The Third Way, in previous times, may have been legitimate.
The ‘Third Way’ Is Obsolete Now
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Category Archives: BIBLICAL ETHICS
I am a Christian ‘Kingdomist,’ Not a Christian Nationalist
A student who studies American culture in graduate school is called an Americanist. After much thought, I have concluded that I am a kingdomist because I belong to the spiritual kingdom of God. It is my top priority, my entire life. I am also a gospel globalist. The gospel first. But this does not make me an enemy of the American republic. I want to influence it. Let me explain.
The New Apostolic Reformation
The New Apostolic Reformation is sometimes called the Second Apostolic Age. What is this new movement? Is it valid, Scripturally? Let’s look into this.
Disciples Can Take a Beating and Keep on Going
Sometimes we are persecuted and may receive corporal punishment. Will we give up or keep going?
Disciples Live by a New Commandment
If we lived by this one, we would fulfill the Ten Commandments. This post covers John 13:31-35. The Ten Commandments are given for guidance, to clarify how we can know we are living by this new commandment.
Disciples Are Salt and Light
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:13-16. Salt and light are metaphors for godly influence in society.
Disciples Do Not Break the Law
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:17-20. This is about the law of Moses. Jesus did not come to abolish it, but what does ‘fulfill’ mean? Disciples can also fulfill it. How?
Disciples Keep the Ten Commandments (Only One Is Optional)
Do we ignore the Old Law so we can be free to live as we wish in the New Covenant? What about Christian Sabbath keeping? What does the Bible really say about this complex issue?
Disciples Do Not Live in Anger but Reconciliation
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:21-26. Be reconciled when someone is angry at you.
Disciples Do Not Commit Adultery in the Heart
This is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:28. This verse has been misused over and over again. What does it mean in its textual and OT contexts? Jewish radio host Dennis Prager says that in Judaism a man can watch a little porn because the Torah does not forbid it. Judaism is about behavior, not inner thoughts. But this is short-sighted and wrongheaded.
Disciples Do Not Retaliate
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:38-42. It’s about a generous heart, surrendered to the Father. What does ‘turn the other cheek’ mean in its context? Continue reading
Eye for Eye, Tooth for Tooth: ‘Revenge’ in the Old and New Testaments
Does the Old Testament demand literal retaliation for a wrong? Should an eye or a tooth be gouged or knocked out—physically? What about the teaching of Jesus? Does he raise our vision to a higher calling? How do we forgive a tort or a physical injury? How do we get compensated for damages?
Disciples Love Their Enemies
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:43-48. Disciples of Jesus are called to a higher ethic than the standards of the world. Don’t demand the unbelieving world to do this, unless you can persuade a willing person.
Disciples Give Generously in Private
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:1-4. Be careful about trumpeting your giving. You’ll lose your reward. Giving generously in secret is the right way.
Disciples Store Up Treasures in Heaven
This post is about the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:19-21. Store up treasures in heaven. Don’t be greedy for treasure on earth. Hyper-prosperity teachers who twist Scriptures to enrich themselves cannot like these verses. They shall have their reward down here on earth, but nothing in the new heavens and earth for all eternity.
Disciples Serve God over Mammon (Money)
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:24. Plus we look at Luke 12:13-21. Who is your Lord? God or money? Do you have money or does money have you?
Paul and Personal Wealth
There is a lesson here for the church today.
Disciples Live in Unity and Generosity
Let’s see what we can learn from the book of Acts 4:32-37.
Disciples Take Care of Widows
This post looks at Acts 6:1-7. The book of Acts can teach us a lot. Let’s learn from it.
Disciples Live Day by Day and Seek God’s Kingdom First
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:25-34. These verses are about reorienting our perspective to things above. These verses are a perfect summary of this goal and even of the entire Sermon on the Mount.
Disciples Learn the Differences between Judging and Judgmentalism
This is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:1-5 and the Sermon on the Plain, Luke 6:37. To understand the differences, we must understand what the attitudes really mean in context.
Disciples Obey the Golden Rule
This is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:12 and part of the Sermon on the Plain, Luke 6:31. It is an excellent rule to remember, not only for the kingdom community, but the whole world.
Disciples Look for Good Character and Sound Doctrine
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:15-20, and the Sermon on the Plain, Luke 6:43-45. If someone comes into your assembly claiming to be a leader, check out his fruit or character and doctrine.
Disciples Hear and Obey the Words of Jesus
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:24-27, and the Sermon on the Plain, Luke 6:46-49. Disciples build their house on a solid foundation, the words of Jesus.
Disciples Practice the Right Way to Be the First and the Greatest
If disciples have this ambition in the first place, there is a right way and wrong way to reach this goal. For those oversees, GOAT stands for Greatest of All Times. Jesus teaches a paradox, on how to be first and the greatest.
True Church Leaders Do Not Lord It over God’s People
They are his people. You leaders don’t own them. Instead, be like Jesus and serve them. And you, the people of God, beware of leaders who exert absolute or near-absolute power over you. Run from their churches. Stop giving to their ministties.
True Church Leaders Do Not Weaponize Matthew 18 against Victims of Abuse
This has to stop. A simple reading of the passage can clarify the problem.
Mature Disciples Do Not Make Excuses for Unsound Christian Leaders
Paul calls immature disciples naive and vulnerable (Rom. 16:18). The devoted followers of various unsound leaders post comments excusing the excesses and bad theology and defective Bible interpretation. Here are their most common excuses and my replies to them. I also cover where the unsound teachings may come from.
Restoring Fallen Church Leaders to Ministry?
These sad stories are now multiplying without any sign of letting up. The issue of possible restoration is very complicated. Let’s proceed with caution and depend on the Scriptures, as we receive grace and wisdom. Another warning, though: this post discusses adult topics but in a pastoral and redemptive way.
The Earliest Disciples Did Not Practice Modern Communism or Socialism
Some say that they did, a kind of proto-versions, in the book of Acts. But what are the historical and social contexts of three key passages?
Progressivism Is Bad for the Church
This post is part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:21-23. Progressive Christianity, which we can also label as woke Christianity, is not the right path for the church. But this movement is already damaging and deceiving Christians, particularly the leaders. Here are signs that this leftwing movement is infiltrating the church and putting her at risk of going past what is written in Scripture.
Socialism Is Wrong for Society
Have you ever heard a student or young adult ask, “So what’s wrong with socialism, anyway?” It’s still going strong in very few countries in Europe and some countries around the globe. What if Leftists were to rebrand their ideology and hide it under a current political party in America? It is so important to take a closer look at it.
The Biblical Case for Low Taxes and Limited Government
Liberalism, generally, favors a bigger government and higher taxes to pay for it, while conservatives advocate moving in the opposite direction: limited government and low taxes. What does the Bible say about this?
How to Care for the Poor Biblically
We all need to participate. But how exactly? What does the Bible say?
1 Jesus Was Not a Pacifist
That title needs to be clarified. Let’s look into his practical theology.
2 The Early Church Was Not Pacifist
However, we also answer these questions: Did the early Christians pick up swords to stop the persecution and control nonconformists? Or did they teach that the state should lay down its swords to have peace, kind of like “defund the police” in the first century? Can Christians join the police force or military?
3 Are Christians Permitted to Fight Persecution?
We already know they may flee it. But what if the Church is targeted for persecution by the government or by large groups of extremists, but the government does not come to the aid of Christians? For example, Muslims in Nigeria or Sudan attack churches on a wide scale. Can Christians defend themselves, because the State does not come to their aid?
Violent Mobs and Three Sources of Their Evil
This issue ranges much more widely than just the current events in America today. We can learn from Scripture any time it speaks to our behavior.
Send in the National Guard
The Bible is clear. It is morally right for the government to restore peace and order and punish criminals for high crime rates, riots, arson, murder, destruction of property, and mayhem.
The State Should Not Turn the Other Cheek
I have often heard confused uses of “turn the other cheek.” The saying seems so imbalanced and out of touch with reality, as it circulates around the world, out of context and isolated.
The Bible Speaks on Prenatal Life and Abortion
Despite the confusion circulating over the web for years, the Bible unambiguously upholds the sanctity of prenatal life. Abortion is a sin, but a forgivable and redeemable sin.
The Biblical Norm for Marriage
It’s an overview, at 10,000 meters.
Women Must Not Marry Muslim Men
Should a believing Christian woman take the plunge? I remember hearing an interview on the radio with a Muslim, years ago.
Overview of Divorce and Remarriage in the New Testament
The situations outlined in this post are delicate and emotional. Let’s proceed with caution and compassion towards people’s pain.
Jesus Teaches on Marriage in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark
Of course he would teach on marriage. It is a covenant. Here are the parallel passages in those two Gospels.
Jesus Teaches on Eunuchs
What about eunuchs in Matthew 19:10-12? Does this passage teach that the Bible endorses trans-surgery? Does being “born” a eunuch imply same-sex attraction?
Truth over Feelings
If we allow our feelings to take over our knowledge of the truth, then we get lost. We have no anchor. What is the root of this off-balanced life? What are some solutions?
Do Not Deconstruct Gender Differences
The destruction of the two sexes has become a global mind virus. It flows out of deconstruction, a subspecies of Postmodernism. Let’s explore these leftwing ideologies.
1 Twelve Health Risks from Smoking Cannabis
Big Tobacco? Get ready for Big Marijuana! Please don’t smoke it. The health risks are too great.
2 Ten Marijuana Myths that Damage Society and You
These myths show up in a variety of channels in the media and elsewhere, notably pro-marijuana websites, which are eager to draw in more customers to the unhealthy habit, so the weed advocates as an industry can make more money.
3 Do Not Legalize Recreational or Medical Marijuana
This post in based on the first and second parts. It is too late for some states, since they already legalized it for recreational use and medical purposes. But other states have not yet compromised on this issue.
Observations on New Apostolic Reformation and Christian Nationalism
An online statement, though overall benefitting the body of Christ, defines apostle in a dangerous way. It is titled NAR and Christian Nationalism and was issued October 10, 2022. (Updated on Oct. 8, 2025)
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 