Blog – Page 185 – Grace Evangelical Society

Yesterday’s Faith

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Amos Binney, Arminianism, Continuous faith, methodism

Rev. Amos Binney was a Methodist preacher who wrote a short systematic theology called Binney’s Theological Compend (published in 1840) explaining “Biblical Methodism” (see here). The “improved” version edited by Daniel Steele is very readable and succinct. I think it is a model for how a short systematic theology should be done, and I plan

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Three Ways to Evaluate an Argument

September 14, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog

Gordon H. Clark once said, “Unless one knows the definition, he does not know what he is talking about” (see here). I recently wrote a blog where I said that while GES believed that Jesus is God in a fully Trinitarian sense, we deny that you need to believe that to be born-again (to grow,

Saving Faith Is Not Like Sitting in a Chair

September 13, 2018 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - chair illustration, saving faith, trusting Christ

A Pastor friend told me he ran across a 1993 article I wrote regarding the chair illustration. He shared it with a Bible study group and they found my suggestion helpful. The following is a revised and condensed version of that article. Many theologians, including some Free Grace proponents, say that saving faith has three

God Did It (Galatians 1:1-5)

September 12, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Grace, legalism, Salvation

Legalists from Israel were corrupting the Galatian churches, teaching them they needed to be circumcised and to keep different laws to be saved. Paul hit back. Hard. Paul’s greeting to the Galatian churches (1:1-5) strongly emphasized that God is the main actor in salvation. God sends the preacher (v 1a). God raised Jesus from the

The Lord Jesus Did Not Violate His Own Command Not to Call Another Person a Fool — Matthew 5:22 Versus Matthew 23:17

September 11, 2018 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Matthew 5:22; Matthew 23:17; Fool; Inerrancy

Here’s another great inbox question: In Jesus’ denunciation of the Jewish leaders in Matthew 23:16-22 he calls them fools twice. The Greek word is moros. This same word was used in Matthew 5:22 where Jesus said that anyone who calls someone a fool (moros) is liable to fiery Gehenna. Is Jesus violating His own command?

John Wesley on How To Read the Bible

September 10, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Bible reading, Bible study, John Wesley

If you want to grow spiritually, you must read the Bible everyday. Or you should listen to the Bible being read. As the Psalmist said, Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of

Simple Principles of Giving (2 Corinthians 8-9)

September 7, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog

What does the NT say about giving? I’m sure someone has told you that Christians should tithe. That is, you should give one-tenth of all you make to the church. That principle has the virtue of being easy to remember, but does it have the virtue of being true? The problem is, tithing is not

How Can a Layman Understand Repentance and Salvation?

September 6, 2018 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 2 Pet 3:9, Acts 2:38, Mark 1:15; Luke 13:3, Repentance and Salvation

Shawn had put a notice in our partner’s newsletter that I have started work on a book on repentance and salvation. Actually I’m only on Chapter 5 of 16. It will probably be six months or more before it is done, I think. Here is the email question: I am looking forward to your book

Anguish for Godly Ministers (Galatians 1:6)

September 5, 2018 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Galatians, liberalism, Martin Luther

“I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel” (Gal 1:6). Did you know that Harvard was founded to train ministers, specifically Puritans, to preach the gospel? Then liberals snuck in, and instead of starting their own school, they parasitically took over

Simon the Magician Was Born Again — Acts 8:4-25

September 4, 2018 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Acts 8:4-25, Repentance, saving faith, Simon Magus

We have run articles before in which we showed that Simon the Magician, aka Simon Magus, was a believer who sinned, not an unbeliever who sinned. See this article by Jody Dillow, this 1867 article by James Inglis, and this article by Zane Hodges, for more details. Today I came across an article by Dr.