Kevin
Matthew Young

Preparation for Ordination Examining Council

This document is in process
of being prepared for my own benefit, in hopes of sharpening my own doctrinal
skill and in preparation of the Examining Council.  It will be updated regularly over the
next several weeks (generally on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays).

These answers are not in any
way meant to be exhaustive or final explanations on their respective
topics.  Libraries have been
dedicated to answering some of these questions.  Please consider these answers the
‘tip of the theological iceberg.’  Further study would be required for
anyone serious enough about these questions to formulate their own answers.

If you disagree or have
questions or comments, please contact me directly or post your thoughts on the MediaFORUM.

1)
PERSONAL HISTORY (this section will be finished last)

a)
Briefly describe your religious background.

b)
What events led to your conversion experience?

c)
Name several evidences of your salvation.

d)
How and when were you baptized?

e)
Where do you hold current church membership?

f)
Relate any subsequent spiritual experience you have had
since your conversion.

g)
What is your personal pattern of prayer and Bible
study?

h)
What particular gift(s) do you feel God has given you?

i)
How are you using those gifts?

j)
Relate your experience in determining
“God’s call” to the Gospel ministry.

k)
What blessing or fruit has resulted from your ministry?

2)
HOLY SCRIPTURE

a)      What is the primary purpose of the Bible?

The primary purpose of the
Bible is salvation.  The Bible is
God’s revelation of Himself to man.
It is exhaustive in that it contains only what God chose to reveal to us
about Himself.  It is sufficient in
that is all that is necessary to truly know God and His plan for mankind.  It contains all that we need to know
about God and His purposes for us; if it does not then the Bible cannot be
trusted to be infallible.

b)     Define “revelation”.

An uncovering, bringing to
light, of that which had previously been wholly hidden or only obscurely seen.

c)      How do you distinguish between revelation,
inspiration, and illumination?

Revelation – new truth directly communicated by an
act of God.

Inspiration – truth revealed directly to the mind
of the writer by God.

Illumination – truth revealed directly to the
heart by the Holy Spirit.

d)     What validity, if any, is there to
extra-Biblical revelations?

None, as God no longer speaks to us in this manner.  God speaks to us today solely through
the conduit of illumination.  There
is no divine revelation occurring in this age.  It ended, according to Ephesians 2:20
and other passages, with the death of the apostles and prophets, and with the
close of the canon. A close inspection of the NT will reveal that even in those
times revelations, signs, and wonders were fading away.

e)      What is meant by the term, “inerrancy
of the Scriptures?”

The Scriptures (in their original handwritten form)
are/were free from error and correspond at every point to what is true, whether
it be theological, historical, or scientific in nature.  This quality is claimed only for the
original manuscripts and not their copies or translations.  For those (including our current Bible
versions) we say are infallible:
meaning that the Scriptures are trustworthy in that they in no way lead us away
from true doctrine or practice.  We
do not separate inerrancy and infallibility.  Inspiration leads to Inerrancy which
leads to Infallibility.

f)       What does “canon” mean?

Rule or measuring rod.  In reference to Scripture it means the
collection of books which were measured to be both authentic and authoritative
(Inspired).

g)      What is the Apocrypha, and why is it not in
the Protestant Bible?

The Apocrypha (and other extant literature) was measured
and found to be less than inspired.
This does not infer that they cannot be helpful and even true in their
own right, but they should not be understood to be
‘God-breathed’.  Measure
was made on the basis of 1) The authority of the author, 2) Internal evidence
of Inspiration, 3) The opinions of the early church.

Specific to the Apocrypha, its twelve books were never
accepted by the Jews or Christ.
They were revered but not considered Scripture.

h)     How would you advise your congregation
respecting the value and use of translations?

Translations of the Bible are of immeasurable use to the
serious believer.  They are gifts
from God to believers in our time.
But with great blessing always comes great responsibility.  No translation is perfect… not the
KJV, not the NASB, not the NIV.
There are details and nuances that NO English Bible could ever pick up
from Ancient Hebrew or NT Greek.
Therefore, the best option is to be aware of what makes each translation
different, and ease them in tandem for serious study.

Examples:

Beauty and accuracy – King James Version (or the
New KJV)

High Accuracy – New American Standard Bible

Readability / Middle of the Road – New
International Version

High Readability – New Living Translation.

i)
Is evolution
compatible with Scripture? Explain.

No, not really.
While there is some validity to views such as adaptation of species,
etc.  Evolution is so detrimental
because it removes God from the equation.
Foundationally, it removes God from His rightful position as the Great
Cause and seeks to explain life apart from any involvement from Him.

Assuming a normal interpretation of Scripture, evolution
has no place in the grand design.

j)       Are there contradictions in Scripture? If
so, how do you handle them?

“Inerrancy means that when all the facts are
known, the Scriptures in their original autographs and properly interpreted
will be shown to be wholly true in everything they teach, whether that teaching
has to do with doctrine, history, science, geography, geology, or other
disciplines or knowledge.”[i]  There are apparent contradictions in some
places in Scripture, but to suggest that there are errors in the Bible is to
impugn the character of God.  Almost
all of the contradictions presented are easily answered by in-depth study.  Those few that are not as easily
answered are almost always chalked up to errors in transcription/ translation
and are not in danger of misrepresenting any doctrine.  We should remember that only the
original manuscripts are inspired.
Our copies, while no less true, are inerrant due to derived inspiration.

3)
THE TRINITY

a)      Give three Scriptures that show God is a
Trinity.

God is both unity and plurality.

2 Corinthians 13:14
– The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. NASB

Matthew 28:19 – Go therefore and make disciples of
all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the
Holy Ghost. NASB

Deuteronomy 6:4 – Hear, O Israel! The
LORD is our God, the LORD is one! NASB

b)     Can you explain the oneness of God in the
light of the doctrine of the Trinity?

It is difficult for the finite to understand the
infinite, if not altogether impossible.
The Bible (OT and NT) teaches that God the Father, God the Son, and God
the Holy Spirit are all divine, all are fully and eternally God.  They are distinct.  Yet there is one God.

c)      How was the Trinity at work in:

i)
Creation?

God’s own speech hints toward the doctrine of the
Trinity.  “Then God said,
‘Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness” (Genesis 1:26 NASB).  And “man has become like one of
us” (Genesis 3:22
NASB).  The Hebrew word for God, Elohim, is
frequently used in the OT in its plural form showing that God frequently spoke
of Himself in plural.

ii)      Salvation?

Without the doctrine of the Trinity, there would be no
salvation.  If Jesus were not God,
then there was no redemption at Calvary.  The unity of the Father and Son is
critical to the doctrine of the Trinity and salvation (Matthew 11:27; John 10:30, 14:9-11, 20:28; Colossians 2:9; and 1 John 5:20).
Most notably, the passages referring to Christ’s baptism and
transfiguration should be considered.

iii)    The work of the Church?

Without the Holy Spirit the Church would be in sad shape
indeed.  He is ‘God with
us’ and our ‘Comforter’ (John 14:16).  The
Baptist Faith and Message says that He: “convicts men of sin, of
righteousness, and of judgment.  He
calls men to the Saviour, and effects regeneration.
At the moment of regeneration he baptizes every believer into the Body of
Christ.  He cultivates Christian
character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which they serve
God through His church.”

d)     Is Christ or the Holy Spirit any less God
than the Father? Explain your answer.

No.  They are
all divine, and there is but one God.
While they each have differing offices and functions, to say that one is
subordinate to another is contrary to Scripture and destroys the unity and
oneness of the Godhead.

e)      How would you illustrate the Trinity?

4)
PERSON OF GOD

a)      Define “Theology”.

The study of religious faith, practice, and experience;
especially as it relates to the study of God and His relation to the world.

b)     Explain the terms:

i)
Theism.

Belief in the existence of one God viewed as the
creative source of man and the world who transcends yet is immanent in the
world.

ii)      Deism.

The belief that an impersonal God created the world then
divorced Himself from the human race leaving man alone to fend for
himself.  God’s transcendence
is acknowledged, but his immanence is not.

iii)    Atheism.

The disbelief in the existence of deity.

c)      Give what is to you the clearest Scripture
statement of the Being and Person of God, explaining why you feel this
Scripture teaches these facts.

“I AM THAT I AM” – Exodus 3:14

The words of God, spoken to Moses from the bush, signify
‘I AM, I WAS, I SHALL BE.’
God is totally independent of all other things and beings for His
existence and all he does.  Here He
is revealed as the God who not fail to keep His promises because nothing can
change Him, since everything depends on Him.

d)     Give four New Testament statements that
tell what God is.

John 4:24
– God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and
truth.  NASB

Hebrews 12:29
– Our God is a consuming fire.
NASB

1 John 1:5b – God is Light, and in Him there is no
darkness at all.  NASB

1 John 4:8 – The one who does not love does not
know God, for God is love.  NASB

e)      Name several moral attributes of God.

Holiness, Righteousness and Justice, Goodness and Mercy,
Truth

f)       Name several non-moral attributes of God.

Omnipresence, omnipotence, omniscience, immutability

g)      Define “Immutability”.

God is not capable of, or susceptible to, change.  Neither His purposes nor His promises
change.  He is absolute perfection.

h)     What are some of the evidences and
arguments for the existence of God?

First, He is self-existent.  He does not rely on any force or outside
influence to prove or maintain His existence.  That being said, here are several
classic arguments for His existence…

Cosmological
Argument.  (the Watchmaker
Argument).  God is the Great Causal
Agent.  Because there is something
instead of nothing, God must there exist.
.”  How can there be a
watch without a Watchmaker?  How can
there be a creation without a Creator?

Teleological
Argument. (the Intellegent Design Argument).  Design supposes a Designer.  The created order shows intelligent
design, purpose, and harmony, therefore there must be an intelligent,
purposeful, and harmonious Master Architect behind it.

Anthropological
Argument.  Man, God’s
highest order of creation, is not simply a physical being, but also a moral
being will conscience, intellect, emotion, and will.  The imago dei
(image of God in man) is spiritual, not physical.  Lewis Sperry Chafer writes, “There
are philosophical and moral features in man’s constitution that which may
be traced back to find their origin in God… A blind force… could
never produce a man with intellect, sensibility, will, conscience, and inherent
belief in a Creator”[ii]

Moral Argument.
Sometimes associated with the Anthropological Argument.  Since man knows the difference between
right and wrong there must be a God.
A sense of morality cannot come from simple evolutionary processes.  Romans 2:14-15 indicates that for
Gentiles who have no revelation of the law still have an inner, moral witness
placed there by God.  God has
written Himself on our heart.

Ontological
Argument.  In contrast to the
above inductive arguments, this philosophical argument states that: ‘If
man could conceive of a Perfect God who does not exist, then he could conceive
of someone greater than God himself which is impossible. Therefore God exists.’  The argument rests on the fact that all
men have an awareness of God.
Therefore because the concept of God is universal, God Himself must have
placed that idea within man.

i)
Give several
Old Testament names for God.

Elohim – plural form
meaning “plural of majesty.”
Used over 2,000 times as a general name for God.

Adonai –
“Lord” or “Master.”  Occurs 449 times.

Yahweh – “LORD” or
“Jehovah”.  The proper
name of God, His covenant name.  So
sacred to the Israelite/Jewish nation that it is never written or pronounced,
instead YHWH is used.

5)
PERSON and WORK OF CHRIST

a)      Define:

i)
Messiah
(Christ)

Means “anointed One.”

ii)      Jesus

The proper name of the Lord.  Is the Greek form of the Hebrew hame: Joshua.
Means “saviour.”

iii)    Immanuel

“God with us.”

iv)    Lord

A title of dignity and honor acknowledging the power and
authority of the one so addressed.

b)     Why do you believe Christ is God?

Christ is
referred to with divine names.
He is called God (John 1:1; Hebrews 1:8).  He is also called the Son of God
numerous places in Scripture.  He is
called Lord.

Christ is
ascribed divine worship.  And
since the Scriptures recognize worship as being due to God alone, then Christ
must therefore be God. Matthew 4:10
– “Worship the Lord thy God, and Him only.”

Christ possesses
the qualities and properties of deity.
Pre-existence (John 8:58);
Self-existence and life-giving power (John 5:21, 26 and 1:4); Immutability (Hebrews 13:8); Fullness
of the Godhead dwelt in Him (Colossians 2:9).

Divine offices
are ascribed to Him.  He is the
Creator (John 1:3); He is the upholder of all things (Col. 1:17); He has the
right to forgive sins (2:5-10); He raised men from the death (John 6:39,40,54); He is to be the judge
of all men (John 5:22).

Christ possesses
divine attributes.  Omnipotence
(Matthew 28:18); Omniscience (John 16:30);
Omnipresence (Matthew 18:20).

Christ’s
name is coupled with that of God the Father.  This occurs in the Apostolic Benediction
in 2 Corinthians 13:14, the Baptismal Formula of Matthew 28:19 and Acts 2:38,
as well as other passages such as John 14:23 and 2 Thessalonians 2:16,17.

c)      What is meant by the
“Pre-existence” of Christ? Is He eternal?

The deity of Christ and His eternality (or
pre-existence) is inseparably linked.
You cannot have one without the other.  John 1:1 says “In the beginning
was the Word…”, but a better rendering from the Greek changes this
to read “In the beginning the Word was continually existing.”  Later in John, Christ claims to have
existed before Abraham, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (8:58).  Paul says in Colossians 1:17 that
“He is before all things, and by Him all this consist.”  Christ always was, is, and will be.

d)     What does “the only begotten
Son” mean?

Begotten means “to produce especially as an effect
or outgrowth” or to “be procreated.”  Therefor we
cannot say that He was begotten as God, or we would be denying His
pre-existence and ultimately his deity.
Instead, his HUMANITY was begotten.
Christ was God from all eternity (Micah 5:2), but at Bethlehem He took to Himself an additional
nature, a human nature.

Only-begotten suggests that Christ is
“unique,” “the only one of His kind.”  It is used to mark out Jesus uniquely
above all earthly and heavenly beings.

e)      Explain what Jesus meant when He said,
“I and the Father are One,” and “the Father is greater than
I.”

“I and the Father are One” (John 10:30) is not meant affirm that God
the Father and God the Son (Christ) is the same person.  He was instead saying that they have the
closest possible unity of essence and purpose.

“The Father is greater than I” (John 14:28) does not nullify or
contradict the previous statement.
This is called the Arien Heresy, and
Jehovah’s Witnesses fall into the trap of misinterpreting this verse by
assuming it to say that Christ is lesser than God and therefore not God.  Here Christ is saying that there is
organization in the Godhead.  We
refer to them as ‘God the Father’ and ‘God the Son’,
and that makes neither one of them less important, less powerful, or less God.

f)       Explain the word, “Christophany”.

An appearance before the incarnation of the second
Person of the Trinity (i.e. an appearance of Christ in human form in the Old
Testament).  The most notable of
these occurs in Genesis 32:23-32 when Jacob wrestles with the Angel of the
Lord.

g)      What is meant “hypostatic union”?

The hypostatic union is a theological explanation of
what happened when Christ became man.
Was He God with a human nature or man with a Godly nature?  Actually, neither.  He was 100% God and 100% man.  He did not simply dwell in a human
person but instead was the union of two natures in one theanthropic
Person (the God-man).  This union is
eternal… Christ did not simply take this form on earth, but became the
God-man forever.

h)     How much importance should be placed on the
Doctrine of the Virgin Birth?

This is one of the most important doctrines in the
Bible.  If Christ was not virgin
born, then He was not sinless.
Should Christ have been born of Joseph, he would have possessed a sin
nature.

i)
Why is it
necessary for Christ to be God?

If Jesus were only a man, then He could not have dies to
save the world.  An attack on the
deity of Christ is an attack on the bedrock of Christianity.  Because of his status as God, Christ’s
death had infinite value whereby He could die for the entire world.

j)       Define “pantheism” and
“deism”. How do they differ from orthodox Christianity?

Deism is the belief that God is not personally involved
with the universe, though He may have created it.  Pantheism is the belief that God is coextensive
with the universe, i.e. the universe IS God.   These differ from orthodox
Christianity in that they deny the existence of a personal deity.

k)     What is the work of Christ today?

Christ is
building His church.  He is
forming, guiding, and controlling the church.  He is nurturing and cleansing it.  He is also giving gifts to it,
administered by the Holy Spirit.

Christ is praying
for believers.  He is assuring
the security of our salvation, restoring us to fellowship when it is broken
through sin, and preparing a heavenly home for us.  He is producing fruit in our lives.

6)
PERSON and WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

a)      Define “Pneumatology”.

The study of the doctrine of the Holy Spirit.

b)     Set forth your reasons, using Scripture,
for the belief in the Deity of the Holy Spirit.

When He is called the Spirit of God, that meant that He
is the Person of God.  1 Corinthians
2:11 attests to this.

He has divine
attributes.  Life (Romans 8:2);
Omniscience (1 Corinthians 2:10-12);
Omnipotence (Job 33:4); Omnipresence (Psalm 139:7-10); Eternality (Hebrews 9:14); Holiness (Matthew 12:32); Love (Galatians 5:22); and Truth (John 14:17).

He does divine
works.  Creation (Genesis 1:2);
Generating Christ (Matthew 1:20);
Inspiration of Scripture (2 Peter 2:21);
Regeneration (Titus 3:5); Intercession (Romans 8:26); Sanctification (2 Thessalonians 2:13); and Helping Saints (John 14:16).

c)      Set forth your reasons, using Scripture,
for the belief in the Personality of the Holy Spirit.

His attributes.  Intellect (1 Corinthians 2:10); Knowledge (1 Corinthians 2:11); Mind (Romans 8:27); Emotions (Ephesians 4:30); Will (Acts 16:6).

His works.  Teaching (John 14:16); Testifying (John 15:26); Guidance (John 16:3); Conviction (John
16:8); Regeneration (John 5:21);
Intercession (Romans 8:26);
Commands (Acts 13:2).

His position.  He can be Grieved (Isaiah 63:10);
Blasphemed (Matthew 12:32);
Resisted (Acts 7:51); Lied
to (Acts 5:3); Obeyed (Acts 10).

d)     How does the Old Testament bear witness to
the personality and work of the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit regenerated believers in the Old
Testament (Ezekiel 36:25-27).  He
selectively indwellent believers (John 14:16-17, Numbers 27:18).  He restrained sin (Genesis 6:3).  He made people able to serve (Judges 14:19).

e)      Name and define at least five distinct
ministries of the Holy Spirit.

Baptizing –
the work whereby the Spirit places the believer into union with Christ and into
union with other believers in the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13).  This is not a “second blessing,”
but instead occurs immediately at the point of conversion.

Indwelling –
the unique ministry of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16) whereby all believers are permanently indwelt by
the Spirit, occurring at the point of salvation.

Gifts –
a divine endowment of a special ability for service upon a member of the Body
of Christ.

Sealing –
the act in which the believer is sealed with the Spirit to identify the
believer as belonging to God.  Like
the branding of cattle, it is an act of owenership.

Filling
– the only conditional ministry of the Spirit.  It is the experiential and repeated
process by which believers are empowered for service.

f)       Why is belief in the personality of the
Holy Spirit essential?

To deny the personality of the Holy Spirit is to deny
his deity.  The Holy Spirit is not
just an influence but a Person.

g)      How may one sin against the Holy Spirit?

Although speaks of quenching and grieving as being sins
against the Holy Spirit, normally it is the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit that
one has in mind when this topic arises (Mark 3:28-29).  Much has been said on the topic of the
‘unpardonable sin’.  The
sin of blasphemy is not the sin of belief.
The sin against the Spirit was final and unforgivable because they had
the witness and the works of Christ (Matthew 12).  We must keep in mind these things (1) the nature of the sin is to ascribe what is the obvious work of
the Holy Spirit (e.g., releasing people from Satan’s power) to Satan
himself; (2) it is not simply a momentary doubt or sinful attitude, but is
indeed a settled condition which opposes the Spirit’s work, as typified
by the religious leaders who opposed Jesus; and (3) a person who is concerned
about it has probably never committed this sin, for those who commit it here
(i.e., the religious leaders) are not in the least concerned about Jesus’
warning.

h)     Where in Scripture do we find the gifts of
the Spirit listed?

Romans12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 28-30; Ephesians
4:11

i)
How are
these gifts given to the Church?

These gifts are given to believers (1 Corinthians 12:11).  We all receive at least one at the point
of salvation (Romans 12, 1 Peter 4:10).  They are God’s enablement for
personal spiritual service to the church.

j)       Are all the gifts valid for the Church
today?

Volumes have been written on the answer to this
question.  And yet, it is still
argued.  Personally, I believe that
not all gifts are valid for the Church today, and I further believe that the
Scripture gives ample systematic support for this view.

Some gifts were meant specifically for the beginning of
the Church.  Apostles and prophets
are said to have been given for the founding era of the body of Christ
(Ephesians 2:20).  The first generation  of Christians experienced spectacular
signs and wonders which the second generation apparently did not (Hebrews
2:3-4).  Even the gift of tongues
evidently died out before the gift of prophecy was withdrawn (1 Corinthians
13:8).

We must draw a line in the sand and remind ourselves
that much of the New Testament was not written directly to us.  It was written to believers in the first
century and contains admonitions and guidance written directly to them in many
instances, not us (i.e. many of the Pauline Epistles).  This does not mean we cannot transfer
and infer to our own culture, but we must do so with a watchful eye to the
entire context of Scripture and the revelation of the whole, not the part.

That being said, here are some bullet points that must
be stated:

·
Pentecost was a one-time-never-to-be-repeated
event.  Pentecost completes
Christ’s finished work for our salvation.

·
The book of Acts is unique, and as an historical
narrative seeks to document a completed history, a unique epoch in the history
of redemption whereby the apostolic spread of the gospel is taken to the ends
of the earth.

·
Even in Acts and the Pauline Epistles there is
no uniform nature to the experiences.

·
The Prophetic gifts (Prophecy and its
assessment, tongues and their interpretation, the word of wisdom, and the word
of knowledge) have ceased.  To
believe otherwise is to call into question the canonicity of the New Testament.  If the canon is closed, then how can God
continue to give revelation to man?

·
The office of Apostle, Prophet, and Healer have
ceased along with the divinely given ability to perform them as a function of a
Spirit-gifting.  These ‘sign
gifts’ are no longer necessary in this later part of the dispensation.

For the one whom still disbelieves, let us speak to more
practical issues.  If the New
Testament was written by men who exercised these sign gifts, why then should
they say that they had ceased.
Further, the New Testament Apostles expected the Lord to return in their
lifetime, therefore we should not expect them to make any statement about the
cessation of certain gifts.  This
being the case, we would have to find a contemporary of the Apostles, who lived
longer than the Apostles and wrote about giftings, if
we are to more fully answer the question of the cessation of gifts.  Fortunately, both Hebrews and Jude fit
this description.  All in all,
Hebrews 2:3-4 seems to involve some solid inferences that the sign gifts had
for the most part ceased. Further, it offers equally inferential evidence of
the purpose of the sign gifts: to confirm that God was doing something new. The
whole argument of Hebrews rests on this assumption: there is a new and final
revelation in Jesus Christ

If the Spirit of God, the Spirit of truth and order, is
really restoring these prophetic gifts to the church today in such a widespread
way, would there be, as there in fact is, such widespread ambiguity and
confusion, not to mention division, about them?  Does the Spirit, who gives gifts to
unify and edify, work in this ambivalent and uncertain way?

I could write more, but Dr. Dan Wallace already
has!  Visit http://www.netbible.org/docs/soapbox/continu.htm

k)     List the fruit of the Spirit. Where is it
found?

Galatians 5:22,23 – Love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

l)
What
position do you hold on speaking in tongues? Slaying in the Spirit?
Prophesying?

Assuming a Normative, Dispensational view of the
Scriptures: No, they are not meant to be practiced today.  For more information, refer to Section 6
Part j.

m)   What is the primary purpose of the Holy
Spirit today?

He gives gifts, He fills, He teaches, He guides, He
gives assurance, He prays.

7)
ATONEMENT

a)      Define “Atonement”.

At-one-ment.  The state of being at one or reconciled.
The means by which the guilt-punishment chain produced by violation of
God’s will is broken.

b)     Where and when did the plan of the
atonement originate?

The plan originated with God, revealed to His people
most clearly in Genesis 22:8 when God provided Abraham a lamb in place of Isaac
on Mount Moriah.

c)      What does the atonement teach us about God?

The atonement teaches us that our God is a god concerned
with reconciliation.  He draws His
own unto Himself.  God was/is a faithful,
holy covenant partner to His people; He provided the means of atonement when
His sanctuary or the land became defiled, or when the people were
unfaithful.  God did not need
appeasement; rather, atonement removed the sinful barrier to the covenantal relationship.

d)     If God loves us, was the atonement
necessary?

Yes.  The
atonement came as a result of God’s love for us.  It was absolutely necessary because of God’s love for us.

e)      What does the atonement teach us about man?

The atonement teaches us that man is sinful and
therefore separated from the Holy God of the Universe.  It teaches us that we cannot become
sinless or bridge that gap ourselves, there must be a mediator.

f)       Could anyone other than Christ have made an
acceptable atonement?

No.  No one
other than could have made a complete and acceptable atonement.  The Old Testament sacrificial system did
not provide a lasting atonement for the Israelites; it had to be repeated
yearly.  Only a perfect sacrifice,
where one stood in our stead and died, could satisfy and pay for the penalty of
sin.

g)      How does propitiation relate to atonement?

Propitiation is a facet of the atonement.  Propitiation means that the death of
Christ fully satisfied all the righteous demands of God toward the Sinner.  i.e. God is propitiated – His
holiness is vindicated and satisfied by the death of Christ.

h)     How does redemption relate to the
atonement?

Redemption is one of the most amazing concepts in the
Scripture.  Redemption is the
purchasing back of something that had been lost, by the payment of a
ransom.  The debt against us is not
merely seen as cancelled, but because of Christ’s atoning work is fully
paid.

i)
What
assurance do we have that the sacrifice of Christ was acceptable to God as an
atonement?

The most obvious sign that His atoning work was
acceptable is the resurrection of Christ.
His coming back to life on the third day was a sign of vindication and
approval.  Romans 3:24-25 tells us
that “Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has
done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins. For
God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God’s
anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed
his blood, sacrificing his life for us. God was being entirely fair and just
when he did not punish those who sinned in former times.”

j)       For whom did Christ die? In your answer,
discuss your views on limited atonement vs. unlimited atonement vs. universal
atonement.

Limited Atonement
– the atonement of Christ is limited to a definite or particular number
of people (the Elect).

Unlimited
Atonement – Christ died for every person but His death is effective
only in those who believe the gospel.

Universal
Atonement – Christ died for the sins of the entire world, and
therefore all men are saved.

Christ died for all. 2 Peter 2:1 seems to infer that
unlimited atonement is the correct answer to the question.  Though one cannot be dogmatic on this
doctrine, Unlimited Atonement offers the most solution and creates the number
of problems in relation to the text.

k)     Can the atonement be effective in human
lives in any way where the Gospel is unknown?

The Atonement: no.
General Revelation: yes.

l)
What part
does the blood of Christ play in the atonement?

Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission for
sins (Matthew 26:28).  The blood of
Christ is the guarantee of our secured salvation in the New Covenant.

8)
JUSTIFICATION

a)      Define “justification”.

To justify is to declare righteous the one who has faith
in Jesus Christ. It is a forensic (legal) act of God whereby He declares the
believing sinner righteous on the basis of the blood of Christ.

b)     Where in the Bible would you take someone
to teach them concerning the doctrine of justification?

Romans 5:1-10

c)      What is the basis on which God justifies
the sinner?

A believer in Christ is justified on the basis of the
death of Christ, apart from works.

d)     What is the nature of the change brought
about justification?

“It is the judicial act of God, by which he
pardons all the sins of those who believe in Christ, and accounts, accepts, and
treats them as righteous in the eye of the law, i.e., as conformed to all its
demands. In addition to the pardon of sin, justification declares that all the
claims of the law are satisfied in respect of the justified. It is the act of a
judge and not of a sovereign. The law is not relaxed or set aside, but is
declared to be fulfilled in the strictest sense; and so the person justified is
declared to be entitled to all the advantages and rewards arising from perfect
obedience to the law.”[iii]

e)      Describe the relationship between
justification and regeneration.

Regeneration is the “new birth.”  It is God’s act of begetting
eternal life in the one who believes in Christ.  Justification is a change of a legal nature:
God declares one righteous.
Regeneration is the communication of divine life to the soul...as the
impartation of a new nature...or heart...and the production of a new creation.

f)       What are some of the blessings of
justification?

(a)
The pardon and removal of all sins

(b)
The end of separation from God.

(c)
Imputation of Christ’s righteousness upon the
believing person.

g)      Does the Law have a relationship to
justification?

Romans 3:20
clearly states that as a means of establishing right relations with God the law
is totally insufficient.  The law
can open a person’s eyes to his own sinfulness, but it cannot remove
it.  In fact, it was never meant to
remove it, but to intensify it (Galatians 2:16, 3:10;
Romans 3:28).

9)
RESURRECTION

a)      How important is the doctrine of the resurrection
of Christ to the Christian faith?

The resurrection of Christ is of cardinal
importance.  “If Christ was
not raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your trust in God is
useless. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless, and you
are still under condemnation for your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:14,17).

b)     How do you explain the words of Jesus:
“I am the resurrection”?

Jesus is the Lord of both the physical and
spiritual.  He held power over life
and death.

c)      Give support from the Old Testament as to
the certainty of the resurrection.

Daniel 12:2 – “And many of them that sleep
in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to
shame and everlasting contempt.”

Psalm 16:10
– “For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou
suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.”

Isaiah 26:19 – “Thy dead men shall
live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye
that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth
shall cast out the dead.

Job 19:25-27 – “For I know that my
redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the
latter day upon the earth; and though after my skin worms destroy this body,
yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes
shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within
me.”

d)     The Bible (I Corinthians 15:44) refers to our resurrected body as a
Spiritual body. How does this differ from our present body?

There will be a continuity between mortal and immortal
body, just as there was with Christ’s.  Our resurrection bodies will be
spiritual in that they are created, indwelt, and sustained by the Holy Spirit
and will belong to the eternal, imperishable, immortal, heavenly order of
things.

e)      Is it possible for a resurrection to occur
without a physical body?

Of course.
Paul answered this question in 1 Corinthians 15:35-49.

f)       What is the relationship between the
resurrection of Jesus Christ and future resurrection?

They are inseparably linked (1 Corinthians 15:12-19).  If Jesus was raised, haw can anyone ever
say, “There will be no resurrection of the dead?”  If there is no resurrection, then Christ
could not have been raised and in that case our faith is futile and we are
still in our sins.

g)      Describe the believers’ resurrection.

John 6:39,40,44; 1 Corinthians 15:22-23; 1 Thessalonians
4:14-17

h)     Where in the Bible would you take someone
to teach them concerning the doctrine of the resurrection?

See above.
John 5:28.

10)
REGENERATION

a)
Define soteriology.

b)
Define regeneration.

c)
Give two passages of Scripture that teach the necessity
o of man being regenerated.

d)
How are the Holy Spirit and Scripture involved in
regeneration?

e)
How can one come to a personal assurance of
regeneration?

f)
How would you lead a person into salvation?

g)
Which of the following characteristics must be present
in an individual before regeneration can occur: faith; forgiving spirit;
repentance; love; patience; conviction; confession?

h)
What are some of the manifestations of regeneration?

i)
Describe the faith that results in regeneration.

j)
What is meant by the terms “old man” and
“new man”?

11)
SANCTIFICATION

a)
Define “sanctification”.

b)
Explain the difference between positional,
experiential, and progressive sanctification.

c)
Why is a crises experience essential in sanctification?

d)
Discuss the terms “filled with the Spirit”
and “baptism of the Spirit”.

e)
Relate being filled with the Spirit to sanctification.

f)
What are some evidences of being filled with the Holy
Spirit?

g)
Relate being filled with the Holy Spirit to Christian
service.

h)
How important to you is the teaching of sanctification
to your congregation?

i)
Give an example from the Old Testament and from the New
Testament of God’s work of sanctification in an individual.

j)
Discuss John 15:5-6 in light of sanctification.

k)
How do you know that sanctification is God’s will
for each believer?

l)
Discuss Galatians 2:20.

12)
HEALING

a)
What do you understand by the term “healing in
the atonement”?

b)
What do you believe concerning physical healing for
this day?

c)
What procedure should be followed in the ministry of the
Church to the sick who request prayer for healing?

d)
What do you believe concerning the relationship of
Spiritual gifts to the ministry of healing?

e)
In the fellowship of the Church, who is under
obligation to make the first move in the ministry of anointing and prayers for
the sick?

f)
In the anointing and prayer ministry of the sick by the
Elders, what is meant by “the prayer of faith”?

g)
What are some reasons that all Christians who are
prayed for are not healed?

h)
How is the problem of sin related to the problem of
sickness?

13)
RETURN OF THE LORD

a)
On what basis do you believe that the Lord Jesus Christ
will personally and physically return to the Earth?

b)
What are the differences among the doctrines of premillennialism, post-millennialism, and amillenialism? Which position do you accept?

c)
When do you believe the rapture of the Church will
occur? Support with Scripture.

d)
How does the Bible describe the Great Tribulation?

e)
What ministry to the unsaved of the world must be
performed prior to Christ’s return?

f)
What will be the judgments associated with
Christ’s return?

g)
Outline the order of future events relating to the end
times.

h)
How important is the teaching of the return of Christ
to the Christian’s present walk?

i)
What do you mean by the imminent return of Christ?

14)
LOSTNESS OF MAN

a)
What is your view on the doctrine of the total
depravity of man?

b)
Are the heathen lost? Give Scripture.

c)
Differentiate between Hades and Hell.

d)
What does eternal punishment involve?

e)
Are there degrees of punishment in Hell? Support with
Scripture.

f)
Refute the doctrines of “soul sleep”,
“purgatory”, and “annihilation”.

g)
Is there any possibility of making a decision to be
saved after one has died?

15)
ANGELS AND SATAN

a)
Give a brief history of Satan – from beginning to
end.

b)
Give some terms used in the Bible to describe Satan.

c)
Distinguish between Satan, the flesh, and the world.

d)
Do you believe in demon possession today? If so, how
would you deal with someone you discern to be possessed?

e)
Why is rebellion likened to witchcraft?

f)
Based on a study of the temptations Satan presented to
Jesus, what would you consider to be primary weapons Satan uses in attempting
to thwart a Christian?

g)
Define angel, seraphim, and cherubim.

h)
Give examples from Scripture of the ministry of angels.

16)
CONSTITUTED AUTHORITY

a)
Tba

[i]James Montgomery Boice,
Does Inerrancy Matter? (Oakland: International Council on Biblical
Inerrancy, 1979), p. 13.

[ii] Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, 8
vols. (Dallas: Dallas Seminary, 1947) 1:155, 157.

[iii]Easton, M.G. Easton's Bible Dictionary.
Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1996,
c1897.