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The following was inspired by an exchange I had with Jim Hilston just over twenty years ago. I started to post the actual exchange but that wouldn't have been that great. It was an exchange via old messaging apps. I was on one called "ICQ" and I think Jim was using AOL Instant Messenger. He was...

The Church of Christ and its close cousin, the independent Christian Church (as well as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), which is just a super-liberal version of the others) come out of the 19th-century “Restoration Movement”. Their stated goal was to "restore the New Testament...

This question gets to the heart of the gospel and reveals whether we actually believe in justice, in doctrinal clarity, and in the universal reach of what Christ accomplished. The popular answer, of course, is that only those who believe are made spiritually alive, but that answer cannot bear up...

This thread is all about giving answers to questions from a biblical worldview and so I've placed it in the "Religion" forum, but is not intended to be limited only to biblical or religious questions. As the title indicates, feel free to ask me anything you wish on any topic you want an answer...

This last weekend my wife and I were browsing through the internet looking for a video of good hymns to listen to on Sunday morning. The one we landed on was recorded at a church that had the word Grace in its name. I forget exactly what it was, but that’s not important. The point is that I’ve...

It seems to me that if we want a society that is both free and civilized, one where we do not have to simply accept things like mass shootings of children by sexually deranged individuals seeking to go out in a blaze of shocking infamy, then we need to fix the foundation. The solution is not...

This thread was inspired by, and is in direct response to, another thread with a similar but distinctly different title. The format of the opening post of that other thread inspired me to give some thought to the attributes of God. My goal was to think them through and place them in a coherent...

In the most recent Berean Search Light, Pastor Sadler writes a piece entitled "The Twilight of Grace". In it, as it typical of Sadler's doctrine, there are portions of it that are solid and others that are not. Is it just me or does anyone else feel like Sadler just tries too hard? He seems to...

This thread is going to be primarily dedicated to a posting of a rather long winded essay I've written about how the distinctive doctrines of Calvinism are all predicated on the doctrine of immutability, about the doctrine of immutability itself, and then offers the reader a far superior, more...

(See revised version of this post in post #3) What is morality, (or ethics)? A code of values to guide one's choices and actions, the choices and actions that determine the purpose and the course of his life. To speak meaningfully of “value", one must first understand what a value is. A value...

Calvinism: Inconceivable! The system of Calvinism presents itself as a faithful exposition of biblical truth. It is, in reality, a philosophical framework imposed upon Scripture. At its core lies not a devotion to the Word of God as it stands, but a prior commitment to a concept of God that was...

Sermon #1: Outline The Word Made Flesh: Logos and the Nature of Reality Text: John 1:1 to 5, 14 (NKJV) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was...

A few weeks ago a good friend of mine called asking for advice / input about a new sermon series he was writing on the subject of spiritual maturity. Our on going discussions have been a blessing to me because they've served to remind me of a lot of doctrines that I haven't had a refresh on in...

I’ve read heartfelt stories, tales of surviving the streets, enduring the horrors of war, dealing with economic hardship, chronic illness, and even the death of a child. In each one, faith is described as the only thing that carried them through the darkest corners of life. These experiences...

I've been interacting with Chat GPT to try and formulate a list of doctrines that would comprise what I've been calling "Biblical Christianity". When I use that phrase, the idea in my mind is that version of Christianity that is formulated entirely through the application of the plain/contextual...

Consider the following basic Christian concepts... God exists. God is personal, living, moral, and rational. God created the world and created mankind in His image. There is objective right and wrong, rooted in God's nature. Humans have free will and moral responsibility. Sin is a personal...

First and foremost, Christians should not begin by accepting the atheist’s framing of the so-called problem of evil. Before answering the challenge, the atheist should be pressed to define evil in the first place. If there is no God, then there is no objective standard of right and wrong...

It is a dangerous thing to mistake religion for salvation. You can join a church, memorize a creed, perform rituals, tithe, sing hymns, recite prayers, confess sins, and still die in your sins. You can be baptized, confirmed, ordained, and even canonized, and still remain as lost as Anton Levey...

Why Morality Is Absolute—and What That Actually Means Christians often claim that morality is absolute, but they rarely explain why. Indeed, most don’t even know why and would be very hard-pressed to explain why if challenged to do so. Even most pastors would have a hard time giving more than a...

I keep hearing people say Calvin believed in immutability and that God never changes, but every time someone tries to prove it, they always quote a single line from the Institutes that, when isolated, sounds strong but isn't airtight by itself. They’ll cite something like: “Nothing more absurd...