The Riddleblog

No Creed But Christ? Protestants and "Catholic" Creeds

I’ll never forget the first time my wife and I worshiped in a Presbyterian church. I was raised in independent Bible-churches where it was a given that we believed the Bible, but Roman Catholics relied on tradition. We affirmed “no creed but Christ,” which ironically is a creed in is own right—albeit a short creed. I knew of the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds, but thought of these as relics of the past, which functioned as an end run around the authority of Scripture. This is why, I suspected, that Roman Catholics recited them. You can imagine how we were taken aback when the Presbyterian faithful recited the Apostles’ Creed with great gusto, including the line which, at the time, I could not bring myself to repeat, “one holy catholic and apostolic church.”

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The Blessed Hope Podcast -- Episode Three: "Paul's Conversion, Visit to Jerusalem, and the Gentile Mission" (Galatians 1:11-2:10)

In the third episode of our series on Galatians, we take a look at Paul’s defense of his apostolic office in the face of direct challenges to his gospel from the Judaizers in Galatia. In this section of Galatians (Galatians 1:11-2:10), Paul recounts his call and conversion, his early ministry in Damascus and Arabia, his two post-conversion trips to Jerusalem when he met with the other apostles, and his time in Syrian Antioch and Cilicia (an area which includes Paul’s hometown, Tarsus).

To listen to this episode, follow the link below

To see the other episodes in this series, Click Here

Face to Face? Not Today . . . But One Day

I suppose that if you were to ask Christians whether or not they would like to “see” God, many, without thinking about it, would answer “yes.” Human curiosity easily wins out over whatever knowledge we might have of those biblical passages such as Hebrews 12:29, which informs us that “our God is a consuming fire.” If we were to see God this side of glory, it would not be a good thing, nor would such a sight satisfy our curiosity. We would be consumed. Although Isaiah saw the Lord upon his prophetic commissioning (Isaiah 6:1-7), he was undone by his sin—”woe is me!”

While Scripture promises that the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8), Paul makes it clear that such sight cannot come until death, when believers enter God’s presence. It is God alone who “has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see” (1 Timothy 6:16). But on the last day, Paul says, when Jesus appears, we will see that which our sin and finitude currently prevents us from seeing (6:14-15).

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Biblical EventsKim RiddlebargerJune 14, 2021The Glory of God, The Beatific VisionComment

Hear Anything Lately About the Wrath of God? The Silence Is Deafening

It is a major theme throughout the Old Testament. It is found throughout the New Testament as well. John the Baptist clearly taught it (Matthew 3:7). Jesus preached about it (Luke 21:23). So did Paul (Romans 1:18; 9:22; Ephesians 5:6; Colossians 3:6). John mentions it once in his gospel (3:36) but makes it a central theme of the Apocalypse (Revelation 14:6 ff). But in our day and age–so it seems–no one wants to touch the subject. It is too controversial, too divisive. It often goes unmentioned in our pulpits. The very thought of it is repulsive to many Americans. I am talking about the wrath of God.

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Biblical TheologyKim RiddlebargerJune 9, 2021wrath of God

John Calvin on the Transforming Power of the Book of Romans

Many of you, no doubt, have consulted Calvin’s famous biblical commentaries. You may even have consulted Calvin’s commentary on the Book of Romans–one of his first, written in 1539, while Calvin was still in Strasbourg. It is my guess is that many who have consulted Calvin on Romans, have not read Calvin’s dedication of the commentary (to Simon Grynaeus), nor Calvin’s introductory essay on the theme of Romans. In these two essays we get a fascinating glimpse of Calvin’s goal as a biblical interpreter and his estimation of the importance of grasping the central message Paul’s most famous letter–the doctrine of justification by faith. We also get a sense of how Calvin felt about the transforming power of the Book of Romans.

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Biblical TheologyKim RiddlebargerJune 7, 2021The Book of Romans, John CalvinComment

An Exposition of Article Ten of the Belgic Confession -- The Deity of Jesus

While a truism in modern American–“Jews, Muslims and Christians, all worship the same God”–the deity of Jesus Christ is the most obvious reason why this is not the case. Like Jews and Muslims, Christians are monotheists. But unlike Jews and Muslims, Christians are also Trinitarians. We believe that the one God is triune and is revealed as three distinct and divine persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If Jesus Christ is fully God, and if Jews and Muslims reject his deity, then Jews and Muslims do not worship the same God that Christians worship.

Christians embrace the New Testament as part of God’s self-revelation (unlike the Jews). Since Christians believe that the New Testament’s teaching regarding the deity of Jesus Christ supercedes all subsequent supposed revelation from God (i.e. the Koran–the holy book of Islam), then the person and work of Jesus Christ will necessarily define the Christian view of God. However, Jews, Muslims, and many indigenous American cults (i.e. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons) do not accept the deity of Jesus Christ. It is especially important that we believe the doctrine of the deity of Jesus Christ in order to be saved, since salvation is found in no other name than the name of Jesus (cf. Acts 4:12). It is also vital to confess this doctrine before the watching world so that people might come to a saving knowledge of God, through the saving work of Jesus Christ, who is the true and eternal God, the Almighty.

We must also confess this doctrine because so many mistakenly think that Jews, Christians and Muslims all worship the same God. No, we do not worship the same God and we cannot allow this mistaken but popular assumption to go unchallenged. This is why we must believe and confess the deity of Jesus.

To read the rest of this article, Article Ten of the Belgic Confession: The Deity of Jesus

Belgic ConfessionKim RiddlebargerJune 4, 2021Deity of Jesus, Arianism

The Blessed Hope Podcast -- Episode Two: "No Other Gospel" (Galatians 1:1-10)

The Second Episode in The Blessed Hope Podcast Series on Galatians Is Ready!

To Listen to the podcast, and check out the show notes, follow the link below

Trouble In the Middle East -- Time to Check the Rapture Index

With the Israeli-Palestinian conflict heating up, I thought it a good time to check the Rapture Index, something I do periodically to keep tabs on the current state of biblical prophecy punditry. The current Rapture Index level is 188, high enough to “fasten our seat belts.” The Rapture Index low in 2020 was 176—a significant decline from previous highs despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The lower number—if I had to guess—was due to the proprietors’ support of former president Trump.

As long as Trump was president, the Rapture didn’t seem quit as imminent. But Biden is now president, and the situation between the Israelis and the Palestinians is very tense, the index has returned to 188, just short of the all-time high of 189 (in October of 2016).

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End Times NuttinessKim RiddlebargerMay 24, 2021Rapture Index, Signs of the EndComment

Joseph's Faith in the Face of Death

A key figure in the closing chapters of the Book of Genesis, Joseph is known for several things: his “coat of many colors,” being sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, and for his remarkable ability to interpret the dreams of the Egyptian Pharaoh. But when the author of Hebrews looks back on the life of Joseph in Hebrews 11 (the so-called “hall of faith”), Joseph is remembered for something we often forget. “By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones” (Hebrews 11:22).

Joseph was the eleventh son of Jacob. Rachel was his mother. Joseph became the apple of his father’s eye and the recipient of the famous multicoat–a gift from his father, provoking great jealousy on the part of his brothers. Joseph even had the nerve to claim he had a dream in which his older brothers bowed down to him. When Jacob sent the seventeen year-old upstart Joseph to find his brothers, they plot to kill him. One of his brothers, Reuben, talked the others into throwing Joseph down a well, knowing that he (Reuben) would return later and rescue him. Instead, Joseph was sold to traders, who took Joseph into Egypt, where he was sold again to Potiphar. While in Potiphar’s care, God was with Joseph, who thrived. Through a series of remarkable events, including interpreting Pharaoh’s dream (Genesis 41), Joseph became viceroy over all of Egypt.

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Biblical EventsKim RiddlebargerMay 17, 2021Joseph, Joseph's reburial in ShechemComment

New Riddleblog Publication -- "The Seventy Weeks of Daniel: Daniel 9:24-27"

My exposition of the famous "Seventy-Weeks" prophecy of Daniel (Daniel 9:24-27) begins in what is perhaps a surprising place–the Gospel of Matthew with Jesus giving his so-called "Olivet Discourse." The discourse is so named because Jesus and this disciples were sitting on the Mount of Olives, looking across the Kidron Valley at the magnificent Jerusalem temple, restored to its original grandeur by King Herod. Jesus uses this occasion to predict the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem, as well as discuss the end of the age. When passing the temple earlier that day, his disciples asked him a question about the end of the age and what would happen to this great building. Jesus told them, “you see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down” (Matthew 24:2). The magnificent second temple will be completely destroyed–again.

Jesus is predicting something unthinkable to a Jew of that day, since the Jewish people had endured this terrible fate once already. This time, Jesus implies, the destruction of the temple will be final. While predicting the destruction of the temple and teaching his disciples about the end of age, Jesus repeatedly appeals to the prophet Daniel. So it is here we begin our exposition of the "Seventy Weeks" prophecy of Daniel–with Jesus, on the Mount of Olives, teaching his disciples about the time of the end, all the while quoting from or alluding to Daniel’s prophecies. By considering how Jesus understood the Book of Daniel, and then spoke of his own role in fulfilling key portions of Daniel’s prophecies, we gain the proper perspective to interpret Daniel’s "Seventy Weeks" prophecy correctly.

You can read the rest of the essay here: "The Seventy Weeks of Daniel: Daniel 9:24-27"

The Arsonsist Within -- Our Tongue

In the third chapter of the Book of James, the brother of our Lord has much to say about the power of the tongue, and the damage we can do to others through our speech. The tongue might seem small (in comparison to the rest of our bodies), but like a horse’s bridle, or a ship’s rudder, James warns us not to let the tongue’s small size fool us in regard to its power. As James says in verse 5, “the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.” James goes on to lament, “How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.”

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The Book of Galatians -- Episode One: "An Introduction to the Book of Galatians"

The First Episode in The Blessed Hope Podcast Series on Galatians Has Been Posted

To Listen to the podcast, and check out the show notes, follow the link below

An Exposition of Article Nine of the Belgic Confession -- Biblical Evidence for the Doctrine of the Trinity

In a culture such as ours, which is characterized by religious pluralism and a “god” with only one attribute (“niceness”), it is vital that we believe the correct things about God. We must confess these doctrines before the unbelieving world around us. We do this so as to see people come to faith in the one true God, who reveals himself as three distinct persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But we also confess our belief in the Triune God as a testimony against those who tell us that Christians, Jews, and Muslims all worship the same God, but each in their own way.

Article Nine of the confession, sets forth some of the more salient biblical evidence for the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. In this regard Article Nine presupposes the explanation of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity set forth in Article Eight. As Reformed Christians, we are also “catholic” Christians–not “Roman Catholic” –in the sense that we believe and confess along with the entire Christian church that there is one true God, who is revealed as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We do not believe and confess that there are three Gods. We believe and confess that there is but one God who reveals himself as three distinct persons.

To read the rest of this article, click here: We Believe It On the Ground of the Word of God

"Children in the Hands of the Arminians" -- B. B. Warfield on the Salvation and Proper Nuture of Christian Children

Some of B. B. Warfield's book reviews are published in his collected works, while many are not. There are a number of gems from the "Lion of Princeton" that remain hidden away in obscure journals and publications. One of these gems is Warfield's "Review" of The Child as God's Child, by Rev. Charles W. Rishell, Ph. D., Professor of Historical Theology in Boston University School of Theology. New York: Eaton & Mains. Cincinnati: Jennings & Graham (1904).

Warfield's review of Rishell's book was originally published in vol. xvii of the Union Seminary Magazine, 1904. Warfield entitled his review, "Children in the Hands of the Arminians. Here’s an excerpt

The children certainly must be a source of gravest concern to a consistently Arminian reasoner. The fundamental principle of Arminianism is that salvation hangs upon a free, intelligent choice of the individual will; that salvation is, in fact, the result of the acceptance of God by man, rather than of the acceptance of man by God. The logic of this principle involves in hopeless ruin all who, by reason of tenderness of years, are incapable of making such a choice. On this teaching, all those who die in infancy should perish, while those who survive the years of immaturity might just as well be left to themselves until they arrive at the age of intelligent option.

To read the entire review, follow the link below

A Benefit of the Gospel — Peace of Conscience

Many of us take for granted what a wonderful gift it is from God to place our heads on the pillow at night and know deep down inside that it is well with our souls— “peace like a river.” But there are times when our minds are much noisier, and we cannot turn them off when we try to sleep. At times, life’s troubles seem like they will overwhelm us. Then, there are those frightening moments when doubt comes rushing in like a flood. Is Christianity true? Are the sacrifices we must make associated with following Jesus worth the effort? We may even question whether or not we are Christ’s, or if we ever were. Worst of all, we may truly fear that we may have done something which will cause Christ to cast us away.

The good news for our troubled consciences is that because of the finished work of Jesus Christ for us on Calvary’s cross (the message of the gospel) it is always well with our souls, whether or not we can successfully turn off our noisy minds. Our standing with God does not in any sense depend upon whether or not we can sleep peacefully. But it sure helps us turn off our minds by considering the benefits of Christ—his obedient life, his sacrificial death, his victory over the grave—which are the basis for our salvation. These things are always secure. Yet, one of the most difficult struggles of the Christian life is our ability (or lack thereof) to fully grasp these benefits and then live in the light of the comfort which they bring us.

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The Blessed Hope Podcast The Premier Episode

The Introductory Episode of the Blessed Hope Podcast — Episode 00

Follow the Link Below to Listen and/or Download

The Blessed Hope Podcast Launching Soon!

The Blessed Hope Podcast will launch soon! Just a couple of technical matters remain to wrap up, and then we are off and running.

Meanwhile, lots of stuff and updates added to the Riddleblog—especially in the “Book Reviews and Recommended Reading” section. More updates to come!

Blessed Hope PodcastKim RiddlebargerApril 12, 2021Premier Episode Comments

I Was on the Distilling Theology Podcast Discussing Amillennialism

I was recently a guest on the Distilling Theology Podcast, talking about amillennialism.

To listen to our discussion, go here: The Distilling Theology Podcast -- Episode 46: Amillennialism

AmillennialismKim RiddlebargerApril 9, 2021Distilling Theology, Amillennialism

The den Dulk Lectures at Westminster Seminary California

An honor and a privilege . . . For more information and links to live streaming, go here: 2021 den Dulk Lectures

An Exposition of Article Eight of the Belgic Confession

It is common to hear people say that Christians, Jews, and Muslims all worship the same God–the so-called “Abrahamic Faiths.” The reality is that nothing could be further from the truth. Unlike those who worship Allah, or those Jews who claim to worship the God of Abraham, Christians worship the true and living God, who reveals himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Often it has been said that Christianity’s most distinctive doctrine is that of the Holy Trinity. Even though in many ways the doctrine of the Trinity is beyond our full comprehension, nevertheless we do as the Athanasian Creed exhorts us to do–we worship the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity. We do so because this is how God reveals himself to us in his word, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the one true God.

To read the rest of this article, click here: Belgic Confession Article Eight -- The Trinity

Belgic ConfessionKim RiddlebargerMarch 30, 2021Trinity, Christian Creeds