The World of Christian Doctrine, Vol. 2

The World of Christian Doctrine

Volume Two

Keith Oscar Williams

The World of Christian Doctrine, Volume Two

Copyrighted 2011 by Rev Keith O. Williams

Prepared by Greater Works Publication at Smashwords

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Table of Contents

Acknowledgement

Part IV: The Doctrine of the Person and Work of Christ

Chapter 16: The Offices of Christ

Chapter 17: The Atonement through Christ

Part V: The Doctrine of the Application of the Work of Redemption

Chapter 18: The Common Operation of the Holy Spirit: Common Grace

Chapter 19: Calling and Regeneration

Chapter 20: Conversion: Repentance and Faith

Chapter 21: Justification Chapter

Chapter 22: Sanctification and Perseverance

Part VI: The Doctrine of the Church and the Means of Grace

Chapter 23: Nature of the Church

Chapter 24: The Government and Power of the Church

Chapter 25: The Word of God and the Sacraments in General

Chapter 26: Christian Baptism

Chapter 27: The Lord's Supper

Part VII: The Doctrine of the Last Things

Chapter 28: Physical Death and the Intermediate State

Chapter 29: The Second Coming of Christ

Chapter 30: The Resurrection, the Last Judgment and the Final State

Biography

Acknowledgement

I give honor to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for allowing me to insight and the inspiration to write this book. Without Him, none of my gifts will be worth pursuing. I dedicate this book to my lovely wife, Sheona B. Williams, a magnificent supporter of my many-years passion for writing poetry and her love that burns deeply for me even though sometimes I don’t notice it. I also would like to acknowledge my spiritual mentors and friends who believed in me and my ministry. Special thanks go out to all the people mentioned in my stories over the years that encouraged me to keep on going despite my experiences—both good and bad. Thanks for making me apart of your lives.

To my parents, Albert Williams, Sr., and Dorothy Leon Williams: I know you could not understand why I wrote so much. After my first book was published, you understood. Thanks for believing and supporting me. I love you both very much!

To my colleagues in the gospel: Bishop Thomas Blanding, Revelation Perry Goins Sr., Revelation Trenton Woodward, Minister Charles Wright, Revelation Donald Rucker, and Deacon Davie Hodge:

Grace and peace be unto you and God the Father and Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you for sharing my vision and your prayers that God will make me the man He wants me to be. I can truly count on you when I need advice or just someone to talk to. One and a million thanks.

To Myra Fox: Because of the success of your books, I am continuing to write in prayer that one day God will allow my books to be just as a success as yours. Thank you for keeping my career in check and on the road again.

Part 4: The Doctrine of the Person and Work of Christ

Chapter 16: The Offices of Christ

The Bible ascribes a threefold office to Christ, speaking of Him as Prophet, Priest, and King.

1. The Prophetic Office.

The Old Testament predicted the coming of Christ as a prophet,

Deut. 18:15 Jehovah thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet in the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; (Deuteronomy 18:15)

(Comp. Acts 3:23). And it shall be, that every soul that shall not hearken to that prophet, shall be utterly destroyed among the people. (Acts 3:23)

He speaks of Himself as a prophet in

Luke 13:33, Nevertheless I must go on my way to-day and to-morrow and the [day] following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. (Luke 13:33)

Claims to bring a message unto the Father,

John 8:26-28; 26 I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you: howbeit he that sent me is true; and the things which I heard from him, these speak I unto the world. 27 They perceived not that he spake to them of the Father. 28 Jesus therefore said, when ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am [he], and [that] I do nothing of myself, but as the Father taught me, I speak these things. (John 8:26-28)

12:49, 50; 49 For I spake not unto myself; but the Father that sent me, he hath given me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is life eternal: the things therefore which I speak, even as the Father hath said unto me, so I speak. (John 12:49-50)

14:10, 24, 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I say unto you I speak not unto myself: but the Father abiding in me doeth his works. ... 24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my words: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me. (John 14:10,24)

Foretells future things, Matthew 24:3-35; Luke 19:41-44, and speaks with singular authority,

Matthew 7:29. "For he taught them as [one] having authority, and not as their scribes. (Matthew 7:29)

It is no wonder, therefore, that the people recognized Him as a prophet,

Matthew 21:11, 46; And the multitudes said, this is the prophet, Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee. ... And when they sought to lay hold on him, they feared the multitudes, because they took him for a prophet. (Matthew 21:11,46)

Luke 7:16; And fear took hold on all: and they glorified God, saying, a great prophet is arisen among us: and, God hath visited his people. (Luke 7:16)

24:19; And he said unto them, what things? And they said unto him, The things concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: (Luke 24:19)

John 6:14; When therefore the people saw the sign which he did, they said, this is of a truth the prophet that cometh into the world. (John 6:14)

7:40; [Some] of the multitude therefore, when they heard these words, said, this is of a truth the prophet. (John 7:40)

9:17. They say therefore unto the blind man again, what sayest thou of him, in that he opened thine eyes? And he said, He is a prophet. (John 9:17)

A prophet is one who receives divine revelations in dreams, visions, or verbal communications; and passes these on to the people either orally or visibly in prophetic actions.

Ex. 7:1; And Jehovah said unto Moses, See, I have made thee as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. (Exodus 7:1)

Deut. 18:18; I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. (Deuteronomy 18:18)

Num. 12:6-8; 6 And he said, Hear now my words: if there be a prophet among you, I Jehovah will make myself known unto him in a vision, I will speak with him in a dream. 7 My servant Moses is not so; he is faithful in all my house: 8 with him will I speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches; and the form of Jehovah shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses? (Numbers 12:6-8)

Isa. 6; Jer. 1:4-10; Ezek. 3:1-4, 17. His work may pertain to the past, the present, or the future. One of his important tasks was to interpret the moral and spiritual aspects of the law for the people. Christ functioned as prophet already in the Old Testament, I Pet. 1:11; searching what [time] or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should follow them. (1 Peter 1:11)

3:18-20. 18 Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 19 in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, 20 that aforetime were disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water: (1 Peter 3:18-20)

He did it while He was on earth, and continued it by the operation of the Holy Spirit and through the apostles after the ascension,

John 14:26; But the Comforter, [even] the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you. (John 14:26)

16:12-14; 12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak for himself; but what things soever he shall hear, [these] shall he speak: and he shall declare unto you the things that are to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall take of mine, and shall declare [it] unto you. (John 16:12-14)

Acts 1:1.

And even now his prophetic ministry continues through the ministry of the Word and the spiritual illumination of believers. This is the only function of Christ which is recognized in modern liberal theology.

2. The Priestly Office.

The Old Testament also predicted and prefigured the priesthood of the coming Redeemer,

Ps. 110:4; Jehovah hath sworn, and will not repent: Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. (Psalms 110:4)

Zech. 6:13; even he shall build the temple of Jehovah; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. (Zechariah 6:13)

In the New Testament there is only a single book in which He is called priest, namely, Hebrews, but there the name is found repeatedly,

Isaiah 53.3:1; 4:14; 5:5; 6:20; 7:26; 8:1. "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, [even] Jesus; (Hebrews 3:1)

Having then a great high priest, who hath passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (Hebrews 4:14)

So Christ also glorified not himself to be made a high priest, but he that spake unto him, Thou art my Son, This day have I begotten thee: (Hebrews 5:5)

Whither as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:20)

For such a high priest became us, holy, guileless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; (Hebrews 7:26)

Now in the things which we are saying the chief point [is this]: We have such a high priest, who sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, (Hebrews 8:1)"

However, other books refer to His priestly work,

Mark 10:45; For the Son of man also came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)

John 1:29; On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

Romans 3:24, 25; 24 being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 whom God set forth [to be] a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God; (Romans 3:24-25)

I Cor. 5:7; Purge out the old leaven that ye may be a new lump, even as ye are unleavened. For our Passover also hath been sacrificed, [even] Christ: (1 Corinthians 5:7)

I John 2:2; and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world. (1 John 2:2)

I Pet. 2:24; who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree, that we, having died unto sins, might live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

3:18. Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; (1 Peter 3:18)

While a prophet represented God among the people, a priest represented the people before God. Both were teachers, but while the former taught the moral, the latter taught the ceremonial law. Moreover, the priests had the special privilege of approach to God, and of speaking and acting in behalf of the people.

Hebrews 5:1, 3 1 For every high priest, being taken from among men, is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: ... 3 and by reason thereof is bound, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins. (Hebrews 5:1, 3)

The above scripture reference teaches us that a priest is taken from among men to be their representative, is appointed by God, is active before God in the interests of men, and offers gifts and sacrifices for sins. He also makes intercession for the people. The priestly work of Christ was, first of all, to bring a sacrifice for sin. The Old Testament sacrifices were types pointing forward to the great sacrifice of Christ,

Hebrews 9:23, 24; 23 It was necessary therefore that the copies of the things in the heavens should be cleansed with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ entered not into a holy place made with hands, like in pattern to the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear before the face of God for us: (Hebrews 9:23-24)

10:1, For the law having a shadow of the good [things] to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect them that draw nigh. (Hebrews 10:1)

13:11, 12. 11 For the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest [as an offering] for sin, are burned without the camp. 12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people through his own blood, suffered without the gate. (Hebrews 13:11-12)

Hence Christ is also called the Lamb of God, John 1:29, and our Passover, I Cor. 5:7. The New Testament speaks very clearly of the priestly work of Christ in numerous passages:

Mark 10:45; For the Son of man also came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)

John 1:29; On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

Romans 3:24, 25; 24 being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 whom God set forth [to be] a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God; (Romans 3:24-25)

5:6-8; 6 for while we were yet weak, in due season Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: for peradventure for the good man someone would even dare to die. 8 but God commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)

I Cor. 5:7; Purge out the old leaven that ye may be a new lump, even as ye are unleavened. For our Passover also hath been sacrificed, [even] Christ: (1 Corinthians 5:7)

15:3; For I delivered unto you first of all that which also I received: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; (1 Corinthians 15:3)

Galatians 1:4; who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil world, according to the will of our God and Father: (Galatians 1:4)

Ephesians 5:2; and walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for an odor of a sweet smell. (Ephesians 5:2)

I Pet. 2:24; who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree, that we, having died unto sins, might live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

3:18; Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; (1 Peter 3:18)

I John 2:2; and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world. (1 John 2:2)

4:10; Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son [to be] the propitiation for our sins. (1 John 4:10)

Revelation 5:12. Saying with a great voice, worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain to receive the power, and riches, and wisdom, and might and honor, and glory, and blessing. (Revelation 5:12)

The references are most frequent in the Epistle to the

Hebrews, 5:1-10; 7:1-28; 9:11-15, 24-28; 10:11-14, 19-22; 12:24; and to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better than [that of] Abel. (Hebrews 12:24)

13:12. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people through his own blood, suffered without the gate. (Hebrews 13:12)

Besides bringing the great sacrifice for sins, Christ as priest also makes intercession for His people. He is called our parakletos by implication in

John 14:16, And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may be with you forever, (John 14:16)

And explicitly in

I John 2:1-2. My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2)

The term means 'one who is called in to help, an advocate, one who pleads the cause of another.' The New Testament refers to Christ as our intercessor in

Romans 8:34; who is he that condemneth? It is Christ Jesus that died, yea rather, that was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. (Romans 8:34)

Hebrews 7:25; Wherefore also he is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. (Hebrews 7:25)

9:24; For Christ entered not into a holy place made with hands, like in pattern to the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear before the face of God for us: (Hebrews 9:24)

I John 2:1. His intercessory work is based on His sacrifice, and is not limited, as is sometimes thought, to intercessory prayer. He presents His sacrifice to God, on the ground of it claims all spiritual blessings for His people, defends them against the charges of Satan, the law, and conscience, secures forgiveness for everything justly charged against them, and sanctifies their worship and service through the operation of the Holy Spirit. This intercessory work is limited in character; it has reference only to the elect, but includes all the elect, whether they are already believers or still live in unbelief, John 17:9, 20. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me; for they are thine:... Neither for these only do I pray, but for them also that believe on me through their word; (John 17:9,20)

3. The Kingly Office.

As Son of God, Christ naturally shares in the universal dominion of God. In distinction for this we speak of a kingship that was conferred on Him as Mediator This kingship is twofold, namely, His spiritual kingship over the Church, and His kingship over the universe.

a. His spiritual kingship. The Bible speaks of this in many places,

Ps. 2:6; Yet I have set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. (Psalms 2:6)

132:11; Jehovah hath sworn unto David in truth; He will not turn from it: Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne. (Psalms 132:11)

Isa. 9:6, 7; 6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from henceforth even forever. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Micah 5:2; But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. (Micah 5:2)

Zech. 6:13; even he shall build the temple of Jehovah; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. (Zechariah 6:13)

Luke 1:33; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. (Luke 1:33)

19:38; saying, blessed [is] the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest. (Luke 19:38)

John 18:36, 37; 36 Jesus answered, my kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not forth hence. 37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. (John 18:36-37)

Acts 2:30-36. The kingship of Christ is His royal rule over His people. It is called spiritual, because it relates to a spiritual realm, is established in the hearts and lives of believers, has a spiritual end in view, the salvation of sinners, and is administered by spiritual means, the Word and the Spirit. It is exercised largely in the gathering, the government, the protection, and the perfection of the Church. This kingship as well as the realm over which it extends is called in the New Testament the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven. In the strict sense of the word only believers, members of the invisible Church, are citizens of the kingdom. But the term 'kingdom of God' is sometimes used in a broader sense, as including all who live under the proclamation of the gospel, all who have a place in the visible Church, Matthew 13:24-30, 47-50. This kingdom of God is on the one hand a PRESENT, spiritual reality in the hearts and lives of men,

Matthew 12:28; "But if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of