explore these questions related to doctrine

It seems more and more the case that the prerequisite to accurate Bible interpretation requires special training. In fact, this condition or restraint that accurate Bible interpretation requires special training can take many forms. For example, many churches require [more]

The once saved always saved doctrine (e.g. OSAS) teaches that once someone has been saved they can never fall away or “fall from grace.” This argument usually stems from an absolute position regarding God’s sovereignty. The reasoning goes something like:

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Determining how church is defined in the Bible could be done a few different ways. If we were to simply look up the word “church” in our modern dictionaries we would get something like, “a building [more]

A major debate regarding homosexuality has traditionally revolved around the “nature vs. nurture” discussion. Whether or not someone may be born with a “gay gene” was popular in the early 2000’s (and never proven) or other genetically-induced tendencies is still [more]

There is a belief among some that Jesus did not accomplish all that He came to earth to do. On the surface, the suggestion that God could fail and that Jesus did not accomplish His mission seems absurd.  Yet, this [more]

God has relied on messengers throughout history, but tracking the messengers of God through Scripture reveals some interesting things about God’s character and His word. It also has rather damning implications for “Churches” and individuals making claims about their own [more]

Free will: “Whether free will exists, what it is and the implications of whether it exists or not are some of the longest-running debates of philosophy and religion.” This is well-stated from Wikipedia. A search on [more]

The concept that God was fully human is a difficult one for mere mortals to grasp. Even the phrase “God incarnate” does not give the full impact. According to Dictionary.com the word incarnate means “embodied in [more]

What Christian’s believe and how they have come to understand what the Bible teaches isn’t always shaped purely by Scripture. The Ancient Greek influence of Gnosticism has had a profound and enduring effect on Christian thought. [more]

God’s irresistible grace, also referred to as the ‘effectual call’ in the Westminster Confession of Faith, is probably better known as “irresistible grace”. It represents the “I” in “TULIP” – a broader collection of doctrines ascribed [more]

A literal return of King David is a tenant of much of the modern religious thought today. Purveyors of premillennial doctrine, such as David Jeremiah, teach that King David will return in the flesh to rule alongside Jesus during the [more]

Central to this question of will Elijah return is a prophecy given by Malachi. Elijah was a prophet that lived during the final days of the judges, just before the first King Saul was installed over the twelve tribes of [more]

The seal of God or ‘God’s seal’ is a term that comes up enough in Scripture to take note. In fact, based on much of the published material about God’s seal, there is too often only [more]

A literal one thousand year reign of Jesus on His throne. There are many that believe Jesus’ return is for just that – a literal one thousand year reign (millennium) on earth. It is widely taught and even passed down [more]

Whether or not the Bible is the complete revelation of God has profound implications on Christianity today. If the Bible isn’t the complete revelation of God, then the door remains open to “other” revelation.

“Other” could be other scriptural authority [more]

It may seem like an odd or obvious question, but it’s definitely worth asking. Christian’s should be mindful of who we worship when coming together. More and more evidence in the Evangelical and Christian world today would suggest the [more]

Scripture weighting is not a term you will find in Scripture. However, it’s a practice you may recognize when coming to conclusions about Scripture. Fundamentally, it’s the practice of ignoring Scripture. That might sound egregious — but it’s fairly [more]

Being baptized with the Holy Spirit (aka Holy Spirit baptism) is a remarkably hot topic – often disputed among Christians today. And yet, there is little direct Scriptural reference to the explicit act of being “baptized with the Holy [more]

The word Bible is from the Greek and Latin meaning “book” or “books”. The Christian Bible as we know it is made up of two Testaments or Covenants (Old and New) that together might also be referred to as [more]

Has the God of the universe changed over time? Is God’s character subject to “evolving” the same way that you and I would develop over time? God’s character not changing is sometimes described as the immutability of God [more]

Judge not, that you be not judged.¹ Right out of Jesus’ sermon on the mount and one of the most quoted phrases from scripture. It speaks to the issue of judging others. [more]

The act of baptism is well recorded in Scripture. Not only was it a tradition among the Hebrew people for centuries, but it is what at least one Bible character was know by (John the Baptist) and it was [more]

Invitations to ‘call on the name of the Lord’ are often extended by preachers and especially, it seems, by tele-evangelists. This may be at the end of their sermon when they invite the audience to recite a prayer, often referred [more]