Ever since I was knee-high to a gnat, I have been taught and have believed in the infallibility of Scripture. Among the upper echelons of doctrinal truths, this one ranks alongside the Godhead, the deity of Christ, and salvation by grace. We may fuss around with a few of the events in God’s eschatological calendar […]
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Jesus Has a Question For You
At the zenith of His career, Jesus pulled away to the secluded area of Caesarea Philippi. On His mind was a crucial question for His disciples—and for us as well. Travel back with me to the scene as it unfolds. The surroundings are impressive. Flowing springs. Lush gardens. Monuments and temples dedicated to the worship […]
Read MoreUnearthing Our Walk with Christ
On more than one occasion recently I’ve found myself pondering the words of Socrates: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” That statement rings true because things tend to get complicated over time. We begin our Christian life with utter delight and simplicity. But as tradition, religion, others’ expectations, and too many activities begin to […]
Read MoreWaiting in a Weary Land
One of the favorite places I visited when touring Israel was the Judean Wilderness. Because this wasteland sits almost completely unchanged from biblical days, I found it easy—even eerie—to gaze across the landscape and ponder that men such as Joshua, David, Jeremiah, John the Baptist, and Jesus saw these hills almost exactly as I was […]
Read MoreScriptural Support for Christ’s Return
These facts from biblical prophecy about Christ’s return may surprise you: One out of every 30 verses in the Bible mentions the subject of Christ’s return or the end of time. Of the 216 chapters in the New Testament, there are well over 300 references to the return of Christ. 23 of the 27 New […]
Read MoreReading Revelation
Q. Why should I study the book of Revelation? Is it really relevant to my life? A. First, God’s inerrant Word is a reliable map. No matter how difficult it is to comprehend the mind-blowing visions presented in Revelation, we must not forget that it is part of God’s Word. As such, it includes an […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Prophecy
Probably the most important issue in understanding prophecy is the question of whether it should be understood literally. One widespread assumption is that while ordinary Scripture can be interpreted in a literal manner, with terms retaining their natural meaning, prophetic portions of the Bible should be treated as a special case, with the literal or […]
Read MoreHow We Got the Old Testament
The Content and Extent of the Old Testament Canon Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. —The apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 10:11) The use of the Old Testament Scriptures by the church has been the subject of […]
Read MoreLooking at the Big Picture . . . and Finding Hope
If you know a little about the birth of Jesus, it might be best for you to forget it and start from scratch. The Christmas story has been so sanitised and romanticised over the centuries that even Hollywood—as jaded a culture as can be found anywhere—always fails to capture the gritty pathos that surrounded Jesus’s […]
Read MoreFive Promises from a Shepherd to His Flock
A number of years ago, a friend dropped by my study. He’s a true friend, one who knows me well . . . and loves me, warts and all. He also speaks the truth in love, which is exactly what he did in the last twenty minutes of our visit that day. I could tell […]
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