Messages That Matter By Dr. Andrew Corbett

The New Testament book of Hebrews is one of the most advanced biblical books to study. It draws deeply on the Old Testament so that many commentators have referred to as the bridge between the Old and the New Testament. In this introduction I outline what the book is about, why it was written and who probably wrote it.

The Latin term 'imago Dei' means "the image of God". It is considered one of the most influential anthropological concepts about what it means to be human. It occurs in various forms only four times in the first nine chapters of Genesis but is considered the chief reason for the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights declaring the inherent equality of all human beings, and the reason that human life is treated as exceptional by all nations around the world. This important motif is introduced in Genesis 1:26-27 without definition or explanation, yet it has spawned hundreds of thousands of books and articles exploring its consequences and significance. Dr. Brent Strawn, in the Cambridge Companion to Genesis, makes the point that no where in Genesis is the "imago Dei" (image of God) ever singular. From its literary establishment in Genesis 1:27 it is plural ("male and female") and throughout "the unfolding of the book" it continues to be revealed as a plural. After the depiction of the Fall in Genesis 3, fr

The description of humankind as being in "the image of God" is an indication of what it means to be human and why we should regard each person with a sacred reverence which bestows on them dignity and a life that is worthy of respect. But can this "image of God" be lost, deformed and destroyed? If so, what does this mean for what it means to be a human being? In this episode Dr Corbett shows how the book of Genesis unfolds and displays the original human populations as failing to live up to what it means to be "in the image of God" - yet, simultaneously, GOD was at work unfolding His plan to redeem mankind so that they, we, could be reconciled to God and once again be renewed in our hearts and minds to live as imagines of God. The Latin term 'imago Dei' means "the image of God". It is considered one of the most influential anthropological concepts about what it means to be human. It occurs in various forms only four times in the first nine chapters of Genesis but is considered the chief reason for the Unit

God’s final and ultimate act of creation was to create “’Ishah” (the Hebrew word for ‘woman’). She could reflect GOD in ways that A’dam could not. She was given the gift reproducing imago Dei life! Angels could not do this. No animal could do this. She could exhibit a quality that only GOD Himself had. Little wonder then that at the moment she was created envy and pride arose in the heart of one of the high heavenly beings. When GOD created the “Ishah” for A’dam, the man broke out into poetry. These are the first recorded words of Adam. Perhaps as he walked and talked the Lord each day in the cool of the day, he learned from his Maker to speak poetically. Today, it is no accident that Christian worship still echoes that original impulse to worship GOD poetically. GOD created the ‘Ishah as an “ezer“ (an ally, in the military sense) and together the man and the woman would be a unit of covenant intimacy for worshiping GOD in their ordinary and mundane activities - yet now, nothing would be truly mundane, be

The Latin term 'imago Dei' means "the image of God". It is considered one of the most influential anthropological concepts about what it means to be human. It occurs in various forms only four times in the first nine chapters of Genesis but is considered the chief reason for the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights declaring the inherent equality of all human beings, and the reason that human life is treated as exceptional by all nations around the world. This important motif is introduced in Genesis 1:26-27 without definition or explanation, yet it has spawned hundreds of thousands of books and articles exploring its consequences and significance. In this episode I focus on three fallacies that are actually distortions of the 'imago Dei' teaching: (i) Chauvinism - leading to women being oppressed; (ii) Racism - leading to slavery and unfair discrimination and worse; and (iii) Ableism - treating the physically and intellectually disabled as if they also were not image bearers of God.

The doctrine of the imago Dei is grounded on one verse in Genesis chapter 1. From Genesis 1:27, Brent Strawn observes, “The image of God (Latin imago Dei) is a familiar, even fraught, biblical notion because it has served as something of an empty cipher that countless interpreters have sought to fill.” Strawn continues to highlight how much of a lacuna there is in trying to define and explain the Genesis 1:27 reference to imago Dei: “Despite a great deal of spilled ink, what, exactly, the imago Dei is remains no small mystery because the notion goes largely undeveloped and underdeveloped in the Bible.” Despite Strawn’s highlight of the lack of biblical development of this motif, he is not suggesting that it cannot be developed from the scant biblical data we do have. This is where biblically informed philosophy can be helpful.

This is the first sub-series in the grander Imago Dei series. It is the first series because the Book of Genesis is the first book of the bible, and appropriately so because Genesis means “beginning”. Yet as I will show throughout the grander series it is not the very beginning - that will be referred to in the New Testament documents (Jn. 1:1, 17:5; 1Cor. 2:7; Titus 1:2; 2Tim. 1:9; Jude 25). In the meantime, I will commence this series “in the beginning” described in Genesis 1:1 from which we will see that God is the introduced as the Creator and humankind is introduced as the created. Theologians tend to use the Latin term for “the image of God” - imago Dei. As we proceed in our study through Genesis I am going to argue that its introduction in the opening chapter marks one of the predominant themes of this book. As such I will demonstrate that the book has been ordered in a way that we are able to see why certain people did not live up to this created purpose and how Genesis concludes by giving an exam

This is the concluding message in this brief Peter Series and begins by pointing out why New Testament scholars consider that Jude was either the amanuensis of Second Peter or was at least a significant influence on Second Peter. Both apostles were concerned that their audiences would be prone to the errors of the false teachers, and that they would need something to remind them of what had taught His apostles to teach. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowled

The apostle Peter knows that his execution as a martyr is imminent and now pours out his pastoral heart for those he is writing to. He is deeply aware in the Spirit that after his 'departure' that false teachers will arise within the churches he has helped to plant and will try to deceive many of them. What he warns them of is still relevant for us today. May God grant us open hearts to hear what the Spirit is saying to us today. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what th

In this episode the Apostle Peter describes one of the most dramatic encounters he had with Jesus when he and James and John were taken up a mountain one night by Jesus where they literally heard the voice of God declare that Jesus was the Son of the God! Yet he goes on to say that there is something even more persuasive for anyone — if they would open their hearts and accept it. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires. For mo

We now venture into Second Peter which has quite a different tone than First Peter. In this episode we hear the apostle Peter talk about his own impending death and offering his faithfulness as a model for steadfast Christian living. He then offers the 8 qualities of a mature Christian and how these eight qualities should be what every Christian strives for. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires.

This is Peter writing to church leaders about the kind of heart and attitude they should have in order to serve a local church. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires.

In this episode, we ask the question, Is It God's Will for His Children to Suffer? We look at the 4 types of suffering that Christians can experience and compare them what the Apostle Peter details in this passage. The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires.

The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires. In this episode we explore how the Apostle Peter told these new believers that they no longer belonged to their old way of life and its ways - despite the ridicule they all received from their former friends. Instead, they now belonged to a community of care, love and belonging. There is a very practical implication for us today as to how we are to live as believers and as a local church.

The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires. In this episode, based on First Peter chapter 3 and verses 13 to 22, we consider how he told these new Christian that they were to live apologetically - that is, to live in a way that they could answer any questions or respond to any arguments against Christianity.

The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires. In this episode Dr. Corbett discusses what the Apostle Peter, the only married person of the original 12 disciples, had to say about how Christ and then Christianity has redically reinstituted what marriage was always meant to be.

The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires.

The two New Testament epistles ascribed to the Apostle Peter are lesser known by most Christians than the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. Some scholars believe that First Peter may have been written to young Christians and may have even served as a 'catechism' for those about to be water baptised. In this episode, we look at how Peter presents God as Father, Son, and Spirit, and how Christianity commences with becoming 'born again'. But this is not where Christianity ends - and that aged Apostle Peter gives instructions on how a new believer is to grow in the faith by exploring what the knowledge of God and HIs grace requires.

The first century Corinthian church had lost its understanding of what the gospel truly meant. They had become beguiled into accepting what certain false teachers had been saying against the apostle Paul and had been led to believe that there was more to Christianity than what Paul had been able to tell them. As a result they, they now bragged about their new found knowledge and spirituality. This is why Paul exercised his apostolic authority to correct the Corinthians and rebuke them for their lax stance on godly morality and conduct. In First Corinthians 15 he begins to remind them of the basic truths of the Christian gospel and indicates to them just how ignorant they had become despite them arrogantly claiming that they possessed more knowledge than the apostle himself.

Paul reminds the Corinthians that the Christianity they embraced was because of the truthfulness of the gospel they accepted and received. This gospel had been contested by some promoting a false gospel. Paul counters these errors with a reminder that the gospel they received also came with apostolic authority. This apostolic authority is now resident in the New Testament documents. The New Testament now forms the basis for Christians being able to discern truth from error.