...Journal one: God’s plan for his people Part 1: Summary from paragraph 386 to 408 ——Sin is present in human history, to try to understand what sin is,one must first recognize the profound relation of man to God. To understand sin is an abuse of the freedom, we must grasp the knowledge of God’s plan,for God gives to created persons so that they are capable of loving him and loving one another.That is the reality of sin. Original Sin is an essential truth of the faith,and the doctrine of original sin can be the “reverse side” of the Good News that Jesus is the Savior of all man. The fall took place at the beginning of the history of man, and the whole history is marked by the original fault freely committed by our first parents. The fallen angel was at first a good angel,made by God, but he became devil because of their own doing in the final and made the first parents fell into death out of envy. Because of angel’s irrevocable character of their choice, angel’s sin unforgivable.The power of Satan is not infinite, he cannot prevent the building up of God’s reign and everything God works for good with those who love him. God created man in his image and established him in his relationship. Man should obey these laws that govern the use of freedom. Man’s first sin is tempted by devil and, abusing his freedom,disobeyed God’s command. Because of the sin, man preferred himself to God and by that very act scorned him. Scripture portrays the tragic consequences of this first disobedience:...
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...Martin Luther considered by many to be a great theologian makes very strong arguments against Eramus concerning grace and free will in Bondage of the Will. Both men have strong view points and are both eloquent writers, Eramus believes that man has the power to either turn towards works that lead to salvation or he has the choice not to. Eramus writes to show that man can voluntarily choose (free will) salvation apart from God. Eramus seems to believe that there exists some type of cooperativeness with mankind and God. Whereas, Luther is writing to show that there exist no cooperativeness and salvation is the work of God alone. For the purposes of this paper I will discuss Luther’s arguments in sub-section two. In this paper I will review Luther’s argument regarding the inability of mankind to work to receive justification apart from the spirit, the strengths and weaknesses of his argument and give reasoning as to why I agree with Luther’s argument. In this section Luther is attempting to correct errors made by others teaching as it related to works and grace. Luther is trying to give readers an understanding of Paul’s writings “For ‘no human being will be justified in his sight’ by deeds prescribed by the law,” (Rom 3:20). One of the key points Luther is trying to convey is that Paul is not speaking to a particular group of people. He is not referring only to the Jews, or the Pharisees or even exclusively to the Gentiles. Paul’s verbiage was inclusive in this scripture and...
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...Visionary Leadership Probably the single most important tasks facing a leader is to develop an understanding of where the organisation needs to be at some future point. Without a future vision, organisations are destined to live in the past, and ultimately die. “Where there is no vision, the people perish” Proverbs 29:18. For the Christian organisation such vision must come from God. A Process for Developing Vision This process combines prayer and reflection on our understanding of where God has already been moving. This process will take time - maybe some months to work through fully - don't feel you need to rush! It can either be used by the leader alone, or preferably with a small leadership group, which may be the formal leadership group of the church, or may be a selected group of people with appropriate skills and gifts. At the end of this process you should have an understanding of what you believe God is calling your church or organisation to do and to be. 1. PREPARATORY PRAYER : This first stage helps us to "tune in", spending time with the Lord. Pray that he will show you clearly over the coming weeks what he is calling the church to do and to be. 2. BUILDING BLOCKS : God speaks to the church in a number of ways: through experience, through the Bible, through words and pictures and in other ways. This process allows us to reflect on what God may have been saying to the church in four different elements. We suggest you take time to reflect on, and pray through each of...
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...2013 THEO 350-B05 INSTRUCTOR: DR. RICHARD LUMADUE STUDENT: CAROL J MOZEE The Providence Debate: Personally why should there be a debate about God, and his where about and how and what he can and can’t do? Who is in control? God is! I know to some people this may not be an appropriate way to start this research paper, but it is what it is and I feel sad that this is how the world thinks and appreciate our God, our Father and Friend. It’s all in defining everything, and not just seeing God’s work and taking, God’s word and believing in God for whom he is. Defining God’s Providence, all things happens according to God’s Sovereign Will, “ God is in control. Romans 8:28 “ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose”. When one defines God’s providence it is referring to the way God governs the world. Does God really sit on His throne and dictate or rule the world? It is not surprising that there is some disagreement in the evangelical world concerning the control of God, His dealing with salvation especially as affected by Jesus and the freewill of mankind. Some theologians think that the three are in contradictory of each other. Are they really in conflict with each other’s or can all three exist in full scriptural belief without doing any injustice to the other two? When one talks about the sovereignty of God the actual word is not used in the bible but He is there throughout scripture...
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...Machine Instructor: David Tredinnick June 25, 2012 My point of view on assisted suicide I believe it a sin. In the Holy Bible the “Ten Commandments” it is written “thou shalt not kill.” I stand on the concept that dismissing a person life before it’s his/her time is truly not right. I believe that no matter whom you or what position you may hold doesn’t give you the right to play God. Due to the obvious extent of self-interest that an individual have in their own personal choices; in this day in our culture people as usual try to seek out assured circumstances in such an upright and surprising ways. It was once said that for the ones that are extremely disabled this type of reaction bring forth a common sense of expectation. I do believe that this not right at all because even when a person is suffering under countless circumstances, they desire for this person to go through life-threating operations along with the pain and suffering. It should be that person owns choice for Euthanasia but only during those cases that are so extreme. Suicide has become a vital part of our everyday lives, but through assisted suicide from doctors we have the aptitude to keep suicide to a lessor level to the families that are involved. Assisted suicide is wrong. It is stated in the Ten Commandments “thou shalt not kill”, so with this said I believe that Assisted Suicide is definitely wrong. Many may say that the bible is wrong and that we shouldn’t believe in the holy bible;...
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...Leadership Analysis 2 Being Leaders: The Nature of Authentic Christian Leadership Michael Woolfolk Liberty University Introduction Leadership is an imperfect science. Leadership positions are held by humans, and humans make mistakes. There was only one man who perfected it, Jesus Christ. It is His actions and example that we are constantly trying to mimic. Although we will always fall short, we must always maintain the drive to mirror His image. Leadership is a moving target, its picture changes with the setting that it is in. While it is an elusive catch there are ways to minimize the distance from capturing perfect leadership. A New York Times Best Selling author John C. Maxwell once said, “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” The question is, how do we get to the point of attaining the ability to do this? In his book Being Leaders, Aubrey Malphurs describes a leader’s developed capabilities. These strengths are not given at birth, but are developed over time. These attributes include character, knowledge, skills and emotions. Malphurs contends that possession and management of these capabilities will “help a leader enhance a strength or improve an area of weakness” (Malphurs, 80). A leader cannot become content with where they are, these traits require constant maintenance. “Above average leaders tend to have natural and spiritual leadership gifts that they work hard at developing” (Malphurs, 89). Malphurs goes on to say...
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...corresponded to how much the gods may have meddled in their lives. At one point, Oedipus and Jocasta talk about whether prophecies from the Oracle at Delphi should be believed or not. During this conversation, Oedipus tells Jocasta about the prophecy he found out when he was young that he would kill his father and sleep with his own mother. Jocasta tells her of a similar prophecy that Laius was told about their son killing him. What is surprising is that Oedipus and Jocasta do not realize the remarkable coincidence about what they just told one another about those prophecies. Either they realize the possibility or they are blinded by the fact that they don’t believe either of those prophecies will come true. Sophocles could be inserting his own beliefs while writing this play. He could be trying to stress to everyone that the prophecies of the Oracle at Delphi are to be taken seriously. What is somewhat paradoxical in the play is that although it feels like Oedipus and his family had their fates pre-determined by the gods, the choices made by Laius, Jocasta and Oedipus themselves led directly to what happened. Was this all a part of some master plan by the gods? In hindsight, had Laius and Jocasta not taken the Oracle seriously and raised their son, the likelihood that Oedipus would have killed his father and slept with his mother, would have been greatly diminished – at least one would hope. However, this type of paradox does not feel as if it would have been a problem...
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...for themselves without fear. An individual’s view of euthanasia is influenced by religious and personal beliefs, current law, and medical assistance. The moral debate involves religion and other societal beliefs. Everyone has their own morals and values, which is their God-given, constitutional right. In America, our society’s morals are based in part on religious beliefs. Most religions, especially Christian religions, feel that taking life is wrong and against God’s commandments. The Catholic Church feels strongly about euthanasia and encourages both the Catholic congregation and United States politicians to maintain the illegal status of euthanasia (Christian Medical Fellowship). Various religions impose their beliefs and morals on the individual causing more confusion. In Euthanasia: The Battle for Life, Dr. Raymond Bohlin discusses what the Bible says about life, suffering, and death, quoting scripture that reflects Christian beliefs that God has created man, numbered his days, and that taking a life breaks God’s commandments. He goes on to imply that the issue can be resolved by praying, speaking out, and reaching out to the sick and the elderly. In support of Bohlin’s point of view,...
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...Suffering 7 Conclusion 8 Bibliography 10 Introduction This paper will give the readers an understanding of C.S. Lewis’ views on pain and suffering. C.S Lewis’ works emphasize the quandary of theodicy, how pain and suffering originated and how it serves to mold and strengthen our life theology thus creating harmony within our souls (mind), The soul being your mind will and emotions (Deut 6:5), when these arise. C. S. Lewis was a complex individual who demonstrated his courage and shared his faith theology in the midst of his pain and suffering by writing the struggles he went through. Following his concepts on pain and suffering I will delineate the difference between theodicy as defined by Merriam-Webster, defense of God's goodness and omnipotence in view of the existence of evil, and how faith theology helps us to unmask the fallacies of diverse world views that hinder the evangelism of nonbelievers due to the abstract concept of evil and the unbelief of his...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY THEOLOGICAL CRITIQUE: FOUR VIEWS ON HELL A THEOLOGICAL CRITIQUE SUBMITTED TO DR. ROBERT WETMORE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COURSE THEO 530 LIBERTY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY BY PETER J. FILIPIAK SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2011 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................1 SUMMARY.............................................................................................................1 CRITICAL INTERACTION...................................................................................2 The Literal View...........................................................................................2 The Metaphorical View................................................................................4 The Purgatorial View....................................................................................5 The Conditional View..................................................................................6 CONCLUSION........................................................................................................7 BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................9 Introduction Four Views on Hell is a book edited by William Crockett in which...
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...Apostle Paul and his dealings with Philemon and Onesimus. 1. Introduction Pastoral care is a faithful ministry towards people who are in need. This ministry comes from a genuine concern for each person, caring about him as person of unique worth, and caring for him as a mutual responsibility. The Bible has many examples of care giving and it has been a constant guide for pastors in helping people who are in need. As such, this paper is an attempt to look at Pastoral Care in action through the example of the Apostle Paul and his dealings with Philemon and Onesimus. 2. The Apostle Paul: A Model for Pastoral Care A study on Apostle Paul in the New Testament will further enhance our understanding of Pastoral Care in the church. It is surprising how little attention has been directed to the apostle Paul as pastor.1 This is unfortunate, particularly because Paul’s letters are themselves the product of his pastoral activities and offer us direct and immediate access to them. 2 Moreover, we have Paul’s own testimony that his pastoral concerns loomed large in his apostolic work. After presenting a lengthy recital of his apostolic hardships he adds, ―And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure upon me of my anxiety for all the churches‖ (II Cor. 11:28). This is not mere rhetoric; the truth of this comment is validated on every page of the apostle’s letters. There, one sees him dealing with the needs of those for whose nurture in Christ he obviously cares very deeply....
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...Shan Rogers Religion Professor Orr December 1, 2012 The Great Awakening and Its Leaders and Theology The Great Awakening was a revival movement meant to purify religion from material distractions and renew any and every person’s faith in God. The movement was a reaction against the diminishing of religion and the spread of disbelief during the Enlightenment of the 1700’s. During this time, revival ministers stressed the emptiness of material comfort, the corruption of human nature, and the need for immediate repentance for fear that individuals shall receive divine fury. So basically, the Great Awakening was a period in history in the American colonies, where the importance of the church was deemphasized and there was more of a focus on the spirituality of individuals themselves. Among this historical event, were leaders who would help carry the Great Awakening to where it was destined to be. Though there were many leaders, two leaders stood out more than any other and had the greatest impact on the Great Awakening. These two leaders were Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield. The revival had begun with Jonathan Edwards in Northampton, Massachusetts. Edwards came from Puritan, Calvinist roots, but emphasized the importance and power of a personal religious experience. Edwards’s role in the Awakening was major and crucial in many ways. First, Edwards was a very prominent and effective preacher who not only used his faith as inspiration for his sermons but also from...
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...BOOK SUMMARY: ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN THOUGHT AND THE OLD TESTAMENT BY JOHN H. WALTON Old Testament Introduction OBST 510 May 4, 2014 Part 1 – Comparative Studies Chapter 1: History and Methods History: Walton begins the chapter with the “rediscovery of Egypt which began in the eighteenth century AD and of Mesopotamia in the mid nineteenth century AD.” There were discoveries of tens of thousands of texts that were excavated, translated and studied. Many of these tablets and texts did coincide with the Bible. Walton outlines comparative study which is the study that attempts to understand things when compared to their broader cultural context. The goal in this case is to understand the Old Testament compared to the ANE. There have been many debates on comparative study and the way in which is executed. Comparative studies deal with the cultures, myths, religions, worldviews and literature of all the people living in the ANE. A comparative study acknowledges that cultures are separate, but that these separate cultures are aware of and understand the religions and rituals of the other surrounding cultures and at times even engages in those rituals. Many of the Scholars were so biased that they tended to argue for the importance of the Old Testament, or vice-versa defended the mythology concept of scripture so vehemently that the cultural comparison was lost. Not until Friedrich Delitzsch, who was the son of the famous biblical commentator Franz Delitzsch, did a more focused...
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...thought between the Hebrew Old Testament and the ANE. Oswalt will define what a myth is and argue why the Old Testament is not and cannot be considered a myth. The Bible, when compared to ANE literature, has a completely different understanding of creation and how the spiritual and natural realms interact and exist. There is not a continuous existence that just repeats itself over and over, but rather a series of single events that lead to a greater purpose. It is Oswalt’s position that the Bible is an accurate historical account of a people who received their relevance of belief from a single living transcendent God. The historical basis is important as God reveals himself through humans, in non-recurring human-historical events, to impose God’s will and direction to affect the will of humans. Chapter 1: The Bible In Its World In this chapter Oswalt addresses different beliefs on the existence of the world. Specifically how the Israelites and Greeks viewed the world in relation to their neighboring cultures. The Bible is the most important source of all contributing factors in today’s Western culture, especially when combined with Israelite monotheism and Greek philosophy. The Hebrew transcendent living God along with Greek thought helped to organize the reality found in the Bible. Greek Thought: Between 700 and 300 BC Greek philosophers founded...
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...The Great Awakening generated many Biblical truths during its time and is considered phenomena to today’s church. Some of these Biblical truths are salvation and a conversion of the heart, that all men and women can be saved. We can have an understanding of Gods truth and His word. Moreover we can have freedom of sin from the guilt and shame. Furthermore mankind can be transformed by His word. Edwards’s vision went beyond salvation, redemption is another Biblical truth. Edwards also stressed that God’s grace extends to everyone that will call on Him. The manifestation of God’s grace, and the bestowal of His richest blessings. All of these Biblical truths can be found in His Holy word. These truths are so essential to the Christians Faith....
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