by Stephen Rodgers

Garret already did a fantastic job in his treatment of the series, so I have little of substance to add to it.  However, considering that the series took more than a year to complete (he began in November 2009), I thought it might be helpful to create a hub post collecting all the articles.  After all, numerous people have joined our church since then, and they might be unfamiliar with the series (or Garrett for that matter!).  And that doesn’t even begin to include the people who read this online without having visited LBC.  I’m not sure many of them understand what a massive undertaking it was that you set forth to accomplish; perhaps this post will help them see that.

I also wanted to take a brief moment to publicly thank Garrett for all the hard work he did on the series.  He joined the Beacon as a writer at the same time that I joined as the editor, and his faithfulness in producing article after article, week after week, was an enormous benefit and comfort to me personally.  And he consistently did so in a manner that showed he had spent considerable time in reflection not only of Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology, but of Scripture itself.  The icing on the cake was that in the entire time he spent as a writer, he only ever asked for time off once: and that was due to the fact that he was relocating to San Jose to be part of the church plant! I think he crammed relocation, a career change, and possibly his engagement into that time period, and he still came back with more articles two weeks later!

Garrett, it has been an absolute pleasure.  You are a good writer (meaning I almost never changed your words), a discerning thinker (meaning I almost never deleted your words), and a faithful Christian brother (meaning I never failed to learn from your words).

Thank you.

Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology TOC (with corresponding links to Garrett Glende’s Living Theology series)

• Chapter 1: Introduction to Systematic Theology

Part 1: The Doctrine of the Word of God

• Chapter 2: The Word of God
• Chapter 3: The Canon of Scripture
• Chapter 4: The Four Characteristics of Scripture: (1) Authority
• Chapter 5: The Inerrancy of Scripture
• Chapter 6: The Four Characteristics of Scripture: (2) Clarity
• Chapter 7: The Four Characteristics of Scripture: (3) Necessity
• Chapter 8: The Four Characteristics of Scripture: (4) Sufficiency

Part 2: The Doctrine of God

• Chapter 9: The Existence of God
• Chapter 10: The Knowability of God
• Chapter 11: The Character of God – “Incommunicable” Attributes
• Chapter 12: The Character of God – “Communicable” Attributes (Part 1)
• Chapter 13: The Character of God – “Communicable” Attributes (Part 2)
• Chapter 14: God in Three Persons – The Trinity
• Chapter 15: Creation
• Chapter 16: God’s Providence
• Chapter 17: Miracles
• Chapter 18: Prayer
• Chapter 19: Angels
• Chapter 20: Satan and Demons

Part 3: The Doctrine of Man

• Chapter 21: The Creation of Man
• Chapter 22: Man as Male and Female
• Chapter 23: The Essential Nature of Man
• Chapter 24: Sin
• Chapter 25: The Covenants Between God and Man

Part 4: The Doctrines of Christ and the Holy Spirit

• Chapter 26: The Person of Christ
• Chapter 27: The Atonement
• Chapter 28: Resurrection and Ascension
• Chapter 29: The Offices of Christ
• Chapter 30: The Work of the Holy Spirit

Part 5: The Doctrine of the Application of Redemption

• Chapter 31: Common Grace
• Chapter 32: Election and Reprobation
• Chapter 33: The Gospel Call and Effective Calling
• Chapter 34: Regeneration
• Chapter 35: Conversion (Faith and Repentance)
• Chapter 36: Justification (Right Legal Standing Before God)
• Chapter 37: Adoption (Membership in God’s Family)
• Chapter 38: Sanctification (Growth in Likeness to Christ)
• Chapter 39: Baptism and Filling with the Holy Spirit
• Chapter 40: The Perseverance of the Saints (Remaining a Christian)
• Chapter 41: Death and the Intermediate State
• Chapter 42: Glorification (Receiving a Resurrection Body)
• Chapter 43: Union with Christ

Part 6: The Doctrine of the Church

• Chapter 44: The Church – Its Nature, Its Marks, and Its Purposes
• Chapter 45: The Purity and Unity of the Church
• Chapter 46: The Power of the Church
• Chapter 47: Church Government (part 1 and part 2)
• Chapter 48: Means of Grace Within the Church
• Chapter 49: Baptism
• Chapter 50: The Lord’s Supper
• Chapter 51: Worship
• Chapter 52: Gifts of the Holy Spirit (1) – General Questions
• Chapter 53: Gifts of the Holy Spirit (2) – Specific Gifts

Part 7: The Doctrine of the Future

• Chapter 54: The Return of Christ – When and How?
• Chapter 55: The Millennium
• Chapter 56: The Final Judgment and Eternal Punishment
• Chapter 57: The New Heavens and the New Earth
• Conclusion

by Garrett Glende

John Calvin wrote in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, “True and substantial wisdom principally consists of two parts, the knowledge of God and of ourselves.” A.W. Tozer wrote that “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” These are the reasons why I decided to begin this series in the first place. Whether we acknowledge it or not, we are all theologians. We all have ideas about who God is, what He has done, and how He acts. We also believe certain things about ourselves, our nature, and our purpose. There are none who are able to escape that fact that he or she is a theologian. This series was about theology, but theology does not end in our brains, it ends in our actions and in our daily lives. How we live exposes what we really believe. This is why I’ve tried to tie in personal application points at the end of every article. As a wrap up for the series, I think it would be good to share about what I’ve learned from reading Grudem’s book and writing the articles, as well as some thoughts on the importance of theology in general.

One thing that I knew before opening up Systematic Theology was that there would be a few points of disagreement between myself and Grudem and I was interested to see exactly how this would play out, particularly as it related to how I would convey these doctrines through the articles. I had JR’s help with the chapters at the beginning of the book, but once I moved up to San Jose last year, our times together dwindled. So when I came across things that seemed a little off to me, I really had to examine them against what the Bible said. I tried to do this as best I could, but at the same time it was very difficult to disagree with someone who has the type of credentials that Dr. Grudem does. I already held convictions, but I have not even come close to the type of work that he has accomplished. Having said this, I still believe that we both have the same Holy Spirit working in us and illuminating our hearts, thus he is no more capable of understanding truth than I am in that sense. Through this, I learned that learning theology requires humility. It’s neither humble nor honest of me to dismiss another viewpoint without taking the time to consider it.

Through this study I’ve also gained a firmer grasp on the Bible’s teachings and how doctrines are developed. I think it’s very easy to make claims about what you believe, but it’s another issue to defend it from Scripture. Grudem’s work is thoroughly Scriptural and there are many references to Bible passages. This was helpful particularly in the areas of the Old Testament that I was less familiar with. He showed that the Bible has a clear and consistent message about who God is, regardless of the time period. After reading through each chapter and reporting back, I can definitely say that the Bible is clear about what it teaches and that God wants us to know Him for who He really is.

That said, theology would be a worthless study if there is no underlying relationship with God. Many people claim to know God, but perhaps they only know things about God. We cannot mistake knowledge for a relationship. There are probably plenty of atheists out there who know more about the Bible than I do, but it does them little good in the long run, as the truths they encounter in Scripture make no impact on their lives. But Christians are not immune to this either. Every time we open God’s word we are encountered with universal truth. If our eyes gloss over the words, only storing information in our heads and not our hearts, then we have become just like the Atheist. If there is no change in our lives, no outward evidence of God’s word within us, then we must take a step back and ask ourselves what role God is playing in our lives. He is so much more than an interesting topic to study (although He is infinitely interesting). He is our personal Savior and Lord and we have the privilege of knowing Him intimately. If we truly value this relationship, then theology will be immensely important to us, directing our hearts and minds to live in a manner worthy of the gospel. So please don’t make the excuse that theology is only for the “smart people” or for the pastors. No, it is for all of us. And if you’re intimidated by a big book like Grudem’s (which is really quite readable), then start small and work your way up. It’s well worth it, but be sure that what you read becomes what you live.

by Garrett Glende

It’s fitting the last chapter in Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology is also the last chapter of all of history, the New Heaven and New Earth. Many Christians lack interest in Heaven because they don’t really know what to expect when they get there. Most of their theology has been informed by cartoons or jokes and not by the Bible’s teaching. Since it is the place where eternity will be spent for those who have trusted in Christ, it should be all the more interesting and meaningful to us today.

One of the common misconceptions about Heaven (in reference to the eternal state) is that it is a spiritual realm, where we have no bodies and we aimlessly float around on clouds. However, the Bible paints a much different picture of Heaven for us. We see from the testimony of the Scriptures that it is a physical place, where our souls will be united with our resurrected bodies and we will live in perfect fellowship with our Creator. These first two points are very important and we must understand that Heaven is an actual place where we will have real bodies. Throughout Scripture we read that there will be eating and drinking and working and singing for all eternity, so this must have some relation to a physical existence. We know that God will redeem our current sinful bodies into perfect resurrected ones. Paul writes of this in 1 Corinthians 15 and Romans 8, where he says that all creation awaits this renewal, “And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies” (Rom. 8:23). Further evidence to support this view of Heaven comes from the book of Revelation itself, where we see images of trees, a river, and a new city of Jerusalem with its specific dimensions. This New Heaven and New Earth are much different than what most people think of.

Perhaps the most wonderful thing about the eternal state is that we will be in the very presence of God. Revelation 22:5 says that we “will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” I love John’s words in Revelation 21:1-5:

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”

We will be His people and He will be our God. There will be no more pain or suffering or sin, for these former things will have passed. This is a new place, where sin does not exist and every action is pure. We will see God in all His glory and we will praise Him for all eternity.

To many of us this might seem like a distant thought, but we would do well to consider it deeply, even today. Since Heaven is an eternal state, Jesus urges his disciples, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:19-21). Everything that we accumulate here on Earth is going to burn. It’s either going to perish or be taken from us and we’ll never have it again. So we must store up our treasures in Heaven, where they will last for eternity. This passage in Matthew comes in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, just after Jesus had taught on the hypocrisy of those who pray and fast for everyone to see. These people have already received their reward, the praise of man, but those who are humbly come before God, only wanting to please Him, will receive heavenly rewards. The reality of the new creation should motivate us to live holy lives today. Peter also exhorts the church to live “lives of holiness and godliness,” for “all these things are thus to be dissolved” (2 Pet. 3:11). In his book called Holiness, JC Ryle calls Christians to live holy lives so that they will be prepared for Heaven. If we are living lives full of sin now, how will we know how to act when we are in Heaven where there is no sin? This means that we are to lay aside anything other than Christ that grasps for our heart’s affection. Invest in the things that will still be relevant in Heaven, the things that bring God glory.

by Garrett Glende

Upon a thorough study of the Bible, encountering various subjects and doctrines that are hard to accept is inevitable. Since a systematic theology aims to cover the Bible’s teaching on all major issues, we have already seen this play out in our walk through Wayne Grudem’s work. We’ve had to deal with such issues as the sovereignty of God in salvation and the utter depravity of man. The nature of our study is such that these issues cannot be ignored, regardless of whether or not they will make people happy inside. In order to stay faithful to Scripture we must teach all of it, for it all holds the same truthfulness and authority. I write this because we’ve come across another one of those tough issues this week. Many Christians in America today like to think of Heaven, but rarely do they ponder the reality and severity of Hell. Yet it is not something that we can ignore. John MacArthur writes that Jesus “talked more about Hell than he did about love. He said more about Hell than all the other preachers in the Bible combined. If we were to model our preaching after His, then Hell would be a major theme for all of us.” And so Hell and judgment are topics that we must discuss, and they should weigh heavily on our souls. I pray that the Holy Spirit would guide us all to a deeper understanding of these truths and that He would empower us to live changed lives in light of them.

The most logical place to start would be right where we left off last week, at the end of the millennial reign of Christ. After Satan goes to battle unsuccessfully against Christ in Revelation 20:7-10, he is thrown into the lake of fire to be punished eternally. Then, at the end of the chapter (verses 11-15), we get a glimpse of one of the most sorrowful and sobering passages in the Bible:

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

The setting is indeed magnificently daunting. We read John’s vision of the glorified Son of God, sitting on His rightful throne, ready to judge the world. He mentions specifically that this throne is great and white – great to show its authority, and white to illustrate its purity, holiness, and justice. There will be no mistrial in this courtroom. There are no defense attorneys and the defendants will offer no excuse. They will be shown their deeds that have been written in the books, where God has recorded every thought, action, and intention of the heart. None will meet the holy standard of God (Rom. 3:23). Those who have failed to be holy, who have not trusted in Christ’s righteousness, and who have not been written down in the book of life will be thrown into the lake of fire for eternal punishment.

This is not an easy thing to say: that those who have not believed await eternal and conscious punishment. In fact, there are many today who would wish to do away with any doctrine concerning Hell. They write it off as unloving, unfair, and judgmental. However, we cannot succumb to our culture’s view of the Bible, as some have done. We must defend its truths, however harsh they may be. The Bible is unmistakably clear that those who do not bow the knee to Christ will be punished. Even the Old Testament prophet Daniel wrote that “those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12:2). Paul also testifies to these truths in 2 Thessalonians 1:9 when he writes, “They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.” Additionally of those in Hell, Revelation 14:11 says that “the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night.” The strength of these verses and others is enough to dispel any sort of teaching that would advocate anything less than eternal punishment.

But still, there will be those who insist that it is unjust for a finite life of sins to incur a penalty that is eternal. In response to this, I offer Jonathon Edwards’ comments from his essay, The Justice of God in the Damnation of Sinners. He says it much more eloquently than I ever could.

The crime of one being despising and casting contempt on another, is proportionably more or less heinous, as he was under greater or less obligations to honour him. The fault of disobeying another is greater or less, as any one is under greater or less obligations to obey him. And therefore if there be any being that we are under infinite obligations to love, and honour, and obey, the contrary towards him must be infinitely faulty.

Our obligation to love, honour, and obey any being, is in proportion to his loveliness, honourableness, and authority…But God is a being infinitely lovely, because he hath infinite excellency and beauty…His authority over us is infinite; and the ground of his right to our obedience is infinitely strong; for he is infinitely worthy to be obeyed himself, and we have an absolute, universal, and infinite dependence upon him.

So that sin against God, being a violation of infinite obligations, must be a crime infinitely heinous, and so deserving of infinite punishment…The eternity of the punishment of ungodly men renders it infinite: and it renders it no more than infinite; and therefore renders no more than proportionable to the heinousness of what they are guilty of.

I’m tempted to rest my case here, but I’ll summarize a bit of what Edwards is getting at. He argues that the severity of our sin is relative to the degree to which we are obligated to obey – and that is an infinite obligation. Since we have failed to meet this obligation to a God who is infinitely lovely, honorable, and beautiful, or just punishment is an infinite one.

I struggle as I write these things because I know that these truths should drive me to my knees. The reality is that we all know people who are Hell bound, but has this really affected our hearts? We know that death can come at any moment and that Christ’s return is imminent. In light of this, our prayer for the lost and evangelism to unbelievers should become all the more urgent. Our hearts should echo Paul’s in Romans 9 when he says that he has “great sorrow and unceasing anguish” for the souls of his Jewish brothers. But it’s more than wanting our friends and family not to experience Hell. We should want them to experience God! We can’t just scare people away from Hell and into Heaven, but the realities of Hell should beckon Christians to take action in preaching the gospel. It should remind us of the grave penalty that we deserved to pay and the seriousness of our sin. In light of Hell, we should rejoice in the cross, for it is through the cross that we have been saved from Hell. In light of Hell, we should be motivated to live holy lives, for Hell is a reminder of how much God hates sin. This doctrine may seem far off and irrelevant, but it is very near to us and very relevant. I’ll leave us with Edwards again, and this is my prayer for all of us:

Resolved, to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think I should do, if I had already seen the happiness of Heaven, and Hell’s torments.

by Garrett Glende

The book of Revelation opens with a blessing: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near” (Rev. 1:3). Judging by the general attitude among Christians toward this book, it would seem as if they have never considered this verse. Most believers avoid the issues that Revelation addresses because they think that it’s too difficult to understand or that it doesn’t really matter what they believe about it. This is quite an unfortunate reality in the church today. However, John promises that those who read Revelation and heed its call will be blessed. It seems as if this promise has fallen on deaf ears, otherwise there would be much more teaching on the subject. Given the everyday Christian’s general ignorance of the book, it is somewhat surprising that its subject matter is also one of the most highly debated and divisive issues. When it comes to the specifics of the Millennium, or the evens described in Revelation 20, there are many differing viewpoints among evangelicals. Historically, there have been three main views on this topic: Premillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Amillennialism. This article will explore each of these briefly, give a defense of what I believe to be the most biblical position, and summarize the application this doctrine has for our lives.

Before we get into the different views, let’s take a look at the main text surrounding the issue. The following is from Revelation 20:1-6.

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.

Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

Premillennialism

Historically, premillennialists have interpreted Revelation 20 in a very straightforward fashion. Classical Premillennialism teaches that the church age will continue through the tribulation and will end when Christ returns to establish His kingdom on earth. At this time, Satan will be bound and the dead in Christ will rise to reign with Him on earth. Premillennialism interprets these events as real, physical occurrences. The thousand years is interpreted as a literal one thousand years where Christ will rule physically with saints who have glorified bodies. After these 1,000 years, Satan will be released and will war against Christ and be defeated, ushering in the final judgment and the eternal state.

Another slightly different view within Premillennialism is called Dispensational Premillennialism. This interpretation suggests that there will be a hidden advent of Christ before the tribulation in order to gather up the living saints. Grudem cites that “this view is found almost exclusively among [those] who wish to maintain a clear distinction between the church and Israel.” Dispensational Premillennialism also interprets many of the Old Testament prophecies concerning the nation of Israel in a literal manner.

Postmillennialism

According to the proponents of this view, “the progress of the gospel and the growth of the church will gradually increase, so that a larger and larger proportion of the world’s population will be Christians.” Because of this, the world will be run in accordance with God’s ways until a golden age is ushered in. This new period of time is what they would call the millennium, but it would not necessarily be exactly one thousand years. At the end of this peaceful age, Christ will return and believers and unbelievers will be raised, final judgment will take place, and the eternal state will occur with the new heavens and the new earth.

Historically, this view has been popular when it seems like there is a great spread of the gospel in the world and many people are coming to Christ. Indeed, this was the case during the Great Awakenings of the 1700’s, a time in which many puritans saw the great work that God was doing and then adopted a postmillennial view.

Amillennialism

The amillennial view is dubbed such because it teaches that there is no future millennium to look forward to. Instead, the scene in the beginning of Revelation 20 is the current church age. Amillennialism teaches that Satan has been bound so that the gospel is able to be preached to the nations and people can be saved. However, Christ’s reign is not on this earth, but rather in heaven. Here, all the Christians who have died are reigning with Him in spiritual bodies. Therefore, the one thousand years is not taken literally and only refers to a long period of time. At the end of this period Christ will return, judgment takes place, and the eternal state is ushered in.

Assessment

This is a difficult stand to make, as I must admit that I have not studied enough to become 100% convinced on any side. However, from what I have read in the Bible and other resources, I am led to believe that Dispensational Premillennialism is the most biblical of the views. This is mainly because I see the events described in the book of Revelation as things that have yet to come. In John’s vision of the glorified Christ, Jesus tells him to “Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this” (Rev. 1:19). This verse then serves as an outline for the rest of the book: the things that you have seen (Ch. 1), those that are (Ch 2-3), and those that are to take place after this (Ch. 4-22). Therefore, the millennium is a future event and not something that is already taking place in heaven, as the amillennial interpretation suggests.

Additionally, a strong case for a physical resurrection during the millennial kingdom can be made when we examine the Greek word anastasis, in English translated as resurrection. The amillennial position would like to interpret this to mean “die and go to be with Christ in heaven,” when in Revelation 20:5 it speaks of those who have came to life as having participated in “the first resurrection (anastasis).” This interpretation fits in with a spiritual millennial reign, but this word never carries this meaning in any other place it occurs. Throughout the New Testament anastasis always refers to a bodily resurrection, therefore it seems likely that the resurrection that Rev. 20 speaks of is also a physical one.

It is also my conviction that if one holds to a literal-historical-grammatical interpretation of Scripture, then it makes the most sense to hold to dispensational Premillennialism. I see no reason to over-spiritualize the prophecies concerning Israel in the Old Testament. I believe there is a distinction between the church and Israel and that God still has a special plan for that nation. This literal interpretation of Scripture should carry over into the book of Revelation as it is necessary, and we should take the events of chapter 20 as a continuation of the ongoing chronology.

I would like to say more on this, but it would require much more space or perhaps a whole separate article. I have by no means exhausted the arguments for any position and there is still much to be said on these issues. However, I hope to have outlined some of the main distinctives of each position so that we can have a good foundation when we think of these things. I highly encourage you to read Grudem’s chapter in Systematic Theology or any other trustworthy resource.

Application

I’d like to use this section to call to attention something that I see happen a lot (myself included) in our church. When controversial issues like eschatology are brought up, there always seems to be someone who takes a shot at an opposing view. I’m not saying that we cannot offer any sort of criticism, but I think that our judgments are often times uninformed. We dismiss an interpretation just because others who you respect seem to have done the same. I wonder if there is any real, genuine investigation going on or is it all just blind acceptance? I understand that we need to trust the leadership of the church in their instruction, but I also think that we should examine everything that we hear and come to our own conclusions about what the Bible really teaches. If we don’t do this work for ourselves, then all we can really say when questioned is that “[pastor’s name] says so.” I guess what I’m getting at is that we should all be able to defend what we believe to be the truth using the Bible as our evidence, not having to depend on the opinions of others. When this happens, the truths of Scripture come alive in our hearts and our lives are actually changed by them. This is not something that happens overnight. It takes lots of reading and studying, but I do think it’s well worth it.

by Garrett Glende

This article begins the final section in Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology. We’ve come a long way thus far and it’s fitting that the end of the book deals with eschatology, or the study of last things. Just as spiritual gifts are a highly debated issue, eschatology fosters a fair amount of conversation as well. There are many evangelicals who disagree on certain issues that fall under this umbrella, but it remains to be an issue of secondary nature. Provided, there are some who stray too far away from Biblical truth, some of whom we will address later, but the majority of believers do attempt to derive their beliefs from Scripture. In the coming weeks we’ll deal with a variety of topics relating to the end times. Many will brush them off as confusing or non-consequential, but we should take heed of Jesus’ own warnings about these things and seek to understand them in a manner that changes our hearts and minds.

The first issue that Grudem writes on is the return of Christ. Specifically, how and when Christ will come back to earth. The first major point under this section is that Christ will return in physical, bodily form for all to see. There are those who advocate that Christ will not come back or that He will return in a spiritual sense, but these teachings are misguided. Revelation 1:7 says that “He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him.” Acts 1:11 states, “This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” There is little debate in mainstream Christianity regarding the physical return of Christ. The exact timing of His return however, is much more contested (mostly in regards to the millennial kingdom, which will be discussed next week).

What we can say about the timing of Christ’s return is that no one knows the exact day or hour. There is a heavy amount of Scripture attesting to the mystery of the second coming. Jesus says to “watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matt. 25:13). It will come as a surprise to many, “like a thief in the night” (1 Thess. 5:2). We see in many places that only the Father knows the timing of this event, yet we also are urged to be ready for it because it is near. Jesus himself says that he is coming soon multiple times in the book of Revelation (Rev. 22:7, 22:12, 22:20) and Peter also attests that “the end of all things is at hand” (1 Peter 4:7). The evidence from the New Testament authors illustrates that perhaps they expected Christ to return within their own lifetimes or shortly thereafter, yet it is obvious that this has not happened even 2000 years later. So were they wrong in saying that his return would be soon? To answer this, we must understand that the nature of prophecy in the Bible as one that often does not account for large gaps in time. I’ve heard it illustrated as a mountain range where you see many summits from the distance and they all look equally far away, but when you reach the peak you discover that the others are really much further away. This happens a lot in Old Testament prophecy, as we see both the first and second advents of Christ.

The challenge from Scripture regarding Christ’s return addresses the desires of our hearts. Since we have been saved by the grace of God, we are to “live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:12-13). But do we really wait eagerly for Christ’s return or are we more concerned with our lives here on earth? We want to accomplish things here before we get to heaven. I even see this attitude come up in my own heart as I am soon to be married. Would I rather have Christ come back and be with Him or would I rather be married? I must admit that it’s a struggle in my heart. I think we all have certain things that our hearts are drawn to in this world – even good things. But we should not value them more than Jesus. The unexpectedness of his return should draw us more to the lost, where we must preach the gospel unashamedly. Since no one knows the day or hour, we must proclaim Christ in every corner of the earth. Selfishly, we entertain ourselves with other things and we lose sight of the immanency of Jesus Christ. Together, let’s put aside our worldly desires and focus on loving Christ and desiring to be with Him.

by Garrett Glende

We left off last week in 1 Corinthians 13, the famous chapter on the supremacy of love. We will spend a significant amount of time looking over some of the verses in this chapter, but that comes later. First, I just want to say a few things about spiritual gifts and the charismatic debate. It’s probably obvious to everyone that I’m no expert when it comes to these things and I’m not claiming to be. There are many godly men out there who disagree with me and who have done much more studying on the topic, so I don’t claim to have any sort of leg up on them when it comes to this either. However, I will say that God has given us all the same Bible’s and the same Holy Spirit – so at least we’re equal on that. I say this because I really don’t want to come off as the young guy who shoots down every theologian that he disagrees with. Trust me; it would be much easier to just avoid this whole issue all together. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t do much justice to this series if we could skip over anything remotely difficult, so we’ll continue to tackle each chapter as it comes. And with that, we’ll begin to take a look at some of the issues regarding the miraculous sign gifts and their presence (or lack thereof) today.

Going back to 1 Corinthians 13, we see that Paul emphasizes love because it is the only thing that will last forever. He writes in verses 8-13:

“Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

This passage contains some of the clearest teaching on the cessation of the sign gifts, so it cannot be ignored. The crux of the argument centers on the interpretation of the word to teleion, translated in the English as “perfect.” It’s clear that these partial gifts will pass away, but it is not clear as to when exactly this will take place. All we can say for sure is that it will happen “when the perfect comes.” But precisely when is this? Grudem interprets “the perfect” to mean the second coming of Christ. He makes a connection between the time when the perfect comes and the refrains of “now…then…” statements in verse 12. The “then” statements would correspond to the time when the perfect comes. He interprets these verses to mean the second coming of Christ, asking, “When shall we see ‘face to face’? When shall we know ‘even as we have been known’? These events can only happen when the Lord returns.” Grudem believes that “the partial” refers to all of the revelatory and confirmatory gifts, not just knowledge and prophecy, arguing that “Paul also intended tongues to be included in the sense of verse 9 as among these activities that are imperfect, but omitted overly pedantic repetition for stylistic reasons…Paul could have listed more gifts here if he had wished.” With the second coming of Christ, Grudem argues, there will no longer be any need for these partial gifts because we will see fully.

While it definitely is the case that Paul considers the second advent of Christ to be a time when these gifts could pass away, he also suggests that it could happen sometime before then. An alternative interpretation to Grudem’s is found in Robert Thomas’ book titled Understanding Spiritual Gifts. Thomas asserts that instead of rendering the word to teleion as “perfect,” it should be translated “mature.” This interpretation is strengthened by the allusions to the maturation between childhood and manhood in verse 11 and the other occurrences of the phrase throughout the New Testament. In its other uses to teleion is found to mean “mature” rather than “perfect” (1 Cor. 14:20, Heb. 5:13-14, Eph. 4:13-14). These verses all speak of some sort of maturity within the body of believers, leading us to believe that this is something that Paul had in mind in 1 Cor. 13:10. Because Paul is not sure when Christ will return, he is convinced that the gifts could cease before then, specifically when the body of Christ is matured. Thomas notes that Paul was aware that sign gifts were given specially during periods of revelation, but were then followed by periods of silence and an absence of miraculous gifts. For example, the time when God spoke directly to the prophets was followed by a silence of 400 years. The Old Testament cannon was clearly closed as soon as this prophecy ceased, which was long before Christ was born. Thomas links this maturing of the Old Testament period to the early church period that Paul was experiencing. He writes:

“He was conscious that he was now in the midst of a new period during which God was speaking directly to His apostles and prophets, resulting in inspired utterances, part of which were taking their place alongside the Old Testament cannon as inspired Scripture. One possibility he foresaw was that this period of prophecy could come to its conclusion before the Second Advent of Christ just as the Old Testament prophecy had come to its conclusion four hundred years before the First Advent. Such a cessation would resemble the gradual development from childhood to manhood.”

I prefer this interpretation of 1 Cor. 13:8-13 because it incorporates a more accurate understanding of the original language, as well as weighing each verse in the passage appropriately. It’s obvious to me that the second coming of Christ would usher in an era where these gifts no longer exist, but at the same time it seems logical to allow for an earlier cessation, as Paul does in this passage. So the question to answer then is, “has this maturation taken place?” If we believe that God is no longer giving revelation and that the New Testament cannon is closed, then it would follow that the signs that accompany such revelation would have ceased upon its closing. The miraculous sign gifts (tongues, healing, miracles) were given to the apostles to prove that their teachings were from God. They existed to show the people exactly what kind of authority the apostles carried. However, upon the completion of the New Testament, the gifts were no longer necessary because the written word of God stood on its own authority. In fact, Peter calls this word something more sure than his own eyewitness account of Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration (2 Peter 1:19). It needs no accompaniment of signs and wonders.

This article is getting too long, so I applaud you if you’ve made it this far. However, there is one more issue that I’d like to address. Many people today insist that the charismatic gifts still exist today because they’ve had some sort of experience that convinced them of it. Whether it be speaking in tongues or witnessing a healing, they rely on what they have seen to inform their conclusions. I don’t mean to offend anyone when I ask this question, but how do you know that the “tongues” you’re speaking are really from God? Are they really serving their purpose (the edification of the body)? It’s not that I think these people are not sincere in their faith, but I do believe it is misguided and perhaps uninformed. We need to go back to what the Scriptures say about these issues and deal with them at a biblical level. We cannot first claim to know truth based on an emotional experience and then force that belief to fit what the Bible teaches. And this goes for anything in life, not just spiritual gifts. We should be sure to make the Bible our ultimate authority, not our own experience.

The purpose of this article was really just to give you a taste of what is out there to study. I only scratched the surface of the issue and in some ways feel like I’m not doing it justice. Nevertheless, I hope that this may spur you on to want to study your Bible’s more, not just to gain knowledge, but to have your life changed by the truth. There are plenty of good resources out there and I encourage you to take advantage of them. Yes, this will mean lots and lots of reading, unless you get a voice from heaven, of course.

by Garrett Glende

We’ve now reached the 52nd chapter of Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology so it goes without saying that there has been quite the variety of issues discussed thus far. Any time that you read something that addresses such a wide range of topics – everything from the authority of Scripture to the ordinance of baptism – you are bound to come across statements that you might not agree with. Such has been the case from time to time when reading and studying Grudem’s book. Nothing has jumped off the page as heretical or worth breaking any sort of fellowship over, but there are definitely some points that we disagree on. This dynamic presents somewhat of a challenge when it comes time to putting together an article on the chapter (mostly because I don’t like to disagree with much smarter people) and it’s happened again this week.

The issue of spiritual gifts within the church has been a hot topic in recent years beginning with the charismatic movement and the debate still stands today. It’s an issue that interests people because the different views seem so divided and it’s genuinely interesting to learn about the miraculous sign gifts. But this is not going to be the focus of today’s article. For now, we’ll just look into the basics of spiritual gifts and how we should view them in regards to our own roles within the body of Christ. Next week’s article will examine the more controversial topics, specifically regarding the cessation or continuation of certain gifts.

Grudem defines spiritual gifts as an “ability that is empowered by the Holy Spirit and used in any ministry of the church.” The main teaching on this topic is found in 1 Corinthians 12-14 so much of our time will be spent looking at passages from this section of Scripture. Paul makes it clear that the gifts “are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11). The Holy Spirit distributes these gifts for the purpose of building up the body of Christ, the church. Verse seven of the same chapter says that “to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” Paul goes on to describe the church as a body that has many members, all of which work together to make it stronger. One of the Holy Spirit’s roles in this process is that it has given a variety of abilities to all the members in order that this growth might take place. When all members are exercising their Spirit given gifts, then the body will function at its fullest potential, the way God intended it. We must remember this purpose of the gifts, because it will become important later when we look into the sign gifts and how they are viewed today.

There are a few different lists of gifts in the Bible, one of them being found in 1 Cor. 12:8-10: “For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.” The above list is not exhaustive, but it shows us that there are surely a variety of abilities that the Spirit distributes (the other lists can be found in 1 Cor. 12:28, Eph. 4:11, and Rom. 12:6-8). It would not make sense for God to give us all the gift of teaching or else we would have no one to do administration. Likewise, He did not give us all the gift of administration because someone is needed to teach. We must note that there is nothing in us that affects what kind of gifts the Spirit gives us. The distribution of gifts is an entirely sovereign act of the Holy Spirit, “who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11).

I know that we’re just scratching the surface here, so I’m hoping that you’ll go study more on your own, but I do want to bring up a point of application. The whole reason why three chapters in 1 Corinthians are devoted to this issue is because the church that Paul was writing to was misusing their gifts and they were jealous of those who had flashier gifts than they did. It’s easy to condemn the Corinthians for such behavior, but I think the same thing goes on in our church today. There’s always a part of us that wishes we had a gift that would make us look godly – something that we could show off. We see others who have been gifted in these areas and we want what they already have. But this completely misses the point of the gifts in the first place! The person who’s gifted in teaching may not have the gift of encouragement or administration, but you might be! But people can even take pride in being the “humble” behind-the-scenes guy who rarely gets credit. Regardless of how we are gifted, we must remember that they must be used in love. Love is the “more excellent way” that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 13. We can have all the flashy gifts in the world, but if we don’t have love then we’re nothing. Paul charges the church in Corinth to exercise their gifts with love and in a way that edifies the body. And we must use ours with love as well – because love is eternal and the gifts are not. I’d love to expand on that more, but I’d spoil next week’s article, so I’ll end it here.

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

by Garrett Glende

Moving along in the section of Systematic Theology dealing with the church, we come to the chapter on worship. While we understand that worship is to be a part of our whole life, Grudem specifically focuses on worship within the context of the local church. Certainly, we cannot completely divorce our private worship with our corporate worship, but since this section is dealing with matters of the church, we’ll look at some issues that relate to the body as a whole.

We know from John 4:24 that God is seeking those who worship Him “in spirit and truth.” In order to build an understanding of how corporate worship functions, we must first understand these basic things about worship as a whole. First and foremost, worship is not something that is done externally. As evidenced by Jesus’ statement to the Samaritan woman, worship is a matter of the heart. Jesus elsewhere condemns those people who “honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me” (Matt. 15:8). Contrary to these hypocrites, true worship happens when our hearts are exalting God for who He is. This is what worshiping in spirit and truth is all about. The woman at the well was concerned about whether Mount Gerizim or Jerusalem was the proper place to worship, but Jesus redirects her attention to her own heart. The exact location where worship takes place is not the main issue. The main issue is a spiritual one, not physical. However, this also must be informed by the truth. Our hearts must exalt God for things that are true about Him; otherwise we are worshiping a different god. As we encounter the immeasurable beauty of the character of God, our hearts should respond in true worship. The external result may be different depending on the situation, but the important thing is what is happening in the heart.

Understanding these basic truths about worship, we can now apply it to the corporate body. The thrust of Grudem’s chapter deals with how worship is seen through a Sunday service, so let’s take a look at the interplay between our understanding of worship and the acts that take place on Sunday. Since the Sunday gathering is usually called a worship service, we can expect worship to take place there, but why are the specific things that we do considered worship? Let’s take a look at a normal service:

• There’s usually a time of singing at the beginning and many people would say that this is worship. Yes, this is true, but what makes it worship? It certainly is not simply the fact that we are singing truths about God. Any unbeliever can do this just as well. What makes mere singing turn into worship is the posture of our hearts as we sing. It is worship because we’ve been so affected by truth that we cannot help but have it overflow.
• After this time of singing, the pastor will preach from a passage of the Bible and the congregation will listen. Again, how is this worship? For those of us in the crowd, we can listen to what is being taught and respond or not. Simply hearing the words is not an act of worship, yet worship exists when our hearts respond to the truths being preached.
• There are many other elements that go into a normal Sunday service that can be considered an aspect of worship. Take the setup team for example. Because God is a God of order and not confusion, the chairs and other items in the sanctuary should be arranged in such a way that reflects this truth. When every part of the service has meaning and purpose behind it that is based on biblical truth in a way that leads people’s hearts to exalt God, then true worship is happening.

Worship is something that comes natural to all of us. However, the object of our worship is not always God. Because this problem is a spiritual one, we need spiritual help. And the only way that we can truly worship God is if we are filled with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18 says “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.” We then see that this results in the singing of songs and hymns and spiritual songs with thanksgiving in our hearts. If true worship is going to take place corporately, then each member must be walking in the Spirit daily. Our hearts are prone to wander and pursue other idols, but we must ask God to help us focus our hearts attention on Him alone. The Holy Spirit is the only one who can truly change our hearts so that we are able to worship God truly. Therefore, our prayer lives become all the more important. This fervency in prayer and a devotion to God’s word will foster a community of true worshipers no matter where the church is located. So the next time you go to church, don’t just think of the external things, but focus on what is going on inside of you. And let’s sing with all our hearts.

by Garrett Glende

Following our discussion on baptism, it is appropriate that we tackle the other ordinance that Jesus left for the church, the Lord’s Supper. Just like last week’s article, Richard has already written a four-part series on the issue and has covered it in much more depth than we will here. That being said, if you wish to get a more complete understanding of this ordinance, then head on over to those pieces. Nevertheless, if you don’t have the time to read four lengthy articles, then this is the place for you. We’ll take a brief look at the doctrine as the Bible presents it and then discuss how this should impact the way we live. (Editor’s Note: Read all of them; it will be good for you.)

The Lord’s Supper as we know it was instituted by Jesus in the upper room with the disciples on the night of His betrayal. Matthew 26:26-29 gives the following account:

“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

With this act, Jesus tells the disciples the meaning of this meal. It was to remember His death that brought them forgiveness of sins. Paul recounts in 1 Corinthians 11:24-26,

“And when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

So we see more explicitly from Paul’s account that there were two main purposes for this ordinance: remembrance and proclamation. The symbol of the bread and wine being broken and poured represents the body and blood of Christ. Thus, as we partake in this communion we are to be reminded of the fact that Jesus dies on our behalf. The death that we were so deserving of, He willfully took on as He hung on the cross. Being covered by His blood, we are now declared righteous before God. Since this act is a symbol of the gospel message, every time we partake in it we are declaring to the world that Christ has indeed died for our sins. Communion is a proclamation of Jesus’ sacrifice and our union with Him. Just as baptism is a public declaration of our new life in Christ, so is the Lord’s Supper a sign of our continual life in Him.

Because of the many misunderstandings of this practice, it seems worth making note of a few. Most of the false teachings on the Lord’s Supper originate from the Roman Catholic Church. They promote the doctrine of transubstantiation, or the idea that the bread and wine are actually changed into the literal body and blood of Christ as the priest offers them up. During this ceremony there is an actual sacrifice for sins that takes place, according to the church. There are more intricacies to the argument, but it’s clear from the Bible that Christ has only died once for sins and there is no longer any sacrifice necessary. Hebrews 9:24-28 states this clearly:

For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Christ does not need to offer up any more sacrifices because it is already finished, as His own words on the cross indicate. This is an essential doctrine to the Christian faith because without it there would be no assurance at all that our sins have truly been covered. We must affirm that Christ has died once to bear our sins and that this one sacrifice was completely sufficient to pay for every single one of them.

The Lord’s Supper should be a time of great celebration for the Christian. We are reminded of the wonderful realities of our salvation and the tremendous price that was paid to secure it. One of the effects of Christ’s death is the reconciliation of rebellious sinners to a holy God. We were once enemies of God, but He has brought us near to Him through the cross. There was once war, but now there is peace. Having this in mind, there is no way that we can come to participate in communion if we have not been reconciled to our fellow brothers or sisters. How can we celebrate peace with God if there is no peace within the body? It would be hypocritical to do so. The taking of the bread and the cup outwardly signals that we have been reconciled to God, but if our hearts have not been reconciled to one another, then these actions are empty. This is one reason why we take the peacemakers pledge so seriously at LBC. A refusal to be reconciled to a brother or sister is not only harmful to our testimony as Christians, but it is contradictory to the very core of what we say is most important to us. Taking this a step further, I think it’s easy to hold grudges against people even when we’ve said that they’re forgiven. We may harbor bitterness or resentment and not even notice it, but we must recognize these attitudes when they creep up and then repent of them. For the church to really be unified, we must constantly be forgiving one another with a posture of humility. If this kind of spirit is fostered in every member of the church, then when we take communion together we can celebrate it in the fullness of its meaning, giving thanks to God for reconciling us to Himself.