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FOUNDATIONS FOR

CHRISTIAN DISCIPLESHIP

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Foundations for Discipleship Handouts | 1

Foundations for Discipleship Lakewood Baptist Church Room 128 D/E/F Wednesdays, 6:15 - 7:30 PM August 16 - September 27, 2017

INTRODUCTION 1. Goals:

Double Love - “So anyone who thinks that he has understood the divine scriptures or any part of them, but cannot by his understanding build up this double love of God and neighbor, has not yet succeeded in understanding them.” - Augustine (354-430), On Christian Doctrine

Matthew 22:34–40 Matthew 28:19–20

2. Learning in humility “Scripture is like a river again, broad and deep, shallow enough here for a lamb to go wading but deep enough there for the elephant to swim.” Gregory the Great (c. 540-604), Commentary on Job

Matthew 20:20–28 – Study Scripture and theology should be an act of service toward others, not a way to make much of ourselves.

3. Theological Triage and Christian Unity First Order – Second Order – Third Order – 4. Schedule

Course Outline 1. Scripture | How do we know about God? 2. How do I read and study the Bible?

3. Trinity | Who is God?

4. Prayer | How do I pray?

5. Person and Work of Jesus Christ

6/7. Living and Sharing Your Faith

(Recommended) Homework

• Reading: You’ll find supplemental readings at the end of each section. The goal is that they take no more than twenty minutes, but you can spend as much or as little timme with them as you’d like.

• Memorization: As a class, we’ll memorize Philippians 2:1-11 over these seven weeks. 1. vv. 1-2 2. vv. 3-4 3. vv. 5-6

4. vv. 7-8 5. vv. 9-10 6. v. 11


1. SCRIPTURE Key Question: How can we know anything about God? Outline

1 Knowing the Unknowable 1.1 God’s Transcendence

1.2 Necessity of Divine Revelation 2 God Reveals Himself to His People

2.1 General Revelation 2.2 Special Revelation

2.2.1 Four Attributes of Scripture 2.2.2 Goal of Scripture

2.2.3 Christ as the Word of God 1. Knowing the Unknowable

1.1 God’s Transcendence God’s transcendence describes that God is not like us. God is wholly other than we are. He is completely different. God is God and we are not. Psalm 104:1-9

Acts 17:24-25

1 Kings 8:27-30

Isaiah 40:12-15

1.2 The Necessity of Divine Revelation In fact, he is so much greater than we are, that unless he makes himself known, we cannot know God. If he will not reveal himself to us, we cannot know him. God must reveal himself to us.

Exodus 3

2. God Reveals Himself to His People

How does God make himself known?


2.1 General Revelation

Psalm 19:1

Romans 1:19-20

Discussion Questions:

1. What would you look at in the world around you that points to God?

2. How much can we learn about God from his creation?

2.2 Special Revelation

2.2.1 Four attributes of Scripture: 1. Inspired

*God-breathed - 2 Timothy 3:16–17

*Holy Spirit speaks through human authors. 2 Sam. 23:2

Jer. 1:9 Mark 12:36

Acts 1:16

1 Thes. 2:13 2 Pet.1:21

2 Pet. 3:15–16

*Scripture is the Word of God. *What does it mean that Scripture is the Word of God?

Gen. 1:1-5

Psalm 119:11

Psalm 119:50

Psalm 119:76-77

Psalm 119:89

Psalm 119:97-98

Psalm 119:105

Isaiah 55:10–11

Matthew 19:4–5

Romans 3:4

2 Timothy 3:16–17

Titus 1:2

Hebrews 4:12

2. Authoritative

Authoritative – God’s Word is our final authority.


The Standard by which all other standards are judged.

Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone) = God’s Word stands alone as the primary and final authority for our faith and practice.

What is our posture toward Scripture?

3. Clear Perspicuity means that the saving message of Jesus Christ is clear in Scripture.

“There are things in Scripture that are “hard to understand” (2 Pet. 3:16), but the Reformers insisted that (1) the Spirit illumines our minds; (2) clearer portions of Scripture illumine passages that are less clear; (3) the deficiency is not with Scripture but with our knowledge of its vocabulary and context; and (4) for those who have been enlightened, it is impossible to miss the light (meaning) of the gospel shining out from its pages. Calvin speaks of Scriptures as “spectacles” – canonical corrective lenses – that help bring our dim eyesight into sharper focus.” (Kevin Vanhoozer, Biblical Authority after Babel, 113).

4. Sufficient

Sufficiency: “God has communicated everything we need to know in order to learn Christ and live the Christian life” (Vanhoozer, Biblical Authority after Babel, 114).

Sufficient for what?

2 Peter 1:3

Isaiah 55:10–11


2.2.2 Goal

The goal of Scripture is saving knowledge of God through Jesus Christ.

John 6:67–69

John 20:30–31

“Clearly emerging from all this, finally, is the purpose of special revelation. The final goal again is God himself, for he can ever come to an end in creation but can only rest in himself. God reveals himself for his own sake: to delight in the glorification of his own attributes. But on the journey toward this final end we do after all encounter the creature, particularly the human being, who serves as instrument to bring to manifestation the glory of God’s name before the eyes of God. Precisely in order to reach this final goal, the glorification of God’s name, special revelation must strive to the end of re-creating the whole person after God’s image and likeness and thus to transform that person into a mirror of God’s attributes and perfections. Hence the object of revelation cannot only be to teach human beings, to illuminate their intellects (rationalism), or to prompt them to practice virtue (moralism), or to arouse religious sensations in them (mysticism). God’s aim in special revelation is both much deeper and reaches much farther. It is none other than to redeem human beings in their totality of body and soul with all their capacities and powers; to redeem not only individual, isolated human beings but humanity as an organic whole. Finally, the goal is to redeem not just humanity apart from all the other creatures but along with humanity to wrest heaven and earth, in a word, the whole world in its organic interconnectedness, from the power of sin and again to cause the glory of God to shine forth from every creature. Sin has spoiled and destroyed everything: the intellect and the will, the ethical and the physical world. Accordingly, it is the whole person and the whole cosmos at whose salvation and restoration God is aiming in his revelation. God’s revelation, therefore, is certainly soteriological, but the object of that salvation is the cosmos, and not only the ethical or the will to the exclusion of the intellect, and not only the psychological to the exclusion of the somatic and physical, but everything in conjunction. For God has consigned all human beings under sin that he might have mercy upon all (Rom. 5:15f.; 11:32; Gal. 3:22).” - Bavinck, RD, 1:346

2.2.3 Christ as the Word of God

John 1:1–18

Hebrews 1:1–4


Further Reading “Holy Scripture is not an arid story or ancient chronicle but the ever-living, eternally youthful Word, which God, now and always issues to his people. It is the eternally ongoing speech of God to us. It does not just serve to give us historical information; it does not even have the intent to furnish us a historical story by the standard of reliability demanded in other realms of knowledge. Holy Scripture is tendentious:* whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Scripture was written by the Holy Spirit that it might serve him in guiding the church, in the perfecting of the saints, in the building up of the body of Christ. In it God daily comes to his people. In it he speaks to his people, not from afar by from nearby. In it he reveals himself, from day to day, to believers in the fullness of his truth and grace. Through it he works his miracles of compassion and faithfulness. Scripture is the ongoing rapport between heaven and earth, between Christ and his church, between God and his children. It does not just tie us to the past; it binds us to the living Lord in the heavens. It is the living voice of God, the letter of the omnipotent God to his creature. God once created the world by the word, and by the word he also upholds it; but he also re-creates it by the word and prepares it to be his dwelling. Divine inspiration, accordingly, is a permenant attribute of Holy Scripture. It was not only “God-breathed” at the time it was written; it is “God-breathing.” “It was divinely inspired, not merely while it was written, God breathing through the writers; but also, whilst it is being read, God breathing through the Scripture and the Scripture breathing in Him [He being their very breath]” (J. A. Bengel, Gnomon of the New Testament, 4:319). Having come from revelation, it is kept alive by divine inspiration and made efficacious. It is the Holy Spirit who maintains both prophecy and miracle, Scripture and church, joining them together, thus preparing the parousia.† Some day when being and consciousness are completely renewed, revelation will end and Scripture will no longer be necessary. Divine inspiration will then be the portion of all God’s children. They will all be taught by the Lord and serve him in his temple. Prophecy and miracle have then become “nature,” for God dwells among his people.” Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, 1:384-85

Questions for Reflection

1. According to Bavinck, how is Scripture different than other books?

2. What Scripture would you point to as support for the idea that God’s Word is “ever-living”?

3. Bavinck writes about the Bible, “In it God daily comes to his people.” What does he mean by this? How would this view of Scripture shape our reading and studying of the Bible?

4. What is the Holy Spirit’s role in the writing and reading of Scripture?

*Promotes a particular point of view. † Second Coming


2. HOW DO I READ AND STUDY THE BIBLE?

Psalm 119:17-24

Outline: 1. How did we get the Bible? 2. Principles for Reading the Bible 3. Practice

1. How did we get the Bible? Goal: (1) For you to have confidence when you read your Bible, and (2) for you to make an informed decision when choosing a translation.

1.1 Writing of the Bible

1.2 Canonization

1.3 From Manuscripts to Modern Bibles

1.4 Translations


• Key Dates in the Translation of the Bible into English Old English c. 600 – c. 1100 Venerable Bede 672-735 King Alfred 849-899 Norman Conquest 1066 Middle English c. 1100-1500 Richard Rolle c.1300-1349 John Wyclif c. 1320-1384 Wycliffite Translation 1380s Modern English since 1500 William Tyndale c. 1494-1536 Erasmus’ Greek New Testament Published 1516 Tyndale New Testament 1525 Coverdale Bible 1535 Matthew Bible 1537 Great Bible 1539 Geneva Bible 1560 Bishops’ Bible 1568 Hampton Court Conference 1604 Douay-Rheims Bible 1610 King James Bible 1611 Codex Sinaiticus Recovered 1859 Revised Version NT 1881 Revised Version Whole Bible 1885 American Standard Version 1901 Revised Standard Version 1952 New American Standard Version 1971 New International Version 1973 New King James Version 1982 New Revised Standard Version 1990 English Standard Version 2001 Holman Christian Standard Bible 2003 New International Version (Update) 2011 Christian Standard Bible 2017

• Why do we keeping getting all these translations?

o Language Changes

o Differences in Translation Goals


John 3:16 Across English Translations Wyclif – 1380s For God loved so the world that he gave his only

begotten son, that each man that believeth in him perish not, but have everlasting life.

Tyndale - 1525 God so loved the world, that he gave his only son for the intent, that none that believe in him, should perish: But should have everlasting life.

King James Bible - 1611 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Revised Version - 1881 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish but have eternal life.

English Standard Version - 2001 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish but have eternal life.

New International Version - 2011 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Psalm 23:1-2 Across English Translations Wyclif – 1380s (Psalm 22) The Lord gouerneth me, and no thing schal faile to me; in

the place of pasture there he hath set me. He nurschide me on the watir of refreischyng

King James Bible - 1611 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Revised Version - 1881 Jehovah is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside still waters.

English Standard Version - 2001 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.

New International Version - 2011 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters


2. Principles for Reading the Bible 2.1 Context

2.1.1 Immediate

2.1.2 Whole Book

2.1.3 Canonical

2.2 Christ 2.2.1. All of Scripture _________________________.

Luke 24:27

John 5:39, 46

2.2.2. Christ is the _________________________.

Matthew 5:17–18

2.2.3. All the promises of Scripture are _________________________.

2 Corinthians 1:20

2.2.4. Jesus reveals _________________________.

John 14:8–11

Hebrews 1:1-4

2.3 Community

Local Church

Church Universal


3. Practice

3.1 Key Questions to Ask When Reading Scripture

• What’s happening in this passage?

• What does this passage reveal about God?

• Where’s Christ in this passage?

• How does this passage apply to my life?

3.2 Passages for Practice

Psalm 1

2 Samuel 11:1-27Mark 4:1–20

Galatians 5:1–15


Further Study

The Bible is the inspired and authoritative Word of God. Recent debates on inspiration and inerrancy have obscured for some what has been the received wisdom for all orthodox Christians: Scripture is a divinely bestowed, Spirit-generated gift of the triune God and should thus be received with gratitude, humility and a sense of reverence. Christians do not worship the Bible, but the God they do worship – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – has revealed himself and his plans for them and for the world through the words and messages of the Bible. This commitment has been expressed in various ways throughout the history of the church, but the Methodist leader John Wesley put it in a way that would have been met with large approval by most of the biblical exegetes who preceded him: “The Scriptures, therefore, of the Old and New Testament, are a most solid and precious system of divine truth. Every part is worthy of God and altogether are one entire body, wherein is no defect, no excess. It is the fountain of heavenly wisdom, which they who are able to taste, prefer to all writings of men, however wise or learned or holy.” Because that is true the Bible cannot be read just “like any other book” but must be received in faith, the kind of faith that is formed by love and leads to holiness.

– Timothy George, Reading Scripture with the Reformers, 32-33.

Questions for Reflection

1. How does Dr. George say the Scriptures should be received? Why? How would these traits show themselves in your personal reading of Scripture?

2. John Wesley describes the Scripture as “one entire body.” How does seeing the unity of all of Scripture shape the way we read it?

3. What does it mean for the Bible to be received in faith?


3. TRINITY | WHO IS GOD?

Outline

1. Distance & Nearness 2. Greatness 3. Goodness 4. Three-in-oneness

1. Distance and Nearness 1.1 Distance – God’s Transcendence

*Biblical Descriptions Isaiah 6:1–5 1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” 4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

Isaiah 55:8–9 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Psalm 113:5–6 5 Who is like the LORD our God, who is seated on high, 6 who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? John 8:23 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.


*Implications of Transcendence 1. There exists something ________________ than humanity.

2. God will __________ be different than we are.

3. We can never completely ____________ God.

4. _____________ must come from him.

5. He is worthy of __________ and ___________.

1.2 Nearness – God’s Immanence

*Biblical Descriptions

Jeremiah 23:24 24 Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD. Acts 17:27–28 27 . . . Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28 for “ ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “ ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

*This means. . .

1. God is _____________ in sustaining this world.

2. Nothing is __________ from him.

3. God ___________ our prayers.

4. It is God’s ______________ that he draws near.

5. His closeness is fully manifested in _________________________________.

2. Greatness

God’s attributes are his permanent, intrinsic qualities. God is unity, not a sum of parts. Thus, his attributes are “inseparable from the being or essence of God” (Erickson, CT, 292). His attributes are his nature.


Greatness: Spirituality, Personality, Life, Infinity, Constancy 2.1 Spirituality

*God is a spirit. He does not have a body, and therefore is no limited spatially. *Biblical Evidence

John 4:24 - God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” Invisibility is closely related: John 1:18; 1 Tim. 1:17, 6:15-16.

*What about when the Bible speaks of the hand of God, etc.? Anthropomorphisms: Bible speaks of God in human terms to help us understand him.

*Implications

God is not limited by space. We cannot make images of God. (cf. John 4:24)

2.2 Personality *God is not an impersonal force. He is personal. He is capable of relationships.

*Relational / personal nature of God seen clearly in Gen. 3 and Ex. 3:14 * “God is an end in himself, not a means to an end.” – Erickson, CT, 296

God is not a tool or power to be manipulated to get what we want. God himself is the goal. (e.g. salvation is not about avoiding hell, but knowing God). Compare to any human relationship – a good relationship is built on loving the other person, not loving what the other person can give you.

2.3 Life *John 5:26 - as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. *God is life and the very source of life. Life is the essence of who he is. He is the one, living, and true God. *Biblical Descriptions

Hebrews 11:6, Jeremiah 10:10, 1 Thessalonians 1:9 *God is living. He is life. He is the source of life.

Uncreated (aseity) God does not need us, but out of his love, he created us.

2.4 Infinity *Unlimited. Maximally great.

*Space – omnipresent Psalm 139:7–12


Acts 17:24–25 *Knowledge – omniscient

Matthew 10:29 Hebrews 4:13

Romans 11:33 *Power – omnipotent

Gen. 17:1 – “God Almighty” *Time – eternal / timeless

Psalm 90:1–2 Jude 25

“Alpha and Omega” (Isa. 44:6; Rev. 1:8) 2.5 Constancy

*Biblical Descriptions Numbers 23:19

Psalm 33:11 Psalm 102:25–27

Malachi 3:6 *What about when God seems to change his mind? (See Erickson, 304-305)

1. Anthropomorphism 2. New stages in God’s plan 3. Humanity moved, not *God is not static, but he is stable.

3. Goodness

3.1 Moral Purity

3.1.1 Holiness

*Isaiah 6:1–4 *Marked off / set apart – in two senses: (1) uniqueness and (2) purity

(1) Uniqueness - Exodus 15:11

(2) Purity - Habakkuk 1:13, James 1:13

3.1.2 Righteousness *“God’s holiness applied to his relationships to other beings.” Erickson, CT, 313


*God is holy (holiness); God acts in accordance with his holiness (righteousness); i.e. God does what is right

Genesis 18:25 Jeremiah 9:24

*His law is a testimony to his righteousness - Psalm 19:7 3.1.3 Justice

*God judges in accordance with his holiness. Psalm 58:11 - Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.”

*He punishes sin

Genesis 2:17 Romans 6:23

*He judges fairly (with equity) Psalm 9:8

Psalm 98:8–9 3.2 Integrity

God’s qualities relating to his honesty. His word is truth. 3.2.1 Genuineness – God is real. He is actually the goodness described in Scripture. He is true.

Jeremiah 10:10 John 17:3

3.2.2 Veracity – God speaks truth (and only truth). Titus 1:2

Hebrews 6:18 John 17:17

3.3.3 Faithfulness – God keeps his promises. He always proves true. 1 Thessalonians 5:24

Numbers 23:19 3.3 Love

1 John 4:8, 16 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love . . . 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

When we describe God as love, we’re speaking of his self-giving. 3.3.1 Benevolence - “God’s concern for the welfare of those whom he loves” (Erickson, 318).


John 3:16 Deuteronomy 7:7–8

Romans 5:8 - God’s love culminates in Christ. 3.3.2 Grace – God deals with us on the basis of his goodness, not based on our worthiness. It is unmerited favor. It is his concern for the guilty.

Exodus 34:6

Ephesians 1:3–8 Ephesians 2:4–9

Titus 2:11 3.3.3 Mercy – Mercy is God’s concern for the need. “God’s mercy is his tenderhearted, loving compassion for his people.” (Erickson, 322).

Eph. 2:4 Exodus 3:7

Mark 1:41 3.3.4 Patience – “long-suffering;” persistence

Psalm 86:15

Romans 2:4 Romans 9:22

1 Peter 3:20 2 Peter 3:15

3.3.5 Love should mark the believer (True of all of these characteristics of God’s goodness, but this one seems particularly emphasized in Scripture).

Matthew 22:36–40 4. Three-in-Oneness: Trinity

4.1 Summary

We believe that God is one, and yet this one God exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The Trinity is the distinctive feature of Christian thought.

One Godhead exists simultaneously in three modes of being (persons / hypostases) Key terms: ousia (essence / being) & hypostaseis (persons)

Distinguished numerically as persons | indistinguishable in their essence 4.2 Essential Elements:

1. God is one. 2. God is three persons.


3. Each person is fully God. 4.2.1 God is one

*There is one and only one God. *Biblical Support

Exodus 20:2–3 - 2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

Deuteronomy 6:4–5 - 4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. James 2:19 - You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 1 Timothy 2:5–6 - 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

See also: Rom. 3:30, 1 Cor. 8:6 4.2.2 God is three persons

*Each person is distinct: the Father is not the Son or the Holy Spirit; the Son is not the Father or the Spirit; and the Spirit is not the Father or the Son.

*Distinct person and roles working toward a unified end. E.g. Revelation, redemption, etc.

*Three-in-oneness in action in Scripture Creation:

Gen. 1 Psalm 33:6 - By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. Baptism:

Matthew 3:16–17 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

John 1:33–34 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

Matthew 28:19–20 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Triune Work of God in Redemption and Sanctification:


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 Corinthians 12:4–6 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. Galatians 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Romans 15:15–16 15 But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 2 Corinthians 1:21–22 21 And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, 22 and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

2 Thessalonians 2:13–14 13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. 14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 3:14–19 14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. John 14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, John 14:26 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. John 16:13–15 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

4.2.3 Each person is fully God. *Father (Ex. 20:2-3; Deut. 6:4-5; 1 Cor. 8:4,6; Eph. 1:3; 1 Tim. 2:5-6; James 2:19)

*Son John 1:1–4 1 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 were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.


John 20:28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

Philippians 2:5–11 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Hebrews 1:1–4 1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

*Spirit

John 16:8–11 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. Acts 5:3–4 3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.”

1 Corinthians 3:16–17 16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. 1 Corinthians 12:4–11 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

Spirit is equal to the Father and the Son: Matt. 28:19, 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Pt. 1:2


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, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

*Summary Each Person is fully God: Father, Son, and Spirit have existed eternally as the Triune God. The Father has eternally been the Father; the Son has eternally been the Son; the Spirit has eternally been the Spirit. They are each fully divine, sharing in all the attributes of the Godhead. They are equal. They are one divine essence.

4.2.4 The Trinity is incomprehensible.


READINGS ON THE TRINITY

Athanasian Creed (c. 500)

Whoever desires to be saved should above all hold to the catholic faith. Anyone who does not keep it whole and unbroken will doubtless perish eternally. Now this is the catholic faith:

That we worship one God in trinity and the trinity in unity, neither blending their persons nor dividing their essence. For the person of the Father is a distinct person, the person of the Son is another, and that of the Holy Spirit still another. But the divinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is one, their glory equal, their majesty coeternal.

What quality the Father has, the Son has, and the Holy Spirit has. The Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, the Holy Spirit is uncreated. The Father is immeasurable, the Son is immeasurable, the Holy Spirit is immeasurable.

The Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, the Holy Spirit is eternal. And yet there are not three eternal beings; there is but one eternal being. So too there are not three uncreated or immeasurable beings; there is but one uncreated and immeasurable being.

Similarly, the Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, the Holy Spirit is almighty. Yet there are not three almighty

beings; there is but one almighty being. Thus the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God. Yet there are not three gods; there is but one God.

Thus the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, the Holy Spirit is Lord. Yet there are not three lords; there is but one Lord. Just as Christian truth compels us to confess each person individually as both God and Lord, so catholic religion forbids us to say that there are three gods or lords.

The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten from anyone. The Son was neither made nor created; he was begotten from the Father alone. The Holy Spirit was neither made nor created nor begotten; he proceeds from the Father and the Son. Accordingly there is one Father, not three fathers; there is one Son, not three sons; there is one Holy Spirit, not three holy spirits.

Nothing in this trinity is before or after, nothing is greater or smaller; in their entirety the three persons are coeternal and coequal with each other.

So in everything, as was said earlier, we must worship their trinity in their unity and their unity in their trinity.

Anyone then who desires to be saved should think thus about the trinity.


But it is necessary for eternal salvation that one also believe in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ faithfully. Now this is the true faith:

That we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, God's Son, is both God and human, equally. He is God from the essence of the Father, begotten before time; and he is human from the essence of his mother, born in time; completely God, completely human, with a rational soul and human flesh; equal to the Father as regards divinity, less than the Father as regards humanity.

Although he is God and human, yet Christ is not two, but one. He is one, however, not by his divinity being turned into flesh, but by God's taking humanity to himself. He is one, certainly not by the blending of his

essence, but by the unity of his person. For just as one human is both rational soul and flesh, so too the one Christ is both God and human.

He suffered for our salvation; he descended to hell; he arose from the dead; he ascended to heaven; he is seated at the Father's right hand; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead. At his coming all people will arise bodily and give an accounting of their own deeds. Those who have done good will enter eternal life, and those who have done evil will enter eternal fire.

This is the catholic faith: one cannot be saved without believing it firmly and faithfully.

Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.


from Council of Constantinople, 381 Augustine (354-430) on the Attributes of God

Most high, most excellent, most powerful, most all-powerful; most compassionate and most just; most hidden and most near; most beautiful and most strong and stable, yet not contained; unchangeable, yet changing all things; never new, never old; making all things new, yet bringing old age upon the proud. . . always working, yet ever at rest; gathering, yet needing nothing; sustaining, pervading, and protecting; creating, nourishing, and developing; seeking, and yet possessing all things. You love but do not burn [with passion]; you are jealous yet free from worry; you repent but have no regrets; you are angry yet peaceful; you change your ways but leave your plans unchanged; you recover what you find, having yet never lost [it in the first place]; you never need anything, but you rejoice in gain; you do not covet, yet you require usury [your stewards return interest to you]. In order that you may owe, more than enough is given to you; yet who has anything that is not already yours? You pay off debts while owing nothing. And when you forgive debts, you lose nothing.

Confessions, 1.4.4

Irenaeus (130-202) on the Trinity

This the rule of our faith, the foundation of the building, and gives support to our behavior.

God the Father uncreated, who is uncontained, invisible, one God, creator of the universe; this is the first article of our faith. And the second is:

The Word of God, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, who appeared to the prophets according to their way of prophesying, and according to the dispensation of the Father. Through him all things were created. Furthermore, in the fullness of time, in order to gather all things to himself, he became a human being amongst human beings, capable of being seen and touched, to destroy death, bring life, and restore fellowship between God and humanity. And the third article is:

The Holy Spirit, through whom the prophets prophesied, and our forebears learned of God and the righteous were led in the paths of justice, and who, in the fullness of time, was poured out in a new way on our human nature in order to renew humanity throughout the entire world in the sight of God.

Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, 6.

Hilary of Poitiers (300-368) on the Trinity

For as long as I enjoy the life which you have given me by your Spirit, O Holy Father, Omnipotent God, I shall proclaim you as the eternal God and also as the eternal Father. Nor shall I ever show such folly and impiety as to make myself judge of your omnipotence and mysteries, and put the feeble understanding of my weakness above a true understanding of your infinity and faith in your eternity. I shall never declare that


you could have existed without your wisdom, your virtue, your word: the only-begotten God, my Lord Jesus Christ. . .

Preserve, I ask of you, this piety of my faith without any contamination, and to the end of my life give me this awareness of my knowledge, that I always may hold fast to what I possess, that is, what I professed in the creed of my regeneration when I was baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Grant that I may adore you, our Father, and your Son together with you, and that I may be worthy of the Holy Spirit who is through you through your only-begotten. He bears witness to my faith who says, “Father, all things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine” – my Lord Jesus Christ, who for ever abides as God in you, from you and with you, who is blessed for ever and ever. Amen.

de Trinitate, XII, 52, 57

Gregory of Nazianzus’ (329-390) Summary of the Doctrine of the Trinity

This I give you to share, and to defend all your life, the one Godhead and power, found in the three in unity and comprising the three separately; not unequal, in subtstances or natures, neither increased nor diminished by superiorities or inferiorities; in every respect equal, in every respect the same; just as the beauty and the greatness of the heavens is one; the infinite conjunction of three infinite ones, each God when considered in himself, as the Father so the Son, as the Son so the Holy Spirit; the three one God when contemplated together; each God because consubstantial; one God because of the monarchy. No sooner do I conceive of the one than I am illumined by the splendor of the three; no sooner do I distinguish them than I am carried back to the one. When I think of any one of three I think of him as the whole, and my eyes are filled, and the greater part of what I am thinking of escapes me. I cannot grasp the greatness of that one so as to attribute a greater greatness to the rest. When I contemplate the three together, I see but one torch, and cannot divide or measure out the undivided light.

“On Holy Baptism,” Oration 40.41


4. PRAYER

Three questions to answer in this class: 1. What is prayer? 2. What does prayer do? 3. How do I pray?

1. What is prayer? 1.1 “Prayer is ______________________ with God.” - Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, 376.

Elaborated Definition: Prayer is personal communication with God the Father, through God the Son, Jesus, and by the power of God the Holy Spirit. Types of Prayer: requests, confession of sin, adoration, praise, and thanksgiving

1.2 Addressing God as Father

1.3 What it does it mean to prayer “through” Jesus?

We can only approach God on the basis of _______________ of Jesus. Jesus is the mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5). Jesus is our Great High Priest (Heb. 4:14-16, 7:25-27, 8:1-7, 10:19-22).

We are united to Christ. We pray _____________. (John 14:13-14).

We pray on the basis of his authorization. We pray as his representatives (in accord with his will; in line with his character).

We pray “that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” 1.4 What does it mean to pray “by the power of the Holy Spirit”?

We pray (as we live the Christian life) not in our strength but through God’s strength. The Holy Spirit makes our weak prayers effective (Rom. 8:26-27).

2. What does prayer do? Question for reflection: If God is omniscient and omnipotent (and good), why does he want us to pray?

2.1 Prayer is ___________ with God.

2.2 Prayer ___________ our trust in God.


2.3 Prayer ___________ our trust in God.

2.4 Prayer ______________________ in God’s work.

2.5 Prayer ___________ the way God acts. Exodus 32:9–14; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Luke 11:5–13; 1 John 1:9

3. How do I pray? 3.1 We pray to God the Father through God the Son and by God the Spirit.

3.2 Routine

3.3 ACTS Adoration

Confession Thanksgiving

Supplication 3.4 Praying Through Scripture

3.5 Prayer and Fasting Prayer and Fasting are intimately linked in Scripture - Neh. 1:4; Esther 4:3; Daniel 9:3; Joel 2:12; Luke 2:37; Acts 13:2-3; Acts 14:23; Matt. 6:16; Matt. 9:15 Benefits (from Grudem, Systematic Theology, 390).

1. Increases our humility and dependence on the Lord 2. Allows us to give more attention to prayer 3. Continual reminder that we must sacrifice all of ourselves to the Lord 4. Self-discipline (strengthens our ability to resist sin)

3.6 Prayer and Christian Living


Faith | Mark 11:24, Matt. 21:22, James 1:6,

Obedience | Ps. 66:18; Prov. 15:8, 29; Prov. 28:9; 1 Pt. 3:12 (Ps. 34); 1 Pt. 3:7; 1 Jn. 3:21-22

Confession of Sin | James 5:16

Forgiving Others | Matt. 6:14-15; Mark 11:25

Humility | Luke 18; James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5

3.7 Unanswered Prayers Why do some prayers go unanswered?

Because of God’s timing (Matt. 9:18-25) Because we do not pray according to God’s will (James 4:3)

Because we do not ask in faith (James 1:6-8) Because God has a better plan

How do we respond? Like Jesus: “Not my will but yours. . .” (Luke 22:42)

Continue in faith, knowing. . . 2 Cor. 12:8-9; Rom. 8:28; 1 Peter 5:7; Heb. 13:5

Continue in prayer Follow the example of Hannah (1 Sam. 1:19-20)

Luke 6:12; Luke 18:1-8; Mark 14:36; 1 Thess. 5:17; Col. 4:2


MARTIN LUTHER | A SIMPLE WAY TO PRAY A Letter to His Barber, Master Peter Beskendorf, Spring 1535 I will tell you as best I can what I do personally when I pray. May our dear Lord grant to you and to everybody to do it better than I! Amen. First, when I feel that I have become cool and joyless in prayer because of other tasks or thoughts (for the flesh and the devil always impede and obstruct prayer), I take my little psalter, hurry to my room, or, if it be the day and hour for it, to the church where a congregation is assembled and, as time permits, I say quietly to myself and word-for-word the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and, if I have time, some words of Christ or of Paul, or some psalms, just as a child might do. It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business of the morning and the last at night. Guard yourself carefully against those false, deluding ideas which tell you, "Wait a little while. I will pray in an hour; first I must attend to this or that." Such thoughts get you away from prayer into other affairs which so hold your attention and involve you that nothing comes of prayer for that day.

It may well be that you may have some tasks which are as good or better than prayer, especially in an emergency. There is a saying ascribed to St. Jerome that everything a believer does is prayer and a proverb, "He who works faithfully prays twice." This can be said because a believer fears and honors God in his work and remembers the commandment not to wrong anyone, or to try to steal, defraud, or cheat. Such thoughts and such faith undoubtedly transform his work into prayer and a sacrifice of praise. On the other hand it is also true that the work of an unbeliever is outright cursing and so he who works faithlessly curses twice. While he does his work his thoughts are occupied with a neglect of God and violation of his law, how to take advantage of his neighbor, how to steal from him and defraud him. What else can such thoughts be but out and out curses against God and man, which makes one's work and effort a double curse by which a man curses himself. In the end they are beggars and bunglers. It is of such continual prayer that Christ says in Luke 11, "Pray without ceasing," because one must unceasingly guard against sin and wrong-doing, something one cannot do unless one fears God and keeps his commandment in mind, as Psalm 1 says, "Blessed is he who meditates upon his law day and night."

Yet we must be careful not to break the habit of true prayer and imagine other works to be necessary which, after all, are nothing of the kind. Thus at the end we become lax and lazy, cool and listless toward prayer. The devil who besets us is not lazy or careless, and our flesh is too ready and eager to sin and is disinclined to the spirit of prayer.

When your heart has been warmed by such recitation to yourself and is intent upon the matter, kneel or stand with your hands folded and your eyes toward heaven and speak or think as briefly as you can: O Heavenly Father, dear God, I am a poor unworthy sinner. I do not deserve to raise my eyes or hands toward thee or to pray. But because thou hast commanded us all to pray and hast promised to hear us and through thy dear Son Jesus Christ hast taught us both how and what to pray, I come to thee in obedience to thy word, trusting in thy gracious promise. I pray in the name of my Lord Jesus Christ together with all thy saints and Christians on earth as he has taught us: Our


Father who art, etc., through the whole prayer, word for word. Then repeat one part or as much as you wish, perhaps the first petition: "Hallowed be thy name," and say: "Yes, Lord God, dear Father, hallowed be thy name, both in us and throughout the whole world. Destroy and root out the abominations, idolatry, and heresy of the Turk, the pope, and all false teachers and fanatics who wrongly use thy name and in scandalous ways take it in vain and horribly blaspheme it. They insistently boast that they teach thy word and the laws of the church, though they really use the devil's deceit and trickery in thy name to wretchedly seduce many poor souls throughout the world, even killing and shedding much innocent blood, and in such persecution they believe that they render thee a divine service. Dear Lord God, convert and restrain. Convert those who are still to be converted that they with us and we with them may hallow and praise thy name, both with true and pure doctrine and with a good and holy life. Restrain those who are unwilling to be converted so that they be forced to cease from misusing, defiling, and dishonoring thy holy name and from misleading the poor people. Amen."

The second petition: "Thy kingdom come." Say: "O dear Lord, God and Father, thou seest how worldly wisdom and reason not only profane thy name and ascribe the honor due to thee to lies and to the devil, but how they also take the power, might, wealth and glory which thou hast given them on earth for ruling the world and thus serving thee, and use it in their own ambition to oppose thy kingdom. They are many and mighty; they plague and hinder the tiny flock of thy kingdom who are weak, despised, and few. They will not tolerate thy flock on earth and think that by plaguing them they render a great and godly service to thee. Dear Lord, God and Father, convert them and defend us. Convert those who are still to become children and members of thy kingdom so that they with us and we with them may serve thee in thy kingdom in true faith and unfeigned love and that from thy kingdom which has begun, we may enter into thy eternal kingdom. Defend us against those who will not turn away their might and power from the destruction of thy kingdom so that when they are east down from their thrones and humbled, they will have to cease from their efforts. Amen." The third petition. "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Say: "O dear Lord, God and Father, thou knowest that the world, if it cannot destroy thy name or root out thy kingdom, is busy day and night with wicked tricks and schemes, strange conspiracies and intrigue, huddling together in secret counsel, giving mutual encouragement and support, raging and threatening and going about with every evil intention to destroy thy name, word, kingdom, and children. Therefore, dear Lord, God and Father, convert them and defend us. Convert those who have yet to acknowledge thy good will that they with us and we with them may obey thy will and for thy sake gladly, patiently, and joyously bear every evil, cross, and adversity, and thereby acknowledge, test, and experience thy benign, gracious, and perfect will. But defend us against those who in their rage, fury, hate, threats, and evil desires do not cease to do us harm. Make their wicked schemes, tricks, and devices to come to nothing so that these may be turned against them, as we sing in Psalm 7 ." The fourth petition. "Give us this day our daily bread." Say: "Dear Lord, God and Father, grant us thy blessing also in this temporal and physical life. Graciously grant us blessed peace. Protect us against war and disorder. Grant to our dear emperor fortune and success against his enemies. Grant him wisdom and understanding to rule over his earthly kingdom in peace and prosperity. Grant to all kings, princes, and rulers good counsel and the will to preserve their domains and


their subjects in tranquility and justice. Especially aid and guide our dear prince N., under whose protection and shelter thou dost maintain us, so that he may be protected against all harm and reign blessedly, secure from evil tongues and disloyal people. Grant to all his subjects grace to serve him loyally and obediently. Grant to every estate-townsman or farmer-to be diligent and to display charity and loyalty toward each other. Give us favorable weather and good harvest. I commend to thee my house and property, wife and child. Grant that I may manage them well, supporting and educating them as a Christian should. Defend us against the Destroyer and all his wicked angels who would do us harm and mischief in this life. Amen."

The fifth petition. "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." Say: "O dear Lord, God and Father, enter not into judgment against us because no man living is justified before thee. Do not count it against us as a sin that we are so unthankful for thine ineffable goodness, spiritual and physical, or that we stray into sin many times every day, more often than we can know or recognize, Psalm 19. Do not look upon how good or how wicked we have been but only upon the infinite compassion which thou hast bestowed upon us in Christ, thy dear Son. Grant forgiveness also to those who have harmed or wronged us, as we forgive them from our hearts. They inflict the greatest in- jury upon themselves by arousing thy anger in their actions toward us. We are not helped by their ruin; we would much rather that they be saved with us. Amen." (Anyone who feels unable to forgive, let him ask for grace so that he can forgive; but that belongs in a sermon.) The sixth petition. "And lead us not into temptation." Say: "O dear Lord, Father and God, keep us fit and alert, eager and diligent in thy word and service, so that we do not become complacent, lazy, and slothful as though we had already achieved everything. In that way the fearful devil cannot fall upon us, surprise us, and deprive us of thy precious word or stir up strife and factions among us and lead us into other sin and disgrace, both spiritually and physically. Rather grant us wisdom and strength through thy spirit that we may valiantly resist him and gain the victory. Amen."

The seventh petition. "But deliver us from evil." Say: "O dear Lord, God and Father, this wretched life is so full of misery and calamity, of danger and uncertainty, so full of malice and faithlessness (as St. Paul says, "The days are evil") that we might rightfully grow weary of life and long for death. But thou, dear Father, knowest our frailty; therefore help us to pass in safety through so much wickedness and villainy; and, when our last hour comes, in thy mercy grant us a blessed departure from this vale of sorrows so that in the face of death we do not become fearful or despondent but in firm faith commit our souls into thy hands. Amen." Finally, mark this, that you must always speak the Amen firmly. Never doubt that God in his mercy will surely hear you and say "yes" to your prayers. Never think that you are kneeling or standing alone, rather think that the whole of Christendom, all devout Christians, are standing there beside you and you are standing among them in a common, united petition which God cannot disdain. Do not leave your prayer without having said or thought, "Very well, God has heard my prayer; this I know as a certainty and a truth." That is what Amen means. You should also know that I do not want you to recite all these words in your prayer. That would make it nothing but idle chatter and prattle, read word for word out of a book as were the rosaries by the laity and the prayers of the priests and monks. Rather do I want your heart to be stirred and guided concerning the thoughts which ought to be comprehended in the Lord's Prayer. These thoughts may be expressed, if your heart is rightly warmed and inclined toward prayer, in many


different ways and with more words or fewer. I do not bind myself to such words or syllables, but say my prayers in one fashion today, in another tomorrow, depending upon my mood and feeling. I stay however, as nearly as I can, with the same general thoughts and ideas. It may happen occasionally that I may get lost among so many ideas in one petition that I forego the other six. If such an abundance of good thoughts comes to us we ought to disregard the other petitions, make room for such thoughts, listen in silence, and under no circumstances obstruct them. The Holy Spirit himself preaches here, and one word of his sermon is far better than a thousand of our prayers. Many times I have learned more from one prayer than I might have learned from much reading and speculation. It is of great importance that the heart be made ready and eager for prayer. As the Preacher says, "Prepare your heart for prayer, and do not tempt God". What else is it but tempting God when your mouth babbles and the mind wanders to other thoughts? Like the priest who prayed, "Deus in adjutorium meum intende. Farmhand, did you unhitch the horses? Domine ad adjuvandum me festina. Maid, go out and milk the cow. Gloria patri et filio et spiritui sancto. Hurry up, boy, I wish the ague would take you!" I have heard many such prayers in my experience under the papacy; most of their prayers are of this sort. This is blasphemy and it would be better if they played at it if they cannot or do not care to do better. In my day I have prayed many such canonical hours myself, regrettably, and in such a manner that the psalm or the allotted time came to an end before I even realized whether I was at the beginning or in the middle. Though not all of them blurt out the words as did the above-mentioned cleric and mix business and prayer, they do it by the thoughts in their hearts. They jump from one thing to another in their thoughts and when it is all over they do not know what they have done or what they talked about. They start with Laudate and right away they are in a fool's paradise. It seems to me that if someone could see what arises as prayer from a cold and unattentive heart he would conclude that he had never seen a more ridiculous kind of buffoonery. But, praise God, it is now clear to me that a person who forgets what he has said has not prayed well. In a good prayer one fully remembers every word and thought from the beginning to the end of the prayer. So, a good and attentive barber keeps his thoughts, attention, and eyes on the razor and hair and does not forget how far he has gotten with his shaving or cutting. If he wants to engage in too much conversation or let his mind wander or look somewhere else he is likely to cut his customer's mouth, nose, or even his throat. Thus if anything is to be done well, it requires the full attention of all one's senses and members, as the proverb says, "Pluribus intentus, minor est ad singula sensus"-"He who thinks of many things, thinks of nothing and does nothing right." How much more does prayer call for concentration and singleness of heart if it is to be a good prayer!

This in short is the way I use the Lord's Prayer when I pray it. To this day I suckle at the Lord's Prayer like a child, and as an old man eat and drink from it and never get my fill. It is the very best prayer, even better than the psalter, which is so very dear to me. It is surely evident that a real master composed and taught it. What a great pity that the prayer of such a master is prattled and chattered so irreverently all over the world! How many pray the Lord's Prayer several thousand times in the course of a year, and if they were to keep on doing so for a thousand years they would not have tasted nor prayed one iota, one dot, of it! In a word, the Lord's Prayer is the greatest martyr on earth (as are the name and word of God). Everybody tortures and abuses it; few take comfort and joy in its proper use. The Ten Commandments


If I have had time and opportunity to go through the Lord's Prayer, I do the same with the Ten Commandments. I take one part after another and free myself as much as possible from distractions in order to pray. I divide each commandment into four parts, thereby fashioning a garland of four strands. That is, I think of each commandment as, first, instruction, which is really what it is intended to be, and consider what the Lord God demands of me so earnestly. Second, I turn it into a thanksgiving; third, a confession; and fourth, a prayer. I do so in thoughts or words such as these: "I am the Lord your God, etc. You shall have no other gods before me," etc. Here I earnestly consider that God expects and teaches me to trust him sincerely in all things and that it is his most earnest purpose to be my God. I must think of him in this way at the risk of losing eternal salvation. My heart must not build upon anything else or trust in any other thing, be it wealth, prestige, wisdom, might, piety, or anything else. Second, I give thanks for his infinite compassion by which he has come to me in such a fatherly way and, unasked, unbidden, and unmerited, has offered to be my God, to care for me, and to be my comfort, guardian, help, and strength in every time of need. We poor mortals have sought so many gods and would have to seek them still if he did not enable us to hear him openly tell us in our own language that he intends to be our God. How could we ever-in all eternity-thank him enough! Third, I confess and acknowledge my great sin and ingratitude for having so shamefully despised such sublime teachings and such a precious gift throughout my whole life, and for having fear- fully provoked his wrath by countless acts of idolatry. I repent of these and ask for his grace. Fourth, I pray and say: "O my God and Lord, help me by thy grace to learn and understand thy commandments more fully every day and to live by them in sincere confidence. Preserve my heart so that I shall never again become forgetful and ungrateful, that I may never seek after other gods or other consolation on earth or in any creature, but cling truly and solely to thee, my only God. Amen, dear Lord God and Father. Amen." Afterward, if time and inclination permit, the Second Commandment likewise in four strands, like this: "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain," etc. First, I learn that I must keep God's name in honor, holiness, and beauty; not to swear, curse, not to be boastful or seek honor and repute for myself, but humbly to invoke his name, to pray, praise, and extol it, and to let it be my only honor and glory that he is my God and that I am his lowly creature and unworthy servant. Second, I give thanks to him for these precious gifts, that he has revealed his name to me and bestowed it upon me, that I can glory in his name and be called God's servant and creature, etc., that his name is my refuge like a mighty fortress to which the righteous man can flee and find protection, as Solomon says. Third, I confess and acknowledge that I have grievously and shamefully sinned against this commandment all my life. I have not only failed to invoke, extol, and honor his holy name, but have also been ungrateful for such gifts and have, by swearing, lying, and betraying, misused them in the pursuit of shame and sin. This I bitterly regret and ask grace and forgiveness, etc. Fourth, I ask for help and strength henceforth to learn this commandment and to be preserved from such evil ingratitude, abuse, and sin against his name, and that I may be found grateful in revering and honoring his name.

I repeat here what I previously said in reference to the Lord's Prayer: if in the midst of such thoughts the Holy Spirit begins to preach in your heart with rich, enlightening thoughts, honor him by letting go of this written scheme; be still and listen to him who can do better than you can. Remember what he says and note it well and you will behold wondrous things in the law of God, as David says.


The Third Commandment: "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy." I learn from this, first of all, that the sabbath day has not been instituted for the sake of being idle or indulging in worldly pleasures, but in order that we may keep it holy. However, it is not sanctified by our works and actions- our works are not holy-but by the word of God, which alone is wholly pure and sacred and which sanctifies everything that comes in contact with it, be it time, place, person, labor, rest, etc. According to St. Paul, who says that every creature is consecrated by word and prayer, I Timothy 4, our works are consecrated through the word. I realize therefore that on the sabbath I must, above all, hear and contemplate God's word. Thereafter I should give thanks in my own words, praise God for all his benefits, and pray for myself and for the whole world. He who so conducts himself on the sabbath day keeps it holy. He who fails to do so is worse than the person who works on the sabbath. Second, I thank God in this commandment for his great and beautiful goodness and grace which he has given us in the preaching of his word. And he has instructed us to make use of it, especially on the sabbath day, for the meditation of the human heart can never exhaust such a treasure. His word is the only light in the darkness of this life, a word of life, consolation, and supreme blessedness. Where this precious and saving word is absent, nothing remains but a fearsome and terrifying darkness, error and faction, death and every calamity, and the tyranny of the devil himself, as we can see with our own eyes every day.

Third, I confess and acknowledge great sin and wicked ingratitude on my part because all my life I have made disgraceful use of the sabbath and have thereby despised his precious and dear word in a wretched way. I have been too lazy, listless, and uninterested to listen to it, let alone to have desired it sincerely or to have been grateful for it. I have let my dear God proclaim his word to me in vain, have dismissed the noble treasure, and have trampled it underfoot. He has tolerated this in his great and divine mercy and has not ceased in his fatherly, divine love and faithfulness to keep on preaching to me and calling me to the salvation of my soul. For this I repent and ask for grace and forgiveness.

Fourth, I pray for myself and for the whole world that the gracious Father may preserve us in his holy word and not withdraw it from us because of our sin, ingratitude, and laziness. May he preserve us from factious spirits and false teachers, and may he send faithful and honest laborers into his harvest, that is, devout pastors and preachers. May he grant us grace humbly to hear, accept, and honor their words as his own words and to offer our sincere thanks and praise. The Fourth Commandment: "Honor your father and your mother." First, I learn to acknowledge God, my Greater; how wondrously he has created me, body and soul; and how he has given me life through my parents and has ins ed in them the desire to care for me, the fruit of their bodies, with all their power. He has brought me into this world, has sustained and cared for me, nurtured and educated me with great diligence, carefulness, and concern, through danger, trouble, and hard work. To this moment he protects me, his creature, and helps me in countless dangers and troubles. It is as though he were creating me anew every moment. But the devil does not willingly concede us one single moment of life. Second, I thank the rich and gracious Greater on behalf of myself and all the world that he has established and assured in the commandment the increase and preservation of the human race, that is, of households and of states. Without these two institutions or governments the world could not exist a single year, because without government there can be no peace, and where there is no peace there can be no family; without family, children cannot be begotten or raised, and


fatherhood and motherhood would cease to be. It is the purpose of this commandment to guard and preserve both family and state, to admonish children and subjects to be obedient, and to enforce it, too, and to let no violation go unpunished - otherwise children would have disrupted the family long ago by their disobedience, and subjects would have disorganized the state and laid it to waste for they outnumber parents and rulers. There are no words to fully describe the benefit of this commandment.

Third, I confess and lament my wicked disobedience and sin; in defiance of God's commandment I have not honored or obeyed my parents; I have often provoked and offended them, have been impatient with their parental discipline, have been resentful and scornful of their loving admonition and have rather gone along with loose company and evil companions. God himself condemns such disobedient children and withholds from them a long life; many of them succumb and perish in disgrace before they reach adulthood. Whoever does not obey father and mother must obey the executioner or otherwise come, through God's wrath, to an evil end, etc. Of all this I repent and ask for grace and forgiveness.

Fourth, I pray for myself and for all the world that God would bestow his grace and pour his blessing richly upon the family and the state. Grant that from this time on we may be devout, honor our parents, obey our superiors, and resist the devil when he entices us to be disobedient and rebellious, and so may we help improve home and nation by our actions and thus preserve the peace, all to the praise and glory of God for our own benefit and for the prosperity of all. Grant that we may acknowledge these his gifts and be thankful for them.

At this point we should add a prayer for our parents and superiors, that God may grant them understanding and wisdom to govern and rule us in peace and happiness. May he preserve them from tyranny, from riot and fury, and turn them to honor God's word and not oppress it, nor persecute anyone or do injustice. Such excellent gifts must be sought by prayer, as St. Paul teaches; otherwise the devil will reign in the palace and everything fall into chaos and confusion. If you are a father or mother, you should at this point remember your children and the workers in your household. Pray earnestly to the dear Father, who has set you in an office of honor in his name and intends that you be honored by the name "father." Ask that he grant you grace and blessing to look after and support your wife, children, and servants in a godly and Christian manner. May he give you wisdom and strength to train them well in heart and will to follow your instruction with obedience. Both are God's gifts, your children and the way they flourish, that they turn out well and that they remain so. Otherwise the home is nothing but a pigsty and school for rascals, as one can see among the uncouth and godless. The Fifth Commandment: "You shall not kill." Here I learn, first of all, that God desires me to love my neighbor, so that I do him no bodily harm, either by word or action, neither injure nor take revenge upon him in anger, vexation, envy, hatred, or for any evil reason, but realize that I am obliged to assist and counsel him in every bodily need. In this commandment God commands me to protect my neighbor's body and in turn commands my neighbor to protect my own. As Sirach says, "He has committed to each of us his neighbor". Second, I give thanks for such ineffable love, providence, and faithfulness toward me by which he has placed this mighty shield and wall to protect my physical safety. All are obliged to care for me and protect me, and I, in turn, must behave likewise toward others. He upholds this command and, where it is not observed, he has established the sword as punishment for those who do not live up to it. Were it not for this excellent commandment and ordinance, the devil


would instigate such a massacre among men that no one could live in safety for a single hour-as happens when God becomes angry and inflicts punishment upon a disobedient and ungrateful world. Third, I confess and lament my own wickedness and that of the world, not only that we are so terribly ungrateful for such fatherly love and solicitude toward us-but what is especially scandalous, that we do not acknowledge this commandment and teaching, are unwilling to learn it, and neglect it as though it did not concern us or we had no part in it. We amble along complacently, feel no remorse that in defiance of this commandment we neglect our neighbor, and, yes, we desert him, persecute, injure, or even kill him in our thoughts. We indulge in anger, rage, and villainy as though we were doing a fine and noble thing. Really, it is high time that we started to deplore and bewail how much we have acted like rogues and like unseeing, unruly, and unfeeling persons who kick, scratch, tear, and devour one another like furious beasts and pay no heed to this serious and divine command, etc. Fourth, I pray the dear Father to lead us to an understanding of this his sacred commandment and to help us keep it and live in accordance with it. May he preserve us from the murderer who is the master of every form of murder and violence. May he grant us his grace that we and all others may treat each other in kindly, gentle, charitable ways, forgiving one another from the heart, bearing each other's faults and shortcomings in a Christian and brotherly manner, and thus living together in true peace and concord, as the commandment teaches and requires us to do. The Sixth Commandment: "You shall not commit adultery." Here I learn once more what God intends and expects me to do, namely, to live chastely, decently, and temperately, both in thoughts and in words and actions, and not to disgrace any man's wife, daughter, or maidservant. More than this, I ought to assist, save, protect, and guard marriage and decency to the best of my ability; I should silence the idle thoughts of those who want to destroy and slander their reputation. All this I am obliged to do, and God expects me not only to leave my neighbor's wife and family unmolested, but I owe it to my neighbor to preserve and protect his good character and honor, just as I would want my neighbor to do for me and mine in keeping with this commandment.

Second, I thank my faithful and dear Father for his grace and benevolence by which he accepts my husband, son, servant, wife, daughter, maidservant into his care and protection and forbids so sternly and firmly anything that would bring them into disrepute. He protects and upholds this commandment and does not leave violations unpunished, even though he himself has to act if someone disregards and violates the commandment and precept. No one escapes him; he must either pay the penalty or eventually atone for such lust in the fires of hell. God desires chastity and will not tolerate adultery. That can be seen every day when the impenitent and profligate are overtaken by the wrath of God and perish miserably. Otherwise it would be impossible to guard one's wife, child, and servants against the devil's filthiness for a single hour or preserve them in honor and decency. What would happen would be unbridled immorality and beastliness, as happens when God in his wrath withdraws his hand and permits everything to go to wrack and ruin.

Third, I confess and acknowledge my sin, my own and that of all the world, how I have sinned against this commandment my whole life in thought, word, and action. Not only have I been ungrateful for these excellent teachings and gifts, but I have complained and rebelled against the divine requirement of such decency and chastity, that God has not permitted all sorts of


fornication and rascality to go unchecked and unpunished. He will not allow marriage to be despised, ridiculed, or condemned, etc. Sins against this commandment are, above all others, the grossest and most conspicuous and cannot be covered up or whitewashed. For this I am sorry, etc.

Fourth, I pray for myself and all the world that God may grant us grace to keep this commandment gladly and cheerfully in order that we might ourselves live in chastity and also help and support others to do likewise. Then I continue with the other commandments as I have time or opportunity or am in the mood for it. As I have said before, I do not want anyone to feel bound by my words or thoughts. I only want to offer an example for those who may wish to follow it; let anyone improve it who is able to do so and let him meditate either upon all commandments at one time or on as many as he may desire. For the mind, once it is seriously occupied with a matter, be it good or evil, can ponder more in one moment than the tongue can recite in ten hours or the pen write in ten days. There is something quick, subtle, and mighty about the mind and soul. It is able to review the Ten Commandments in their fourfold aspect very rapidly if it wants to do so and is in earnest. The Seventh Commandment: "You shall not steal." First, I can learn here that I must not take my neighbor's property from him or possess it against his will, either in secret or openly. I must not be false or dishonest in business, service, or work, nor profit by fraud, but must support myself by the sweat of my brow and eat my bread in honor. Furthermore, I must see to it that in any of the above- named ways my neighbor is not defrauded, just as I wish for myself. I also learn in this commandment that God, in his fatherly solicitude, sets a protective hedge around my goods and solemnly prohibits anyone to steal from me. Where that is ignored, he has imposed a penalty and has placed the gallows and the rope in the hands of Jack the hangman. Where that cannot be done, God himself metes out punishment and they become beggars in the end, as the proverb says, "Who steals in his youth, goes begging in old age," or, "Stolen gain goes down the drain." In addition I give thanks for his steadfast goodness in that he has given such excellent teachings, assurance, and protection to me and to all the world. If it were not for his protection, not a penny or a crumb of bread would be left in the house.

Third, I confess my sins and ingratitude in such instances where I have wronged, deprived, or cheated anyone in my life.

Fourth, I ask that he grant to me and all the world grace to learn from this commandment, to ponder it, and to become better people, so that there may be less theft, robbery, usury, cheating, and injustice and that the Judgment Day, for which all saints and the whole creation pray, Romans 8, shall soon bring this to an end. Amen

The Eighth Commandment: "You shall not bear false witness." This teaches us, first of all, to be truthful to each other, to shun lies and calumnies, to be glad to speak well of each other, and to delight in hearing what is good about others. Thus a wall has been built around our good reputation and integrity to protect it against malicious gossip and deceitful tongues; God will not let that go unpunished, as he has said in the other commandments. We owe him thanks both for the teachings and the protection which he has graciously provided for us. Third, we confess and ask forgiveness that we have spent our lives in ingratitude and sin and have maligned our neighbor with false and wicked talk, though we owe him the same


preservation of honor and integrity which we desire for ourselves. Fourth, we ask for help from now on to keep the commandment and for a healing tongue, etc. The Ninth and Tenth Commandments: "You shall not covet your neighbor's house." Similarly, "his wife," etc.

This teaches us first that we shall not dispossess our neighbor of his goods under pretense of legal claims, or lure away, alienate, or extort what is his, but help him to keep what is his, just as we wish to be done for ourselves. It is also a protection against the subtleties and chicaneries of shrewd manipulators who will receive their punishment in the end. Second, we should render thanks to him. Third, we should repentantly and sorrowfully confess our sins. Fourth, we should ask for help and strength devoutly to keep such divine commandments

These are the Ten Commandments in their fourfold aspect, namely, as a school text, song book, penitential book, and prayer book. They are intended to help the heart come to itself and grow zealous in prayer. Take care, however, not to undertake all of this or so much that one becomes weary in spirit. Likewise, a good prayer should not be lengthy or drawn out, but frequent and ardent. It is enough to consider one section or half a section which kindles a fire in the heart. This the Spirit will grant us and continually instruct us in when, by God's word, our hearts have been cleared and freed of outside thoughts and concerns. Nothing can be said here about the part of faith and Holy Scriptures because there would be no end to what could be said. With practice one can take the Ten Commandments on one day, a psalm or chapter of Holy Scripture the next day, and use them as flint and steel to kindle a flame in the heart. Praying The Creed

If you have more time, or the inclination, you may treat the Creed in the same manner and make it into a garland of four strands. The Creed, however, consists of three main parts or articles, corresponding to the three Persons of the Divine Majesty, as it has been so divided in the Catechism and else- where.

The First Article Here, first of all, a great light shines into your heart if you permit it to and teaches you in a few words what all the languages of the world and a multitude of books cannot describe or fathom in words, namely, who you are, whence you came, whence came heaven and earth. You are God's creation, his handiwork, his workmanship. That is, of yourself and in yourself you are nothing, can do nothing, know nothing, are capable of nothing. What were you a thousand years ago? What were heaven and earth six thousand years ago? Nothing, just as that which will never be created is nothing. But what you are, know, can do, and can achieve is God's creation, as you confess by word of mouth. Therefore you have nothing to boast of before God except that you are nothing and he is your Creator who can annihilate you at any moment. Reason knows nothing of such a light. Many great people have sought to know what heaven and earth, man and creatures are and have found no answer. But here it is declared and faith affirms that God has created everything out of nothing. Here is the soul's garden of pleasure, along whose paths we enjoy the works of God-but it would take too long to describe all that.

Furthermore, we should give thanks to God that in his kindness he has created us out of nothing and provides for our daily needs out of nothing-has made us to be such excellent beings with body and soul, intelligence, five senses, and has ordained us to be masters of earth, of fish, bird,


and beast, etc. Here consider Genesis, chapters one to three. Third, we should confess and lament our lack of faith and gratitude in failing to take this to heart, or to believe, ponder, and acknowledge it, and having been more stupid than unthinking beasts. Fourth, we pray for a true and confident faith that sincerely esteems and trusts God to be our Creator, as this article declares. The Second Article

Again a great light shines forth and teaches us how Christ, God's Son, has redeemed us from death which, after the creation, had become our lot through Adam's fall and in which we would have perished eternally. Now think: just as in the first article you were to consider yourself one of God's creatures and not doubt it, now you must think of yourself as one of the redeemed and never doubt that. Emphasize one word above all others, for instance, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Likewise, suffered for us, died for us, arose for us. All this is ours and pertains to us; that us includes yourself, as the word of God declares. Second, you must be sincerely grateful for such grace and rejoice in your salvation.

Third, you must sorrowfully lament and confess your wicked unbelief and mistrust of such a gift. Oh, what thoughts will come to mind-the idolatry you have practiced repeatedly, how much you have made of praying to the saints and of innumerable good works of yours which have opposed such salvation.

Fourth, pray now that God will preserve you from this time forward to the end in true and pure faith in Christ our Lord.

The Third Article This is the third great light which teaches us where such a Creator and Redeemer may be found and plainly encountered in this world, and what this will all come to in the end. Much could be said about this, but here is a summary: Where the holy Christian church exists, there we can find God the Creator, God the Redeemer, God the Holy Spirit, that is, him who daily sanctifies us through the forgiveness of sins, etc. The church exists where the word of God concerning such faith is rightly preached and confessed. Again you have occasion here to ponder long about everything that the Holy Spirit accomplishes in the church every day, etc. Therefore be thankful that you have been called and have come into such a church. Confess and lament your lack of faith and gratitude, that you have neglected all this, and pray for a true and steadfast faith that will remain and endure until you come to that place where all endures forever, that is, beyond the resurrection from the dead, in life eternal. Amen.


5. PERSON AND WORK OF CHRIST

Two Key Questions: What is the nature of Jesus Christ? What did he accomplish?

Outline 1. Person of Christ

1.1 Statement of Belief 1.2 Doctrine Articulated through Controversy

1.3 Biblical Data 1.4 Early Challenges and Responses

1.5 Early Modern and Reformation Era 1.6 Modern Challenges

2. Work of Christ 2.1 Statement of Belief

2.2 Rooted in God’s Love and Justice 2.3 Biblical Descriptions of Atonement

2.4 Nature of the Atonement 2.5 Application of the Atonement

1. Person of Christ

1.1 Statement of Belief:

Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human and will be so forever.

1.2 Doctrine Articulated through Controversy

Often, challenges to orthodox doctrine have forced the church to clarify what it believes. Thus, we’ll look at the person of Christ through the challenges to this doctrine throughout history:

• Biblical data (1st Century) • Early Church ( to AD 500) • Early Modern / Reformation Era (1500-1700) • Modern Era (1700-Present)

1.3 Biblical Data

1.3.1 Full Humanity His birth – conceived in Mary’s womb and was born (Matt. 1). Virgin Birth preserves Jesus’ from inherited sin, makes possible Jesus’ nature as fully divine and fully human, an demonstrates that salvation is from God.


Human body – he grew (Lk. 2:52), was tired (John 4:6), was thirsty and hungry (John 19:28; Matt. 4:2). He had a human mind (Lk. 2:52), emotions (Matt. 8:10, 26:38; John 11:35, 12:27, 13:21) He was sinless – Heb. 4:15, 7:26; 1 Pt. 1:9, 2:22

His resurrection was in a human body (Luke 24:39; Luke 24:42; John 20:17-20; John 21:9-13).

1.3.2 Full Deity: Jesus as God (theos) – Isa. 9:6; John 1:1, 1:18; 20:28, Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pt. 1:1 Jesus as Lord (kyrios) – Matt. 22:44 (quoting Ps. 110); Luke 1:43, 2:11; 1 Cor. 8:6) Jesus as worthy of worship – Phil. 2:9-11; Heb. 1:6; Rev. 5:12-13 (cf. Rev. 19:10). Other evidence: Matt. 8:26-27; John 8:58; Rev. 1:1.

1.4 Early Challenges and Responses 1.4.1 Early affirmations:

Ignatius (c. AD 35 – c. 107) Letter to Diognetus (middle of 2nd Century)

1.4.2 Docetism Christ only appeared to have a human body (either apparition or “celestial flesh”)

Thus, Christ only appeared to suffer. Already in Apostolic era, we see this challenge (1 John 4:2).

What we learn: Jesus’s full humanity included a human body. 1.4.3 Monarchianism

So emphasized the unity of God that they denied the deity of Christ or Christ’s personhood.

Two Types: (1) Dynamic Monarchianism (adoptionism) understood Jesus to have been a normal human being who was adopted and endowed with a special power (“the Logos”) from God.

Maintained the unity of God by denying full deity to Christ. (2) Modalistic Monarchianism (modalism), which also came to be called Sabellianism, was the dominate form of the two types of Monarchianism. God changed “modes,” so at one time he was Father, another Son, and yet another time Spirit. These were three different modes of existence that did not occur simultaneously.


Maintained the unity of God by denying the personage of the Son What we learn: Jesus is fully God and yet God the Son is distinct from God the Father who is distinct from God the Spirit.

1.4.4 Arianism

Arianism taught that Christ is not fully God. He is only the greatest of all creatures. “There was a time when he was not.”

The Arian controversy dominated Christological discussions in the 4th century. Two key promoters: Arius (c. 250-336) and Eusebius of Nicomedia (d. 341)

Arians: The Son of God is therefore not fully God but a being in-between God and the other creatures.

Response: Council of Nicaea, 325 Eusebius of Nicomedia led the Arian party

Alexander of Alexandria (c. 250-326) led the opposition. Nicaea upheld the orthodox view that Christ, the Son of God, is “very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance [homoousious] with the Father…”

All was not settled with Nicaea. Arians had great favor with Constantine and his children, and so while their error was officially condemned, it was the theological view of those in power.

The orthodox position was taken up by Athanasius and the Cappadocian Fathers (Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Gregory of Nyssa). After a long struggle, Athanasius and the Cappadocians prevailed over Arianism and Semi-Arianism, and the Nicene Creed was confirmed at the Council of Constantinople by the Eastern Church in 381.

1.4.5 Council of Chalcedon (451) Ongoing question of how Christ’s two natures (ousias) related to each other and to his person (hypostasis) After a number of attempts to bring resolution, the Council of Chalcedon was called in 451 to establish the orthodox teaching of Scripture on these things. Chalcedon advocated that the eternal person of the Logos, possessing full deity and “of one substance with the Father,” took a human nature upon himself at the incarnation and thus became “like us in all respects, apart from sin.”

The one person now possesses a hypostatic union of the two natures, which are united “without confusion, without change, without division, without separation…the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence.”

1.5 Early Modern and Reformation Era (1500-1700)


Some challenges to Orthodox Christology through the Medieval Period, but largely this was a settled issue.

1.5.1 Magisterial Reformers Issues on the nature of Christ arose because of debates over the presence of Christ in Communion Luther –

Zwingli and Calvin –

1.5.2 Radical Reformation Radical Reformation – a broad and diverse group but all made significant modifications in their understanding of the person of Christ. Three branches of RR: (1) Anabaptists, (2) Mystics, (3) Proto-Unitarians

Anabaptists and mystics - “celestial flesh” - Christ’s flesh is heavenly: he became human in Mary, but he did not receive his humanity from Mary.

Critique: In this view, there is only one nature in Christ. He is not fully human.

Proto-Unitarians – Faustus Socinus (1525-1562) – rejected the deity of Christ in favor of an adoptionistic position Michael Servetus (1509-553) – rejected the Trinity and taught a doctrine akin to Modalism

1.6 Modern Challenges (Since 1700)

1.6.1 Spirit Christology

1.6.2 Classic Liberal Theology

1.6.3 Kenotic Christology

1.6.4 Post-Modern Christologies

Process


Wolfhart Pannenberg (1928-2014)

Liberation Theology

2. The Work of Christ – The Atonement 2.1 Statement of Belief:

The atonement is the work of Jesus Christ in his life and death to earn salvation for all who trust in him.

2.2 Rooted in God’s Love and Justice

Exodus 34:6-7 | How can God be both merciful and punish sin?

Romans 3:21-26

2.3 Biblical Descriptions of Atonement Seven Facets of the Gem of Atonement (from Gregg Allison, Historical Theology, 390)

1. Expiation – “Christ’s sacrifice removed the liability to punishment and condemnation under which sinful people suffered (Heb. 9:6-15).”

2. Propitiation – “Christ’s death appeased the wrath of God against his sinful creatures (Rom. 3:25-26; 1 John 2:2).”

3. Redemption – “The death of Christ is the payment he offered to God to buy captives out of the slave market of sin (Mark 10:45; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

4. Reconciliation – “Christ’s death has taken sinners from being enemies of God to being his friends and children (2 Cor. 5:17-21).”

5. Christ the Victor – “Through his death, Christ achieved ultimate victory over Satan and the demons (Heb. 2:14-15; Col. 2:15).”

6. Example – “Christ’s death is both a demonstration of God’s love and a model of obedience and suffering for believers to follow (Rom. 5:8; 1 Peter 2:20-21).”

7. Exchange – “The righteousness of Jesus Christ is imputed, or credited, to the account of those who believe in him, and their sin is imputed to him (2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 5:19).”

2.4 Nature of Atonement – How Christ earned our salvation 2.4.1 The Life of Christ – His Obedience for Us


Phil. 3:9 – Paul’s desire is to “be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.” Christ is our righteousness (1 Cor. 1:30).

Rom. 5:19 “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.”

Imputation –

2.4.2 The Death of Christ – His Suffering for Us

Christ bore our sins on the Cross 1 Peter 2:24 – “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree.”

See also: Isa. 53:6, 12; John 1:29; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13; Heb. 9:28; Our sin was imputed to Christ

Parallels with OT Sacrificial System (from Eden through the Temple). Hebrews 9:22 “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”

Bearing our sin, meant that Christ bore the wrath of God.

The idea of propitiation: bearing God’s wrath and thereby turning it into God’s favor (Rom. 3:25; Heb. 2:17; 1 John 2:2, 4:10).

Bearing our sin and God’s wrath on the cross entailed. . . Physical Pain and Death

Rom. 6:23 – Wages of sin is death Affirm the physicality of the suffering

Affirm his literal death Abandonment

By his friends – Matt. 26:56 “All the disciples forsook him and fled.”

By his Father – Matt. 27:46 “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

God is “of purer eyes than to look on evil and cannot look at wrong” (Hab. 1:13).

Christ completely paid for sin. John 19:30 – “It is finished.”

Rom. 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”


Hebrews 9:25–28 25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

2.5 Application of Atonement

The Spirit applies the work of Christ to the believer. • The Spirit gives life.

John 3:3-8 – “born again” = “born of the Spirit” [regeneration]

Transformation – Ezekiel 36:26-27

• The Spirit works in conjunction with the Word. Word Incarnate

Word in Scripture

1 Peter 1:23–25 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you. James 1:18 18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.


Further Reading “And Can it Be” – Charles Wesley, from Hymns and Sacred Poems, 1739.

And can it be that I should gain An int’rest in the Saviour’s blood! Dy’d he for me? – who caus’d his pain? For me? – who Him to Death pursued? Amazing love! How can it be That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me? ‘Tis mystery all! th’Immortal dies! Who can explore his strange Design? In vain the first-born Seraph tries To sound the Depths of Love divine. ‘Tis mercy all! Let earth adore; Let Angel Minds inquire no more. He left his Father’s throne above (So free, so infinite his grace!) Empty’d himself of all but Love, And bled for Adam’s helpless Race. ‘Tis Mercy all, immense and free, For, O my God! it found out Me! Long my imprison’d Spirit lay, Fast bound in Sin and Nature’s Night Thine Eye diffus’d a quickning Ray; I woke; the Dungeon flam’d with Light. My Chains fell off, my Heart was free, I rose, went forth, and follow’d Thee. Still the small inward Voice I hear, That whispers all my Sins forgiv’n; Still the atoning Blood is near, That quench’d the Wrath of hostile Heave’n: I feel the Life his Wounds impart; I feel my Saviour in my Heart. No Condemnation now I dread,

Jesus, and all in Him is mine. Alive in Him, my Living Head, And cloted in Righteousness Divine, Bold I approach th’Eternal Throne And claim the Crown, thro’ CHRIST my own.


6/7. LIVING & SHARING YOUR FAITH Outline:

1. Living 1.1. Marks of the Christian life 1.2. Motivation to godly living 1.3. Spiritual disciplines of the godly life 1.4. Selected ethical emphases

2. Sharing – Making Disciples (Matt. 28:18-19) 2.1. Evangelizing the Lost

2.1.1. Personal Evangelism 2.1.2. Missions

2.2. Equipping Believers 2.2.1. Discipleship 2.2.2. Small Group Leadership

1. Living James 2:14–26 14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

1.1 Marks of the Christian Life

1.1.1 Double Love Matthew 22:34–40 34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great


and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

1.1.2 Fruit of the Spirit Galatians 5:16–26 16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

1.2 Motivation to godly living Godly living is a ___________to God’s grace, not a _____________ for it.

Not a requirement. . . Ephesians 2:8–10

Romans 11:6 Galatians 2:16

Galatians 5:1

A response. . . 1 John 4:7–12

Philippians 2:12–13

Galatians 5:13–14


1.3 Spiritual disciples of the godly life

1.3.1 Prayer

1.3.2 Scripture in-take

1.3.3 Community

1.4 Selected Ethical Emphasis – Caring for those in need

1.4.1 Brief survey of NT:

Galatians 2:10 James 1:27

Acts 6 1 Timothy 5:9-16

Matthew 25:31–46

1.4.2 Application:


2. Sharing - Making Disciples Matthew 28:18–19 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Two components of making disciples: ______________________and _____________________.

2.1 Evangelizing the Lost Faith comes by hearing – the necessity of verbally proclaiming the gospel (Romans 10:8–17).

2.1.1 Personal Evangelism - Sharing your faith

What must you include?

Build relationships


2.1.2 Missions

Four ways to be involved

1. Give

2. Pray

3. Send

4. Go

2.2 Equipping Believers 2.2.1 Discipleship

Discipleship is holistic. Head –

Heart –

Hands –


Whom do I disciple?

2.2.2 Small Group Leadership

1. Pray

2. Build relationships

3. Choose good content

4. Prioritize Prayer

5. Foster Discussion


Further Study Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. So worship is the fuel and goal of missions.

- John Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad, 15. 1. Why is missions only a temporary endeavor?

2. Why is worship the ultimate goal of the church?

3. Piper describes worship as the goal of missions. What have you heard others describe as the goal of missions? How does worship as the goal change our understanding of missions?

4. How does worship fuel missions?

5. How does rightly prioritizing missions and worship drive us to spread the gospel?

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