Monday, August 5, 2013
Protestant Distinctives and History Audio Lessons by R.C. Sproul and John Gerstner
Justification By Faith Alone (15 lessons)
What Is The Gospel? (2 lessons)
Understanding The Gospel (12 lessons)
Making Of The Protestant Reformation (2 lessons)
Meaning Of The Gospel (2 lessons)
Book Of Galatians Lessons (11 lessons)
What Is Reformed Theology? (2 lessons)
Heros Of The Christian Faith (10 lessons)
Handout Church History (teaching series by John Gerstner, 39 lessons)
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Justification By Faith Alone (15 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/justification_by_faith_alone/?filter=free">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/justification_by_faith_alone/?filter=free</a>
What Is The Gospel? (2 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/what_is_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=2">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/what_is_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=2</a>
Understanding The Gospel (12 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/understanding_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=2">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/understanding_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=2</a>
Making Of The Protestant Reformation (2 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/making_of_the_protestant_reformation/?filter=free&page_series_list=2">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/making_of_the_protestant_reformation/?filter=free&page_series_list=2</a>
Meaning Of The Gospel (2 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/meaning_of_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=3">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/meaning_of_the_gospel/?filter=free&page_series_list=3</a>
What Is Reformed Theology?
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/what_is_reformed_theology/?filter=free&page_series_list=1">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/what_is_reformed_theology/?filter=free&page_series_list=1</a>
Book Of Galatians Lessons (11 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/galatians/part-4-3408/?filter=free&page_series_list=2">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/galatians/part-4-3408/?filter=free&page_series_list=2</a>
Heros Of The Christian Faith (10 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/heroes_of_the_christian_faith/?filter=free&page_series_list=4">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/heroes_of_the_christian_faith/?filter=free&page_series_list=4</a>
Handout Church History (teaching series by John Gerstner, 39 lessons)
<a href="http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/handout-church-history/?filter=free&page_series_list=3">http://www.ligonier.org/learn/series/handout-church-history/?filter=free&page_series_list=3</a>
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Quick refutation of the Roman Catholic history argument:
ReplyDelete1.) Church history is descriptive, not prescriptive, in nature.
2.) Even if we unanimously agreed to accept Papal authority, that would only eliminate doctrinal conflict in a circular, tautological sense. That would still not reveal to us whether we should be in communion with the Roman Bishop (i.e. whether we are right or wrong in our decision making). It still does not build a case for Roman Catholicism.
3.) Both the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches make identical claims of being established directly by the Lord Jesus Christ, but maintain contradictory oral traditions and dispute each other's claims.
4.) The church fathers sometimes contradicted each other and themselves, which is the underlying reason for us not putting them on par with the authority of divine Scripture. These men, no matter how theologically gifted, were not inspired by God. The writings of these people are not to be treated as a smokescreen against the plain reading of Scripture. Divine revelation exists independently of the writings of so-called church fathers.
5.) Many people considered to be church fathers lived relatively late in church history, several hundred years after the preaching of the apostles. There were church fathers who were in fact not familiar with the inspired languages of the Bible, which of course weakens the notion that they had any better interpretive insight than do we. Modern scholarship has greater advantages in comparison to bishops living in the third or fourth centuries.
6.) Roman Catholics cannot know with certainty who exactly constitutes the church fathers, which early Christian writings are to be deemed authoritative, and that all of the father's teachings are correct without resorting to circular reasoning. For them, it is thus because the Church of Rome declared matters to be thus.
7.) If we can read the writings of the church fathers or the official catechism of the Roman Catholic Church, then why not simply use the inspired Word of God to discern truth from error? Only the cults demand blind submission to an earthly charismatic leader. If the Catholics want to consistently apply their method of validating Roman Catholicism by resorting to the early church fathers, then why not start with the inspired authors of the New Testament?
8.) We do not have every document written by each particular church father on every subject. Neither were we present in the early church to take surveys of what everybody believed. Although this argument may aggravate devout Roman Catholics, it nevertheless demonstrates their claims of unanimous consensus in church history to be vacuous.
9.) There exists no reliable record of the Apostle Peter being the first bishop of Rome. There exists a fictional narrative of Peter presiding over the Papacy for a time span of about twenty-five years that has been dated back to the third century, which contradicts details set forth in the Book of Acts. It ended up getting propagated by later Roman bishops who had itching ears. The distinction between the offices of elder and bishop was not made until 150 AD. The Roman bishop eventually ended up taking on titles once belonging to the Roman Caesars. Former Anglican turned Roman Catholic convert Cardinal Newman once declared, "To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant." Yet, there are so many reputable non-Catholic scholars and historians. Such bald-faced lies from Romish officials only prove their religion to be man-centered:
"that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another." (1 Corinthians 4:6)