Theological Terms-Concepts

Bibliology

perspicuity (note: it is 'per spi cuity' - not per pis cuity)

claritas Scripturae = clarity (of) Scripture

a quality of the Scriptures - not a quality of the reader

the Bible is plain, intelligible, clear, having clarity, understandable

~

(expanded)

important principles associated with the perspicuity of the Bible:

the Bible is God's 'voice' on earth
...therefore, it is God speaking directly to each person
...therefore, no ecclesiastical group or person is God's voice on earth

the Bible is sufficient to lead a person to Christ
...therefore, no person is essential to lead someone to Christ
...therefore, individual persons can come to Christ through reading the Bible themselves

the Bible is not too hard for a lay person to understand on their own
...therefore, someone 'with authority' is not essential to interpret it for them

the Bible does have some passages that are hard to understand
...therefore, the believer has the Holy Spirit to illuminate these to them
...therefore, the Bible is its own interpreter: clear passages interpret less clear passages
...therefore, the believer is to personally study and rightly divide God's Word
...therefore, God gifts some in Christ's Body to aid a believer's understanding

note: if a person habitually cannot understand the Bible (the things of the Spirit of God) it might be because they are still a natural man - not yet spiritual / spiritually alive, born again (1 Cor 2:14; Jn 3:3)

Christian Skills

Statements of Faith

these are succinct writings that express important beliefs

usually covering key areas of systematic theology

reputable churches and ministries will have one and make it easily available

learn to ask for a statement of faith and learn how to check it out

~

(expanded)

some important things to look for in a statement of faith:

- the Bible is the authoritative source of all information about God and salvation
- belief in the one true and living God (as the Bible reveals God)
- God is a trinity of three separate, equal, eternally existing Persons
(Father, Son - Jesus, Holy Spirit)
- the full deity and humanity of Jesus
- salvation by grace through faith

(for an example see: these are our beliefs)

things that may be of interest, that are not usually a statement of faith:

- a vision statement (what their goals are)
- core values (what their purpose is)
- by-laws (how their church or ministry is run)
- ministries list (areas they offer or specialize in)

note: churches and ministries that refuse
to make their statement of faith easily available
should be considered suspect
(do ask if they are working on one, or are revising one -
but if they refuse to draw one up and make it available
find another church / ministry to associate with)

note: become equipped to discern aberrant beliefs
that deviate from solid Christian theology

Theological Terms-Concepts

Bibliology

Bible unity

the Bible is a perfect whole, inspired by the one true and living God

the unity of Scripture is shown by how everything fits together perfectly (Old and New Testaments)

the unity of Scripture is shown by its unswerving message of God's plan of redemption through Jesus (from Genesis [see 3:15 the Seed to come] to Revelation [see 22:13,20 the Alpha and the Omega Who is coming soon])

the unity of Scripture is shown when the Bible is correctly interpreted and handled


antinomy (an tin´oh me)

there are no true contradictions in the Bible

antinomy is when two Bible truths seem contradictory to our finite minds

we do not have to (and we must not) choose between the two truths (it's not either a or b)

we are to renew our minds according to all that God's Word says (both a and b)

we are to accept and believe all of God's truths (stand a and b side by side - accept and believe both without flinching)

we are to continue working toward a biblical understanding of how all of God's truths fit together (all the a's and all the b's)

we are to think, speak, and act upon all of God's truths with full confidence in His Word and the perfect unity of it

The Five Solas (or Five Solae)

(rehearse the top portion)

The Five Solas

Sola Scriptura - by Scripture alone

Solus Christus - through Christ alone

Sola Gratia - by grace alone

Sola Fide - through faith alone

Soli Deo Gloria - glory to God alone

~

(expanded)

note: these are Latin phrases/slogans considered pillars of the Reformation

note: sola-solus-soli = alone/only

Theological Terms-Concepts

Bibliology

verbal plenary inspiration

verbal inspiration = every word in the Bible is inspired

plenary inspiration = all of the entire Bible is inspired, the complete Bible

Theological Terms-Concepts

Christology

hypostatic union of Christ

Jesus is fully God and fully man in one Person.

:( no blending of the two natures into one new nature

:( no putting off (setting aside) of one nature for the other

:) two separate distinct natures existing perfectly in the one Person, Jesus

Jn 1:1c - the Word [Jesus] was God...
Jn 1:14a - And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us...

Theological Terms-Concepts

Bibliology

the Bible is...

inerrant = without any error (completely true)

infallible = unable to err or fail

efficient = will accomplish its goal with a certainty

note: some definitions for infallible will include 'unable to not fulfill what it says - as in... it infallibly achieves its goal' but the definition for efficient covers that better

Theology

(rehearse the top portion)

Systematic Theology Names

Bibliology - study of the Bible

Theology Proper - study of God, the Trinity, God - the Father

Christology - study of Jesus Christ

Pneumatology - study of the Holy Spirit

Angelology - study of angels

Anthropology - study of man

Hamartiology - study of sin

Soteriology - study of salvation

Ecclesiology - study of the church

Eschatology - study of end things, end times

~

(expanded)

phonetic pronunciation helps:

Bibliology  (bib lee all o gee)

Theology Proper

Christology  (kris tall o gee)

Pneumatology  (new muh tall o gee)

Angelology  (āin gel all o gee)

Anthropology   (an throw paul o gee)

Hamartiology  (huh mar tee all o gee)

Soteriology  (so tier ee all o gee)

Ecclesiology  (ee klee zee all o gee)

Eschatology  (es kuh tall o gee)