Bob Wilkin | Grace Evangelical Society

Saved, Yet Through Fire, Part 1 (1 Cor 3:15)

December 10, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 1 Corinthians 3:15, salvation at the Judgment Seat of Christ, Soteriology

A friend sent me this excellent question: I am teaching on 1 Cor 3:10-17 Sunday. What is weird is I have not seen anyone handle the part of 3:15 that says, “but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” Everyone comments on “suffer loss.” My problem is that everyone, no matter how godly or ungodly, is saved the same

The Way the Children of God and of the Devil Are Manifested (1 John 3:9-10)

December 4, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 1 John 3:10, child of the devil, positional vs. experiential truth

“Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love

Support the Truth (2-3 John)

November 29, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Eternal Rewards, giving, Second John, Third John

The following is a slightly condensed version of a message I gave at the New Jersey/Pennsylvania GES Regional Conference on Nov 23. Author and Date: The Elder (John). Many commentators think these letters were written in the mid to late 80s or even in the 90s. However, I believe that the entire NT was surely written before AD 70 and the destruction of the

Knowing Him in Our Experience (1 John 2:3-11) Nine Principles of the Christian Life

November 26, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 1 John 2:3-11, Fellowship with God, Knowing God, Sanctification

The following is a condensed version of a message I gave on Nov 22 at the New Jersey/Pennsylvania GES Regional Conference. The longer you live in fellowship with someone, the better you get to know that person. A couple might have been married for 50 years and yet not know each other very well

The Total Accuracy of the Gospel Accounts

November 25, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Historical accuracy of the Gospels, inerrancy, John 14:26

In the Fall 2019 issue of DTS Magazine, I was quite interested to see an article by Drs. Darrell Bock and Benjamin Simpson, entitled, “Minding the Gap: Orality, Memory, & the Gospels” (pp. 8-11). The gap alluded to in the title is the time between Jesus’ ministry and the writing of the Gospels, thirty years or so. The authors

Matthew 7:21-23 Revisited

November 22, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - “the will of the Father, ” “I never knew you, ” “You will know them by their fruits”, Matthew 7:21-23

In a blog On November 19 (see here), I answered a question from a reader about salvation by self-denial. One of the responses I received to that blog suggested that I had not carefully explained Matt 7:21-23. The questioner had said that the people in Matt 7:21-23 will not go to heaven even though they thought they would. I have

The Outer Darkness Is Not the Lake of Fire

November 21, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Matthew 22:13, Matthew 25:30, Matthew 8:12, The Judgment Seat of Christ, the outer darkness

A friend asked me if I saw an article by Hampton Keathley IV at the Bible.org website entitled, “The Outer Darkness: Heaven’s Suburb or Hell?” You can see it here. I’ve known Keathley for a long time. He is a friend and a Free Grace guy. The expression the outer darkness (or the darkness outside) only occurs three times in

Arguments for Salvation by Dying to Self and Walking in His Ways

November 19, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Matthew 7:13-14, Matthew 7:21-23, Repentance and Salvation, Salvation and self-denial

A reader of our website has a problem with our stand that salvation from eternal condemnation is by faith alone, apart from works. She wrote: I enjoyed reading your article on Acts 13:48 since I’m aware of Calvinism and did consider this verse very strong for their support.  As is life in Jesus, we read

The Last Words in Ecclesiastes (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

November 12, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 2 Corinthians 5:10, Bema, Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, Judgment of Bad Deeds, Judgment of Deeds Done in Secret, The Judgment Seat of Christ

Ecclesiastes is a difficult book. The reason is probably because Solomon was seeking pleasure and wisdom from a humanistic perspective. But by the time he gets to the end of the book, Solomon has clearly shown that from a humanistic perspective, life has no meaning or purpose. It is all vain. Solomon concludes in this way, “Fear God

Turning the Other Cheek (Matt 5:38-42)

November 8, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Matthew 5:38-42, the Sermon on the Mount, Turning the other cheek

Questions about the Sermon on the Mount are always challenging. Here is one I just received: How would you exegete this passage (Matt 5:38-40)? I have read that in Jewish culture, a slap to the face is considered an insult. Jesus isn’t saying let your face be a punching bag, but if someone insults you, let it go. Is