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On this topic it is important to recognize that Paul does not write systematic theology. So we can't assume that his 3 lists of spiritual gifts are exhaustive (1 Cor. 12; Rom. 12; Eph. 4). I'm thinking, for example, of a young peasant girl in China. When the Pentecostal revival was ignited...

The Lord's Prayer is offered as a structural model on how to pray ("Pray then like this.") and is provided in response to the disciples' question about "how to pray." So what this structure teach us? Well, notice that the first 3 petitions deal with God's status and realm "Thy, Thy, Thy") and...

While I was a young Harvard doctoral student, specializing in New Testament, I made some comment in a seminar about my view of how a particular verse might fit into a new view of Paul's "systematic theology." I am still haunted (if also a tad confused!) by Prof. Georgi's wry response. He...

I agree. One simple insight from Galatians 5 is that no believer can experience the 9 "fruit of the Spirit" until she regularly experiences walking in the Spirit and being led by the Spirit.

One of the most crucial but difficult issue here is the meaning and function of Paul's mystical language (e. g. his "being in Christ mysticism"), which of course is somewhat shaped by cultural precedent.--language that pioneering scholar, Albert Schweitzer tries to describe in his seminal book...

The whole premise of the OP's argument is too simplistic and displays ignorance of the history of "the East," especially of ancient Palestine. The Hebrew culture of ancient OT Israel was radically changed Alexander's conquest in the 4th century BC, after which Palenstine became gradually but...

CoreIssue: "Jesus said that before the crucifixion. Afterwords praying to the father is never mentioned again." In the 3 days between crucifixion and resurrection, the disillusioned disciples' only concern is to hide from arrest. They have no confidence that their prayers will be effective...

CoreIssue: "In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God." You cite this as a reason for the heresy of praying directly to Jesus, but in fact that text is precisely a reason for praying directly to the Father through Jesus and thereby acknowledging Christ's mediation role. That...

Chapter and verse, please! As I said, Jesus repeatedly taught us to pray to "the Father," but I guess you don't care what Jesus taught. And why do you think you know better than the NT church who were taught by the apostles?

CoreIssue: "The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times." An absurd cultic statement which ALL modern academic commentaries on the Lord's Prayer would reject. The NT church regularly recited the Lord's Prayer during corporate worship (see. e. g. The Didache). CoreIssue: "In the church...

It is shocking that WillieT would want to ridicule Jesus for teaching the right way to pray: "Pray then in this way (Matthew 6:9)." Jesus offers the Lord's prayer as a model for how to pray and my OP outlines in detail the path to fleshing out this model. Jesus can introduce other teaching on...

In the same sense that the eruption of tongues on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) signified "the founding of a cult." :rolleyes:

If prayer makes a decisive difference and if there is a right and a wrong way to pray, then needy people have paid the price for our failure to pray for them or even for failing to pray for them correctly, following biblical principles. This thread is intended to raise awareness about...

illini: "I've never heard anyone refer to Jesus' methods of healing as 'gimmicks', hmm." You need to read the various Gospel texts where Jesus employs the gimmicks (spittle, clay, oil) mentioned and then ask yourself, "Why does Jesus use these gimmicks in these cases instead of just praying...

Jesus uses "gimmicks" like the application of spittle, clay, and oil, gimmicks used in contemporary Greco-Roman magic or occult arts. I prefer to call these Values to release faith and bypass futile efforts to try and believe. When Paul lays hands on aprons or handherchiefs that are returned...

Vince: "So god does not decide what is right or wrong?" Of course not! God does not exist as a Supreme Being among countless other beings. Rather, God is the ground of all Being--the only answer to the question, "Why is there something rather than nothing at all?" But God is also Love. So...

Note carefully that Vince's meaningless view of the grounds for morality is decisively refuted by post 46 and understandably has had noting to say in response. So I will now address the absurdities of his other threads, specifically his failure to come to terms with the principle that the...

MORMONS CAN BE SAVED. When I was a pastor, the local Mormon church created a service for Christian outsiders to explain why Momonism is compatible with the evangelical Gospel. A huge crowd came and the service featured several testimonies and presentations about the Mormon faith that resembled...

The sacramental act of drinking the cup symbolizes Christ's atoning blood, but in Mark 14:24 Jesus "took the cup;" He did not "pour the cup" as part of the sacramental act. So the wine symbolizes the blood literally poured out on the cross. This symbolism of course envisages His wounds and...