The Visible and the Invisible Church

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The Visible and the Invisible Church by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 24, 2009 at 7:49pm HERE IS ANOTHER QUESTION recently received: “In a lesson on the Protestant Reformation Roger Chambers makes the claim that the invisible church, as Calvin, Zwingli, and even Augustine viewed it, is a ‘myth.’ Chambers says that their view was that the ‘real’ church was the invisible church, mainly because they looked around and saw the visible church as being so corrupted. This is why, when Protestant literature speaks of the ‘real’ church, or invisible church, they use the words ‘Christian’ or ‘Church of … Continue reading →

Sons of God and Daughters of Men in Genesis 6

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Sons of God and Daughters of Men in Genesis 6 by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 24, 2009 at 3:43pm Sons of God and Daughters of Men in Genesis 6 I HAVE RECEIVED this inquiry: “A member of my church has grabbed onto some strange teaching that all centers on the interpretation of Genesis 6, that the ‘sons of God’ are fallen angels and that the giants in the land are half man, half demonic beings basically, and that the ‘seed of Satan’ still exists today. He weaves this together with lots of Scriptures that include in the end … Continue reading →

What about tongue-speaking?

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What about tongue-speaking? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 23, 2009 at 2:13pm A FaceBook fan asked, “What can you say about speaking in tongues?” My brief answer: Well, I have already said a LOT about it! In 2006 I published a small book, “The Holy Spirit: A Biblical Study” (College Press, pb., 131p.), in which the last three chapters are all about miraculous spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues. In 2007 I published a large book, “Power from on High: What the Bible Says About the Holy Spirit” (College Press, hb, 506p.), in which the last (long) … Continue reading →

To Whom Should We Pray?

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To Whom Should We Pray? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 23, 2009 at 1:59pm I received this question from a FaceBook friend: “To whom should we pray? Jesus says we are to pray, ‘Our Father who art in heaven’ (Matt. 6:9). He also says if we ask HIM anything, he will do it (John 14:14). The final prayer of the Bible is made to the Son: Rev. 22:20. Is this a big issue?” FOR MY ANSWER, I will copy a couple of paragraphs from my book, “God the Redeemer” (p. 171), from the chapter on the Trinity. The … Continue reading →

A wrong view of law and grace

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A wrong view of law and grace by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, September 18, 2009 at 12:41pm TODAY I RECEIVED the following (edited) inquiry: “In a Bible study, a member asked me about (I can’t recall the exact names, but I believe she said) ‘star, morning and evening’ dispensations. I don’t recall the exact terms. A previous minister had taught on these dispensations. I know he is a Premillennial Dispensationalist. Is this part of dispensational theology, or am I forgetting something? I can’t find any reference to these in the Bible, and neither could I find them in your … Continue reading →

Bibliography on homosexualism

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Bibliography on homosexualism by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 2:33pm A FaceBook friend asked for suggestions re books on both sides of the homosexual question (same-sex attraction). Here is such a list, with notations. Double-asterisk means they are especially recommended. J.Cottrell BAILEY, Derrick Sherwin. Homosexuality and the Western Christian Tradition. London: Longman, Green and Co., 1955. An early revisionist view of Biblical teaching, defending homosexual behavior. BAKER, Don. Beyond Rejection: The Church, Homosexuality and Hope. Portland, OR: Multnomah Press, 1985. The story of a Christian homosexual who asked for his church’s help, and how they responded. … Continue reading →

Are we justified by Christ’s LIFE or by his DEATH–or both?

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Are we justified by Christ’s LIFE or by his DEATH–or both? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 10:27am HERE IS ANOTHER QUESTION I received recently: “I have been following a discussion on a Calvinist blog re: the ‘active obedience’ view of the atonement. I read your section in ‘The Faith Once for All’ [p. 323], wherein you call this a ‘serious error.’ I’d be interested to know why this is such a serious error, i.e. what it in fact might lead to. Thanks for any help.” HERE IS MY REPLY: I usually speak of Christ’s “active … Continue reading →

Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Deity of Christ

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Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Deity of Christ by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 3:40pm AN INQUIRER laid the following scenario before me, asking for some advice: “”I had a visit from a Jehovah’s Witness today. He claims Jesus is not God. He cites John 1:1 from his JW bible — “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.” (The NASB does not include the article “a”.) Is the insertion of the “a” a deliberate attempt to serve their purpose; or what? “”He quoted Colossians 1:15 as … Continue reading →

What about Norman Geisler’s Systematic Theology?

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What about Norman Geisler’s Systematic Theology? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 1:47pm Someone asked me for my opinion of Norman Geisler’s four-volume systematic theology. My opinion of Geisler in general is that he is a much better apologist than theologian. I like his works in the area of apologetics quite a bit and have made use of them often. I don’t agree with him on some things, e.g., his attempt to explain the presence of evil in the world (without evil we could not appreciate the good). Still, I don’t use any of his apologetics … Continue reading →

Origin of the name “Hebrew”

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Origin of the name “Hebrew” by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 1:08pm Someone asked about the origin of the Hebrew term used for the Hebrew people. I take it that the question is about the term “Hebrew” itself, not “Jew” or “Israelite.” The best way to answer such a question is to look in a good Bible dictionary. The following is simply taken from the Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary, ed. Merrill F. Tenney; and Unger’s Bible Dictionary. In the Bible the name “Hebrew” is applied to Abraham and his descendants through Jacob, and is equivalent to … Continue reading →