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As we continue our study of the biblical covenants, a couple of key themes begin to stand out: man’s inability and unwillingness to obey the word of God, and God’s faithfulness in keeping His covenant promises in spite of our sinfulness. Just as Adam and Noah were undeserving of God’s mercy and grace, we will find that theme once again played out in the life of a pagan from ancient Mesopotamia called Abram, whose name would be later changed to Abraham.
Keep Reading Previously, we introduced the Noahic Covenant: where we find it in Scripture and its historical context. To sum it all up, God caused a global flood to occur in the days of Noah to judge the world for its wickedness and wipe everyone out except for Noah and his wife, and Noah’s sons and their wives…8 people in total. God saved the animals by bringing two of each kind into the ark. Then, God made a covenant with Noah and all of creation, promising that He would never again destroy the earth with water. God also chose the sign of the covenant to be the rainbow. Why a rainbow? Thomas Schreiner has a good explanation for this in his book Covenant and God’s Purpose for the World, where he wrote, “The sign of the covenant is that God has withdrawn his bow. He has put his weapons of war down and will not wipe out the human race again.”
Keep Reading Among all the books that have ever been written, none have been more under attack than the Bible. Yet, it is the best-selling book of all time, as it is by far the most revered book in all the world! It is amazing how even just the extreme polarization of the Bible is in and of itself a testimony of its truthfulness and divine authorship. Entire church splits and denominations have arisen because of how differently people interpret it, and the passages about the Noahic Covenant that we’ll be examining today are no exception.
Keep Reading From the covenant God made at the time of creation to the new covenant established by God through the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Bible is full of covenantal language that describes the nature of God’s relationship with His people. The purpose of this series is to explore each of the covenants God established with mankind at significant turning points in redemptive history, how they were fulfilled in Christ, and what they mean for believers today. A study of the covenants helps us better understand how the Bible is one cohesive message about God’s eternal plan to save a people for Himself, so that He would be our God and we would be His people. It reminds us of God’s unchanging faithfulness in keeping His promises, despite our failures and shortcomings. Next time, we will lay the groundwork by defining what a covenant is, some common examples that constitute as such, and why it matters.
Keep ReadingOct 25
2022
When we study our Lord Jesus Christ in the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), one of the first things that stands out for many Christians is the countless miracles that accompanied His life and ministry. Even His birth is accompanied by a great miracle that the Holy Spirit performed in conceiving a child in the womb of a virgin by the name of Mary, and that the Child she bore was none other than Immanuel (“God with us”).
For the past several weeks, we have with due diligence considered what the Bible teaches us concerning atonement and why Christ’s atonement is necessary for our salvation. In the Old Testament, the animal sacrifices that were offered as burnt offerings to atone for sin foreshadowed the bloody and substitutionary nature of Christ’s atonement.
Oct 11
2022
Last time, we made the argument that universal atonement is a problematic position to take for several reasons. We reasoned from the Scriptures that affirming universal atonement, while also maintaining the doctrine of election, disrupts the perfect harmony that exists within the Trinity.
Oct 4
2022
When it comes to the atonement of Christ, there are certain essentials that all true Christians must be in agreement on. For example, we must believe that Christ actually died on the cross and reject any opposing heresies (a popular one being the swoon theory: a belief that Jesus did not really die on the cross but rather became unconscious and was later resuscitated).
