Hey guys,
Well let me begin by saying this is my first time ever authoring a blog article so I am excited but just bear with me while I get the hang of it. I want to just explain my goals and expectations for both reading Adam's blog and writing this one. My main goal for myself and you guys is for us to grow in our knowledge of God's Word through the study of doctrine as well as for us to "build up ourselves in the most holy faith" (Jude 1:20) through discussion and encouragement of one another. We want discussion to occur about the doctrines presented here, and even debate is fine as long as the Bible is the basis of our arguements. Doctrines in the Christian faith are meaningless unless they are firmly and clearly proven by scripture (not by our opinions on a matter). Therefore, I feel that it is extremely important for us to be willing and ready to relenquish any preconceived notions on a topic when they are clearly disproven by God's Word.
I also want to point out that the doctrines that will be presented here will be based on a literal-historical-grammatical interpretation of scripture (as opposed to a theoretical or figurative interpretation). This is important because, if we do not interpret scripture literally, it leaves the door open to numerous interpretations simply based on man's opinion of what God has said and not upon the actual words of God, which as I stated before is our only sure basis for doctrine. I am thouroughly looking forward to what will come of this blog. I want us to realize that we are the ones who are going to be the leaders of our faith soon in the churches and communities in which we live. We will be responsible for bringing up our children in the faith as well as leading those around us to live more for Christ. To do this optimally, we must learn and know what we believe, why we believe it, and where we get the basis for it scripturally (shout out to jeffrey, my sunday school teacher). So I pray that we will be able to work together to know more about our great God and King and encourage each other in the faith. God bless you guys.
Blogging for His Glory, Aaron Soutar
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Genuine Joy, Genuine Faith
Well, I am in finals week in school, so no doctrines yet, but i had to post what's been on my mind really fast.
One day a boy was playing in his sandbox, making mud pies. He found his greatest delight in his own creations and held them up above all else, even his loving mother's creations and desires for him. He did not trust his mother that she could make a pie as good and rich and full as his own mudpie. So, he never tasted that delicious chocolate pie his mother made because he never let go of his selfish desires. As he grew older, he finally tasted his mother's wonderful chocolate pie. The moment he put away his selfish desires, willing to trust his mother to make his joy complete, he experienced not joy, but ECSTASY! How could he have ever been happy in his mudpie? How could he have been so blind? How could he have lived his life void of true significance and fulfillment? And now, how could he, once tasting true happiness, keep silent about his newfound passion?
This story is a crude analogy of what has been on my heart about God's genuine joy that He bestows to man, once man, stricken by God, refuses his old man and the ways of the world. Seeing them at face value and understanding the insignificance of life apart from complete devotion to Christ, the once-dead man awakens to a new life with new passions, new desires, and new understandings. How can a man be a "new creation" (2 Cor. 5:17) with his "old things" passing away, and all things becoming NEW, and yet still be holding onto the things in his life that were characteristic of that "old man?"
If you find your greatest joy in following Christ, completely aside from selfish gain, you WILL experience God's infinite joy (even if that is not your goal!). But, if you still try to find joy, completion, happiness, fulfillment, etc by your own power, that old man has not passed away, you have not let go of your happiness and entrusted it to Jesus. Does God call us to live miserable, monastic lives? Absolutely not! (Ps. 35:27) God DELIGHTS in your joy! He wants you to experience HIS true joy! He wants you to lay aside your pride and selfishness and join Him in the glorification of Himself!
There is a movie with an excellent analogy on man's inability to see their sin for what it is, HERE. It ties directly in, because with genuine salvation comes authentic, genuine, God-given JOY!!
One day a boy was playing in his sandbox, making mud pies. He found his greatest delight in his own creations and held them up above all else, even his loving mother's creations and desires for him. He did not trust his mother that she could make a pie as good and rich and full as his own mudpie. So, he never tasted that delicious chocolate pie his mother made because he never let go of his selfish desires. As he grew older, he finally tasted his mother's wonderful chocolate pie. The moment he put away his selfish desires, willing to trust his mother to make his joy complete, he experienced not joy, but ECSTASY! How could he have ever been happy in his mudpie? How could he have been so blind? How could he have lived his life void of true significance and fulfillment? And now, how could he, once tasting true happiness, keep silent about his newfound passion?
This story is a crude analogy of what has been on my heart about God's genuine joy that He bestows to man, once man, stricken by God, refuses his old man and the ways of the world. Seeing them at face value and understanding the insignificance of life apart from complete devotion to Christ, the once-dead man awakens to a new life with new passions, new desires, and new understandings. How can a man be a "new creation" (2 Cor. 5:17) with his "old things" passing away, and all things becoming NEW, and yet still be holding onto the things in his life that were characteristic of that "old man?"
If you find your greatest joy in following Christ, completely aside from selfish gain, you WILL experience God's infinite joy (even if that is not your goal!). But, if you still try to find joy, completion, happiness, fulfillment, etc by your own power, that old man has not passed away, you have not let go of your happiness and entrusted it to Jesus. Does God call us to live miserable, monastic lives? Absolutely not! (Ps. 35:27) God DELIGHTS in your joy! He wants you to experience HIS true joy! He wants you to lay aside your pride and selfishness and join Him in the glorification of Himself!
There is a movie with an excellent analogy on man's inability to see their sin for what it is, HERE. It ties directly in, because with genuine salvation comes authentic, genuine, God-given JOY!!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Doctrines Defined
I hesitate to take the plunge into defining specific doctrines simply due to the amount of time and resources required to exhaust such a topic, but I understand it to be necessary. In reading Theology, it is easy to understand it for the moment, then forget one's thoughts on it, so, in order to aid that retention of knowledge, I will begin the process of posting doctrines. Feel free to comment, question, or tell me my grammar needs help at anytime.
With that said, let me introduce the idea of doctrine or theology to you in case you don't know. Theology is the, "Intellectual, relational and spiritual act of knowing God through the disciplined and communal practice of understanding and applying His word to all areas of life" (A. Orendorff). Theology comes from two Greek words: theos, meaning God, and logos, meaning word or rational thought. So, theology is rational thought about God. Religion is our belief in God and our effort to live by that belief. Doctrine is the system of beliefs accepted as authoritative. Doctrines are therefore derived from theological studies. For our purposes then, doctrine and theology are interchangeable words; however, doctrine can be used to describe any system of beliefs for any topic or religion. Theology is literally the study of God, so I will use that word most often.
In studying God, the supreme Being of the universe and eternity, organization of facts is crucial. You just thought that research paper was long. Try doing an exhaustive one on the universe, then eternity, then God, then etc . . . Since it is so crucial to be systematic in our approach and organization, most of the great works of theology are called "Systematic Theology." Those who aren't titled this are bad, do not read them (insert sarcasm). This book to the right by Wayne Grudem is an excellent example, and is upwards of 1200 pages, so like I said before, this is an undertaking, but what I plan to do is an "abridged" version of systematic theology in my own words. I will be (consistently) using several sources which I will site below. Anything extra that I use I will cite at the end of each section.
With that said, let me introduce the idea of doctrine or theology to you in case you don't know. Theology is the, "Intellectual, relational and spiritual act of knowing God through the disciplined and communal practice of understanding and applying His word to all areas of life" (A. Orendorff). Theology comes from two Greek words: theos, meaning God, and logos, meaning word or rational thought. So, theology is rational thought about God. Religion is our belief in God and our effort to live by that belief. Doctrine is the system of beliefs accepted as authoritative. Doctrines are therefore derived from theological studies. For our purposes then, doctrine and theology are interchangeable words; however, doctrine can be used to describe any system of beliefs for any topic or religion. Theology is literally the study of God, so I will use that word most often.
In studying God, the supreme Being of the universe and eternity, organization of facts is crucial. You just thought that research paper was long. Try doing an exhaustive one on the universe, then eternity, then God, then etc . . . Since it is so crucial to be systematic in our approach and organization, most of the great works of theology are called "Systematic Theology." Those who aren't titled this are bad, do not read them (insert sarcasm). This book to the right by Wayne Grudem is an excellent example, and is upwards of 1200 pages, so like I said before, this is an undertaking, but what I plan to do is an "abridged" version of systematic theology in my own words. I will be (consistently) using several sources which I will site below. Anything extra that I use I will cite at the end of each section.- Systematic Theology: Charles Hodge
- Systematic Theology: Wayne Grudem
- The Institutes of the Christian Religion: John Calvin
- TableTalk: Martin Luther
I will also use the Bible, (shocker) and if you don't know the references are active in ESV (my favorite). Check it out. . .
2 Tim. 2:15
However, it is not in my plan to do a defensive study, but merely an instructing study (like most systematic theology books.) If I had to both instruct and defend in one sweep, this probably wouldn't last long and I would be a frequent guest of the infamous padded room.
Questions, comments, arguements, etc?
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Why Doctrine? Why Doxology?
The title of this blog may seem abstract, but with this explanation, I hope deeper understanding will come, leading to the greater appreciation for God and His Being.
These two words are what shape our daily lives as children of God. Our spiritual lives consist in two values: truth and emotion. Truth is what shapes our worldview. Theologically, truth is that which is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. This truth, found in the Word of God, when saturated into our minds, "transforms"(Lit. transfigures- Rom. 12:2) them into the likeness of Christ, thereby allowing us as inherently sinful creatures to see His perfect truth. This truth is expressed in the doctrines of the Christian faith. Doctrine is the systematic beliefs of a group of people (in our case Christians, or more specifically Calvinists - assuming you are one). These beliefs are grounded in the truth of God's Being as revealed to us in His Word and His creation.
Systematic truth (doctrine) is not the only factor needed in the Christian's life, despite what some professors and academics may say. The other equally important aspect of a Christian's worshipful life is the continual Doxology of Christ. There were many doxologies in the times of the early church that gave glory to God. The original greek form of "doxology" translated literally to, "words of praise." One common doxology used to end many songs and canticles was the "Minor Doxology,"or "Gloria Patri," which translates to: "Glory be to the Father and the Son." A longer Doxology of which we are somewhat familiar is the "Greater Doxology," or "Gloria in excelsis Deo," which translates to: "Glory to God in the highest." The song "Common Doxology" is the most famous today and is truly the simplest form of true, unhindered worship of God.
Therefore, I submit this treatise on the title of this blog with hopes of creating a truly Christocentric (Christ-centered) web site whose goal is to promote the praise of Christ's immutable perfection through the systematic study and worship of Him.
These two words are what shape our daily lives as children of God. Our spiritual lives consist in two values: truth and emotion. Truth is what shapes our worldview. Theologically, truth is that which is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. This truth, found in the Word of God, when saturated into our minds, "transforms"(Lit. transfigures- Rom. 12:2) them into the likeness of Christ, thereby allowing us as inherently sinful creatures to see His perfect truth. This truth is expressed in the doctrines of the Christian faith. Doctrine is the systematic beliefs of a group of people (in our case Christians, or more specifically Calvinists - assuming you are one). These beliefs are grounded in the truth of God's Being as revealed to us in His Word and His creation.
 |
| Doxology |
Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;The theme of this song is a little subdued I know, but what this song is doing is continually praising God for who He is! This song can be sung by any person with any motive, but to have true doxological attitudes toward God is something not produced by anything man can do or say. This driving force for true doxology is the immense joy found in God's Person and the immutable, authoritative, absolute, divine truth taught by the Bible and interpreted by the Spirit. This is the reason that these two words are inseparable on this blog. If one puts too much confidence in his doctrine, and gives no room for the spirit and praise, he is just as much in error as the one who lives to praise God without ever knowing the beautiful truths of His character. This relationship is best described by Pastor John Piper in his book Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist.
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Awesome Book!! "Truth without emotion produces dead orthodoxy and a church full (or half-full) of artificial admirers (like people who write generic anniversary cards for a living.) On the other hand, emotion without truth produces empty frenzy and cultivates shallow people who refuse the discipline of rigorous thought. But true worship comes from people who are deeply emotional and who love deep and sound doctrine."
Therefore, I submit this treatise on the title of this blog with hopes of creating a truly Christocentric (Christ-centered) web site whose goal is to promote the praise of Christ's immutable perfection through the systematic study and worship of Him.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Blogging for His Glory
As a Christian I felt it was about time I did something constructive for God on the Web. My facebook forum is just not cutting the mustard, so I established this site for forums, debates and just anything you would like to say as a child of God.
I hope to post what is new on my mind frequently if college schedule allows, so maybe you will be encouraged by the "hearing of the Word" and have a "renewed mind" as Romans speaks of.
God bless and may He use this as an encouragement to many.
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