In this post we briefly define these generous offers from God: salvation, redemption, reconciliation, the atonement, grace, the gospel, repentance and faith, forgiveness, justification, imputation, and regeneration. All of these important offers are rooted in and centered on Christ. Good for a quick review.
Sanctification is a lifelong process. How is it done? Who does it? Included in this post is a table featuring the differences between legal justification and sanctification.
In Concise Theology, discipleship is another term for sanctification. We need more empowerments and infillings of the Spirit for an inward holy life (deeper sanctification) and outward ministry. After all, the Spirit filled Peter three times (Acts 2:1-4; 4:8, 31). This is a paradigm for us today.
Christians can persist in their relationship with the Lord, by God’s grace and his indwelling Holy Spirit. They remain Christians. They must also do what all disciples do, to maintain their walk with God. This post has a list of ten characteristics of a healthy disciple.
Prayer is a powerful tool to deepen our sanctification.
Yes, Jesus really did teach his disciples to speak to obstacles and command them to be uprooted and thrown into the sea. He taught them to pray in faith and with authority–his authority. But he also taught them that God answers those specialized prayers, according to his will. Are these prayers the same as decreeing? Old Fashioned Bible study here.
We are a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), yet many disciples struggle with their identity in Christ. It is about grace, of course, but also discipleship, learning who they are in Christ.
What is the church? How does it live in community? What does the church do? Who are its members? How big or small was it in the NT? Where did it meet? In this post I also briefly look at modern church structure and the NT roles of overseers, pastors, and elders and other leaders.
What is the right size of the church? What does the New Testament say about the leadership structure?
How do you know when to stay or leave a church? How do you know when your church remains heathy, and when does it cross lines to become unhealthy? What is a revival, and what is Revivalism?
Eschatology means the study of the end times. But things get complicated with all the theories. Let’s break it down.
God’s judgment scares people, and in a sense they are right. Reverential awe and fear are appropriate. But there is a solution for them to escape a negative judgment.
What does the Bible teach about it? What does the Bible say about the intermediate state?
The teaching is in the Bible, but the doctrine is not very popular today.
God wins. And those who belong to him get to share in his victory. We win too. But who loses?
It has been a joy and privilege to write this series. As a student of theology, I learned and have grown a lot and am still learning and growing. Let’s conclude by focusing on how Concise Theology is purposed to help the church and every reader.
Progressivism poses a fatal danger to the moral clarity, the practices, and the doctrines of the church. We must stop its infiltration. We transform culture, not conform to it.
Bible Study series: Acts 21:15-40 The team did not provoke the riot, nor did Paul. Some Jews from the provinces identified him and stirred up the crowd. In this chapter, we see Paul completing his third missionary journey.
Staging a comeback? A short overview of his ministry and why he is forever unfit.
Bible Study series: Luke 13:1-5. Human-caused disasters and evil happen. Be ready or perish.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:57-59. Better use wisdom in your business dealings.
Bible Study series: Matthew 18:1-6. Don’t promote yourself. Humble yourself.
Bible Study series: Matthew 17:24-27. Jesus’s Father owned the temple, yet Jesus decided to pay it, to not give any needless offense to the Jerusalem and temple establishment and the people.
Let’s get started with our need for Scripture. How can it meet our needs for knowing who God is and his salvation offered to us? And why is it called a “canon”?
Interpreting the Bible for all its worth follows certain rules. Let’s learn together how to get the most out of it.
You might even say the New filters the Old.
It’s time to raise a (reluctant) red flag.
Bible Study series: Acts 21:1-14. They stopped along the way in various cities. They met Christians, like the prophet Agabus and his team and Philip and his four unmarried, prophetic daughters.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:54-56. Jesus was talking about his own days. “This season of time.” Did the people back then know who he was? Do we know who he is in our days?
Bible Study series: Luke 12:49-53. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. In a Jewish context, the follower of Jesus can expect opposition. Is he ready for it? (Today, division can also happen in a Muslim household.)
Bible Study series: Matthew 17:22-23. This time Peter did not rebuke him. All of the disciples had a different reaction.
Bible Study series: Matthew 17:14-20. The disciples could not expel it. They needed further instruction.
Covid. War with Iran. False doctrines, moral degradation circulating everywhere via the web. What are the signs of the end times, without complicated interpretations of Scripture? Can we avoid common errors in popular Bible prophecy teachings?
Bible Study series: Acts 20:13-38. This is powerful.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:41-48. “Blessed is that servant whom his master will find doing thus when he comes.” But the opposite is true. If a kingdom servant is abusive, the punishment will be severe.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:35-40. Watch for his return. Behave righteously, and do his will while you wait.
Bible Study series: Mark 16:8b-20. Many Bibles have it, so let’s cover it.
Bible Study series: Matthew 17:1-13. This is a glimpse of the Son of God in his heavenly glory.
God created humans, body, soul, and, spirit. Our bodies respond to worship and God’s presence. What do the Scriptures allow and prohibit? Continue reading
Bible Study series: Acts 20:7-12. This was a miracle.
Bible Study series: John 21:24-25. This is the second ending of the Fourth Gospel. The whole world could not contain all the things Jesus did, if written in books.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:22-34. “Don’t fear, little flock, because your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”
Bible Study series: Mark 16:1-8. The crucifixion of Jesus ratified the New Covenant, out of which flows great blessings (e.g. salvation, redemption, and reconciliation). Now the resurrection is the vindication of God’s Son and the confirmation of the New Covenant.
Bible Study series: Matthew 16:21-28. Jesus understood his mission. Peter did not. “Let him deny himself and pick up his cross and follow me.”
I was right there in the middle of it, at the Anaheim Vineyard, in about 1994-1995. What are charismatic ‘phenomena’ (sometimes called ‘manifestations’)? Are they biblical? It’s time for me to make sense of the whole thing.
Bible Study series: Acts 20:1-6. He has to complete his third missionary journey before he goes to Jerusalem. A table of Paul’s travels in Acts 18-25 is included in this post.
Bible Study series” John 21:20-23. What about him? How long will he live?
Bible Study series: Luke 12:13-21. “Fool! This very night, your life will be demanded of you!”
Bible Study series: Mark 14:42-47. Certain women followed from a distance to find out where Joseph of Arimathea buried him.
Bible Study series: Matthew 16:13-20. What does it mean that Jesus will build his church on “this rock”? What are the keys of the kingdom of heaven? Continue reading
Yes, it really did boil down to a power struggle. It should be clear that Bickle really did try to manipulate Wimber. And the interview transcribed here is deadly serious. File this article under American Church History and a warning.
Bible Study series: Acts 19:23-41. Satan counterattacks the mighty work of God in Ephesus. But God will always win, as we read in the Epistle to the Ephesians.
Bible Study series: John 21:15-19. What will his answer be? What about you, if he asked?
Bible Study series: Luke 12:8-12. Persecution will happen when you profess Christ. But remember: “The Holy Spirit will teach you at that very time what must be said.”
Bible Study series: Mark 15:21-41. This is what we proclaim when we take communion. Every blessing (e.g. salvation, redemption, reconciliation, peace with God, and so on) is embodied in and flows out of this one globe-changing act.
Bible Study series: Matthew 16:5-12. Yeast is a metaphor for …. What? Continue reading
Should we scrap or sift through the prophetic history and movement at Kansas City Fellowship and the International House of Prayer, Kansas City?
Bible Study series: Acts 19:21-22. This is after at least two years of ministering in Ephesus and Asia Minor. His resolve to go there was different from the others. But first he has to complete his missionary journey.
Bible Study series: John 21:1-14. It took a miraculous catch of fish for them to recognize him.
Bible Study series. Luke 12:4-7. Have no fear of humans, but fear God. Good news! He knows you but loves you anyway.
Bible Study series: Mark 15:1-20: He was also mocked and violently mistreated.
Bible Study series: Matthew 16:1-4. But Jesus told them of an unexpected sign.
Bible Study series: Acts 19:13-20. When I first read that believers were the ones who needed to renounce the occult, I realized how important discipleship is.
Bible Study series: John 20:30-31. Now we know how to interpret the book with more clarity. And now we know how we can get saved through the word of God.
Bible Study series: Luke 12:1-3. Hypocrites will be exposed. “There is nothing that has been hidden away that will not be revealed, and concealed that will not be known.”
Bible Study series: Mark 14:66-72. “Throwing himself out on the ground, he began to weep.”
Bible Study series: Matthew 15:32-39. Jesus’s miracles had a purpose: to help people in practical ways. He did not perform them just to show off. That’s too dangerous, for deceivers, later on, could exploit people (e.g. gold dust and “angel” feathers).
Bible Study series: Acts 19:8-12. When he did this, miracles broke out, including through facecloths and work aprons.
Bible Study series: John 20:24-29. Doubting Thomas believes and confesses that Jesus is Lord and God, reflecting the opening to John’s Gospel. “The Word was God.” Then Jesus speaks to us: “Because you see me, do you believe? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Bible Study series: Luke 11:37-54. He was an invited guest. He was functioning as a prophet to the religious leaders.
Bible Study series. Mark 14:53-65. He was convicted of blasphemy, according to Jewish law. But before God he spoke the truth about himself: He is the divine Son of Man who is about to ascend to the Ancient of Days (God). And Peter was following from a distance.
Bible Study series: Matthew 15:29-31. “Then the numerous crowds came to him, having with them the crippled, blind, lame, mute, and many others, and they placed them at his feet, and he healed them.”
Bible Study series: Acts 19:1-7. He got them filled with the Spirit.
Bible Study series: John 20:19-23. The first was Mary Magdalene. Now the disciples enjoy the privilege of his appearance to them
Bible Study series: Luke 11:33-36. Don’t hide your light under a basket.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:43-52. He is alone now. It really is happening.
Bible Study series: Matthew 15:21-28. Fear and desperation must turn into faith in Jesus and his heart for people’s need.
Bible Study series: Acts 18:24-28. Apollos appears in the Corinthian correspondences, and here he is in Acts for the first time. Priscilla and Aquila have to introduce him to the fullness of the Spirit.
Bible Study series: John 20:11-18. She was the first one to see him alive. She evangelized the apostles about the resurrection. Her name appears in all four Gospels, at this crucial time. This indicates she was a valued leader and preacher in the early Jesus Movement.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:29-32. Our generation does this too. But caution! Satan can work signs and wonders. Know what to look for. Look for Jesus alone.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:32-42. He suffered in his prayer. He surrendered to the will of his Father.
Bible Study series: Matthew 15:1-20. Scripture always take first place. Traditions must submit to it.
Once again, much like my take on the Shawn Bolz situation, this post will be short. No need for a long video because the White situation is also clear. Update: February 20, 2026 and Todd White’s “apology” (?) video and my brief analysis. Update: February 24, 2026: Should we demand Todd White to cancel the NDAs and allow an investigation?
Bible Study series: Acts 18:18-23. Paul finishes up his second missionary journey in v. 22 and begins his third in v. 23. He went through the region of Galatia and Phrygia.
Bible Study series: John 20:1-10. This historical fact changed the world, whether the world sees it or not. It is the firstfruits to the experience of all redeemed humanity.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:27-28. What do you have to do to be truly blessed?
Bible Study series: Mark 14:27-31. Peter declared he would never do this. However, …..
Bible Study series: Matthew 14:34-36. He drew large crowds, not only because he fed them. He also healed them. They touched the edge of his garment and were healed. Reach out in faith.
Bible Study series: Acts 18:1-17. Then other Christian communities grew in surrounding areas, in house churches. Paul is just about to finish his second missionary journey and begin his third.
Bible Study series: John 19:38-42. A rich man, a secret follower, put him in his own tomb.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:24-26. We have to keep our house (our lives and souls) clean, when God sets us free. Don’t live in the same old pig sty of your past.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:22-26. This may be the most important passage in all of Mark’s Gospel. He ended it with a hymn of praise.
Bible Study series: Matthew 14:22-33. Peter got scared and lost his faith in Jesus. He took his eyes off of him.
This post is short because the problem is easily diagnosed and the solutions are clear. No need for a 60, 90 or 120 minute video. Updated January 25, 2026, including Bolz’s “solution” and repentance from Bethel leaders at their church service on that date. Updated: I inserted a few sentences for clarity on January 28, 30, 2026
Bible Study series: Acts 17:16-34 He preaches the resurrection. Athens was a major intellectual center. Everyone knew this. Athenian pride hindered their reception of the gospel. But a few did open up and convert.
Bible Study series: John 19:17-37. The crucifixion changed the world.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:14-23. It can also be spelled Beelzebul. Either way, Jesus has bound him and is plundering Satan’s domain, looking for people under his thrall.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:12-21. As he was celebrating the biblical meal, he predicted his betrayal. Is it I? they asked, one by one. The atmosphere was tense in Jerusalem.
Bible Study series: Matthew 14:13-21. This was a large-scale miracle. Its purpose was to help people.
Bible Study series: Acts 17:1-15. In Thessalonica certain listeners were hostile. In Berea they studied to find out whether Paul’s teaching was rooted in Scripture. Be like the Bereans.
Bible Study series: John 19:1-16. Pilate was reluctant, so he had Jesus flogged, but the Jerusalem and temple establishment pushed Pilate to sentence Jesus to die.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:5-13. Many times for the same need! You have to persist in your request, being grateful to God for even allowing you to enter his throne room to receive mercy and grace and help in your time of need.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:10-11. Judas plots. God plans and oversees.
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:1-12. He was martyred for his righteousness and fearless preaching.
Bible Study series: Acts 16:11-40 Timothy and Luke seem to slip into the background, in Philippi. Paul and Silas meet Lydia and her household. This chapter is filled with exciting events.
Bible Study series: John 18:28-40. Jesus’s kingdom is not of this world. Then he says, “Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” In response, Pilate asks, “What is truth?” Jesus had earlier said he is the way, the truth, and the life (14:6). It all comes together now.
Bible Study series: Luke 11:1-4. We may pray it word for word or as a model.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:3-9. Her devotion will be remembered wherever the gospel is preached.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:53-58. They could not understand why he got so famous and worked miracles and taught with authority. Who does he think he is? His brothers are named in this passage.
Bible Study series: Acts 16:1-10. A quick study of Timothy’s life is included. Paul also receives guidance by the voice of the Spirit and a vision.
Bible Study series: John 18:1-27. Jesus underwent legal trials before the chief priests. Peter’s denials are sandwiched in between them.
Bible Study series: Mark 14:1-2. Courage to stay in Jerusalem, knowing what’s coming.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:51-52. Educated disciples can bring out old and new treasures.
Bible Study series: Acts 15:36-41. They disagreed over John Mark. Barnabas and John Mark were cousins, so Barnabas took the young man with him. Paul left with Silas.
Bible Study series: Mark 13:32-37. After he predicted his coming in judgment on Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple, he now reveals his final Second Coming, when the end of this age will happen. It’s been two thousand years (and counting).
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:47-50. Please be sure that you are a true citizen of the kingdom because people who seem to be in the kingdom actually cause sin and practice lawlessness. Angels will make the final determination.
Bible Study series: Acts 15:1-35. How can Jewish new converts get along with Gentile new converts? And should Gentiles be circumcised to seal their membership in the New Covenant?
Bible Study series: John 17:1-26. It has also been called the Great High Priestly Prayer. He prays for himself, his immediate disciples (the eleven) and the church. He even prays for people in the world. The church is called to live in unity.
Bible Study series: Luke 10:38-42. Mary and Martha have two different responses to Jesus’s visit. Do you see yourself in one of them?
Bible Study series: Mark 13:1-31. This is not his final Second Coming, but his judgment on Jerusalem and the temple. It happened from A.D. 66-70, in Jesus’s generation, just as he said. It would have been odd if he had not predicted this major upheaval. Roman generals stomped all over the temple and committed the “abomination of desolation.”
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:44-46. The Parable of the Hidden Treasure and the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price. You have to give up all you have to get the better thing.
Bible Study series: Acts 14:24-28. A positive and victorious report. Then they got back to work with the disciples.
Bible Study series: John 16:25-33. “I have spoken these things to you so that in me you may have peace.”
Bible Study series: Luke 10:25-37. These verses are important because they define what the greatest commandments are, and the parable is very beloved and admired.
Bible Study series: Mark 12:41-44. She challenges us to be generous.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:36-43. As noted in the companion post, leave judgment of the world up to God. Don’t cut down the weeds that look like wheat. You may damage the wheat.
The Third Way, in previous times, may have been legitimate.
Bible Study series: Acts 14:19-23. Paul was stoned and left for dead. The disciples gathered around him, and he recovered.
Bible Study series: John 16:16-24. “In a little while you will not see me, and again in a little while and you will see me”
Bible Study series: Luke 10:17-24. Their mission trip was a success. Demons were subjected to them in Jesus’s name
Bible Study series: Mark 12:38-40. They deserved it. In today’s Big Church Corporations, they need to hear the same thing.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:34-35. The hidden things are now being revealed to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.
It is explained point by point. There is a prayer for salvation in Christ alone at the end. Updated June 20, 2026, now July 31, 2026.
Bible Study series: Acts 14:8-18. God cares for people and he will use yielded vessels to heal the one he has chosen to heal.
Bible Study series: John 16:4b-15. “But if I go, I will send him to you.”
Bible Study series: Luke 10:13-16. Not every judgment is equal. Some sins are worse than others.
Bible Study series: Mark 12:35-37. Jesus taught this truth in the temple. He was greater than David.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:31-33. The kingdom of God expands slowly, as it rescues people from the kingdom of darkness. Each redeemed life represents kingdom expansion.
That’s a full title. But it’s all true. You must be born again. Redemption. Hope. Forgiveness. What does all this mean? Here are the verses that teach new birth.
Bible Study series: Acts 14:1-7. We’re still on Paul’s first missionary journey. This post describes the lives of the first generation of Christians.
Bible Study series: John 16:1-4a. “I have spoken these things to you so that you may not fall away.” We have been forewarned.
Bible Study series: Luke 10:1-12. Now the circle of missionaries widens to include disciples who were not part of the twelve. Ordered to proclaim that the kingdom of God is near, they too were empowered to minister to people.
Bible Study series: Mark 12:28-34. The man who answered was not far from the kingdom of God.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:24-30. We must leave judgment of the world in God’s hands. Let’s not presume to judge worldly people before God’s time.
This seems very harsh. Did he have a purpose? Of course. But what was it?
Bible Study series: Acts 13:42-52 At the end of the discourse, Paul and Barnabas were run out of town, though many had been saved.
Bible Study series: John 15:26-27. “The advocate,” “the helper,” “the go-between,” “he who comes alongside” will glorify Jesus, and no one else.
Bible Study series: Luke 9:57-62. Jesus was firmly resolved to go to Jerusalem and complete his mission. Do you want to join him? It’s all in or move on.
Bible Study series: Mark 12:18-27. Jesus deftly handled their hypotheticals.
Bible Study series: Matthew 13:18-23. Now we come to the interpretation. We need to see ourselves in the parable. Continue reading
