Hello anyone that may read this blog,
I have again had an incredible week of class! I am so blessed to be able to do this program and give the Lord time in studying His Word and reflecting on all that He has done for me.
On Monday we had the privilege to have Joe White, president of Kanakuk Kamps, Promise Keepers Speaker, and just an incredible evangelist come and talk to us about Daniel Chapter 9 - the 70 week calendar.
He came to talk with us about the revelations he had taken from the published book of Sir Robert Anderson "The Coming Prince". The information of how scripture is so clear to express when the Messiah would come is so cool to study. We had done a lot of the study on the chapter before Christmas break with his wife Debbie Joe when she taught over the full book of Daniel. However, He came in and expressed what the book by Sir Robert Anderson states on the mathematics that continue to be correct in history with what is stated in scripture!!!
Then Tuesday - Friday we got the incredible opportunity to have Charles Stolfus from Denton Bible come and walk us through the book of Hebrews! It was beyond words enlightening and exciting to read through and search why it is apart of the Bible. I will however try to express to you about a couple things that hit home for me as we went through the book!
Mr. Stolfus gave the book theme of Hebrews to be "The Supremacy of Christ" and I loved that title because as he unpacked the book for us verse by verse we saw that theme scream from the pages! When we got to Chapter 2 verse 10 I was floored with what it means for Jesus to be our Author of salvation. I am going to type out the verse section for you to read...
Hebrews 2:9-11 "But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all thing, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren," NASB
I was just in awe as Charles Stolfus talked about how Jesus was the author of salvation meaning that He was the pioneer for us. The pioneer is the one that goes beforehand and paves the way to something. Jesus was that for us. As the pioneer for salvation He did it through walking through suffering here on earth. As I began to process all that Mr. Stolfus told of Jesus being the author of salvation I was just in a state of thanksgiving and overwhelmed that the book of Hebrews is so blunt but powerful in the words it uses to describe Jesus and what He did for us.
When we got to Chapter 3 verse 1 I was challenged with how I respond in my day to day life with the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Here is what the verse says, "Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus the Apostle and High Priest of our confession." Mr. Stolfus talked about that the word consider as a very powerful word meaning to give special attention to what follows and it isn't a passing reference but a dedicated focus. The verse then describes Jesus as the Apostle and High Priest and this is what we are to consider or focus on. To not just skim over those characteristics of Jesus but to fully understand what they both mean. Charles Stolfus told us that apostle is one sent and that high priest is just that (the old testament functions of a levitical high priest) but also can be viewed as the final mediator between us and God (which was one of the functions of a levitical high priest). After Mr. Stolfus explained the two characteristics of Jesus and that we were to consider or focus; my thought process was yet again in awe of the elementary view I had of what it meant for Jesus to be sent to us and that He is our way to the Father. However, throughout the rest of the book we read verse after verse about how Jesus is qualified to be the High Priest and the different functions that a High Priest does and how Jesus did exactly that for us. As our time ended with Charles Stolfus I was in excitement and reference to the Lord that I was given the change to study Hebrews and grow in my understanding of Jesus as our High Priest. The word consider has stuck with me these last three days and I am reflecting in my own life what it means to focus my thoughts, heart, motives, actions, speech on Jesus and what He has done for me and how am I suppose to daily walk in that freedom and tell others about it.
I wish I had time to tell more about Jesus as our High Priest, however I do not at this very moment. I do hope to type my notes in a more condensed version to post by next week.
I hope you can be encouraged by knowing a little more about what it means for Jesus to be the author of salvation and our High Priest. He came and died for us so that we could live with Him eternally. He was the final sin sacrifice and now sits at the right hand of God as the mediator between us and God. We can have confidence in His death and resurrection to cover our punishment for our sins. He paid it all.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Friday, January 10, 2014
Trinity
Hello fellow readers of this blog.
I am back from Christmas Break and have had a whirlwind of a first week back in class.
Our teacher this week was Dr. Glenn Kreider from Dallas Theologian School. He came to talk with us about the doctrine of the Trinity. It was an incredible time of new insights and my thought process is on overload as I struggle with reflecting on all that was talked about and the concept of the Trinity.
I for the first time am being challenged to know the scripture and be prepared to defend concepts of the Christian faith. Our big project for this semester is to write a personal belief statement on different doctrinal topics of our faith. This week we went straight to it and started with God the Father.
So, I have not only been overloaded with the material and questions about the doctrine of the Trinity I have also been in my own time trying to write a statement about who God the Father is. About His sovereignty, His love, His foreknowledge and so much more. It has been a great process but I need to become better at time management with all other aspects of life and requirements of the Institute.
I would love to now express some insights on the Trinity that I have been thinking through this week.
The basic (if you can say that about such a layered topic) statement that Dr. Kreider gave us was this “There is one God. The Father is God. The Son is God. The Spirit is God. The Father is not the Son or the Spirit. The Son is not the Father or the Spirit. The Spirit is not the Father or the Son.”
We believe in one true God and that one true God is three distinctive different persons: Father, Son, and Spirit.
The word Trinity wasn't developed into a word until after the writings of the New Testament therefore why can we expect for the word to show up in the New Testament writings of the Apostles. Even though the word is not explicitly stated it is implied with the language that the apostles uses in the New Testament.
Example
2 Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”
1 Peter 1:2 “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.”
Philippians 2:5-11 “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Luke 2:25-32 “And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, 28 then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, 29 “Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation, 31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 A Light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.””
Also the verses about the creation describe multiple persons being present during the process
Genesis 1:26 “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.””
John 17:5 "Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."
Colossians 1:15-17 “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
We believe in a one true God and throughout the Old Testament the language points to that of one God for the most part. Then in the New Testament we are given the Son, Jesus Christ, and we now see the plurality of God. So we now have God the Father and God the Son is introduced and because of this we have to believe in a God that is three and one at the same time. The New Testament focuses on God the Son and God the Spirit. All that to say and show that we believe in a Triune God because we know that Jesus Christ came to this earth and we believe Him to be the Son of God.
Verses to give a small degree of the claims that Jesus had of Himself and God His Father.
John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”
John 1:14-18 “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.”
John 8:56-59 “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” 59 Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”
John 14:6-7 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 7 If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.””
John 10:30 “I and the Father are one.”
Once we wrap our mind around the idea that God is plural then it is easier to except the Spirit as apart and completing the Trinity.
Verses to defend the deity of God the Spirit
Acts 5:3-4 “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.””
John 15:26 “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me,”
I love that I have the privilege to take the time to search the scriptures and seek God in the answers to all questions and thoughts when trying to understand the Trinity.
Theses are just the aspects of the Trinity that I have been learning about and the scriptures that defend the aspects.
I hope you are encouraged to do some digging into the Word of God to know Him better and answer the questions you may have about the doctrine of the Trinity. It has been a incredible week and still learning and building my confidence in defending Who God is.
Thanks for reading!
I am back from Christmas Break and have had a whirlwind of a first week back in class.
Our teacher this week was Dr. Glenn Kreider from Dallas Theologian School. He came to talk with us about the doctrine of the Trinity. It was an incredible time of new insights and my thought process is on overload as I struggle with reflecting on all that was talked about and the concept of the Trinity.
I for the first time am being challenged to know the scripture and be prepared to defend concepts of the Christian faith. Our big project for this semester is to write a personal belief statement on different doctrinal topics of our faith. This week we went straight to it and started with God the Father.
So, I have not only been overloaded with the material and questions about the doctrine of the Trinity I have also been in my own time trying to write a statement about who God the Father is. About His sovereignty, His love, His foreknowledge and so much more. It has been a great process but I need to become better at time management with all other aspects of life and requirements of the Institute.
I would love to now express some insights on the Trinity that I have been thinking through this week.
The basic (if you can say that about such a layered topic) statement that Dr. Kreider gave us was this “There is one God. The Father is God. The Son is God. The Spirit is God. The Father is not the Son or the Spirit. The Son is not the Father or the Spirit. The Spirit is not the Father or the Son.”
We believe in one true God and that one true God is three distinctive different persons: Father, Son, and Spirit.
The word Trinity wasn't developed into a word until after the writings of the New Testament therefore why can we expect for the word to show up in the New Testament writings of the Apostles. Even though the word is not explicitly stated it is implied with the language that the apostles uses in the New Testament.
Example
2 Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”
1 Peter 1:2 “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.”
Philippians 2:5-11 “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Luke 2:25-32 “And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, 28 then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, 29 “Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation, 31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 A Light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.””
Also the verses about the creation describe multiple persons being present during the process
Genesis 1:26 “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.””
John 17:5 "Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."
Colossians 1:15-17 “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
We believe in a one true God and throughout the Old Testament the language points to that of one God for the most part. Then in the New Testament we are given the Son, Jesus Christ, and we now see the plurality of God. So we now have God the Father and God the Son is introduced and because of this we have to believe in a God that is three and one at the same time. The New Testament focuses on God the Son and God the Spirit. All that to say and show that we believe in a Triune God because we know that Jesus Christ came to this earth and we believe Him to be the Son of God.
Verses to give a small degree of the claims that Jesus had of Himself and God His Father.
John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”
John 1:14-18 “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.”
John 8:56-59 “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” 59 Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”
John 14:6-7 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 7 If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.””
John 10:30 “I and the Father are one.”
Once we wrap our mind around the idea that God is plural then it is easier to except the Spirit as apart and completing the Trinity.
Verses to defend the deity of God the Spirit
Acts 5:3-4 “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.””
John 15:26 “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me,”
I love that I have the privilege to take the time to search the scriptures and seek God in the answers to all questions and thoughts when trying to understand the Trinity.
Theses are just the aspects of the Trinity that I have been learning about and the scriptures that defend the aspects.
I hope you are encouraged to do some digging into the Word of God to know Him better and answer the questions you may have about the doctrine of the Trinity. It has been a incredible week and still learning and building my confidence in defending Who God is.
Thanks for reading!
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