The Path to Further Deception

Posted on April 30, 2019 by chfordenterprises

Years ago the pastor of my current church taught on three popular trends in today’s churches: the seeker friendly movement; the so-called “revivals” in which people lose control, roll in the aisles, laugh uncontrollably and make animal noises; and the health and wealth teaching. I have researched these trends as well, but he said something that was brilliantly insightful and which, because of my research, I recognized as true as soon as he said it. He said, “The people who fall for these deceptions tend to get carried away into further and further deception.”

            How true. Some of the health and wealth teachers also teach that we become little “gods” when we are born again and/or that Jesus ceased to be God when the Father laid our sins on him at the cross. And Bill Johnson, the pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, California, started off as a health and wealth teacher but got sucked into the Toronto “Revival,” a full blown example of a revival in which the people lose control.

            For me, the best example of a person who fell for one of these deceptions and then was carried away into further deception was the head elder of the last church I attended. He was also the worship leader of the church. He taught that it is God’s will for all of us to be healed and if we had enough faith, we would be healed. He would often declare from the platform during worship time that there would be no more sickness in his home. He even encouraged the rest of us to make the same declaration. He would continue to make these declarations even though his wife was mentally ill and taking several prescriptions to combat it.

            This occurred while the so-called Lakeland “Revival” in Florida, led by Todd Bentley, in which hundreds of people were supposedly healed, was happening, and this elder just had to go see it. He came home sick. He went to work the day after he came back but was so sick his boss sent him home. So, yes, there was sickness in his home despite his declarations.

            After I left that church, this elder experienced chest pains and drove himself 25 miles to the nearest emergency room. The doctor there told him he had pneumonia, gave him some antibiotics, and sent him home. He died in his sleep that night from congestive heart failure. The evidence that God kept giving him never did convince him that his teaching on healing was a deception.

            But the deception did not stop there. While I was still at this church, this elder spent an entire sermon teaching us why we should pray to the Holy Spirit every day, asking him to teach us and guide us and give us strength to do God’s will. When I asked him, one on one, after the service, to show me the Scriptures that tell us that we should pray to the Holy Spirit, he said, “Brother, you need to read the Scriptures from the beginning and ask the Holy Spirit to show you where they are.” I did not say anything more to him because his answer told me that he was not ready to talk rationally about this subject, but my thought was, “Is not that the issue here? Why would I pray to the Holy Spirit if I do not know if I am supposed to pray to the Holy Spirit in the first place?”

            His answer sounded like something a cultist would tell me. “How do I know if the burning in the bosom is the way God confirms if something is true?”

           “Because the Book of Mormon says so.”

           “How do I know that the Book of Mormon is true?”

           “Ask God if it is true and he will tell you that it is by giving you a burning in your bosom.”

            The Scriptures do not forbid praying to the Holy Spirit, but they do not teach us to pray to the Holy Spirit. Whenever they do teach us to pray to someone, it is always to the Father. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, he said, “When you pray, say: Our Father…” (Luke 11:1-2). Jesus even told the disciples, “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you” (John 16:23). So Jesus told them that prayer was not directed even to him, but to the Father.

            The disciples understood this. The prayers that are recorded in Acts (1:24-25, 4:24-30) are directed to the Father, not Jesus or the Holy Spirit. Paul’s prayers (Eph. 1:15-23, 3:14-19) are directed to the Father. After Jesus ascends to heaven, no one addresses him unless they see him in a vision. All the prayers are directed to the Father. No one prays to the Holy Spirit.

            It is true that in the Old Testament, God was rarely addressed as “Father,” but David knew that he was not praying to the Holy Spirit because he once prayed, “Do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps. 51:11). So even in the Old Testament, prayer was not directed to the Holy Spirit.

            During the first three centuries of Church history, very few prayers were directed to the Holy Spirit (one study found only four clear examples) and only Origen encouraged anyone to pray to the Holy Spirit. The vast majority of Christians in the first three centuries understood the teaching of Jesus: prayer should be directed to the Father.

            Some people try to justify praying to the Holy Spirit by saying, “We pray to the Father, who is God, so why cannot we pray to the Holy Spirit, who is also God?” That is human reasoning, which ignores what the Scriptures actually teach. Human reasoning ignores the fact that each person in the Trinity is a distinct person. Human reasoning says that because the Father is God and the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God, then blaspheming the Father and blaspheming the Son and blaspheming the Holy Spirit should be equally unforgivable. But that is not what the Scriptures teach. Only the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is unforgivable (Matt. 12:31-32). Human reasoning ignores the fact that each person in the Trinity has a distinct level of authority. Human reasoning says that because the Father is God and the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God, they should all have the same authority. But that is not what the Scriptures teach. The Son is subject to the Father (1 Cor. 11:3, 15:28) and the Holy Spirit is subject to both (John 15:26). Human reasoning ignores the fact that each person in the Trinity has a distinct role. The Father is God and the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God but only the Son actually hung on the cross and died for our sins. Yes, the Father is God, and yes, the Holy Spirit is God, but we pray only to the Father.

            But even if we do not offer petitionary prayer to the Holy Spirit, is it wrong to thank him? We can thank the Father for sending the Holy Spirit and for what the Holy Spirit has done, but praying to the Holy Spirit at all starts us down the path of deception.

            In my research, the people who advocate praying to the Holy Spirit are inevitably caught up in some other deception. The elder is only one example. The Catholics have developed several prayers to the Holy Spirit and, of course, Catholicism is just another deception. It seems to me that the three trends above are not the only paths to further deception. It seems that once you fall for any deception, you tend to get carried away into further deception. This is why we must always subject our human reasoning to the Scriptures and not the Scriptures to our human reasoning.

You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen (2 Peter 3:17-18).

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Should the Head of a Christian Woman be Covered?

Posted on April 6, 2019 by chfordenterprises

The question of whether a Christian woman should wear a head covering in obedience to 1 Cor. 11:2-16 is a highly controversial subject. Some say that she does not need to wear a head covering because her long hair is her covering (v. 15). Others say that she does not need to wear a head covering because the head of the woman is the man (v. 3), therefore the man is her covering. Still others say that this passage only applied to the culture of the first century and does not apply to us today. But there are those who say that this passage does apply to us today and therefore a Christian woman should wear a head covering.

With so much disagreement over this issue, would it not be helpful if we could hear Paul himself tell us what he meant? Of course, we cannot do that but we can do the next best thing. We can know how the Corinthians themselves understood this passage. A leader in the early Church named Tertullian wrote a tractate entitled, “On the Veiling of Virgins,” around 200 AD (that is, about 150 years after Paul wrote First Corinthians), and he says that the women of the Corinthian church wore veils in response to Paul’s injunction, and were still doing so even in his day. He also says that the women in the churches founded by the apostles were still wearing veils. Tertullian’s testimony alone should settle the matter. (You can read Tertullian’s tractate at http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0403.htm).

However, he also admits that the women in many of the churches in his day had stopped wearing a head covering. Why? Because the women in their culture no longer wore them. Does that argument sound familiar? These women did not want to stand out from the crowd.

“’We are scandalized,’ they say, ‘because others walk otherwise (than we do);’ and they prefer being scandalized to being provoked (to modesty).”

His response to this is “Good things scandalize none but an evil mind.” Being scandalized is not a good enough reason to disobey God. He asks, what if the evil ones are scandalized by virginity?

“Are therefore chaste virgins to be, for the sake of these marketable creatures, dragged into the church, blushing at being recognised in public, quaking at being unveiled, as if they had been invited as it were to rape?”

Of course not. The fear that a Christian woman would be “scandalized” or embarrassed if she wore a head covering in a culture in which the other women did not wear a head covering is not a good enough reason to disobey the Word of God.

He also points out “our Lord Christ has surnamed Himself Truth, not Custom.” Therefore, if custom is contrary to truth, truth should prevail. This does not mean that custom cannot determine the style of the head covering. For example, the Scriptures admonish women to dress modestly (1 Tim. 2:9-10), but the Scriptures do not require them to wear first century Middle Eastern clothing. But it does mean that custom does not determine whether or not we obey the Scriptures. When Paul says, “But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God,” he is using a Greek idiom which would be better stated as, “If anyone seems contentious by offering a custom other than this, we will not accept it because this is the only custom practiced by all of the churches.” Notice how Paul says that the practice of wearing a head covering was observed not just in Corinth, but by “the churches of God.”

Many people mistakenly argue that Paul told the Corinthian women to wear a head covering because if they did not, they would be confused with the prostitutes who ran rampant through the city. The temple of Aphrodite in Corinth, for example, was known to have 1000 prostitutes. This may have been true of the Greek city of Corinth, but that city was destroyed in 146 BC by the Romans who rebuilt the city as a Roman colony in 44 BC. The architecture of the Roman buildings clearly show prominent women of the city without coverings. What Paul was commanding the Corinthian women to do, therefore, was actually contrary to the Corinthian culture. This is why he appeals to timeless Nature (vv. 13-15) to support his argument, not to ever changing culture, and certainly not to the Corinthian culture of his time.

My response to the position that this passage only applied to the first century church is, “Then why is it in God’s eternal Word, which is meant to instruct all Christians for all time?” Paul mentions in 1 Cor. 5:9 an earlier epistle he had sent to the Corinthians, an epistle which the church did not keep because it was not inspired Scripture. Why did God not have Paul address this issue in that letter? Why did God make sure Paul addressed this issue in the inspired Word of God if it no longer applies to us?

I have even heard someone say that Paul refers to the wearing of a head covering as a “tradition” (v. 2), and since we are not to be bound by tradition, we are not obligated to observe this. When I think of “tradition,” I think it means “a continuing pattern of culture beliefs or practices.” Thus, it is a tradition to have turkey at Thanksgiving dinner because that is what our culture does. If Paul thought that this was a tradition in that sense, that it was something the churches did because it was the cultural thing to do, then perhaps we could say that we are not obligated to observe this since it is no longer a tradition in our culture. But then again, if so, why is it in the eternal Word of God?

“Tradition” also means “the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation, especially by word of mouth or by practice.” We eat turkey at Thanksgiving because that is the custom that has been handed down to us. The Greek word used here is paradosis, which means “a giving over which is done by word of mouth or in writing, i.e. tradition by instruction, narrative, precept, etc.” “Tradition,” therefore, can be another word for “teaching.” The Corinthians practiced the custom of wearing a head covering because that is what they were taught to do.

A tradition, like any teaching, can be a good thing or a bad thing. It is true that Jesus chastised the Pharisees for allowing “the traditions of men” to supersede the Word of God (Mark 7:8). But the problem is not that they practiced traditions; it is that they practiced the traditions of men. Traditions that are handed down to us by the Word of God itself should be observed by Christians. Thus, Paul tells the Thessalonians, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle” (2 Thess. 2:15). He also commands them “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us” (2 Thess. 3:6). The wearing of a head covering is a tradition that has been handed down to us by the Word of God and should therefore be observed by Christian women everywhere.

Does that mean a Christian woman needs to wear a hat or a scarf or a veil? Some say that she does not have to do so because the man (whether her husband or her father or her pastor) is her covering because the man is her head. However, that means the man has a covering also, which is Christ, because Christ is his head. But Paul says it is a dishonor for a man to prophesy or to pray with his head covered (v. 4). Does that mean he must disavow Christ as his Lord before he can prophesy or pray? Of course not. This argument, therefore, is senseless.

Is long hair a sufficient covering? If so, then verses 5and 6 do not make sense. If long hair covers a woman, then having short hair (cut hair) or no hair at all (shaved head) means she is uncovered. So verse 5 would then mean, “But every woman who prays or prophesies with a shaved head dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved.” And verse 6 would then mean, “For if a woman has cut hair, let her also be shorn (let her hair be cut).” Obviously, those verses do not make sense if the woman’s covering is merely her long hair. What Paul does mean is,

“But every woman with long hair who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved. For if a woman with long hair is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is shameful for woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered.”

He means that the woman should have a covering in addition to her long hair. His argument is that Nature, by providing the woman with long hair as a covering (literally, a mantle or a veil), teaches us that she needs to have an additional covering on her head.

Where Tertullian got it wrong is that he, like so many others after him, makes it an issue concerning modesty. Paul’s mention of angels leads many to link this passage with Gen. 6:1-4, where the sons of God (presumably angels) were attracted by the beauty of the daughters of men. If the beauty of women could tempt angels, so the argument goes, then they should completely cover their heads so that they do not tempt men. But it is not certain that Paul had this story in mind. We can only speculate as to what he meant by “because of the angels.” It is also shameful for women to have shorn or shaved heads, says the argument, because the prostitutes in Corinth had shorn and shaved heads. But that is not the argument that Paul uses at all. He says that it is shameful for women to have shorn or shaved heads because it is their glory to have long hair. How long is long enough is a question he does not address, which probably means that each woman will have to ask God how long is long enough for her. Those who think this is about modesty naturally think that the woman should wear the covering all of the time, but Paul specifically says that she should wear it on only two occasions: while praying or prophesying.

The issue is not about modesty; it is about submitting to authority. This is the real reason why the women of our culture refuse to wear a covering. Paul starts the passage by reviewing the chain of command from God the Father down to the woman, who is last on the chain. He also says that the covering is a symbol of authority (v. 10). The purpose of the covering is to remind her that she is to submit herself to the authority above her, which is God the Father, Christ, and the man that God has placed over her.

Some have dismissed this issue as “a little thing,” as unimportant, that obeying it or disobeying it does not significantly change things, so why bother? Yet Jesus said, “He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much” (Luke 16:10). This is one reason why the Western Church is so ineffective. We are not faithful in the “little things.” Jesus is really not our Lord anymore. We choose what we will obey or disobey and then justify it. I have spoken to some of the women in my church about this issue, and yet they still do not wear a covering. I have also spoken to some of the husbands in my church about this, and yet their wives still do not wear a covering. I do not know if they spoke to their wives about this at all. That men are unwilling to make their wives wear a covering and are afraid to even broach the subject with them is a sign of just how weak Christian men have become.

If wearing a covering is about submitting to authority, then why does the woman not wear it all of the time? Is she not supposed to be submitted to her authority all of the time? Why does Paul say that she should wear it while praying or prophesying? I can only speculate, but perhaps she is to wear a covering at those times because spiritual forces are especially at work during those times and she is more prone to deception during those times. That is why, I think, Paul says, “because of the angels.” The covering reminds the spiritual forces that she is protected by God the Father, Christ, and the man who is her head.

Since prophesying can only be done in public, I assume that Paul also meant public praying. I could be wrong on that. I do not expect my wife to wear a covering during her personal prayer time, but she does wear one when we go to a place (such as worship service) where public praying is likely to happen.

Tertullian’s tractate is hard to read but worth it. He makes some interesting observations, such as:

“Whatever savours of opposition to truth, this will be heresy, even (if it be an) ancient custom.”

“Herein consists the defense of our opinion, in accordance with Scripture, in accordance with Nature, in accordance with Discipline. Scripture founds the law; Nature joins to attest it; Discipline exacts it. Which of these (three) does a custom founded on (mere) opinion appear in behalf of? Or what is the color of the opposite view? God’s is Scripture; God’s is Nature; God’s is Discipline. Whatever is contrary to these is not God’s.”

Another helpful website, though you might not agree with everything that is said there, is https://www.headcoveringmovement.com.

The Corinthian women wore head coverings in addition to their hair. That fact alone should settle the issue. The Scriptures do not specify the style of the covering or even how much of the head should be covered. The woman has some liberty in those areas. But she is required to wear a covering of some sort while praying or prophesying. The woman who refuses to do so can argue about tradition, custom, and culture all that she wants. Her real problem is that she is not submitting to authority, including the authority of the Word of God.

Posted in No Small Dissension | 2 Comments

Life’s Filters

Posted on September 8, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Many years ago someone made a statement that shocked me into transforming my prayer life. He said, “Even the wicked can pray when it’s easy.”

Until I heard that, I had been complaining about how hard prayer sometimes was. “If you really want us to spend time with you,” I said to God, “shouldn’t prayer time be the one time that is easy and free from Satan’s attack?” But this man’s statement made me realize that if prayer were easy, then anyone could do it.

Since then, I have come to believe that God uses hard times as a filter. Filters, of course, are used to remove impurities from the air and liquids. A good filtering system uses several filters that remove impurities in stages, starting with very coarse impurities and removing finer and finer impurities. God uses hard times to filter out those who do not really love him.

Anyone can pray when it is easy to do so. But who can pray when it is hard to do so? Those who really love God can, and they pass through the filter. Anyone can love those who love them back. But who can love their enemies? Those who really love God can, and they pass through the filter. Anyone can love God when times are good. But who can love God when times are bad? Those who really love God can, and they pass through the filter. Anyone can bless those who bless them. But who can bless those who curse them and spitefully use them? Those who really love God can, and they pass through the filter. Anyone can love those who praise them. But who can love those who nail them to a cross even though they did not deserve it? Those who really love God can, and they pass through the filter.

Those who successfully pass through all of the filters are, of course, the pure ones and they will stand before their Lord Jesus Christ and hear him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

I hope to be one of those people.

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The Resurrection of the Dead and Eternal Judgment

Posted on September 7, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Lesson 12

10. The Resurrection of the Dead

We have seen that the central doctrine of Christianity is the resurrection of Christ.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians, “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” (1 Cor. 15:17). If Christ did not in fact rise from the dead, there is no Christianity. But Paul also says, “For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen” (1 Cor. 15:16). So, to believe in the resurrection of Christ, one must also believe in the resurrection of the dead.

The resurrection of the dead includes both the believers and the unbelievers (John 5:24-29).

We are not resurrected as spirit only, but as spirit, soul, and body. However, the body that we will receive at our resurrection is different from the one we have now (1 Cor. 15:35-58).

All of the examples Paul cites have a physical body. So, too, our resurrected bodies will be physical. However, they are called spiritual bodies because they will be free from sin. Our spirits will finally control our bodies instead of the other way around.

In short, our resurrected bodies will be just like the resurrected body of Christ (Phil. 3:17-21).

Paul says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 15:50). Jesus said that his resurrected body consisted of flesh and bones (Luke 24:36-39). His resurrected body did not have blood because he had shed it for us. So, too, our resurrected bodies will not have blood. In this sinful body, the life resides in the blood (Lev. 17:11). But now Christ is our life (Col. 3:1-4), so we will no longer need blood to sustain us. That is how we can be resurrected with physical bodies and still inherit the kingdom of God.

The unbeliever, however, will not be resurrected with an incorruptible, spiritual body. He or she will be given back his or her sinful, natural body, which is why he or she cannot inherit the kingdom of God and why he or she will suffer forever in the lake of fire.

11. Eternal Judgment

In Matt. 25:31-46, Jesus makes two things perfectly clear:

  1. Only two fates await everybody.
  2. Jesus will decide what everyone’s fate will be.

Jesus makes the same two points in John 5:21-30, but adds one more point: those who believe are not under judgment.

Only the unbelievers will actually stand before God and Jesus on Judgment Day. This Day is depicted in Rev. 20:1-15. It is known as the Great White Throne Judgment because God sits on a great white throne when he judges the people. Eternity for unbelievers is determined by their works, and all of their works are found wanting. So all of them are cast into the lake of fire, where they will be punished for eternity.

Eternity for believers, however, is not determined by their works. Believers are saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8). But the works of the believers do determine their rewards.

Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 3:6-17 that our works will be subjected to fire. He pictures our works as components to a building. What is that building? The Church. What will be tested, therefore, is how well we contributed to building up the Church. If we did well, we will receive a reward. If not, we will suffer loss.

That is why Paul says that each of us must stand before the judgment seat of Christ, “that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:9-10). In the Greek, this judgment seat is called the bema, which is why this judgment is called the bema seat judgment. The Roman proconsuls would sit on the bema when they acted as judges. Jesus will sit on the bema in heaven when he judges our works. It is a judgment only for Christians and it does not determine our eternity, only our rewards.

Posted in The Basic Doctrines of the Christian Faith | Leave a comment

Salvation by Grace through Faith

Posted on September 6, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Lesson 11

9. Salvation by Grace through Faith

This doctrine is unique to Christianity. All other religions teach that you get to heaven (if there is a heaven) and have a relationship with God (if there is a relationship) by doing enough good works. Christianity alone teaches that you can never be good enough to get into heaven or have a relationship with God, that the only way to get into heaven and have a relationship with God is by putting your faith in Jesus Christ, the only person who has lived a life that is good enough.

The Scripture that teaches this most clearly is Eph. 2:8-10. It says that we are saved by grace through faith. It also says that we are not saved by works.

Why are we not saved by works? Verse 9 tells us why: if we were saved by works, we would boast about our accomplishment. Rom. 4:1-4 says that if Abraham had been justified by works, he would have something to boast about. It also says that if salvation came by works, then God would be in debt to us instead of us in debt to God.

In other words, salvation by works would put us above God and all other men. It would make us proud. And is that not why we sin in the first place?

Rom. 3:20-28 – Salvation must come by grace through faith because we cannot do enough good works in the first place and it excludes boasting.

Does this mean that we are no longer required to do the good works? Of course not (Eph. 2:10).

James 2:14-26 says that we show our faith by our works. Just as a lamp produces both heat and light, true faith produces both salvation and good works.

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The Resurrection of Christ

Posted on September 5, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Lesson 10

8. The Resurrection of Christ

The doctrine of the resurrection of Christ is absolutely paramount to the Christian faith. In fact, Paul says that if the resurrection did not happen, then our faith is futile (1 Cor. 15:17). In other words, if there is no resurrection, there is no Christianity.

We know that the resurrection happened because his disciples testified to seeing him after his crucifixion. All four Gospels record the resurrection. Luke gives the most details (Luke 24:1-12, 36-48).

Christ did not rise from the dead as just a spirit (like the Jehovah’s Witnesses contend) but as a full person: spirit, soul, and body.

In fact, Jesus said that he would raise his own body (John 2:18-21). Christ’s resurrection was a physical resurrection.

In 1 Cor. 15:1-8, Paul says that the Gospel consists of three events.

First, Christ died. John’s account of Jesus’ death includes the detail that blood and water came out of Jesus’ body after a soldier pierced his side with a spear (John 19:34). This proves that Jesus died when his heart ruptured. This also proves that Jesus really died (not just passed out), for no one survives a ruptured heart.

Second, Christ was buried. Following the customs of the time, he was placed in a cave, the opening of which was then covered by a large stone. Given the necessary size of the opening and the kind of material in that area, the stone probably weighed 1.5 to 2 tons. This means that if Jesus had been buried alive (and if he were a mere man), he would not have been able to move the stone by himself.

Third, Christ rose again on the third day.

Paul then cites the testimony of witnesses to prove that the resurrection did occur. How reliable were these witnesses?

First, in their written testimony, they pointed out their failures, including their unbelief. If they had made up the story of the resurrection, they would have made themselves look good.

Second, most of them died for their testimony. They were told they could live if they simply stopped proclaiming the resurrection of Christ. But they chose to die anyway because they knew they were telling the truth. People do not willingly die for a story which they made up.

Third, their testimony was confirmed by other witnesses, both friendly and hostile. Paul says that 500 people saw the risen Christ at the same time. This proves that the disciples were not hallucinating, for no two people have the same hallucination, let alone 500. The hostile witnesses include the priests, who bribed the guards into saying that the disciples had stolen the body. In other words, even the hostile witnesses admitted that the grave was now empty!

Fourth, and perhaps the best reason for believing the reliability of the disciples’ testimony, is that they first preached the resurrection in Jerusalem. They made their first public announcement of the resurrection within walking distance of the tomb itself. Anybody in the audience could have gone to the tomb to check it out for themselves. If the disciples had started preaching in Athens or Rome, no one could have verified it. But they began in Jerusalem because they knew that no one could prove them wrong.

All the enemies of Christianity had to do to stop it in its tracks when the disciples began to preach the resurrection was to produce the body. The fact that they never did is proof that the body was no longer in the grave.

The resurrection of Christ is the central belief of Christianity. We know that Christianity is correct because we know that Christ rose from the grave.

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The Virgin Birth and The Atonement of Christ

Posted on September 4, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Lesson 9

6. The Virgin Birth

Why is it necessary to believe in the virgin birth of Christ? Because the Scriptures teach it. This doctrine is taught by all of the Christian denominations and until recently, the only people who denied it were outside of the Church.

Those who deny the virgin birth are actually attacking the Deity of Christ. They are trying to say that he was an ordinary man, born like any other man.

The Scriptures clearly teach the virgin birth. It was predicted by Isaiah over 700 years before it happened (Is. 7:14). Some people would argue that the Hebrew word for “virgin” really means “young woman.” However, a young woman giving birth to a son is an everyday occurrence. How could an everyday occurrence be a “sign” from the Lord? The sign had to be something highly unusual. When Matthew quotes this verse (Matt. 1:23), he uses the Greek word for “virgin.”

The two birth narratives in the Gospels (Matt. 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-35, 2:1-7) clearly state that Mary was a virgin at the time Jesus was conceived and born.

 7. The Atonement of Christ

The word “atonement” is used in the King James Version of the New Testament in Rom. 5:11 –

And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

The NKJV uses the word “reconciliation” instead of “atonement.” Reconciliation is the final result of the atonement. The English word “atonement” actually comes from the phrase “at one.” It signifies that the purpose of Christ’s death was to help us become “at one” with God once again.

To fully understand what the atoning work of Christ accomplished, we must first understand what sin did to us and to our relationship with God the Father.

Is. 59:2 says that our sins separated us from God the Father. Sin also made us enemies of God (Rom. 5:6-11).

As such we deserved God’s wrath. Our punishment should have been death (Rom. 6:23), that is, we should have been eternally separated from God and suffering in the lake of fire forever.

But because God loved us, he had a different plan for us (Eph. 2:4-7).

His love for us made him want to live with us forever, but his justice could not simply ignore our sins. His justice demanded that someone pay the penalty for our sins. Someone had to shed blood because of our sins, for “without shedding of blood, there is no remission” (Heb. 9:22).

He chose to send his only begotten Son to pay our penalty for us.

God foretold the sacrifice of his Son by having the Israelites celebrate the Day of Atonement every year. On that day, a perfect animal was sacrificed to make atonement for the nation of Israel and to cleanse them from their sins (Lev. 16:30).

So, too, Jesus was the perfect sacrifice. He was the only man who had no sin. And his sacrifice made atonement for us and cleansed us from our sins (Rev. 1:5).

By dying on the cross, he took our punishment for us and appeased God’s wrath:

And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world (1 John 2:2).

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10).

“Propitiation” means “that which propitiates.” Propitiate means “to make favorably inclined, to appease.”

His death overcame our separation from God the Father and reconciled us to him (Rom. 5:6-11). We can now live forever with God the Father, not because of what we have done, but because of the atoning work of Christ. That is what we mean when we speak of the atonement.

The message of the atonement is the message we must carry to the lost (2 Cor. 5:18-21).

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The Trinity (Part 3)

Posted on September 3, 2018 by chfordenterprises

When I taught this series to my home group, I gave this chart to the members as a reference.

There is only one God

The first step is to establish how many Gods exist: one! Isaiah 43:10; 44:6, 8; 45:5, 14, 18, 21,22; 46:9; 47:8; John 17:3; 1 Cor. 8:5-6; Gal. 4:8-9

  • “I am the LORD, and there is no other; besides Me there is no God,” (Isaiah 45:5).
  • “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me,” (Isaiah 44:6).
  • “I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides Me there is no God,” (Isaiah 55:5).
  FATHER SON HOLY SPIRIT
Called God Phil. 1:2 John 1:1,14; Col. 2:9 Acts 5:3-4
Creator Isaiah 64:8 John 1:3; Col. 1:15-17 Job 33:4, 26:13
Resurrects 1 Thess. 1:10 John 2:19, 10:17 Rom. 8:11
Indwells 2 Cor. 6:16 Col. 1:27 John 14:17
Everywhere 1 Kings 8:27 Matt. 28:20 Psalm 139:7-10
All knowing 1 John 3:20 John 16:30; 21:17 1 Cor. 2:10-11
Sanctifies 1 Thess. 5:23 Heb. 2:11 1 Pet. 1:2
Life giver Gen. 2:7: John 5:21 John 1:3; 5:21 2 Cor. 3:6,8
Fellowship 1 John 1:3 1 Cor. 1:9 2 Cor. 13:14; Phil. 2:1
Eternal Psalm 90:2 Micah 5:1-2 Rom. 8:11; Heb. 9:14
A Will Luke 22:42 Luke 22:42 1 Cor. 12:11
Speaks Matt. 3:17; Luke 9:25 Luke 5:20; 7:48 Acts 8:29; 11:12; 13:2
Love John 3:16 Eph. 5:25 Rom. 15:30
Searches the heart Jer. 17:10 Rev. 2:23 1 Cor. 2:10
We belong to John 17:9 John 17:6 …
We serve Matt. 4:10 Col. 3:24  
Believe in John 14:1 John 14:1  
Gives joy   John 15:11 John 14:7
Judges John 8:50 John 5:21, 30  

Therefore, the doctrine of the Trinity is arrived at by looking at the whole of scripture, not in a single verse. It is the doctrine that there is only one God, not three, and that the one God exists in three persons:  Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  An analogy would be time.  Time is past, present, and future.  But, there are not three times, only one. (https://carm.org/trinity)

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The Trinity (Part 2)

Posted on September 2, 2018 by chfordenterprises

The Athanasian Creed is named after Athanasius, who defended the doctrine of the Trinity against the Arians. He did not write the creed, nor was it written by a Church Council. In fact, we do not know who wrote it. It first appeared in the sixth century and was soon adopted as a statement of faith by the Roman Catholic Church and later by some Protestant churches because it is a simple yet eloquent exposition on the doctrines of the Trinity and of Christ. Again, the word “catholic” means “universal” and does not refer to the Roman Catholic Church.

The Athanasian Creed

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.

 © 1987, CRC Publications, Grand Rapids MI. www.crcna.org. Reprinted with permission.

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The Trinity (Part 1)

Posted on September 1, 2018 by chfordenterprises

Lesson 8

5. The Trinity

We have seen that the Scriptures teach that the Father is God, the Holy Spirit is God, and the Son is God. But we have also seen that the Scriptures teach that there is only one God. How do we reconcile these Scriptures?

The Church has consistently taught that these Scriptures are reconciled by the doctrine of the Trinity. The word “trinity” is a combination of the words “tri” and “unity.” Hence it means three in one. It is true that the word “trinity” does not appear anywhere in the Scriptures. The word is simply our name for the doctrine which is clearly taught by the Scriptures.

The doctrine of the Trinity states that there is only one God in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three persons are equal in nature, power, and eternity. Each person is fully God, yet they are united in such a way that there is only one God.

The doctrine is not explicitly stated in the Old Testament, though there are hints of it.

Gen. 1:26-27, Gen. 11:5-9, and Is. 6:8 all have something in common: the Lord refers to “us” when he is clearly referring to himself.

Some verses mention all three persons:

Is. 48:16 (The Lord God [the Father] and His Spirit have sent Me [the Son])

Ps. 33:6 (The Word is the Son, the Hebrew word for “breath” is also the Hebrew word for the Spirit)

Exod. 33:18-20 – God tells Moses that no man can see God and live. John 1:18 tells us that no man has seen God, meaning the Father, at any time.

Yet God appeared to several people in the Old Testament (for example, Gen. 17:1 and Gen. 32:24-30). These people saw God, but did not die. The best explanation is that they did not see the Father but did see the Son.

The doctrine is explicit in the New Testament. The New Testament also affirms that there is only one God, but it also talks about the three persons and often mentions all three in the same passage:

Matt. 3:16-17
Matt. 28:19
John 14:16-17
Rom. 8:11
1 Cor. 6:1
1 Cor. 12:4-6
Gal. 3:11-14
Heb. 10:29
1 Pet. 1:1-2

1 John 5:7 states the doctrine in no uncertain terms. However, you should be aware that it appears in only a few manuscripts and those are quite young.

The doctrine of the Trinity is admittedly difficult to understand. Nowadays, most people in our culture do not believe in polytheism so they are not likely to split the persons into three gods. However, many people emphasize their unity so much that they often blur the persons. The Scriptures clearly teach that each person is distinct from the other. The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is not the Father.

Each person also has a distinct role:

Each person in the Godhead is distinct from each other and yet they are one. In John 17, Jesus prayed that we would be one with each other and him just as he is one with the Father. Perhaps we do not understand how three persons can still be one God because we still do not understand how to be one with each other.

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