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Beyond the Current Confusion toward a Coherent and Scripturally Sound View of the Final Judgment
Read more: Beyond the Current Confusion toward a Coherent and Scripturally Sound View of the Final JudgmentThis note contends that telescoping all final judgment of both believers and non-believers alike before one final apocalyptic tribunal at the end of the age following Christ’s return has yielded a number of unfortunate consequences, which include: (1) creating an unnecessary tension between the doctrines of judgment according to works and salvation by faith; (2)…
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A Quick Summary in Plain English Why the Conventional Translation of 2 Cor. 5:10 is So Wrong, and Possible Reasons Why It Has Nonetheless Held Up For So Long
Read more: A Quick Summary in Plain English Why the Conventional Translation of 2 Cor. 5:10 is So Wrong, and Possible Reasons Why It Has Nonetheless Held Up For So LongPhoto Credit: “Courtroom” by ☺ Lee J Haywood is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. Here is the Greek text of this verse, with the crucial subordinate clause in italics. Don’t worry if you don’t know Greek. You’ll be able to follow along anyway. The key words are in bold print. τοὺς γὰρ πάντας ἡμᾶς φανερωθῆναι δεῖ ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ…
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Do Near-Death Experiences Conflict with the Biblical Notion of the Final Judgment?
Read more: Do Near-Death Experiences Conflict with the Biblical Notion of the Final Judgment?A near-death experience (NDE) is generally defined as what people experience after they have been pronounced clinically dead, that is, with no brain waves or heart function, and who are later resuscitated. It is important to note here that Jesus did not resuscitate, but resurrected. He is the only one in human history to have…
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Barbenheimer: Movie Reviews of Barbie and Oppenheimer (Podcast)
Read more: Barbenheimer: Movie Reviews of Barbie and Oppenheimer (Podcast)In this episode we give a joint review of the two Summer movies, Barbie and Oppenheimer. Over the course of our conversation we talk about the themes that emerge when the two ostensibly different films are juxtaposed and interpreted together, including: death, existential angst, technology, feminism, and power, and we have a lot of fun…
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Theology & Reproductive Loss with Dr. Karen O’Donnell (podcast)
Read more: Theology & Reproductive Loss with Dr. Karen O’Donnell (podcast)(CW: Sensitive Themes). In this episode we’re joined by Dr. Karen O’Donnell to talk about Theology and Reproductive Loss. Dr. O’Donnell is Program Leader for Contemporary Spirituality Studies at Sarum College and the author of The Dark Womb: Re-Conceiving Theology Through Reproductive Loss (published by SCM Press). Over the course of our conversation, Dr. O’Donnell…
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Ash Wednesday 2020
Read more: Ash Wednesday 2020If there’s one unifying factor for our divided planet, it’s that people all around the world love celebrations of joy. People in every nation love to join in celebrating so many joyous occasions. We love births, weddings, graduations, promotions, anniversaries – basically any reason to celebrate our life achievements in great joy and togetherness. What…
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Bearing Fruit
Read more: Bearing FruitIn John 15:1-17, Jesus talks about “bearing fruit” and “friendship.” This is a reflection on the meaning of “bearing fruit” in Scripture, the ways in which John innovates a relationship between fruit, friendship, and death in this passage, and an argument about the counter-intuitive places I think we should look for friendship in Scripture. Bearing…
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The Divisiveness of Jesus
Read more: The Divisiveness of Jesus“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” In our world and in our current political climate,…
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Bingo: God on the Move at Hume Lake
Read more: Bingo: God on the Move at Hume LakeLast year I got to experience Hume Lake for the first time as a counselor. I was blown away at their focus on Jesus and emphasis on connecting students back to the local Church. You can read about my experience here. This post is dedicated to sharing what Jesus did in the lives of my…
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Harry Potter: Worse Things than Death, Better Things than Life
Read more: Harry Potter: Worse Things than Death, Better Things than Life[If you haven’t read Harry Potter, don’t read this post. Exit out of it and buy the first book here]. This week was the anniversary of when Harry Potter and his friends entered the department of Mysteries in the Ministry of Magic (in Order of the Phoenix). It is by far my favorite scene in the…