Tag Archives: Original sin

Baptism and Original Sin

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Baptism and Original Sin by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, September 3, 2010 at 2:29pm QUESTION: How does baptism relate to original sin? ANSWER: To answer this question we must first begin with the fact that the NT teaches that baptism is a salvation event. I.e., it teaches that baptism is the point of time when God bestows the double cure for the problem of sin. In that moment God takes away the GUILT of sin by uniting us with Jesus Christ’s atoning death. This is called “baptism for the forgiveness of sins” (Acts 2:38). Also in that moment God … Continue reading →

“Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?” Questioning the Question.

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“Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?” Questioning the Question. by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, August 20, 2010 at 3:50pm “Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?” QUESTION: A brother has written expressing his dismay upon discovering that his church’s preacher and many of its elders do not see baptism as related to salvation, appealing, e.g., to the thief on the cross and to the hypothetical new believer lost in the desert. One elder is quoted as saying, “You will never get me to believe you have to be baptized to get to heaven.” Another elder cited a quote from Hicks and Taylor’s … Continue reading →

“Religion” vs. a Relationship with God

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“Religion” vs. a Relationship with God by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 11:21am QUESTION: What do you think of this statement? – “Religion is a worthless, man-made idea; but having a relationship with God means discovering the satisfaction in Him to be so great that it grants you the WILLINGNESS to turn away from sin.” ANSWER: Whether this statement is valid or not depends first of all on how you are defining “religion.” In its most generic definition, religion IS one’s relationship with whatever is considered to be deity. If this is the starting point, then … Continue reading →

WHAT WILL BE OUR ACTIVITIES IN HEAVEN?

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WHAT WILL BE OUR ACTIVITIES IN HEAVEN? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Saturday, May 22, 2010 at 1:06pm QUESTION: What kinds of activities will we be engaged in when we get to heaven? ANSWER: To answer this question, I have selected some paragraphs from chapter 32, “Heaven,” of my book, “The Faith Once for All.” Here I divide our activities in heaven into physical, mental, and spiritual. Regarding the PHYSICAL, what about activities that give us physical pleasure in our present lives, i.e., eating, drinking, and sex? This question is neither irrelevant nor irreverent, for these are normal and good … Continue reading →

The Age of Accountability and Baptism

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The Age of Accountability and Baptism by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 2:24pm QUESTION: Have you written anything that particularly addresses the age of accountability and the baptizing of children? I have heard many discussions lately concerning: “Is the child not accountable one moment and then accountable the next? Must the child reach the state in which he is lost, for whatever length of time, before he can be baptized? Must he go out of the kingdom in order to come back into it again?” What do you think? REPLY: On the age of accountability as … 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 →

Who Are the “Elect Angels” in 1 Timothy 5:21?

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Who Are the “Elect Angels” in 1 Timothy 5:21? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 2:55pm QUERY: Today I came across 1 Timothy 5:21, which refers to “the elect angels.” This seems to say that angels are elect. How does this tie in with elect humans in regards to Calvinism? Are there any verses that say that angels had/have free will and made their own decisions? ANSWER: We know relatively little about angels in general, but we do know that there is an invisible and a visible creation (Col. 1:16), which probably refer to this physical … Continue reading →

Are “the Days of Our Lives” Planned or Set by God?

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Are “the Days of Our Lives” Planned or Set by God? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Friday, February 12, 2010 at 11:04am INQUIRY: Have all the days of our lives already been planned or set by God? If God has “set” the days for our lives, does our free will change that? E.g, when a baby is aborted, does that change the days God had originally set for that life? When we abuse our own bodies (e.g., via smoking, drinking, over-eating), does that change the days He had set for us? Or has He somehow worked that into His plan? … Continue reading →

Does Col. 1:15 Say That Jesus Is a Created Being?

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Does Colossians 1:15 Say That Jesus Is a Created Being? by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 3:10pm QUESTION: Do NT references to Jesus as “firstborn” (e.g., Colossians 1:15) and “begotten” (e.g., Heb. 5:5) imply that he is a created being? ANSWER: It is true that the human aspect of Jesus of Nazareth, and thus the human being, Jesus of Nazareth, had his beginning (came into existence for the first time) in the womb of Mary when the angel’s promise in Luke 1:35 was fulfilled. In that same moment the divine aspect of Jesus, namely, the second … Continue reading →

Modalism: An Heretical View of the Trinity

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Modalism: An Heretical View of the Trinity by Jack Cottrell (Notes) on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 1:54pm QUERY: I have a question about modalism. I know the early church condemned it as a heresy, but is it serious enough to be a threat to one’s salvation? What is the Biblical evidence against it? REPLY: Traditional, orthodox Christian faith says Jesus Christ is not only equal with the Father; he is also distinct from the Father in that he is a separate, distinct person, i.e., a separate center of consciousness with his own distinct thoughts, emotions, and actions. This point … Continue reading →