Are There Saving Promises That Are Not Clearly Irrevocable?
A friend, A. D., sent me a quote from a seminary professor who argues that there are saving promises in the NT that are not clearly irrevocable. Or, stated differently, that professor argues that one can believe in Jesus for the forgiveness of his past sins only and be saved. Here is a portion of […]
Why Does God Allow Believers Who Stray to Have Prosperous Lives?
MS wonders: How is someone like John MacArthur able to have such a prosperous ministry in light of the fact that he seemed to believe the faith-alone message in the past but no longer does? Where do God’s chastening, discipline, and temporal judgement come in for a believer who moves from teaching the truth to […]
Faith Alone Absolutism
Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla, recently offered to buy Twitter, setting off a storm of controversy. The underlying issue was over free speech. Musk said he was concerned that Twitter, which has become a “de facto town square,” was not an arena for free speech but should be. For example, Twitter infamously suspended President […]
Is Forgiveness by Confession or by Asking for Forgiveness?
David from Switzerland asks this super question: Thank you very much for your work. I`m very happy about it; it is a very great help for me and my faith. I have a question about fellowship forgiveness in 1 John 1:9. This verse says, that if we confess our sins, He will forgive our sins. As much I know, […]
The Eyes of Christ (Mark 11:11)
All of us have found ourselves in a situation where we are with somebody, and we realize that the other person sees things differently than we do. They notice things we do not. There are many examples of this. For example, I know nothing about cars. I can look at a newly pressured-washed engine and […]
How Can Someone Be Against Works Salvation and in Favor of It?
Recently, a pastor friend sent me a blog with an interesting title, “10 Flavors of Works-Based Salvation.” It is by Pastor Ed Moore of North Shore Baptist Church in Bayside, NY. You can read the article here. I agree with eight of the ten flavors Moore cites. The first four are salvation by philanthropy, works […]
How Can You Get the Most Out of a Sermon?
While having lunch with a GES friend, Brad, he expressed a widespread problem. How do we get the most out of sermons we hear? Brad is a solid Free Grace guy. So, when he hears something that is even a little bit unclear or fuzzy, he is bothered, and his worship experience suffers a bit. […]
Did Jesus Teach in John 8:39 We Must Do Good Works to Be Born Again?
J. G. asks a great question: I’m really struggling to understand John 8:39: “If you were really Abraham’s children, you would do the works Abraham did.” How would you take this verse in light of other verses such as “to all who believed He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12)—where “children” […]
Prayers for Cat People
My wife and I are cat people. It started by accident. A family of stray cats was living under our fourplex in Baton Rouge. When Hurricane Gustav flooded our street, a sopping wet kitten walked into our apartment and refused to leave. Josie moved around with us for the next seven years, and we’ve had […]
Three Days That Changed the World (John 19:28–20:31)
On Friday we celebrate the cross of Christ. On Sunday we celebrate His resurrection. The Apostle John makes much of these three days in his Gospel. John stresses the fact that Jesus’ death and resurrection prove that He is the Christ, the Son of God, the Promised One who guarantees everlasting life to all who […]