DOCSLIB.ORG

James Denney: Pastor and Theologian for the Church

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
James Denney: Pastor and Theologian for the Church James Denney: Pastor and Theologian for the Church Introducing James Denney What I would like to do in this lecture is to introduce you to the Scottish United Free Church theologian and NT scholar James Denney, and I want to do that by way of a brief look at Denney’s 13 years in pastoral ministry,1 and then move on to consider some more theological issues on the nature of ministry itself that arise from Denney’s own life and thinking, and suggest that there are some things about Denney’s theology that remain critical for pastoral practitioners today. 1856 was the year that saw the publication of John Macleod Campbell’s The Nature of the Atonement – a work that trumpeted God’s universal love revealed in Christ, a word all the more radical given its context in formalistic and austere Scotland. It was also the year that witnessed the establishment of the Wynd Mission in Glasgow,2 and expanding interests in world mission, reaching as far as the New Hebrides (Vanuatu).3 1856 saw a congregation in Glasgow dare to install an organ in its sanctuary, and another congregation in Edinburgh explore the radical possibility of using a new order of worship. Some Scottish theologians were beginning to feel at home with Schleiermacher and Wellhausen,4 and all were oblivious to the bombshell that Darwin’s On the Origin of the Species would drop just three years later. James Denney (1856–1917) was born at Paisley near Glasgow on 5 February 1856, and spent his childhood at nearby Greenock. His father John was a joiner by trade and a Reformed Presbyterian by conviction, serving as a deacon in the Cameronian (Reformed Presbyterian) Church.5 These early years in such a staunchly conservative context instilled in Denney a permanent seriousness about spiritual and theological matters.6 Arguably the most formative years of Denney’s life, however, were those nine years between 1874 and 1883 when he was a student – first an arts student at Glasgow University (1874–1879) where he graduated with First Class Honours in Classics and Philosophy, and then a student of theology at the United Free Church College in 1 As far as Denney’s pastoral practice is concerned, Jim Gordon’s excellent treatment is the fullest account of which I am aware. James M. Gordon, James Denney (1856–1917): An Intellectual and Contextual Biography (Milton Keynes: Paternoster, 2006), 99–134. See also Philip Edgcumbe Hughes, ‘Evangelist-Theologian: Appreciation of James Denney’, CT 1, no. 4 (1956), 3–5; Thomas Hywel Hughes, The Atonement: Modern Theories of the Doctrine (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1949), 83–91; Archibald M. Hunter, ‘The Theological Wisdom of James Denney’, ExpTim 60 (1949), 238–40; I. Howard Marshall, ‘James Denney’, in Creative Minds in Contemporary Theology (ed. Philip Edgcumbe Hughes; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1969), 203–38; I. Howard Marshall, ‘Denney, James (1856–1917)’, in The Dictionary of Historical Theology (ed. Trevor A. Hart; Carlisle/Grand Rapids: Paternoster/Eerdmans, 2000), 156–8; Samuel J. Mikolaski, ‘The Theology of Principal James Denney’, EvQ 35 (1963), 89–96, 144–68, 209–22; John K. Mozley, Some Tendencies in British Theology: From the Publication of Lux Mundi to the Present Day (London: SPCK, 1951); 130–6; Kenneth R. Ross, ‘Denney, James’, in Dictionary of Scottish Church History and Theology (ed. Nigel M. de S. Cameron; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1993), 239–40; John Randolph Taylor, God Loves Like That! The Theology of James Denney (London: SCM, 1962); T.H. Walker, Principal James Denney, D.D. A Memoir and a Tribute (London: Marshall Brothers, 1918). 2 See James Wells, ‘The Wynd Mission’. The Free Church of Scotland Monthly (2 January 1899): 4; William G. Enright, ‘Urbanization and the Evangelical Pulpit in Nineteenth-Century Scotland’, CH 47, no. 4 (1978), 400–7. 3 The PCNZ (the Northern Church) began its missionary work in the New Hebrides through William and Agnes Watt who arrived from Scotland in 1869. 4 See, for example, James Denney, ‘Preaching Christ’, in A Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels (ed. James Hastings, et al.; vol. 2; Edinburgh/New York: T&T Clark/Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1908), 398–9. 5 1876 saw the union between the Reformed Presbyterian Church and the Free Church of Scotland. 6 See Denney’s comments on the place of humour in the Bible. James Moffatt, ed., Letters of Principal James Denney to His Family and Friends (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1921), 78–80. P a g e | 2 Glasgow (1879–1883). It was during these years when he was exposed to some of the most acute minds of his generation that Denney came to believe that the ‘life of the mind is answerable to the imperative of truth’, and that reality is ‘freighted with moral and existential significance’.7 Upon completing his theological studies in 1883, Denney was appointed Missioner at East Hill Street Mission of St John’s (Free Church, Glasgow) and then minister of East Free Church in Broughty Ferry, where he served as parish minister for 11 years until his appointment in 1897 at his old alma mater.8 Denney served at the United Free Church College, first as Professor of Systematic Theology and then, from 1900, as Professor of New Testament Language and Literature, a post he held until his death in 1917 (the year before Barth published his ground- breaking Der Römerbrief). It was during those final decades that Denney’s theology reached its full maturity – drawing upon a whole life’s journey with God, and with God’s people. Ministry at Glasgow and Broughty Ferry (1883–1897) East Hill Street Mission, Gallowgate, Glasgow (1883 – 1885) After being licensed to preach as a probationary minister in 1883,9 Denney unsuccessfully applied for a teaching position at the Free Church College in Calcutta. Then St John’s in Glasgow was looking for a new missionary for their work at East Hill Street, Gallowgate, and Denney started there in July. His responsibilities reflected the typical stuff of nineteenth-century pastoral life: assisting with preaching at St Johns, regular preaching to the mission congregation, visitation evangelism, overseeing the Sabbath School, Sunday night lectures and supervising other work of the mission. This involved a host of activities: they ran industrial training classes, savings banks, libraries, clothing societies, and Thursday night lectures on popular science (and other topics) which were preceded with ‘Musical Entertainment’.10 For all this Denney received £130pa made up from various bequests, mission funds and preaching engagements.11 At East Hill Street, the young Denney quickly learnt that pastoral care is not about approaching people from a superior position. He confessed that ‘the smallest suspicion of patronage, of condescension or self complacency’12 would be rightly met with a shut door. Neither was pastoral care about shoving down people’s throats propositions from the Westminster Catechism. Rather, 7 Gordon, Denney, 9; cf. William Malcolm Macgregor, Persons and Ideals: Addresses to my Students and Others (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1939), 13–4: ‘[Denney] was then a shy, austere, rather formidable figure, a little older than many of us, and by no means easy of approach. In the Theological Society, where others splashed in the shallows, theorizing and talking at large, he was able to push out into deep waters as one who knew his way. He had been by far the most distinguished student of his time in the University, and to us he appeared already a master in classics and philosophy, in literature and the history of opinion within the Church. He had also the most admirable gift of pregnant and witty and often demolishing utterance. And to this rich intellectual equipment he added an overawing sense of the religious realities in their dogmatic form’. 8 John Taylor observes that Denney’s two decades at the theological college in Glasgow mark its ‘golden age’, when the college was ‘looked to for leadership throughout the theological world … it is fair to say that no divinity school of the time stood higher, certainly none in the English speaking world’. Taylor, James Denney, 20. 9 See Minutes of the Free Presbytery of Greenock, ‘CH3/166/4’, (Edinburgh: National Archives of Scotland), 470, 475–6. 10 Session and Deacons’ Minutes of St John’s Free Church of Scotland, ‘CH3/1162/3’, (Glasgow: Mitchell Library, Glasgow City Archives), 174. 11 The 1870s and 1880s were dominated in Free Church circles with the challenge of retaining existing church members, which inevitably diverted energy and resources from more overtly evangelistic efforts to win new converts. ‘Repeated calls for new programmes of church extensions co-existed with the difficult reality that the church was struggling to hold on to those already reached’. Gordon, Denney, 100–1. 12 James Denney, ‘Patient continuing in welldoing’, (Unpublished Paper: New College, Edinburgh, nd), 6. P a g e | 3 with that confidence that attends one for whom spirituality is more about Christ than about self, Denney recognised that pastoral encounters require an ‘openness of mind and willingness to recognise and assimilate new truth’.13 He also learnt the value of having intellectual freedom to explore the gospel and its implications, and that such freedom was an indispensable part of both his own spiritual integrity, and of what pastoral ministry is about. A read through the available sermon manuscripts from Denney’s days at Gallowgate reveals a definite growth in his theological articulations. Although it was still far from the shape which it would take in his more mature work, already by 1885 there were early signs that
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Pat-Abendroth-Dissertation.Pdf
    A Pastoral Note About My Doctoral Project I am glad you are interested in reading my dissertation. Given that it took a fair amount of effort and my passion for the subject matter, I am happy to share it with church members and friends. Please allow me to introduce you to the project by saying just a few things. If you ask someone what Covenant Theology is and if it is a good or bad thing, you will likely hear lots of different answers. It is fairly common for evangelicals to respond by either saying they do not know what Covenant Theology is or by describing it as something unbiblical and relating to a particular view regarding millennialism, baptism, or Israel. There are three major problems with such responses. First, classic Covenant Theology is essentially concerned with matters of sin and salvation, not something else. Second, the biblical support for such things as the federal headship of Adam and Jesus is strong (federal being from the Latin foedus meaning covenant). Third, when Covenant Theology is rejected, justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone is at best in serious jeopardy. My dissertation is a promotion and defense of classic Covenant Theology. I have written out of a pastoral passion to help people understand human history federally/covenantally just as the Apostle Paul did as he wrote inspired Scripture (see Romans 5:12-21). Likewise, I have written in order to demonstrate the vital connection between Covenant Theology and justification by faith alone, the doctrine that is so commonly compromised by rejecters of the federal perspective.
    [Show full text]
  • Resurrection in Daniel 12 and Its Contribution to the Theology of the Book of Daniel
    Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Dissertations Graduate Research 1996 Resurrection in Daniel 12 and its Contribution to the Theology of the Book of Daniel Artur A. Stele Andrews University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Stele, Artur A., "Resurrection in Daniel 12 and its Contribution to the Theology of the Book of Daniel" (1996). Dissertations. 148. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/148 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your interest in the Andrews University Digital Library of Dissertations and Theses. Please honor the copyright of this document by not duplicating or distributing additional copies in any form without the author’s express written permission. Thanks for your cooperation. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted.
    [Show full text]
  • Katapausis and Sabbatismos in Hebrews 4
    Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Dissertations Graduate Research 2011 Katapausis and Sabbatismos in Hebrews 4 Erhard Gallos Andrews University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Gallos, Erhard, "Katapausis and Sabbatismos in Hebrews 4" (2011). Dissertations. 54. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/54 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your interest in the Andrews University Digital Library of Dissertations and Theses. Please honor the copyright of this document by not duplicating or distributing additional copies in any form without the author’s express written permission. Thanks for your cooperation. ABSTRACT KATAPAUSIS AND SABBATISMOS IN HEBREWS 4 by Erhard H. Gallos Advisor: Robert M. Johnston ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH Dissertation Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary Title: KATAPAUSIS AND SABBATISMOS IN HEBREWS 4 Name of researcher: Erhard H. Gallos Name and degree of faculty adviser: Robert M. Johnston, Ph.D. Date completed: April 2011 Problem Enthusiasm for the subject has not
    [Show full text]
  • A Re-Examination of the Cultural Mandate: an Analysis and Evaluation of the Dominion Materials
    A RE-EXAMINATION OF THE CULTURAL MANDATE: AN ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION OF THE DOMINION MATERIALS by Ronald E. Manahan Submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology in Grace Theological Seminary May 1982 Title: A RE-EXAMINATION OF THE CULTURAL MANDATE: AN ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION OF THE DOMINION MATERIALS Author: Ronald E. Manahan Degree: Doctor of Theology Date: May, 1982 Advisers: James Eisenbraun, D. Wayne Knife, and David Turner Frequently correlation is made between the cultural mandate, that activity of doing and making given to man at his creation whereby he is to glorify his Creator, and the dominion materials (Gen 1:26-28; 9:1, 7; Ps 8:6-10; Heb 2:5-9; Jas 3:7). Understanding the nature of this correlation and its subsequent implications is best aided by working with a carefully defined field of terms, by isolating what alternative views of the correlation have been expressed throughout the church's history, and by engaging in a thorough examination of the background and interpretive field of the dominion passages. The conclusion resulting from the isolation of the several views on dominion material is that each view gives indication of having been influenced by the cultural milieu of the interpreter and by perceptions of culture in general. The interpreter continually interacts between his constantly changing, dynamic cultural milieu and the Biblical text. The context within which this study is conducted includes the realization that man is contextualized and is an integral part of the creation in which he was placed by his Creator.
    [Show full text]
  • How Scotland Lost Its Hold of the Bible 1
    How Scotland Lost Its Hold of the Bible 1 Iain H. Murray Man is now thinking out a Bible for himself; framing a religion in harmony with the development of liberal thought; constructing a worship on the principles of taste and culture; shaping a god to suit the expanding aspirations of the age. … The extent of the mis- chief no one can calculate. A soul without faith, a church without faith, a nation without faith, a world without faith – what is to be their future? What is their present? When faith goes, all good things go. When unbelief comes in, all evil things follow. —HORATIUS BONAR.2 here are times when Christians are conscious that a book has T come to them just when it was specially needed. It was so with me one February day in 1954 when, as a student at Durham University, a second-hand book came into my hands with the title A Critical History of Free Thought in Reference to the Christian Religion. The author was Adam S. Farrar and the volume was one of the famous series of Bamp- ton Lectures delivered at Oxford in 1862. The date is significant. It was before the authority of Scripture was discounted in British universities, and Farrar, an evangelical, spent nearly 700 pages reviewing man’s opposition to the word of God across the centuries.3 I was then having my own experience of opposition to the trustwor- thiness of Scripture, and this book showed me that this was no new thing. Attacks on the word of God are as old as the time when the 1 The substance of an address given at the Inerrancy Summit, Grace Commu- nity Church, Los Angeles, March 2015.
    [Show full text]
  • Jesus and the SICK
    spiritual songs of the Spirit of Christ? Seventh, the editor's argument for the use of musical instruments proves too much. Since the regulative principle also forbids the subtracting from worship of what God has commanded, would the editor be prepared to implement the entire scope required by Psalm 149:6 or More on Psalm-singing 150:6? Obviously, neither psalm is speak­ I write as a concerned brother to com­ ing of public worship alone. ment on the editor's response to Ren­ Assuredly, trusting in the finished work wick Adam's letter in the February issue of Christ, one would not use Psalm 51:19 of the Guardian. as a prooftext for sacrificing bulls ac­ First, the difference between "liberty" cording to the ceremonial law. So, why and "advocacy" in worship is clearly seen continue the use of instrumental music in the case of Nadab and Abihu, who felt of the ceremonial law? God instituted the that their "strange fire" was a matter of use of musical instruments by direct com­ "liberty"; but they died for lack of "ad­ mand in conjunction with the ceremonial vocacy," or God-given warrant. typological offerings (2 Chronicles 29: Second, concerning the regulative prin­ 25-30); God ended these same types and ciple: Of course it is not the sole posses­ shadows by the sending of his Son as a "This sion of those who sing the songs written sacrifice for sin. Why return to types and by God exclusively. These people, how­ shadows? is a rich ever, are the only ones who implement Rather (1) we ought to use the Spirit­ it consistently (and incidentally, in ac­ written psalms as warranted for New commentary..
    [Show full text]
  • He in Us and We in Him
    . About the Lecture Series Statement of Purpose The Philip Edgcumbe Hughes Lecture Series honors The purpose of The Chapel of the Cross is the spread of Philip Edgcumbe Hughes – teacher, author, and friend the Gospel of Jesus Christ by the establishment of a of The Chapel of the Cross in its formative years. The place of worship where fellow Christians may glorify Chapel initiated the lecture series in 1991 to further their Lord and Saviour in peace and concord in the his- and promote understanding of Christian anthropol- toric tradition and doctrine of the Protestant Episco- ogy, doctrine, history, and theology in an Anglican pal Church, as exemplified by low church practice and context. It is presented in part through an endowed the liturgy and tenets of the 1928 Book of Common gift in memory of Charles and Shirley Bucy. Prayer. We accept the Bible as the Word of God, ad- Past Speakers / Symposiums here to the principles of the Apostles’ Creed, and the and Nicene Creed and will serve mankind in accordance He in Us We in Him: • Rev. Peter Toon with the will of God. God’s Nuptial Covenant • Rt. Rev. Albion Knight Chapel Staff • Rt. Rev. William Millsaps with His People • Rev. James E. Hampson The Most Rev. Foley Beach, ACNA Archbishop • Most Rev. Donald W. B. Robinson The Most Rev. Ray Sutton, Bishop Ordinary & Presiding • Rev. Dr. John B. Rodgers The Rt. Rev. Walter R. Banek, Suffragan Bishop • Rev. Dr. Allan C. Guelzo The Rev. John P. Boonzaaijer, Rector • Rt. Rev. C. FitzSimons Alison The Rev.
    [Show full text]
  • SURVEYING the CROSS Pursuing an Increasingly Cross-Centered Life During Lent for I Decided to Know Nothing Among You Except Jesu
    SURVEYING THE CROSS Pursuing An Increasingly Cross-Centered Life During Lent For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2 From Pastor Chris Brauns, March 2014, Revised March 2015, January 2016 iii Chris Brauns, Surveying the Cross TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction: A Strategy for the Cross-Centered Life .............................................................................. 1 Picturing the Easter Narrative .......................................................................................................................... 3 People Associated with Holy Week ............................................................................................................ 3 *The LORD Jesus Christ .............................................................................................................................. 3 Angels ................................................................................................................................................................ 4 Annas ................................................................................................................................................................. 4 The Apostles .................................................................................................................................................... 4 Barrabas............................................................................................................................................................ 4 Caiaphas
    [Show full text]
  • The Supremacy of God in Preaching – Part 5
    The Supremacy of God in Preaching – Part 5 2 TIMOTHY 3:16-2 TIMOTHY 4:2 TEXT, EXPOSITION AND PRACTICAL HELPS West Los Angeles Living Word Christian Center Centro Cristiano Palabra Viva Dr. Eddie Ildefonso, Senior Pastor 6520 Arizona Ave. Los Ángeles, CA 90045 Email: [email protected] Website: WWW.WLALWCC.ORG Phillips Brooks From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search For other persons named Phillip Brooks, see Phil Brooks. Phillips Brooks. Anglicanism portal Phillips Brooks (December 13, 1835 – January 23, 1893) was a noted American clergyman and author, who briefly served as Bishop of Massachusetts in the Episcopal Church during the early 1890s. In the Episcopalian liturgical calendar he is remembered on January 23. 156 Contents [hide] • 1 Background o 1.1 Early life and education o 1.2 Pastoral career • 2 Influence and Legacy o 2.1 Publications o 2.2 Awards and Historical Monuments • 3 External links • 4 References [edit] Background [edit] Early life and education Brooks was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1835. Through his father, William Gray Brooks, he was descended from the Rev. John Cotton; through his mother, Mary Ann Phillips, a very devout woman, he was a great-grandson of Samuel Phillips, Jr., the founder of Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts. Four of the couple's six sons -- Phillips, Frederic, Arthur and John Cotton -- were ordained in the Episcopal Church. Phillips Brooks prepared for college at the Boston Latin School and graduated from Harvard University in 1855 at the age of 20, where he was elected to the A.D. Club. After a brief period as a teacher at Boston Latin , he began in 1856 to study for ordination in the Episcopal Church in the Virginia Theological Seminary at Alexandria, Virginia.
    [Show full text]
  • Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical THEOLOGY
    ScoTTISH BuLLETIN OF EvANGELICAL THEOLOGY Volume 8 Number 2 Autumn 1990 CONTENTS 73 EDITORIAL; Evangelism, Church and Theology The Editor ARTICLES 76 CANONICAL THEOLOGY: AN EVANGELICAL APPRAISAL Car! F.H. Henry 109 PRAYER AND UNION WITH CHRIST Douglas F. Kelly BOOK REVIEWS 128 Richard J. Bauckham: Moltmann:Messianic Theology in the Making, by Charles M. Cameron 129 Emest Best: From Text to Sermon. Responsible Use of the New Testament in Preaching, by Martin A.W. Alien 130 Norman Anderson: Islam in the Modern World: A Christian Perspective, by R.W. Thomas 131 John Barclay: Obeying the Truth: A Study of Paul's Ethics in Galatians, by Richard Higginson 133 D.W.Bebbington: Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A History from the 1730s to the 1980s, by David Smith 135 Nigel Biggar: Theological Politics: A Critique of 'Faith in the City', by David McAdam 136 Henri Blocher: Christologie, by Gerald Bray 137 John Bowden: Jesus: The Unanswered Questions, by David J. Graham 138 D.A.Carson and H.G.M.Williamson (eds.): It is Written: Scripture Citing Scripture (Essays in Honour of Barnabas Lindars, S.S.F.), by Geoffrey Grogan 139 Michael Christensen: C.S.Lewis on Scripture ,Thomas Philips: The Welsh Revival: Its Origin and Development, Frank Mott Harrison: John Bunyan, John Pollock: John Wesley, by John Wilson 141 Keith W. Clements: Lovers of Discord: Twentieth Century Theological Controversies in England, by Stephen Williams 142 R.J.Coggins and J.L.Houlden (eds): A Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation, by I. Howard Marshall 144 Peter Cotterell and Max Turner: Linguistics and Biblical Interpretation , by Bill Mitchell 145 Mark Dalby: Open Baptism, by D.F.Wright 146 Jack Dominian and Hugh Montefiore: God, Sex and Love: An Exercise in Ecumenical Ethics, by John Wilkinson 147 Benjamin Drewery and Richard J.
    [Show full text]
  • Hebrews 6:4-6 and the Peril of Apostasy Author: Philip Edgcumbe Hughes
    Journal: Westminster Theological Journal Volume: WTJ 35:2 (Winter 1973) Article: Hebrews 6:4-6 and the Peril of Apostasy Author: Philip Edgcumbe Hughes Hebrews 6:4-6 and the Peril of Apostasy Philip Edgcumbe Hughes In the Epistle to the Hebrews there are repeated warnings against the danger of falling away into apostasy, expressed variously in terms of drifting away from what we have heard, careless unconcern for the great salvation that is ours in Christ (2:1–3), the development of an evil, unbelieving heart causing one to fall away from the living God, being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin and failing to hold our first confidence in Christ firm to the end (3:12–14), being excluded by disobedience from the rest promised to the people of God (4:1, 6, 11), sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth and thereby facing a fearful prospect of judgment (10:26f, 31), abandoning the Christian struggle because of hardship and affliction (12:1, 3, 7, 12f, 16f), rejecting Him who warns from heaven (12:25, 29), and being led away by diverse and strange teachings (13:9). But nowhere are the readers more strikingly admonished of this peril by which they are threatened than in chapter 6:4–6, where the author solemnly declares that it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the words of God and the powers of the age to come, if they then commit apostasy, since they crucify the Son of God on their own account and hold him up to contempt, and in chapter 10:29, where in similar manner he speaks of the dreadful punishment that will be deserved by the man who has spurned the Son of God, and profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of grace.1 It is plain that the author’s concern is not simply lest his readers WTJ 35:2 (Win 73) p.
    [Show full text]
  • Jeremiah 31:34, New Covenant Membership, and Baptism1
    Scriptura 114 (2015:1), pp. 1-14 http://scriptura.journals.ac.za JEREMIAH 31:34, NEW COVENANT MEMBERSHIP, AND BAPTISM1 Christian Locatell Department of Ancient Studies Stellenbosch University Abstract The promise of Jeremiah 31:34 that “all of them will know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” has been of crucial importance for the paedo – vs. credobaptism debate. However, there has been little discussion of what the quantifier means based on Jeremiah’s repeated and thematically linked uses. Throughout his prophecy, Jeremiah consistently uses this quantifier in reference to a group about which something is pervasively, though not exhaustively, true. Therefore, the quantifier in Jeremiah 31:34 should not be understood as presenting subjective knowledge of the Lord as the necessary condition of New Covenant membership to the exclusion of infant membership in that community and infant baptism as the sign of membership. Key Words: Baptism; New Covenant; Ecclesiology; Sacramentology; Jeremiah 31 Introduction While there are many complex issues in the baptism debate, the nature of the New Covenant community – whether it is mixed or purely regenerate – seems to be at its heart. And perhaps the single most important text (at least in the Old Testament) for this issue is the New Covenant promise in Jeremiah 31:34 that “all of them will know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.”2 If, as credobaptism maintains, this promises a completely regenerate New Covenant community where all members, without exception, know the Lord, then the infants of believing parents cannot be counted as members and should not receive the sign of membership (baptism).
    [Show full text]