Posts by Tim Bertolet

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Communicable Attributes: Christ our Righteousness

Tim Bertolet
Nov 21, 2020
One of the communicable attributes of God is his attribute of righteousness. Righteousness is the character of God where he does what is right, true, and just. To be righteous to act and judge things as they are. God is righteous and therefore has a standard for what it right and what is wrong. God...

Sanctification: Different From Justification

Tim Bertolet
Aug 5, 2020
When it comes to justification and sanctification, you cannot have one without the other. It is important to understand that justification and sanctification are distinct aspects of our salvation in Jesus Christ but justification and sanctification are also inseparable aspects of our salvation. The...

Justification and Union with Christ

Tim Bertolet
May 15, 2020
When we think about the doctrine of salvation, one of the more important topics to explore is the relationship between union with Christ and justification by faith. In fact, if we have a poor connection between these concepts, our understanding of salvation will be lacking. John Murray has written...

The Ordo Salutis: Justification

Tim Bertolet
Mar 26, 2020
John Calvin called justification as “the main hinge on which religion turns” and said we must devote great attention to it ( Institutes, III.xi.1). When we consider justification’s role in the order of salvation it plays a crucial role in distinction from other element but not in separation from...

Humiliation & Exaltation: Christ's Ascension

Tim Bertolet
Feb 17, 2020
One vital component to the humiliation and exaltation of Christ is His ascension into heaven. The ascension is as central to the work of Christ as His death and resurrection, yet today it is largely unnoticed by the average evangelical believer. Our tendency is to focus on the cross of Christ while...

The Ten Commandments: The Third

Tim Bertolet
Nov 20, 2019
The third of the Ten Commandments seems simple at first read: we are not to take God’s name in vain. But the more we think about it, the deeper our reflections will become on what it means to honor God and cherish His name above all else. The commandment reads: You shall not take the name of the...

Discussing God's Attributes

Tim Bertolet
Oct 30, 2019
Is the conversation about God's attributes "old fashioned" and "western"? Regarding systematic theology, one often encounters the critique that the logical ordering of various topics is "western" or "Greek" or "academic"--all of which are really meant as synonyms for "bad" and "wrongheaded."...

Christ in the Old Testament

Tim Bertolet
Oct 17, 2019
Since the rise of modern Biblical criticism, it is common in some circles to think that there are little to no predictions of a Messiah in the Old Testament. But this is not the view of the Scriptures. This is not what the New Testament explicitly teaches. Christ can be found in the Old Testament...

Sanctification: “I’m justified, so why sanctified?”

Tim Bertolet
Oct 14, 2019
The Bible teaches that the believer in Jesus Christ is completely justified before God. We have peace with God (Romans 5:1) and have no condemnation (Romans 8:1). I have everything I need to stand before a holy God as “not guilty” as the God declares the verdict “righteous” over me. I have Christ’s...

Grace Now and Not Yet

Tim Bertolet
Sep 18, 2019
As heirs of the Reformation, we rightly champion salvation by grace alone. If God was not gracious to us we would have no hope. The simplest definition of grace is: favor extended where wrath is deserved. Others have made the definition in the form of an acronym: God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense...

Inexpressible Joy

Tim Bertolet
Jul 22, 2019
We live in a culture that teaches us to pursue happiness. When our ultimate goal is happiness, we have an inability to pursue the greater things in life that lead to our glorification. The pursuit of happiness as ultimate will keep you from the goal of godliness and Christlikeness. Many times it is...

If I Could Preach Only One Sermon: Ruth

Tim Bertolet
Jul 12, 2019
I cannot tell you how many variations I have heard of sermon and sermon points about the special kind of agape love in the New Testament. Variations often emphasize the uniqueness and the sacrificial aspects of agape love and distinguish it from the other Greek words. Yet, as D.A. Carson warned in...

Your True Inheritance

Tim Bertolet
Jun 5, 2019
In a previous post, I mentioned how Jesus is our true retirement—our true Sabbath rest that awaits us. As you think about riches, bank accounts, 401(k)s, and your finances in general, we need to remember that only what we have in Christ is truly imperishable. Again, there is nothing wrong with wise...

Seven Letters Seven Dangers: the Doctrinaire Church

Tim Bertolet
May 17, 2019
Dear Beloved Church, I know of your love for the Word of God. I know how you rejoice in the life that God has given you through the Holy Spirit and that you are born again through the Word of God. There is such a richness of truth and doctrine in the Word of God, and we have seen your love for Him...

Your True Retirement Plan

Tim Bertolet
May 11, 2019
We probably all have bank accounts with savings, and maybe investments and 401(k)s. Wisdom would suggest that while we trust God we also should be good stewards and save. You want to have in inheritance—at the end of the road of your work life, you want to have a nest egg. This doesn’t make you...

Union with Christ in Hebrews

Tim Bertolet
Feb 18, 2019
When we think of the places in Scripture where we find the doctrine of union with Christ, most people, especially Biblical scholars, immediately think of all the material in Paul’s letters. Paul uses the words “in Christ” numerous times point to this union, he also uses the imagery of our baptism...

Incomprehensible but Knowable: Human Knowing

Tim Bertolet
Jan 30, 2019
The Bible teaches that God is incomprehensible. God is so far above us as the supreme being and only infinite being that we as finite creatures are never going to be able to know and understand all that there is to Him. Even to say we are like an ant trying to understand the vastness of the Milky...

Hell: Who Goes There?

Tim Bertolet
Jan 4, 2019
Who Goes to Hell? The simplest answer to the question “who goes to hell?” is to answer: “unrepentant sinners who do not have saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will go to hell.” In fact, when the Philippian jailer asked the most basic question: “what must I do to be saved?”, Paul and Silas...

The Old Man Crucified: The Basics

Tim Bertolet
Oct 29, 2018
In Romans 6:6, the Apostle Paul writes, “We know that our old self [or old man ] was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.” As we engage a series on “the old man,” we want to ask the basic question: what is the...

Heaven on Earth?: What is Heaven?

Tim Bertolet
Oct 10, 2018
When I was a child, we used to sing a little song that went, “Heaven is a wonderful place; filled with glory and grace; I want to see my Savior’s face, ‘cause heaven is a wonderful place.” This is very simple yet strikes at deep truths. In this easy we want to outline a few brief points that the...

What is Natural Revelation?

Tim Bertolet
Sep 26, 2018
It is important to understand that we cannot know anything about God unless He reveals Himself to us. God is infinite, and we are finite. The distance between God and man is so great that we could not know anything about Him or what He requires if He did not reveal Himself to us (WCF 7.1). As...

Still Protesting, a Pastor’s Perspective

Tim Bertolet
Sep 14, 2018
Let’s be honest: the evangelical and Protestant church has seen better days. We have our own scandals. In a fast-paced world, our faults are replicated through our communities at a much quicker rate than in previous generations. We may not have a pope but we certainly have a celebrity culture of...

Christianity at the Crossroads: Heresy

Tim Bertolet
Jul 23, 2018
In his book “Christianity at the Crossroads” Michael Kruger discusses the development of the church in the second century. During this time there were many alternative Christianities, or heresies that arose. This really should not surprise us. In the New Testament there are a number of warnings...

Insuppressible Truth: The Glory of Creation

Tim Bertolet
Jun 20, 2018
The Bible teaches that God has created all things. His purpose is ultimately to display His glory and majesty. Thus, creation is “good” and “very good” in Genesis 1 because God made and ordered the creation. He is pleased with His handiwork. The glory of creation is a shining forth of God’s glory...

Getting the Garden Right: Vice Regency

Tim Bertolet
Jun 6, 2018
In Genesis 1, humanity is created and introduced to us as ‘made in the image of God.’ The description of humanity in Genesis 1 is foundational for the Christian worldview. The moral and ethical implications abound from the single statement than humanity is made in God’s image. In this brief post,...

Primary or Secondary Importance?: Some Cautions

Tim Bertolet
May 24, 2018
Not every doctrinal issue is a matter of heresy versus orthodoxy. In today’s internet fueled climate this first sentence is worth repeating to ourselves. As young growing Christians many of us, myself included, zealously desired to defend Biblical doctrines. Sometimes in our zeal we brought more...

Ascension Matters

Tim Bertolet
May 10, 2018
Evangelical Christians often spend time considering all the benefits won for us on the cross and in the resurrection but spend little time pondering how the ascension further secures and confirms these salvific benefits. We typically give little thought to the question: How does Christ's ascension...

The One Who Endures: The Parable of the Soils

Tim Bertolet
Apr 27, 2018
The Bible is very clear that those who make genuine professions of faith will continue in those confessions of faith. The genuine believer will bear fruit as a consequence of God’s working in them. Thus, Scripture often brings to the believer this motivating command: bear fruit. We are to “work out...

The Apostles' Creed: In Jesus Christ

Tim Bertolet
Apr 21, 2018
“I believe…in Jesus Christ, his [God’s] only Son, our Lord” So every believer confesses and so it is found in the Apostles’ Creed. Let’s unpack four things that we find in this phrase of the Creed: (1) Jesus; (2) Jesus Christ ; (3) God’s only Son; (4) our Lord. First, the believer is making a...

Surveying Sanctification: A Grammar Lesson

Tim Bertolet
Apr 12, 2018
When we consider the Biblical doctrine of sanctification, it is important to recognize how the doctrine is often portrayed in Scripture. It is organized first around who we are and then second around how we should live. The Bible first establishes who the believer is in Christ and makes statements...

The Spirit's Role: The Life of Jesus

Tim Bertolet
Apr 2, 2018
Most of the time when we think of the earthly life of Jesus, we think of how he demonstrated his power and manifest that he was the Son of God. On occasion, we think about how he demonstrated his humility in the weakness of his incarnation particularly at Gethsemane and Golgotha. One area we often...

Being a Pentecost Christian: Revival!

Tim Bertolet
Mar 16, 2018
Generally speaking, to revive something is to bring it back to health or strength. Something is in some weak state and when it is revived it regains new health and vibrancy. Typically, when we hear the word “revival” in a Christian setting we think of a series of meeting that involve the preaching...

Braving Hard Passages: Baptism for the Dead

Tim Bertolet
Mar 5, 2018
I have always taken comfort from the fact that if Peter could find some of Paul’s saying as hard (2 Peter 3:15-16), so can I. One hard saying in the Apostle Paul’s writing is his remark in 1 Cor. 15:29 regarding the baptism of the dead: 1Cor. 15:29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized...

Eternal Generation: An Introduction

Tim Bertolet
Feb 19, 2018
Basic Biblical Trinitarianism teaches that God is one being with one divine essence but three eternal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each of the three persons shares fully in the divine essence so that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God but there are...

From ABC to PhD: The Holy Trinity

Tim Bertolet
Feb 7, 2018
As we think about the Trinity and seek to grow in our understanding of this Biblical doctrine, it is always helpful to use resources of others who have spent more time thinking about the Trinity. To this end, I would like to recommend Robert Letham’s book The Holy Trinity: In Scripture, History,...

Why Study Theology: How Systematic Theology Helps

Tim Bertolet
Jan 22, 2018
What comes to mind when you hear the words “systematic theology”? For many Christians, they think of the halls of academia and the debating of obscure and minor details related to God. But for most of the history of the church, systematic theology was a discipline done for the church and by...

Teach Me To Pray!: Forgive Us Our Debts

Tim Bertolet
Jan 13, 2018
In this series, we are examining how the Lord’s prayer shapes our prayer life. In this post, we want to apply the phrase “…Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors…” How does this statement in the Lord’s prayer shape our prayers? First, we should pray regularly for the forgiveness of sins...

Prayer: Evangelism & Prayer

Tim Bertolet
Dec 11, 2017
One of the most important things we need to pray for is our evangelistic efforts. When we fail to pray for our evangelism efforts we could be in danger of acting as if it is within our ability to save individuals. Because God is the great Savior, saving people in Jesus Christ, we must pray and ask...

Studying the Confession: The Proof Texts

Tim Bertolet
Nov 22, 2017
When it comes to the Westminster Confession of the Faith, we often do not think very much about how we might be able to study the Confession’s use of Scripture. In fact, most of us probably do not get very far beyond acknowledging the proof texts that the Confession offers. Yet the use of Scripture...

Calvin's Theology: Predestination

Tim Bertolet
Sep 20, 2017
John Calvin lived from 1509-1564. He was an influential Reformer for his ministry in Geneva. By many accounts he was an excellent writer, preacher, and theologian. When people hear his name today, they often think of him as associated with the doctrine of predestination—that God elects before the...

Paul, the Law, and the New Perspective

Tim Bertolet
Aug 21, 2017
Since the 1980s, a movement called the New Perspective on Paul has been a rising star in Biblical studies and Pauline scholarship. The movement primarily started through the writings of E.P. Sanders’ 1977 Paul and Palestinian Judaism as he explored the Second Temple Jewish texts and reexamined what...

Warfield & Inspiration: Scripture's Testimony

Tim Bertolet
Aug 2, 2017
Benjamin Breckinridge (B.B.) Warfield was a professor at Princeton Theological Seminary from 1887 to 1921. He was one of the great professors of “Old Princeton” who tackled a number of Biblical and theological issues related to the rise of modernism and liberalism. One of the issues that he...

Classic Theism: Basic Trinitarianism

Tim Bertolet
Jul 19, 2017
Few doctrines are as central to Christianity as the doctrine of the Trinity. That God is Triune is not just a confession of faith but it is also at the core of our worship. We worship the true and living God and it is vital that we know who He is. To this end God has revealed who He is so that we...

The Marrow Controversy: The Book

Tim Bertolet
Jul 5, 2017
The book that started the “Marrow Controversy” was Edward Fisher’s The Marrow of Modern Divinity by Edward Fisher. It was first published in 1645 and 1649. In 1726, a new addition of the Marrow was published with the accompanying notes from Thomas Boston. This is the version that is republished...

Luther's Theology: The Priesthood of Believers

Tim Bertolet
Jun 26, 2017
In 1 Peter 2:9, the Bible teaches that the church is a “royal priesthood”. The background from this passage is a quote from Exodus 19:6 where God gave the nation of Israel the same call: Exodus 19:6 “and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall...

The Ruling Elder: Basic Function

Tim Bertolet
May 31, 2017
For the proper functioning of the church, God has established the offices of elder and deacon. Elders have the function of overseeing the church, proclaiming the Word, and shepherding the flock. While all elders must be able to teach (1 Tim. 3:2), it seems that in 1 Tim. 5:17 the early church...

Sola Scriptura vs Opinion

Tim Bertolet
May 17, 2017
One of the most important doctrines of the Reformation is the doctrine of Sola Scriptura. It means that the ultimate and final authority for all things is the Bible, which is the Word of God. As Protestants, we stand on the Bible. This does not mean we ignore creeds or church history but it does...

Meditating on the Word: The Bible in Family Worship

Tim Bertolet
Mar 29, 2017
One of the most important things you can do with your family is read the Bible together with them. Children are never to young nor too old for you to engage them in Bible reading, study, and devotions as a family together. Honestly, if your family is anything like my family, it can be difficult to...

Biblical Authority: Preaching the Word

Tim Bertolet
Mar 8, 2017
“The preaching of the Word of God is the Word of God.” This line from the Second Helvetic Confession summarizes how we should think of the Biblical authority exercised in the pulpit. We see this concept reflected in Scripture, when someone preaches they are bringing the Word of God with authority...

The Doctrines of Grace: The Irresistibility of Grace

Tim Bertolet
Dec 29, 2016
Sometimes when people first hear the term “irresistible grace” they think that this means people are forced to take salvation against their will. They may erroneously think that people are dragged kicking and screaming into God’s kingdom even though they do not want it. Nothing could be further...