Tag: theology

  • Determining Doctrine

    During the time of the Apostles, when Scripture was being written, the Apostle Paul warned us (the Church) against error creeping in if we weren’t vigilant. Sadly even within the New Testament period, heresy was being introduced into the visible Church. Many new heresies arose during the 3rd to 5th centuries, particularly false teachings about…

  • A Tale of Authorities

    When defining doctrine, we Reformed affirm Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) as our highest authority. It restricts us from tainting our interpretation of Scripture by adding extraneous sources of doctrine. Roman Catholics affirm Sola Ecclesia (Church Alone) contains the dual authorities of tradition and the magisterium (teaching authority). Scripture, tradition, and the magisterium are all equal…

  • America: Once a Bastion of the Reformed – Now Apostate

    In 1793, 956 out of 1,032 baptist churches in America were calvinistic. This equates to 93%. A 2012 Lifeway poll of SBC pastors found that of 1,066 SBC pastors, 30% said their churches were calvinistic. One of the foremost constitutional theorists of the founding generation, John Adams, observed, “Our Constitution was made only for a…

  • Eastern Orthodoxy and Scripture

    Unlike us Reformed Protestants, the Eastern Orthodox (EO) place their phronema (collective consensus over time), which is merely the fallible traditions of men, to a place of preeminence. This is an extremely dangerous position to be in. The EO do not have the corrective force of Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) to guide and safeguard their…

  • My Testimony: From Darkness to Light

    I grew up in a loving Christian home. My parents were both cradle Catholics who got born again in the early 70s, during the Jesus Movement – which started in the late 60s. My parents were Christian hippies. They grew out of that when we kids were born and they became regular Protestants. At a…

  • My Blessed Childhood

    My first memory is staring out the window and seeing the snowfall on a cold December day, 2 weeks before Christmas. I was 16 months old. I also recall the warm fuzzy sky-blue blanket I was wrapped in. Overall I had a very happy childhood. I had a loving mother and father, and 2 sisters:…

  • Free Christian E-Book: The Mystery of the Trinity

    This book is a work by New Testament Scholar Vern Poythress who teaches at Westminster Theological Seminary.  It is titled “Mystery and the Trinity” with the subtitle “A Trinitarian Approach to the Attributes of God.” While Poythress official teaching position is New Testament professor I have found him to be skilled in multiple discipline ranging…

  • The Critical Importance of Sola Scriptura

    God’s revelation to man is mediated through the Scriptures. Our faith is predicated on the living Word of God, namely Christ Himself. He is the divine Logos Whom created the universe. Christ reveals to us all that He wants us to know and do (faith and praxis) through the Scriptures. The Scriptures (God’s Word) are…

  • The Roman Catholic Church in Analysis

    Background Since its beginning, with the Edict of Thessalonica in 380 AD, making Trinitarian Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire, the Roman Catholic church has, over the centuries, accumulated a vast corpus of doctrine/dogma. These beliefs which have accreted are simply the traditions of man and most have absolutely no basis in Scriptura.…

  • The Gospel: Defined and Defended

    Background If you ask many people, who espouse Christ and go to church every week, just what is the gospel you will get various responses. Some will say being a “good person” is the gospel. Roman Catholics may say the gospel is that Jesus died for us and is present in a real way in…