My two favorite tracts in the universe are “You can be eternally secure” and “The best news you’ll ever hear” by Bob Bryant. I don’t often distribute tracts to the masses as I’m more of a “Let’s grab some coffee and talk about what the Bible says” kind of guy (which, is another thing that I’ve picked up from Bob Bryant), but I do like tracts and have used them to facilitate further biblical discussion.1[Read More]
soteriology
Hamantaschen!
You’re probably thinking, “What?!? This isn’t hamantaschen season! Who makes hamantaschen in October?!?” Well, poppy seed filling was on sale at Walmart for only 25¢ per can, so I bought some. The cans aren’t good forever and the expiry date will come before Purim, so it looks like we’re cooking hamantaschen in October this year.
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BRT Podcast: What is the Gospel?
The gentlemen at the Back Row Theologians podcast invited Paul to be a guest on a discussion on “What is the Gospel?” You can listen to it below, or check it out on their site here.
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Screwtape: On Wormwood’s Reassignment to ‘Murica
Dear Wormwood,
Congratulations on your reassignment to America. Now that Europe is essentially secure, the higher echelons are shifting their attention across the ocean. I put in a good word for you and you will be assigned to one of the most elite units in the West as you work with unbelievers who have begun going to American churches.[Read More]
Some quick thoughts on Limited Atonement
The Calvinist doctrine of Limited Atonement was born several years after John Calvin died… and it has been in need of a proof text ever since. It teaches that Christ only died for a relatively few elect individuals who, according to the fifth point of Calvinism, will persevere in living for Christ until the end of their physical lives. This means that we can look at the fruit in people’s lives and determine whether or not Christ even died for them. It also means that if we want to know whether or not Christ died for us, we need to look at our own works.[Read More]
Tsar Ivan the Not-So-Much-More-Terrible-Than-The-Rest-Of-Us
Tsar Ivan the Terrible was known for his paranoia and terrible fits of rage. Anyone who angered Ivan the Terrible to the slightest degree faced instant execution. He was constantly throwing violent tantrums, and during one outburst, Ivan even beat his own son and heir to death. Standing up to the tsar in those times was an unthinkable act, but one day a so called “Fool for Christ” named Basil did just that. It was spring in Russia, a time when followers of Russian Orthodoxy fast for Lent. Basil approached Ivan the Terrible and offered him a slab of raw meat, insisting that there was no point in fasting, since the tsar had committed too many murders to be able to cover his sin with the act of fasting. Ivan realized that Basil was right, and deeply respected him for standing up to him. In fact, when Basil died, Ivan the Terrible himself acted as a pallbearer at the funeral and named the most famous cathedral in Russia after him.[Read More]