SPIRITUALITY?

What makes a person spiritual? Some people would look to externals for the answer—they would say a person is spiritual because of the pious way he dresses or talks, the things he does or does not do, the places he goes or refuses to go. Others would say a person is spiritual simply because he believes in and seeks to tap some sort of higher power in the universe. Webster's dictionary vaguely defines spirituality as "sensitivity or attachment to religious values."
God's definition is anything but vague. According to the Bible, a person is spiritual when—and only when—he is filled with the Holy Spirit. Spirituality is an absolute—at any moment of time we are either one hundred percent filled with the Spirit and therefore spiritual, or we are not filled with the Spirit at all and are therefore carnal (1Co 2:14–15; 1Co 3:1–4; Gal 5:16–17; Gal 6:1).

At the moment of salvation, every believer is indwelt by God the Holy Spirit. Indwelling is a once-for-all thing; it cannot be changed or lost. The Spirit indwells every believer all the time (Rom 8:9; 1Co 6:19–20; Gal 3:2; Gal 4:6). But with the indwelling, an inner conflict begins between the Holy Spirit and our old sin nature. Our volition—our freedom to choose—is the arbiter in the conflict. We decide moment by moment who will be in control of our soul.
So, the filling of the Spirit is a matter of choice. We are commanded to be filled (Eph 5:18), and we choose every day whether to obey that command or not. The command in Ephesians Five is in the passive voice, indicating that the filling of the Holy Spirit is a gift which we can receive or reject, but cannot earn. Like everything else in the Christian life, the filling of the Holy Spirit comes one way: by grace through faith. We lose the filling of the Spirit by choosing to grieve or quench the Spirit through sin or apathy (Eph 4:30; 1Th 5:19). We regain it by choosing to confess, which results in our being cleansed from all unrighteousness (1Jo 1:9; Pro 1:23).
Being filled with the Spirit is not an end in the Christian life; it is the means to an end. The Holy Spirit is not given to us for nothing; He is given to us to provide power for life. Our goal is to bear fruit (Joh 15:4–5); the fruit described in Gal 5:22–23 is the character of Jesus Christ. Spirituality—the life that is produced by the consistent filling of the Holy Spirit—is the life of Christ in us.
This material was originally a highlighted topic in "The Basics". Additional topics can be found here.

See what's new on the BTBM web site at http://basictraining.org

CHAFER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY BIBLE CONFERENCE 09' MARCH 9-11

Not only was the 2009 Chafer Theological Seminary Bible Conference spiritually and intellectually edifying, but I was able to travel with two of my best friends Freddy and Bret. We rented a mini van and spent 24 hours driving (each way). We stayed at the comfort suites (off Clay St.) in West Houston - very nice!

DAY 1 highlights: 

Freddy, Bret and I had breakfast with Dr. Robert L. Thomas, who Dr. Rigsby calls, "The greatest living Greek Scholar." We picked his brain for over an hour.  The man works for John MacArthur, does not completely agree with Chafer's soteriology, but came to speak at the conference.  This is grace in action. Rather than concentrating on a point of friction, he brought to the conference a hermeneutical model, which seeks to eliminate the notion of a "pre-understanding" of the text.  That is to say, when the text does not line up with our theology, we need to go with the text.  He also mentioned that, "If you want to create a heresy, change the meaning of key words."  Assigning new meaning to old words is a good way to create a new heresy.

During lunch, we munched on buffalo wings with Dr. Charlie Bing, another grace-oriented man in regards to the recent gospel debates.  He believes in including the message of the cross when sharing about Christ on the basis of the progressive revelation that God as given us.  Basically, the event did happen, we have it in Scripture, so we ought to share it.  

Dr. Merryman (from Merryman ministries) closed up the night with words from the heart in 2 Timothy 3:10-4:8.  Here Paul was encouraging Timothy to remain faithful in the midst of Apostasy to use the entire council of God, not just selected portions.  And then there was evening and night, and that was the first day.

DAY 2 highlights:

Dr. Thomas emphasized the importance of "single meaning" in hermeneutics.  We use the addage, "One interpretation, many applications."  he concluded that, "The value of following the principle of single meaning is beyond estimation. It eliminates all sorts of hindrances to letting the text speak for itself, which is, of course, the goal in Bible interpretation."  Dr. Thomas Ice spoke on highlights and low-lights in the history of Hermeneutics.  His fundamental contention against Hank Hannegraff was that literal interpretation is the only way to go, which I think is good to go.

DAY 3 highlights:

Dr. Thomas closed his series by stating that we need not change they way we have handled the Biblical text.  It is accurate and we CAN trust it.  To my surprise, some scholars are not far from the claims of the Jesus Seminar in saying we really cannot know exactly what Jesus said.  "Evangelicals need to retrace their steps of the last fifty years if they are to regain their
appreciation for the reliability and precision of the Bible."

Dr. Hixon presented his paper on, "What is the Gospel?" with reference to his book, "Getting the Gospel Wrong."  I can see Scripturally that the content of the Gospel may include the death and resurrection of the Lord, but the dilemma I have is seeing where people are told to believe in the "Gospel" for "Eternal Life."  I raised this question during Dr. Hixon's Q&A, and he replied with Romans 1:16, which he believes is speaking about Justification Salvation.  I asked this question to several men at the conference and did not receive a straight answer.  I do not believe (as does Pastor Freddy) that people are to believe in the "Gospel" in order to receive "Eternal Life."  However, we may be missing something and are open to other ideas.  For now, John 3:16 is a sufficient "ice breaker" in starting a conversation with a stranger or non-believer.

OVERALL, the trip was edifying, stimulating and a good time with two of my best friends!

UPDATE

Hello to all our Bible Students!  It's ironic that the busier we get and the more we cover in our Bible study, the less we put up on the blog.  I guess it's because we're preoccupied studying and do not have the free time to blog... and that's a good thing.  Be sure to catch our live streaming broadcasts on Sunday afternoons and Thursday evenings @ http://www.ustream.tv/channel/church-of-hope

CHARIS KAI EIRENE! (Grace and Peace) - Ryan.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 - I Wish We'd All Been Ready

Dr. Bob Wilkin spoke on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 at the Church of Hope today. I had the privilege of introducing him.

The Doctrine of Justification

What is Justification? Some would say it means “just-as-if-I’d-never-sinned.” Although this sounds good, preaches well, and is good rhetoric, it’s somewhat misleading. Technically, justification is better rendered, “just-as-if-I’d-sinned-but-God-still-made-me-right.” Even that definition needs to be unpacked – So let’s unpack it…

Some believe that the purpose of Romans is to demonstrate the doctrine of Justification by Faith – and rightly so. It is here that where we will find out what it is, how it works, and how it affects the believer.

First of all, Justification means, “to declare as righteous” and righteous simply means ‘right.’ In essence, justification is when God declares a person “okay.” Justification makes a person “okay” so that they can go to heaven. Consider this illustration:

A long time ago, there was a boy who ran a red light and was pulled over by a police officer. The boy knew what he had done, which is why he was sweating and ticked off at himself. The police officer approached him. “License and registration please” he said firmly. After realizing they were from the same neighborhood, the police officer then asked, “do you know my son?” The boy looked at the officers name tag and made the connection! He had realized the officer was his friend’s dad! So, he said, “Yes. We’re good friends.” The officer, in grace, justified the boy: “take him out to lunch next time you see him. Now get outta here.”

I am embarrassed to admit I am the boy, but I use it as an illustration for justification because it captures the big idea. Justification does not change what you’ve done (state), it changes your current status (standing) or how you are currently viewed. Although at fault and deserved of a penalty, the officer justified me; that is, he “declared the me as righteous” (“okay”) on the basis of my relationship with his son. The boy didn’t earn justification; he didn’t deserve it; he could never repay it; but the boy received justification. He received grace; something that he didn’t earn or deserve, and that which he could never repay.

Romans 4:4-5 explains the Justification as a divine transaction. All that means is God puts something in our spiritual bank account.

More to come on this issue in our next class. Stand by for a 10 minute doctrine in the near future.

Semper Scriptura!
Ryan

The Doctrine of Christmas

Why do evangelicals/protestants celebrate Roman Catholic holidays? Christmas comes from two words, "Christ" and "Mass," which makes it the mass of Christ. This is a breakdown of the doctrine of Christmas in 10 minutes.Christians, who are extremely critical of those who follow "tradition." All in all, all believers in Jesus ought to use this time of the year to spread the good news about Jesus the Savior who is Lord and who happened to be born in a manger.

Merry Christmas vs. Happy B-Day Jesus

Nowhere in Scripture is “Christmas” mentioned; it is neither alluded to nor defined. And since Scripture lacks a “doctrine of Christmas,” the holiday/celebration must be defined by the extra biblical framework from which it surfaced. Christmas is literally, “the Mass of Christ” created by the Roman Catholic Church to counter the ancient pagan holidays that designated 25 December as their day of debauchery. It was a day to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in the face of those who wanted to indulge in self. Today, Christmas is frequently associated with parties, gift exchanging, shopping malls, jolly music, bright lights and an old chubby man with a white beard and a hearty laugh.

Rather than focusing on Christmas as we know it, let us focus on the Birth of Christ, how it fulfilled major prophecies in the Old Testament and how Believers can turn this traditional holiday into an opportunity to share the good news of Eternal Life, which is an available free gift any day of the year.

The birth of Christ marks the apex of all humanity and the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. The dating system, which we know and use revolves around the birth of Christ. The time before Christ is known as B.C. and after his birth is designated A.D. (anno Domini, Latin for “The Year of our Lord”). All government and military documents use this dating system (ex. The US Constitution and any Military award). Just take a look at your own birthday year, which marks roughly how many years older you are than baby Jesus. The point is, Jesus was born a long time ago and the world has never been the same.

This “Christmas” be sure to share the gift of Eternal Life with someone who needs it. The message is simple: Jesus was born in Bethlehem from his mom, the virgin Mary. This even was the fulfillment of many Old Testament Prophecies that spoke of Yeshua Ha Meshiach or Jesus the Messiah/Christ. The Bible says God gave loved the World unconditionally so much he gave his only Son (Jesus) that anybody who believes in him would not perish but would have Eternal Life. Do you believe this? If you do, you have Eternal Life and you will be with the Lord Jesus for all of eternity.

CHECK DISC Romans 5:1-5

INTRO TO "CHECK DISC"

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There is no passage in all of Scripture that cannot be interpreted for today. The CHECK DISC technique makes this possible in five easy steps. The need for this hermeneutical tool is based on the fact that the majority of contemporary Christians who study the Bible are guilty of “RTC syndrome;” They find themselves “Running to Commentaries.” Bibles now come with an abundant amount of footnotes that seek to explain the text. There is no substitute for spending time in the Word in order to extrapolate the intended meaning. Although footnotes may be helpful, they may produce laziness.

CHECK DISC is the simplest approach to Bible study. CHECK DISC is the art of interpreting the text in it’s original context using only the original words and surrounding text to establish the basis for a contemporary meaning. Furthermore, the CHECK DISC technique forces the interpreter to stick with the text only. That means, one cannot add any of foreign thoughts, ideas and theology into the text. With the CHECK DISC formula, there is no room for eisegesis (i.e. reading ones own thoughts into the text).

Step 1 – CHECK yourself (i.e. confess your sins – 1 John 1:9 and restore fellowship with God).
Step 2 – DISCOVER the context of the passage (i.e. surrounding verses, chapter, book, genre, etc.).
Step 3 – IDENTIFY the key words, which capture the big idea of the author (i.e. what is he getting at?).
Step 4 – SUBJECT – Create a question that captures the big idea of the passage.
Step 5 – COMPLEMENT – Answer the question using the text/context only mentioning the original audience, author and situation (i.e. dead people only!).

The key progression in CHECK DISC is observation → interpretation → application. Prior to interpreting the text for today, one must concentrate on observation (exegesis) and once the “big idea” of the passage is captured (i.e. the subject and complement) stop exegeting!

Many Pastors and Teachers spend most of their time exegeting the text and in worst cases they are exegeting until Sunday morning! This is a terrible feeling. The Subject-Complement method is the tool that saves time, energy and stress. Without the right tools, the job takes twice the amount of time. For instance, if the goal is not set at capturing the big idea, all of the side issues serve as distractions and the message becomes unclear. A lot of people walk away from Church saying, “Wow. That was a great message.” Ironically, they could not tell you the big idea of the message.

Once the exegetical idea (subject-complement) is in the “bag” then contemporize the idea and communicate/apply it to the people today. This is connecting what it meant with what it means. STAY FAITHFUL TO THE TEXT!

There is more to this 5-step process, but that is it in a nutshell. This notion cuts bible study prep time in half and allows for ample time of contemporizing the message. If believers cannot apply the Word to today’s problems, they remain in defeat.

As a rule of thumb, remember that the more time spent in Observation, the less time is needed for interpretation. Have fun CHECK DISCing through the Scriptures!

Watch the video here: Check DISC Hermeneutic

Download the mp3 here: Check DISC Hermeneutic mp3

View the PowerPoint here:

Dr. Zane Hodges - 1932-2008

Our beloved Dr. Zane Hodges went home to be with the Lord today (24 November 2008). He was a pioneer for the Gospel of Grace and a major contribution to FORALLBELIEVERS.org. The following was written by Dr. Bob Wilkin from (faithalone.org):

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Zane has been like a father to me. He taught me how to exegete the Scriptures. He taught me so much about ministry and life. I am in shock.

Zane didn’t show up Sunday night at the Lord’s Supper meeting held in his office. Robert Calhoun and Mike Lii went to his apartment and found him. They think he died on Saturday night or Sunday morning. He was 76.

The funeral is set for Tuesday December 2nd at 11AM at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas (1808 W Camp Wisdom Rd, Dallas, TX 75232; phone 214.672.9100), Dr. Tony Evans, Pastor. I’ve already heard from people from as far as California, Oregon, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, and Colorado who plan to fly in so that they can be there to honor Zane.

There will be a viewing on Monday night from 7 to 9 PM at Eastgate Funeral Home in Garland TX (1910 Eastgate; phone 972.270.6116).

We have arranged for a block of ten rooms at a highly discounted rate at a very nice hotel in Frisco, Texas. There are still a few rooms left. If you are planning on coming to the funeral and need a hotel, you can email us at faithalone77@yahoo.com. You must do by Friday, however, as these rooms must be held in advance.

Zane was born on June 15th, 1932. He graduated from Wheaton College and then Dallas Theological Seminary. After graduating he was hired to teach Greek at DTS where he taught for 27 years until 1986. Over the last 22 years Zane devoted himself to writing and speaking. He taught for over 45 years at Victor Street Bible Chapel in Dallas. He wrote more than 10 books including The Hungry Inherit, The Gospel Under Siege, Grace in Eclipse, Six Secrets of the Christian Life, Harmony with God, Power to Make War, and stand-alone commentaries on James and 1-3 John. He and Dr. Art Farstad co-edited The Greek New Testament According to the Majority Text.

Zane influenced thousands of pastors and missionaries directly and hundreds of thousands by means of his writings.

Grace Evangelical Society would never have come into existence but for the influence of Zane Hodges on my life. He was on the original GES board and remained on the board for nearly 10 years. The entire 22 years of GES’s existence he has always been there for me and for GES.

Anyone who knew him would say that he was a very godly and gracious man.

Zane never married. His parents, Z.C. and Virginia Hodges, went to be with the Lord in the past decade. His brother David died of a heart attack around 1981.

While we will miss him greatly, we rejoice that he is now with the Lord and with his mom and dad and brother.

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Zane, we will not say goodbye, but see you soon. We will keep on studying hard to show ourselves approved unto God, workmen that need not be ashamed and who rightly divide the Word of Truth.

The Kalam Cosmological Argument: for the existence of God

The Kalam Cosmologial Argument is this: the Universe had a beginning, and that beginning was caused by someone who was a person. The strength in this argument lies in the fact that it keeps the recipient thinking and engaged for he or she must make a decision at each of the three "forks" in the road. If that individual makes the most logical decision at that fork, he or she will end up with the conclusion that a supernatural being - outside of space and time caused the universe to come into being in the beginning of time.
One of the illustrations used today was the "Fast-N-Furious Freddy vs. Ron Race" illustration. If Freddy and Ron engaged in a car race, but Ron's start line went back for an infinite length backwards, he could not even begin the race let alone win the race. The POINT: Infinity cannot be crossed. Therefore, if the past is an infinite amount of time, we could have never reached the present moment. Therefore, the past must be a finite amount of time (i.e. a beginning in time).

The Doctrine of Dispensations

It is nearly impossible to interpret the Bible in it's normal, literal sense without realizing that there are different ages/dispensations. The Doctrine of Dispensations is important because it recognizes the different ways in which God dealt with people since the beginning of time. One key aspect of "Dispensational" theology is the distinction between Israel and the Church. For example, since believers in Jesus Christ fall under the "Church" they no longer have to make animal sacrifices (sin offering) to make atonement for their sins. Church age believers must confess their sins (1 John 1:9) in order to receive forgiveness. There is a future for Israel, which will come at the millennial kingdom, which Christ will establish after the 7 year tribulation period is finished. All in all, the doctrine of dispensations refers to the dividing of ages since from the beginning of time to the eternal state in the future.

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The Doctrine of the Church

What is the Church according to the New Testament?  The Greek word for Church is ecclessia, which literally means a group of called out individuals.  Christ has called out believers to follow him and to gather together to build up, equip and train others for kingdom advancement.

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The Doctrine of Discipleship

The Doctrine of Discipleship explained in 10 minutes.

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What is a Christian? (expanded)

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Introduction
An estimated 2.1 billion, or approximately 33% of the people in the World as of 2008¬ claim to be “Christian.” The majority of these individuals believe to be “Christian” on Biblical grounds. Interestingly, the word, “Christian” only appears three times in all of Scripture and it is never defined.

1) The Disciples (followers) were first called “Christians” at Antioch (Acts 11:26)
2) King Agrippa felt that Paul was persuading him to become a “Christian” (associated with following Christ) (Acts 26:28).
3) The Apostle Peter encourages his readers to persevere and praise God for bearing the title of “Christian” despite their suffering (1 Peter 4:16).

It is hard to believe that 33% of the Worlds population would call themselves “Christian” having never though of whether or not a clear-cut Biblical definition exists. What's more, many people worldwide are eager to hold “Christian” functions in hopes of spreading the message of “Christianity.” Likewise, most of these rallies are calling people to become “Christians” without offering a clear definition of clarification of what the term means according to the Scriptures. And the result is confusion and the production of sincere yet curious and confused people.

In reality, a clash over the meaning of the “Christian” and the means by which a person attains “Christian” status has triggered one of the most mind-boggling concepts; namely, what it means to be a Christian and/or how a person can become a Christian.

An appropriate title would be “Brothers in Christ”(100+) or “Believer”(25+) simply because those terms are Scripturally more common and less ambiguous. Some Free-Grace theologians make a distinction between a "Christian" and a "Disciple", but the terms seem to be referring to the same people. For example, the Disciples (Acts 11:26) suffered persecution for believing in and following Christ (1 Peter 4:16). Moreover, the title “Christian” seemed to be downright derogatory (Acts 26:28).

There is nothing wrong with calling oneself a "Christian" so long as we know what it means and the contexts of the passages in which it is used. There is a problem with those of us who have been using the term out of context and without having considered where it even came from. All doctrine should be examined alongside the text of Scripture interpreted in its proper context. The next time somebody tells you they are a “Christian” you might want to ask with gentleness and respect to explain exactly what they mean.

The Texts
Utilizing the CHECK D.I.S.C. hermeneutic will enable a contextual conclusion on the basis of observations.

Acts 11:26
Discover the Context: Peter is explaining the Church in Antioch to the circumcised believers in Jerusalem. He is explaining the ministry of Barnabas and Saul as they met with the church and taught great numbers of people (v25) ending with the words, “the Disciples were first called Christians at Antioch.”
Identify Key Verbs: first called
Subject: When were the Disciples first called Christians?
Complement: The Disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

Acts 26:28
Discover the Context: Paul is giving his testimony before an audience with King Agrippa, high-ranking officers and the leading men of the city (v1). Festus calls him insane (v24) and when Paul makes a great point about fulfilled prophecies, the King (possible out of conviction) stops him and asks him if he is trying to persuade him to be a Christian.
Identify Key Verbs: think, persuade, to be
Subject: How does the King respond to Paul’s point about the fulfilled prophecies about
Christ?
Complement: The King responds to Paul’s point about fulfilled prophecies about Christ by asking the question, “Do you think in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”

1 Peter 4:16
Discover the Context: From verse 12 to 19, 8 references are made to suffering for being associated with Christ.
Identify Key Verbs: do not be ashamed, praise God,
Subject: What is Peter’s advice for his believer friends that are suffering for being
followers of Christ?
Complement: Peter’s advice for his believer friends that are suffering for being followers of
Christ is to not be ashamed to be a Christian, but to praise God for bearing that name.

Conclusion
The three texts above make no clear cut definition of what a “Christian” is; rather, they all point to the notion that a Christian is a follower of Christ who often encounters suffering some kind of pain or ridicule due to their allegiance to the person of Christ. The term Christian was and is a synonym for Disciple, which basically means follower. Since not all followers (disciples) of Christ were believers, it is safe to say that not all Christians were believers. There were curious followers, convinced yet coward followers and also convinced and committed followers. Although these three occurrences are examples of Christians who were believers in Christ, that does not warrant a permanent connection with the word Christian and believer.