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What would you do for your husband? Do you love him? Do you care for him? God gave women a very special role in life, to be a helper, comparable to her husband (Gen. 2:18). God created women to complement a man and to be his partner in life. Through women, children are born, families are raised, nations are built, and God’s plan of salvation was fulfilled (Gen. 3:15; Matt. 1:20-21). Since Eve, women have brought life to the world by the will of God. Are you bringing life to

It seems that there are some sins which are quickly and universally condemned, such as murder, stealing, rape, child molestation, etc. The very thought of these (and others) can be so repulsive to some that they immediately condemn any practice of it. Yet, there are some other sins that even Christians seem to have a hard time standing against. These often involve a relationship of some kind, and when it involves someone that a Christian loves, it pulls at the heartstrings t

King Saul was a serious disappointment. When we are introduced to him in 1 Samuel 9, he was impressive in his own right. Although Saul didn’t come from a great tribe of Israel, he had a powerful father, and he became the tallest and most handsome man in Israel. But Saul wasn’t just impressive to look at. Saul also had a great sense of duty and humility. When his father lost his prized donkeys, Saul diligently looked for them. Eventually, he inquired of Samuel to seek his adv

An Ontological Contradiction. Reformed Theology advances the doctrine of meticulous providence. It teaches that God predetermined and controls every detail of history. Nothing occurs apart from His eternal decree. This doctrine is said to protect divine sovereignty, yet when carried to its logical end it destroys the holiness of God, removes human accountability, and renders prayer meaningless. The Scriptures affirm that God is sovereign. He rules heaven and earth, and nothi

One of my favorite quotes on this particular question comes from Queries and Answers by Lipscomb and Sewell . The subtitle of the book is “ A Compilation of Queries with Answers by D. Lipscomb and E.G. Sewell, covering a period of forty years of their joint editorial labors on the Gospel Advocate. ” The book was published in 1921 and was edited by M.C. Kurfees. While the following is a bit of a lengthy quote, it well articulates a sound response to the question: The claim th

This particular visit seemed odd. We had traveled to my parents’ home on many occasions, but my father had never taken the time to discuss the pictures that were in the frames hanging on the wall. Many of them contained images of my two sons. Our third son, Noah, would not be born until about two years after my parents passed away in 2005. Most of the pictures were of my sons, Dad’s grandbabies. My father, in a rather cryptic manner said, “I suppose when we are gone one day,

The discussion of the sovereignty of God often manifests itself within the “prison of two ideas” fallacy. The prison of two ideas fallacy is that there are two and only two choices in a particular line of thought or action. In politics you'll hear things like, “you're either for immigration or you're a xenophobe.” “You're either pro-choice or you hate women.” “You'll start recycling or you want to kill all the polar bears.” The prison of two ideas is a very dangerous and fall

Duration is defined as, “ the time during which something continues. ” In the previous edition, spiritual gifts were clearly defined and enumerated from First Corinthians 12. The gifts were miraculous abilities that were distributed as the Holy Spirit willed (1Cor. 12:11), through the laying on of the apostles’ hands (Acts 8:14-19; Rom. 1:11; 2 Tim. 1:6). A question that necessarily follows, and that is addressed in First Corinthians 13 is about the duration of said gifts. I

Ephesians 2:3 is a favorite text of those who teach that humans inherit the guilt of Adam’s sin. For example, John Piper, a popular Calvinist, appeals to this text to support the idea of inherited sin. He says: “There is a phrase in verse 3 that shows the seriousness of deadness. At the end it says, ‘We were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.’ In other words the things we have done to bring the wrath of God upon us we have done by nature. We need a Savior

Will the Lord come again? No doubt, many have asked this question in some form or another. This is a valid question which deserves an answer. How can we be sure He is coming again? To understand the answer to this question is to understand the very nature of God. The Hebrew writer said, “That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us” (Heb. 6:18). God

First Corinthians 12-14 is a detailed discussion about spiritual gifts in the functioning of the church in Corinth. Paul immediately informed his readers that they did not have to be ignorant in regard to what the gifts were, their purpose, duration, and the order that should have existed when the congregation was assembled and the gifts were employed. In turn, today’s reader of these three chapters should not be ignorant either! The first thing addressed was that the gifts w

"Every one therefore that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man, who built his house upon the rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon the rock” (Matt. 7:24-25). The context of Matthew 7:24-27 goes back to Matthew 7:21-23. On the Day of Judgment, many will say they had done many wonderful works for the Lord. However, the Lord tells them th

As I write this article, the Catholic Church has had a new leader for two days. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was chosen to serve, according to the Roman Catholic Church, as the 267th Pope and his chosen named is Pope Leo XIV. We are told that there were no clear “front-runners” to win the papacy, although there were several candidates. There were 133 cardinal electors who voted inside the Sistine Chapel and, in order to win the vote, a candidate must obtain a two-thirds ma

Have you ever invited someone to church only to hear them say that “one church is just as good as another?” This creates much frustration in doing evangelism with people from denominations or even with those who have no church affiliation. The Bible teaches that there is one body or church (Eph. 4:4), and this stands in stark contrast to what the world teaches about the topic of church affiliation. On the surface, this sounds like a reasonable argument, but when it is examine

Of the seven things God hates mentioned in Proverbs chapter six, the last one of these seven is “…he that soweth discord among brethren” (Prov. 6:19). There are four parts to this statement: (1) “he” that is, the one who is doing the sowing; (2) The sowing itself; (3) That which is sowed; (4) To whom it is sowed among - the brethren. As we think about the one who is doing the sowing, we should realize we are sowing something, whether good or evil. The life we live, the thing

The faithful student of the Bible knows that “antichrist” appears only five times in Scripture, in only four verses, and all in the writings of the apostle John. The word itself simply means, “one who opposes Christ.” The first appearance of this term is found in First John 2:18. “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.” Next is First John 2:22 which r

I have been preaching “full-time” for over 25 years. I have worked in Tennessee, Florida, and Arkansas and at four different congregations in that time. One subject that has needed attention in every place is that of the consumption of alcohol. I saw a statement on Facebook that is very accurate: “Alcohol is the one drug that you have to defend yourself for NOT using.” The consumption of alcohol is so common that you are considered abnormal for not partaking. I do not think

Paul speaks about the grace of God and sets forth its true nature in Titus 2:11-12. The gospel has to do with the person of Christ, the Word provided, and the Word proclaimed and received. The one word that best states this is GRACE. Thus, we read of: "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom.16:20). Paul describes it as such: "But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have

The word of God is very plain about murder. It is a clear violation of God’s law for one to murder another human being. While the Bible does make distinctions between capital punishment and killing in self-defense, murdering someone “in cold blood” is sinful. That having been said, we have seen several news cycles that show people who are experiencing “joy” at witnessing the murder of other innocent human beings. Some have even expressed a desire for others to die in assassin