Tag Archives: Christian philosophy

What is the Age of Accountability?

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What is the Age of Accountability? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 12:21pm QUERY: How can we tell when a child reaches the “age of accountability”? ANSWER: The word “accountability” raises two questions: a) Accountable FOR WHAT? and, b) Accountable TO WHOM? The obvious answers are: accountable FOR SIN, and accountable TO GOD. Thus the age of accountability is that point when a child comes to the understanding that he or she is a sinner before God and faces the penalty of eternal punishment. The key word is “understanding.” For there to be sin, four things … Continue reading →

“The Spirit’s Sword”: Resisting Temptation Through the Word

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“The Spirit’s Sword”: Resisting Temptation Through the Word by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, October 8, 2009 at 6:46pm THE SPIRIT’S SWORD Part of the “full armor of God” is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:13, 17). An old hymn speaks of “overcoming daily with the Spirit’s sword.” The question here is this: how can we use the Word of God most effectively in our battle against temptation? For one thing, we must SEEK, KNOW, BELIEVE, and LOVE the truth of God’s Word. We know that when Jesus was tempted, he quoted Scripture … Continue reading →

Depravity: Total, Partial, or None at All?

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Depravity: Total, Partial, or None at All? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, October 2, 2009 at 1:26pm A QUESTIONER ASKS, what Scriptures disqualify (I take this to mean disprove) Total Depravity in human beings? And if Total Depravity is ruled out, does that mean we are PARTIALLY depraved? MY REPLY: Depravity as such has to do with the sinfulness of our human nature, i.e., having a nature that has been infected with sin like the body can be infected with disease. It means having a sinful, evil, spiritually diseased or dead nature. The first issue is WHETHER a sinner’s … 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 →

OT Judicial Killings

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OT Judicial Killings by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Monday, September 7, 2009 at 3:20pm I received this query via e-mail: “A friend questions the morality of a God who condemns sin, specifically murder, yet orders mass killings in the Old Testament. In addition, this friend questions the morality and contradiction of a God who would sentence one to hell for disobedience. All of which is the end result of so-called liberal Christianity that has rejected the Bible as the Word of God. “I have concluded that God sentencing one to hell is a direct result of the holiness of God … Continue reading →

Original Sin and the Incarnation

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Original Sin and the Incarnation by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 10:07am SOMEONE asked me this series of questions: How does an Augustinian (e.g., Calvinist) correlate original sin and the incarnation? Can Jesus be fully human and miss out on original sin? Can his work of redemption be complete if he is not like us in every way (except for sin, of course)? HERE IS MY REPLY: The issues here are these: if all human beings are infected with original sin, and if Jesus is truly a human being, how can he himself AVOID being infected … Continue reading →