From Preface: The Church has been divided from its very earliest days, when Christians of Jewish origin found it hard to accept that uncircumcised Gentiles might be Christians too. (See Acts 15, Galatians 2, etc.) It has since then known division into East and West, into Roman Catholic and Protestant, and into the hundreds and even thousands of denominations and sects which we know today, not to speak of the schisms between 'modernism' and 'fundamentalism', between Calvinism and Arminianism, and between 'High' and 'Low' churchmanship. We are, however, being reminded more and more by the Ecumenical Movement that the Church of Christ is ONE. Jesus said: "On this rock I will build my Church" (not churches) - Matt. 16:18.

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Thesis (Th. M.)--Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia, Pa.), 2007. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-126).

Thesis (Th. M.)--Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia, Pa.), 2007. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-126).

This thesis explores how Scotland's federal theology helped to perpetuate the seventeenth-century Presbyterian conception of a covenanted Church and nation among a significant portion of eighteenth-century evangelical Presbyterians. It examines how both a seventeenth-century form of federal theology and a social ethic based on Scotland's Covenants were preserved among many Scottish Presbyterians between 1690 and the 1790s, until a broader and more individualistic evangelicalism increasingly eclipsed the corporate aspects of federal theology. The thesis focuses on the experiences of the Secession and Reformed Presbyterian Churches, Presbyterian denominations which broke away from the established Church of Scotland. Chapter one traces the origins of federal theology in Scotland, and considers the Scottish covenant idea within Post-Reformation Calvinism generally, and more particularly within the Presbyterian Church of Scotland after the Revolution Settlement of 1689-90. Chapter two considers how federal theology was preserved and perpetuated among Presbyterian evangelicals after 1690, how these evangelicals continued the covenanting practice of identifying Scotland with biblical Israel, and how their longings for national revival came to hinge upon the renewal of Covenant obligations. Chapter three considers the impact of the Marrow controversy in prolonging the predominant influence of federal theology on eighteenth-century Scottish popular piety, particularly among the Secession and Reformed Presbyterians. Chapter four considers a further aspect of the Marrow controversy-that is, its emphasis on the connection between the moral law and the covenant of grace. In analyzing both the individual and corporate dimensions of federal theology, this chapter examines the thought that informed the practice of covenanting, and considers why many Secession and Reformed Presbyterians believed in the 'perpetual obligation' of Scotland's Covenants for subsequent generations. The chapter also introduces the theological criticisms that would in the course of the eighteenth-century largely undermine federal theology's corporate applications for most Presbyterians and that would greatly weaken adherence to the Covenants within the two Secession Synods (Burgher and Anti burgher). Chapter five examines the application of the covenant idea to the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. It explores how the sacraments kept alive the social ideal of federal theology and its aspirations for national revival within the Secession and Reformed Presbyterian Churches between 1690 and the 1820s, despite the mounting theological criticisms of federal theology and covenanting. Finally, chapter six examines how federal theology's corporate aspects affected the Secession and Reformed Presbyterians' views on Church and State and the role of the civil magistrate. Consideration is given to how Scotland's changing social, political, and intellectual contexts eroded the commitments to a Covenant piety among evangelical Presbyterians, and to how this led to further schisms within the two Secession Synods at the close of the eighteenth century.

John Owen's (1616-1683) four-volume commentary on the epistle to the Hebrews represents the apex of his literary career and exemplifies many of the exegetical methods of the post-Reformation. This thesis is the first detailed analysis of his introductory discourses, or "exercitations," on Hebrews. Owen's exercitations on the Messiah in particular are an ideal source for this examination, since they serve as the prolegomena for his exposition proper. More specifically, this thesis evaluates the hermeneutical function of Christological and covenantal patterns that arise from Owen's argument concerning the fulfilment of the messianic promise in the person and work of Christ. Therefore, this study is a descriptive analysis of the text and context of Owen's discourses on the Messiah. The topics considered in each chapter are based upon hermeneutical questions that are pertinent to Owen's promise-fulfilment scheme in general and to the relationship of Christology and covenant theology in particular. Chapter 1 examines scholarship on Owen's commentary and suggests possible reasons for its neglect. Chapter 2 places Owen's exercitations and exposition within the context of his life and times, and explains the central argument of his work. Chapters 3 and 4 provide the conceptual basis for this study, as they introduce two essential components of Owen's discourses on the Messiah. Chapter 3 establishes the importance of federal theology for Owen by examining his exegesis of Genesis 3:15, and its relationship to the covenant of redemption and covenant of grace. Chapter 4 considers the problem posed by a Christological reading of the Old Testament for those like Owen who are committed to the literal sense of Scripture. Chapters 5 and 6 consider aspects of continuity and discontinuity between the Old and New Testaments, and seek to illustrate the connection between Owen's exercitations and exposition. Chapter 5 considers the nature of faith in the Old Testament, noting especially the importance of the Abrahamic covenant for what Owen calls "the oneness of the church." In contrast, chapter 6 provides an extended analysis of the role of the law in the Mosaic covenant, considering in particular the highly problematic question of the recapitulation of the covenant of works and the nature of the old and new covenants. The conclusion summarises the findings of this study.

Oren Rhea Martin, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2013 Chair: Dr. Bruce A. Ware Chapter 1 introduces the thesis, states the purpose, and defines the dissertation's specific goals. Attention is then given to a summary of research before a closing section presents the methodology that is used: a historical-exegetical, epochal, and canonical-eschatological approach to biblical interpretation and theological formulation. Chapter 2 provides the biblical-theological framework from which a theology of land can be canonically understood. More specifically, the framework for understanding the place, or land, of God's people is the kingdom. God's kingdom commences in Eden, and after the fall of mankind into sin God's kingdom will come through his divinely-initiated covenants with his people. In the end, God will once again create a place--a new heaven and a new earth--for his people through the fulfillment of his covenant promises in Christ, who wins the new creation and reigns in his kingdom forever. Working out of this framework, the next two chapters trace the theme of land as it progressively unfolds across the canon. To begin, Chapter 3 connects the promise of land to Abraham to the preceding events in Genesis 1-11. Then, the promise of land within the Abrahamic covenant is evaluated, which is followed by partial fulfillments through Israel's history under leaders such as Joshua, David, and Solomon. However, each stage of fulfillment is not final, for every fulfillment is followed by covenant failure. Instead, each fulfillment and failure anticipates something greater, which the canonical prophets proclaim. What begins in the Old Testament is fulfilled in the New. Chapter 4, then, demonstrates the inaugurated fulfillment of the kingdom with the coming of Christ and his work. That is, the blessings of the land come now to those who are united to Christ by faith and they await their future, final fulfillment in the new creation. Thus, the fulfillment of the land in the New Testament is inaugurated but not yet consummated. Finally, chapter 5 summarizes and concludes the overall argument of this dissertation. The argument is then evaluated in light of the two dominant theological systems today, namely, dispensationalism and covenant theology.

Thesis (M.A.)--Columbia International University, 2002. / Typescript. "April, 2002." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 146-156).

This dissertation maintains that the new covenant was a significant soteriological, ecclesiological, and ethical category in Paul's theology. Using Ephesians as a test case, it analyzes the relevant texts where Paul seems to appropriate the Old Testament's promises specifically linked with the new covenant. Chapter 1 surveys and assesses various views on the significance of the new covenant to Paul, and offers a way forward in the debate. Chapter 2 surveys the new covenant in the Old Testament. Included is exegesis of the most relevant prophetic texts that point to a day when God would usher in a new covenant with his people. A summary of these texts shows a list of major themes most often associated with the new covenant. Chapter 3 analyzes the blessings of the new covenant in Ephesians 1:3-14. Themes such as election, sonship, forgiveness of sins, and the Spirit indicate the prevalence of the new covenant's promises in Pauline thought. These promises are rooted in the promises to Abraham. Chapter 4 analyzes the new covenant in Ephesians 2:11-22. Paul frames the plight, solution, and new status of the Gentiles in covenantal terms. Peace with God and one another through the death of Christ is at the center of the text and is especially rooted in the promises of Isaiah. The new status for believing Gentiles includes membership within the true people of God, who, fulfilling the covenant ideal in Christ, dwells with his people. Chapter 5 suggests that some of the ethical commands of Ephesians 4:17-5:5 find their background in the ethic of the new covenant. Speaking the truth in love and walking in love summarize the ethic of the new covenant. Included in this chapter is an excursus on the structural similarities between Deuteronomy and Ephesians, which indicates the covenantal framework of Paul's ethics. Chapter 6 summarizes the thesis by comparing the nature of the new covenant in chapter 3 with the findings of chapters 3-5. That many of the promises of the new covenant are found to be present in various texts in Ephesians suggests the prevalence of the concept to Paul as he formulated his soteriology, ecclesiology, and ethics. These conclusions are then set within the context of the broader scholarly discussion concerning Paul's view of the new covenant.

This thesis argues that the covenant idea was more significant in the writings of particular ante-Nicene theologians than has generally been admitted in patristic research or general surveys of the history of the covenant idea in the Christian tradition. Indeed, this survey of the covenant idea in the ante-Nicene period demonstrates a significant usage, development, and modification of the covenant concept as it is found in the OT and NT writings and in early Judaism. This investigation reveals that the covenant idea functions in several arenas of early Christian thought. It is employed (1) to stress moral obligations incumbent upon Christians; (2) to show God's grace in including the Gentiles in the Abrahamic blessings; (3) to deny the reception of these promises to the Israel of the flesh, that is, Israel considered merely as an ethnic entity; (4) to demonstrate continuity in the divine economy; and (5) to explain discontinuity in the divine economy. In reviewing the role of early Christian covenant thought in these areas, this thesis argues that (1) the pre-Nicene theologians usually take OT covenant passages (not NT passages) as the starting point in their applications of the covenant concept to Christian living; (2) the early Christian use of the covenant idea evidences that they understood the covenant to be both unilateral and bilateral, promissory and obligatory, to bring divine blessings and entail human obedience; (3) these writings also show that, from the very earliest times, Christian authors (following OT and NT examples) have employed the covenant concept as a key structural idea in their presentations of redemptive history; (4) contrary to the suggestions of previous studies, there is no evidence of a gap in the usage of the covenant idea after the era of the NT writings; (5) the covenant idea was closely linked to the early Christian self-understanding as the people of God; (6) the covenant idea is not monolithic in the thought of the authors surveyed. It is employed with differing emphases and takes on varying shades of meaning in their respective writings; (7) genetic connections in specific usages of the covenant idea can be found in different pre-Nicene authors (e.g., Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian). The argument of this thesis proceeds by first reviewing the role of the covenant idea in the writings of the NT, the Apostolic Fathers, and Justin. This provides background for comparison and contrast with subsequent theological reflection on the covenants in Christian theology. Then we consider, in turn, the covenant idea in Melito, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Cyprian, Origen, Clement of Alexandria, Hippolytus, and Novatian. In each, specific employments of the covenant idea are inventoried. In the epilogue, our findings are summarized and conclusions are drawn. This study is significant for at least these following reasons: (1) It confirms current research on the Jewish matrix of early Christianity, from a vantage-point not yet exploited. (2) It reviews in greater detail the early Christian covenant thought which is now being acknowledged to have been influential on the sixteenth-century Reformers (such as Bullinger and Calvin). (3) As the first extensive patristic survey of the covenant idea, it fills a significant lacuna in the history of ideas. (4) It lays the groundwork for more detailed considerations of the covenant concept in the pre-Ni cane and post-Nicene eras.