What does the Law do?

Paul insists that the Law is unable to make us right with God. He also insists that the original promises to God’s people were about faith and not Law.  Does this mean that Law and Faith or Law and Grace are in competition? A look at the text Read Galatians 3:23-29 So, does the Law… Continue reading What does the Law do?

The ideal wife?

Sometimes in discussions about the roles of men and women, especially with regards to the debate about complementarianism and egalitarianism, Proverbs 31 is cited as significant.   How relevant exactly is this passage to the debate? That will depend on the purpose of the passage. There are three options. Different commentators have made their case in… Continue reading The ideal wife?

Penal Substitution: Steve Chalke and the Lost Message of Jesus, 20 years on

In 2023, a little book by a prominent Christian communicator shook the evangelical world.  Steve Chalke stated in “The Lost Message of Jesus” that the doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement if true would amount to “cosmic child abuse.”[1]  It’s important to be clear about what he wasn’t saying. Chalke did not claim that the atonement… Continue reading Penal Substitution: Steve Chalke and the Lost Message of Jesus, 20 years on

The curse

When the people of Israel came out of Egypt, God gave them The Law in the wilderness at Sinai. Then, before they were about to go into Canaan, Moses in effect set before them a choice between curse and blessings. This choice was to be enacted in a covenant ceremony.  The people were to pass… Continue reading The curse

Father Abraham had many sons

In Galatians 3:6, Paul has taken us back to the example of Abraham, the ancestor of God’s people, to whom, through whom and in whom God’s covenant with his people was made.   He has demonstrated, as he will again when he writes to the Christians in Rome that Abraham was justified by faith. In other… Continue reading Father Abraham had many sons

Bewitched

Do you enjoy magic tricks?  Are you left amazed by how the magician manages to get the right card every time, pull the rabbit from a hat or make his assistant disappear. Of course, no one really thinks that it’s real magic. We know that the magician relies on slights of hand and diversion tactics… Continue reading Bewitched

Does God care particularly about special places?

The other day, I wrote about the Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer. One of the things I picked up was that there were claims of a special experience of God’s presence at the site.  One of the questions that has come back in discussion is whether or not God does show concern for specific places… Continue reading Does God care particularly about special places?