Tactics

I have had a good deal of respect for Greg Koukl for a long time. While I don’t always agree with his position on various theological issues, I have always been amazed at his ability to handle thorny apologetics questions. People raise objections in ways that makes it incredibly difficult to answer truthfully without looking ignorant, bigoted, arrogant, or mean. But time and again Mr. Koukl answers in a way that avoids these traps without compromising the truth. I have sought to learn from him through the years, and I’ve been told that I’ve picked up his skill at least in some measure.

Well this week I did something I’ve wanted to do for a while now. I pulled his book, Tactics, off my shelf and read through it. It was time very well spent, even though I had picked up a lot of the material from other resources of his that I have read or listened to. This book is very well written, well organized, and brimming over with some of the most important information you should know for engaging those who disagree with you.

You might think, “Oh that’s apologetics. I don’t get into that fancy stuff.” But if you ever engage anyone about the gospel of Jesus Christ, you will without a doubt engage in conversations where this material will be a great aid in making sure the person you are speaking to hears and understands what you are saying. And every follower of Christ should be engaging in such conversations. If you only ever read one book on apologetics, this should be it. If you don’t want to read any book on apologetics, you should still read it anyway. It’s just that good.

Romans 8:10, 11

Romans 8
 10 If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
 (NAS95)

In seeking to properly interpret the Scriptures, it always troubles me when I come to conclusions that are not supported by the commentators that I typically turn to. As I contemplated Romans 8:10, 11 in light of their context, I began frantically looking through my commentaries with increasing concern. Then I picked up Calvin, and breathed a sigh of relief. At least one other person saw it the way I did, and Calvin is no lightweight. But as I continued my search, not a single one of the other 19 commentaries on my shelf agreed with Calvin. More than that, almost none of them interacted with Calvin’s interpretation, in spite of the fact that 18 of the 19 were written after Calvin. I would love to see someone tackle this interpretation head on, because I find it very persuasive, and I would love to see if it can take a beating from a well trained critic. Below are Calvin’s relevant comments for your consideration and edification.

 10 And if Christ is in you. Paul now applies his previous remarks concerning the Spirit to Christ, in order to signify the manner of Christ’s dwelling in us. For as by the Spirit He consecrates us as temples to Himself, so by the same Spirit He dwells in us. He now explains more distinctly what we have already alluded to, that the sons of God are not reckoned spiritual, on the ground of a full and entire perfection, but only on account of the newness of life which has begun in them. He here anticipates a doubt, which might otherwise have caused us uneasiness; for although the Spirit possesses part of us, yet we see another part still being held by death. He therefore gives the answer that the power of quickening exists in the Spirit of Christ, which is able to absorb our mortality. He concludes from this that we must wait with patience until the remains of sin are entirely abolished.
  Readers have already been reminded that the word Spirit does not mean the soul, but the Spirit of regeneration. Paul calls this Spirit of regeneration life, not only because He lives and flourishes in us, but also because He quickens us by His power, until He destroys our mortal flesh and at last renews us perfectly. So, on the other hand, the word body signifies the more stolid mass as yet unpurified by the Spirit of God from earthly defilements, which delight only in what is gross. It would be absurd otherwise to ascribe to the body the blame for sin. Again, the soul is so far from being life, that it does not even of itself have life. Paul’s meaning, therefore, is that, although sin condemns us to death in so far as the corruption of our first nature still remains in us, yet the Spirit of God is victorious. It is no obstacle that only the first-fruits have been bestowed on us, for even one spark of the Spirit is the seed of life.
 11 By mortal bodies he means all in us that still remains subject to death. Paul’s general practice is to apply this name to the grosser part of us. We conclude from this that he is not speaking of the last resurrection, which will take place in a moment, but of the continual operation of the Spirit, by which He gradually mortifies the remains of the flesh and renews in us the heavenly life.
(Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries, Vol. 8, Translated by Ross Mackenzie, 1960, p165-166)

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator

Chapter 8
Of Christ the Mediator

1. It pleased God, in his eternal purpose, to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus, his only begotten Son, according to the covenant made between them both, to be the mediator between God and man; the Prophet, Priest, and King; Head and Savior of his[1] church, the heir of all things, and judge of the world; unto whom he did from all eternity give a people to be his seed and to be by him in time redeemed, called, justified, sanctified, and glorified.

2. The Son of God, the second person in the Holy Trinity, being very and eternal God, the brightness of the Father’s glory, of one substance and equal with him: who[2] made the world, who upholdeth and governeth all things he hath made, did, when the fullness of time was come[3], take upon[4] him man’s nature, with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof[5], yet without sin; being conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Spirit[6] coming down upon her, and the power of the Most High overshadowing her; and so was made of a woman of the tribe of Judah, of the seed of Abraham and David according to the Scriptures; so that two whole, perfect, and distinct natures were inseparably joined together in one person, without conversion, composition, or confusion; which person is very God and very man, yet one Christ, the only mediator between God and man.

3. The Lord Jesus, in his human nature thus united to the divine, in the person of the Son, was sanctified and[7] anointed with the Holy Spirit above measure, having in him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge; in whom it pleased the Father that all fullness should dwell, to the end that being holy, harmless, undefiled, and full of grace and truth, he might be thoroughly furnished to execute the office of a[8] mediator and surety; which office he took not upon himself, but was thereunto called by his Father; who also put all power and judgment in his hand, and gave him commandment to execute the same.

4. This office the Lord Jesus did most willingly undertake, which that he might discharge he was made under the law, and did perfectly fulfill it, and underwent the punishment due to us, which we should have borne and suffered, being made sin and a curse for us; enduring most grievous sorrows in his soul, and most painful sufferings in his body; was crucified, and died, and remained in the state of the dead, yet saw no corruption: on the third day he arose from the dead with the same body in which he suffered, with which he also ascended into heaven, and there sitteth at the right hand of his Father making intercession, and shall return to judge men and angels at the end of the world.

5. The Lord Jesus, by his perfect obedience and sacrifice of himself, which he through the eternal Spirit once offered up unto God, hath fully satisfied the justice of God, procured reconciliation, and purchased an everlasting inheritance in the kingdom of heaven for all those whom the Father hath given unto him.

6. Although the price of redemption was not actually paid by Christ till after his incarnation, yet the virtue, efficacy, and benefit thereof were communicated to the elect in all ages, successively from the beginning of the world, in and by those promises, types, and sacrifices wherein he was revealed, and signified to be the seed of the woman[9] which should bruise the serpent’s head; and the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, being the same yesterday, and today, and forever.

7. Christ, in the work of mediation, acteth according to both natures, by each nature doing that which is proper to itself; yet by reason of the unity of the person, that which is proper to one nature is sometimes in Scripture attributed to the person denominated by the other nature.

8. To all those for whom Christ hath obtained eternal redemption, he doth certainly and effectually apply and communicate the same, making intercession for them; uniting them to himself by his Spirit, revealing unto them, in and by the[10] Word, the mystery of salvation; persuading them to believe and obey, governing their hearts by his Word and Spirit, and overcoming all their enemies by his almighty power and wisdom, in such manner and ways as are most consonant to his wonderful and unsearchable dispensation; and all of free and absolute grace, without any condition foreseen in them to procure it.

9. This office of mediator between God and man is proper only to Christ, who is the Prophet, Priest, and King of the church of God; and may not be either in whole, or any part thereof, transferred from him to any other.

10. This number and order of offices is necessary; for in respect of our ignorance, we stand in need of his prophetical office; and in respect of our alienation from God, and imperfection of the best of our services, we need his priestly office to reconcile us and present us acceptable unto God; and in respect of[11] our averseness and utter inability to return to God, and for our rescue and security from our spiritual adversaries, we need his kingly office to convince, subdue, draw, uphold, deliver, and preserve us to his heavenly kingdom.

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[1] the ME1, ME3, PB

[2] him; who HEB; him, who DLE; him who ME1, ME3, PB, PRS, TH

[3] complete PB

[4] unto 1677, BCFA, TC, TH

[5] of it PB

[6] omit “in the womb of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Spirit” HEB, PRS

[7] omit “and” BCFL, BCFM

[8] omit “a” DLE, ME1, ME3, PB

[9] omit “of the woman” HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS

[10] his ME1, ME3, PB

[11] o 1677, BCFA; to ME1, ME3, PB

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 7: Of God’s Covenant

Chapter 7
Of God’s Covenant

1. The distance between God and the creature is so great, that although reasonable creatures do owe obedience unto him as their Creator, yet they could never have attained the reward of life but by some voluntary condescension on God’s part, which he hath been pleased to express by way of covenant.

2. Moreover, man having brought himself under the curse of the law by his fall, it pleased the Lord to make a covenant of grace, wherein he freely offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ, requiring of them faith in him, that they may be saved; and promising to give unto all those that are ordained unto eternal life, his Holy Spirit, to make them willing and able to believe.

3. This covenant is revealed in the gospel; first of all to Adam in the promise of salvation by the seed of the woman, and afterwards by further steps, until the full discovery thereof was completed in the New Testament; and it is founded in that eternal covenant transaction that was between the Father and the Son, about the redemption of the elect; and it is alone by the grace of this covenant that all of[1] the posterity of fallen Adam that ever were saved did obtain life and a[2] blessed immortality, man being now utterly incapable of acceptance with God upon those terms on which Adam stood in his state of innocency[3].

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[1] omit “of” DLE, ME1, ME3, PB

[2] omit “a” DLE, HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS

[3] innocence COF

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment Thereof

Chapter 6
Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment Thereof

1. Although God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof, yet he did not long abide in this honor; Satan using the subtlety of the serpent to seduce[1] Eve, then by her seducing Adam, who, without any compulsion, did willfully transgress the law of their creation, and the command given unto them, in eating the forbidden fruit, which God was pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel to permit, having purposed to order it to his own glory.

2. Our first parents, by this sin, fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them, whereby death came upon all; all becoming dead in sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body.

3. They being the root, and by God’s appointment, standing in the room and stead of all mankind, the guilt of the sin was imputed, and corrupted nature conveyed, to all[2] their posterity descending from them by ordinary generation, being now conceived in sin, and by nature children of wrath, the servants of sin, the subjects of death, and all other miseries, spiritual, temporal, and eternal, unless the Lord Jesus set them free.

4. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil, do proceed all actual transgressions.

5. This[3] corruption of nature, during this life, doth remain in those that are regenerated; and although it be through Christ pardoned and mortified, yet both itself, and the first motions thereof, are truly and properly sin.

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[1] subdue HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS

[2] omit “all” ME1, ME3

[3] The BCFA, DLE, HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence

Chapter 5
Of Divine Providence

1. God the good Creator of all things, in his infinite power and wisdom doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things, from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, to the end for the which they were created, according unto his infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of his own will; to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, infinite goodness, and mercy.

2. Although in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the first cause, all things come to pass immutably and infallibly; so that there is not anything befalls any by chance, or without his providence; yet by the same providence he ordereth[1] them to fall out, according to the nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently.

3. God, in his ordinary providence maketh use of means, yet is free to work without, above, and against them at his pleasure.

4. The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in his providence, that his determinate counsel extendeth itself even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions both of angels and men (and that not by a bare permission),[2] which also he most wisely and powerfully boundeth[3], and otherwise ordereth and governeth, in a manifold dispensation to his most holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness of their acts proceedeth only from the creatures, and not from God, who, being most holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.

5. The most wise, righteous, and gracious God doth oftentimes leave for a season his own children to manifold temptations and the corruptions of their own heart[4], to chastise them for their former sins, or to discover unto them the hidden strength of corruption and deceitfulness of their hearts, that they may be humbled; and to raise them to a more close and constant dependence for their support upon himself; and to make them more watchful against all future occasions of sin, and for other just and holy ends.

     So that whatsoever befalls any of his elect is by his appointment, for his glory, and their good.

6. As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God, as a[5] righteous judge, for former sin doth blind and harden; from them he not only withholdeth his grace, whereby they might have been enlightened in their understanding, and wrought upon in[6] their hearts; but sometimes also withdraweth the gifts which they had, and exposeth them to such objects as their corruptions[7] makes[8] occasion of sin; and withal, gives them over to their own lusts, the temptations of the world, and the power of Satan, whereby it comes to pass that they harden themselves, even[9] under those means which God useth for the softening of others.

7. As the providence of God doth in general reach to all creatures, so after a most[10] special manner it taketh care of his church, and disposeth of all things to the good thereof.

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[1] ordered PB

[2] omit parentheses COF, DLE, HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS, TH (It is this editor’s opinion that the antecedent of the word “which” that immediately follows is “sinful actions” in the previous clause, not “permission”)

[3] binds PB

[4] hearts DLE, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS, TH

[5] the DLE, ME1, PB

[6] omit “in” DLE, ME1, PB

[7] corruption DLE, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS, TH

[8] make COF

[9] omit “even” HEB, ME1, ME3, PB, PRS

[10] more 1688, COF, HEB, ME1, PB, PRS

The Proper Solution to Our Own Theological Biases

I have recently finished reading Exegetical Fallacies by D.A. Carson. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is concerned to interpret the Bible correctly (which should be everyone). I wanted to share one particular section that I thought was very well stated and vitally important for the church today. I must admit that my own upbringing in the so called “Church of Christ” makes this statement really stand out to me. After warning of the danger of reading our own theology into the Bible (when in fact the Bible is saying no such thing), he points out that a very common “solution” to this problem is no solution at all, but simply aggravates the problem.

But if we sometimes read our own theology into the text, the solution is not to retreat to an attempted neutrality, to try to make one’s mind a tabula rasa so we may listen to the text without bias. It cannot be done, and it is a fallacy to think it can be. We must rather discern what our prejudices are and make allowances for them; and meanwhile we should learn all the historical theology we can. One well-known seminary insists that proper exegetical method will guarantee such a high quality of exegesis that historical theology may be safely ignored. I can think of no better way of cultivating the soil that sprouts either heresy or the shallowest sort of traditionalism. (p129)

This is exactly what I have seen in the Campbellite movement known as “The Church of Christ.” Over and over again they would insist that they just follow the Bible, while all those “denominations” out there follow the traditions of men. But to quote (from memory, so I hope I am not misrepresenting him) James White, “Those who are the most enslaved to their traditions are those who think that they don’t have any.” The so called “Church of Christ” is rife with heresy, and this issue is a major contributing factor.

But even in churches that are theologically sound, this mentality is far too common. I am concerned that many may be teetering on the edge of the truth, and only a little nudge would send them plummeting down into the chasm of error. Sola Scriptura is a vitally important doctrine, but if you think that Sola Scriptura means that you should ignore historical theology and assume that you have no theological presuppositions when you come to the text of Scripture, you are in a very dangerous place.

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 4: Of Creation

Chapter 4
Of Creation

1. In the beginning it pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness, to create or make the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all very good.

2. After God had made all other creatures, he created man, male and female, with reasonable and immortal souls, rendering them fit unto that life to God for which they were created; being made after the image of God, in knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness; having the law of God written in their hearts, and power to fulfill it; and yet under a possibility of transgressing, being left to the liberty of their own will, which was subject to change.

3. Besides the law written in their hearts, they received a command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which whilst they kept, they were happy in their communion with God, and had dominion over the creatures.

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree

Chapter 3
Of God’s Decree

1. God hath decreed in himself, from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably[1], all things, whatsoever comes to pass; yet so as thereby is God neither the author of sin nor hath fellowship with any therein; nor is violence offered to the will of the creature, nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established; in which appears his wisdom in disposing all things, and power and faithfulness in accomplishing his decree.

2. Although God knoweth whatsoever may or can come to pass, upon all supposed conditions, yet hath he not decreed anything, because he foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to pass upon such conditions.

3. By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated, or foreordained to eternal life through Jesus Christ, to the praise of his glorious grace; others being left to act in their sin to their just condemnation, to the praise of his glorious justice.

4. These angels and men thus predestinated and foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed, and their number so certain and definite, that it cannot be either increased or diminished.

5. Those of mankind that are predestinated to life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in Christ unto everlasting glory, out of his mere free grace and love, without any other thing in the creature as a condition or cause moving him thereunto.

6. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so he hath, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained all the means thereunto; wherefore they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ, by his Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by his power through faith unto salvation; neither are any other redeemed by Christ, or effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only.

7. The doctrine of this[2] high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special prudence and care; that men attending the will of God revealed in his Word, and yielding obedience thereunto, may, from the certainty of their effectual vocation, be assured of their eternal election; so shall this doctrine afford matter of praise, reverence, and admiration of God, and of humility, diligence, and abundant consolation to all that sincerely obey the gospel.

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[1] unchangeable HEB

[2] the ME1, ME3, PB

~The 1689 Confession Proofing Project~ Chapter 2: Of God and of the Holy Trinity

Chapter 2
Of God and of the Holy Trinity

1. The Lord our God is but one only living and true God; whose subsistence is in and of himself, infinite in being and perfection; whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but himself; a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions, who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; who is immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, every way infinite, most holy, most wise, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will for his own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek him, and withal most just and terrible in his judgments, hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty.

2. God, having all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself, is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creature which he hath made, nor deriving any glory from them, but only manifesting his own glory in, by, unto, and upon them; he is the alone fountain of all being, of whom, through whom, and to whom are all things, and he hath most sovereign dominion over all creatures, to do by them, for them, or[1] upon them, whatsoever himself pleaseth; in his sight all things are open and manifest, his knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature, so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain; he is most holy in all his counsels, in all his works, and in all his commands; to him is due from angels and men, whatsoever worship, service, or obedience, as creatures they owe unto the Creator, and whatever he is further pleased to require of them.

3. In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences, the Father, the Word (or Son), and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided: the Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son; all infinite, without beginning, therefore but one God, who is not to be divided in nature and being, but distinguished by several peculiar relative properties and personal relations; which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God, and comfortable dependence on him.

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[1] and BCFL, BCFM