Tertullian, Montanism and the Sufficiency of Scripture

Tertullian is an interesting figure in the history of the early Church. He laid the groundwork for several Christian doctrines that are heartily affirmed by the Christians including the primacy of Scriptural authority, perspicuity of Scripture and the principle of Scripture interpreting itself. He wrote several works defending Biblical theology against the various gnostic and heretical movements that were popular in his days. He is the first writer to use the phrase Trinitas (Trinity) to refer to the Godhead. Some of his doctrinal positions were recovered in the Protestant Reformation like the priesthood of all believers and a rejection of icons in worship. Regardless, Tertullian is not officially considered a saint by any of the mainstream apostate denominations like Roman Catholicism or Eastern Orthodoxy despite their tendency to claim the early church fathers for themselves. Nor, are his works widely read among Protestants. Tertullian is often relegated to the status of a secondary or subordinate among the church fathers.

The Inauguration of Christ’s Kingdom

Let us use some of these Apostolic methods of interpreting Biblical prophecy to understand when Christ’s Kingdom began. If we understand when this Kingdom of God was inaugurated we can devote ourselves to studying  Christ Himself as the substance of Scriptures and how that ought to affect our lives. Placing the inauguration of Christ’s kingdom is critical to understanding where we are today and where we are headed. Is the Kingdom of God a future event? Or is it something that has already been inaugurated?

How did Christ and the Apostles Understand Old Testament Prophecy?

We have seen the Redemptive Kingdom develop in various stages in the Old Testament. We have also seen some key narratives that have always been part of this Kingdom structure. Now it is time to start connecting the dots to see how those narratives develop towards God’s Kingdom’s in the New Covenant. Before we can get there though, we need to consider some basics in understanding Biblical prophecy. This will help us understand prophetic literature through the lens of Scripture itself. We need to understand Biblical prophecy as the authors of the New Testament did.

Revelation 21 and Continuity of Cultural Works: A Refutation and Historic Survey

The theology of Abraham Kuyper and other Dutch theologians has made significant inroads into the English-Speaking world in the last century. Kuyperian thought is popular across a wide range of views in the Dominionist spectrum, from Theonomists to Soft-Dominionists because of the popularity gained by Neo-Calvinism. The theology is primarily appealing in the affluent West because of its emphasis on cultural advancement, vocation and politics. Unsurprisingly, Kuyperianism doesn't have much of a foothold outside the region popularly called "Christendom". Many have accepted Kuyperian theological terminology like "Common-Grace" (a misnomer for Providence) without second thought, not considering that these views and terms don't predate the Dispensational innovation. It is in light of this that it is pertinent to confront a popular doctrine that has become popular in the Churches that flows out of Dutch Calvinism, the doctrine of continuity of culture and its achievements into the age to come.

John the Baptist, Political Activism and Military Service

I ran across a post on a popular Dominionist satire page that used John the Baptist's confrontation of Herod as an illustration to shame what the author probably thinks is Two-Kingdom Theology. Such thinking seems to prevalent in Evangelical circles in general wherein it is taught that John's actions are a call to New Covenant Christians to engage in political activism or that John's injunctions to soldiers to be just and content is an endorsement of military service for Christians. Such readings show the importance of reading the Word of God in its context and its specific application. These are preconceived notions that are already widely held in the politically charged Christianity in the West, for which they turn to find Biblical justification, willing at times to ignore the covenantal context of Scripture.

Postmillennial Eisegesis of the Great Multitude of Revelation 7

I can't recall how many times I've had Postmillenials quote this verse to me to justify a massive conversion of mankind to Christianity, a time when all those passages concerning persecution and being a remnant will become a thing of the past, prior to the Parousia of our Lord! In reading select Apocalyptic and Prophetic texts in this manner, the Postmillenial commits the same error of the Dispensationalist, and reads such Literature with a literalist rather than a spiritualist hermeneutic. The presumption made is that "which no man could number" indicates a number in the billions or even more, or as some claim, the elect in history outnumber the reprobate.

A simple survey of the Biblical usage of such terminology, however, would indicate that the Postmillenial conveniently uses a literalist hermeneutic for this Text while ignoring the figurative usage of such terms in the breadth of Scripture. Lets consider the census in Numbers for instance.

On Limited Atonement

1    Introduction Limited Atonement is possibly the most hated doctrine of reformed theology, however the purpose of this article is to show you the reader that Limited Atonement is a very Scriptural and orthodox doctrine of the Christian faith. There are three major views in the Christendom today – The Universalist view – All men …