Restitutio

An Antique Map of Palestine What do you know about Palestinians?  In this eye-opening interview with Gloria Olivier, we discuss the plight of Palestinians today.  Did you know that thousands of Christians live in the West Bank today under Israeli occupation?  In this interview, you’ll learn a little about the history of this conflict as well as what conditions are like on the ground.  Now I...

In our last episode , we laid the theological foundation for a new covenant doctrine: Christ fulfilled the Law and ratified the new covenant, which opened a new way of relating to God apart from obedience to Torah.  Now we will discuss a number of texts that sometimes confuse Christians into thinking the Law is still in effect today.  We’ll cover Jesus’ obedience to Torah, several scri...

We are now in our second-to-last episode in this 24-part theology class, covering the major biblical doctrines as well as various counterarguments.  Today we will focus our time on the New Covenant.  We’ll make our way through biblical history in order to understand the grand sweep of the bible, paying special attention to the old and new covenants.  Of special note for this lecture is what...

Pull up a chair and listen in as we discuss and wrestle with some verses that proponents of eternal security use to make their case.  Now there will be some overlap here with our last episode, but also some new content as well.  We’ll discuss texts that seem to imply that salvation has nothing to do with works, that we already have eternal life, that salvation is permanent, and lastly that t...

We’ll delve into the multifaceted theology of salvation (aka soteriology).  We’ll look at all three tenses of salvation: how we were saved, are being saved, and will be saved.  Now, I realize this can be a very sensitive and controversial subject, depending on what your preexisting doctrinal commitments are.  However, I simply ask that you listen carefully and test what I say here agai...

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 when what he says conflicts with our sensibilities, comfort, or common sen...

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 conversions in the book of Acts to discover the four elements of conversion: bel...

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 Victor Moral Exemplar Satisfaction Penal Substitutio...

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 you’ll learn about the eight main biblical reasons why Jesus d...

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 work through it all in one episode, but we can at least overvie...

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 technical, though I did my best to make the grammatical Greek points understan...

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 spirit in the upper room discourse. —— Notes —— The Old Testament on Spirit H...

Now I realize we are in the middle of our theology class, but I thought this would be a good time to take a quick break and put out my recent presentation from Restoration Fellowship’s 2019 Theological Conference, titled, “The Trinity before Nicea.”  Next week we’ll get back to theology and build up a biblical theology of the holy spirit, but for now, let’s dive into...

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, the bible provides clear precedents for the idea t...

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 Issues: 1 Timothy 3.1...

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’ role as messiah was and is the organizing center of his identity.  Join...

How many is God?  Although the ancient Shema (recorded in Deuteronomy 6) teaches that God is one, Christian theologians have put forward a number of reasons arguing for a plurality within God.  We will examine a number of these words, texts, and reasonings in an effort to agree with Jesus who wholeheartedly affirmed the Jewish Shema as his own greatest commandment. —— Notes —— State the Doctrine S...

Today we’ll tackle the biggest question of all: who is God?  We’ll take a journey through scripture together to discover what God is like, stopping at key moments to consider what this or that interaction tells us about him. —— Notes —— theology: one’s understanding of God Ontology vs. Functionality ontology: understanding something based on what it is (it’s essence) tendency to define...

Today we’ll take a look at a number of confusing scriptures that seem to indicate that hell is a place where the wicked are consciously tormented forever.  We’ll look at texts that talk about weeping and gnashing of teeth as well as the how the worm will not die nor the fire be quenched.  We’ll consider biblical phrases like “eternal punishment,” “eternal fire,&...

What is the destiny of the unrighteous?  Christians over the centuries have put forward three major options: eternal conscious torment (traditionalism), temporary torment followed by salvation (universalism), temporary torment followed by destruction (annihilationism).  In this lecture we'll cover the main texts supporting the annihilation of the wicked as well as three logical problems with the t...

In our last episode, we examined the broad scope of scripture, stopping at many texts along the way that teach about a future kingdom when Jesus returns.  In this session, we’ll take a look at a number of sometimes misunderstood texts that seem to imply the kingdom is either already present or in heaven. Here is the picture of the Greek manuscript known as Codex Vaticanus on Luke 23.43 with...

We now begin a series of four lectures on the eternal destiny of the righteous and the wicked, including the kingdom and the judgement.  For today we are going to focus on what God promises for his own people in the age to come.  We’ll cruise through the entire bible (right from Genesis to Revelation), making key stops along the way to understand the golden thread, woven throughout scripture...

In our last episode we looked at what the scriptures teach about humanity, including creation, death, and resurrection.  I laid out a case for conditional immortality from several important texts.  This time, we will consider a number of challenges to this understanding including: Philippians 1.23 “depart and be with Christ” 1 Corinthians 5.8 “absent from the body…present w...

In this lecture, you'll learn about anthropology--the bible's view of humanity.  In particular, we'll focus on the two ends of the spectrum: creation and death.  We'll see how the biblical view of humanity is rather exalted since we are made in God's image.  We'll examine what the bible teaches about death and resurrection and how the intermediate state is regularly labeled sleep.  —— Notes —— Why...

In this presentation you'll learn about the core creed of the bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, the Shema, and how that relates to the smattering of texts in which Jesus may be called "God."  If Yahweh alone is God then how can Jesus be God too?  Are there two Gods or is something else going on?  The answer is the principle of agency.  Jesus can be called God because he represents God. It...