Part 1 of this post. 14. Can any mere creature make satisfaction for us? None, for first, God will not punish any other creature for the sin which man committed;1 and further, no mere creature can sustain the burden of God’s eternal . . . Continue reading →
Dispensationalism
Dismantling the "Rapture"
The “Christless Christianity” series has been brilliant and this week’s installment is no exception. Our dispensational friends tell us that they read the bible “literally” and that amillennialists “spiritualize” Scripture. This might be compelling if we never actually looked at any passages. A . . . Continue reading →
Was There An Apostolic Hermeneutic And Can We Imitate It?
Yes and yes. No, it’s not in the Scofield Reference or Ryrie Study Bibles.
Dispensationalism May Get You Arrested
Bad theology tends to produce bad living.
Office Hours—Sacred Bond: Covenant Theology Explored
Too often, the way covenant theology is presented, it seems too complicated to understand or explain to others. It doesn’t have to be that way and it isn’t in this interview with Zach Keele and Mike Brown, authors of a new introduction . . . Continue reading →
Why the Reformation Cannot Be Avoided
Joel writes in response to the post, “Is the Gospel Preached or Lived?” to ask for a response to his post responding to criticisms of the expression “living the gospel.” The substance of the post is to observe that the NT uses . . . Continue reading →
We Are Not Polishing Brass On A Sinking Ship
More than 30 years ago, when I first came into contact with Reformed theology, piety, and practice (the Reformed confession broadly defined), I also came into contact with a movement within the Reformed world known as “Christian Reconstructionism” and its child “theonomy.” . . . Continue reading →
More Questions From Ginger: Why Is Republication So Controversial?
As a follow-on to the post on the covenant of works, Ginger asks, You said: “Several have said that their status as a national people and their tenure in the land was affected by their obedience or disobedience. This view, however, has . . . Continue reading →
Baruch Maoz: Christian Zionism Is Wrong
The fawning, spineless adoration of Israel and of all things Jewish is decidedly sub-Christian; it runs against the grain of biblical revelation; it lacks the courage of its most fundamental convictions; it disenfranchises the Palestinians by assuming that the negation of their . . . Continue reading →
Is There An Apostolic Hermeneutic And Can We Imitate it?
Yes and yes. No, it’s not in the Scofield Reference or Ryrie Study Bibles. It seems that some of our dispensational friends have yet to read the memo. See this example sent to me a by a friend. This writer, whom I do . . . Continue reading →
El Israel De Dios
por R. Scott Clark, 2001. Introducción Hay mucho más concerniente a los “tiempos del fin” o últimas cosas (Escatología) de lo que nosotros decimos que realmente sucede en los últimos días. Nuestra escatología depende estrechamente de nuestra visión de lo que Dios . . . Continue reading →
The Israel of God
Introduction There is much more to “end-times” or ultimate things (Eschatology) than what we say actually happens in the last days. We say what we do about eschatology because of what we think God is doing in history. At the center of . . . Continue reading →
The Israel Of God (2)
In part 1 we began to look at the sort of kingdom Jesus brought. § Rather, Jesus came not to build an earthly Jewish kingdom now or later, but always and only his intention was to redeem all his people by his . . . Continue reading →
Israel Of God (3)
In part 2 we looked at the covenant of grace. § The New Covenant With Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension the promise which God made to Adam and repeated to Abraham remains, but the circumstances have changed. We who live on this side . . . Continue reading →
The Israel Of God (5)
In part 4 we considered how Jesus is the Israel of God. § The Dividing Wall Demolished (Ephesians 2:11–22) The movement of the history of redemption is on this order. The people of God were an international people from Adam to Noah to Moses. Under . . . Continue reading →
Heidelberg 50: Christ Reigns Now (1)
It is basic to historic Christian teaching and confession that Jesus is reigning and ruling now. In the sixth article of the Apostles’ Creed all Christians confess, “He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.” . . . Continue reading →
Heidelberg 50: Christ Reigns Now (2)
Last time we looked briefly at some of the reasons some evangelicals (Dispensationalists) have had difficulty with the biblical and historic Christian doctrine that Jesus is presently reigning over all things and particularly his church. That view is in contrast to the . . . Continue reading →
Three Things Dispensational Apologists Should Stop Saying
There are varieties of Dispensationalism, e.g., classic (Darby, Scofield), modified (Chafer, Ryrie), and progressive (Bock, Blaising). To be sure there are varieties of covenant theology, e.g., classic e.g., that taught in the classical period that taught the covenant of redemption (pactum salutis), . . . Continue reading →
Berkhof Contra Dispensationalism On The Essential Unity Of Redemptive History
As was already said in the preceding, the distinction between the law and the gospel is not the same as that between the Old and the New Testament. Neither is it the same as that which present day Dispensationalists make between the . . . Continue reading →
Dispensationalism’s Millennial Memorial Sacrifices: A Regression To Types And Shadows
Given the contrast between Jews and (mostly Jewish) Christians in the first century, it is not surprising that the Protestant Reformers referred to the millenarian concept of a revived theocracy as”A Jewish error.” In our day, classic dispensationalism teaches that the millennium . . . Continue reading →