For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. – Hebrews 6:13-15 When the God of the universe makes a promise to someone to do something, that promise is as sure as anything can be. It is as sure as God’s unimpeachable character and unstoppable power. …
Blog Posts
Because of the present concerns over the coronavirus and the precautions that must be taken over it, I thought that one thing I could do was post some encouraging meditations for my readers. I’ll try to write two or three of these a week. This first one is a revision of something I wrote previously. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your …
Part Eight Having come to a conclusion about the foremost question in the debate about the range of the New Covenant and its connection to Jesus Christ, I want to spread out before the reader my reasons for identifying Him with the NC. These reasons are roughly, exegetical, theological, and devotional. I see no need to go back over the arguments for Luke 22, 1 Corinthians 11, 2 Corinthians 3, and the the Book of Hebrews (although I shall look into …
Part Seven So we turn to the last two options in Vlach’s list: The New Covenant will be fulfilled with Israel but the church is an added referent to the New Covenant promises so there is a sense in which the New Covenant is being fulfilled with the church. The New Covenant has two referents—Israel and the church (some revised dispensationalists; Paul Feinberg) Since the New Covenant was given to Israel for the purpose of also blessing Gentiles there is literal fulfillment of the spiritual blessings …
Part Six Is Christ’s Blood Divided? I want to begin with two more quotes from Beacham. I should say first that I think his article is an excellent presentation of Option 1. On page 22 of his paper he states: The soteriological benefits that Israel experiences at the ratification of the New Covenant are not exclusive either to Israel or to the New Covenant. Many people, throughout human history, have experienced spiritual blessings like those promised to Israel under the …
Part Five Gentiles and Their Connection to the New Covenant What has proven to be a thorny issue for Dispensationalists is the relation of the Church/Gentiles to the New Covenant. Since the only explicit NC text in Jeremiah 31:31-34 (repeated in Hebrews 8) identifies Israel and Judah as parties to the NC with God, the contention is that the Church is associated with the NC in a less direct way, or perhaps not connected at all! This brings us back …
Part Four Putting Some More Passages Together Deuteronomy 30 describes a time when God Himself will convert His people: “If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you. Then the LORD your God will bring you to the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers. And the LORD your God will circumcise …
A review of 40 Questions About Heaven and Hell, by Alan W. Gomes (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2018), 378 pages, softcover. This book sits within a series of “40 Questions” books published by Kregel and edited by Benjamin Merkle. I confess that the other volumes in the series have quite passed me by, although a couple have got my attention. This one would have assuredly been treated to a dose of my ignorance had it not been for the name of …
Part Three Last time we looked at Isaiah 42 and saw that Jesus is being referred to prophetically as a “covenant.” I insert here that when Isaiah 42:6 says “I will give You as a covenant to the people” it is not saying that Christ will be like a covenant; it is not a simile. It is better to read it as as an identification. It is like saying, “This knife can be used as a can-opener” or “I will …
Part Two We all know that sin stops us from inheriting the kind of world God the Creator envisaged for us; a world of peace, joy, righteousness, justice, and glory, not to mention communion with the Lord Himself. God set the world in motion, permitting the Fall and the devastation that it has brought in its wake. He made covenants with man; signposts and promises to the better world that He still intends to bring about: The Noahic covenant establishes …
