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. I updated this post.
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?
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 once again, answering the question as to why Paul did not apparently appoint elders to the church at Corinth.)
The Book of Genesis is the story of the families of earth, as the author narrows them down to one family in particular. This one major family, whose patriarch is declared righteous for his faith, will lead to the Messiah about 2000 to 1800 years later, about seventy years before the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70.
Hostile critics turn molehills into mountains. They apply unequal weights and measures to the Old Testament and the synoptic Gospels and John. That’s unfair. The Gospel writers were conforming to Old Testament precedence. Here’s the evidence.
Apostles are appearing everywhere in modern American churches and around the globe, particularly in Africa and Latin America. What are apostles? What are they supposed to do? Do churches today misapply the title, or are they correct?
What are they? What are their motives and purposes? How do we discern the differences, when they seem so similar?
Who were they? A satanic hybrid or just extra-tall human warriors? Do they appear today? Should we obsess over them? This post also has a modern angle and is pastoral.
Gnosticism is alive and well today, disguised in various forms of postmodernism. It is being taught today. Let’s see if we can see through the disguises and get to the truth.
What are gnosticism and Gnostic writings? This post gives you the basics about those writings, and how they veer off from the New Testament.
This post covers questions like, who were the OT prophets, contrasted with the prophets of today? Does America have a special covenant with God, as ancient Israel did? How did the NT writers handle prophets and their prophecies? What about inaccurate prophecies? Is decreeing the same as prophesying? Can we decree Scriptures at will? (I updated this post.)
Many Renewalists say yes for prophecy. The biblical evidence favors them. Now what about prophets? (I have recently updated this post yet again.)
Does the church replace Israel? Or is replacement theology partly true and partly false, depending on definitions and contexts? After exegeting a key passage in Romans and looking at others, I finally made up my mind (for what it’s worth).
Let’s allow the clarity of Scripture to overturn needlessly complicated 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! (I updated this post with verses from Acts.)
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. I updated this post.
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. (I updated this post.)
This is a study on “many” in Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45 (The Son of Man ” gives his life a ransom for ‘many'”). We can further ask, did Christ die only for the elect (limited atonement) or for all and everyone (unlimited or universal or general atonement)? To answer those questions, I also review other atonement passages.
Yes, Jesus really did teach us to pray like this. His teaching was clear and simple. Let’s follow his instructions. Bonus: A careful reading of the verses disagrees with Word-of-Faith exaggerations.
To answer that question, we must separate the Kingdom of God from the Kingdom of Caesar. Part One in a four-part series.
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.
Did they 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?
The question is really asking whether they can kill in the name of the law or the Constitution. What do the Scriptures say?
Why is this biblical fact so important? Short post here.
The Palestinian media say that Jesus was a Palestinian. A Dutch film says the same. Would the so-called “historical” Jesus recognize the label? How did he refer to his homeland, even under Roman occupation? Clarity and historical accuracy, not politics, is the purpose of this article.
People struggle with their identity in Christ. Satan and their own minds tell them they are no good, because they have sinned too many times for God to forgive them. They are worthless and useless to God and his mission for them. However, here are verses that proclaim who you are “in him” or “in Christ”. (I often also include other prepositions.) Let these biblical truths enter your heart and mind and reject the self-destructive thoughts. Renew your mind with Scripture!
Renewalists use the term all the time, but do we know what it means? What does the Bible say?
American Bible teachers appear confused about biblical interpretation between the Old Testament (OT) and the New Testament (NT).
The Scripture is Matthew 23:8-12. Some translations make it seem as if Jesus forbids calling men ‘teachers’ in his kingdom community. But what did he really say?
This is a biblical theology discussion. If you are fighting for your or someone else’s healing, I advise you to skip this post. Read it only when the outcome is final, and you have unanswered questions about what the Bible really teaches.
Here are biblical passages that show that people outside of ancient Israel and the law of Moses had a level of the knowledge of God, most likely because God revealed himself to them.
The context says that “things” means “works.” Here are commentaries and my take on this issue.
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 sarcastically demand the death penalty for their ministries. But what did Paul say about their mistakes? Let’s do a side-by-side comparison of the OT and the NT.
This difference is what Jesus established and the New Testament authors laid out in the Scriptures. It’s really very simple.
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?
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.
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 and John 6:35-59. 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. Once more I updated this post!
The Church fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Matthew wrote the first Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
The Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Mark wrote the second Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
The Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Luke wrote the third Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
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 Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that John wrote the fourth Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
An old-fashioned Bible study is offered here, countering a desperate misinterpretation from certain Bible interpreters who seek for more money.
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.
We all need to participate. But how exactly?
What are the Scriptures that reveal them? How are they relevant to my life today? Or have they ceased?
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?
What do their names mean? Why do the lists of the twelve in the New Testament have a slight variation? Can it be resolved?
A brief history of a controversy over the Bible in America, since the 1970s. I offer my view of Scripture, at the end.
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 means God’s unmerited, unearned favor. But once you have experienced it, you must show it.
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.
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.
In the current confusion in society, we need clarity. The Bible still has wisdom to teach us, if we listen.
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?
Many claim that the birth narratives in the Gospels–here the third Gospel–were merely reshaped copies of Greco-Roman myths. True?
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.
Updated: Here are twenty-nine objections in a list that Complementarians raise. Replies are given to each one. Many important verses are discussed here, like Genesis 1-3, Galatians 2:28, Ephesians 5:22-24, 1 Timothy 2:11-15, 1 Peter 3:1-7, 1 Corinthians 7, 11:2-16, and Acts 6:5.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.)
So begins an eight-past series. In the late 1980s or early 1990s, a pastor reported this conversation (as I recall it) between him and a woman from his large congregation. She apparently wanted him to approve of something.
Despite the confusion circulating over the web for years, the Bible unambiguously upholds the sanctity of prenatal life.
We come at last to the end of the series. This part, summarizing the previous fourteen articles, can serve as a guide for which article the reader may need in the future. The series has always been about having confidence in the four Gospels so the gospel of the kingdom can go forth.
The number of similarities, even between the Gospel of John on the one side and Matthew, Mark, and Luke on the other, is remarkable.
When you read the first three Gospels, you are likely to observe countless similarities. And that is the dominant picture: the places, the names, the crowds, the rural setting, busy Jerusalem. However, some skeptics see insurmountable problems.
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.
The author of this Gospel made sure he used eyewitness testimony; indeed he was an eyewitness!
Luke researched those who knew Jesus from the “beginning,” his key criterion.
The evidence suggests that Peter was indeed a portrait painter, but he used words alone. Jesus was his subject.
This article rounds a corner from the traditions transmitted before the Gospels were written to the Gospels themselves, as we have them now. Do they enjoy eyewitness testimony at their foundation?
This is a question that must be explored. At least twelve scholars say it probably happened. If so, this gives a huge boost to the reliability of the Gospels.
No need to be afraid of this document. If it existed, Matthew and Luke used it. If they weren’t afraid, why should you be?
We continue the series, and this post is about how the stories and teachings and memories of the deeds of Jesus were transmitted before the first three Gospels were written down.
With this article we turn a corner away from archaeology and non-Christian written references to Gospel persons (the last three articles). Now we discuss the preservation of Jesus’ ministry — his words and activity — after his crucifixion (and resurrection) and up to the time when the Gospels were written.
If you throw a rock in a pond, does it produce ripples? Did the life of Jesus produce no effects at all? Are the ripples delusions or real? Now let’s study the historical evidence. If you have a son or daughter or a co-worker or husband who challenges you, send him or her to this link.
Part 3 in the series that explains why the Gospels are reliable and lists some discoveries.
Who were the “gods” and “sons of the Most High” in Psalm 82:6? Whom does Jesus say they were in John 10:34-36? Many commentators offer their opinion, and they are unanimous about who they were not. Now what about–who they were?
The Synoptics are Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Archaeology affirms their reliability. This post lists some discoveries.
So begins a fifteen-part series on the historical reliability of the four Gospels.
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.
What do five key passages in Acts say about prayer languages, commonly called ‘tongues,’ being the sign of the empowerment of the Spirit?
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.
It is a widely used (and abused) biblical word. What does it really mean?
That’s a shock. Aren’t we supposed to obey the Ten Commandments? Well … only if you don’t do something else first.
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.”
This is quick reference guide to religious and political Jewish groups who appear in the Gospels and the Book of Acts.
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.
It is not defined by what the world system or pagan religions say, nor is it what popular Bible teachers seem to preach.
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.
What does “being justified” mean? Acquittal in law court, put right in a covenant, or both, or what?
This study looks at the Old Testament passages that Paul quotes in his writings, and the post places the references in categories.
The “Grace Revolution” must adequately deal with this topic, for a change.
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?
It is never expressed against his New Covenant community (unless you get a speeding ticket).
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.
A small percentage of people are anxious about this, but what does the Bible say? Can people commit this sin today?
He shares it with us. It means everything to your life in Christ. Let is shine on you.
It flows out of the Old Testament and expands its meaning to include the Son and the Spirit.
Here is a list of the principal works referenced or used at this site. More will be added as time goes on, so please check back.
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 