Finally, we arrive at practical theology or Christian ethics.  Although, we could easily spend fifteen lectures together building up a full edifice of how God wants us to live, in this episode we’ll simply lay the foundation stones of following Jesus.  What I mean by follow is to read his words and do them, especially Read more about Theology 20 — Follow Jesus[…]

In this lecture, you’ll learn what Jesus and the book of Acts have to say about conversion.  From Jesus, we will examine his parable of the Sower with special focus on the good soil–those who hear the message, understand it, accept it, hold it fast, and bear fruit.  Next we’ll work through all of the Read more about Theology 19 – Conversion[…]

Last time we looked at the major categories the scriptures use to answer the question, “Why did Jesus die?”  This time, we’ll take a journey through church history, making stops along the way to see how our forebearers have made sense of the crucifixion of our Lord. You’ll learn about these seven theories: Ransom Christus Read more about Theology 18 — Atonement Theories[…]

Why did Jesus die? Historically, we could say it was because the Roman Empire perceived him as a threat or the religious leaders in Jerusalem feared he would ignite an unwinnable revolution. Even so, the bible offers a number of theological answers that go far beyond the immediate circumstances of his crucifixion. In this lecture Read more about Theology 17 — Atonement Scriptures[…]

In this episode we’ll consider what the bible says about angels, demons, and Satan.  My goal here is to be as biblical as possible, not giving in to wild speculations or dismissing an understanding because it offends my modern sensibilities.  The scriptures have a lot to say about the spiritual realm, and we can’t possibly Read more about Theology 16 — Angels, Demons, and Satan[…]

Last time we worked through a ton of scripture, trying to get a multidimensional view of how the bible describes the holy spirit.  This time we’ll consider a few scriptures that have confused some into thinking the spirit is really an individual or person distinct from the Father and the Son.  This study is pretty Read more about Theology 15 — Challenging the Holy Spirit[…]

How do you think of holy spirit?  In this lecture we’ll build up a biblical theology of the spirit, in an effort to comprehend its variegated facets. We’ll consider the Old Testament and the Synoptic Gospels before spending a good deal of time in John, looking at the fascinating way that Jesus talks about the Read more about Theology 14 — The Holy Spirit[…]

Although later Christianity interpreted the handful of texts that call Jesus God as evidence that he shared the same rank, substance, and age as the Father, a more Hebrew-sensitive reading of these same verses yields more organic fruit.  Instead of bringing in complex Greek philosophy to distinguish person from being and divine from human natures, Read more about Theology 13 – Jesus, God’s Supreme Representative[…]

Last time we considered Jesus’ identity as God’s messiah.  Today, we’ll look at a number of texts that are sometimes misunderstood to teach that Jesus is God. We’ll go through three classifications of verses: (1) those with manuscript issues, (2) those with translation issues, and (3) those with interpretation issues.  Here is the breakdown. Manuscript Read more about Theology 12 – Challenging Jesus’ Humanity[…]

Have you joined the Restitutio facebook group?  The idea behind the group is that its a place where anyone can start topics for discussion.  So, please join if you’d like to see what’s going on. What is the defining title for Jesus of Nazareth?  Although he kept it mostly a secret during his ministry, Jesus’ Read more about Theology 11 – Jesus the Messiah[…]