Cedarville Magazine, Fall 2017

CHAPEL NOTES In Luke 24:46–47, Jesus makes one of the richest statements in all Scripture, explaining what the Bible is about: “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” “Thus it is written.” What a high view of the Bible the Lord Jesus had. For biblical theology to be true, it must have the Bible as its foundation, its source, and its reference point. “That the Christ should suffer.” This is the heart of biblical theology. The Gospel. It speaks of who Jesus is and what He came to do. He’s the Messiah and the promised King from the line of David. We need a King, and we need a sacrifice. All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. All of us deserve to suffer eternally for the penalty of our sin. In His mercy, God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to live the perfect life that none of us could ever live, and then die on the cross as a substitute, in the place of all who would turn from their sins and place their trust in Jesus Christ alone. “On the third day rise from the dead.” Jesus did not remain in the tomb, but He rose on the third day. This is the ground of our hope. “Repentance and forgiveness of sins.” All faithful Gospel-preaching includes repentance and forgiveness of sins. It’s not that you repent one time, have your sins forgiven, and then move on. The Christian life is a continual life of repentance and rejoicing in the forgiveness of God. “Should be proclaimed.” This proclamation is at the center of our lives. Cedarville exists to equip Christians to send them out and proclaim the excellencies of Christ. It doesn’t matter your major; if you are a Christian, you have been called to proclaim the excellencies of God: His faithfulness, goodness, s ov e r e i gn t y, j u s t i c e , r i gh t eousne s s , l ove , grace, and mercy. “In his name to all nations.” The scope of His proclamation is all nations. And the authority of the proclamation — in His name. That encourages me about a gathering like this. I see people from many different backgrounds, ethnicities, and countries of origin. Yet we’re united under the same banner of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Gospel. And that glorifies God. Shai Linne is a Christian recording artist and church planter, who has released seven hip-hop albums and helped plant Risen Christ Fellowship in Philadelphia in 2016. What the Bible Is All About The following is an excerpt from an October 23 chapel presentation by Shai Linne. Linne was one of the plenary speakers for this year’s 9Marks Pastors Conference. Listen to his full remarks at cedarville.edu/chapel . For biblical theology to be true, it must have the Bible as its foundation, its source, and its reference point. Feb. 27–28 David Prince Pastor of Preaching and Vision Ashland Avenue Baptist Church Lexington, Kentucky Mar. 22 Dannah Gresh Author, Speaker State College, Pennsylvania Apr. 4 Sam Allberry Speaker Ravi Zacharias International Ministries Maidenhead, UK, and Cedarville, Ohio Apr. 5 Rosaria Butterfield Author, Speaker Durham, North Carolina Cedarville Magazine | 21