TheosGuy

The following outline about the humiliation and exaltation of Jesus Christ is taken from the book, Twelve Baskets Full of Original Bible Outlines.¹

Seven Steps in His Humiliation
Philippians 2:7-8

1. Made Himself of no reputation.
2. Took upon Himself the form of a slave.
3. Made in the likeness of men.
4. Found in fashion as a men.
5. Humbled Himself.
6. Became obedient unto death.
7. Even the death of the Cross.

Seven Steps in His Exaltation
Philippians 2:9-11

1. God hath highly exalted Him—Humanity occupying the highest place in the universe.
2. Given Him a Name which is above every name.
3. At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow.
4. Of things in heaven.
5. And things on earth.
6. And things under the earth.
7. And every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord.

1. “Christ’s Humiliation and Exaltation,” Twelve Baskets Full of Original Bible Outlines, Pickering Hy. (Editor). London: Pickering & Inglis, 1918. p. 13.

Tags: HyP, Jesus Christ

The following words of exhortation are all from the Book of Hebrews. Hover over the Bible reference to see the words more fully in the context. This outline is adapted from an outline in the book, Twelve Baskets Full of Original Bible Outlines.¹

1. “Words of Exhortation,” Twelve Baskets Full of Original Bible Outlines, Pickering Hy. (Editor). London: Pickering & Inglis, 1918. p. 13.

Tags: Exhortation, HyP

The following definition is given by Dr. Bruce Ware in the seminar he conducted at The Master’s Seminary on The Universal Reign of the Triune God.

God’s whole and undivided essence belongs equally, eternally, simultaneously, and fully to each of the three Persons of the Godhead, so that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit each is fully God while each is his own personal expression, in role and activity, of the one eternal and undivided divine essence.

Tags: Ware

Do inexact quotations of Old Testament texts in the New Testament show that Scripture is not inerrant? Here is a excerpt of an article by A.A. Hodges and B.B. Warfield in defense of inerrancy.

Nor is quotation to be confounded with translation. It does not, like it, profess to give as exact a representation of the original, in all its aspects and on every side, as possible; but only to give a true account of its teaching in one of its bearings. There is thus always an element of application in quotation; and it is, therefore, proper in quotation to so alter the form of the original as to bring out clearly its bearing on the one subject in hand, thus throwing the stress on the element in it for which it is cited. This would be improper in a translation. The laws which ought to govern quotation seem, indeed, to have been very inadequately investigated by those who please the New Testament methods of quotation against inspiration.

(A.A. Hodge and B.B. Warfield, “Inspiration,” The Presbyterian Review 2/6 (April 1881) 256, emphasis in the original.)

Tags: A.A. Hodge, B.B. Warfield, Bible

The Apostolic Fathers and the early church were definitely premillennial in their thinking. In fact, Church historian, Phillip Schaff, wrote the following:

The most striking point in the eschatology of the ante-Nicene age is the prominent chiliasm, or millennarianism, that is the belief of a visible reign of Christ in glory on earth with the risen saints for a thousand years, before the general resurrection and judgment. It was indeed not the doctrine of the church embodied in any creed or form of devotion, but a widely current opinion of distinguished teachers, such as Barnabas, Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Methodius, and Lactantius; while Caius, Origen, Dionysius the Great, Eusebius (as afterwards Jerome and Augustin) opposed it.¹

In addition, Thomas Burnet, Royal Chaplain to king William III of England, wrote,

And to make few words of it, we will lay down this conclusion, that the Millennial kingdom of Christ was the general doctrine of the Primitive Church, from the times of the Apostles to the Nicene Council; inclusively.²

Notes:
1. Phillip Schaff. The History of the Christian Church, Vol. 2 (New York: Charles Scribner & Company, 1884), p. 482.

2. Gary Vaterlaus, “Amillennialism vs Premillennialism,” http://rapturenotes.com/amillennialism.html (last visited December 6, 2010), quoting Thomas Burnet, The Sacred Theory of the Earth (London: J. McGowan, 1681), 346.

Tags: Premillennialism

John Piper did a sermon series on Battling Unbelief. The following is from one of those sermons about battling anxiety with God’s promises:

• When I am anxious about some risky new venture or meeting, I battle unbelief with the promise: “Fear not for I am with you, be not dismayed for I am your God; I will help you, I will strengthen you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
• When I am anxious about my ministry being useless and empty, I fight unbelief with the promise, “So shall my word that goes forth from my mouth; it will not come back to me empty but accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).
• When I am anxious about being too weak to do my work, I battle unbelief with the promise of Christ, “My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9), and “As your days so shall your strength be” (Deuteronomy 33:25).
• When I am anxious about decisions I have to make about the future, I battle unbelief with the promise, “I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you” (Psalm 32:8).
• When I am anxious about facing opponents, I battle unbelief with the promise, “If God is for us who can be against us!” (Romans 8:31).
• When I am anxious about being sick, I battle unbelief with the promise that “tribulation works patience, and patience approvedness,and approvedness hope, and hope does not make us ashamed” (Romans 5:3-5).
• When I am anxious about getting old, I battle unbelief with the promise, “Even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save”(Isaiah 46:4).
• When I am anxious about dying, I battle unbelief with the promise that “none of us lives to himself and none of us dies to himself; if we live we live to the Lord and if we die we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and rose again: that he might be Lord both of the dead and the living”(Romans 14:9-11).
• When I am anxious that I may make shipwreck of faith and fall away from God, I battle unbelief with the promise, “He who began a good work in you will complete it unto the day of Christ” (Philippians 1:6). “He who calls you is faithful. He will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23). “He is able for all time to save those who drawnear to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).
• When I am anxious about the unknowns, I battle unbelief with the promise, “And the Lord is the one who goes ahead of you, he will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear, or be dismayed” (Deuteronomy 31:8).

HT: Between Two Worlds

The Apostle Paul warned us of a future time that would come where men would turn from sound doctrine and follow their own lustful self-will. To a large extent self-will has always been a problem for the human race. It’s a wonder why man seems to be in love with the idea of human free will, as human self-will has only caused problems for humanity. As a Christian, I only want my Lord’s will, not my will. The following is a short outline, Self-Will¹ from F.E. Marsh, on the devastation of self-will.

1. Self-will turned Paradise into a desert. It has been well said, “My will and not Thine be done, turned Paradise into a desert. Thy will and not Mine be done, turned a desert into a Paradise.” (Romans 5:1)
2. Self-will is the mother of sin. This is illustrated in Cain, when he in self-will came to God in his own way instead of God’s way, and was jealous because Abel’s sacrifice was accepted and his was rejected, which jealousy led him on to kill his brother (Jude 11).
3. Self-will is the forerunner of disaster. Lot chose the well-watered plain of Sodom, and then soon after was found in Sodom, but he lost all he had in Sodom, and only escaped with his life (Gen 13:10).
4. Self-will shuts out from blessing. Moses struck the rock twice when God told him to speak to it, and was shut out of the promised land in consequence (Num 20:11-12).
5. Self-will brings punishment. King Saul lost his kingdom and the Holy Spirit through consulting his own will in opposition to God’s word, when the latter told him to destroy all the Amalekites (1 Sam 15:23).
6. Self-will brings injury to others. Peter acted on his own authority when he cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest (Luke 22:50).
7. Self-will means loss of blessing. The prodigal son found the difference between the swine troughs and the father’s table, and between the far country and the old homestead. (Luke 15:16-17)

1. 500 Bible Readings, Marsh, F.E., (London: Marshall Brothers, 1897). Reading no. 347.

Tags: Marsh, Theology

The following reading, Steps in the Christian Life is taken from F.E. Marsh’s, 500 Bible Readings.¹

THERE are some terms that relate to the Christian life which are of pressing importance, because of the issues involved in relation to them. The following seven words indicate a few aspects of the Christian’s life, namely, “Believe,” “Pray,” “Abide,” “Walk,” “Take,” “Stand,” “Watch.”

1. To believe on Christ is the secret of the Christian life (Galatians 2:20 NKJV).
2. To pray to Christ is the stay of the Christian life (Philippians 4:6 NKJV).
3. To abide in Christ is the strength of the Christian life (John 15:4 NKJV).
4. To walk as Christ is the shining out of the Christian life (1 Peter 2:21 NKJV).
5. To take from Christ is the supply of the Christian life (Isaiah 27:5 NKJV).
6. To stand with Christ is the staple of the Christian life (Ephesians 6:14 NKJV).
7. To watch for Christ is the standing order of the Christian life (Mark 13:33 NKJV). The term watchfulness is a comprehensive one. It signifies far more than merely holding the truth of the Lord’s coming. It covers the whole trend of the spiritual life in the variety of its traits.

1. 500 Bible Readings, Marsh, F.E., (London: Marshall Brothers, 1897). Reading number 382.

Tags: Christian Living, Marsh, Theology

Whatsoever is good for God’s children, they shall have it; for all is theirs to help them towards heaven; therefore if poverty be good, they shall have it; if disgrace, if erodes be good, they shall have them; for all is ours, to promote our greatest prosperity.

Though God deliver not out of trouble, yet he delivers from the ill in trouble, from despair in trouble, by supporting the spirit. Nay, he delivers by trouble, for he satisfies the trouble to cure the soul, and by less troubles he delivers from greater.

Richard Sibbes, Divine Meditations.

The following reading, Things We Obtain by Faith is taken from F.E. Marsh’s, 500 Bible Readings.¹

1. Salvation.. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” — Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV
2. Justification.. “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,” — Romans 5:1 NKJV
3. Introduction.. “…through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” — Romans 5:2 NKJV
4. Adoption. “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” — Galatians 3:26 NKJV
5. Sanctification. “…to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.” — Acts 26:18 NKJV
6. Purification. “…and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.” — Acts 15:9 NKJV
7. Occupation. “…that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,” — Ephesians 3:17 NKJV
8. Progression. “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” — 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV
9. Preservation. “…who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” — 1 Peter 1:5 NKJV
10. Expectation. “For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.” — Galatians 5:5 NKJV

1. 500 Bible Readings, Marsh, F.E., (London: Marshall Brothers, 1897). Reading number 443.

Tags: Faith, Marsh, Theology