Sinning, Yet in Fellowship with the Lord
While a chaplain in the Army, I attended a strongly Calvinistic seminary. All my professors insisted that if a person was really a Christian, he could not continually sin. A common example of this view was that a “true” Christian could not be a practicing homosexual. When given the opportunity, I would point out that […]
Are You a Sandemanian?
Most Focused Free Grace advocates have never heard of Robert Sandeman (1718-1771). He was born in Scotland and planted churches there. In 1760, he came to America and planted churches here, dying in Danbury, CT, in 1771. He was just fifty-two. His father-in-law was John Glas, a Scottish minister who profoundly influenced him. Christianstudylibrary.org has […]
Tradition and Peer Pressure (Exodus 32:1-7)
Many Biblical accounts surprise us. Exodus 32:1-7 is an example. It is a well-known passage. Moses has gone up Mount Sinai to receive the Law from the Lord. He remains on the mountain for forty days. The people of Israel are at the base of the mountain, under the leadership of Moses’ brother Aaron, who […]
Is Provisionism the Same as Focused Free Grace?
K. M. asked an excellent question for our radio show: I am a longtime listener. I came across a video discussing Provisionism. It is different than Calvinism and Arminianism. It was presented like Free Grace, but I wanted to check before deeply researching it. Is it the same as Free Grace? Ken Yates and I […]
A Powerful Word (Luke 4:31-36)
Luke 4:31-36 records an event that happened near the beginning of Christ’s ministry. The Lord taught in the synagogue in Capernaum. No doubt, He was teaching about the coming kingdom of God. Whether or not a majority of people believed He was the Christ, Luke records what they thought of His teaching. They were astonished […]
1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture?
“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:9-10, emphasis added). I received an excellent email question […]
A Dozen Significant Things the Bible Does Not Tell Us About Church
I like Garry Friesen’s book, Decision Making and the Will of God. He suggests that God’s moral will for us is found in Scripture. Anything not discussed in Scripture is a matter of freedom. For example, a believer can choose any job except those forbidden by Scripture (e.g., hit man, thief, prostitute, pimp, drug dealer). […]
Man of Sorrows (Luke 4:28-29)
About 750 years before Christ was born, the Prophet Isaiah predicted His coming and said that He would be a Man of Sorrows and One who would be “despised and rejected by men” as well as “acquainted with grief” (Isa 53:3). Many have commented on the fact that Isaiah’s prophecies about the Lord, particularly in […]
The Dentist and Repentance
I had a dental appointment earlier this week. The dental hygienist knew from my previous visits that I travel a good bit for work. She began talking about how she hates planes. Because she had placed a weird contraption in my mouth to take the ex-rays, I could only nod, with an occasional grunt. She […]
Beware of Eight Traditions That Contradict God’s Word
In one of my online Ecclesiology class lectures, I list over twenty traditions that contradict Scripture. I’ve condensed that to the “elite eight” for this blog. Praying to “the saints.” In the first place, either you’re a saint, or you’re an ain’t. In the second place, we are not to pray to the dead. That […]