E. W. Kenyon on Eternal Life
I’m reading through a book by E. W. Kenyon on The Two Kinds of Life. Kenyon was a forerunner of the Word of Faith movement. He influenced Kenneth Hagin who influenced Joseph Prince. I hear rumors that Word of Faith teachers are catching on to the grace message. Joseph Prince is an example of that. […]
Reaping Eternal Life for Work Done? (Galatians 6:8)
A U.S. pastor sent me this excellent question: Grace in Focus Crew, Thanks for the series on eternal rewards. Not sure if you covered this yet: Galatians 6:8 says, “For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit […]
Where Did the Term “Free Grace” Come From?
We believe in Free Grace Theology—which is distinct from Calvinism, Arminianism, Lutheranism, Thomism, and other –isms. But where did the term “Free Grace” come from? Some people think it’s redundant. I wish it were. Historically, the expression “free grace” was used by both Calvinists and Arminians. For example, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, preached […]
More Apostasy and Idolatry at Union Seminary
Recently, Union Seminary in NYC had their students confess their sins to plants. Union Seminary is affiliated with Columbia University. It is considered one of the prestigious Ivy League seminaries (along with Yale Divinity School, Harvard Divinity, and Princeton Theological Seminary). Although it was founded by Christians, it began denying Biblical authority in the 19th […]
Hollywood’s Hell
Most people get their theological education from Hollywood. Show of hands—how many people think that Satan is the boss of hell? You know the image. It’s played as a joke—hell is where Satan rules, and the name of the game is torturing people. That’s his job and demons are his underlings. For example, that’s the […]
Are You Cross Wise?
There has been confusion for twenty years now concerning what Zane Hodges wrote about the cross and resurrection. In 1999 at our national conference, he delivered two messages on how to lead a person to Christ. In those messages he said that believing that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose bodily […]
Why Don’t Lordship Salvationists Who Pray for Guidance Find the Truth?
Last week I wrote a blog on the role of prayer in Bible interpretation (see here). I quoted three women who said in various ways that we should ask God to open our eyes to His Word. Yet at least two of the three, or more likely, all three, hold to Lordship Salvation. So far […]
The Classical Understanding of Christ (Christology, Part 2)
Who is Jesus? What kind of a man is He? Was He a man at all? Why can He give believers eternal life? Christology is the branch of theology that studies questions about the person and work of Christ. As you can imagine, hundreds of books have been written to answer those questions. Where can […]
Irresistible by Pastor Andy Stanley
Normally when I review books, I am confident that I understand the author’s main point. In the case of Irresistible by Andy Stanley, I am confident I understand at least a few of his main points. It is difficult to pinpoint exactly what Andy Stanley is and is not saying on many points. Let me […]
What Kind of Man Is This? (Christology, Part 1)
One day, after ministering to huge crowds, Jesus and the disciples went sailing when the Lord, being tired, fell fast asleep. Then the winds picked up a little. And the sea became choppy. It wasn’t enough to worry those seasoned fishermen, though. And Jesus didn’t stir. Then the winds became a storm. Waves splashed hard […]