Tag Archives: Creation

WHAT IS CENTRAL TO OUR LIVES?

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

WHAT IS CENTRAL TO OUR LIVES? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Tuesday, September 11, 2012 at 10:56am QUESTION: In my understanding and in my experience as a Christian, Jesus is the center of everything we do. Yet in your note about Jesus and the Biblical world view, you say Jesus is not the center. How can this be? ANSWER: Several of my readers were confused and/or upset by my Facebook note on how Jesus relates to the Biblical world view. They were disturbed that I said that God’s work of creation is the fundamental, foundational, central element of our world … Continue reading →

JESUS AND THE BIBLICAL WORLD VIEW

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

JESUS AND THE BIBLICAL WORLD VIEW by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, September 8, 2012 at 2:34pm QUESTION: Why are so many pious-sounding yet false doctrines held by so many people, and thought to be based on the Bible? ANSWER: OK, I admit it. I made up this question myself, just to give me an excuse for writing what follows. It does relate, however, to some recent comments related to the upcoming (Nov. 2012) election. I am coming more and more to realize that one of the most prolific sources of doctrinal error, or one of the biggest hindrances to … Continue reading →

IS CREMATION MORALLY PERMISSIBLE?

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

IS CREMATION MORALLY PERMISSIBLE? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, July 4, 2012 at 9:52am IS CREMATION MORALLY PERMISSIBLE? QUESTION: Is it wrong to cremate the body of a deceased person? Does this practice in some way violate the Christian belief in the resurrection of the dead? ANSWER: I have a book called “The History of American Funeral Directing,” written by Robert Habenstein and William Lamers (1955). On page 4 the authors point out the cultural diversity regarding the choice of methods of disposing of bodies: “Assume that we are confronted with the dead body of a man. What disposition … Continue reading →

UNDERSTANDING HOMOSEXUALISM

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

UNDERSTANDING HOMOSEXUALISM by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Monday, June 11, 2012 at 1:41pm QUESTION: If homosexualism is wrong, what should be the Christian’s attitude toward it? ANSWER: Here are some general considerations. ONE. The first thing is that we must distinguish between a homosexual disposition and homosexual behavior. A homosexual disposition is a real sexual preference for or attraction to persons of one’s own sex. Such a person is “a homosexual” (gay or lesbian), whether sexually active or not. On the other hand, homosexual behavior refers to sexual desire and sexual contact between persons of the same sex. Homosexual desire, … Continue reading →

HOMOSEXUALISM IN THE BIBLE

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

HOMOSEXUALISM IN THE BIBLE by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Monday, June 11, 2012 at 1:31pm QUESTION: Can you summarize the Biblical data on homosexualism? ANSWER: The Bible is clear about God’s creation-intention for sexuality. The male-female, husband-wife sexual relationship is established in the creation (Gen. 1:27-28; 2:18-25) and is assumed everywhere else in Scripture. Jesus reaffirmed the divine plan in Matt. 19:4-6; Paul does the same in 1 Cor. 7:2. The Bible clearly teaches that homosexual behavior is sinful. (My practice is to refer to homosexual behavior, which is always sinful, as homosexualism. I refer to the homosexual condition as … Continue reading →

The Cross and the Resurrection

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

The Cross and the Resurrection by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, March 9, 2012 at 10:16am QUESTION: We talk a lot about Jesus’ death on the cross as the event that brings about our salvation from sin, but was not his resurrection from the dead just as important as the cross? Isn’t his resurrection part of the dying for the sins of the world? In his resurrection did he not take the keys of death and hell away from Satan? If there were no resurrection would we not still be in our sins? ANSWER: Without a doubt the resurrection of … Continue reading →

IS GOD MORE THAN THREE PERSONS?

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

IS GOD MORE THAN THREE PERSONS? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, February 10, 2012 at 12:11pm QUESTION: We speak about the “three persons in the Godhead,” i.e., the Trinity. We also say that God has revealed Himself in these three persons as performing different roles for salvation purposes. Is it not possible that the omnipotent God could reveal Himself in MORE than three persons with other roles? Perhaps he has revealed Himself in just three persons because these are enough and sufficient to save mankind. ANSWER: This speculation is quite faulty, and it is based on a false assumption … Continue reading →

Acts 13:48 and Calvinism

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

Acts 13:48 and Calvinism by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, December 23, 2011 at 3:56pm QUESTION: Can you explain the meaning of Acts 13:48? It sounds very much like Calvinism to me. ANSWER: This text summarizes the response of the Gentiles to the powerful preaching of the Apostle Paul at Antioch of Pisidia: “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed” (ESV). As usually translated, it is very true that this passage supports the key Calvinist doctrine of unconditional predestination (the “U” … Continue reading →

Can We Cooperate with Christian Groups?

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

Can We Cooperate with Christian Groups? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 at 7:34pm QUESTION #1 – “Some parachurch organizations use the 1974 Lausanne Covenant to describe what they believe. What are your thoughts about this?” QUESTION #2 – “What do you think of the Manhattan Declaration? Have you signed it? How can we cooperate with those whose doctrine is different from ours?” ANSWER: The former question came today; the latter came some months ago. Each involves the same two issues: (1) Can we endorse the doctrine expressed in these documents? And, (2) can we in good … Continue reading →

Environmental Ethics

Jack Cottrell Posted on by

Environmental Ethics by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, August 13, 2011 at 2:42pm QUESTION: Do you believe that polluting the environment is a sin? ANSWER: Based on the creation mandate (Genesis 1:26-28), I have to say, definitely, yes. When God created the human race in his own image, He gave us dominion over the earth and everything in it. We have the divine mandate, as stewards acting for the Creator, to subdue the earth and have dominion over it. This is comparable to owning a house and renting it to another family. What is their responsibility toward that house? How … Continue reading →