The Doctrine of Revelation 2

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The Doctrine of Revelation 2
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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ as The Word of God

• He is the embodiment of the Word of God
• Heb. 11,2, In the past God spoke to our
  forefathers through the prophets at many times
  and in various ways, but in these last days he
  has spoken to us by his Son . . .
• 39 Articles 2 Irish Articles, 29 Confession of
  1967, (Book of Confessions) 9.27

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ as The Word of God

• He is the fulfillment of OT revelation
• John 539, these are the Scriptures that
  testify about me
• I Peter 111, trying to find out the time and
  circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in
  them was pointing when he predicted the
  sufferings of Christ and the glory that should
  follow
• Rev. 1910, the testimony of Jesus Christ is the
  spirit of prophecy

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ as The Word of God

• He is the completion of the Covenant principle
• Matt. 2628, this is my blood of the covenant
  (cf. 123, they will call him Immanuel- which
  means God with us)
• Jesus Christ-the true image of the father
• (Heb. 13) he is the radiance of his glory and
  the exact representation of his nature
• John 149- anyone who has seen me has seen the
  father.

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ as The Word of God

• He is the perfect fulfillment of the law, of
  righteousness
• Matt. 315, Jesus said, Let it be so now it is
  proper for us to do this to fulfill all
  righteousness
• Matt. 517,18, Do not think that I have come to
  abolish the law and the prophets I have not come
  to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you
  the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not
  the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a
  pen, will by any means disappear from the Law
  until everything is accomplished.

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ as The Word of God

• Thus the whole revelation of the Old Testament
  converges upon Christ, not upon a new law or
  doctrine or institution, but upon the person of
  Christ. A person is the completed revelation of
  God the son of man is the one and only begotten
  Son of God. Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable
  Faith, 94.

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ and The Word of God

• He testifies to the truthfulness of the O.T.
  revelation
• He calls the Old Testament Scriptures John 539
• It is written John 645. It admits no other
  interpretation than that, according to the
  judgment of Jesus, this word derived its Divine
  authority from the fact that it is written.
  Kuyper, Principles of Sacred Theology, 435
• Jesus speaks of Scripture as the product of
  divine utterance, every word that proceeds out
  of the mouth of God, Matt. 44

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ and The Word of God

• He speaks of the necessity of Old Testament
  revelation
• Today has this Scripture been fulfilled Luke
  421
• That the Scripture might be fulfilled John
  1318
• And beginning with Moses and all the prophets He
  explained to them the things concerning himself
  in all the Scriptures. Luke 2427

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ and The Word of God

• He affirms the integrity of the Old Testament
  revelation
• The integrity of a single word
• Matt. 2232, I am the God of Abraham, the God of
  Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of
  the dead but of the living.
• Matt. 2243, How is it then that David,
  speaking by the Spirit, calls him Lord?

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ and The Word of God

• The integrity of a single letter Luke
  1617, It is easier for heaven and earth to
  disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to
  drop out of the Law (cf. Matt. 518)
• The integrity of the whole
• John 1035, the Scripture cannot be broken
• Matt. 2435, my words shall not pass away (his
  wordsfathers words)

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REVELATI0N Jesus Christ and The Word of God

• He affirms the Integrity of the New Testament
  revelation
• Teaching all things I have commanded you, Matt.
  2820
• John 1714, I have given them your word and
  John 1717, your word is truth
• He promises the Holy Spirit to superintend the
  memories of the apostles, John 1426, will
  remind you of everything I have said.
• The ministry of Jesus was confirmed by miracles,
  John 1025

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• II Timothy 316
• verse 15, iera grammata, sacred writings,
  Holy Scripture
• It is a technical term for Old Testament
• ta is sometimes inserted in mss. if not
  original, it is an attestation to an ancient
  interpretation of iera grammata
• Arndt and Gingrich, Lexicon, 164, say it means
  of the O.T. generally.

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• Every or all What does pasa grafh, vs. 16,
  mean?
• There is no theological issue at stake
• Every is the distributive use all is the
  collective use
• Each involves the other!
• A.T. Robertson, Grammar, 722 and Vincent, Word
  Studies, IV, 317, both say every

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• The adjectives are they used coordinately or
  subordinately?
• Coordinate all Scripture is inspired and
  profitable
• Subordinate all inspired Scripture is profitable
• Modern theology is not concerned with what
  Scripture is, but what Scripture does, and so
  prefers the subordinate usage
• However, a definite corpus has already been
  cited, thus the coordinate usage is preferable
• Scripture is inspired and does profit us.

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• Theopneustos
• Words ending in toj and compounded with qeos are
  generally passive in meaning, Young, Thy Word
  is Truth, 20
• For example, qeodidaktoj, means taught by God
• Scripture is described as breathed out. The
  focus is on the product, not the author
• It is contrary to the dynamic view, which sees
  inspiration as terminating upon the writers not
  so here
• Inspiration terminates on that which is produced.

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• II Peter 121
• The reliability of the apostolic message
• Peter says he is not speaking of fables, vs. 16
• He says they (the apostles) were eyewitnesses,
  vss. 17,18
• Scripture is a more sure word (more dependable,
  reliable)
• Bebaioteron, a superlative, Arndt and
  Gingrich, Lexicon, 137
• More certain does not refer to idea that the
  apostles senses had been deceived rather the
  word is certain because God spoke it (Deut.
  1822).

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• The meaning of the phrase private
  interpretation
• This is not a reference to the analogia fidei
• Rather, no Scripture comes, ginetai, or has its
  origin in a human investigation into human
  matters. Cf. Luke 13
• It may be confirmed by evidence, but in its
  origin, it is not a product of human endeavor.

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• The passivity of the author and the activity of
  the Holy Spirit
• Feromenoi, is elsewhere used of complete
  passivity, Acts 2715,17
• This passage shows what is entailed in
  inspiration the Spirit is the sole author
• Men speak the message of the Holy Spirit
• It is the message of the Holy Spirit
• It does not become the message in a Barthian
  sense
• The Barthian view has the Spirit speak as borne
  along by the words of man.

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REVELATION Apostolic Witness

• The emphasis of Scripture is not on the
  Divine/Human nature of Scripture the emphasis is
  that God has spoken Vox Dei, Deus Dixit We have
  the Word of God, II Peter 119.

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The Doctrine of Revelation 2