The Lord Jesus Christ taught with authority. He claimed to be “The Truth” (John 14:6) and God in the flesh. One of Christ’s go-to teaching tools was the Parable. Since parables are diverse, formulating a clear definition to cover each of Jesus’ parables is difficult. One of the best definitions I’ve come across is from […]
Bible & Theology
5 Lessons on Spiritually Abusive Leadership from Diotrephes, an Obscure New Testament Character
I’m grateful for God’s emphasis on both sound doctrine and sound living for Christian leaders. That’s why Paul commanded Timothy to watch his life and doctrine closely (1 Timothy 4:16)—a Christian leader needs to live a holy life to back up the message of God’s holy Word. Unfortunately, many leaders have sound doctrine on paper, […]
Who is Barnabas in the Bible? 10 Things to Know
Character studies of Bible heroes are of great value for the church. Many Bible studies walk through the lives of Joseph, Moses, David, the Apostle Paul, or Peter for great profit. The Bible also contains some hidden gems, more “behind the scenes” type of characters including Barnabas–a man mentioned 23 times in Acts and five […]
Sermon: The Melodic Line of Genesis (Overview Sermon)
Listen to this overview sermon of Genesis on YouTube. Read or listen to this message in Spanish. How do you respond to bad news? Maybe it’s bad news in your own life, like a bad diagnosis. Maybe it’s seeing so much senseless violence in culture or seeing how the culture more and more loves […]
What does propitiation mean? A helpful illustration
In a sermon titled “Justification“, Colin S. Smith shared the following helpful illustration on the meaning of propitiation from Romans 3:25. A propitiation is a gift or payment offered to placate the anger of an offended person. The best way to explain is through an illustration, so let me introduce you to two characters, Neil […]