Course Reflection - Church and the World

As a student enrolled at RTS-DC and working full-time I have a very busy schedule. The virtual campus allows me to supplement my course work and work towards graduation at a faster and more flexible pace than only taking DC classes allows. I am on the Masters of Divinity track and would like to be able to complete my studies and schedule my courses without having to take vacation time every summer for class when I can sign up for virtual classes.

As a student of philosophy I have always enjoyed studying and comparing Christianity to other philosophies of the world that have influenced and been influenced by theology. Learning the history and the context of those ideas helps to equip one to appreciate them for the areas they offer truth, but also to be ready to correct them in areas where they stray from orthodoxy. There were opportunities to take another class in place of this one that focused more on the contemporary debate over post-modernism. I chose to take this class though because of the focus on Barth and Schleiermacher who have influenced both Christian and non-Christian thought so much. These are areas that most students of theology constantly call into question and I desired to understand them better. This class certainly equipped me to understand and correct the errors in their thought and showed the context that we find the church in today. In light of the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of the church to penetrate the culture today, I found this class to offer great insight for equipping the church of tomorrow to be more kingdom focused and Christ-centered.

True Beauty

Assignment:
You are to prepare a 7-10 page review of Ken Myers’ All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes. Evaluate Myers on the relation between Christian faith and popular culture. Assess Myers’ book in the light of contemporary theology and the various ways in which the church has interacted with contemporary culture. Write your paper as if addressing informed members of your church. How would you address their present concerns about popular music, the arts, television, and the media? You may assume they know little about contemporary theology, but they are aware of the ineffectiveness of the church at the end of the 20th century. Avoid the temptation to preach. Focus your attention, instead, on helping them to understand popular culture as enabled by Myers’ work.

Course Reflection - History of Christianity I

As a student enrolled at RTS-DC and working full-time I have a very busy schedule. The virtual campus allows me to supplement my course work and work towards graduation at a faster and more flexible pace than only taking DC classes allows. I am on the Masters of Divinity track and would like to be able to complete my studies and schedule my courses without having to take vacation time every summer for class when I can sign up for virtual classes.

History has never quite been something I was drawn to. I like the idea of it and I liked knowing when significant events occurred, but would never consider myself a history buff. What I learned from this class however, was a greater appreciation for God’s work throughout the history of the Church. From the brutal persecutions of the early church to the intellectual exercises of scholastics in the 11th and 12th centuries it is clear that God was and is at work. I especially appreciated learning about the councils that affected our understanding of doctrinal truth today, and how the collective body came together to work through these very difficult decisions. It became clear that, even though there were people who were deemed heretics and were on the wrong side of orthodoxy that they weren’t all malicious I their desire to spread their misunderstandings. It should give the church pause today, when dealing with misunderstandings of truth and hearts of compassion to share the wisdom of church fathers who have dealt with these topics in the past. This course has equipped me to better understand where and how the church was formed, and to trust in preserving work of God to hold his bride accountable to an unwavering truth throughout history of the past, present and future.

New Testament Canon

Assignment:
The paper itself needs to develop and unfold your subject, giving enough of the background by way of introduction to show the significance of your subject and to enable your reader to ascertain your purpose in writing the paper. Develop your subject by selecting and presenting data that you have accumulated, and include any additional background that will be helpful. Then analyze, synthesize and evaluate what you have found. Your personal interaction with the data is important, showing your line of thinking, your analysis, your synthesis and evaluation.

Christ our Humble Shepherd and Exalted King is Victorious

Assignment:
Sermon manuscript on 1 Peter 5: 6-11.

The Modern Preacher and the Ancient Text

Assignment:
Reading report on The Modern Preacher and the Ancient Text by Sidney Greidanus.

Those who are in Christ – Should be like Christ – To show the World Christ

Assignment:
Sermon manuscript on 1 Peter 2: 11-12.

Discuss: The power of Christ's resurrection is manifested in the suffering of the believer

The sufferings of the believer and the church are a witness to the world of the power of Christ's resurrection. The death of Jesus is carried by the sufferings of the believer, so that His resurrection life is shown to the world (2 Cor 4:10). The believer experiences suffering, life Christ, as they are pressed, perplexed, persecuted and struck down (2 Cor 4: 8-9), but not crushed in despair, abandoned or destroyed (2 Cor 4: 8-9). For like Christ we too have the promise of resurrection life to be procured by his suffering, exemplified by ours so that the world might see the glory of God. The Holy Spirit is our guarantee of this glory to come with a heavenly tent, that though we suffer not it is for a and in Christ. We live by faith, and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7), so our present sufferings only hasten the day of judgment to come when as glorified we stand before our most righteous judge.

Discuss: Gaffin: "The basic duality of the eschatological fulfillment taught in Scripture."

The basic duality taught in Scripture of the eschatological coming and fulfillment of Christ's life is that it was and is one event with two parts. Christ entering the world and entering into redemptive history was the fulfillment of the promise made to Adam and Abraham. Jesus would come to take the punishment of sin for Adam's transgression, passive obedience and to be perfect and make righteous the people of Abraham, active obedience. This is one event in history; however, has a two part implication in what has already been procured, bought and paid for a the Cross, death, resurrection, ascension and Pentecost for the church and the covenant people in the past and present. But there is also a not yet or a still greater fulfillment of these promises to Adam and Abraham to come at the judgment and glorification of the Body of Christ, in the second coming. The covenant community possesses in reality the first fruits of Christ at present, and yet still looks toward the future, the duality, of the fulfilled covenant promises and blessings to come that the inner man may experience now, but then the outer man will experience in fullness (2 Cor 4: 16-18).

Final - Indentify

1. Death is unnatural

Death is not God's desire for creation and specifically man. It requires an explanation because death breaks into life and causes disharmony where life is natural and continues. Death is unnatural to man as our souls are promised immortality, our bodies experience death.

2. The New Testament notion of paradise, or heaven.

The Old testament refers to the garden and the promise land as the dwelling place of God. While paradise in the New Testament dwelling place of God is in heaven that the covenant people are called to.

3. Purgatory.

Purgatory is derived from the Catholic doctrine as a place of punishment for temporal sins, and purification from them. Accordingly, the Church can reduce this punishment by interceding with good works and indulgences, etc. There is no such place in reformed doctrine as the dead are either delivered to paradise or await the final judgment apart from God.

4. Distinction between the resurrection of the body and the resurrection of the flesh.

The resurrection of the body is the promised recreation and redemption fulfilled before the day of judgement. This is a recreative act of God that does not rely upon the particles of the flesh. Whereas the resurrection of the flesh is the belief that the totality of matter must be gathered and reassembled.

5. Premil, postmil, amil, preterist.

Premillennialism believes that Christ will return before the 1,000 year literal reign of an earthly kingdom. Postmillennialism believes that Christ will return after a 1,000 year literal reign of the church. Amillennialism believes in the inaugurated kingdom that Christ brought about in his first coming, as He still reigns in a non-literal 1,000 years currently until his final and triumphant return. Preterists believe all prophecy of judgment and the second coming occurred in the past and specifically 70 AD with the destruction of the temple. All millennial views place the judgement and return of Christ in the future.

6. Intermediate corporeality.

Intermediate corporeality is the belief that when the body dies it receives a temporary body, in which contact with the living world is still possible.

7. Invocation of the saints.

Invocation of the saints is the belief that the dead can make intercession on behalf of the living, and so they are prayed to, invoked and venerated by the church in hopes of blessing. There is no biblical foundation for this, but Catholics use 2 Mac 15 as a proof text.

8. Waltke: "The dross of the Old covenant."

Waltke refers "the dross of the Old covenant" as the shadow, precursor and temporal reality of the greater spiritual everlasting truth to come in the New Covenant.

9. Waltke: "Spiritual Israel today."

To Waltke, "Spiritual Israel today" is the current community of the church as the true, real, everlasting, spiritual Israel promised to endure forever.

10. Soul-sleep.

Soul-sleep is the belief that upon death there is a complete separation and break with the psychic power of the mind to interact with knowledge and therefore must sleep, rest without interaction until judgment. This creates a false dualism between mind and matter, soul and spirit.

Speak Love Part 2

Assignment:
Students will prepare an exegesis paper on a passage of their choice. This is a substantial paper that could be used, if the student so desires, to pass presbytery. The purpose of this paper is to help the student gain familiarity with the process of exegesis and with the basic syntax of the NT Greek.

Speak Love

Assignment:
This presentation should take no more than 15 minutes. Specifics of the presentation will be discussed in class. Because a significant portion of our experience as preachers and teachers involves presenting our arguments orally to our listeners, this exercise will help the student better understand how to communicate concisely the substance of his or her exegesis.

In the Bible, justification is forensic not ethical.

While the gift of God’s grace enables man to ethically choose what is right over what is wrong rather than conferring a substance upon man, like the Roman Catholic position. That does not mean that justification is an ethical act of God, for if it was he would be bound to condemn all for falling short. However; in His divine sovereignty and providence, God has chosen to forensically declare, as judge and ruler of all, some righteous while simultaneously condemning the guilty. Looking at the Old Testament in Deuteronomy 25:1; we see specifically during the time the Mosiac covenant and the giving of the law, God commands the Israelites to bring their disputes before judges to forensically declare the innocent and the guilty. Then in Proverbs 17:14-15, we see the wisdom of Lord applied to dispute with an enemy again leads to an acquittal or condemnation. Finally, looking at the New Testament in Romans 8:33-34; Paul specifically connects God’s justifying act of the chosen in Christ to the charge given that comes from a dispute. When seen in the full light of Scripture we can easily trace justification back to the enmity between God and the human race, and the need for a declarative act to acquit man of his guilt before a righteous God. The forensic nature of justification provides that acquittal passively to the believer, while the intimate relationship that results actively penetrates and convicts the believer’s heart of their own guilt. By recognizing the guilt, the believer comes before a righteous judge, seeking forgiveness and giving thanks for the promise of life instead of death.

The relationship between justification, union with Christ and sanctification.

From the reformed perspective the relationship between justification, union with Christ and sanctification is more simultaneous than linearly represented on a timeline. Justification is God’s declarative act, external from the believer to acquit their sin and impute Christ’s righteousness upon them by covenanting with the believer and entering into a relationship that promises life. That relationship is best seen as union with Christ, which literally gives the believer life. This is not an ordinary life, but one that is transformative of the mind and a renewal of the will to seek and worship God above anything else. Union with Christ offers the believer an everlasting hope and a secured promise of eternally life based on the justifying act of God’s declarative righteousness. At the same time that righteousness and everlasting life are offered to the believer, so they are changed, purified and made holy by the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ chooses to tabernacle within the heart and mind of the believer, changing them forever from sin to righteousness as he becomes sin for us. Justification, union with Christ and sanctification all come to us instantly the moment the believer is saved. Each will be fully realized upon the resurrection and glorification of the body, but each are also fully promised and granted to the believer in the salvific gift of God’s grace.

The relationship between regeneration, external call and effectual call.

Regeneration, the external call and the effectual call are tightly bound together, but are not identical. While not identified with one another as equals there is a clear relationship between them all that is woven into the life of the Christian. Each is essential for salvation, therefore each play a distinct role in the salvation of a believer. The external call to hear the Gospel is freely given to all and is mandated by the church to liberally preach the Gospel, for without the preaching none would hear and without hearing none would believe (Romans 10:14). In the midst of the external call, the one who hears will be effectually called to the Lord. While election has taken place eternally, it must be realized within history and the life of the believer. All who are effectually called will come to saving knowledge of the Lord, therefore effectual calling precedes regeneration. Regeneration is the origin of a new spiritual life within the believer which confirms their effectual call and demonstrates their obedience to the external call of the Gospel of grace by faith in Jesus Christ.

Mid-Term - Identify

1. Title of Book 3 of Calvin's Institutes

The way in which we receive the grace of Christ: the benefits that come to us and the effects that follow

2. Historia salutis, ordo salutis

a) Redemption accomplished through the once and for all acts of Christ.
b) Redemption applied through union with Christ.

3. Hoekema’s pentagon (draw it)

4. Broader and narrower use the word “regeneration”

a) Total renewal of person in Christ that generally encompasses gift of new life and sanctification.
b) Origin of life that focuses upon the moment that one becomes a Christian.

5. External call and particular call

a) The verbal call heard by all who hear the Gospel proclaimed and witness the acts of God in creation.
b) The inner call heard only by those who have been elect to seek the Kingdom of God.

6. “Inner man,” “outer man”

a) The internally renewed, justified and sanctified self who enjoys the benefits of being in Christ at present.
b) The outward wasting away body that endures the effects of sin, the fall and the curse which groans with creation longing for the day of resurrection.

7. notitia, assensus, fiducia

a) Knowledge that is necessary for salvation.
b) Assent that is belief and application of salvation.
c) Faith that is total entrustment to Christ for salvation.

8. forensic justification

The declarative act of God, as judge, that acquits sin on the basis of Christ’s righteousness, not our own, as a holy and perfect judgment.

9. ground of justification

Not man’s righteousness obtained by the law nor man’s faith, but Christ’s own righteousness obtained by obedience to the Father, death upon the cross and resurrection as firstfruit.

10. “alien righteousness”

Not man’s righteousness obtained by the law, but righteousness of and from God, conferred upon man by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.