Brief end year bullets on the career track...

• Image one: While in bed this morning, I captured this interesting live image from a presenter on TikTok.

• I hope to see more of the world via train...

• Image two: As I have noted, especially on my Facebook Business Page, I highly doubt that all of mentions of Russell Norman Murray, are actually me.

• That being stated, I edited two more website articles this Christmas break.

• Now 69 articles on academia.edu.

• The Blogger website articles have always been peer reviewable on their own, online.

• However, academia.edu does provide another, third party website.

• Although I am not buying at all, that all 2700 mentions are of Russell Norman Murray, I still reason that the academic exposure probably gains a scholar readers..

• Career-wise, it is IMHO, 99.99999% unlikely I ever willingly end my government career.

• But, I suppose that part-time work remains a possibility.

• On the weekends...as it is already.

• I reason God's primary (specific to me) purpose for me in Christ is the website and academic work. 

• It was not a 'mistake' for me to gain a PhD. My goal in academia, was always to be a scholar with a PhD.

• Becoming a professor was never the goal, although for a while I assumed it was a possible mode of income with the PhD.

• Government work provides an indexed pension.

• Not that I plan on retiring, ever, really.

• Government work also provides one with opportunities to travel for work, apart from travel with vacations.

• Image three: Whether or not Mr. Rich stated this, I agree with it, in regards to Mr. Bonham...

Locked into hell...

 

Locked into hell...

Tik Tok video

My paraphrase from the Tik Tok video in italics...

1. Did the demons make a bad decision to reject God? 

Yes.

God is the author of life, and the author of meaningful, peaceful, joyful, life, beyond just mere existence. For any finite creation, opposing God is a bad decision. Anything with goodness that God has created is a finite version, in a limited sense (not divine) of his infinite goodness. Humanity and fallen angels are tainted through likely separate falls, while God's obedient angels, although finite, are not tainted by any kind of fall.

2. Demons are you suffering because you rejected God?

Yes.

Don Stewart: Where does Satan presently live?- Blue Letter Bible

Cited

There are those who believe that Satan is presently bound in the pit. The Bible does say that he will be there some day. And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss, and shut it, and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time (Revelation 20:1-3).

There are various biblical debates on the present context of where Satanic beings operate. It is difficult from metaphorical, eschatological, biblical language, for example in Revelation 20, to solve this issue conclusively. It seems to me that Satan and at least some of his demons are suffering in opposition to God, while working within spiritual realms to influence humanity against the biblical, Kingdom of God.

I have read and heard from Reformed and Evangelical theological perspectives, that human beings do not have the ability to simply intellectually believe in the gospel, as do satanic/demonic beings. From my theological perspective, satanic beings and obedient angels are within the spiritual realm and have direct access to things human beings do not. But, exactly how this works is not biblically, clearly explained. Humanity does not know God and about God in the supernatural realm as do these supernatural beings. The taint of evil within these demonic beings/fallen angels seemingly makes them fit only for damnation to God (Revelation 20 and the lake of fire). There is biblically, no salvation option for fallen angels. However, with the elect, God regenerates those he chooses (Ephesians 1, Romans 9) through the applied atoning and resurrection work of Jesus Christ, to be saved members of the Kingdom of God.

However, even as unregenerate persons have not experienced the spiritual realms as have finite angelic beings; clearly for one example, not all scholarship is from regenerate believers. There are non-Christian scholars that can properly understand New Testament writings and theology without having saving faith.

It seems to me, for the unregenerate, it is more likely that the gospel sounds like it could be true, than actual belief in the God of the gospel is taking place. But in the end there is no real trusting belief in the Lord.

3. Demon/fallen angel would you change your decision to reject God, if you could?

No

Their nature as opposed to God is locked in. This will keep them ontologically (nature and existence) opposing God, even if at least some of these entities might intellectually acknowledge rejecting God as a bad decision. Whatever type of free will demonic/fallen angels have, it works within a corrupted  nature that is locked in rejecting God.

Locked into hell...

Cited

Summary 

Satan presently dwells in the heavenly realm. The Bible teaches that he does have access to the LORD. Whether he has already been thrown out of heaven or whether this judgment is still future is an area in which Bible students disagree.

---

Regeneration

Titus 3

Wednesday, September 06, 2017 Titus 3: 5-7: Regeneration

Edited 

'by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit' from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) 

Bible Hub: παλιγγενεσία, ας, ἡ 

Strong's 3824

Strong's Concordance paliggenesia: regeneration, renewal 

Original Word: παλιγγενεσία, ας, ἡ 

Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine 

Transliteration: paliggenesia 

Phonetic Spelling: (pal-ing-ghen-es-ee'-ah) 

Short Definition: a new birth, regeneration 

Definition: a new birth, regeneration, renewal.

From Titus 3: 5 The main text of Strong's presents: Spiritual rebirth (figurative), spiritual regeneration (figurative). (72). Greek scholar Bauer documents this as: The rebirth of the redeemed person. (606). The regeneration and rebirth via the Holy Spirit. (606).

John 3

Again from my PhD, Herman Bavinck (1918)(2006) equates the term regeneration with rebirth. Bavinck (1918)(2006: 46). In the Gospel of John 3, Jesus Christ does not literally speak of a person being born a second time, but literally insists that a person be reborn and spiritually transformed from above.

Bible Hub: John 3

John 3: 3

γεννηθῇ be born

ἄνωθεν from above

Bible Hub: 1080 

Strong's 1080

Strong's Concordance gennaó: to beget, to bring forth 

Original Word: γεννάω 

Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: gennaó 

Phonetic Spelling: (ghen-nah'-o) 

Definition: to beget, to bring forth Usage: I beget (of the male), (of the female) I bring forth, give birth to.

Bible Hub: 509 

Strong's 509

Strong's Concordance anóthen: from above 

Original Word: ἄνωθεν 

Part of Speech: Adverb Transliteration: anóthen 

Phonetic Spelling: (an'-o-then) 

Definition: from above 

Usage: (a) from above, from heaven, (b) from the beginning, from their origin (source), from of old, (c) again, anew.

1 Peter 1

Bible Hub: 1 Peter 1: 3

ἀναγεννήσας having begotten again

Bible Hub: 313

Strong's 313

Strong's Concordance anagennaó: to beget again 

Original Word: ἀναγεννάω 

Part of Speech: Verb 

Transliteration: anagennaó 

Phonetic Spelling: (an-ag-en-nah'-o) 

Definition: to beget again 

Usage: I beget again, beget into a new life.

The website lists this as aorist, participle, active, and nominative, masculine, singular.

Bauer documents ἀναγεννάω (page 51), defined as beget again, be born again, figurative of spiritual rebirth of Christians. (51). This is the context of 1 Peter 1: 3,  born again. (51).

Biblically and theologically, the new birth, to beget again, being born again equates to regeneration. 

As human beings need to be regenerated by God to be saved, this means that those that God does not regenerate are not saved. In the Tik Tok video, the priest states it is human beings' own fault (outside of Christ) they are damned. As secondary causes they embrace a rejection of God in sin and evil. However, God is still the primary cause in their damnation, but with holy motives.

Bibliography

Don Stewart: Blue Letter Bible 

Don Stewart has written over twenty books on the subject of evidences for the Christian faith. These include, The Basic Bible Study Series, You Be the Judge, 10 Reasons To Trust the Bible, and The Coming Temple. In the last fifteen years, he has spoken in over thirty countries proclaiming the message that the Christian faith is both reasonable and intelligent.

BAUER, WALTER. (1979) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, Translated by Eric H. Wahlstrom, Chicago, The University of Chicago Press. 

BAVINCK, HERMAN (1918)(2006) Reformed Dogmatics Volume 2: God and Creation, John Bolt (gen.ed.), Translated by John Vriend, Baker Academic, Grand Rapids. 

BAVINCK, HERMAN (1918)(2006) Reformed Dogmatics Volume 3: Sin and Salvation in Christ, John Bolt (gen.ed.), Translated by John Vriend, Baker Academic, Grand Rapids. 

CALVIN, JOHN (1539)(1998) The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book II, Translated by Henry Beveridge, Grand Rapids, The Christian Classic Ethereal Library, Wheaton College. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/institutes.html

CALVIN, JOHN (1539)(1998) The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book IV, Translated by Henry Beveridge, Grand Rapids, The Christian Classic Ethereal Library, Wheaton College. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/institutes.html 

CALVIN, JOHN (1540)(1973) Romans and Thessalonians, Translated by Ross Mackenzie, Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 

CALVIN, JOHN (1543)(1996) The Bondage and Liberation of the Will, Translated by G.I. Davies, Grand Rapids, Baker Book House. 

CALVIN, JOHN (1550)(1978) Concerning Scandals, Translated by John W. Fraser, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 

CALVIN, JOHN (1552)(1995) Acts, Translated by Watermark, Nottingham, Crossway Books.

CALVIN, JOHN (1553)(1952) Job, Translated by Leroy Nixon, Grand Rapids, Baker Book House.

CALVIN, JOHN (1554)(1965) Genesis, Translated by John King, Edinburgh, The Banner of Truth Trust. 

COURSON, JON (2005) Application Commentary, Thomas Nelson, Nashville.

ERICKSON, MILLARD (1994) Christian Theology, Grand Rapids, Baker Book House.

ERICKSON, MILLARD (2003) What Does God Know and When Does He Know It? Grand Rapids, Zondervan. 

FRANCE, R.T. (2001) Matthew, Grand Rapids, Eerdmans.

HOCKING, DAVID (2014) The Book of Revelation, Tustin, California, HFT Publications.

KIERKEGAARD, SOREN (1847-1848)(1955)(1966) On Authority and Revelation, Translated by Walter Lowrie, New York, Harper and Row, Publishers, Incorporated. 

KIERKEGAARD, SOREN (1848-1849)(1961) Christian Discourses & The Lilies of the Field and The Birds of the Air & Three Discourses at The Communion on Fridays, Translated by Walter Lowrie, New York, Oxford University Press. 

MARSHALL, ALFRED (1975)(1996) The Interlinear KJV-NIV, Grand Rapids, Zondervan.

MOUNCE, ROBERT H. (1990) The Book of Revelation, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

MURRAY, JOHN (1937-1966)(1977) Collected Writings of John Murray, Vol. 2: Select Lectures in Systematic Theology, Edinburgh, The Banner of Truth Trust. 

MURRAY, RUSSELL NORMAN (2003) The Problem of Evil: Anglican and Baptist Perspectives, Bangor, Wales, Bangor University.

http://drrnm.blogspot.com/2006/01/

MURRAY, RUSSELL NORMAN (2010) Theodicy and Practical Theology, Lampeter, The University of Wales. Trinity Saint David.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OxFb7ysR475AqpQkLvxEgYgwLAQISzdn/view

SHEDD, WILLIAM G.T. (1874-1890)(1980) Dogmatic Theology, Volume 1, Nashville, Thomas Nelson Publishers. 

SHEDD, WILLIAM G.T. (1874-1890)(1980) Dogmatic Theology, Volume 2, Nashville, Thomas Nelson Publishers. 

SHEDD, WILLIAM G.T. (1874-1890)(1980) Dogmatic Theology, Volume 1, Nashville, Thomas Nelson Publishers. 

SHEDD, WILLIAM G.T. (1874-1890)(1980) Dogmatic Theology, Volume 2, Nashville, Thomas Nelson Publishers. 

STRONG, J. (1890)(1986) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Pickering, Ontario, Welch Publishing Company. 

THIESSEN, HENRY C. (1956) Introductory Lectures in Systematic Theology, Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 

WEBER, OTTO (1955)(1981) Foundations of Dogmatics, Volumes 1 and 2, Translated and annotated by Darrell L. Guder, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 

For me the PhD was like a train, and if anything was in my way I would run it over: However, God in his sovereignty placed some things on the track...

CN Rail photo 

I reason that God wanted me to complete a PhD...

I will admit, that for me the PhD was like a train, and if anything was in my way I would run it over. However, God in his sovereignty placed some things on the track...