Many Renewalists believe apostles do exist. But should there be restrictions? An old-fashioned Bible study to answer the question. (I have updated this post,)
Do New Testament Apostles Exist Today?
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Category Archives: General NT Studies
Do New Testament Prophets and Prophecy Exist Today?
Many Renewalists say yes for prophecy. The biblical evidence favors them. Now what about prophets? (I have recently updated this post.)
The Church Fulfills and Replaces Old Testament Temple
Let’s allow the clarity of Scripture to overturn needlessly complicated and convoluted eschatological (end-times) interpretations that have dominated American Christianity for many decades. Further, is this replacement the same as the church replacing Israel? Read the post to find out. And look at the photos, too!
Were Jesus, James and John First Cousins? Was Clopas Jesus’ Uncle?
It’s frustrating to look at old family photos, say a hundred years old, and not know who the people were. They were important enough to be included in the old shoe box filled with known photos, but their names and relationships have been lost to us.
The Lord’s Supper in Synoptic Gospels + Church Traditions
We cannot answer all the questions in this overview, but we can exegete the Lord’s Supper in its original context in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. This post also looks very briefly at 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 and 11:23-34. Then, what do various churches teach about the Lord’s Supper (or Communion or Eucharist)? I am here to learn. I updated this post with information that startled me. I also learned something new from Exodus 12:14.
Does Hebrews 7:1-10 Teach Church Policy of Tithing?
An old fashioned Bible study is offered here, countering a desperate misinterpretation from mega-church guys and TV ministries.
Why Tithing Does Not Apply to New Covenant Believers
God’s New Covenant plan is much better than an obsolete, national, theocratic tax designed to support an obsolete, national, religious system. God has a better way for the New Covenant church.
The Biblical Way to Care for the Poor
We all need to participate. But how exactly?
What Are Signs and Wonders and Miracles?
What are the Scriptures that reveal them? How are they relevant to my life today? Or have they ceased?
What 1 Corinthians 14 Really Teaches
An old-fashioned Bible study here. There is a lot of confusion in certain quarters of the global Renewal Movement about what revivals involve. How can we clear up the confusion? What did Paul really teach in 1 Corinthians 14? Are we willing to obey his teaching or just run roughshod over it?
The Meaning of the Names of the Twelve Apostles
What do their names mean? Why do the lists of the twelve in the New Testament have a slight variation? Can it be resolved?
Does God Cause Natural Disasters to Punish People Today?
Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires, earthquakes and tsunamis—natural disasters slam humankind every year. Did God do that? What does the Bible say? Two different covenants make all the difference—a progressive revelation.
Grace Is a Verb
Grace means God’s unmerited, unearned favor. But once you have experienced it, you must show it.
How Jesus Christ Fulfills the Law: Matthew 5:17-19
Christ fulfilled or paid off your debt to the Law. It’s paid in full. He accomplishes this by fulfilling the holiness demand in the law and the fullest revelation of God’s character.
How Christians Should Interpret the Old Testament
When the Old and New Testaments are interpreted carefully and rightly, using Scripture to interpret Scripture, this truth will emerge: Jesus Christ fulfills the old law, in many, many areas.
How to Forgive Adultery and Fornication
Sometimes the church can be self-righteous and condemn a sinner in the name of holiness, ignoring mercy. Or it can be permissive in the name of mercy, ignoring holiness.
The Biblical Norm for Marriage
In the current confusion in society, we need clarity. The Bible still has wisdom to teach us, if we listen.
Revenge in the Old and New Testaments: Eye for Eye, Tooth for Tooth
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?
Luke’s Birth Narrative: Pagan Myth or Sacred Story?
Many claim that the birth narratives in the Gospels–here the third Gospel–were merely reshaped copies of Greco-Roman myths. True?
Reconciling Matthew’s and Luke’s Genealogies: Mission: Impossible?
Some scholars say they are irreconcilable, while others say reconciling them is not so difficult. I favor plausible harmonization. It’s all in the family. Bonus: see the American family “the Roosevelts” in a chart for parallels.
New Testament Must Always Filter Old Testament
American Bible teachers appear confused about biblical interpretation between the Old Testament (OT) and the New Testament (NT). Some claim, for example, that David will share the throne with his superior descendant, Jesus. A third temple will be built, and animal sacrifices will be reinstituted. Christians must keep the Sabbath by command today. What about replacement theology? So confusing!
Slavery and Freedom in the Bible
Critics of the Bible forget that it also advocates liberty. It’s the Grand Arc of the Biblical Narrative, from Genesis to Revelation. Let’s see if we can discover universal truths from these historical, culture-bound slave laws.
God’s Love and Grace in Hebrews, General Letters, and Revelation
All the verses are here. This post is good for your personal edification or for pastors and teachers who wish to build a Bible study or sermon series.
God’s Love and Grace in Paul’s Epistles
All the verses are here. They are great for your personal edification or for pastors and teachers who wish to build a Bible study or sermon series.
God’s Love and Grace in the Gospels and Acts
It’s about God’s love and favor, not yours for him. Great for a series of sermons or Bible studies or your personal edification.
Romans 16
This chapter is full of information about church leaders. I look more carefully at the women leaders than the men, though everyone gets a comment.
What Is the Gospel?
How can we proclaim it if we don’t know what it is? After a basic definition offered just below, the gospel also has multiple parts to it. Let’s see what they are. (I recently updated this post.)
New Testament Restricts Authority of Modern Prophets
Yes, prophets of a certain sort rightly exist today, biblically speaking. However, errors are committed in many churches today, usually by “youtube” and “facebook” prophets. They are unscripturally concentrating too much authority in themselves. A closer reading of the New Testament, however, restricts them, their authority, and their ministry.
A Misunderstood Biblical Command: “Don’t Judge!”
This is an easy-to-follow word study of key terms in the New Testament and a close look at Matthew 7:1-5. Let’s understand what it really means in context.
What the Bible Really Says about Abortion and Prenatal Life
Despite the confusion circulating over the web for years, the Bible unambiguously upholds the sanctity of prenatal life.
False Prophets in Sinai Covenant and Imperfect Prophets in New Covenant: Life and Death Differences
Youtube critics daily, it seems, call for the blood of Christian prophets who are mistaken about some of their prophecies. The critics read Deuteronomy 13 and 18 and demand the death penalty for their ministries. But what did Paul say about them? Let’s do a side-by-side comparison of the OT and the NT.
What Do Romans 8:28-30 and 10:8-13 Teach about Predestination?
God initiates. We respond. We need both passages to clarify and balance out the other one. This is an old-school exegesis (pronounced EX-uh-gee-sus or ex-uh-GEE-sus), which means a close reading or analysis of a text.
Is ‘Decreeing’ Biblical for Christians?
The title could also be “Is God Bound to Obey Our Decrees and Declarations?” That’s what certain teachers seem to say. Let’s look into this subject.
Are ‘Tongues’ the Sign of Baptism with Spirit in Acts?
What do five key passages in Acts say about prayer languages, commonly called ‘tongues,’ being the sign of the empowerment of the Spirit?
Jesus Turns a Gentile Mother’s Desperation into Faith
Jesus seemed to be “rude” to a Gentile (pagan, non-Jew, or foreign) woman, someone outside his outreach to Israel. Here’s an exegesis (close reading) that explains his reasons, in a little more detail, in his own cultural context.
One Decisive Difference Between Sinai Covenant and New Covenant
This difference is what Jesus established and the New Testament authors laid out in the Scriptures. It’s really very simple.
What Is Grace?
It is a widely used (and abused) biblical word. What does it really mean?
Ten Commandments: God’s Great Compromise with Humanity’s Big Failure
That’s a shock. Aren’t we supposed to obey the Ten Commandments? Well … only if you don’t do something else first.
Brief Overview of Divorce and Remarriage in New Testament
Let’s look at the key verses in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and 1 Corinthians. It is a review for my own introductory education. Call it “Divorce and Remarriage 101.”
Quick Reference to Jewish Groups in Gospels and Acts
This is quick reference guide to religious and political Jewish groups who appear in the Gospels and the Book of Acts.
What Do Words ‘Eternity,’ ‘Eternal’ Fully Mean in the Bible?
This is an old-fashioned look at a Hebrew lexicon and two Greek lexicons, but in an easy-to-read format for nontechnical readers of the Bible. The definitions are wide-ranging and unexpected.
What Is the ‘Anointing’?
Renewalists (Pentecostals, Charismatics, and Neo-Charismatics) use the term all the time, but do we know what it means? What does the Bible say?
What Is a Biblical Mystery?
It is not defined by what the world system or pagan religions say, nor is it what popular Bible teachers seem to preach.
Messianic Prophecies
This a table of Messianic prophecies, which go a long way in building up our faith and the reliability of the Bible. It also answers the question: How does this post help me grow in God?
Who Was Melchizedek?
He seems to be a mysterious figure. Some say he was a Christophany (manifestation) of the preincarnate Christ. But who was he according to the entire Scriptures that mention him? An old-fashioned Bible study here.
Being Justified in Paul’s Epistles
What does “being justified” mean? Acquittal in law court, put right in a covenant, or both, or what?
Paul Quotes the Old Testament
This study looks at the Old Testament passages that Paul quotes in his writings, and the post places the references in categories.
The Law in Paul’s Theology
The “Grace Revolution” must adequately deal with this topic, for a change.
Law in the Epistle to the Romans
How does Paul use of the Old Testament in this most important epistle? Does he put people under the Old Covenant, by referring to its Scriptures? If not, then why borrow from them in the first place?
The Wrath of God in the New Testament
It is never expressed against his New Covenant community (unless you get a speeding ticket).
Do Christians Have to ‘Keep’ the Ten Commandments?
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?
What Does the New Covenant Retain from the Old?
How much continuity and discontinuity is there between the New Covenant and the Sinai Covenant? This article is designed to answer the confusion between hyper-grace on the one side and legalism on the other.
Does Romans Promise Salvation by Good Works?
Some believe that in the epistle to the Romans Paul promises salvation through good works. The answer is not as clear as some interpreters claim.
What Is the Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?
A small percentage of people are anxious about this, but what does the Bible say? Can people commit this sin today?
3. What Does the Glory of God Mean to Us?
He shares it with us. It means everything to your life in Christ. Let is shine on you.
2. What Is the Glory of God in the New Testament?
It flows out of the Old Testament and expands its meaning to include the Son and the Spirit.
1. The Kingdom of God: Was Jesus a Pacifist?
To answer that question, we must separate the Kingdom of God from the Kingdom of Caesar. Part One in a four-part series.
2. The Gospels: Was Jesus a Pacifist?
To answer that question, we look at four episodes in the Gospels: John the Baptist and some soldiers; Jesus and a centurion; an apparent command to use a sword against a disciple’s family; and two swords during Jesus’ arrest.
3. Were the Early Christians Pacifists?
Did they pick up swords to stop the persecution and control nonconformists?
4. Can Christians Join the Military or Police Force?
The question is really asking whether they can kill in the name of the law or the Constitution.
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 