Tag Archives: Justification

IMPUTED VS. IMPARTED RIGHTEOUSNESS

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IMPUTED VS. IMPARTED RIGHTEOUSNESS by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, June 3, 2011 at 10:05am QUESTION: Can you explain “imparted righteousness”? ANSWER: The real issue here is the distinction between imparted and imputed righteousness, and their relation to salvation, especially as this relates to the definition of justification. This is important because the Bible pictures sinners as being saved by “the righteousness of God” (Rom. 1:17; 3:21-22; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 3:9). I.e., God saves us by transferring his own righteousness to us in some way—by imparting it, or imputing it, or both. What is “righteousness” as such? Most fundamentally, … Continue reading →

GRACE IN OLD TESTAMENT TIMES

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GRACE IN OLD TESTAMENT TIMES by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, June 2, 2011 at 3:40pm QUESTION: Did Adam and Eve, in spite of disobeying the divine law, enter heaven? ANSWER: Let’s take this question a step at a time. First, what heaven are we talking about here? There are at least four kinds mentioned in the Bible. One is the “heavens above,” into which astronauts have entered; but this is probably not the one the inquirer means. Another is the divine heaven, equivalent to the very transcendent essence of God; but no one can enter this “unapproachable light” (1 … Continue reading →

Books By Jack Cottrell

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BOOKS BY JACK COTTRELL by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 1:35pm Someone asked me recently to make a list of my available books. I thought some of you may be interested in the list, so I am publishing it here, mostly as written for another purpose. I, Jack Cottrell (Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary), have taught theology at Cincinnati Christian University for 43 years. During this time I have written 20 books, 16 of which are still in print. The following is a list of these available books. The first seven are available from College Press Publishing … Continue reading →

Salvation and “the Church of Christ”

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Salvation and “the Church of Christ” by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, October 1, 2010 at 10:12am QUESTION: Is it true that only members of the Church of Christ will be saved? ANSWER: The answer to this question depends on what is meant by “the Church of Christ.” To clarify what I mean, I will first distinguish between the “church universal” and local congregations. The church universal is the worldwide body of Christ, the total number of people who are under the saving blood of Jesus. Paul often uses the word “church” in this sense, especially in Ephesians 5:22-32. Here … Continue reading →

BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD (2)

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BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD (2) by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at 3:01pm BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD (2) QUERY: First Corinthians 15:29 says, “Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?” What is Paul saying here? It does not seem to fit with everything else the Bible teaches about personal salvation. ANSWER: What does not seem to “fit” here is the supposed implication that an individual’s personal choices during this lifetime are not necessarily the measure of whether or … Continue reading →

Questions About the Essentiality of Baptism

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Questions About the Essentiality of Baptism by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, April 10, 2010 at 7:22pm QUESTION: An individual asked me some questions about baptism, and I would love to hear your response. Here are the questions: (1) If we are justified through faith (Rom 3:27—4:8) how are we justified in baptism? And (2) what about the man in the desert who is incapable of being baptized? Will he be lost, even if he has a genuine faith? I responded to the latter question by saying this is a rare case and that these types of situations are in … Continue reading →

How Do Calvinists Explain 2 Peter 3:9?

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How Do Calvinists Explain 2 Peter 3:9? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, April 3, 2010 at 3:02pm QUESTION: Calvinists believe in the total depravity of all human beings, which means that no one is able to respond to the gospel in faith and repentance. This requires the belief in unconditional election, which means that God unilaterally chooses to save some sinners but not others. He does this by bestowing upon the chosen ones his irresistible gift of grace, in the form of regeneration, faith, repentance, and justification—all at the same time. He COULD do the same thing for every … Continue reading →

Is Baptism a Sacrament?

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Is Baptism a Sacrament? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 7:54am QUESTION: Is baptism a sacrament? ANSWER: The short answer is NO, because there is no such thing as a sacrament. From a Biblical perspective, the category of “sacraments” does not exist. From an historical perspective, though, quite early in Christian history the Latin term “sacramentum” was used to translate the Biblical (Greek) word “mysterion,” or “mystery.” Since in the NT a “mysterion” refers to divine truths hidden to man, the word began to be used for sacred things in general, especially those with mysterious and … Continue reading →

Were Old Testament Saints Truly Forgiven?

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Were Old Testament Saints Truly Forgiven? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 12:34pm QUESTION: I have heard it said that God could not truly forgive sins until Jesus died on the cross; therefore the Old Testament saints were in a real sense “put on hold” and were not actually forgiven and allowed into Paradise until after Jesus died. Until that time, according to this view, they were in a kind of neutral “holding pen,” or state of limbo called the “limbus patrem,” the “limbo of the fathers,” where (as one writer says) “the just of the … Continue reading →

What Does 1 John 1:9 Mean?

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What Does 1 John 1:9 Mean? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, January 16, 2010 at 10:40am QUERY: You have said that a faulty understanding of 1 John 1:9 is a roadblock to a proper understanding of grace and a genuine sense of assurance. Please explain what 1 John 1:9 means. ANSWER: I have done this in my book, “Set Free! What the Bible Says About Grace” (pp. 314-316). The following is mostly from that source: A main roadblock to assurance is a faulty understanding of 1 John 1:9. This familiar text reads, “If we confess our sins, He is … Continue reading →