Annihilation or Eternal Conscious Punishment?

Annihilation or Eternal Conscious Punishment?

What is the fate of those who die apart from Christ?
by Lita Sanders and Dr. Tim Chaffey

Kirk Cameron, in a podcast with his son James, recently revealed some thoughts about hell that were controversial for many people. In a follow-up video, he emphasized that his thoughts were not finalized and that he was making no pronouncements but simply asking questions about the nature of hell. So we want to avoid being overly critical—we should be like the Bereans, searching Scripture to see what the truth is. However, it seems to us that Cameron and his son James are being influenced by their own emotions and being selective in the Scripture that they’re referencing, so we want to offer a gentle response to explain AiG’s position—that the unredeemed will suffer eternally apart from God in what the Bible calls the lake of fire.

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
Eph 2:8 – What Does It Mean To Be Saved By Grace?

Eph 2:8 – What Does It Mean To Be Saved By Grace?

Ephesians 2:8-9

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.

Introduction

“For by grace ye are saved” (Eph. 2:5,8). If a person is saved, he is saved in only one way: by the marvelous, matchless grace of God!

What does this mean? What is GRACE? Grace is God’s unmerited favor, His undeserved kindness. Grace is God’s approval, God’s acceptance, God’s favor towards the sinner because of Jesus Christ. None of it is deserved. None of it is earned. The sinner does not merit it and cannot merit it. God has graciously and freely poured out His love and kindness toward the sinner who believes on His Son.

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
Rome Woos Evangelicals

Rome Woos Evangelicals

Rome has always pushed for ecumenical unity, but in recent years the effort has intensified. The Vatican—and even the White House—are speaking in ways that make many evangelicals say, “Maybe the Catholic Church isn’t so different after all.”

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Posted by petra1000 in Apologetics, Bible Study, Bible Teaching, Church
Eph 1:10 – Does this verse teach that all will be saved (universalism)?

Eph 1:10 – Does this verse teach that all will be saved (universalism)?

Problem: The Apostle Paul wrote to the Colossians, “For it was the Father’s good pleasure … through Him [Christ] to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven” (Col. 1:19–20, nasb). If Paul says that all things are reconciled to Christ by His death and resurrection, this seems to imply that all people are saved. But other Scriptures declare that many will be lost (e.g., Matt. 7:13–14; 25:41; Rev. 20:11–15).

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
The False Church and Friendship With the World

The False Church and Friendship With the World

I watch the trends in the modern church—not because they excite me, but because I’ve read enough Scripture and seen enough history to know that the so-called “new” is rarely anything more than old compromise with a fresh coat of paint. Sometimes it’s worldly compromise. Sometimes it’s outright heresy. But it’s never new.

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Posted by petra1000 in Apologetics, Bible Study, Bible Teaching, Church
Gal 6:10 – Can Anyone Actually Do “Good”?

Gal 6:10 – Can Anyone Actually Do “Good”?

Problem: Most people will read the title of this article and immediately think, “Of course a person can do good.” After all, Jesus said, “A good (agathos) man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things” (Matthew 12:35). Paul instructed Christians to (simply) “do good to all” (Galatians 6:10). He later reminded the disciples in Corinth that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or evil” (2 Corinthians 5:10). And John wrote: “Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God” (3 John 11).

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
A Journey Through Inner Space

A Journey Through Inner Space

What would the typical living cell look like if enlarged to the size of New York City? Let’s take an imaginary journey through the cell.

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Posted by petra1000 in Apologetics, Creation, Evolution
Gal 6:2-5 – Bear One Another’s Burdens, or Just Bear Your Own?

Gal 6:2-5 – Bear One Another’s Burdens, or Just Bear Your Own?

Problem: How do Galatians 6 verses two and five harmonize? According to the apostle Paul, Christians are to “[b]ear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). However, only three verses later, he writes: “For every man shall bear his own burden” (6:5). Skeptic Steve Wells, author of the popular Skeptic’s Annotated Bible, categorizes Galatians 6:2 and 6:5 as contradictory verses (see Wells, 2015). Bible critic Dennis McKinsey comments on these verses, saying, “Gal. 6:2 says that we should bear one another’s burdens to fulfill the law of Christ, while three verses later we are told that everyone should bear his own burden. So who is to bear our burdens?… One can’t help but ask why people would be obligated to aid the poor if every man is supposed to bear his own burden” (1995, pp. 86, 430). So are Christians to “bear one another’s burdens,” or is the child of God to “bear his own burden”?

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
100-Foot Ferns

100-Foot Ferns

Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species opened the modern era of evolutionary thinking. The very name of his book suggests that as we look back in time, we should see fewer kinds of animals. Darwin led many people to think that there should be a greater variety of plants and animals today than in the distant past. And, those plants and animals should be more sophisticated today.

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Posted by petra1000 in Apologetics, Evolution
Gal 4:24 – Are we allowed to interpret the OT allegorically?

Gal 4:24 – Are we allowed to interpret the OT allegorically?

Problem: In its root meaning, the word “allegory” means “to say something else.” This method of interpretation “seeks to discern a hidden meaning in a given story or text, a meaning that may be entirely divorced from the historical referent alluded to in the narrative itself.” For example of allegory, in John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, we read about various characters and places that clearly refer to a deeper meaning (e.g. Pliable, Faithful, Hopeful, Giant Despair, Doubting-Castle, Hill Difficulty, City Beautiful, etc.).

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching
Protecting the Churches From False Teachers

Protecting the Churches From False Teachers

Never has there been a time when New Testament churches are under greater deluge by false teaching. The internet has massively enlarged the ability of false teachers of every sort (not to speak of pure nuts) to broadcast their heresies.

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Posted by petra1000 in Apologetics, Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching, Church
Gal 3:26 – Counting Offspring

Gal 3:26 – Counting Offspring

If Jesus is God’s “only begotten Son,” then how can angels and Christians also be God’s sons?

It is clear from verses such as the following that one title for Jesus is “Son of God.”

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching