The Bad News

I taught this to the youth at my church some time ago.

“Deceitful and Wicked”?

“Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart” says Proverbs 21:2. Our society teaches us that we are good people, who sometimes make mistakes, but we can make up for those mistakes by doing good deeds. You have probably been told by teachers, friends, parents, etc., that you are a good person, but the Bible has a radically different view of who we are at heart.

The Apostle Paul doesn’t hold back when he talks about the condition of all people:
“What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
“Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
“Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
in their paths are ruin and misery,
and the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” (Romans 3:9-20)

When Paul talks about “works of the law” he is referring to the law given to Moses in the wilderness. The Lord gave the ten commandments to the Jews to show them their need for a savior. No one could possibly fulfill one of the commands, much less all ten! Have you ever lied? Stolen? Dishonored your parents? Maybe you can say you’ve never murdered anyone. However, if we dig into the scriptures a little we can see that we’ve all violated that one too. Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. (Matthew 5:21,22)

We can see that we’re in trouble, but it gets worse! Paul says later in Romans, “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.” (14:23) This is serious! If anything that someone does that isn’t from faith in God is a sin, what can someone who doesn’t have faith possibly do to make God happy? The answer is simple, NOTHING! Therefore, we can agree wholeheartedly with the prophet Jeremiah when he says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)

The heart of every person who you’ve ever met is deceitful and wicked. This has implications for eternity. What does God do with people who violate his law? Most people would, at this point, start shouting: “But what about forgiveness? What about all the good things that I’ve done? If no one can please God, He must throw everyone into Hell, but that can’t possibly be true!” Let’s take a look at what the Bible has to say about it.

Eternal, Conscious, Torment. Really?

If we are all sinners, what does that mean? Well, the Apostle John says, “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8) Ouch. Did you catch that last group in the list? Liars. In the lake of fire. This isn’t looking good. How many lies do you have to tell to be a liar? Is the Jesus we see in paintings, meek and lowly, knocking at the door of our hearts begging to be let in really going to send people to Hell? Aren’t we talking about the mean old nasty from the Old Testament?

Paul says in his second letter to the Thessalonians, “since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,” (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9) It sure seems clear that Jesus is the one afflicting those liars, idolaters, and murderers we heard about in Revelation, doesn’t it?

So, here’s the verdict, “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Everyone dies. Once. No reincarnation, no second chances offered here. We will all die, and stand before Almighty God to give an account of what we have done. Claiming to be a Christian won’t save you, either. Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Matthew 7:21-23) Apparently, going to church, going to youth camp, doing fundraisers, casting out demons, or any other “mighty work” just aren’t going to get rid of this sin problem.

The law of God should drive us all to our knees in despair. No amount of good we can do will make up for the countless times we’ve sinned against God. The standard God has given us to live up to, in order to get into Heaven, is simple. Perfection in thought, word, and deed, from the cradle to the grave. How are you doing?

Hell is real. We all deserve to go there, right now. Ignoring it won’t make it go away. Today, I’m 31 years old. It seems like yesterday I was 21, and the day before that I was 16. Life is fleeting, merely vanity to use biblical language (Ecclesiastes 1:2). In less than 100 years, all of us will be wherever it is that we’re going, forever. If we skip along through life, without taking these things seriously, chasing after all that the world has to offer, in the end we will be able to answer Christ’s question, “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36) with a resounding, nothing.

Indicative and Imperative in Paul’s Letter to the Colossians

What follows is the lesson I taught yesterday in our Sunday school class. Enjoy.

In language we have distinctions between moods that an author may use. Here we will discuss the difference between the indicative and imperative moods in Pauline writing, and the theological implications of that distinction. The letter to the Colossians will be used as a case study.

The indicative mood is the most common mood used in all languages. The indicative is used when making positive statements, stating facts, or simply telling of a particular situation. The easy way to remember this is to look at the root (indicate). The imperative mood is used when an author wishes to exhort or command his audience to do something or behave in a specific way.

The gospel is by definition, indicative. No one can do or be the gospel. Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians said, “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.” (1 Cor. 15:1-5) We see here that the “good news” is a statement of facts, not a command to do anything.

The law of God is, in contrast to the gospel, inherently imperative in mood. The precepts that God gives us are not statements of how things are, but rather are commands of what we must do to please God. We must understand that the laws of God cannot be followed by the mere will of fallen man, Paul makes this very clear. “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:7,8) There must be a way for us to please God, and if we simply focus on the imperative passages in the scripture, we will consistently fail to live up to them.

Paul never gives us a command to follow without grounding that imperative in a gospel indicative. The letter to the Colossians is an excellent example of this structure. The letter begins with a typical Pauline greeting and moves directly into indicative statements of what God has already done for us in Christ. “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13,14)

The Apostle then moves into a high Christology, describing who Christ is and what he has done in creation (both indicatives). “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:15-17) Paul continues by describing what God has done through him in his ministry to the church, and says of His saints, “To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27)

In chapter 2, verses 6-8, Paul gives an imperative to walk in Christ, not being taken in by human traditions or philosophy, but in verse 9 he takes off into another indicative, proclaiming the deity of Christ. He further grounds the imperatives of verses 6-8 in one of the most profound gospel indicatives of the entire scripture, “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” (Colossians 2:13-15)

After these amazing statements, Paul then tells the Colossians that their standing in Christ removes the need to follow the festivals or sabbaths, and not to let anyone judge them for these “human precepts and teachings”. In fact, he says that they are mere shadows of the reality, which is Christ. (Colossians 2:17)

Now that Paul has made the position of the saints clear and irrefutable, he begins to show them what the proper response of Spirit-born believers should be. Now begins the imperatives, but Paul still doesn’t hammer the believers with pure law, but sprinkles gospel indicative throughout his commands so as not to forget why these things are to be done. An example is “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4) Paul here commands the Colossians to seek the things of Christ, (laid out in verses 12-17) and not the things on earth, (laid out in verses 5-9), but why? Because they have died, and their life is hidden with Christ in God!

Next, Paul lays out the proper way for a Christian household to operate, wives submitting to husbands, husbands loving wives, children obeying parents and so on. He continues with orders for masters and slaves, commands to walk in wisdom and to have gracious speech. No one can do any of these things without the indwelling Holy Spirit, and no one can be indwelt by the Spirit apart from the work of God in Christ! Paul completes his letter with some final greeting from his companions and news from his prison cell.

This wonderful letter displays the proper use of law and gospel that we should all seek to apply to our own lives, as well as in our exhortation of fellow believers. The imperative without the indicative is legalism. The commands of God are good and holy, but apart from the good news of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ they can only condemn and kill.

Lastly, we must understand that these glorious truths are for believers only! The law is to an unbeliever, primarily, a mirror to show them their need for redemption, but for the regenerate, it shows what good works are, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10) An unbeliever cannot walk in good works, because they hate God! (John 7:7) The imperative is used in evangelism properly when the unbeliever despairs of their own righteousness in light of the standard laid before them. (Romans 3:19) The gospel is to a believer, a glorious truth of what has been done for them, but to an unbeliever it is foolishness and a stumbling block. (1 Corinthians 1:23) Until a sovereign work of regeneration wrought by God Himself is worked on an unregenerate heart, they will not ever see the beauty of Christ and His gospel.

Essentials

Essential?

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

No matter what our society tries to say, there is such a thing as absolute, objective, transcendent truth. Jesus Christ is that truth. If we are to call ourselves followers of Christ, we must seek to know this truth as revealed in the Word of God. The Bible lays out essential truths that must be affirmed in order to call yourself a Christian. One problem we face is raising nonessential truths to the level of essential, thereby alienating fellow believers to whom we should be showing grace as we seek to understand the hard truths of scripture. The bigger problem is when people lower the importance of essential truths, thereby watering down the Gospel and losing the faith “once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 1:3).

First, let’s define some terms. The definitions I will here lay out may not be agreed upon by all, but they will suffice for this lesson. 

A heretic is a person who denies one of the essential doctrines of the faith, but we must be careful to distinguish between a formal heretic and a functional heretic. A functional heretic is someone who misunderstands one of these essential truths but is willing to correct their error when presented with the truth from scripture. A formal heretic is one who denies an essential truth even when presented with scriptural evidence that they are in error. Every believer has been or is a functional heretic if you look closely at their beliefs, but the Holy Spirit is indwelling these saints and will correct us all in due time. 

The difference between an orthodox belief and a heterodox belief must also be distinguished. An orthodox position is in accordance with sound doctrine as revealed in the Bible. A heterodox belief is in opposition to sound doctrine, but may not constitute heresy, as it does not necessarily deny essential truth. All heresy is heterodox, but not all heterodoxy is heresy.

There is some more refining that must be done, but bear with me. 

A primary essential is a truth statement that if denied indicates a lack of regeneration, and is clearly demonstrated in scripture to result in damnation.

A secondary essential is a truth that is not plainly stated in scripture as being essential, but denial of such would still constitute an unregenerate heart, as it distorts or flatly denies who God is and what He has done as revealed in scripture.

A primary nonessential is a truth that is plainly taught in scripture, but not indicated as being essential to salvation. However, denial of a primary nonessential would strongly indicate a lack of regeneration, because it is a denial of God’s Word.

A secondary nonessential is a truth that is debatable between saints, and affirmation or denial has no bearing on the state of someone’s soul.

What follows is a list demonstrating some doctrines in each of the aforementioned categories. This list is taken directly from the “doctrine grid” as found on www.carm.org.

Primary Essentials

Jesus is both God and man. 

See: John 1:1,14; 8:24; Colossians 2:9; 1 John 4:1-4

Jesus physically rose from the dead. 

See: John 2:19-21; 1 Corinthians 15:14

Salvation is by grace through faith. 

See: Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:8-9; Galatians 3:1-2; 5:1-4

The Gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus according to the scriptures. 

See: 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Galatians 1:8-9

There is only one God.

See: Exodus 20:3; Isaiah 43:10; 44:6,8

Secondary Essentials

God exists as a Trinity of persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Nature of God)

Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary. (Nature of the incarnation)

Jesus is the only way to God the Father

See: John 14:6

Primary Nonessentials

Moral integrity

See: Exodus 20:1-17

Fidelity in marriage in heterosexual relationships.

The condemnation of homosexuality.

The inerrancy of scripture.

Baptism not necessary for salvation

See: Acts 10:44-48

Secondary Nonessentials

Predestination, election, limited atonement, free will.

Communion every week, monthly, or quarterly, etc.

Saturday or Sunday worship.

Pre, mid, post trib rapture.

Premill, Amill, Postmill, Preterism

Continuation or cessation of the charismatic gifts.

Baptism for adults or infants.

Musical instruments in church.

This list is not exhaustive, but a pretty good representation of the issue at hand. We must understand that everything we believe is important. The nonessentials should be debated in love and we should know where we stand on these issues. The point is simple: do not separate from brothers and sisters who disagree on secondary nonessential issues. There are different denominations for a reason, namely, we are too thick to understand what the correct position is on these secondary issues. But make no mistake, there is a correct position, and we should diligently seek to discover the answer from the Word of God.

Hebrews 1 and 2 and Christological Heresies

Wednesday my pastor was out of town, so I taught the adult Bible study at my church. This is the notes/outline of what I presented.

Hebrews 1 and 2 and Christological Heresies

9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 1John 5:9-12(ESV)

We know from the clear teaching of the Apostle John from his first epistle that unless a person has the Son, they do not have life. It is vitally important that we understand who the Son is if we would believe in Him. Over the years, since the time of the Apostles, many heresies have arisen concerning the person of Christ. Unless we have a proper understanding of who Christ is, as revealed in sacred scripture, we will merely be worshipping a god of our imagination.

The Deity of Christ

The writer to the Hebrews opened his letter with a profound statement regarding who this Jesus is that we worship.

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. Hebrews 1:1-4 (ESV)

This text has many implications, however, here we will deal with the divinity of Christ as revealed by the writer.

Verse two distinguishes between the Father and the Son. The fact that the Son was appointed by the Father negates the idea that the Father and the Son are the same person. A heresy developed in the third century by the theologian Sabellius, known as Sabellianism (or more common recently as Modalism or “Jesus Only”), taught that God revealed Himself in three modes or manifestations, known as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Sabellianism denies the distinction of the persons in the Godhead. Modern day heretics like Oneness Pentecostals still hold to this false teaching, the most notable proponent being Bishop T.D. Jakes.

Verses two through four teach that Christ is the one through whom God created the world, and that He upholds the universe by the word of His power. This clearly teaches that Jesus is God, for no mere creation could uphold the universe by his word, much less create it. The Apostle Paul said no one has ever seen the Father, (1 Tim. 6:16) but here Christ is portrayed as the radiance of His glory, the very shekinah that was with the Jews in the wilderness! Furthermore, the exact imprint of His nature could not be merely a man, or any other creature for that matter. The word translated “nature” here is where we get the word character. In other words, Christ is the exact representation of the character of God, hence Christ can say, “Whoever has seen me, has seen the Father” (John 14:9).

This passage stands in clear contrast to Arianism, a heresy developed by Arius, an elder in the Egyptian church in the third and fourth centuries. Arius taught that Christ was a lesser, created being, that the Father used for the redemption of His people. Jehovah’s Witnesses claim the heresies of Arius as their own to this day, although they have gone further than even Arius dared to go in their blasphemy.

Mormonism also teaches that Christ was created by the Father, although differently than the Aryans. Mormons teach that Christ was conceived by the physical union between the Father and the virgin Mary. They have a convoluted concept of Jesus’ preexistence, in the loins of the Father, so they claim to believe in the eternality of the Son, although still as a lesser being than the Father.

Verse four also teaches that Christ is superior to the angels. Jehovah’s Witnesses, as well as Seventh Day Adventists teach that Christ is in fact the Archangel Michael.

The Humanity of Christ

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Hebrews 2:14-18 (ESV)

We have seen from chapter one of Hebrews that Christ is truly divine, and a separate person from the Father. Chapter two clearly lays out the humanity of Christ as well. The writer says that Christ himself partook of flesh and blood, just as the children of God have. We see in verse fourteen that in order for the power of death to be defeated, Christ must have truly died, in the same way that His children die. Without a true death of the Son, there can be no deliverance for us.

The heresy of Docetism developed as early as 70 A.D. and was held by early gnostics. Docetism, (from the root dokeo, or “to seem”) is the belief that Christ only seemed to have a physical body, but in reality he was only spirit, and so the life, death and resurrection of Christ were simply an illusion. If Christ only seemed to die, then logically we must conclude that the wrath of God only seemed to have been propitiated at the cross. This leaves us in our sins, and no one can be saved.

Monophysitism is the belief that Christ possessed no human nature, but the “humanness” of Jesus was consumed by His divinity, thereby making Christ not “truly” human. If Christ was not a man, in every sense of the word, He did not qualify for the priesthood, making Him unable to offer sacrifice on behalf of His people.

There are many more heresies or variations of the ones addressed here, but the point has been made. Historic orthodox Christianity holds that Christ is 100 percent God, and 100 percent man. His human and divine natures are distinct, yet function within the one person of Jesus Christ. The second person of the Trinity added humanity unto Himself at the incarnation, bridging the gap between God and man and thereby making Him fully able to fulfill the law, and bear the weight of the wrath of God at Calvary.

Sin: Part 3

This is part 3 of 3 of the series on sin that I taught to the youth at my church. Read part 1 here. Read part 2 here.

Sin.

Part 3. How Does Sin Affect The Human Race?

Sin affects the Human race in many ways, but can be divided into two major categories; consequences in life, and punishment.

Consequences in Life.

1. Original Sin

The consequences of sin in this life include original sin. Original sin can be further separated into the categories of original guilt, and original pollution.

Original guilt is the doctrine that teaches that Adam’s sin was imputed to his descendants, and therefore every descendant of Adam has the guilt of that sin to bear. We can see, biblically, that death is the punishment for sin, and that punishment is passed from Adam to all of his descendants. See Rom. 5:12-19; Eph. 2:3; 1 Cor. 15:22.

Original pollution teaches that “original sin is not merely negative; it is also an inherent positive disposition toward sin”. (LB) Original pollution is well expressed by the doctrines of total depravity, and total inability.

Total depravity is not the idea that men are as depraved as they possibly could be, or that they have no God-given conscience, but rather that every part of man’s nature is corrupt. This doctrine teaches that there is no spiritual good in relation to God, in the sinner, only perversion.

Total inability is not the idea that man cannot perform good in any sense of the word. He is able to do external religious good, civil good, and natural good, but “these same actions and feelings, when considered in relation to God, are radically defective. Their fatal defect is that they are not prompted by love to God, or by any regard for the will of God as requiring them.”. (LB) The unregenerate man can do nothing that is pleasing to God, including changing his own propensity for wickedness. In the words of Paul, “those who are in the flesh, cannot please God” (Rom. 8:8) See also: John 6:44; 8:34; 15:4,5; Rom. 7:18,24; 8:7,8; 1 Cor. 2:14; Heb 11:6

2. Free Will.

In any discussion of inability, depravity, pollution, and original sin, inevitably the question of free will is going to come up.

Sin: Part 2

This is part two of a three part series I taught to the youth at First Baptist Church of the Lakes, in Las Vegas, NV. You can read part one, here.

Sin.

Part 2. Where Did Sin Come From?

In Genesis Ch. 3 we have a historical narrative of the fall of the race of man. Historical narrative is a type of literature that records actual events in the form of a story. The chapters before and after the account of the fall of Adam and Eve are also historical narrative, although some would have us believe that some parts should not be taken in the form in which God himself gave them to us. The implications of the first few chapters of Genesis are so wide reaching that in order to avoid them, some people have distorted the plain reading of the text to fit in their own ideas. As Bible believing people, we must submit our lives completely to the Word of God, and this includes any and all ideas that may not be popular to an increasingly secularized society. See 2 Cor. 10:5

Take some time to carefully read the third chapter of Genesis and you will see the origination of all corruption ever to befall all of creation. The sin of Adam may seem to our modern mind as not possibly affecting his descendants, but we must continue to see things from a biblical perspective. The culture in which the Bible was written, and in which the Israelites were raised up was much more comfortable with the idea of “federal headship”.

Federal headship is the system in which the father represents his family, and by extension, his descendants. The concept is not only cultural, but biblical as well. In Hebrews Chapter 7, we see Levi represented by Abraham in the giving of the tithe to Melchizedek, many years before Levi was even born! Furthermore, if federal headship is rejected, we have no basis to accept a substitutionary atonement at Calvary. If it’s “not fair” for Adam to sin in my place, then it is surely “not fair” for Christ to die in my place.

At this point we must remember that how comfortable, or easy a doctrine is, has no bearing on whether or not that doctrine is true. The Bible clearly teaches that we all sinned “in Adam” (Romans Ch. 5), and therefore we are all guilty of that sin. We commit various sins because it is our nature to do so, being sinners, in virtue of what our first father purchased for us in his disobedience.

Sin: Part 1

This paper is another that I presented to the youth in my church, in three parts. Parts two and three will be posted in the days to come. Part one is somewhat shorter than the following installments, but defining terms is important, so be sure to look up the scripture references and don't be afraid to dig. Louis Berkhof's Systematic Theology was the main reference used, and is quoted throughout.

SIN

Part 1. What is sin?

The book of 1 John tells us “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). So a simple definition would be “sin is lawlessness.” This statement is true, however lawlessness does not encompass all that sin is.

Another attribute of sin is that it is specific. By specific, we mean a specific kind of evil. “It is not a calamity that came upon man unawares, poisoned his life, and ruined his happiness, but an evil course which man has deliberately chosen to follow and which carries untold misery with it.” LB See: Gen. 3:1-6; Isa. 48:8; Rom.
1:18-32; 1 John 3:4

Sin is also absolute. There is no neutral ground between good and evil. We may perceive some gray area because of our lack of proper perspective, but in reality, black and white are the only two options. This point is important to understand, so that we don’t see evil as a lessening of something good, but as a positive evil. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.”(Lk. 11:23) Our Lord knows no middle ground. See Matt. 10:32,33; 12:30; Luke 11:23; Jas. 2:10

Sin is always in relation to God, and His will. “It is separation from God, hatred of God, and this manifests itself in constant transgression of the law of God in thought, word, and deed.” LB See: Rom. 1:32, 2:12-14, 4:15; Jas. 2:9; 1 John 3:4

Sin includes both guilt and pollution. Guilt is the state of being liable to punishment for the violation of a law or moral requirement. See Eph. 2:3. Pollution is the inherent corruption that every sinner is subject to. The state of pollution the fallen race of man is in is present from birth and unavoidable. See Jer. 17:9; Eph. 4:17-19

In Biblical terminology the heart is the center of the man. His intellect, will, affections, and every other faculty of a man proceed from this point. If the heart of man is “deceitful” and “desperately wicked”, then logically, every part of a man’s soul is affected by that sin. Therefore, it may be said that the seat, or originating point, of sin, is the heart of sinful human beings.

The sinful state of man leads to sinful habits, which in turn lead to individual sinful deeds. The state, habits, and deeds are all equally sinful and therefore sin is not confined to outward acts, but can be merely thoughts, or intentions of the heart.

A Reformed Ordo Salutis

This paper was written as an outline to a two-part class I gave to the youth in our church. 

ORDO SALUTIS

Ordo salutis (AKA the order of salvation) is a hotly disputed doctrine between different theological traditions. This lesson will cover the generally accepted Reformed view of the ordo salutis, which is held, generally, by Reformed Baptists, Presbyterians, and other Reformed denominations. This view is strongly scriptural and supports many other areas of Reformed theology. The order is typically stated in this way: Regeneration/Calling, Conversion (Repentance and Faith), Justification, Adoption, Sanctification, and Glorification.

This paper is a short summary of the ordo salutis. It is not meant to be an exhaustive discussion of each individual point, but rather it is a demonstration of the order and distinctions of the main points of the doctrine. There have been libraries of books written on each point covered here. Wayne Grudem’s “Systematic Theology” is the main text I used for reference. All scripture references are from the NASB translation.

1.Regeneration/Calling

Theologians speak of calling in two ways: external or general call and internal or effectual call. The former refers to the preaching of the Gospel and the command to all people to repent and believe in Christ (Acts 17:30,31). The ordo salutis is concerned with effectual call in particular. The effectual call of God is that work of the Holy Spirit in which a lost man is irresistibly drawn to Christ and united to him in faith.(John 6:37-40,44 Eph. 2:5). Sometimes theologians will include regeneration, conversion, justification, and adoption in the discussion of calling, so we will focus on regeneration in particular.

Regeneration is the spiritual transformation wrought in a man by the Holy Spirit that causes him to move from spiritual death to spiritual life. Regeneration is spoken of by Christ in John 3, when he speaks of being “born again”. There is no salvation without regeneration, so “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” John 3:3

In his letter to Titus, the apostle Paul said, “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,” Titus 3:5. This refutes the idea, held by many, that the new birth follows repentance and faith. Repentance and faith are works done by us, albeit given to us as gracious gifts by God (See Acts 11:18, Heb. 12:2, Rom. 12:3) and therefore, would fall into the category of “deeds done in righteousness”. Regeneration must by necessity occur before anyone can express repentance or faith because they must understand their spiritual condition and this is not possible according to Paul. “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” 1 Cor. 2:14

2.Conversion(Repentance and Faith)

Both repentance and faith are gifts that God grants to His elect people, and are not exercised by anyone who is not effectually called of God and regenerate. Repentance refers to the turning away from sin and faith refers to turning towards Christ. They are two sides of the same coin and cannot be separated. Christ stands alone as the solution to our sin. One cannot turn to Christ without turning from sin. It is serious error to say that someone can have saving faith with no repentance.

Scripture speaks of worldly (attrition) and Godly (contrition) repentance. A worldly repentance is typically characterized by sorrow over the consequences for the sin committed, but no concern for the offense against God, other than fear of punishment. Judas and Esau are biblical examples of worldly repentance. A Godly repentance is characterized by a sorrow for offending God, primarily. Psalm 51 is an excellent example of King David expressing Godly repentance. Notice that there is no blame shifting involved in David’s pleas to God for forgiveness! True repentance will never involve downplaying, blame shifting, or attempts to excuse our crimes against God. The Christian has no reason to fear punishment, so fear, while possibly present, should not be the driving factor in Godly repentance, but the kindness of God in saving us should cause us to never want to offend Him.

Faith is described in Hebrews 11:1 as “...the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Faith is, simply put, trusting that Christ is who He said He is, did what He said He would do, and will do what He said He will do. Putting your faith in Christ is essential to salvation, "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12.

The act of faith is the means through which justification comes to the believer. “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS." Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,” Rom. 4:2-5

3.Justification

Justification (Contra-RCC)

The following paper was written for a weekly meeting I used to have with some local Roman Catholics. Most of the content is taken from a paper written by J.I. Packer and changed to fit a Roman context. Any direct quotes from Dr. Packer are noted, however, the rest is heavily dependent on his work.
Justification

Justify (Heb., sadaq; Gr. dikaioo)

Definition: A forensic term meaning to acquit; declare righteous; the opposite of condemn.

Deuteronomy 25:1

"If there is a dispute between men and they go to court, and the judges decide their case, and they justify the righteous and condemn the wicked,

‘Justify’ in this passage is translated from the Hebrew sadaq and is clearly juxtaposed with condemnation (Heb., rasha) 

See also Proverbs 17:15

He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.

See the Greek word dikaioo also in 

Matthew: 11:19, 12:37

Luke: 7:29, 7:35, 10:29, 16:15, 18:14

Acts: 13:39 

Romans: 2:13, 3:4, 3:20, 3:24, 3:26, 3:28, 3:30, 4:2, 4:5, 5:1, 5:9, 6:7, 8:30, 8:33 

1Corinthians: 4:4, 6:11 

Galatians: 2:16, 2:17, 3:8, 3:11, 3:24, 5:4

1Timothy: 3:16 

Titus: 3:7 

James: 2:21, 2:24, 2:25

God is described throughout scripture as the “Judge” of the all the earth (Gen. 18:25), and his dealings with mankind are consistently described in forensic (legal) terms.  Some of the passages noted above use the word “dikaioo” in a non-forensic way, such as in Luke 7:29 or Romans 3:4, however, Paul uses the term forensically in the vast majority of instances that he refers to justification.  As Paul is the main contributor to the doctrine of justification (29 of the 39 occurrences of the verb ‘justify’ are in the epistles or the recorded words of Paul), we will focus on his writings in general and as the Epistle to the Romans is his greatest treatise on justification we will focus on this book in particular.  

"Paul believed, as evidenced in his writings, that justification is a judgement passed on man, not a work wrought within man.  Justification means to Paul; God’s act of remitting the sins of guilty men, and accounting them righteous, freely, by his grace, through faith in Christ, on the ground, not of their own works, but of the representative law-keeping and redemptive blood-shedding of the Lord Jesus Christ, on their behalf."  JIP