I cannot tell you how many times I have heard in a sermon or Bible class Romans 12:1-2. I am not certain how many times I have quoted this verse at different times to different people. It is a powerful verse on its own. But it is an even more powerful verse when heard in its original context. In Rom...

Any time that any person is confronted with the truth about Jesus, it demands a personal response. Two of the most common are to respond very negatively or try to avoid a response altogether. This section of the book of Acts allows us to closely examine these common responses to the gospel. Acts25-2...

A couple of verses that have been used in the anti-baptism argument come from Romans 10. The first is found in Romans 10:9 - “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” That seems pret...

Romans 11 is probably the most difficult chapter in the entire book. As was mentioned in previous posts Paul is writing a letter to the church in Rome, which was a church he had never visited in person. In this letter he is dealing with divisions between Jewish Christians and Gentiles Christians and...

Having provided copious evidences from the Bible that the resurrection is physical (see here and here) I have been lead to elucidate a particular aspect: the natural verses the spiritual—body. Note that the Bible makes reference to: spirit, body and spiritual body. Note that, as it where, at one e...

At the end of Romans 9, Paul writes about how some Gentiles have obtained righteousness by faith, while some Jews did not have faith in God that resulted in righteousness. Instead of building on Christ as the rock and chief cornerstone, they stumbled over him (Rom 9:30-33). As in the beginning of ch...

One of our main interpretive principles in the church of Christ is to speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where it is silent. I think that is a wonderful concept to try to attain. I respect our heritage and the overarching respect for scripture that our forefathers have brought to the table. ...

In light of the certainty of God’s promises as laid out in Romans 8:28-39 it must pain Paul tremendously to realize that some of God’s people are not coming to the result God has desired for them - that the law would lead them to Christ and be the perfect fulfillment of everything they h...

Romans 9-11 is the natural outflow of Romans 1-8. Pretty easy so far. Once Paul has laid out that righteousness comes by faith in Jesus Christ it would be natural to ask, “What then of the Jews who have not put their faith in Christ as Lord and Messiah?” I think that is a much better way...

Have you ever wondered why the world has to be like this? God created this world, knowing it would get so messed up. He knew evil would happen. He knew suffering would happen. He knew rebellion and sin would happen. He even knew death would take place. And yet God still created. Romans 8:18-39 gives...