Blog | Grace Evangelical Society

Bind Him and Cast Him into the Outer Darkness (Matthew 22:13)

August 9, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - eschatological judgment, Matthew 22:13, outer darkness

Here is the hot question for the day from my in-box: First, I’d like to say that I appreciate GES, and I’m in agreement with much of what I’ve read and heard so far. One thing I am not currently understanding clearly is the phrase ‘bind him hand and foot’ pertaining to the outer darkness events. I

Jesus’ Last Week in Light of Daniel 9:25-26

August 8, 2019 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Daniel, Matthew, Prophecy, Temple

After centuries of promising to send a Messiah, God finally gave a concrete timeline in Daniel 9:24-27 for when He would come. And vv 25-26 give us specific information about what would happen to Messiah at that time: “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the

Unless You Believed in Vain (1 Corinthians 15:2)

August 7, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 1 Corinthians 15:2, Eternal Security, the perseverance of the saints, unless you believed in vain

I received the following question in a comment to a blog I wrote: “Why does Paul say you can believe in vain, 1 Cor. 15:2?” The questioner doesn’t seem to believe in eternal security. He implies that Paul was saying that you could believe in Christ, be born again, and then end up going to Hades anyway because the

Foundation Crumbling

August 6, 2019 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Christian ethics, family, morality

Over the summer, I’ve been re-reading Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series. Haven’t read it since high school. The series is set 20,000 years into the future. A Galactic Empire is spread across the stars. But it’s crumbling. Hari Seldon, a “psychohistorian,” foresees the empire will fall, leading to a long period of barbarism. So Seldon puts together a plan to save humanity. At the far end of the galaxy, on a minor and neglected planet named Terminus,

“My Way”—Frank Sinatra Spirituality

August 5, 2019 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Christian Life, dependence, Major Thomas, spirituality

In “My Way,” Frank Sinatra famously sang, Regrets, I’ve had a few But then again, too few to mention. I did what I had to do and saw it through without exemption. I planned each charted course, each careful step along the byway, And more, much more than this, I did it my way. …

Assurance and Faith

August 2, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - Assurance, assurance is of the essence of saving faith, Faith, saving faith

Beware of what you say. You may contradict yourself. Or, you might contradict your mentor. Here is a great question from a reader/listener: At the beginning of the July 4th episode of Grace in Focus Radio on Discussions on Christianity for the Emotionally Damaged, Bob stated that assurance is another name for faith or belief. Zane

Four Free Bible Study Resources

August 1, 2019 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Bible study, lexicon

I am amazed at the number of free Bible study resources that are available online. Of course, the pre-eminent Bible study software is Logos, but it is expensive. If you’re a pastor or Bible teacher, it may be worth the expense. However, for everyone else, these websites can help you with your studies. At least, these are the tools I use

The Role of Determination to Obey in Progressive Sanctification

July 31, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog - 2 Corinthians 3:18, determination to obey, progressive sanctification, Romans 12:1-2

One of the comments put on an earlier blog pointed people to some articles on our website explaining John 2:23-25 and John 8:30-32. I went to one of the articles on John 8:30-32. I found the following section, which I think is worthy of repetition and expansion. Here is what I wrote (you can see the

Satan’s Sifting

July 30, 2019 by Shawn Lazar in Blog - Job, Peter, Satan

In Job 1, hasatan—the Adversary , Opponent, or Accuser—traditionally identified as Satan—asked God to afflict Job. Satan wanted to test Job’s faithfulness to prove he feared God for the wrong reasons: So Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side?  You have blessed the work

Update on Sharon’s Recovery from Cancer and Chemo

July 29, 2019 by Bob Wilkin in Blog

Many of you are aware that Sharon underwent surgery for what turned out to be ovarian cancer last December. You have been praying for her as she underwent six chemo treatments, lost her hair, developed neuropathy in her feet, and lost lots of weight. Sharon’s last chemo was on May 24. After that she suffered