Creation in Salvation

This summer I have been taking two Old Testament courses at Denver Seminary. One of them is titled Early Israel and its Wisdom Literature. During one of the lectures on Genesis 1 and the creation of the world the ideas in this blog came to me as I listened to Dr. Hess. I attempted to research other perspectives similar to what I came up with but could not find anything although I am sure it exists somewhere. If through the course of reading this you identify similar ideas please feel free to point me in that direction so I may read what others write on the matter. With that being said, here are a few ideas I came across in the process of “working out my salvation with fear and trembling.”

Creation of the World

1.       Light from darkness – “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.

2.       Division of waters – “Let there be an expanse between the waters, separating water from water.”

3.       Land and water – “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear…Let the earth produce vegetation: seed bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.”

4.       Time / Sources of light – “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs for festivals and for days and years. They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.”

5.       Movement in the waters below and above – “Let the water swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.”

6.       Movement on dry land – “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds…Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.”

7.       Rest – God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it He rested from His work of creation.

Creation of the New Man

1.       Light from darkness / Righteousness from sin  – “Take care then, that the light in you is not darkness.” (Luke 11:35) “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9)  

2.       Separating the waters / Recognizing Jesus – “He said to them, ‘Where is your faith?’ They were fearful and amazed, asking one another, ‘Who can this be? He commands even the winds and the waves, and they obey Him!’” (Luke 8:25) Jesus answered, “If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would ask Him, and He would give you living water.’” (John 4:10) “Within these lay a large number of the sick – blind, lame, and paralyzed – waiting for the moving of the water…’Get up,’ Jesus told him, ‘pick up your mat and walk!’” (John 5:3-8) “If anyone is thirsty, he should come to Me and drink! The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flow from deep within him.” (John 7:37-38) “They willfully ignore this: Long ago the heavens and the earth were brought about from water and through water by the word of God.” (2 Pet. 3:5) “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give water as a gift to the thirsty from the spring of life.” (Rev. 21:6)

3.       Seed-bearing Fruit – “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.” (Luke 8:11) “So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.” (Matt. 7:20) “Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.” (John 15:4-5) “You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.” (John 15:16) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control.” (Gal. 5:22-23)

4.       Sources of light / Eternal life “I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows Me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12) “For God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of Gods’ glory in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:6) “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden…let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.“ (Matt 5:14) “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.” (Eph 5:8) “For you are all sons of light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness.” (1 Thess. 5:5)

5.      Life in the Waters / Baptism – “Jesus answered, ‘I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (John 3:5) “to make her (church) holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word. He (Jesus) did this to present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless.” (Eph 5:26-27) “let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.” (Heb 10:22)

6.       Infilling of the Holy Spirit / Movement based on the foundational truths of Scripture and creation of the new man “After Jesus was baptized, He went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on Him. And there came a voice from heaven: ‘This is My beloved Son. I take delight in Him!’” (Matt. 3:16-17)

7.       Rest / Inner peace, tranquility of the cross – “Therefore, while the promise to enter His rest remains, let us fear that none of you should miss it…Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience.” (Heb. 4:1-11)

Why I am a Calvinist

                Humans did not choose to be created. God chose to create them in His image. If I apply this principle to the formation of the new man within me, then I must conclude that I had nothing to do with the selection to be a new man.  God chose me and drew me to Himself. He began the process of forming me into the image of His Son and breathed His life into me. I cannot resist His call on my life and His will to create a new man within me.

“There is no one righteous, not even one. There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.” (Rom. 3:10-11) “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love that He had for us, made us alive with the Messiah even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!” (Eph 2:4-5)

Why I am an Arminian

                The point at which God breathed life into Adam and released him into the garden to be fruitful and multiply was the point at which Adam obtained his free will. Adam possessed free will once God gave him his existence and life. Jesus, the second Adam, possessed free will. One squandered it; the other harnessed it and submitted it to the will of the Father. The point at which mankind lost free will was at the Fall. I must assume then that upon the creation of this new man within me, I once again am free and reobtain free will. Until the moment that Christ frees me and God breathes His life into me, I do not have free will. Once I am a partaker of eternal life, I have free will. The responsibility of that knowledge is overwhelming in and of itself as I now have the ability to choose between right and wrong whereas before I could only choose what was wrong, but accompanied with the knowledge of my Helper, the Holy Spirit, it is fathomable and manageable.

“I assure you: Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in the household forever, but a son does remain forever. Therefore if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.” (John 8:34-36) Paul teaches in Romans 6 that we have died with Christ and that we now live with Christ. This being so, we have died to sin and its claims and in Christ sin and death no longer rule over us. But Paul goes on in verse 16 to say that we do still chose to become slaves of sin. This implies free will.

Living Calminian

                I am new at refining my theology, although I have been trying for a long time without knowing it. I cannot help myself. It is what I am wired to do. This does not mean I always get it right, but it does mean that my pursuit and heart are in the right place. Something seems amiss in my mind in regards to pure Calvinism, yet something rings true. The same applies to pure Arminianism. Until a few weeks ago I was not able to explain the relationship between the two and had heard quite often that they were irreconcilable. I cannot accept that. And so I arrive today at the juncture of grace and free will. First there is undeserved grace in my creation, and then there is absolute free will.  Before Christ I was formless and void. Now, I am a new man and I am beautifully and wonderfully formed in the image of Christ. I am free; a new creation. What remains to be answered is what shall I do with my freedom?