Doctrine

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost

Posted by on Nov 24, 2009 in Godhead, Salvation

Jesus gave us a command in the Great Commission to spread His gospel and to baptize. Most have misunderstood His command. Let’s examine the command of baptism in the Great Commission and compare scripture for a clearer understanding.

The command is to baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

Matthew 28:18-20  18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen

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Logos

Posted by on Nov 21, 2009 in Godhead

The New Testament describes an aspect of God known as the Word, or in Greek the Logos. Some would say that the Logos is a person within the Godhead. Others would describe the Logos as the words of God- His speech. Others, such as those in Greek thought, would describe the Logos as a creative force. Who is the Logos? What do the scriptures say?

John 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

In English, Logos is translated Word. Because of this, many Bible readers see this definition of Logos, Word, as the main aspect of Logos. Writers have described the Logos as the words of God, or His speech (Bernard, p. 60). The Logos is also described as the plan of God. The Logos is described as a play in the mind of a playwright (Bernard, p. 60). I’ve heard the description “My word’s with me”. This makes the Logos a philosophical idea. My words are not me. My plans are not me. My thoughts are not me. They come from me. I formulate them based on my own ideas and understandings, but no one can say they’ve met me just by reading my writings. I do believe these descriptions are partially describing the Logos, but as we’ll see from scripture, the Logos is much more than this.

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Let Us Make Man

Posted by on Nov 18, 2009 in Godhead

In thousands of verses in scripture, singular pronouns are used in reference to God. In four verses, a plural pronoun is used. Why? Is this a contradiction? Why would God speak in the singular so often and then suddenly speak in the plural? Let’s look at Genesis 1:26-27 and see who God is referring to when He said ‘Let Us’.

Genesis 1:26-27  26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.  27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Notice that after God said the phrases ‘Let us’, ‘our image’, and ‘our likeness’, the next verse says ‘his own image’, ‘he him’, and ‘he them’. The very next verse uses singular pronouns.

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Elohim

Posted by on Nov 16, 2009 in Godhead

We see the word Elohim in the very first verse of scripture:

Genesis 1:1  In the beginning God (Elohim) created the heaven and the earth

The Hebrew word for God, Elohim is the plural form of Eloah and it is used in the Old Testament more than any other word for God. The plural ending –im has caused many to conclude that God is a plurality of persons, or even multiple deities (polytheism – belief in more than one God). In this study we will look at the word Elohim and see how it is used in scripture and see why it is plural.

How does the Hebrew language use plural words?

In the Hebrew language, there are many words that are plural but have a singular connotation. Here are a few examples (Graves, p. 28).

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The End Time – An Overview

Posted by on Nov 15, 2009 in Prophecy

The scriptures not only tell us how this world began, they also tell us how it will end. The events in the end times are full of political drama and universal destruction and catastrophes like the world has never known. The scriptures tell us in prophetic detail what to expect next.

The Rapture

The next event in prophecy is the rapture of the Church, called in scripture the catching away of the saints.

Titus 2:13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

At the rapture the dead in Christ will be resurrected and the living saints will be transformed, both receiving immortal, glorified bodies (Doctrines of the Bible, p. 282).

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Heaven and Hell

Posted by on Nov 14, 2009 in Eternity

We will all spend eternity somewhere, and we only have two choices: heaven or hell. The scriptures tell us that everyone will live forever in either heaven or hell, with God or with the devil, in paradise or in torment. The choice is ours.

When we die, our body is laid down into its final resting place. Our soul and spirit is no longer there, because death is the separation of the soul and spirit from the body. Our soul also goes to a resting place – awaiting the final judgment. The soul of a person that is righteous goes to a place of rest. The soul of the sinner goes to a place of punishment.

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