On:
In: Christology, Church

I have several of these brief, paperback volumes in the well-known Oxford series and have found them all very informative and well worth the investment. From Buddhism to Kant to Plato, they’ve all been excellent introductions. Richard Bauckham writes in his new Jesus: A Very Short Introduction: “Jesus’ most sociallyRead More

On:
In: Christology, Church History

Tim Kimberley at Credo House Ministries has begun a new series entitled “Top Ten Theologians” and he starts with Irenaeus. It’s well worth the read and gives an excellent primer on this important figure. Here’s a snippet: Irenaeus becomes the first human being to fully articulate the extent of theRead More

On:
In: Apologetics, Christology, Theology

The belief that God was incarnate in Jesus of Nazareth would be a logical absurdity if one were to assert that Jesus had the essential attributes of deity and, at the same time, did not have the essential attributes of deity. Example: All humans have hair. Some humans do not have hair.Read More

On:
In: Bible, Christology

Jesus of Nazareth is the eternal Son of God and God the Son who is fully God and fully human, conceived by God’s Holy Spirit and born to the virgin Mary. Entirely without sin during his earthly existence he died a substitutionary death on the cross and made a completeRead More

On:
In: Apologetics, Bible, Christmas, Christology

I can’t think of a better time than Christmas to rehearse the importance of orthodoxy. Believers everywhere must clearly articulate what we believe and do not believe about the Christ child. What follows are brief [early] historical views on the identity of Jesus along with the orthodox response that comports withRead More

On:
In: Christology, Philosophy, Theology

What follows is excerpted from my thesis “The Mystery of God Incarnate: An Analysis and Critique of John Hick’s Christology.” See also The Christological Heresies. The Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) opposed the two extremes of Eutychianism and Nestorianism (the former failing to distinguish between the two natures of Christ,Read More

On:
In: Bible, Christology, Discipleship, Theology

If Jesus is not fully God, then . . . There is no eternal life to be had (1 Jn. 4:15; 5:1), for John clearly states that the condition for eternal life is belief in Jesus’ deity. Sin is not conquered, as only God can defeat sin and Satan onceRead More