01.12. ENDNOTES
Endnotes:
1. Andrew Murray, With Christ in the School of Prayer; Bridge-Logos Publishers, 1999.
2. We can learn from the "examples" of Jesus only in the sense that the words of Scripture tell us about the prayer life of Christ, so that we are still learning through reading, listening, and thinking, and not experience or observation. The Bible does teach that we should be examples of what it teaches, but this is very different from saying that we should teach by examples. Since we are not perfect, how can a person know what to imitate and what not to imitate from us, unless he already knows what is right and what is wrong by reading, listening, and thinking about the words of Scripture? But if he already knows, then our examples at best serve as encouragement to contemplate and follow the words of Scripture, so that the examples do not themselves convey information about how a Christian should live. The information taught comes only from Scripture, not from experience or examples. There are no infallible examples for us to learn from today except those described and interpreted by the words of Scripture. Although Jesus was sinless, so that all he did was righteous, when he set an example in John 13:15, the disciples still did not understand it until he taught them in words. Thus the lesson was in the words, not in the act itself. The example itself at best served to illustrate the words. Likewise, 1 Corinthians 10:6 refers to the Israelites under Moses as examples, but the lesson was in Paul’s interpretation of their lives.
3. For example, Whitney states, "There are many good resources for learning how to pray, but the best way to learn how to pray is to pray"; Donald S. Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life; Navpress, 2002; p. 69.
4. Please see the chapter, "Prayer and Experience," for more about this.
5. But many books on prayer are destructive because they exalt experience at the expense of theological depth and accuracy.
6. Reading about prayer is not the same as praying, so I am not saying that you should read about prayer instead of praying. But when it comes to learning about prayer, we should read about it, talk about it, and think about it. That said, perhaps most people should indeed pray less, but spend more time reading, talking, and thinking about it. Reverence demands that we learn how to approach God in the manner prescribed by him, and we learn that from Scripture, not from experience or observation.
7. Vincent Cheung, Ultimate Questions.
8. See Vincent Cheung, Systematic Theology, for an exposition on the doctrines of election and reprobation.
9. Vincent Cheung, Systematic Theology and Ultimate Questions.
10. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition; "religion."
11. Ibid.
12. Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition; "religion."
13. Someone said to me that she thought religion was about unity, and she meant the unity of the human race. But this is precisely what the Tower of Babel was about. No, religion is not about unity, at least this is not what Christianity is about. Christianity is about revealed truth, and if enough people affirm the truth to unite around it, then all the better.
14. It claims to be the only true system of thought, whether religious or secular.
15. Vincent Cheung, The Light of Our Minds.
16. I do not say that Christianity contradicts the Old Testament, but it contradicts Judaism. Although we can find the doctrines of the Trinity and the deity of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament, Judaism denies both. Those who were saved under the Old Covenant were not saved apart from Christ (see John 8:56; Hebrews 11:26). Thus our contention is that Judaism does not follow the Old Testament. Rather, the whole Bible Old and New Testaments - is a Christian book, and only a Christian book. It endorses no other worldview or religion.
17. Not just any conception of a monotheistic God, but the one with all the attributes specified in the Bible, including his triune nature.
18. Elsewhere I state that the infallibility of Scripture is my first principle of reasoning, but within the system revealed by Scripture, metaphysics indeed precedes ethics.
19. Christians and Buddhists may both believe "1 + 1 = 2," but that does not mean that Christianity and Buddhism are essentially the same. Two worldview are essentially the same only when they are the same on the essential points.
20. The charge of arrogance is often just an attempt to avoid having to confront the rational arguments that have been offered.
21. "As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!"
22. I have seen very few arguments supporting the assumption that we should be somewhat charitable when dealing with non-Christian views. I demand a deductive argument from an infallible premise from my opposition on this issue, and the only way to satisfy this is an exegetical and theological argument from Scripture. But this can only support my way of dealing with non-Christian ideas; that is, with ruthless honesty. People often say that we should "speak the truth in love" (Ephesians 4:15), but this cannot mean, "speak the truth softly and in an effeminate style, so as not to offend anyone," for if the verse in fact teaches this, then were not Christ, the prophets, and the apostles in violation? They were blunt and very fierce when they spoke against error.
23. Vincent Cheung, Systematic Theology and Ultimate Questions. If you disagree with my defense of the Christian faith as the only true worldview, then you must refute me. Too many people simply dismiss sound arguments that they do not wish to believe. This is dishonest and irrational.
24. If you have wondered whether we should include the doctrine of election when preaching the gospel, here is your answer. Jesus tells them to their face that they could not believe unless the Father enables them. However, we may not always need to mention this doctrine in evangelism; I only mean that we should not deliberately avoid mentioning it.
25. See Susan T. Foh, Women and the Word of God: A Response to Biblical Feminism; Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1992; John Piper and Wayne Grudem, eds., Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism; Crossway Books, 1991.
26. Deuteronomy 4:21-27; Deuteronomy 9:3; Psalms 50:3; Psalms 97:3; Isaiah 66:15; Hebrews 10:27.
27. Vincent Cheung, Systematic Theology.
28. The Words of Jonathan Edwards, Volume 2; Hendrickson Publishers, 2000 reprint from 1834 edition; p. 7-12.
29. William Barclay, The Letter to the Romans (The Daily Study Bible Series); Westminster John Knox Press, 1975; p. 112.
30. Douglas J. Moo, The Epistle to the Romans (The New International Commentary on the New Testament); William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996; p. 524.
31. Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament); Baker Books, 1998; p. 445.
32. Schreiner, p. 446.
33. Again, what the believers know insufficiently does not correspond to what the Scripture reveals sufficiently. That is, our lack of knowledge does not contradict the Scripture’s claim to sufficient information, since the Scripture does not claim to supply what this passage says that we lack. Even so, I would maintain that if our knowledge of Scripture were to be complete, it is doubtful that much, or any, of the lack of knowledge referred to by this passage will remain.
34. Moo, p. 526-527.
35. Neil Babock, My Search for Charismatic Reality; The Wakeman Trust, 1985; p. 65-66.
36. Peter Kreeft, Prayer for Beginners; Ignatius Press, 2000; p. 38-41.
37. Thomas Watson, All Things for Good; The Banner of Truth Trust, 2001 (original: 1663).
38. Holman Christian Standard Bible; Holman Bible Publishers, 2000.
39. Peter Masters, Steps for Guidance; The Wakeman Trust, 1995; p. 119-122.
40. Richmond Lattimore, The New Testament; North Point Press, 1996; p. 343.
41. Stephen Charnock, The Existence and Attributes of God; Baker Books, 2000 (original: 1853).
42. One should at least know enough about God so as to able to distinguish the Christian God from all other gods and religions. If one is able to reconcile the Christian God (or Christianity as a whole) with that of any other religion or worldview, then he does not know enough about God. Of course, one will never know enough about God in the sense that he may stop learning.
43. However, it does not follow that God lied to Moses in Exodus 32:10, since if Moses had not interceded, God could have indeed carried out his pronouncement against the Israelites and destroyed them all. But that Jacob had already said what he said in Genesis 49:10 meant that there was no possibility that God would have carried out Exodus 32:10; therefore, unless God had chosen some other way to prevent carrying out Exodus 32:10, he had already determined that Moses would intercede, and there was no possibility that Moses would not have done it.
44. W. Bingham Hunter, The God Who Hears; InterVarsity Press, 1986; p. 52.
45. Stanley J. Grenz, Prayer: The Cry for the Kingdom; Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1988; p. 32.
46. Ibid., p. 32.
47. Ibid., p. 44.
48. Jesus commands us to be persistent in prayer, but the woman in our example does not demonstrate persistence, but false piety.
49. It has been suggested that when we pray for the sick, we should specify what should happen to the body from the perspective of medical science in order for the condition to be healed. The use of some medical terms is at times recommended. Although proponents of this view do not say that medical knowledge is necessary, they claim that medical knowledge will help one to pray for effectively for the sick. This is unbiblical. God knows what he should do to heal any disease or injury; he does not need us to specify all the details. In addition, the medical explanations of people’s conditions are often wrong.
50. That is, the a fortiori argument, which takes an established premise and argues that the conclusion is true since it is even more certain than the premise. For example: "If a high school student can solve this algebra problem, how much more can a college graduate!" This sort of argument is called qal vahomer by the Jews. See Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament; InterVarsity Press, 1993; p. 65, 219-220.
51. William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of Matthew; G. R. Welch Co., 1975; p. 274-275; Grenz, Prayer; p. 83.
52. Grenz, Prayer; p. 84.
53. Hunter, God Who Hears; p. 12.
54. Ibid., p. 12 and 199. This definition may be too narrow when applied to prayer in general, but it is correct insofar as it intends to describe the meaning and relevance of petitions to God.
55. Kenneth S. Wuest, Romans in the Greek New Testament; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1955.
56. Worship is not completely independent of the physical. For example, our bodies form the "temple" of God (1 Corinthians 6:19), and we still have the rituals of baptism and communion. Nevertheless, the significance of all three hinges upon the relationship of our intellect to revelation, that is, the relationship of our mind to Scripture.
57. Any so-called "practical" wisdom must have as its foundation an intellectual understanding of Scripture. What many Christians consider practical wisdom is nothing more than convenient but worldly and unbiblical ways of doing things that are without biblical foundation. But I reject the distinction between the theoretical and the practical in the first place. "Practical" wisdom is only theoretical wisdom about what we consider "practical" things. Otherwise, it is not "wisdom" at all, but just an unexamined habit or instinct. If it is "wisdom," then it is intellectual, academic, and theoretical.
58. Their abilities were tested against the "scribes" (v. 20) of the day. "Magicians" is perhaps a misleading translation. See Young’s Literal Translation of the Holy Bible, by Robert Young.
59. Robert Morey, Winning the War Against Radical Islam; Christian Scholars Press, 2002.
60. Hunter, God Who Hears; p. 13, 40.
61. Greek: anti = against; nomos = law. As with many heresies, there are various versions of and foundations for antinomianism.
62. Thus the division and enmity between these two groups is a result of an act of grace; all of humanity would be "united" in wickedness if God had not chosen some for salvation.
63. Other translations have "abide" instead of "remain" (see KJV, NASB).
64. Hunter, God Who Hears; p. 13, 40.
65. Alternate translations to "persistence" may be "boldness" or "shamelessness," but these do not affect our point here, since the intent of the passage as an encouragement to persistent prayer remains. Indeed, the kind of persistence we are speaking of here is not easily stifled by embarrassment.
66. Vincent Cheung, Systematic Theology and Ultimate Questions.
67. Douglas F. Kelly, If God Already Knows Why Pray?; Christian Focus Publications, 2001 (original: 1989); p. 172-173.
68. Contrary to the emphasis given to the term in some circles, biblical usage of the term, "the will of God," does not only or mainly refer to things like where we should live or which job we should take, but it has a broader meaning that emphasizes the doctrinal and ethical content of Scripture, and its application to our lives.
69. Man does not have a non-rational "spirit." What is called "spirit" in Scripture is the same part of man as his rational mind. Thus man is body (physical) and soul (rational), and not body (physical), soul (rational), and spirit (non-rational).
70. For an explanation on why I oppose learning by doing, please read my book, Preach the Word.
71. If you put an inference into the form of an argument, you would have a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion. If the conclusion says more than what the premises necessarily imply, then it is an inductive inference, which is always invalid. But to produce knowledge from experience or sensation, you must make numerous inductive inferences. Therefore, learning by experience is always logically fallacious and cannot arrive at truth.
72. I maintain that it is logically impossible to learn - that is, to form propositions that constitute knowledge - from either successes or failures, since the inferences from such instances will always be fallacious.
73. "What answer I am to make to the reproof which I anticipate from God on account of the liberty of my expostulation with Him." Jamieson, Fausset & Brown’s Commentary; Zondervan, 1961; p. 829.
74. John MacArthur, The MacArthur Study Bible; Thomas Nelson Bibles, 1997; p. 780.
75. Edmund P. Clowney, Christian Meditation; Regent College Publishing, 2002 (original: 1979); p. 21-22.
76. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001 (original: 1965); p. 21.
77. What Happens When I Pray?; Grace Publications Trust, 1997; p. 38.
78. Richard de Bury, Philobiblon; IndyPublish, 2002 (original: 1473).
79. Hunter, God Who Hears; p. 189-190.