"Holy baptism" : a reconsideration of the doctrine of holy baptism in the light of recent research
- Authors: Moore, Robert Humphrey
- Date: 1974
- Subjects: Baptism in the Holy Spirit , Holy Spirit -- Biblical teaching
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1239 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007686 , Baptism in the Holy Spirit , Holy Spirit -- Biblical teaching
- Description: Conclusion: This study has helped us to perceive the significance of Christian Baptism as it arose from its antecedents, and yet differed decisively from them in meaning and significance. We have seen how Baptism grew from the New Testament situation into the life of the Early Church. We have considered the sacramental nature of Baptism, that here, while the Community is visibly active, in this holy sacrament, God is the doer of what is done. It is by Him, whose Grace is seen in Jesus Christ, that we are brought to new life within the Community of His Covenant and what He can do for adults, He can do for infants as well. However, it is good for us to remember that His presence is also for our judgement, and that there therefore remains upon us as individuals and as Community the requirement of faith and faithfulness. We have seen how it is that the Holy Spirit is given in Baptism, and we believe it is through His indwelling presence and power that we are able to come into the Family of God and enjoy that fellowship with Him, which is salvation. We have also seen that, despite many centuries of thought and study, no final doctrinal definition of Baptism is yet achieved, and that the Churches are still giving this serious attention.
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- Date Issued: 1974
"The congregational way" : an historical study of the congregational doctrine of the church
- Authors: De Gruchy, John Wesley
- Date: 1961
- Subjects: Congregational churches , Congregationalism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1276 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013317
- Description: From Preface: In this Ecumenical Age it is necessary that each Christian Communion consider again its particular doctrine of the Church, and restate it for the benefit of the whole Body of Christ. This Thesis is an attempt to show some historical and theological facets of the traditional Congregational doctrine of the Church. However, it must be stated that a full exposition of Congregational ecclesiology is an impossible task for any thesis. Firstly, inherent within Congregationalism is the fear of dogmatizing about matters of faith and practice. It has expressed itself in Statements and Declarations but always with the qualification that these things are 'commonly believed amongst us' Therefore, Congregationalism, while it has a characteristic ecclesiology, has never formulated a rigid pattern of Churchmanship which has to be adhered to by all the Churches. Secondly, a full study of Congregational ecclesiology would entail the study of the practices of every Congregational Church through the ages. That is an impossible task. Therefore, we have been confined to available material; but material which nevertheless expresses what we would regard as traditional congregationalism. Thirdly, a study of this nature must be content merely to state, however critically, what Congregationalists have believed about the Church at various times in the history of Congregationalism. It is impossible to convey the pulse and feeling of the life of a Congregational Church, for it is very important in seeking to understand any Churchmanship, not only to understand its theological form and structure, but also to experience its ' koinonia ' in its common life and worship.
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- Date Issued: 1961
A comparison between the views of Jonathan Edwards and John Wesley regarding the sovereignty of God
- Authors: Robertson, Alan Charles
- Date: 1977
- Subjects: Edwards, Jonathan, 1703-1758 , Wesley, John, 1703-1791 , Free will and determinism , Predestination -- History of doctrines , God -- Omniscience -- History of doctrines , Atonement
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1268 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013067
- Description: The views of Edwards and Wesley regarding the sovereignty of God present a puzzle. On the face of things, both were successful evangelists while both held contrary doctrines of sovereignty. Does this mean that the doctrine of sovereignty is irrelevant? This thesis argues that the doctrine of sovereignty is crucial in evangelism and revival, and that the views of Edwards and Wesley regarding the sovereignity of God were in fact very similar. A useful framework for showing this is the Five Points of Calvinism, as well as the doctrines of justification by faith and the omnipotence of God.
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- Date Issued: 1977
A comparison of the views of modern scholars on the origin, date and importance for O.T. study of the Dead Sea Scrolls
- Authors: Sheriffs, Robert J A
- Date: 1954
- Subjects: Dead Sea scrolls
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1273 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013179
- Description: In the early part of 1948 an announcement was made concerning the discovery of some ancient manuscripts in Palestine; to this discovery sober and distinguished scholars applied adjectives like 'sensational' and 'phenomenal' - words that not commonly applied to the discovery of manuscripts in the world of scholarship.
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- Date Issued: 1954
A consideration of the relations between Church and industry
- Authors: Hulley, L D
- Date: 1968
- Subjects: Industries -- Religious aspects , Church and industry , Christian life
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1295 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015396
- Description: [From Chapter 1]. The first point I wish to make, in fact it can be considered the primary one in this essay for what is to follow is a response to it, is that theology must be responding theology. This is a theology which takes the world seriously and responds to it in a Christian way. This is the approach we find in the New Testament: particularly in the Epistles, concrete problems and behaviour in the lives of his converts to which St. Paul responded prompted the didactic sections of his epistles. J. G. Davies supports this view in Planning for Mission "There are ... two primary realities'' he says "with which the congregation must be concerned: The Gospel of God and the world to which it is sent. 'Authentic theology' emerges out of the dialogue between the Gospel and the world." This is what Tillich calls the method of correlation. First we make an analysis of our situation and then try to relate the Christian message to the problems within it. While this compels us to rethink and reformulate many traditional Christian views, nothing "can change the substance of ... the ... answer, because this is the logos of being, manifest in Jesus as the Christ." This does not say that "we have all the answers" (in fact it will become clear that we do not), but it does express our conviction that the Christian Gospel has to do with life in all its aspects.
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- Date Issued: 1968
A holy people: a study in the ecclesiology of Andrew Murray
- Authors: Neethling, Johann Christiaan
- Date: 1975
- Subjects: Murray, Andrew, 1828-1917 , Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk , Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Afrika -- History , Nederduitse Gereformeerde Gemeente Worcester , Nederduitse Gereformeerde Gemeente Bloemfontein , Nederduitse Gereformeerde Gemeente Wellington , Theology, Doctrinal -- South Africa -- History , Church history
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1287 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013592
- Description: The thesis seeks to show Andrew Murray's growing understanding of what it meant to be the elect of God in contrast to other prevailing notions. In his confrontation with the Trekker communities, the majority of whom were rigid Calvinists, stressing a divine election based on the notions of biological and cultural identity, Murray found little of the holy behaviour which ought to characterize the people of God. The elect should be seen to be the elect by their fruits. Instead there was divisiveness, discrimination, party spirit and other forms of ungodliness. Faced with the immensity of the task in identifying the true Church and building God's people up in holiness, Murray began to sense the necessity of another 'dimension' within the Church's regular means of grace of preaching, the sacraments, and discipline. The revival of 1860, focussed Murray's attention in a new and vital way on the work of the Holy Spirit in breathing new life into the Church and in empowering believers to live lives pleasing to God. The 'indiscriminate' effects of the Holy Spirit's work convinced Murray that the Gospel and thus the Church was not the possession of the white colonist, Dutch or English, but that the black and brown man had an equal claim on the Gospel and as much right to become a member of Christ's Church. Murray's understanding of the Christian life as continual abiding in Christ by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit meant that the believer came to have the mind of Christ and to partake of His holiness. This holiness evidenced itself in the believer having Christ's concern for the lost. Mission, therefore, became this supreme end of the Church. The struggle with the forces of liberalism raised the new issue that unbelievers could no longer be simply 'heathen blacks' or English but most of all Dutch. The support of the civil courts of those disciplined by the Church brought the whole problem of ecclesiology to the fore and led Murray to the conclusion of the necessary separation of the Church from the State. Murray's discovery that in various ages, nations and Church traditions there were those with the same passionate desire for God' s holiness, led him into an increasing awareness of the catholicity of the Church. True holiness demanded the love and unity of all God's children. Murray's ecclesiology was a biblically-based one at a time when communities were beginning to be formed by other than biblical notions and principles and by a people who were trying to pack more into the notion of a people of God than Scripture gave warrant for. The emphasis for which Murray stood made for an ecclesiology that simply could not be confined.
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- Date Issued: 1975
A study of certain aspects of the Mount Coke Missionary Institution
- Authors: Walker, James Andrew
- Date: 1955
- Subjects: Shaw, William, 1798-1872 , Missions -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Missionaries -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1282 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013463
- Description: In searching for information concerning the chain of stations that William Shaw established from the Eastern Frontier of the Cape Colony towards Natal, I found that I had to consult many books. Many sources of information have recently come to light and this had to be analysed as well. In this work much had to be included that did not directly refer to Mount Coke, but it is relevant in that it affected the history of the Mission, and the effect of the Mission on the community as a whole. When histories of all the stations are written the incidents should show up in the right perspective.
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- Date Issued: 1955
A study of the concept of the church in the Pauline Corpus and in Luke-Acts with special reference to the reasons for differences in their understanding
- Authors: Maclean, Iain Stewart
- Date: 1980
- Subjects: Bible. Luke -- Theology -- Criticism, interpretation, etc. Bible. Acts -- Theology -- Criticism, interpretation, etc. Pauline churches
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1227 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006984
- Description: This essay consists of six chapters with an introduction and conclusion. INTRODUCTION: The introduction sets out the scope of the essay and states the methodology that is followed. CHAPTER I: THE PEOPLE OF GOD. This and the next two chapters deal with the Pauline conception of the Church. This chapter deals in particular with Paul's understanding of the continuity of the Church with Israel. The Old 'Testament terms and types that Paul uses are examined and their new application to the Church noted. The Church is examined as the "people of God", the "ekklesia" the "saints", the "elect" and the "temple of the Holy Spirit". CHAPTER II: THE WHOLE CHRIST. This chapter deals with the understanding of the Church as being "in Christ", as being "with Christ" in his redemptive acts. Here the close union between Christ and the Christian is examined,especially as it is conveyed by the "local" understanding of "in Christ" and the Christians' participation "with Christ" in baptism. The term fellowship (Koinonia) is also examined. The chapter concludes that Paul regards Christians as being "solid" with Christ. CHAPTER III: THE BODY OF CHRIST. Here the corporate understanding of the Church as the Body of Christ is examined. After a brief survey of various theories of origin it is suggested that the formula and concept itself was an original Pauline formulation. The "body of Christ" is closely identified with the actual redemptive acts, but it is exceeding the figures usage to regard the Church under this figure as the Iiteral physical body of Christ. While the term is used metaphorically, it is yet more than a metaphor. It expresses the corporate nature of the Christian Church, in its union with Christ. CHAPTER IV: LUKE, JESUS AND THE COMMUNITY. This chapter looks at Luke's treatment of Jesus' purpose. It seeks to answer the question as to whether Jesus intended to found a community. The question of eschatology and its relationship to the Lukan concept of the Church is examined. It is shown that Luke did have an interest in eschatology and that this did not prevent him conceiving of Jesus' founding a community. CHAPTER V: THE RESTORATION OF THE PEOPLE OF GOD (ISRAEL). We see in this chapter that Luke has an unique ecclesiology. For he does conceive of a Church, but one that is essentially Jewish, in fact the restored Israel. Luke only envisages one Israel, from which unbelieving Jews are cut off. This Israel, as part of its restoration, comprehends within itself both the Samaritans (who are viewed by Luke more as Jews than non-Jews) and the Gentiles. CHAPTER VI: THE APOSTLES, THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE COMMUNITY. The Apostles are regarded by Luke as the regents of the restored Israel, not really as the guarantors of a Jesus tradition or as the first ecclesiastical officials. As such they are instrumental in showing the Church's continuity with Israel and the events of Jesus' Resurrection and Ascension. They are vital for the Lukan conception of the restoration of Israel. When this is done by the inclusion of believing Jews, Samaritans and Gentiles, they disappear from Luke's account. The Holy Spirit is viewed as Jesus' gift to the Church, which guides it into an understanding of its universal nature. The Holy Spirit is seen as essential in Christian initiation. Participation in the Holy Spirit, together with the Church's common origin, give the Church its unity and life. CONCLUSION. The conclusion sums up the Lukan and the Pauline concepts of the Church, noting both their similarities and the points wherein they differ. Reasons are advanced for these differences.
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- Date Issued: 1980
A study of the place of the eucharist in ecumenical discussion
- Authors: Reimers, D G
- Date: 1964
- Subjects: Ecumenical movement , Lord's Supper
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1267 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013058
- Description: Christian disunity, as has been shown by Rouse and Neill, has been a major problem in the Church from the time of its inception. In Apostolic times Paul had to face serious dissension at Corinth and elsewhere. The great councils of the 4th and 5th centuries were convened to settle doctrinal disputes. The schism between Eastern and Western Christianity, which finally became permanent at about the end of the 12th century, was the result of thoroughgoing doctrinal as well as cultural differences. At the Reformation, Christianity was again drastically divided and between the 16th and 19th centuries,divisions were greatly multiplied. Chap. 1, p. 1.
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- Date Issued: 1964
A study of ΔIAQHKH
- Authors: Bird, Ian Keith
- Date: 1965
- Subjects: Covenant theology , Covenants -- Religious aspects -- Judaism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1285 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013510
- Description: From Preface: The Church has been divided from its very earliest days, when Christians of Jewish origin found it hard to accept that uncircumcised Gentiles might be Christians too. (See Acts 15, Galatians 2, etc.) It has since then known division into East and West, into Roman Catholic and Protestant, and into the hundreds and even thousands of denominations and sects which we know today, not to speak of the schisms between 'modernism' and 'fundamentalism', between Calvinism and Arminianism, and between 'High' and 'Low' churchmanship. We are, however, being reminded more and more by the Ecumenical Movement that the Church of Christ is ONE. Jesus said: "On this rock I will build my Church" (not churches) - Matt. 16:18.
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- Date Issued: 1965
Abraham as a covenant mediator
- Authors: Mitchell, Gordon Barry
- Date: 1978
- Subjects: Abraham (Biblical patriarch) , Covenant theology -- Biblical teaching
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1238 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007657 , Abraham (Biblical patriarch) , Covenant theology -- Biblical teaching
- Description: Conclusion: The [Abrahamic] stories reveal a man caught up in the struggle of faith. But the God who took the initiative in establishing the Covenant shows that in spite of first appearances, He is faithful. The stories present various pictures of Abraham as a Covenant Mediator. Because he is in a sense Israel in microcosm it is not strange that he is described in the terms of Israel's most important institutions: prophet, priest, and king. Nevertheless the most significant Sitz im Leben is the family. While he is usually meant to be understood as an individual representing his immediate family, his descendants, and even all nations, at times, because he is the founding ancestor of Israel and therefore Israel in microcosm, he is best understood as a "Corporate Person". He and Israel are to be a source of blessing to the nations.
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- Date Issued: 1978
An attempt to assess the part played by Puritan unrest in the causes of the English civil war
- Authors: Dowie, Donald Ian
- Date: 1965
- Subjects: England -- Church history -- 17th century Puritans -- England Great Britain -- History -- Puritan revolution, 1642-1660 Great Britain -- History -- Civil War, 1642-1649
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1248 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011414
- Description: The problem which confronts us at the outset, is the problem which has been facing historians for the past three hundred years: What were the causes of the English Civil War? What matters were responsible for the decisive split between Crown & Parliament into two distinct parties, and which ultimately led to civil war? Many theories and interpretations have been given. In this chapter, we will find that there are three major interpretations. The first is that it was a religious struggle - and so the Civil War became known as the 'Puritan Revolution'. The second is that it was a purely political conflict between the Crown and its Ministers, on the one hand, and the House of Commons, which had by then become the 'mirror' of the Puritan element in the country, on the other. And the third is that it was a class, or economic, war. Contemporary historians tended to regard it as a twofold struggle - a conflict over religion on the one hand, and the constitution on the other. It was they who coined the phrase 'Puritan Revolution'. This interpretation, however, has subsequently been challenged, in the light of the detailed research which has been conducted - especially in the field of economic history. And so the Civil War has been interpreted in terms of a social and economic conflict - it is said to be a class war. The social and economic factors have tended to become emphasized while the religious have been pushed into the background - often excluded altogether. It is my intention in this thesis, therefore, to assert once again the very real part played by religious matters in the origins of the English Civil War. Intro., p. 1.
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- Date Issued: 1965
An evaluaton of the subjective element in atonement doctrine
- Authors: Perkins, Edwin Alfred
- Date: 1967
- Subjects: Atonement , Subjectivity -- Religious aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1266 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013025
- Description: The Church has never formulated an official doctrine of the atonement. Unlike the Trinitarian and Christological doctrines, the atonement was never a major issue in the early ecumenical councils. This central mystery of the faith, which speaks of the restoring of the relationship between God and man through Jesus Christ, has resisted every attempt at 'a formulation or statement in a nutshell'. Tillich has suggested that the Church's refusal to state the doctrine in definite dogmatic terms, is the instinctive recognition of the indefiniteness which is introduced by the human element. This element means that the doctrine has a subjective as well as an objective element. Since in his view the subjective element depends on the incalculable reaction of men to God's provision of a Saviour the formulation of the doctrine must remain uncertain. While we will agree with Tillich that the atonement has an objective as well as a subjective side, we cannot agree that the failure to formulate a doctrine has only to do with the uncertainty implied by the will of men. Intro. p, 1.
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- Date Issued: 1967
An exposition and evaluation of John Calvin's teaching on the sacraments, with particular reference to the sacrament of the Lord's supper in its liturgical context
- Authors: Orr, Robert
- Date: 1954
- Subjects: Lord's Supper (Liturgy) -- History , Sacraments -- Reformed Church , Calvin, Jean, 1509-1564
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1294 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015226
- Description: Misinterpretations of John Calvin's theology are legion. It is hoped that this thesis does not add to their number. The basis for this lies in the fact that the task of writing on the subject has of course compelled the writer to do his utmost to comprehend what Calvin had to say concerning the Sacraments both in the Institutions and in the Scriptural Commentaries ... .The attempt has been made to refract Calvin's thought on the Sacrament, using certain key-concepts as prisms, and from the results thus obtained, to draw certain conclusions from which, it is hoped, will not be unprofitable to the life of the Holy Catholic Church. It is thus to be reagrded as an essay in historical theology rather than a whole-hearted attempt to reconstruct Calvin's exposition of the sacrament in the light of what has been revealed to us in the intervening years.
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- Date Issued: 1954
An historical survey of the Bethelsdorp station of the London Missionary Society, from its inception, and until the death of Doctor van der Kemp, in 1811
- Authors: Briggs, D Roy
- Date: 1952
- Subjects: London Missionary Society -- History , Bethelsdorp (South Africa) -- History
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1290 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1014609
- Description: In South Africa the small town or hamlet, nestling - as is so often the case - at the foot of a mountain, frequently proclaims its identity to the traveller by inscribing its name in great, white-washed letters of stone upon the side of the hill. If this were the case with Bethelsdorp, the temptation would be to write on those bare, rocky hills, that form the back-drop for the drama a century and a half have seen on its stage, the one word, "Ichabod." For the glory has departed. And some would even question whether any of its days had been glorious. Around this small outpost of Christendom have centred, from its earliest beginnings, both praise and contumely. It is the purpose of this investigation to attempt to judge between these opinions, in an attempt to arrive at the truth, by a survey of the years Bethelsdorp enjoyed under the direction of Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp. He has had many critics, many protagonists: perhaps of no other man in the short history of this land has there been such diversity of opinion. Before the judgments of historians and biographers can be assessed, however, the facts of his work must be appreciated, and the effort towards understanding must be preceded by a brief description of the circumstances antecedent to the foundation of that station, which marked the summt of his life and work.
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- Date Issued: 1952
Attitude and personal orientation differences between clergy of Anglican and Pentecostal denominations with particular reference to sexual ethics
- Authors: Davies, Alan Bruce
- Date: 1977
- Subjects: Clergy -- Sexual behavior Pentecostalism -- Sexual behavior Anglican Communion -- Clergy -- Sexual behavior Sex -- Religious aspects -- Christianity Christian ethics -- Anglican authors Sexual ethics
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1247 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011015
- Description: The introduction provides a concise discussion of the confused condition of our Western sexuality. It is noted that this confusion has also manifested itself in ecclesiastical circles, and that the contribution of the church towards the resolution of 'moral' confusion in this sphere is in fact minimal. The study then proceeds to a more empirical investigation of certain phenomena which might enable us to demonstrate the close relationship which exists between the individual's psychological condition, or 'state of consciousness', and the type of theology or ethics he formulates or adopts. The present study was an investigation designed to determine whether Anglican clergy and Pentecostal pastors differed significantly with regard to theological orientation, level of self-actualization or the degree of flexibility they showed in the application of sexual values. Furthermore we were concerned to discover the inter-relation between these various traits. A third group of ordinands from St. Paul's College (C.P.S.A.) was also incorporated into the study. All forty eight subjects completed a series of tests and questionnaires which were scored according to eighteen different scales relating to selfactualzing traits, theological orientation and the application of sexual ethics. In brief the results showed that the Anglican clergy were significantly more self-actualizing, theologically liberal and more flexible in the application of sexual values than were Pentecostal pastors. Little difference was found to exist as a function of age and education, or between Anglican clergy and ordinands. Furthermore theological conservatism, general conservatism, dogmatism and inflexibility in the application of sexual ethics were all shown to correlate negatively with self-actualization. In the discussion of results the writer attempted to demonstrate the close relationship between the churchman's psychological make-up and the way in which he construes his world and formulates his theology and ethics. In the concluding discussion the writer once again widened the scope of concern in order to demonstrate how the findings of the present study can be fitted into the broader context of the life of the church. It has been suggested that the type of approach adopted by churchmen to problems of sexuality is very much determined by their psychological make up. Hence in this sense both the status of the church in modern society and the degree to which the church can assist in the resolution of our culture's problems in the field of human sexuality, is greatly dependent upon the 'states of consciousness' of our clergy.
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- Date Issued: 1977
Christo-centric reconciliation : being a dissertation considering reconciliation with particular reference to; the baptism of Jesus, the temptations of Jesus, the title of Son of Man as used by Jesus, and the Pauline texts which refer to reconciliation
- Authors: Jeannot, Hugues Donald
- Date: 1973
- Subjects: Reconciliation -- Biblical teaching , Jesus Christ -- Temptation , Baptism -- Biblical teaching , Son of Man -- Biblical teaching
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1278 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013397
- Description: [From Introduction]. "God, ... through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation." "Among all churches throughout the world there is a growing conviction that God's great reconciliation in Jesus Christ is still the answer desperately needed by modern man." The United Presbyterian Church U.S.A.'s Confession of 1967 made "reconciliation the all-embracing category for describing God's work and man's response, including especially his response in social and political action".
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- Date Issued: 1973
Confirmation : an analysis and assessment
- Authors: Maker, Derek Alan
- Date: 1967
- Subjects: Confirmation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1262 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012797 , Confirmation
- Description: Intelligently to discuss Christian initiatory rites we must begin with Baptism. In recent years many scholars have attempted a critical re-assessment of baptism based upon a renewed exegetical study of the New Testament. This chapter is written in the light of that work. Most theologians are agreed upon the cardinal importance of baptism. Calvin is generally representative in saying, "Baptism is a sign of initiation, by which we are admitted into the society of the Church, in order that, being incorporated into Christ we may be numbered among the children of God". Wheeler Robinson, a Baptist theologian, asserts that, "Baptism is the door of entrance to the Church". Intro. p. 1.
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- Date Issued: 1967
Death, immortality & the biblical doctrine of resurrection : a study in the theology of renewal
- Authors: Bank, Louis
- Date: 1962
- Subjects: Jesus Christ -- Resurrection , Resurrection -- Biblical teaching , Church renewal
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1280 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013448
- Description: From Introduction: The fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, from the dead is the central fact of Christian faith and teaching. This centrality is certainly accorded it in the Bible, but has often been forgotten in the thinking, practice and worship of the Christian Church. (The paucity of available contemporary literature on the subject is one fact which may serve to illustrate this.) The subject of the first Christian sermon preached on the Day of Pentecost was on the Resurrection. The Jesus whom they had crucified, God had made both Lord and Christ. (Acts 2. 37.) The Gospels would belie their name if they had left us with an account of the life and tragic death of a man who claimed to know and reveal God in a special way. The news is good news precisely because of the Resurrection of our Lord from the dead.
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- Date Issued: 1962
Doctrines on the universality of sin
- Authors: Van Rensburg, Lee
- Date: 1975
- Subjects: Sin , Good and evil , Sin -- Biblical teaching
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Bachelor , BDiv
- Identifier: vital:1288 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1014577
- Description: [From chapter 1]. The doctrines on the universality of sin are attempts to give theological explanations for the empirical and historical evidence of the universality of sin. They are attempts to explain why it is that each and every person that enters this world has a bias towards sin ; why such a highly organized, intricate and majestically complex being like man, the crowning glory of the created realm in every case has this weakness we call sin ; why it is that after 6,000 years of the history of mankind the present generation is as plagued with this malfunction as the first; why it is that sooner or later all of us commit sin in one form or another. Indirectly these doctrines also seek to protect God's uniqueness and oneness against the dualism of evil and good and following from this second reason are attempts to explain the presence of sin within the good creation of God. However, these attempts are fraught with difficulties and invariably each explanation that is offered raises other pertinent issues that the Christian thinker does not wish to accept as side effects to his answer. This has resulted in scholars over the ages attempting to modify or reinterpret previous doctrines in order to allow for these issues to be taken into account. There has, therefore, as we shall discover, been much diversity and debate as to the form and contents of these doctrines.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1975