How did we arrive at NCJ? What paradigm shifts in our understanding of God’s Word did He use to reveal to me (pastor Scott) that what Jesus and His New Testament authors are teaching is not a new religion (Christianity), but a restoration of ancient Judaism according to its New Covenant expression?

1. (2006) Lord Before Savior

Fully submitting/dedicating ourselves to Jesus’ Lordship by repenting – or confessing and turning from our sin through justice and just living was the pre-requisite to His deliverance (salvation) in the OT (esp. ancient Judaism) just as it is in the NT. IOW: Lordship Salvation is not simply a NT phenomenon (e.g., The Gospel According To Jesus)

Path to this particular paradigm shift:

1) Realizing that Jesus is the Savior of all redemptive history (versus just those under the NC) (e.g., Jud 1:5; Heb 9:15-16)

2) Realizing that the soteriological formula used by Him to save people is also the same (i.e., L>S) (Heb 13:8 [Mal 3:6-7]).

2) Recognizing that formula (L>S) throughout both the New and Old Testaments (Gen 17:1-2; Exo 19:5; Exo 23:22; Lev 16:26; Deu 7:9; Deu 30:1-3; Psa 81:11-14; Psa 85:9; Isa 1:18-19; Isa 48:17-19; Isa 59:1-2; Isa 59:20; Jer 4:14; Jer 9:12-14; Jer 26:13; Jer 36:3; Mat 7:21-23; Mar 1:14-15; Luk 1:50; Luk 3:8-9 w/18; Luk 19:1-9; Eph 5:5-6; Heb 5:9; 1Jo 1:6-7; 1Jo 2:4-6).

2. (2012) Gain and Maintain

The framework of salvation is the same under the New Covenant as it was under the Old Covenant (or ancient Judaism): we gain our salvation by grace through faith and maintain it through faithful obedience to God’s commands. IOW: There is no dichotomy between works and faith in salvation (e.g., FAG: either you earn your way to heaven by your works/obedience [impossible] or you get to heaven by simply believing in the works/obedience of Christ).

Path to this particular paradigm shift:

1) Pastor Rowe advised me to “be careful” how much I pushed the importance of obedience to salvation causing me to conclude that:

(1.1.) Christianity (at some point) in her history had created a false dichotomy between faith and obedience/works in Christianity. Why? Because God demands we do the opposite of P. Rowe’s advice (we are to be careful to make sure we obey – Deu 28:1), yet would never by such demands create a false dichotomy. God’s Word must therefore teach a different framework (a third option) – one which makes faith and obedience/works complementary not contrary obligations.

(1.2.) If the soteriological formula of salvation is the same throughout redemptive history (i.e., L>S was true for OT salvation just as it is for NT salvation), then the framework housing faith and obedience in a complimentary way can also be found in the OT (i.e., I will observe it in ancient Judaism).

(1.3.) I need to start reading theological books about ancient Judaism (biblical theology/soteriology).

(1.4.) I need to study and teach church history -especially the Protestant Reformations where the dichotomy-producing FAG came to the fore.

2) I discovered in my study and teaching of the German Reformation (16th cent.,) that Martin Luther (the inventor of the FAG and “father of the Protestant Reformation”) had a lot in common with the 2nd century heretic Marcion: both were guilty of creating the false dichotomy between law (OT/works) and grace (NT/faith).

3) I read E.P. Sanders’ ground-breaking work, Paul and Palestinian Judaism which proves “covenantal nomism” (get in by grace, stay in by obedience [gain and maintain]) to be the soteriological framework of ancient Judaism (versus the works-based view held by Christianity for almost 2k years).  

4) I confirmed covenantal nomism to be the soteriological framework of all salvation in the Bible - including under the NC (Gen 18:19; Exo 24:7-8 w/Lev 18:4-5 [Luk 10:25-28]; Deu 27:9-10; Deu 28:1-2 Mat 28:18-20; Phi 2:12-13; Phi 3:7-16; Col 1:23; 1Ti 6:12).

3. (2013) Marriage Covenant Theology/Gospel

Redemptive history is comprised of five saving covenants (Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Old and New) whose makeup/nature is marital (they are betrothal – or inchoate marriage covenants), and Jesus, the covenant-making member of the Godhead, their divine Husband (Jer 31:31; Hos 2:19; 2Co 11:2).

Being marital in nature not only explains Scripture’s soteriological formula of Lord Before Savior (God requires the wife [church] vow her full submission to her husband as Lord/head of household – Eph 5:22-24), but also its framework of covenantal nomism or “gain and maintain” (in our human marriages: what is gained by grace through vows of faithfulness must be maintained - or the marriage is permanently forfeited in divorce [apostasy]).

As such, all the saving covenants of redemptive history are bi-lateral (conditional) - including the Abrahamic and New Covenants (Gen 15 = God’s vows; Gen 17 = Abe’s vows). Similar to human marriages, our vows of faith (or pledge of faithfulness [pistus = faith/faithfulness]) to Christ is accompanied by prescribed symbols/signs (e.g., wedding rings) which not only serve as reminders of our obligation to fidelity, but possess the authority/power to ratify the covenant and dispense its blessings (e.g., now refer to each other as husband and wife; Mat 1:18-19; 1Pe 3:21). Since the New Covenant exists as a second version of the Old Covenant (the New representing Jesus’ re-marriage to a new Israel [NC Judaism] after His divorce from old and apostate Israel [OC Judaism]), there are two new covenant signs (baptism and the LT) to replace the former covenant signs (circumcision and animal sacrifices [burnt and sin offering]). Both baptism and the LT possess the power to cleanse away sin and are therefore sacraments (God gives what the sign signifies – Rom 6:1-7; Joh 13:5-10) not ordinances (symbols of remembrance only), given to the church (covenant community) – not the individual (“outside the church there is no salvation”- Cyprian) (Mat 16:17-19; Joh 20:21-23). Like circumcision, baptism is a one-time act. It is also the place where Christ accepts our marital vow/pledge of faith (1Pe 3:21) and reciprocates with His own pledge sign – the giving of the HS, sealing/binding/ratifying the marriage covenant (2Co 1:21-22; Eph 1:13). Seeing that the New is simply the second version of the Old equally means that all of God’s OT laws are expected to be faithfully observed according to Christ’s interpretation and/or new application (i.e., God’s established principles endure forever) (Mat 5:17-20, 21-48; Psa 119:152, 155, 160).

Path to this particular paradigm shift:

1) I wrote a paper called Rediscovering Justification (2012) exposing the soteriological problem created by Christianity (or Luther’s faith-works/obedience dichotomy) and the biblical solution of covenantal nomism (gain and maintain). Justification Rediscovered also refuted the Christian doctrines of forensic justification (declared only) and active obedience (imputation of Christ’s obedience) as also inconsistent with their established types in ancient Judaism (we are made just; justification thru sacrificial death only), along with mentioning (in germinal form) the continuing authority and bi-partite distinction of the Law (cov signs/clean laws and moral comms), marriage as the biblical metaphor for God’s saving covenants and the reality of apostasy under the New just as it was under the Old (Judaism). Pastor Rowe expressed great angst over the paper because it exposed as false what he had been taught/believed – yet he could not biblically refute it.

2) Pastor Rowe’s response encouraged me to keep “pulling on the thread” – to reflect further on what I had discovered, including the nature of the saving covenants themselves (“what kind of covenants were they?”). This is when I realized marriage was the makeup or nature of God’s saving covenants (versus simply a metaphor) leading to greater synthesis in my understanding of the Old and New Covenants.

3) Discovering that the Bundesformel (Covenant Formula; “I will be their God and they shall be my people”) not only finds its origin in the marital vow of Genesis 2:23, but is viewed by Judaism as God’s marital vows at Sinai also helped me confirm Marriage Covenant Theology as the Bible’s biblical theology and gospel.

4) Ray Ortlund Jr’s Whoredom, Gordon Hugenberger’s Marriage As A Covenant and David Daube’s lectures on Jesus and the Law (esp. Jesus’ “you have heard that it was said… but I say to you”) were also immensely helpful in this respect.

5) The Mat 5:17-18 victory achieved at the “Mexican standoff” likewise greatly impacted my convictions regarding the continuing relevancy of Judaism’s laws in our obedience to Jesus and the gospel (leading also to series on both Matthew 5 [Sermon on the Mount] and the Law in the following year).

4. (2014) Paedobaptism

All of God’s promises to those in the Old and New Covenant find their source in the promises originally made to Abraham and his descendants (i.e., Israel). Hence the relevance of our baptism in Christ placing us in the family of Abraham (Gal 3:27-29). When God gave those promises to Abraham and his descendants, He made the special provision of automatically including their children at the moment of conception as long as the covenant sign was placed upon them by their parents shortly after birth (Gen 17:12). Our babies should therefore be baptized (rather than waiting for them to be able to make a profession of faith).

Path to this particular paradigm shift:

Having come to realize the continuity that exists not only between the various saving covenants (e.g., they are all marital and function according to g and m), but the unique connection that exists between the Abrahamic, Old and New Covenants (the latter two are simply the national - or descendant covenants of the Abrahamic), I concluded that since this special provision continued in the religion OC Israel (Judaism 1.0) it must be the same for NC Israel (Judaism 2.0). If not, then (Act 2:37-39) becomes nonsensical.

CLOSING CONTEMPLATION = For almost two decades God has been causing our Bibles to get much smaller, - while at the same time, causing our religion to get much larger. (What do I mean? The answer is in your sermon notes!)