual songs
2. Sing and make music in our hearts to God
3. Always give thanks to God for everything in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ
4. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ
5. The Holy Spirit teaches us truth/illuminates the Bible (Psalm 51:6, John
4:24, John 14:26, 15:26, 16:13)
6. The Holy Spirit produces the fruit of the Spirit within us and helps
us resist sin (Galatians 5:22-23, Romans 8:13-14, 2nd Timothy 1:7)
7. The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin (John 16:8, 2nd Corinthians 3:17)
8. The Holy Spirit confirms that we are children of God (Romans 5:5, 8:15-16,
Galatians 4:6)
● The devil is called the accuser (Revelation 12:10)
9. The Holy Spirit gives each believer at least one spiritual gift at salvation (1st
Corinthians 12:7, 1st Peter 4:10)
● Passages on spiritual gifts: Romans 12:4-8, 1st Corinthians 12:4-11,
12:27-31, Ephesians 4:11-16, 1st Peter 4:10-11
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Spiritual Gifts:
● Apostleship
● Prophecy
● Teaching
● Miracles
● Healing
● Helps
● Administration
● Tongues and Interpretation
● Word of Wisdom or Knowledge
● Faith
● Distinguishing Spirits
● Evangelist
● Pastor/Teacher
● Serving
● Encouraging
● Giving
● Leading
● Mercy
Cessationism:
● Definition: The miraculous gifts ceased after the apostles died. They
are no longer needed because the canon is complete.
● Scripture support: Only the apostles performed miracles, 2nd
Corinthoans 12:12, Ephesians 2:20
● We don’t need the miraculous gifts to establish the church – the Bible is
sufficient, 1 Corinthians 13:9-10
Continuationism:
● Definition: (Third Wave Proponents/Pentecostals: the miraculous gifts did not
cease and continue to this day. God intends for us to use them even with our
completed Bible
● Scriptural support: Believers other than the twelve apostles performed
miracles, Acts 6:8, John 14:12
● The Bible seems to assume their continuation, 1st Corinthians 14:1
Points of Application
● Repent of your sin and believe in Jesus Christ
● Pray to experience more of the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13)
● Don’t try to live the Chrisitan life in your strength. Abide in Christ by faith. In
other words, live each day in active dependence on the Holy Spirit
● Tell others about Christ and pray for revival
You can recognize if what you are experiencing is the Holy Spirit based on if it aligns
with Scripture.
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Pneumatology – Study of the Holy
Spirit 2 Features of the Holy Spirit:
1. Sovereignty – He is free
2. Liberty – The Holy Spirit can give gifts to whoever He wills
1. The Sovereign Spirit’s continuing work in the word
● The Pentecostal, Charismatic, and Third Wave movements
- Pentecostals: Associated with speaking in tongues
- Charismatic: Tongues is not a sign, but gifts are
● Cessationists, the Canon and “Christian” as functional deists
● “Signs and wonder” and miraculous, spiritual gifts for today
● Controversial gifts: unknown tongues, faith healing, prophesy
● Two-stage spirituality, the Spirit of unity and love, discernment
Experiential Spirituality
- Encountering the Holy
Spirit Unknown Tongues
Acts 2: At Pentecost (50th day) when the Apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit
4 ways spirits are used in the Bible:
1. Pneuma
2. Evil
3. Human
spirits 4.
Romans 8:9 – If you do not have the Holy Spirit, you do not belong
to Jesus 1 Corinthians 4:13 – Shut up and sit down
It is dangerous to form theology from the book of Acts. Even if it happened to them,
it does not have to happen to me.
4 references of signs and wonders in the book of Acts
1. Acts 2:28 – “This is that”
2. Acts 8 – No mention of speaking in tongues
3. Acts 10 – The Spirit of pentecost is always the spirit of unity not division
4. Acts 19:2 – Last reference in Scripture of speaking in tongues
Signs that create wonder
- A sign: something that points to a source
- Signs can be misleading
1 gift that we really need: discernment
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3 purposes/criteria of gifts
1. Spiritual gifts always glorify God
2. To magnify Christ
3. To edify the church
The gifts of the spirit must be exercised with the Fruit of the Spirit.
If the Fruit is not accompanying the gift, then it is not from the
Holy Spirit 1 word for the Fruit of the Spirit: Christ-like
Dr. G – I am cautious
Frontier missions – Crossing a boundary where nobody knows
the gospel Pioneer evangelism – They do not have the Bible
2. Baptism of/in/by the Spirit and the Spirit’s Filling
● The Spirit’s reality in all believers (Romans 8:9) His presence’s
manifestations
● Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed in the Gospel of
Christ?
- Ephesians 1:13
● The Spirit’s work in a believer before/at/after salvation for
mission/ministry
● So, what else do you need from the Spirit that you did not get “in
Christ”?
● Don’t grieve but walk live in the Spirit. Keep on being filled/controlled
by the Spirit
The Holy Spirit in Other Religions:
● Judaism
- God’s breathe/voice and power at work in and through believer
- Strict monotheism
- The loving presence of God
● Islam
- Radical monotheism: against the fact that God is associated with
anything else
- The Holy Spirit is the voice of God
- Angel Gabriel
● Hinduism
- The Holy Spirit is an impersonal forces that binds all things together
- Pantheism
● Buddhism
- Atheistic religion
- No fullness of Spirit
- Emptying of the mind
● Animism
- There is a spiritual energy in everything. The Great Spirit /
Mother Earth The Holy Spirit in Cults:
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● Oneness Pentecostals
- Modalism
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- The Holy Spirit is the 3rd mode of God
● Jehovah Witnesses
- Jesus was created
- The Holy Spirit is an impersonal force/activity, not a person
● Functional Deists
- Recognizes and admits that God is there
- Holy Spirit was sent on the day of Pentecost
- The Holy Spirit is a power source/not in our daily affairs
● Mormonism
- The prophetic ministry
- The Holy Spirit reveals new or additional “scriptures”
- The burning in the bosom
Prophecy is not on foretelling it is forthtelling (to
speak out) Subjective – personal experience
Objective – Propositional truth. True regardless of belief or
disbelief Collective – subjective experience should be
normative
How you know you are saved:
1. Because of the Father’s Word
- My salvation does not depend on the strength of my faith, it
depends on the faithfulness of the one who promised
2. Because of the Son’s work
- He who has the Son has life
- Christianity is not a do-religion, it is a done-religion
3. Because of the witness of the Holy Spirit
John 3:5 – “You must be born again”
1 Corinthians 12:13 – By one Spirit we are baptized into the body
of Christ Ephesians 1:13 – Who received when you believed
Galatians 5:22 – Fruit of the Spirit
