Read your classmates’ threads and post a reply to at least 2 other classmates’ threads (200–250 words) by 11:59 p.m. (ET) Friday . Provide thoughtful analysis and evaluation of the threads. Also, make sure you interact theologically and critically to the posts.    Replies 1. Directly addresses the classmates’ threads by providing thoughtful analysis and evaluation. 2. Must reflect a strong understanding of the subject material. You may provide additional thoughts from the text or other theological resources that would contribute to the subject being discussed. 3. As stated above, avoid casual talks and testimonies by interacting theologically and critically.  If you disagree with a classmate, respectfully argue your case and seek to edify him or her. 4. It must be well-written. Curt responses such as “I agree with you,” “Ditto,” “You took the words right out of my mouth,” “You go, Bob!” etc., are not appropriate. 5. If you reply to more than 2 classmates’ threads in a forum, please specify which 2 replies you want counted for your grade by commenting accordingly at the end of both replies.  The third and fourth replies (and any more) will not count towards your grade. 6. Greetings, citations, and closings are not part of the total word count. 7. Please review the DB Forum Replies Rubric in order to maximize your grade.   Replies 1. Directly addresses the classmates’ threads by providing thoughtful analysis and evaluation. 2. Must reflect a strong understanding of the subject material. You may provide additional thoughts from the text or other theological resources that would contribute to the subject being discussed. 3. As stated above, avoid casual talks and testimonies by interacting theologically and critically.  If you disagree with a classmate, respectfully argue your case and seek to edify him or her. 4. It must be well-written. Curt responses such as “I agree with you,” “Ditto,” “You took the words right out of my mouth,” “You go, Bob!” etc., are not appropriate. 5. If you reply to more than 2 classmates’ threads in a forum, please specify which 2 replies you want counted for your grade by commenting accordingly at the end of both replies.  The third and fourth replies (and any more) will not count towards your grade. 6. Greetings, citations, and closings are not part of the total word count. 7. Please review the DB Forum Replies Rubric in order to maximize your grade.  Reply to Phillip Any theological development is important, supposing of course that it’s a development and not a regression of biblical theology. It’s impossible for anyone to achieve a full understanding of God, human limitations prevent it, so there is always room for improvement. Throughout this course of study I am grateful to say that my theology has been generally honed by interacting with it. The more we read and study, the more we talk about theology and discover where our comprehension is lacking, the more we can be honed. The more we can ...

1. Read your classmates’ threads and post a reply to at least 2
other classmates’ threads (200–250 words) by 11:59 p.m. (ET)
Friday
. Provide thoughtful analysis and evaluation of the threads.
Also, make sure you interact theologically and critically to the
posts.
Replies
1. Directly addresses the classmates’ threads by providing
thoughtful analysis and evaluation.
2. Must reflect a strong understanding of the subject material.
You may provide additional thoughts from the text or other
theological resources that would contribute to the subject being
discussed.
3. As stated above, avoid casual talks and testimonies by
interacting theologically and critically. If you disagree with a
classmate, respectfully argue your case and seek to edify him or
her.
4. It must be well-written. Curt responses such as “I agree with
you,” “Ditto,” “You took the words right out of my mouth,”
“You go, Bob!” etc., are not appropriate.
5. If you reply to more than 2 classmates’ threads in a forum,
please specify which 2 replies you want counted for your grade
by commenting accordingly at the end of both replies. The
third and fourth replies (and any more) will not count towards
your grade.
6. Greetings, citations, and closings are not part of the total
word count.

2. 7. Please review the DB Forum Replies Rubric in order to
maximize your grade.
Replies
1. Directly addresses the classmates’ threads by providing
thoughtful analysis and evaluation.
2. Must reflect a strong understanding of the subject material.
You may provide additional thoughts from the text or other
theological resources that would contribute to the subject being
discussed.
3. As stated above, avoid casual talks and testimonies by
interacting theologically and critically. If you disagree with a
classmate, respectfully argue your case and seek to edify him or
her.
4. It must be well-written. Curt responses such as “I agree with
you,” “Ditto,” “You took the words right out of my mouth,”
“You go, Bob!” etc., are not appropriate.
5. If you reply to more than 2 classmates’ threads in a forum,
please specify which 2 replies you want counted for your grade
by commenting accordingly at the end of both replies. The
third and fourth replies (and any more) will not count towards
your grade.
6. Greetings, citations, and closings are not part of the total
word count.
7. Please review the DB Forum Replies Rubric in order to
maximize your grade.

3. Reply to Phillip
Any theological development is important, supposing of course
that it’s a development and not a regression of biblical
theology. It’s impossible for anyone to achieve a full
understanding of God, human limitations prevent it, so there is
always room for improvement. Throughout this course of study
I am grateful to say that my theology has been generally honed
by interacting with it. The more we read and study, the more we
talk about theology and discover where our comprehension is
lacking, the more we can be honed. The more we can interact
with one another theologically, the more the theological health
of the church is bolstered.
Specifically, it may be the area of sin (hamartiology)
where the greatest insight came for me through this course. I’ve
been studying theology for a long time and I’ve never before
thought of how sin affected God. I’ve preached messages about
sin and its corruptive nature. I’ve preached messages
concerning the goodness of creation before sin entered it. We
can trace the problems of the world back to the choice that was
made by Adam and Eve but it had never occurred to me to ask
what the results of sin were on God.
Now in his being, in his nature sin could certainly be
said to have no effect. God is unchanging, he can’t be added to
or taken away from, but that’s not to say that sin shouldn’t be
looked at from God’s perspective. Since we can trace the evil
and wrongs of the world, the corrupted brokenness of creation
to sin, it’s easy to say that humanity along with all of creation
is being and has been brutalized by sin, but are we really the
victims? We feel like victims when we’re effected by sin,
especially when we’re visited by the consequences of someone
else’s sin, but we’re sinful by nature.

4. The consequences of sin are justly ours to bear because
the problem of sin has invaded the fabric of the human race and
corrupted it to the core. As the cause of sin, it’s not unjust for
us to experience the consequences of sin and we’re therefore
not victims. God, however, is the true victim of sin. Sin invaded
his good creation through the weakness of Adam. God did the
work of creating, and because of his nature, because it was God
who did the creating, what he created was perfect and good. Sin
entered the world, not by God’s doing, and corrupted what God
made.
Perhaps the most significant aspect of this is that God
chose to create, knowing the consequences he would endure
because of it.
Reply to Noah
Among the various doctrinal and theological topics discussed,
one that has continually been at the forefront of my mind is the
doctrine of God’s continual providence in light of sin. Leaning
on verses like James 1:14, which states that God does not tempt
His children, 1 John 2:16 which speaks of sinful behavior not
being of God—among many other Scriptural texts—I
subconsciously lived an understanding that God’s only
involvement in sin was found in His justice, righteousness, and
holy wrath.
[1]
It was not until this past year, both through personal study and
the texts from this class, that I began to see a greater picture to
God’s relationship to sin (I use this phrase carefully).
From our text, Erickson attributes four relations God

5. possesses to sin throughout history—that He prevents, permits,
directs, and limits sin; however, it was the doctrine of His
permission and direction that I have wrestled with most.
[2]
Simply put, Erickson describes God’s permitting sin as an act
of allowing it to happen which—through sinful nature of
humanity—will then definitely occur, though it is neither His
joy or desire that mankind would do so.
[3]
Following Paul’s passionate declaration of his confidence in
the Gospel in Romans 1, he then addresses the fact that God
gave sinful man up to his sinful desires; serving as a perfect
example of God in His sovereignty allowing Man in his free
will to act sinfully (Romans 1:16-32). In that same light, God’s
direction of sin in that, through man’s volitional pursuit of evil,
God creates His perfect outcome for good.
[4]
For instance, Paul’s commentary in Romans 10 and 11
discusses Israel’s refusal for salvation, and how it ultimately
led to not only the Gentiles’ salvation, but also for the remnant
of those who will turn to Christ later.
When I came across some of these doctrines, it was like
one of those “Oh yeah…” kind of moments. It can be an easy
thing to look over doctrinally important understandings when
we focus on so many others—or even put emphasis on one over
the other; however, in this case alone, a Christian can gain a
sobering understanding of God’s sovereignty and its relation to
Man’s responsibility. For this reason, it definitely helps put into
perspective passages such as Romans 8:28 in light of
encouraging suffering believers. We can know that all things
truly work together for the good of those who love God because
even when evil is lurking around the corner, God is not far
removed. In fact, He has a wonderful tendency of taking that
which was evil, dirty, and unwanted, and making it more
precious than ever before. To see this best, we need only look in

6. the mirror. “But God shows His love for us in that while we
were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).”
[1]
James 1:14, 1 John 2:16,
ESV
(Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001).
[2]
Millard J. Erickson,
Christian Theology
(Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2013), 372.
[3]
Ibid,
373.
[4]
Ibid,
374.