C O N F R O N T A T I O N W I T H T H E K I N G

The previous parts of this series on God’s historical framework of revealed doctrine has completed the Old Testament (OT) period. The scientific, ethical, and cultural controversies between biblical and pagan thought have been presented. The stage has been carefully set for the greatest drama of human history—the entrance of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, King of Kings. The present Part V will demonstrate that one cannot know or love Jesus apart from OT revelation given prior to His appearance and from revelation given in creation that dwells in and around each person continually. Starry-eyed, immature converts notwithstanding, one can never really appreciate

Jesus in a God-pleasing manner until he looks at Him in a perspective like the framework presented in Parts II through IV. The first Christians had this framework; and, as a result, they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6).

The method of organization of material used in the previous pamphlets has been slightly modified to deal with the life of Christ. In the second, third, and fourth parts, a key event or complex of events in biblical history was linked with one or more doctrines until the basic OT phase of the biblical framework was completed. In this pamphlet, as before, key events will be described; but the doctrines associated with these key events will be explicitly built from previously-taught OT doctrines. Such an approach forces the student to understand the basics before trying to understand Jesus. It also emphasizes that there is little new in the New Testament. All the basic doctrines, it will be seen, has been revealed in the OT.

The scope of the present study, the life of Christ, covers the period from His incarnation and virgin birth reported in the early chapters of the Gospels to His triumphant ascension into heaven reported in the first chapter of Acts. With the aid of this historical material one may construct a body of doctrine about Christ (Christology) in order that we can know Him as the “authentic God” and experience “eternal life” (I John 5:20).

Three appendices deal with extra material. Two of them cover major critical problems in the revelation of Christ: the nature of the Trinity and the historical titles of Christ. If one cannot handle these problems in a rationally consistent way, then he cannot make any case for orthodox Christian faith. On the other hand, if the triune nature of God and the descriptions of Christ’s dual nature are understandable (at least in a non-contradictory fashion) then the orthodox Christian faith stands firm. A third appendix considers an aspect of Christ’ atonement which has been in dispute since the Reformation.