Packer on Spirit baptism
In Acts 1:5 we read that the Risen Jesus ordered his disciples ‘not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father which you heard from me; for John baptised with water, but you will be…
Category Romans
The River Jordan & Easter Day
“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:4). More than a decade…
Baptism – through troubled waters
“For so long as we live cooped up in this prison of our body, traces of sin will dwell in us; but if we faithfully hold fast to the promise given us by God in baptism, they shall not dominate…
The Father’s Will
Inconceivable I came across an intriguing line of Calvin about the ‘love of God’ in Packer’s Concise Theology. Calvin said: ‘In an inconceivable way he loved us even when he hated us’ (p 132). Here’s what Packer wrote: “Every member…
Christians and politics
“Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law…Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” (Romans 13:8, 10) I read these verses…
Grace, grace, grace
If salvation by grace through faith spans both Old and New Testament (see earlier post), then what is the difference in the New Testament? And why is there such an emphasis upon the theme of grace in the New? These…
The Bible – one book, two covenants
“Salvation by grace through faith is not merely the province of New Testament theology but has always been the way in which God has called his people.” (WJ Dumbrell, Romans, p 99). Bill Dumbrell’s comment comes in the context of…
Paul and Ecclesiastes
“For the creation was subjected to futility…” (Romans 8:20) The Greek word, mataioteti, translated futility in the ESV of Romans 8:20, has been much discussed by commentators. The noun only occurs in two other places in the New Testament (Ephesians 4:17,…
The Spirit of Prayer
“Hannah wept…She was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly.” (1 Samuel 1:7, 10). Dale Davis notes that there is a myth which circulates around the church that runs along the line that Old Testament believers didn’t have…
Flesh and Spirit
“The Egyptians are man, and not God, and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. When the LORD stretches out his hand, the helper will stumble, and he who is helped will fall, and they will all perish together.” (Isaiah…