This is a College Level Class that I taught this past August over three Wednesday Evenings at our Granite Bay Campus.

1. The Mission of God:
Understanding the Kingdom of Godfrom
The Old Testament to the New Testament
400 Level Course
Al Soto
Blog http://getrealaboutleadership.wordpress.com/
Presuppositions
Presupposition #1: We begin with a very high view of Scripture.
Verbal-Plenary Inspiration
Verbal Means Every Word
Verbal means that every word of Scripture is God-given. The idea is that every single
word in the Bible is there because God wanted it there.
Plenary Means Fully Authoritative
Plenary means that all parts of the Bible are equally authoritative. This includes such
things as the genealogies of the Old Testament. All parts of the Bible are of divine
origin.
(Romans 15:4)
• Paul wrote.
• “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that
through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have
hope.”
What does Inspiration Mean?
• Inspiration Means God Guided The Process
• The idea behind the word inspiration is that God supernaturally guided the
biblical authors to write the exact things that He wanted expressed. The result is
Holy Scripture.
Premise #2
• All of us are theologians and must approach this topic theologically.
• “Thinking theologically is thinking about God.”

2. Two Areas to Think Theologically
• Natural Attributes:
 Omnipotence
 Omnipresence
• Moral Attributes:
 All Loving
 All Forgiving
Systematic Theology
• In systematic theology one attempts to summarize biblical doctrine, addressing
theological topics one by one in order to summarize all biblical teaching on a
particular subject.
Areas of Systematic Theology
• Prolegomena: Introduction
• Ecclesiology – the study of the Church
• Eschatology – the study of last things
• Soteriology – the Study of Salvation
• Anthropology – the study of humanity.
Our Approach for this Class is Biblical Theology
• “That discipline which sets forth the message of the books of the Bible in their
historical setting.”
• Donald Hagnar
Progressive Revelation
• Progressive revelation may be defined as the process of God's own disclosure of
Himself and His plan given to man throughout history by means of nature (Rom.
1:18-21; Ps. 19), providential dealings (Rom. 8:28), preservation of the universe
(Col. 1:17), miracles (John 2:11), direct communication (Acts 22:17-21), Christ
Himself (John 1:14) and through the Bible (1 John 5:39).

3. The Progressive Revelation Principle
• The Word of God is to be understood from the Old Testament to the New
Testament as a flower unfolding its pedals to the morning sun. God initiated
revelation, but He did not reveal His truths all at one time. It was a long and
progressive process. Therefore, we must take into account the then-current state
of revelation to properly understand a particular passage. For example, an
interpretation of a passage in Genesis which assumed a fully delineated view of
the "new Covenant" would not be sound. As the saying goes, "The Old
Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old
Testament revealed."
Premise #3
• God chooses to reveal Himself and it is our method of Hermeneutic
(Interpretation) that defines where we land.
Protestant Two- Pillar
• The Word
• The Holy Spirit Illuminates
• Grammatical/Historical Exegesis
Three Pillar Approach
• The Word
• The Spirit
• Creeds and Church Fathers
• Approach Allegorical
• Three Pillars of Inspiration
Theological Considerations
of our Interpretative Praxis
• All Truth’s must be held in tension in order to avoid extremes.
• God has a redemptive plan that will be consummated in History.
• We must always take a humble posture as finite humanity in regards to the
interpretation of an infinite God’s redemptive plan. (Our Response – Worship –
Infinite Reality – Mystery)

4. The Tension between Theological and Philosophical Realities
Setting the stage for Imago Dei
• He states that for our salvation it is necessary to have knowledge revealed by
God, in addition to ordinary knowledge built upon human reason. Even though
man is naturally directed to God, he needs revelation because God is beyond the
grasp of reason. Although some truths about God can be discovered by reason
alone, even here revelation serves a useful purpose. Only a few people have the
time or skill to reach knowledge of God by reason. It would take them a very long
time, and their conclusions might be mixed with human errors. Hence, sacred
doctrine derives its principles not from any human knowledge but from divine
truth. Since theology is based upon revelation, whatever is found in other
sciences contrary to the truth of this sacred science must be condemned as
false. (Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica)
Genesis First Look at God is Trinity
Genesis 1:26-27
“Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and
let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the
cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the

5. earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them.”
Moses Uses a Key Word
• Elohim – Only used in the Hebrew Language. (Masculine Plural Ending) Does
not translate to mean many God’s
• Hebrew language is used to definefunction not essence. This rendering allows
for a Plurality in the Godhead. Denotingthat God is Creator and the First Perfect
System for all effects.
Pe
The Main Point of the “Image of God” language
The Image of God language in scripture is not about some ability or trait we share with
God, it’s about the mission He has given us.”
(Ray Ortberg)

6. Imago Dei: Justice cannot be Separated from the Gospel
“Surely I will require your lifeblood; from every beast I will require it. And from every
man, from every man’s brother I will require the life of man.
Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed,
For in the image of God He made man.”
(Genesis 9:5-6, NASB)
N.T. Wright
“So God has placed his own image, human beings, into his world so that the world can
see who its ruler is.'
Our Destiny
• Your job, your destiny, is to reflect the holy reign of God down on to the earth-to
care for all of creation and particularly human beings the way God would want
you to;
• The Bibles' language for this is: you will be a king; you will be a priest. And this is
not a solo act. We are to do this in community. To be a KINGDOM of PRIESTS.
What Imago Dei is NOT
• Man as created beings is at the same deified status as God. (Some refer little
god’s – This is Heresy)
• Cannot ever redact God as Creator to be at the same status as creation.
• Cannot Ignorethe fallen state of man and create a false “Perfection.”
Genesis 3:15, NASB
Proto-evangelium- The First Gospel
“And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her seed;
He shall bruise you on the head,
And you shall bruise him on the heel.”
Implications to Our Personal Leadership

7. • If I am to lead in a way that honors the Imago Dei in each person, I must value
the formation of their character above the usefulness of their gifts.
• I must value the integrity of our community as well as its visible fruitfulness.
• I must fear the rise of sin more than I do the loss of productivity.
• I live a life of Honor. (God – Myself – Others) Living this way breaks a victim
mindset.
* I am a citizen of the Kingdom of God.
As a Citizen of the Kingdom Worship is a Lifestyle- Rev. 22:3-5 NASB
“There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in
it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be
on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need
of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine
them; and they will reign forever and ever.”