To Die Once (Hebrews 9:27)
Recently I received a question about Heb 9:27: “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” The questioner said, “Would it not follow from that that it is also appointed for men once to live?” I had said in a blog that I thought that children who died before the […]
The Arminian’s Difficulty
I came across this quote from Lewis Sperry Chafer. He contrasts the eternal salvation preached by Jesus with the “transient” salvation believed by Arminians: “The Arminian’s difficulty is initial. To him salvation is no more than a state of mind, a good intention, a resolution, or an outward manner of life. Such passing or transient […]
Faith Is Futile If Jesus Did Not Rise from the Dead (1 Corinthians 15:17)
“And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” Alternative history novels explore what life would be like today if a major event in human history turned out differently. For example, Harry Turtledove’s Southern Victory explores what the United States would have been like if the South had […]
Justification by Faith Alone and Yet by Repentance Too
A reader sent me a famous sermon by John Wesley entitled, “The Scripture Way of Salvation.” You can read the sermon here. It is well worth reading. I was thrilled when I found a fantastic statement by Wesley on justification by faith alone. He wrote: Faith is the condition, and the only condition, of justification. […]
Old Testament Sacrifices Did Not Come as a Package Deal
In trying to rethink the debate between Calvinists and Arminians over the limited or unlimited nature of the atonement, I suggested we should rethink the assumption that the benefits of the cross come as a package deal. Maybe, just maybe, the cross has different benefits for different people, under different conditions. But is there any […]
The Big Assumption Behind Limited and Unlimited Atonement Theories
Evangelical views of the atonement are broadly divided between two camps. Calvinists believe that Jesus died only for the elect. Hence, their view is popularly known as limited atonement, because the benefits of the atonement are limited to whomever God has predestined to be saved. Arminians believe that Jesus died for the world. Their view […]
What Adam and Eve Knew on Their First Day
Most people do not believe that the account of Adam and Eve in Genesis is historically true. Among Evangelicals, some think that there was no actual Adam and Eve. But many if not most Evangelicals believe that Adam and Eve existed. Yet a growing number of Evangelicals believe that they were born like any other […]
Can You Jump Out? (John 10:28-29)
Question Most of our pastors say a believer can jump out of God’s hand, based on John 10:28. How can I refute such a claim? Answer I’m sorry to say your pastors are wrong (or, actually, I’m happy to say they’re wrong): 1.) John 10:28-29 does not say anyone can jump out of the […]
We Are All Looking for a Sign (Mark 8:11-13)
I was recently studying Mark 8 in which the Pharisees ask Jesus for a “sign.” They wanted it to come from “heaven” (8:11). They wanted Him to do something that would show He was the Christ. I have to admit that I am not really sure what they were looking for. Jesus had performed many […]
Figurative Versus Literal Uses of Circumcision in the Bible
A reader asked, For a long-time circumcision in the Scriptures has annoyed me—not because it’s there—but because I don’t think I fully understand its meaning, though I’m clear on the meaning in relation to the anatomy. Am I correct to think that in some places, it is referring to the literal/physical procedure only? Am I […]