In Luke 9:49–50, the disciples tried to stop a man from acting in Jesus’ name because he was not part of their immediate group. Jesus corrected their jealousy and exclusivity: the man was doing good under Christ’s authority and was not opposing Christ’s mission. First-century rabbis normally had identifiable bands of disciples, but Christ’s kingdom …
The Greek title translated “Prince” or “Leader” in Acts 5:31 identifies Jesus as the chief, ruler, or head. Peter says that God exalted Jesus at his right hand as Leader and Savior, the one who grants repentance and forgiveness. This title does not diminish Christ’s deity. Philippians 2 explains that the eternal Son, existing in …
Jordan Peterson has expressed ideas about personal responsibility, truth, culture, and the Bible that overlap with Christian convictions. His work has encouraged some people to reconsider Scripture, and Christians may learn useful observations from non-Christian thinkers just as they may learn mathematics, history, or politics from them. He should not, however, function as a Bible …
Human beings have a material aspect—the body—and an immaterial aspect that Scripture may describe with terms such as soul or spirit. The immaterial side includes the mind, will, affections, and emotions, while the body is our physical, biological existence. Biblical words do not always carry one rigid technical meaning. “Soul” can refer to the immaterial …
A Christian does not need to use the label “cessationist,” but should ask what Scripture teaches about the purpose and expected duration of miraculous signs. God is able to divide seas or provide manna, yet believers do not ordinarily expect those miracles because Scripture shows that they served particular purposes at particular times. Hebrews 2:1–4 …
The Bible was complete when the final word of the final inspired book was written. The last New Testament book was likely Revelation, written by the apostle John near the end of the first century. At that moment, the full collection of God-breathed Scripture existed, even though copies still had to be circulated and recognized …
The Trinity is the biblical teaching that one God exists eternally as three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There is one “what” and three “whos.” The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father, yet each is fully and equally God. The three …
John 16:7 describes the ordered sequence of God’s redemptive plan. Christ first completed his earthly ministry and accomplished the work that provides forgiveness; afterward the Holy Spirit came in the distinctive new-covenant ministry Jesus promised. Ezekiel and Jeremiah portray that covenant in two connected stages: God cleanses his people from sin and then places his …
Zechariah 10–11 condemns Israel’s unfaithful shepherds and leaders as a group for failing to care for God’s flock. That wider context cautions against immediately identifying the wounded, worthless shepherd of Zechariah 11 with the Antichrist. The identification cannot be ruled out categorically, because much of Zechariah is prophetic and some connections will become clearer when …
Historic Babylon became an enduring biblical picture of organized opposition to God’s people after destroying Jerusalem and the temple in 586 BC. Revelation uses that history to portray the corrupt world system that will oppose God and his people under the final ruler Scripture calls the Antichrist or man of lawlessness. Revelation 17’s seven mountains …
Isaiah 45:7 teaches that God sovereignly brings both well-being and calamity, while John 10:10 says Christ came to give abundant life. These truths are not contradictory because calamity is not God’s final purpose or something he delights in for its own sake. Job illustrates the relationship. God permitted Satan to bring severe suffering within limits, …
The Reformers initially sought to reform the Roman Catholic Church, especially its teaching about salvation and practices such as selling indulgences. Separation became unavoidable because Rome rejected their biblical corrections rather than changing its doctrine. The Council of Trent later formalized Rome’s counter-Reformation teaching and condemned the Reformers’ gospel of salvation by grace alone through …
Someone who speaks in the first person as though God is delivering a personal message claims the role Scripture assigns to a prophet: serving as God’s mouthpiece. God is truthful and infallible, so a prophecy attributed to him cannot be excused as an ordinary, well-meaning mistake when it fails. The modern idea of a “fallible …
Second Peter 2:1 describes false teachers who secretly introduce destructive heresies and deny “the Master who bought them.” The phrase should be read in light of their profession: these teachers claimed Christ as Master and presented themselves as Christian teachers, even while their lives and doctrine denied him. Peter’s wording is therefore sarcastic or ironic. …
The existence of an Ethiopian canon with additional books does not mean that books were removed from the familiar 66-book Bible. The Old Testament canon was preserved within Israel’s centralized worship and scribal community, while the New Testament books were recognized early as apostolic writings circulated among the churches. Early Christian sermons and writings repeatedly …
No person’s spoken curse has binding spiritual power over someone’s children or later descendants. God deals with each generation according to its own response to him rather than mechanically punishing descendants for words spoken against their ancestors. Scripture does recognize generational consequences. A parent’s divorce, addiction, criminal activity, or destructive choices can deeply harm children …
Christians did not create the biblical canon by arbitrarily choosing preferred books. The canon was recognized among God’s people as inspired writings were received, preserved, and used. The Old Testament books were kept within Israel’s covenant community, while the New Testament books were recognized through their apostolic authority and widespread reception in the early church. …
The sufficiency of Scripture does not make biblical counseling unnecessary. Scripture contains everything needed for life and godliness, but people often need help understanding which passages apply to a situation and how to obey them. That is also why God gives teachers and preachers to the church. Ezra explained the meaning of Scripture to God’s …
The New Testament books were written in the first century, not assembled as new compositions hundreds of years after Jesus. Several independent lines of historical evidence make a fourth- or fifth-century origin impossible. Early Christian leaders in the late first, second, and third centuries preached from and quoted New Testament books. Their surviving writings—often collected …
Exodus 20:13 is best translated “You shall not murder,” not as an absolute prohibition of every act that causes death. The Hebrew word refers to the wrongful, malicious taking of human life rather than to killing in the broadest possible sense. The Mosaic Law itself distinguishes murder from other circumstances. It provides for civil execution …
The letter was written by James, the half-brother of Jesus and a leader in the early Jerusalem church. The Greek name behind the English “James” is closely related to the name Jacob; the different English form does not identify a different person. James is called Jesus’ half-brother because Jesus was conceived through the virgin birth, …
The most important fact about unidentified anomalous phenomena is that they are unidentified. Because the evidence is incomplete, Christians should not immediately declare UAPs demonic, extraterrestrial, or part of a conspiracy. History shows that governments and private companies sometimes develop technology long before the public understands it. Some unexplained reports may eventually receive ordinary technological …
Paul is correcting the Corinthians for boasting in particular teachers and dividing into camps—“I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas.” Their pride had reduced God’s abundant gifts to small possessions over which they competed. Imagine children at a family table arguing over a few peanuts or carrots. Their father reminds them that …
“The perfect” most naturally refers to the believer’s glorification when we see Christ face to face, not to the completion of the New Testament canon. First Corinthians 13:12 is the key: now we see dimly and know in part, but then we will see face to face and know fully. First John 3:2 describes the …
The “super-apostles” were false teachers troubling the Corinthian church and presenting themselves as superior to Paul. The expression is sarcastic; Paul was not praising a higher class of genuine apostles. They criticized Paul as unimpressive and lacking eloquence, while exploiting the Greco-Roman expectation that prominent teachers would be supported by wealthy patrons. Paul’s refusal to …
Interpret a biblical parable or illustration by paying attention to the comparisons the inspired text actually makes. Do not build doctrine from details the passage never mentions or from features that are absent. For example, Ephesians 6 identifies particular parts of a soldier’s armor and explains what they represent: the sword is the word of …
First Corinthians 11 must be read with attention to Paul’s own words. He frames the discussion as a “tradition,” “practice,” or “custom,” while also teaching enduring principles about God’s order, authority, and the interdependence of men and women. In first-century Corinth, covered or uncovered heads and the length of a person’s hair communicated recognizable cultural …
The Bible’s command to fear God is more than a vague feeling of reverence, but it is not the terror of a believer expecting God to destroy him. Exodus 20:20 captures both meanings: Moses tells Israel not to fear as though God had come to kill them, yet says God was testing them so that …
Some Old Testament books do not identify their human author, even though they were recognized and preserved as Scripture. That does not undermine their authority or the care with which Israel received them. From Moses onward, God’s prophets were publicly recognized as his spokesmen. Their messages were often marked by “Thus says the Lord,” and …