By Philippe R. Sterling On October 22, 2012, the International Cycling Union stripped Lance Armstrong of the seven Tour de France titles he won from 1999 to 2005 and banned him from competitive cycling for life. He was guilty of repeatedly using illicit performance-enhancing drugs and blood transfusions. He had influenced some of his Tour

By Ken Yates INTRODUCTION When I was in the military, I had the privilege of meeting some POWs (Prisoners of War) from the Vietnam War. I had the same reaction whenever I heard one of their stories. I thought that I could never do what these men did. I would have given up. They were

By Philippe R. Sterling Believing Jewish individuals are “the Israel of God” in the Church age (Rom 9:6-8; 11:1-6; Gal 6:16). They are part of the Church and of ethnic Israel (Eph 2:11-22). Non-Jewish believers are part of the Church and of their respective ethnic groups and nations (Acts 17:26; Rom 13:1-7; 1 Cor 10:32).

By Zane Hodges This article originally appeared in the November-December 1994 issue of Grace in Focus. INTRODUCTION In the previous issue, we discussed a problem some Christians have with the subject of rewards. Some are troubled by the doctrine of rewards because it seems to suggest “merit” instead of “grace.” We saw that this point

By Bill Fiess Recently, a friend from Zambia (a young student studying to be a pastor) asked me about tithing. In the Zambian churches, tithing is considered by many to be a condition for keeping your salvation. He stated (in an email): Some do question someone’s salvation if they can’t give the tithe. I can

By Bob Wilkin Most Focused Free Grace advocates have never heard of Robert Sandeman (1718-1771). He was born in Scotland and planted churches there. In 1760, he came to America and planted churches here, dying in Danbury, CT, in 1771. He was just fifty-three. His father-in-law was John Glas, a Scottish minister who profoundly influenced

By Dix Winston Imagine reading the great Russian novel War and Peace by starting at the book’s midpoint. It would make no sense to you. Who is Pierre Bezukhov, or Audrey Bolkonsky, or the Kuragan and Rostov families? And why is Napoleon invading Russia? It would be difficult, if not impossible, to understand the author’s

By Zane Hodges1 Among the very last recorded words of our Lord Jesus Christ are these: “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work” (Rev 22:12, emphasis added). This is a clear and definitive statement on the subject of rewards by the

By Kathryn Wright INTRODUCTION Many years ago, I lived in a small town in Texas. Once a fairly affluent area, the city had fallen on hard times. Certain businesses had moved away, as had many of the wealthy citizens. Many of the town’s buildings, especially its houses, stood vacant. Beautiful Victorian-style homes lined the streets.

By Ken Yates INTRODUCTION It is fascinating to study how the meanings of words develop and how different languages use a word. Recently, I heard a Spanish speaker use a word over and over again in a sermon. It was a word with which I was unfamiliar. At first, I thought he was saying causto.