This paper considers the means, motive, and opportunity for the production of written Gospels by the apostles during the earliest years following the death and resurrection of Jesus, in support of an expanding church. Based on a review of contemporary Greek and Latin literature it will be shown that the publication of the Gospels was only a relatively modest accomplishment. Further, distribution of the earliest Gospel(s), once published, was supported by a Roman trade network which provided ample means for the circulation of these documents. Therefore, Gospel development theories should consider the possibility of early Gospel production and should be biased towards the assumption that each Gospel was produced with full awareness of prior publications. In addition, the scattering of early Jewish and Gentile believers who were accustomed to the use of written materials in support of oral presentations would have provided a sufficient motivation for the publication of Gospels. A collaborative development effort, especially while the apostles were yet in Jerusalem, offered an ideal opportunity where the effort would have been supported by local resources and a literate priesthood. Given these observations, modern synoptic development theories should be re-evaluated to ensure that they adequately consider the literary situation within the Roman empire, the potential demand of early believers for written materials, and the advantageous circumstances supporting publication of Gospels within the earliest years of the church.
Abstract
Post-Modernistic Western culture and the issues surrounding gender have become a politically charged and complex for the community of Jesus’ followers. There are obvious differences regarding the origin of gender and subsequent medical and/or psychological path forward, with very little tolerance afforded to ideas different than those of the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Trans, and Questioning (LGBTQ) community. Beyond the political and cultural polarization, there seems to be common ground regarding desired standards of treatment. The recent spike in identity dysphoric conditions seems to bear a correlative relationship with the propagation of broadly accessible social media, suggesting either a passive sympathetic replication or an active advocation via intervention. Encounter Christian Church adheres to the Biblical position on identity as presented in Genesis, predicated upon the concepts of human creation in God’s Image, the intrinsic and infinite worth attributed to each human life at conception, purpose of humankind to work as agents of God’s will reflecting His purpose in our own lives, and culminating in the perfect example of Jesus as recorded in the Gospels. This position is that any worldview counter to these principles about identity is not God’s intent and that we as a church are called to love and serve all human beings, regardless of their present state, and introduce the good news of forgiveness and redemption, and to love them into a life with Jesus.
Keywords: dysphoria, gender, identity, disorder, body-image, self-mutilation, self-harm, suicide, child development, adolescent development, Biblical purpose, Biblical identity
Few and far between are the contemporary voices who yet contend that a written Gospel was published and widely disseminated during the first decade of the Christian church. Yet there exists a rich history of post-Reformation era scholars who contended that the first Gospel, Matthew, was published within a few years or perhaps within a decade of the ascension. While these authors leveraged the writings of the church fathers for this viewpoint, along with internal features of Matthew’s Gospel, our primary interest will be in their related arguments concerning the necessity of an early written Gospel for propagating the gospel message and for preserving its contents, as the church expanded beyond Judea. These scholars spoke of the common desire of ancient people to preserve their religious tenets through written materials, the duty of the witnesses to employ a written medium, the need to secure the church against the spread of falsehoods, the additional weight, authority, and certainty which a written record provided, the uniqueness of the Christian message, and the advantage of written instructions over oral.
The literary efforts of these authors were not merely academic, for many were defending the Christian faith and scriptures against contemporary challenges to its authenticity and authority, and they believed that the credibility of the Gospel witness was linked to the publication date of Matthew’s Gospel. Correspondingly, the intent of this paper is to showcase these historical writings and to demonstrate that these scholars considered the early publication date for Matthew’s Gospel to be defensible based on the perceived motivations of the early church. But further, it will be suggested that modern apologists should adopt a similar “motivational argument” for an early publication date for the Gospels, in defense of their veracity, rather than accepting the popular theory that multiple decades transpired before the church was motivated to publish the first Gospel. For pragmatic reasons, the scope will be limited to fourteen English works, published between the mid-1600s and AD 1900, with other works cited as appropriate.
The book this paper is connected to in its namesake, Truth Amidst Tension: The Practical Apologetic Methodology of Francis Schaeffer. The premise thereof, is that despite Francis Schaeffer’s apologetic having been considered by some to be one of the most significant contributions to the Christian defense of the faith in the Twentieth Century, in many ways, and rather surprisingly, the fine details of his methodology is still largely unknown by many in the Christian world. Some may know that Dr. Schaeffer is significant, but they may not realize how helpful he is. In this paper, the author takes time to connect the aspect of our conference theme to Dr. Schaeffer’s thought, then provided a summary of some of the relevant portions that relate directly to the book. Then, finally explains some new material that addresses our current cultural condition.
Sacrifice plays a central part in the traditional religions of Africa. Traditional Africans offer sacrifices as means to either obtain divine favour, to appease the wrath of an angry deity, as a means of fellowship, to prevent or avert impending doom, or for gratitude-sacrifices are offered for different purposes. There are also other types of sacrifices that are similar to Old Testament system of sacrifice: substitutionary, propitiatory, votive, expiatory sacrifice, etc. However, the supreme form of sacrifice in most African traditional societies is the human sacrifice-though this happens occasionally. Animals are mostly used for sacrifices. Human sacrifice is done when there is epidemic, death among young people in the community or other exigent rituals to be done. However, in this paper, the author explains why the sacrifice of Jesus the Son of God is the final, perfect and only adequate sacrifice for the sins of humanity.
When one thinks of the word doubt, it is often with a certain level of concern. Doubt, especially in the scope of Apologetics, is not only questionable, but taboo. We question it, in the persons we debate, and in persons we may even encounter who are believers, and especially in other apologist. The lack of doubt, conversely, is often seen as a level of spiritual strength. Moreover, doubt is often generally seen as sinful. Thus, it might beg the question, how should it be understood in the scope of Apologetics and even in the life of the apologist. Dr. Schaeffer, thankfully, brings much of the matter to light, not just in his teaching, but moreover in his apologetic methods. To this end, I want us to examine his teaching on the subject together and thereby, I believe we will find strength in ministry.
The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) can be characterized as a postmillennial restorationist movement which seeks to restore the so-called lost office of apostle and prophet with the goal of establishing the kingdom of God upon the earth. Six broad values and beliefs of the movement are evaluated in the following order: postmillennialism, restorationism, manufactured continuationism, reconstructionism, experientialism and pragmatism. It is argued that postmillennialism is a weak biblical position and that NAR’s brand (“dominionism”) wrongly places the responsibility of the kingdom on Christians rather than God. It is argued under restorationism that the office of apostle was never lost to begin with. With manufactured continuationism, there is a forcing and a faking of spiritual gifts resulting in charismania. With reconstructionism, Christians are precariously pressured to directly engage in warfare against the forces of darkness to restore dominion lost from the Fall. With experientialism, experience is placed above the Word of God. And finally, with pragmatism, attempts are made to justify NAR by its rapid growth, but this is shown to be a weak argument. All six beliefs and practices are unbiblical and should be avoided along with the movement itself.
