God Is Not Mocked
In Galatians, Paul is speaking to believers and reminds them that, “God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Gal 6:7). He tells them that if they live according to the flesh, they will reap the things that come from the flesh. But this principle applies to all people, […]
How Do We Receive God’s Promises?
Mark asks a great question: I have a question about the fundamental statement that we are to “believe in Jesus (the Giver) for the promise of everlasting life (the Gift).” Must we believe in each of God’s promises in order to receive them, or is this true only of the promise of eternal life? How […]
Remembering the Unforgiving Servant (Matthew 18:21-35)
One lesson from the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matt 18:21-35 is that as believers, we have received grace from God. When we come down hard on others who sin, it is often true that we have been guilty of the same sin. We need to look at ourselves before being quick to judge […]
Major Ian Thomas: Correction and Follow-Up
On August 3, I wrote a blog about 1 John 1:9 and Major Ian Thomas (MIT). See here. In that blog, I said that MIT said that 1 John 1:9 is a salvation verse, that believers are always in fellowship with God, and that there is a difference between faith in Christ and genuine faith […]
Putting on the Right Glasses (Romans 8:11)
I had been a chaplain in the Army for only about a week when I was told that I needed to inform a soldier that a close family member had died. I was at Ft. Bragg, NC and the soldier was with his unit out in the woods. I had a driver take me in […]
Are Most Parables about Salvation or Discipleship?
Andrew asks a good question about parables: My friend says most parables are about salvation and that the main theme in the NT is salvation. I think most parables are about Fellowship lost. What is the main theme, in your opinion? An internet search shows that there is great diversity about how many parables people […]
Grace in Unexpected Places
Georgie and her husband Oscar live in Spain and translate some of our writings into Spanish, their native language. Recently, Oscar translated a book I wrote for GES about my daughter Elisabeth. In the book, I wrote about what the Free Grace message can do for people going through hard times. I also tried to […]
Spiritual Gaslighting
In 1944, the movie Gaslight, starring Ingrid Bergman, was released. The movie centered around a woman who marries a seemingly kind and loving man. However, as the movie progresses, it becomes increasingly evident that the husband is not what he appears. He secretly moves objects in the house from one place to another, as well […]
Don’t We All Doubt Our Salvation?
Paul asks, You say having assurance is the essence of saving faith. This leaves no room for doubt if it’s based on assurance. How do you know you’ve really believed? Assurance seems relative. It comes and goes like emotions. Experientially we all have doubt. If you tell me the essence of saving faith is to […]
The Habit of Bible Reading
I think many readers of this blog can relate to my church background. The churches I attended when growing up did not really teach the Bible. I never heard a sermon in which the speaker looked at the context and explained the meaning of the verses that were read. Once the Bible passage for that […]