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Salvation

In Bible Study, Blog, John on
September 11, 2023

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

Many people in today’s world will argue that there is more than one way to get to God. They take a more universalist approach, saying that whether you call God Yahweh, Allah, or Vishnu, it’s really the same God and whatever you do in this life will end up with you in the same afterlife. To suggest anything otherwise would be viewed as bigoted and intolerant. After all, who are we to criticize someone’s religious convictions and suggest that their personally held beliefs will send them to hell?

Although there a myriad of differences and contradictions between the world religions of today that we could analyze and focus on, we, as Christians, ought to aim our primary focus on what God and His Word have to say about this debate. Throughout the Old Testament, we can see that God does not tolerate other religious practices or forms of worship, and He lays down harsh punishments against those who stray from His Law (even when it’s His own people). In the New Testament, we find that the early church communities are repeatedly warned not to be conformed to the world around them and are rebuked when they are found to be doing so. However, there is one particular passage in the Gospel of John that leaves absolutely no room for debate, clearly stating that there is, in fact, only one way to God: Jesus.

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In Blog, Feelings, Theology on
August 28, 2023

Am I Enough?

You are enough.

Or, at least, that’s what everybody says. That’s what’s on the t-shirts and the coffee mugs and the pastel Instagram graphics. It’s the mantra of every female empowerment influencer. You are enough. Having a bad day? You are enough. Dealing with “toxic” friends? You are enough. So frustrated with your kids that you can’t get through the day without a glass of wine? You. Are. Enough.

This little phrase is quite popular these days, especially amongst women, even amongst some Christians. These three words are meant to be encouraging, inspiring, empowering, to remind you that you’re doing the best you can do and that’s okay. But while the phrase may make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, it shouldn’t be automatically accepted as authoritative truth. As with everything else, we ought to take it to the Bible and see how it lines up with the teachings of Scripture.

So, what does the Bible have to say about this? Does the Bible teach that we are enough?

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In Blog, Common Questions, Theology on
July 3, 2023

Is Religious Belief Personal or Objective?

We live in a culture that prioritizes “my truth.” People are encouraged to “live your truth” and believe that “what’s true for you isn’t necessarily true for me.” To the society at large, “truth” is a subjective concept. There is no right and wrong answer or belief system. There is no “objective truth.” You can believe whatever you want to believe with virtually no consequences.

Though this idea is certainly in vogue these days, it’s actually rather ridiculous. It is simply not logical to say truth can be whatever you want it to be. Truth is truth. Period. In her aptly named book, Live Your Truth (and Other Lies), author and apologist Alisa Childers wrote,

“Truth is a thought, statement, or opinion that lines up with reality. That’s it…Truth is true for all people in all places and times.”[1]

Perhaps you read those three sentences and balked. Well, that’s just one person’s opinion, one person’s truth. Many people, including some Christians, don’t like to say that a person’s belief system is right or wrong, especially since religious beliefs tend to be very personal. But instead of listening to our feelings or cultural mores, we, as Christians, ought to take our cues on this issue from our supreme source of truth, the Word of our sovereign and omniscient God.

So, what does the Bible have to say about this? Is religious belief personal or objective?

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In Bible Study, Blog, John on
June 5, 2023

The Good Shepherd

Growing up in the suburbs, I’ve never been an outdoorsy girl. I’ve always appreciated sitting in the air conditioning reading a good book or perusing the stores of a shopping center rather than going on a camping trip in the dead of summer or hiking for miles and miles on end. Now, don’t get me wrong. I very much enjoy nature and love to take pictures of stunning sunsets, majestic mountains, and other gorgeous scenery. But if I were given a choice between spending time indoors or outdoors, I’d likely choose the former.

This is probably true for many of us living in the western world. Since the Industrial Revolution, our society is seeing fewer and fewer people working in the outdoors—farming and agriculture—and more and more working nine to five in some office building crunching numbers and running reports under the harsh, florescent glow of artificial light.

However, the culture of ancient Israel was quite different from ours. They had a far more agricultural society, and many Israelites had to work the land and raise livestock just to survive and put food on the table. Because agriculture played such a huge role in their lives, many of Jesus’ parables and teachings in first century Israel were centered around farming. The Jews living in the time of Christ would have had no issues understanding his agrarian examples, but because we are so far removed from farming life, we often struggle to understand what Jesus means.

In His fourth I Am statement, which is found in John 10, Jesus describes Himself as “the Good Shepherd.” If you’re anything like me, you may have no clue what it looks like to be a shepherd in today’s day and age, let alone two thousand years ago. So, what is Jesus saying when He claims, “I Am the Good Shepherd”?

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In Bible Study, Blog, John on
April 10, 2023

The Door

Back in 2019, I traveled to Romania on a mission trip, and while I was there, our team had the opportunity to visit a Romanian Orthodox church in Bucharest. It was a rather small church, but its distinct beauty made up for its humble size. The front doors were made of solid wood, carved with an ornate floral design. Chandeliers and metallic lanterns hung from above. The walls were trimmed with gold and covered from floor to ceiling with brightly painted icons of saints who’ve passed on to glory.

Yet, despite its beautiful architecture and design, our group felt a spiritual heaviness as we walked through the doors. At the front of the room, a white-haired woman in a long coat kneeled on her knees before a priest, presumably confessing her sins to the man. The eyes of the icons stared down at us with glowing halos around their heads, reminding us of the common practice of venerating the saints. Our entire team felt a sense that it was a place of works-based religion and a place where many worshippers sought out a human mediator rather than going straight to God.

The Romanian Orthodox Church is certainly not the only church that practices these things. There are several different denominations and sects of Christianity that practice confession and veneration of the saints, that seek out mediators between them and God. However, the reality is that we have no need for an earthly mediator. We have no need to confess all our sins to a priest or honor the saints of old in a particular way. Why? Because we have Jesus. And Jesus is the Door.

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