Continued from last time on Colossians 1:15b There is a great deal which might be said about the term “firstborn.” Primarily of course it concerns right of inheritance and prominence among brethren. As the examples of Isaac and Jacob and Judah and Solomon show, the first to be born is not the main idea in “firstborn” (prototokos). The primary idea involves status, not physical birth. Notice how this is true in Psalm 89:27, ” I also shall make him My …
Category: Covenants
Introduction To The Series There are all sorts of places one can launch out from when writing about the grand scheme of things in the Bible. Certain passages are just packed with theology! This has been seen and utilized by many writers down through the ages. From John Calvin to John Stott men have built solid arguments from expounding a few verses and establishing connections with the Biblical worldview. For all his faults Karl Barth is often a master at …
This post will summarize the main points I would wish to make about how best to understand the seeming tension between Paul’s teaching about the “Seed” in his discussion of faith in Galatians 3. I believe if we are not going to turn much of the testimony of Scripture on its head we should not go down the road suggested by Grover Gunn in his explanation of the passage and his inferences based thereon. In disagreeing with Gunn I am …
So far we have seen that there is something in the contention that the Apostle Paul does have in mind the covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; promises which include the land given to the nation of Israel, in his theology of the Seed (singular) in Galatians 3. But what is that “something”? Gunn, along with supercessionists generally, believes that because the Genesis passages cited or alluded to by Paul include the land-promise, that the Church – the “New …
I’m going out of town again for a few days, and, what with Christmas and everything, I don’t expect to be posting much till the New Year. I wanted to finish this topic off with this post, but I’ve actually become a little engrossed in it, so expect at least one more effort. Part One here Grover Gunn is sure that Paul is quoting Genesis 13:15-17 and 17:8, 10 from the Septuagint to make his argument in Galatians 3:16. There …
One of my readers (Justin) wrote to ask me if I might say a few things about this post by former Dispensationalist Grover Gunn. I don’t have time or inclination to respond to the whole paper, but I shall at least try to address Justin’s specific problem. Before commenting let me reproduce Justin’s question: The Question: “Hello Paul. Thanks indeed for this. I have a question relating to this. I’m sorry the text I’ve copied below is long. Perhaps when …
At the close of the last post I wrote: I do not know of any Christian who thinks that God will renege on the Noahic Covenant (cf. Isa. 54:9-10). As far as this covenant at least is concerned, no spiritualizing, no symbolic hermeneutics, no typologizing or allegorizing is allowed to derail the literal meaning of God’s covenant promise. What God says is what God means! As I continue with this fourth personal rule I want to build on that crucial …
Disingenuousness and the Problem of the Obvious Disingenuousness and “Expansion” Language A Disingenuous God? (1) A Disingenuous God? (2) A Disingenuous God (3) Do We Need The New Testament To Understand The Old? Review Hitherto in this set of posts I have called our attention to several issues tied together with the word “disingenuous.” To be disingenuous is to lack candor or sincerity. To be less than forthcoming. I have applied this term to those who, for whatever reason, will …
Disingenuousness and the Problem of the Obvious Disingenuousness and “Expansion” Language A Disingenuous God? (1) A Disingenuous God? (2) I said at the end of the last post that we would be thinking about what God thinks of those who enter into covenants and fail to perform the words of those covenants. But I find am going to put that subject off until next time, until I am satisfied that I have driven home my point about the disingenuous god …
Previous Posts: Here, Here, and Here. I’ve mentioned analogies in this series, so let me give one of my own. Suppose someone made you a promise concerning something of great importance to you. This person then went a step further and, to show his intent to make good his promise, entered in to some solemn ritual involving a self-maledictory oath. You could surely trust the promise right? But wait. Suppose you knew that this same individual had made many promises …
