Archive for category Law
Dissecting the James Dilemma-Part 1
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, God, Jesus, Law, New Testament on May 20, 2010
I have spent enough time both in and out of the flock to know which Bible verses give believers fits, and James 2:14-26 probably tops the list:
14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, 16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? 17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. 18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. 19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? 23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. 24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. 25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. James 2:14-26 (KJV)
I must confess, I’m not entirely sure I’ve heard a truly satisfactory reconciliation of this passage in James and Paul, specifically, “Therefore we conclude that man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” Romans 3:28. I think the reason is because there is an attempted reconciliation where none is necessary.
Explanations usually begin with an acknowledgment of an apparent contradiction then employ circularity to explain why the two are not contradictory (e.g. the Bible cannot contradict itself, therefore there is no contradiction). Other explanations suggest James really means something other than what he is saying. These are equally problematic.
Part of the problem, in my opinion, is that all such explanations are necessarily aimed at an opposing logical fallacy, the straw man that the two are contradictory.
Paul clearly maintains that one is justified by faith, regardless of works. James clearly maintains that one is justified by faith and works. The assertion that these positions contradict each other is only valid if justification is a one-time event, and only a one-time event. If justification is both an event and a process, there is no contradiction.
Was Abraham justified by faith apart from works? Yes. Was Abraham also justified by his subsequent works? Yes.
To say that “faith without works is dead” means “faith alone is insufficient for justification” is simply a misunderstanding of the faith/works relationship. In James 2:22 he writes, “and by works was faith made perfect.” What came first? Faith, by which Abraham was initially made righteous. Then, works which worked to perfect that faith. Thus, Abraham was made righteous by his faith and continued to be made righteous by the perfection of his faith through works.
In Part 2, I will discuss the nature of works and whether any ol’ good works will do.
Hebrews Bible Study Week 7
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, God, Holy Spirit, Israel, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament on November 18, 2009
The goal for this week was to cover two chapters, but we only made it through chapter 8. I suppose it was a little ambitious to try and cover chapters 8 and 9, but 9 will just have to wait until next week.
In verse 1, the author is again referencing Psalm 110, a Messianic Psalm which the author has referenced repeatedly throughout the book of Hebrews. And he or she says:
Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest who has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man. Hebrews 8:1-2 (NASB)
The high priest, who is also the Messiah, has taken his place in Heaven and in the true tabernacle. This is the end of the need for sacrifices. The high priest has now entered the heavenly sanctuary and is now the mediator of a better covenant, the old now being obsolete.
So that it is clear, this is not a reference to the Abrahamic land grant covenant, but to the Mosaic covenant. Until the high priest became the mediator of the new covenant, the law was written in stone. Now the laws are in the hearts and minds of the believers.
This principle actually led to the liveliest discussion of the evening in our effort to determine when and how this imprinting upon the hearts and minds takes place. Does it occur upon becoming a believer, at baptism, during the baptism of the Holy Spirit? Without reaching definite conclusions, I think the general consensus was that (1) the Holy Spirit is the mechanism, and (2) it happens when the Holy Spirit becomes activated by faith in Jesus (which we also believed was distinct from the baptism in the Holy Spirit – which could happen simultaneously, but doesn’t always, or even usually).
We again were landed with a ministry opportunity which consumed a fair amount of the time, but the tradeoff was well worth it.
Hebrews Chapter 8-Study Notes
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, God, Law, New Testament on November 18, 2009
These are my study notes for Hebrews Chapter 8. I don’t know if they will make much sense to anyone else, but if they are helpful to anyone feel free to use them.
The scripture references and discussion notes should have aligned with the appropriate scriptures, but I lost that somehow when I loaded the table into my blog. On the left is, obviously, the Bible text, the center column contains the scriptures I referenced or wanted to reference, and the right-hand column has discussion topics.
| Hebrews Chapter 8 (NASB)
1 Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2 a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man. 3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer. 4 Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; 5 who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, “SEE,” He says, “THAT YOU MAKE all things ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN.” 6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. 7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. 8 For finding fault with them, He says, 9 NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS 10 “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL 11 “AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, 12 “FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, 13 When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete but whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. |
Scripture Refs.
8:1 – Psalm 110. 8:5 – Col 2:17; Exodus 25:40.8:8 – Jeremiah 31:31. 8:9 – Exodus 19:5, 24:6-8; Deuteronomy 5:2. 8:10 – Romans 11:27. |
Discussion Notes
8:1-2 – true tabernacle as distinct from the tabernacle of Moses. 8:5 – make according to the pattern shown on the mountain – everything is a copy or pattern of what is in heaven or to come. 8:6 – the law was only a copy/shadow of better covenant to come. 8:9-10 – new covenant is not like the old covenant, it’s not written in stone, but on our hearts and in our minds. 8:13 – the old is ready to disappear.
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More on Infant Death and the Afterlife
Posted by Peter in Bible, Children, Christianity, Genesis, God, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament, Theology on November 13, 2009
Earlier this week in What About Infants?, I directed my readers to TC’s post When Infants Die: Hell? Heaven? or Limbo?. As predicted, it generated a healthy discussion. I can’t definitively say who’s right or wrong, but I wonder if we shouldn’t be more worried about adults than the children.
Jesus said,
Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3 (NASB)
I have a strong suspicion that the children will be fine. We, on the other hand, seem to have a harder time getting it.
I think we get all worked up over sin and original sin, when our accountability begins, right and wrong, and the like. And that is the very problem.
God’s a pretty smart Dude, and when He forbade us from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, it was for our own good. He knew we would spend the rest of our lives worrying about whether we did good or evil. If not because of our own shortcomings, then because the enemy would beat us over the head with it.
And as if that wasn’t enough, now we’ve got to worry about whether our kids will be held accountable. It’s too much to worry about. And God knew it.
That’s where we go wrong, in our need (or desire) to know. We were better off before the knowledge of good and evil, innocent like a child.
A Different Type of Blog Listing
Beauty of the Bible was recently listed on an altogether different type of blog list, the Texas Bar Blog’s list of Texas lawyer blogs. It’s obviously not a list of exclusively legal or law-related blogs, but it is a list made up exclusively of blogs published by Texas lawyers.
There are also humor, food, news and other non-legal blogs. If you need a little more to read, you might check it out.
Personal Website Redesign
I’m in the middle of a site redesign for my law firm’s website: petermlopez.com. It is still in the very early stages, and content is sparse, but the basic look and feel is there. Please visit, have a look around, and feel free to offer thoughts, ideas, suggestions, tips, pointers, cash, or anything else you think might be helpful.
I am using SquareSpace for the site construction and hosting. The website tools are quite remarkable and easy to use. I would highly recommend it. If any of you are familiar with SquareSpace, please let me know, I would love to pick your brain about it.
My design skills are somewhat lacking, but I’ve played around with one of the templates I liked, and I think the foundation is there for a decent site.
Hebrews Bible Study-Week 6
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, God, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament, Theology on October 29, 2009
My intention for week 6 was to cover all of Hebrews chapter 7. But, you know what they say about intentions (actually, I have no idea what they say about intentions, but it sounded good in my head).
Suffice it to say, we didn’t make it through all of chapter 7, but the discussion was great anyway. It seems that ministry opportunity after ministry opportunity has presented itself during our Bible study (and, henceforth, I will use that term loosely). I’m just trusting that God is trusting our little group with these ministry needs, and I am so thankful for our core group who is more than capable of ministering the gospel, ragtag bunch that we are.
We did, however, cover the first 10 verses of chapter 7, which is progress from the pace we were on in chapter 6 (summary part 1, part 2 and notes). So, for that, I am also thankful.
We spent a fair amount of time recapping what we learned about Melchizedek in week 3 because it has, in real time, been over a month since we discussed it. To this Melchizedek, Abraham apportioned one tenth of the spoils (from his battle with the kidnapping kings). We discussed this as the first reference to the Mosaic law of tithing. Also, that the author of Hebrews suggests this as a tithe:
And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him. Hebrews 7:9-10 (NASB)
And, although we are not under the law of Moses, the spiritual principle of making the whole holy by tithing remains operable. And, while we give our tithes to men, Jesus receives them in heaven, “In this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives on.” Heb. 7:8. Thus the principle of the tithe predates the law of Moses and continues on through the New Covenant.
As I mentioned, the balance of our discussion time was spent ministering to the newest member of our group. It was yet another unexpected, but totally awesome week. May there be plenty more of them.
Hebrews Chapter 7-Study Notes
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, Genesis, God, Law, New Testament, Old Testament on October 22, 2009
These are my study notes for Hebrews Chapter 7. I don’t know if they will make much sense to anyone else, but if they are helpful to anyone feel free to use them.
The scripture references and discussion notes should have aligned with the appropriate scriptures, but I lost that somehow when I loaded the table into my blog. On the left is, obviously, the Bible text, the center column contains the scriptures I referenced or wanted to reference, and the right-hand column has discussion topics.
| Hebrews 7 (NASB)
1 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace. 3 Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually. 4 Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the choicest spoils. 5 And those indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest’s office have commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from the people, that is, from their brethren, although these are descended from Abraham. 6 But the one whose genealogy is not traced from them collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises. 7 But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater. 8 In this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives on. 9 And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes, 10 for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him. 11 Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron? 12 For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also. 13 For the one concerning whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar. 14 For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests. 15 And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek, 16 who has become such not on the basis of a law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life. 17 For it is attested of Him, 18 For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness 19 (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. 20 And inasmuch as it was not without an oath 21 (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him, 22 so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant. 23 The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing, 24 but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. 25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. 26 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28 For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever. |
Scripture Refs.:
7:4 – Numbers 18:20-26 7:14 – Genesis 49:8-10 7:17 – Psalm 110 7:19 – Romans 8; 2 Corinthians 3:7-8. |
Discussion Notes:
7:1, 6 – “blessed him,” and “blessed the one who had the promises.” Had Abraham received the promises yet? 7:1 – Melchizedek: see notes Ch. 5. 7:4-10 – Abraham gave tenth to Melchizedek, Levi paid tithes while still in Abraham’s loins. 7:4 – “tenth of the choicest spoils” – Abraham took nothing for himself, gave from the spoils? 7:12 – “change of law” – What does this mean? 7:14 – “tribe of Judah” – Israel’s blessing to sons. |
What if God had Texted the 10 Commandments
Posted by Peter in Bible, Humor, Law, Old Testament on October 2, 2009
The youth at our church (RAMP – forgive me, I am out of the loop on this particular church acronym) are so clever. The result of said cleverness: Texting the 10 Commandments.
It’s quite entertaining, worth the short time it will take you to read it. There are a couple of versions, one original and the other attributed to someone else. Enjoy!
Hebrews Bible Study-Week 1
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, Genesis, Greek, Israel, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament on August 27, 2009
Last night was the first real night of our Hebrews study. Our study group actually met last Wednesday, but it was more of a meet-and-greet.
One of the themes that kept emerging throughout the discussion of Hebrews 1 was the author’s set up of his (or her) theme or thesis or argument. It is similar to how a lawyer would present a case. I don’t know why this didn’t occur to me during the days and weeks leading up the study, and only right in the midst (I might have developed the idea a little more being a lawyer and all), but it will end up being a good starting point, I think.
The opening four verses (a single sentence in the Greek) are powerful. Already, the author has grabbed the audience’s attention contending that (1) God has spoken to the fathers through the prophets and (2) God has spoken in His Son, who (3) upholds all things through the word of His power and (4) has a much better name than the angels. The importance of these conclusions to a Hebrew audience cannot be overstated.
The author then, in proving the superiority to the angels, immediately invokes Messianic Psalms. Again, the significance is clear. This Son is the one to whom the scriptures have been pointing. Everything that has come before has been to try and illustrate this.
In Chapter 2, the author cuts right to it, “if the word spoken through the angels proved unalterable,” then how much more is this true since He said it and God confirmed it through sings, wonders and miracles.
The audience is presented with the inescapable conclusion before the identity of the Son is revealed. Quite a stroke of persuasive genius, especially considering the intended audience.
And then the really good news, the devil is rendered powerless (Genesis 3:15), the slaves are set free, and He is there to help us because He gets it. He became one of us, and He gets it.
This is obviously a very shorthand version of an hour-and-a-half Bible study. I don’t know if my study/discussion notes will be of any help, but I have included them as separate posts, and you are certainly free to use and abuse them as you feel the need:
At the end of the semester I will probably make a master post with links to everything, but for now it’s one week at a time.
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