Multiple Choice: The word "heresy" comes from a Greek root meaning what? a) choice. b) false. c) death. d) truth What do we call the heretical belief that Christ was not the physical incarnation of God, but rather an appearance or phantom? a) Pelagiansim. b) Arminism. c) Nestorianism. d) Docetism. The result of the Roman persecution of Christianity was that a) Christianity ended. b) the Church grew and spread. c) there were no new Christians. Tertullian wrote that the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church. Under Emp. Constantine the official religion of the Roman Empire became a) Judaism. b) Islam. c) Christianity. (His predecessors had tried to unite the Roman Empire on the basis of pagan religion, first the worship of Rome, later the worship of the Sun. These efforts were wrecked by the increasing power of the Christian Church.) Arius denied a) the existence of God. b) that Jesus was human. c) that Jesus was God. (Up until this time (311) the deity of Christ never needed to be defended.) The first council to begin correcting Arianism was a) the Council of Jerusalem. b) the Council of Constantinople. c) the Council of Nicaea. (This council was called in 325, and the Creed produced was the first foundational document against the Arian heresy. It stated that Christ was the same nature / same substance of God. Rather than being a humiliating defeat for the Arians it was merely the launching pad for the dispute.) Accounts from the Council of Nicaea allege that this saint was arrested for pulling the archheretic Arius beard and punching him in the mouth. a) Bishop St. Ambrose. b) Bishop St. Nicholas. c) St. Paul. d) Bishop St. Athanasius What is a positive effect of heresies? a) Heresy allows Christians to have a diversity of beliefs about God. b) Heresy provides many paths to the same Truth. c) Heresy requires the Church to define the faith precisely. d) Heresy facilitates peaceful relations among Christians. Using your knowledge of the core attributes of the two heresies listed below, match the heresy with its description. a. Arianism b. Gnosticism
Believing that all things physical are evil, it makes sense that truth and salvation come only through a spiritual knowledge which is secret and known only to the few. Jesus was not really God but a created being to whom special graces had been given and who achieved a kind of divine status at his baptism. ARIANISM, pt. 2 Recap: Arius taught that Christ was a created being. He was greater than an ordinary human being, but of a lower rank than the eternal God. He denied the eternal deity of Christ and his equality with the Father. Arius and those who follow his teaching insist Christ had a beginning point and is less than fully God. An Evaluation of Arius teaching: 1. Ignores the overwhelming number of passages that affirm the deity of Christ Isaiah 7:14, tells us this Virgin-born Son would have a name that would describe His character and that name is, Emmanuel, which means what? God with us. Why would his character be reflected in the name Emmanuel, if He were not God who s with us? Jesus, in teaching about Himself said, Truly, truly before Abraham was, I am The testimony of the apostles repeatedly referred to the Lord Jesus Christ as God. 2. Twists the subordination passages I refer to those passages that state that the Father is above the Son. I Cor. 11:3 But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. Arius would take this passage and say, See? The Son is not the same essence as the Father. On the surface this argument makes sense. Is the man the head of woman? Yes. However, is she inferior to the man in personhood? Absolutely not. There is equality in personhood, yet difference in roles. God created us male and female both made in the image of God and sharing equality in their personhood. Man though has a different position than the woman in the way that their roles are performed in this life, even in the church. The very same thing can be said of the Trinity three Persons, one God co-equal co-eternal co-existing. But each one has different roles (Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier). The Son is subject to the Father, but subjection does not imply inferiority, it implies difference in roles. 3. Perverts first-born passages (not many of them) Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
Arius took the Greek word, πρωτότοκος as meaning that Jesus is the first one born. But when we compare Scripture with Scripture, Exodus 4:22 states, Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son Why? Because of the special status Israel had as God s own possession as a nation. What about, Hebrews 12:23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect Here, all the believing dead are said to be, firstborn, for it refers to their status. Psalm 89:27 And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. Here, David is called God s firstborn, but using Arius definition was David the firstborn of Jesse? David was the runt Samuel couldn t even believe it. Why then does God designate David as His firstborn? Because of the special status God bestowed on David as His King. The answer to Arius was, first, an appeal to Scripture. Quoting John 8:58-59 ( Before Abraham was, I am ), St. Athanasius dryly commented: "The Jews understood what the Arians do not understand. What did the Jews want to do to Jesus? To Arius' claim that the Father must be older than the Son, it was replied that the Son is also the Word who was in the beginning with the Father (John 1:2), and that the use of the word Son implies identity of essence. Over the long haul, Athanasius arguments won out and the Church immortalized them in the Nicene Creed, which reads, I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father Jehovah s Witnesses are Arian! Sadly, most Jehovah s Witnesses know the LIE better than we know the TRUTH. The proper name for God in the Hebrew Bible is transliterated YHWH. This is called the tetragrammaton (which means four letters ). The most widely used pronunciation of the tetragrammaton is Yahweh, though some English Bible translations use the term Jehovah. The way this divine name of God is seen in our English translations is: LORD. JWs use the same language you do, (heaven, eternal life, salvation) however, they just pour different meanings into these words. JWs reject Hell and the Trinity. Regarding salvation, they will claim grace is involved, but grace, for them, amounts to having the wonderful opportunity to go out and earn their salvation. Moreover, salvation is impossible without total obedience to the Watch Tower Society. 1 Even then, there is no assurance. 1 You must come to Jehovah s organization for salvation. Watch Tower Magazine, Nov. 15, 1981, p. 21
JWs will want to talk about Christmas as pagan, birthdays as unbiblical and blood transfusions as wrong. When you engage with them segue into who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for us as soon as possible. Get to Jesus! Remember: JWs believe Jesus is a lesser deity. 1. Compare OT and NT. a. Isaiah 44:24 with Colossians 1:16 Isaiah 44:24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself Colossians 1:16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through him and for him. QUESTION: If only Jehovah was the Creator and Jehovah created the universe all by Himself and yet Jesus is called the Creator in the NT, what does that tell us about Jesus? b. Isaiah 44:5-6 with Revelation 1:17 Isaiah 44:5-6 Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. Revelation 1:8 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, Fear not, I am the first and the last QUESTION: Who identifies Himself as the first and last? c. Isaiah 43:11 with Titus 3:3-4 Isaiah 43:11 I, I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior. Titus 3:3-4 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared QUESTION: If only Jehovah is the Savior as Isiah 43:11 says, and if Jesus is called our great God and Savior in Titus 3, what does that say about the nature of Jesus? Isn t He God? d. Isaiah 6 with John 12:41 Isaiah 6:1-5 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts! (Heb: Jehovah
Sabaoth) John 12:41 Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. QUESTION: If Isaiah saw the glory of Jehovah in Isaiah 6 and John 12:41 says that Isaiah saw the glory of Jesus, what does that say about Jesus? e. Psalm 23:1 with John 10:11 and Hebrews 13:20 Psalm 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd John 10:11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. Hebrews 13:20 Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, QUESTION: If Jehovah is the Shepherd in Psalm 23, what do the NT passages say about Jesus? NEXT WEEK: PELAGIANISM AND SOCINIANAISM