The Charismatic Church: Chariscentric oversimplification demystified by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff.
(Average reading time: 5 minutes) As a Christian in South Africa, I recognize the absolute need for Biblical Christianity to be center stage. Currently, we are witnessing another influx and popularization of Charismatic experiences. Exorcisms, Prophetic proclamations, transfer of wealth, and even promises of shaping your world with the right confession. All of these under the banner of acceptable Christian practice. How do we deal with the Charismatic movement? [1] John MacArthur says; “Every day [...]
Christ in the Old Testament by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff
1.1 Background There has been an increasing trend in Christian Scholarship that the Old Testament Scriptures is not a central revelation of Jesus Christ or His divinity. Marcus Borg (2000) evidently finds Jesus to be a sage but not a divine and Bart D. Ehrman (Bird 2014) speculates what it meant when we spoke of Jesus as being Lord over all. Some evangelical Scholars have been of the opinion that the very central focus of [...]
The Deity of Christ as primer to understand the difference between Yahweh and Allah by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff
The central question of this thesis was provoked by Miroslav Volf’s (2011) book “Allah: A Christian response”. Volf confirms that it is possible for Christians and Muslims to worship the same God and even though there are central denials and differences, we should rather focus on what we have in common (2011:11). The problem is not just Volf’s conclusion but his means how he gets to it. Volf (2011:104-105) contends that the ultimate standard for [...]
The Theological message of Paul as it relates to the primitive Christology of Philippians 2:5-11 by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff
In this study of Paul’s Christology I will research the essential Christological idea that Paul was affirming from the earliest Christian community. The foundational text for my study will be from Paul’s letter to the Philippians in chapter 2 verse 5-11(Bowman and Komoszewski 2007:166-167). I will show that Paul is quoting an early doxological hymn affirming a high Christological view of the pre-existing incarnate Lord of all Jesus Christ that was worshiped as God, and [...]
The Love of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit by John Gilchrist.
The First and Great Commandment: How does a Christian ever communicate the Trinity to Muslims? If you use an illustration to explain it, you may be sorely disappointed. One of the favourite representations of the Trinity is water which, though one in substance, can be threefold in its form – steam, water or ice depending on its temperature. If you use this symbolic image for the Trinity, a wise Muslim will retort: "So, when God [...]
Is Jesus truly Almighty God By Joy A. Veinot
(Originally printed in the Fall 2003 Issue of the MCOI Journal) Should you believe in the Trinity? This is the question raised by the widely circulated, 1989 booklet published by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society (WTBTS)*, appropriately titled Should You Believe in the Trinity?and subtitled Is Jesus Christ the Almighty God?[1. WTBTS, Should You Believe in the Trinity? (Brooklyn, New York: WATCHTOWER BIBLE AND TRACT SOCIETY OF NEW YORK, INC., 1989)] Well, should we [...]
Gilchrist wager: Three essential issues between Christians and Muslims by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff.
Earlier this month I had the opportunity again to visit with Uncle John Gilchrist and his lovely wife Aunty Rosemary. He told me about the re-release of a booklet he wrote years back for Muslim evangelism. The Booklet, ‘Our approach to Muslims’ entails various topics and speaks solely about the Christian treatment of Muslims. The following quote is given in the booklet and I call it the Gilchrist wager. He writes: “The issue between Christians [...]
Converting to Calvinism by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff
In recent years there seemed to be a curious interest in Calvinism. Numerous Christians from all spheres of influence and all walks of life are stating their claim and defining themselves by this term. Brad Vermurlen, a Notre Dame graduate says, “Ten years ago, everyone was talking about the ‘emergent church, and five years ago, people were talking about the ‘missional church.’ And now ‘new Calvinism.’ I don’t want to say the new Calvinism is [...]
Islamic Theology and the difficulty of its presuppositions by Pastor Rudolph Boshoff.
In this short article, I just want to reflect on the logical conclusions of Islamic Theology as the Quran and its sources endeavor to explain the central character of Allah in the central held beliefs that constitute the faith of the Ummah (Arabic: أمة). (1) The Ethical Character of God. It is interesting to note that the Judeo/Christian God of the Bible, Jehovah, leads us to conclude that He is essentially moral and supremely holy [...]
Is Muhammad Foretold in the Bible? by John Gilchrist
During 1975 Ahmed Deedat held a series of lectures at the Durban City Hall, two of which set out to prove that Muhammad is foretold in the Bible. The first lecture, entitled What the Bible Says About Muhammad, dealt with the prophecy in Deuteronomy 18.18 in the Old Testament, and in it Mr. Deedat sought to show that Moses was predicting the coming of Muhammad when speaking of a prophet to follow him who would be [...]