By Doug Potgeter Some theologians today claim that the Apostle Paul was uncertain whether he would make it to heaven. The passage they use to support this claim is found in 1 Cor 9:24-27, where Paul wrote: Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?

By Philippe R. Sterling Jesus judged the church at Philadelphia that was faithful (3:7-13). “Here Comes the Sun” was written by George Harrison and was featured on the Beatles’ album Abbey Road in 1969. The lyrics reflect his relief at the arrival of spring and the temporary respite he was experiencing from the band’s business

By Bob Wilkin1 The Calvinist doctrine of unconditional election is meant to be a wonderful comfort to people. Back in 1978 I was on staff with Cru at NC State University. I remember hearing the Campus Director from the University of Carolina speak on the doctrine of election. I don’t recall having heard about it

By Ken Yates INTRODUCTION Politics has a bad reputation today. Our leaders are accused of not doing what is right, but simply letting their politics dictate their decisions. The approval rating of members of Congress is below 20%, and it has been as low as 9%. By comparison, 47% of Americans have a very favorable

By Lucas Kitchen I have received the question pretty often, “How could a loving God allow all the suffering in the world?” This question makes it sound as if God is sitting by with His enormous arms crossed, staring down indifferently. Or maybe He’s not staring down at all but is occupied with something else.

By Gene Greeson INTRODUCTION Twenty-eight years ago, when I was 46 years old, I had set my sights on climbing Mount Everest. My plan was to accomplish that feat in the following years with a group of other climbers. While it was a lofty goal, there were reasons why I thought it was an attainable

By Lucas Kitchen A reader recently claimed that it would be wrong for God to force a Christian-turned-atheist into heaven because it would violate his or her free will. This raises an interesting question. This is my response to that claim. If someone has believed in Jesus for salvation, then these verses apply to him

By Philippe R. Sterling BEWARE OF DOCTRINAL AND MORAL COMPROMISE There are similarities between the New Testament world and ours. When the apostle John wrote down Jesus’ message to the seven churches, philosophies from the East, from Egypt, and from the hills beyond Pergamum were sweeping through the Mediterranean world. People were spiritually hungry, but

By Bob Wilkin Johns Hopkins University, Ottawa University, and Southern Methodist University all have as their motto the Latin translation of “The truth shall set you free”: Veritas Liberabit Vos. A 1975 Syracuse, NY, newspaper article about a treatment program for alcoholics quipped, “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you

By Ken Yates OUR INTRODUCTION “My name is Irene.” Those were the first words she spoke to me. I was in Kenya and had just completed a very long Bible study on the parables of the Lord. The study was conducted in a very humble church in the countryside. It was made of crude sheet