I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me: upon the which when I had fastened mine eyes, I...

There is a clear truth in the New Testament: Christians should NOT keep the law. I realize that this is a controversial statement, and most Christians will take issue with it. However, a straightforward reading of the epistles of Paul substantiates this claim. It is very difficult to reach any...

Mark 1.1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; In English we use the word ‘Gospel’ to translate the Greek word ‘Euangeliou’. This is a great translation, as it communicates the etymological meaning of the Greek word, “eu” = “Good” and “angeliou” = “News”. So...

I am working on a review of NT Wright’s ‘New Perspective of Paul’ as taught by him in many of his books, including (but not limited to) Justification, Paul: A Biography, The Day the Revolution Began, Jesus and the Victory of God, Paul and the Faithfulness of God, and not...

There is a pretty well-known book that was published in 2018 titled, “The Coddling of the American Mind” which detailed and analyzed the fragility culture that has swept through the American education system, particularly colleges and universities. It observes that the youth of America have been overprotected, not just physically...

One of the quintessential misapplied verses in the Bible is 1 John 2.27. In this text, the Apostle John declares that believers have the anointing of God that teaches us all things and therefore we have no need to be taught by any man. The misapplication of this text is...

In the Gospel of John, Jesus promises the coming of what is called the Paracletos. This is a Greek word that in the KJV is translated the ‘Comforter.’ In many translations it is rendered as ‘Advocate’ or ‘Helper’. These are all legitimate translations of the Greek word. In fact, the KJV translates...

Murdering God necessitated a total and immediate reimagining of the world; not just the geological and biological world, but especially the moral, psychological, and metaphysical world. If there is no God, then we must account for where everything came from. Where does space and matter come from? Where do plants...

All truly great gifts are hideous. Which outs all of us who give such nice, polite, beautiful gifts as truly selfish and self-absorbed gifters. We give gifts that make sense to us. We give gifts that we think the person ought to have. This is why giving cash is so...

It has long famously been observed that God is as much a self-reflection of man as man is the image bearer of God. The accusation that God is nothing more than a projection of man’s own image is only mildly compelling. However it is not actually obvious that the tens...

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for...

In August of 2021 I published an essay on the contrast between Continuationism and Cessationism titled “A Study on the Pneumatika“. In that essay I briefly put forward the argument that 1 Corinthians 13:8-13 is commonly misinterpreted and misapplied by the Cessacionists to ‘prove’ that tongues and signs have ceased...

It is intriguing to me the complaint that Christian ministers voice commonly. There are several variations of it and it is expressed in several different ways, but essentially it goes something like:  “Christians will pay to watch 3 hours of entertainment but are unwilling to sit through even one hour...

Thesis of Men’s Retreat 2021 “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” Antoine de Saint-Exupery “Wherever we want to go, we go. That’s...

Our relatively recent explosion in technical and scientific progress has shaken the foundations of traditional society, especially that of the nuclear family. Women are more able to enter the workforce today than ever before in history. Activists like to think this is because they have beaten down patriarchal discrimination, but...

Hello, my name is Mike Jackson. I am a pastor and teacher at Free Born Church. I would like to discuss with you the subject of Sin. I know that this is not a subject that anyone is comfortable talking about, especially in the current social environment. Many of you...

The most reckless decision you will make in life is how to respond to Jesus. It doesn’t matter what you decide, there are no safe options. Even though Pascal’s Wager sounds logical, it is deeply flawed and untrue: If God exists and you don’t believe you are damned, but if...

A common misconception is that one enters Christianity by the door of faith. That is a quite reasonable assumption, and if Christiainity were like other religions, it would be accurate. However, Christianity is not like other religions. It is extremely different in many ways, but the first major difference is...

As most good, well-educated Americans, you probably have heard of the doctrine of “Separation of Church and State”, or as the Apostle of Democracy, Thomas Jefferson, originally worded it, “The Great Wall Of… Separation”. This doctrine dictates that the Church should be separate from the State. I know. A little...

There has been quite a dustup lately surrounding pastors being accused of plagiarizing sermons from other pastors, or even buying sermons from companies that specialize in drafting them. For many of us hayseed preachers, this might amount to the breaking news that Catholics baptize babies. Not ideal, but certainly not...

Preface. This portion of Romans is especially difficult to exegete. Chapter 5 is probably the most complicated writing in the New Testament. (For instance, in the Greek sentence found in verse 5:18, there are no verbs. I don’t even know what to make of that. For what purpose would Paul...

The most well-known parable of Jesus is “The Prodigal Son”, or so it is commonly called. It is the parable found in the latter part of Luke 15. This chapter has probably been preached more than almost any other chapter in history. It certainly ranks in the top 10. I...

Preface. The word ‘exegesis’ has become very hip. Every pastor worth his weight in words refers to his sermons in the third person as ‘Exegesis’. This is a good thing, at least in principle. The alternative, and the antonym of exegesis is ‘eisegesis’, and that is seriously ‘no bueno’. Eisegesis...

Every poll tells the same story: Traditional Christian culture (A.K.A., Western Civilization and Judeo-Christian culture) is in steep decline. Here in America, where it has held on perhaps the longest, in the last 20 years has dropped off precipitously. Church attendance, which held steady at about 70% since 1937 (when...

Romans chapter ten is one of the most cited passages in all of Scripture. Verse 9 is particularly attractive to evangelicals and forms the climax of the “Romans Road”. Although this verse is almost always excised and exhibited in a hermeneutically sealed enclosure with all the context vacuumed out to...

Enter in through the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and there are many which go in through it: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads unto life, and there are few who find it....

The highest virtue in our postmodern society seems to be what is euphemistically called “open mindedness”. It also goes by the names of “tolerance”, “acceptance”, and “inclusivity”. As is always the case of euphemistic appellations, the name has very little connection to the underlying ideology. A humorous example can be...

I would like to revisit the common accusation brought against the King James translation of it being archaic. To be sure, there is a certain degree of truth to it. That cannot be denied. What is irritating about the accusation is that the majority of those leveling it aren’t clever...

Perhaps the most difficult hurdle for a secularist worldview is how to define and defend morality. Not only do they not have an eternal, sovereign God, but they also, consequently, don’t have an absolute purpose. As an attempt to fill in those gaps and establish a groundwork for moral expectations,...

The tired cliche says, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Or to paraphrase Shakespeare, “disgust makes for strange bedfellows”. There is an informal, unintended, and unacknowledged collaboration between those who we might characterize, without any offense intended, as “ultra-fundamental Christians” and those that are self-professed pagans: They both...

From my anecdotal perspective, 7 out of 10 Christians believe the Law to be a burden that Christ has liberated us from. And they are correct. Any dispute with that is a dispute with entire books of the Bible; and not just a few proof texts, but the comprehensive context...

The Gospel of John is quite unique, as anyone who has even casually read the four Gospels knows. Not only does he record events and sayings of Christ that the others do not, but he also focuses heavily on specific periods of time in Jesus’ ministry. For instance, the final...

Are Chrisitans commanded to tithe? This is a very simple question, and one that most Chrisitians have asked themselves and their pastor. It seems like an unavoidable question for anyone who has read the Old Testament. Tithing is a perennial theme from Genesis to Malachi, and is a major component...

The fastest-growing branch of Christianity is the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement. More than five hundred million Christians identify as Charismatic or Pentecostal. There are many divisions within the movement, but generally speaking that means that half a billion people who confess Christ believe in the ongoing gifts of miracles, tongues, and revelatory...

In recent years I have become increasingly persuaded that there is a fundamental flaw in standard evangelical teaching (also in preaching, but to a more indeterminate degree). I especially see this flaw in my own teaching, and so I hope no one takes this criticism personally; although, I won’t be...

Preface: Prooftexting is the practice of constructing a doctrinal argument or defense or an exposition on snippets of text as opposed to basing those on the full, contextual explanations by the Biblical authors. An example would be to argue for or teach eternal security based on phrases such as “Save...

Setting theology proper aside, Calvinsim is the framework with the most explanatory power for human psychology and world affairs. The United States is extremely blessed that it had such an outsized influence over the Framers and Founders. We are quite possibly the last remaining government still standing on the cornerstones...

So, a disclaimer: This essay introduces significant eschatological ramifications. However, I was not aware of these ramifications when I first studied this text and pondered these conclusions. Although conclusions is not the right word, perhaps observations is more fitting, or even musings. Anyway, the point is that I did not...

“Use hospitality one to another without grudging.” — 1 Peter 4.9 Hospitality is the forgotten qualification of Christianity. It is probably the most overlooked requirement of elders. It is a requirement for widows who will be supported by the church. I don’t think I have ever been in an ordination...

To paraphrase and apply an argument given by Doug Wilson for Reformed Kingdom Theology: There are things that everyone can distinguish, and that are clearly distinct and unique but at the same time also cannot be separated, cannot be amalgamated, and cannot not exist on their own. An example of...

Peter, in his first epistle, cites an extensive passage out of the 34rd Psalm. This citation affords no small amount of light on the issue of translation itself, as there is a great deal of translation going on. Not only is David translating his thoughts to the language he was...