Current Issues in Salvation, Part 3: Changing Saving Faith into Saving Work
Many schools and pastors teach that saving faith is not mere persuasion. They call that easy believism or cheap grace. Many teach that saving faith includes turning from sins, surrender, commitment to serve Christ, and even perseverance in obedience that must follow the commitment. The words “whoever believes in Him” in John 3:16 thus become […]
Current Issues in Salvation, Part 2: Various Rejections of ECT
Eternal Conscious Torment (ECT) is the teaching of Scripture (cf. John 3:14-18; Heb 9:27; Rev 14:11; 20:15). However, many schools and many pastors are now rejecting ECT in light of various other views. Those other views include universalism (everyone will eventually be saved), conditional immortality (= annihilationism), and unconscious torment (like an eternal coma). Back […]
I Think I Will Try the Good Figs (Jeremiah 24:2)
I can’t remember the last time I ate a fig. I vaguely remember that I didn’t particularly like them. The last time I thought about figs was when I was in the Army during the Iraqi War. The prime minister of that country famously said that his country did not fear the United States. He […]
Current Issues in Salvation, Part 1: Assurance As Degrees of Confidence, Not Certainty
Introduction The Evangelical world today is quite diverse on many issues, including the doctrine of salvation. There is much confusion about what a person must do to be saved. Pastors and theologians are not always theological safe spaces. Though well intentioned, they mislead many on a number of fundamental truths. There are many such issues. […]
The Darkness at the Cross: Part 3 (Mark 15:33)
In part 2 of this series, I discussed two popular ways of understanding the darkness at the cross of Christ. While there were some truths contained in those views, I think there is a better alternative. This alternative fits the context of Mark 15 better. There are two keys to adopting this view. The first […]
Questions about Binding and Loosing in Matthew 16:18-19
In a recent blog post (see here), I suggested that the binding and loosing the Lord spoke of in Matt 16:18-19 concerned things, not people. Binding refers to prohibiting certain actions. Loosing refers to permitting or encouraging other conduct. I suggested that the apostles laid down for us God’s expectations for believers during the church […]
The Darkness at the Cross: Part 2 (Mark 15:33)
In part 1, I argued that the centurion at the foot of the cross wisely considered the darkness at the time of Christ’s death and came to some surprisingly good conclusions about who Jesus is. We should ask the significance of that darkness as well. First of all, however, I would like to consider some […]
The Darkness at the Cross: Part 1 (Mark 15:33)
Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. Apocalypto is truly a guy movie. The hero is about to be sacrificed by a Mayan priest at a temple. The people believe their crops are failing because the gods are angry with them. Just as the […]
What Could Peter Bind or Loose (Matthew 16:19)?
“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you […]
Teaching in Kenya
Recently I went to Kenya to conduct a week-long conference on the Gospel of John for pastors and church workers. I want to make some observations, within my limited experience, on teaching in other countries. The conference had approximately 150 attendees. It is safe to say that almost all (if not all) of them strongly […]