Jesus the Sinner
No, Jesus never sinned. The Bible specifically says that Jesus was sinless: "Christ . . . offered himself without blemish to God" (Heb. 9:14). The author of Hebrews also teaches: "Since then we have…
Jesus and Michael
No, Michael and Jesus are not one and the same. The suggestion that they are one in the same is based on a poor understanding of Hebrew as well as on some very incorrect interpretations of particular…
How Did Jesus Avoid Original Sin?
It is true that all fallen humans are born with original sin. Original sin consists of the fact that God holds us all guilty for the first sin which Adam committed, our loss of original…
Why Do Christians Need Doctors?
There are many good and reasonable answers to this. I will be brief and comment on only a few. Every healing that happens is God's miracle. Honest doctors will tell you that they do not heal, they…
Trinity and Jesus' Omniscience
The issues you raise have to do not only with the Trinity, but also with the "hypostatic union" -- the doctrine that the one person Christ has both a human nature and a divine nature. He is fully God…
Descending into Hell
Actually, yours is a question that many people ponder. Most modern Reformed theologians affirm the phrase "he descended into hell," but interpret it to mean that Jesus was buried in the earth and…
Equality in the Godhead
Let's start with an affirmation of the doctrine of the ontological Trinity, which states that God exists in three persons and one essence. This is a careful way of conveying the following truths: 1)…
Lest They Be Forgiven
I suppose I could just point out that Jesus is quoting or referring to Isaiah 6, but then that would just push the problem back into the Old Testament. I'll get back to that issue at the end, but I…
Whose Name is Yahweh?
In the Old Testament, "Yahweh" is God's name, meaning that it is the name of the Trinity. In the New Testament, God is revealed as existing in Trinity, and both the Father and the Son are at times…
Did God Die on the Cross?
The simple answer is: yes and no. We can speak of God dying only if we mean that Jesus, the person who was God, died. The problem is that we cannot say that Jesus died in his divine nature. He only…
Covenant of Redemption
The covenant of redemption is typically described as a covenant between the Father and the Son rather than as a covenant between all three members of the Godhead. This is because the Bible presents…
Could Jesus Sin?
This answer is covered in a series by IIIM called the, " Apostles' Creed," (APC - 3rd Lesson) and the "We Believe in Jesus," (JES 2nd Lesson) video series. Here is a brief summary. The word…
Who is Jesus?
The short answer is that we believe Jesus is the only-begotten Son of God, the only mediator between God and man, and the only savior by which men may be saved. He is head of the church, heir of all…
Sacrifice and the Crucifixion
Many biblical sacrifices were not lost or consumed during the act of sacrifice. In fact, the priests often received a large portion of what was offered/sacrificed, and much of the sacrificial animal…
Christ's Blood
The efficacy of Christ's blood lies not in some property of the blood itself, but rather in the fact that Christ shed it in death, a death that was the price of atonement for the elect's sins.…
Limited Atonement vs. John 3:16
John 3:16-17 is a pretty common text that people use as an objection to limited atonement. The basic idea behind the objection is generally that because God's love for the world motivated him to give…
Could Jesus Have Sinned?
It was not possible for Jesus to have sinned even in his capacity as a human. This is partly because of the perfect union of his two natures (human and divine) in the one person whom we know as Jesus…
Animal Sacrifice
Animal sacrifice continued in the Jewish community even after the time of Christ. When the Jewish temple was destroyed and the nation of Israel extinguished in AD 70, Jewish animal sacrifice on a…
Kingdom in Scripture
The Bible speaks of the kingdom of God in various ways, including those you've mentioned. It is probably also worth mentioning that in some sense the kingdom of God was already here on earth even in…
Unlimited Atonement
In 1 Corinthians 15:2-3, Paul stated that he had preached that "Christ died for our sins," but he did not specifically identify to whom he referred by the word "our." Modern readers are at somewhat…
Jesus' Power
Jesus did do at least some miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit (e.g., Luke 4:14ff.; Acts 10:38; Rom. 8:11). Others he is said to have done by asserting his own divine authority (e.g., Mark…
Jehovah and Yahweh
I think there is sufficient New Testament evidence to demonstrate that Jehovah (a.k.a. Yahweh) is the name of God, not just of one of the persons of the godhead. Specifically, both the Father and the…
Jesus' Glorified Body
John is not terribly clear in describing Jesus' body. When Thomas insisted that he would not believe unless he touched Jesus, he wanted to place his finger eis the mark of the nails, and he wanted to…
Why Jesus?
Jesus came to save his people from their sins (Matt. 1:21), that they might have life (John 10:10). He came to save those who believe (John 3:16-17; 12:46), and to mediate between them and God (Heb.…