THEOLOGICAL VOCABULARY LIST

ABIDING - Means to remain, to stay in a place, to hold fast, or to remain steadfast to the goal. This word is found 40 times in the Gospel of John and is used 24 times in the Epistle of 1 John.

ABIDING with God is based on humbling myself before God and allowing God and His rule to rule over me (THEOCRACY) in my relationship with Him. Deut. 11:22-28, John 15:1-8. See THEOCRACY

ADOPTION - Means the giving to any one the name and place and privileges of a son who is not a son by birth. Signifies the place and condition of a son given to one to whom it does not naturally belong. The word is used by the Apostle Paul only.

In Rom 8:15, believers are said to have received "the Spirit of adoption," that is, the Holy Spirit who, given as the First fruits of all that is to be theirs, produces in them the realization of sonship and the attitude belonging to sons.

AEVI-ETERNITY – To dwell half way between time and eternity. Only angels dwell this way.

ANTHROPOMORPHISM – Speaking or describing God in human terms. These terms about God are not to be taken literally. God has wings (Exodus 19:4), God has eyes (Hebrews 4:13), God has arms (Numbers 11:23), or that God repented (Genesis 6:6).

ASSURANCE - Theologically, assurance is the state of being confident in a condition or outcome. This assurance is given by the Holy Spirit and the bible. We have this assurance in Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." Usually it is applied to one’s assurance of salvation. Texts often used to support assurance of salvation are;

John 10:28 - “and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand,” 1st

John 5:13 - “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.”

People will often doubt that their salvation for a variety of reasons, it is at these times when the true believer needs assurance. When a believer commits sin it should be followed by repentance, as one goes to the cross again for the forgiveness of sins.

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – Means some characteristics that can be attributed to God’s nature or an essential trait of God. Also whatever attribute describes God, He is 100% of that attribute. God is love; God is 100% love, justice etc. Other terms for an attribute are property, perfection or name.

ATONEMENT - Atonement theologically speaks of God's acting in human history to reestablish the original relationship between God and man by dealing with Sin. To atone means to make amends, to repair a wrong done. Biblically, it means to remove guilt of man. The Old Testament atonements offered by the high priest were temporary and a fore shadow of the real and final atonement made by Jesus. Jesus atoned for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). This atonement is received by faith (Rom. 5:1; Eph. 2:8-9).

BACKSLIDING FALL AWAY - Condition that results from spiritual apathy or disregard for the things of God, whether on the part of an individual or a group bound by a prior covenantal pledge of commitment to uphold the doctrine and commandments of the Lord.

Backsliding includes departure from a good confession of faith and from the ethical standards prescribed for God's people in the Scriptures. To varying degrees, depending on the extent of neglect of God and his commandments, the spiritually wayward experience a season of estrangement and abandonment from God and his people.

The word “fall away” is a very interesting word. The word means to fall, fail, of a ship not under control, to depart, to cause revolt, rebellion, abandonment, state of apostasy, defection, bill of divorce.

In instances of apostasy when one spurns the grace of God by renouncing the blessings of the covenant. Jeremiah 49:4, Why do you boast in the valleys, Your flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? Who trusted in her treasures, saying, ‘Who will come against me?’

References are often sighted dealing with backsliding are Mark 13:16 - "and let him who is in the field not turn back to get his cloak." Luke 9:62 -"But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

John 6:66 - "As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore."

Hebrews 4:4-6 - For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

James 5:19-20 - 19 Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

BLESSINGS FROM GOD – Means that God is 100% blessing to His creation. The blessings always comes to these that are in a right relationship with God and the blessing are there, but these those that reject God reject His blessings also. See attributes of God

BORN AGAIN – Means to be born from above. The term Born Again refers to new birth enjoyed by Christians upon conversion and regeneration. It is a work of the Holy Spirit within a believer.

It is related to faith in Christ and Him crucified (John 3:3-5). It means that the person is no longer dead in sins (Eph. 2:1), no longer spiritually blind (1 Cor. 2:14), and is now a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17).

CARNAL, CARNALLY, FLESH - "Having the nature of flesh," sensual, controlled by fleshly appetites, governed by human nature, instead of by the Spirit of God. Living in such a way that does not please God and contradicts the word of God. They are represented as of a “carnal mind, which is enmity against God” (Rom. 8:6,7).

Enjoyments that minister to the wants and desires of man’s fleshly nature are so called (Rom. 15:27, 1 Cor. 9:11). The ceremonial of the Mosaic law is spoken of as “carnal,” because it related to things outward, the bodies of men and of animals, and the purification of the flesh (Heb. 7:16; 9:10).

Anyone living this type of lifestyle without repenting will be separated from a relationship with God. Romans 8:6 - For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Galatians 5:21 - envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like, of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. See walking in the flesh.

CHAPTERS AND VERSES – The earliest bibles have no chapter and verse divisions. These were added for convenience in quoting the scriptures. Stephen Langton, a professor at the University of Paris and later Archbishop of Canterbury, divided the bible into chapters in 1227. Verses to the bible were added in 1551 and 1555 by Robert Stephanus, a Paris printer.

CULT - A Cult is a religious group that follows a particular unorthodox theological system. In the context of Christianity, it is a group that attempts to correct and change the view of historical Christianity.

It is a group that uses the Bible with a new revelation from God, a private interpretation, but also distorts the doctrines of the person of Jesus and that affects salvation sufficiently to cause salvation to be unattainable by faith.

DEPRAVATION, DEPRAVITY - Depravity is the moral corruption and sinfulness of man after the fall. It is from the Latin term depravare, which means to make corrupt. We believe that all are sinners (Romans 3:23) and unable by human performance to earn, deserve, or merit salvation (Titus 3:5).

We believe that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), and that apart from God's grace, no one can be saved (Ephesians 2:8-9). We believe that none are righteous, or capable of doing good (Romans 3:10-12), and that apart from the conviction and regeneration of the Holy Spirit, none can be saved (John 1:12-13; 16:8-11; I Peter 1:23-25). Mankind is clearly fallen and lost in sin.

ELECT, ELECTION, PREDESTINATION - The elect are those called by God to salvation. This calling occurs before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4) and is according to God's will.

We believe that God chose the believer before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4-6), and based on His foreknowledge, has predestined the believer to be conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29-30).

God knows in advance who would or will respond to His love and grace, and these He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. We believe that God offers salvation to all who will call on His name. Romans 10:13 says, "For whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved."

We also believe that God calls to Himself those who will believe in His Son, Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 1:9). However, the Bible also teaches that an invitation (or call) is given to all, but that only a few will accept it. We also read that man has the capacity to resist the calling of the Holy Spirit, in Acts 7:51 - “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.

We see this balance throughout scripture. Revelation 22:17 states, "And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." 1 Peter 1:2 tells us we are, "elect according to the foreknowledge of God, the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ."

Matthew 22:14 says, "For many are called, but few are chosen(elected)." God clearly does choose, but man must also accept God's invitation to salvation. See FREEWILL, FREE MORAL AGENT, IF

ETERNAL LIFE - Eternal life is the life everlasting in the presence of God. "This is eternal life, that they may know You the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent," (John 17:3). There are two senses in which this is used. First, Christians possess eternal life (1 John 5:13), yet they are not in heaven or in the immediate presence of God.

Though man is still in their mortal bodies and he still sins, however, by faith man is saved (Rom. 4:5; Eph. 2:8-9) and possess eternal life as a free gift from God (Rom. 6:23).

EVIL - Evil is not something that has an existence all its own; rather, it is a corruption of that which already exists (marital things created or the thoughts of beings).

Evil is the absence or privation (a state in which things that are essential for human well-being such as food and warmth are scarce or lacking) of something good. Rot, for example, can exist only as long as the tree exists. Tooth decay can exist only as long as the tooth exists. Rust on a car and a decaying carcass illustrate the same point.

Evil exists but does not have essence by itself. God does not promote evil so that it will stop, God permits evil so that it will stop or to achieve a greater good. G. CAMPBELL MORGAN - Evil or wickedness is a larger subject. Evil is all that is hurtful and harmful, whether as to cause or affect, whether material, mental, or moral.

God is love and is not willing that any should parish (2 Peter 3:9), but God will one day defeat evil, a new heaven and new earth (Rev. 21).

FAITH – TRUST - Heb. 11:1 - "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Faith should be understood as synonymous with trust in something. Within Christianity, It is a divine gift. (Rom. 12:3)

And comes by hearing the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). It is the means by which the grace of God is accounted to the believer who trusts in the work of Jesus on the cross (Eph. 2:8). Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). It is by faith that Christians live their lives, "The righteous shall live by faith," (Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17).

FIRSTBORN - Firstborn is reference to the first of the mother's offspring. It stands figuratively for that which is most excellent. The firstborn male of the family carried certain familial rites and privileges (Gen. 27:1-29; 48:13-14) and was given a double portion of the inheritance (Deut. 21:17). The term is also applied to Christ as the pre-eminent one and the first one raised from the dead (Col. 1:15,18). It does not mean first created as Jehovah's Witnesses believe. In fact, the firstborn rites were transferable as with Esau and Jacob. Compare Jer. 31:9 with Gen. 41:50-52.

FOREKNOW, FOREKNOWLEDGE, ALL KNOWLEDGE - It is God's knowledge about things that will happen. Past, present, and future are all "present" in the mind of God. He inhabits eternity (Isaiah 57:15).

God has infinite knowledge (Isaiah 41:22,23) and knows all things in advance. In the N.T. it does not always mean "to know beforehand" but also to cause to be. See 1 Pet. 1:2,20.

FREEWILL, FREE MORAL AGENT, IF - Free will is the freedom of self-determination and action independent of external causes. It is the ability to make choices. A choice is free if it is consistent with a person's desires and nature.

Free will is the position that man's free will is not restricted by his sinful nature, in that he is not enslaved by sin such that he only chooses sinful things, and that he can freely choose to accept or reject God despite his enslavement to sin.

It also states that an unsaved sinner is still able to freely choose God in spite of his sinful nature (John 3:16; 3:36, Ephesians 1:13).

A person who has a personal freewill, and what is a freewill? It is a person who is able to make a choice, without the will of another. It is a person who is self-governing without the control of another.

And we as humans need to have a will to choose and to have the capacity to comprehend the difference between right and wrong choices. And with freewill, it can also be a blessing or a curse.

God’s greatest expression of love to us is that God has given to us freewill. The word “if” is used as a conditional clause for freewill and is used 1595 times in the bible.

FULLNESS OF THE GENTILES - Jesus talked of the times of the Gentiles. That is different from the fullness of the Gentiles. The times of the Gentiles actually began when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem. And from that time they have not had a reigning king.

They have a government in Israel today but no king. And thus we are still living in the times of the Gentiles. But the signs of the Gentiles is almost complete. on June 10th 1967, the city of Jerusalem was conquered by Israel. The Jordanians were pushed back across the Jordan River.

Chuck Smith - So that from 1967, the Jews have controlled Jerusalem, which according to the prophecies of Jesus, would indicate that the times of the Gentiles have come to a close.

GOSPEL - Gospel is a term used over 75 times in the New Testament. While it has various nuances of meaning, it primarily means "good news." According to the Evangelical Dictionary of Theology edited by Walter Elwell, "the gospel is the joyous proclamation of God's redemptive activity in Christ Jesus on behalf of man enslaved by sin."

GRACE - Biblically, grace is unmerited favor. It is God's free action for the benefit of His people. It is different than Justice and Mercy. Justice is getting what we deserve. Mercy is not getting what we deserve.

Grace is getting what we do not deserve. In grace we get eternal life, something that, quite obviously, we do not deserve. But because of God's love and kindness manifested in Jesus on the cross, we receive the great blessing of redemption.

HYPOSTATIC UNION – Means sediment, foundation, substance, or subsistence. It is a technical term in Christian theology employed in mainstream Christology to describe the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one hypostasis. (“Person” Hebrews 1:2-3) Is set forth officially in the definition of faith produced by the Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD, concerns the union of the two natures of deity and humanity in one hypostasis or person of Jesus Christ.

The term Hypostatic Union is a critical doctrine in Christology. The word Hypostatic is a Bible Word meaning that it is derived from the original language of Scripture (Hebrews 1:2-3).

Hebrews 1:2-3 - has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His “person” (Hy/pos/ta/sis or Hypostatic), and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

IMPASSIBILITY OF GOD – Means that God is not subject to passion or suffering from humans and their lifestyles. God does have feelings, but that His feelings cannot undergo changing feelings; that is, God cannot change.

Man cannot change God or His mind. God does not need anything or anyone. All passion involves a desire for what is lacking. And since God is perfect God lacks nothing. God will not be moved by our lives or lifestyle choices.

INERRANCY OF THE SCRIPTURES – Means that in its original autographs the bible contains no mistakes in the original languages in which it was written.

JUSTIFICATION - JUSTIFY – JUSTIFIED – JUSTIFIER – JUST - Justification is the declaring of a person to be just or righteous. It is plain from the New Testament teaching throughout that justification comes to the sinner by the atoning work of Jesus and that this is applied to the individual sinner by faith.

MORALITY — having to do with thought and behavior that one ought to do as opposed to what one actually does, a duty or obligation.

PREDESTINATION, ELECT, ELECTION - God knows in advance who would or will respond by freewill to His love and grace, and it is these He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.

PREDESTINATION DOUBLE (CALVINST VIEW) - or the double decree, is the doctrine that God actively reprobates, or decrees damnation of some, as well as salvation for those whom he has elected. This means the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man.

All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of those ends, we say that he has been predestined to life or death. John Calvin - Institutes of the Christian Religion.

PROVIDENCE – means God who can control everything can also provide for all things, since He has, by virtue of His complete control, the resources necessary to providentially provide for everything. The argument for providence from God’s sovereignty can be stated as follows:

(1) God’s sovereignty means He controls all things. (2) He who controls all can also provide for all things. (3) Hence, sovereignty guarantees the possibility of God’s providential care for all things. (4) It can be stated that providence is God’s sovereignty in action.

REDEMPTION – REDEEMED - Finding its context in the social, legal, and religious customs of the ancient world, the metaphor of redemption includes the idea of loosening from a bond, setting free from captivity or slavery. Buying back something lost or sold, exchanging something in one's possession for something possessed by another, and ransoming.

RIGHTEOUSNESS – RIGHTEOUS OR JUSTICE - Means to be just or right. Theologically, it refers to the intrinsic characteristic of God wherein He is absolutely just or right and is the ultimate standard of justice and rightness.

God the Father is righteous (just); Jesus Christ his Son is the Righteous (Just) One; the Father through the Son and in the Spirit gives the gift of righteousness (justice) to repentant sinners for salvation;

Such believing sinners are declared righteous (just) by the Father through the Son, are made righteous (just) by the Holy Spirit working in them and will be wholly righteous (just) in the age to come. See Justice.

SANCTIFICATION – SANCTIFIED, SANCTIFY - To sanctify means to be set apart for a holy use. God has set us apart for the purpose of sanctification not impurity (1 Thess. 4:7) and being such we are called to do good works (Eph. 2:10).

Christians are to sanctify Christ as Lord in their hearts (1 Pet. 3:15). God sanctified Israel as His own special nation (Ezek. 27:28). People can be sanctified (Exodus 19:10,14) and so can a mountain (Exodus 19:23), as can the Sabbath day (Gen. 2:3), and every created thing is sanctified through the word of God and prayer (1 Tim. 4:4-5).

Sanctification follows justification. In justification our sins are completely forgiven in Christ. Sanctification is the process by which the Holy Spirit makes us more like Christ in all that we do, think, and desire. True sanctification is impossible apart from the atoning work of Christ on the cross because only after our sins are forgiven can we begin to lead a holy life.

SAVIOR, SALVATION - Salvation is the "saving" of a sinner from the righteous judgment of God. When someone appeals to God and seeks forgiveness in Jesus, his sins are forgiven. He is cleansed.

His relationship with God is restored, and he is made a new creature (2 Cor. 5:17). All of this is the work of God, not man. Salvation is a free gift (Rom. 6:23).

We are saved from damnation. When anyone sins, and we all have (Rom. 3:23; 6:23), he deserves eternal separation from God (Isaiah 59:2). Yet, because of His love and mercy, God became a man (John 1:1,14) and bore the sins of the world in His body on the cross (1 Pet. 2:24; 1 John 2:2). We are forgiven when we realize that there is nothing we can do to earn the favor of God and we put our trust in what Jesus did for us on the cross (Eph. 2:8-9; 1 Cor. 15:1-4). Only God saves. The only thing we bring to the cross is our sin.

SIN - Sin means missing the mark or coming short of a standard set. Is "any want of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God" (1st John 3:4; Rom 4:15). In the inward state and habit of the soul, as well as in the outward conduct of the life, whether by omission or commission. (Rom 6:12-17; 7:5-24)

It is "not a mere violation of the law of our constitution, nor of the system of things, but an offense against a personal lawgiver and moral governor who vindicates his law with penalties. Sin is anything that is contrary to the law or will of God. For example: if you lie, you have sinned.

Why? Because God has said He cannot to lie (Exodus 20:16). If you do what God has forbidden, then you have sinned. In addition, if you do not do what God has commanded, you sin (James 4:17). Either way, the result is eternal separation from God (Isaiah 59:2). Sin is lawlessness (1 John 1:3) and unrighteousness (1 John 5:17). Sin leads to bondage (Rom. 6:14-20) and death (Rom. 6:23).

VINES: sin produces strife, shame, reproach and dishonor that causes harm to both the sinner and the one sinned against. Paul, in the book of Romans, discusses sin. He shows that everyone, both Jew and Greek, is under sin (Rom. 3:9). Dr. Duffield and Dr. Van Cleave - Let us understand this about sin. The bible did not create the problem of sin. And that sin was in the world long before the bible was written. He shows that sin is not simply something that is done, but a condition of the heart (Rom. 3:10-12).

In Ephesians Paul says that we are "by nature children of wrath" (Eph. 2:3). Yet, "while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly," (Rom. 5:6). Then we have transgression or willful disobedience. It is the dealings of the mind. The first thought is not the sin. It is the entertainment of the thought. Then from the thinking of the thought, to acting out the thought in my life it then it becomes iniquity. Which means lawlessness or wickedness. It is not being right with God or man. And it is the practice of iniquity that separates me from God. (James 1:13-16)

SOVEREIGNTY – Sovereignty or governance means “what sovereign has” which means to be in control of and to be in charge of. God in complete control of all things. Nothing catches God by surprise. All things come to pass. Sovereignty is the right of God to do as He wishes (Psalm 50:1; Isaiah 40:15; 1 Tim. 6:15) with His creation. This implies that there is no external influence upon Him and that He also has the ability to exercise His power and control according to His will. It is God’s sovereignty that allows man to have freewill, yet God knows all decisions that will be made and it is God that acts according to the decision that He knows that man is going to make and do. Counter Factual means that God knows what will be and He knows what could be.

THEOCRACY - God as Supreme Being, directly rules over a nation, a people, person or marriage who choose to serve God, have fellowship with God and will humble themselves before God. The nation of Israel, in its inception, was a theocratic form of government. It was God-ruled. The word Theocracy comes from 2 Greek words Theos which means “God” and arche which “means rule of.” Theocracy is a form of government where God is the direct authority. Theocracy is a conditional and voluntary covenant. And Theocracy is based on ABIDING with God. Deut. 11:22-28, John 15:1-8

Chuck Smith - Now we do find in Scripture a form of government that God established and modeled in the early history of Israel. SEE ABIDING

THREE POSSIBLE WAYS TO PREDICATE (ASCRIBE) TO THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD.

1) UNIVOCALLY – means to attribute the characteristic to God in entirely the same way it is attributed to creatures.

2) EQUIVOCALLY – means to use them of God and man in an entirely different way.

3) ANALOGICALLY – means to apply them to God (Trinitarian Monotheism) and man in a similar way. (Geisler)

TRIUNITY OR TRINITY – Means that God is a Triunity; that is there is not only one God (monotheism), but there are three persons in that one God (Trinitarian monotheism). He is a plurality within unity. God has a plurality of persons and a unity of essence; God is three persons in one nature.

UNBELIEF, UNBELIEVER - Someone who is not willing to respond to the gospel. The word unbelief rendered "disobedience" in the Vines Dictionary. Unfaithful.

UNGODLY – means to have a wrong relationship with God.

UNIVERSE — everything that is created or began to exist, seen and unseen.

UNRIGHTEOUSNESS - means to have a wrong relationship with man.

UNRIGHTEOUSNESS, SUPPRESSING THE TRUTH – is to believe that there is a God, yet living as though God does not exist.

WALKING IN THE FLESH - Living in such a way that does not please God and contradicts the word of God.

WALK IN THE SPIRIT - When you have a Spiritual birth, then you now have a connection with God. The spirit uppermost, Father, Son, and Spirit; spirit, mind and body. In this area of the Spirit when it rules, when you are led by the Spirit, when you are walking in the Spirit, then you have this oneness with God. Communion with God. See Carnal, Carnally, Flesh