As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
Reprinted with permission from Faith Pulpit (Oct-Dec, 2010).
New Covenant Theology (NCT) is a rather new theological movement.1 Its proponents come from the local church rather than academia, and the majority of its adherents are found within the local church. Its proponents include Tom Wells, Fred Zaspel, John Reisinger, and Steve Lehrer.
“My recent post charging KJV defenders with sin because they 1) repeated the claim that the NKJV includes critical text readings and yet 2) never produced any evidence for that claim—that post has been answered by someone holding a minority viewpoint.” - Mark Ward
Read the series.
Some object to the exegetical and theological conclusions above. On the basis of texts like Psalm 115:3, they argue that God’s desires must be coterminous with God’s decrees. That is, all that God desires he must decree. Or, all that God decrees exhausts all that God may desire. Accordingly, they impose one or more of the following limitations on the text.
Unlike you and me, God has both the power and prerogative to bring all his desires to fruition. “Our God is in the heavens,” declares the psalmist, “he does all that he pleases” (Ps. 115:3). Nevertheless, the Sovereign God of all creation has not chosen to fulfill every one of his wishes he has disclosed to us.
“One of Hillsong United’s original band members, Marty Sampson, has announced he is no longer a Christian…. he mentions preachers falling, the dearth of miracles we see happen, the Bible being full of contradictions, and the seeming dissonance between an unconditionally loving God who sends people to eternal damnation.” - Church Leaders
Acts 2:38 is a favorite among those who believe you must be baptized to be saved…. thought it might be helpful to give a few outstanding quotes on Acts 2:38 from various authors. - Quotes on Acts 2:38, Baptism, Salvation
With Matthew 5:21-48 Jesus quoted the OT seven times. Six of these involve an OT command from the Law of Moses followed by the statement “But I say to you …” A seventh concerns a statement that Jerusalem is “the city of the great King,” a reference to Psalm 48:2 in Matthew 5:35. This latter example, from Psalm 48:2, is a contextual affirmation of the significance of Jerusalem. Our attention, though, focuses on the other six uses of the OT. These reveal how Jesus viewed himself in relation to the Law of Moses.
An Example of What You Can Get out of a Self-Helpy Book When You Must - Mark Ward
On the last week of His incarnate life, Jesus spent a lot of time in the temple. On one occasion, He taught a bit about His identity. Who is the Messiah? Is He just a guy descended from David (Mk 12:35)? He quoted Psalm 110:1, then asked:
David himself calls him Lord. So how is he his son?” And the great throng heard him gladly (Mk 12:36-37).
“Seemingly out of nowhere, the expression ‘giants on the earth’ crops up in Genesis 6:4. Who were these giants? Where did they come from? Interpreters have debated their identity for nearly two thousand years.” - AiG
Discussion