Category: Essays
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Wesleyan – Ordo Salutis (Order of Salvation)
Wesleyan Ordo Salutis Creation, Justification, Regeneration, and Assurance Rev. Kendell Linh Healy Properly understood, the Wesleyan ordo salutis begins with God’s sovereign act of creation ex nihilo. Notably, for John Wesley, the world was “freely” created out of God’s eternal attribute of holy love. Significantly, God’s freedom to create infers that the creation did not come about by happenstance […]
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Theology of Congregational Worship
How Christians understand worship directly influences their act of worship. This means that a well-developed theology of worship is essential to the worshiping community of God. The aim of this paper is to present a theology of congregational worship that is Biblical; theological; doxological; liturgical and pastoral for the purpose of leading God’s people into a deeper worship experience with the God of all creation.
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Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes is part of the wisdom literature of the Old Testament Scriptures. Unlike Proverbs, which is written entirely in Hebrew poetry or even the book of Job where the story unfolds through a series of speeches that wrestle with wisdom and the retribution of God – Ecclesiastes has its own unique set of issues that […]
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Philippians 2:12 – With Fear and Trembling
When approaching the apostle Paul through his epistles, it is unquestionable that much of what he wrote poses interpretive issues. Even the Scriptures testify to this matter of interpretation, “As he [Paul] does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to […]
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Arminius – Reforming Reformed Theology
If a person were to enter a Methodist Church today, it is more than likely that many of the congregants would recognize and perhaps know a little bit of information about the founder of the Methodist movement – John Wesley. Additionally, some, but not all, may even be familiar with the names Charles Wesley or […]
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שׁוּב – Shûb – A Hebrew Word Study
Defining the Term According to Brown, Driver & Briggs, the Hebrew term שׁוּב(shûb) is a verb that means “turn back, return.”[1]In the Qal stem, shûb is the simple action of turning back from following something or someone such as God, a belief or a parent’s instruction. Additionally, Shûb can also denote causative action. For example, […]
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Defining Objective Salvation
At the core of Christian theology is the belief in the person and work of Jesus Christ. When referring to the “work of Jesus,” Christians mean the entirety of His life; however, it was His sacrificial death on the cross and His bodily resurrection three days later where everything comes into view. Christians believe that […]
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Defending the Virgin Birth Through Original Sin
Introduction In regard to the person of Jesus Christ, there is more written about His death and resurrection than there is about His birth. Out of the four Gospel accounts, only Matthew and Luke tell the story of how Jesus the Christ entered into His creation. Nevertheless, both Gospel narratives report how a young Jewish […]
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Imago Dei – Three Perspectives from Three States of Humanity
This essay will argue that the imago Dei (Image of God) of Genesis 1:26-27 is foundational in understanding what it means to be a human being and that Jesus Christ is the only One who provides the truest meaning of what it means to be created in His image.
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Pauline Christology in Colossians 1:15-20
This paper will examine Colossians 1:15-20 with the sole purpose of revealing Paul’s high Christological view in order for Christians to develop a proper Christological foundation.
Mustard Seedlings - Matthew 13:31 