Daniel and the Universal Kingdom
Daniel 2 contains a fascinating prophecy which speaks of God’s plan to set up a Kingdom upon earth that is not of human origin and will come to cover the whole earth. Christians as far back as the Early Church Fathers have interpreted this prophecy as referring to the Catholic Church being established by Christ, expanding all over the world, and lasting forever. After reflecting upon the prophecy, I see no other plausible interpretation. Let me explain my thoughts. Back at the Babylonian Exile, God caused the Emperor Nebuchadnezzar to have a...
read moreSola Fide in the Parable of Pharisee and Tax Collector?
Protestants often claim that the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector from Luke 18:9-14 is proof that Jesus taught Justification by Faith Alone. In this brief post I will show that this Protestant claim has no Biblical merit at all. If you need a refresher, here’s what the parable says: 9 Jesus told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by...
read moreThe Mediocrity of the New Covenant?
According to Reformed Theology, even the “good works” which Christians are called to do are “tainted by sin”. And on top of that, Reformed theology says these “good works” are only pleasing to God in so far as they are “covered by the blood and righteousness of Christ”. But if you stop and think about what this is saying, no Christian should be comfortable with such teaching. Why would God give us a new heart and give us the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit if at the end of the day our “good works” are still as inadequate in...
read moreTwo Years a Catholic
On September 23rd, 2012 (two years ago today), I was received into full communion with the Catholic Church. Humanly speaking, it was one of the worst decisions I have ever made. The last two years have brought me almost nothing but loss. Most of my fellow alumni and former professors at Westminster Seminary no longer speak to me, I am denied entrance into the church I planted (where my family still attends on Sundays) — I wasn’t even allowed to attend the Christmas Eve service last year and just sit and sing the hymns. To most of...
read moreWhy a Legal Fiction is not Pulp Fiction
*** By Jonathan Prejean *** Recently, I’ve read several comments from Reformed Christians on the question of Catholics calling the Reformed doctrine of imputation a “legal fiction.” Based on my reading of those comments, some Reformed Christians see the description “legal fiction” as similar to saying that it is “made up” and not true. But that would only be relevant in the literary context, when one is trying to distinguish factual descriptions from fictitious ones. In literary fiction, one makes up...
read moreThe Need for Perfect Law-Keeping, Part 3
This third (and final) post of this series will extend the look at Imputed Righteousness in Paul’s Epistles by focusing on two of the most popular Reformed prooftexts of the doctrine: Philippians 3:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:21. Before addressing these texts, a brief look at the Biblical definition of “righteousness” is helpful. According to Scripture, the term “righteousness” simply refers to doing good actions (e.g. Deut 24:13; 2 Sam 22:21; Ps 106:3; Mt 6:1; Acts 10:35; Eph 6:1; 1 Th 2:10; 1 Jn 3:7, 12) or having an upright quality...
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