Jesus' interaction with the rich, young ruler has been used by some to promote socialism and others have approached it looking for an explanation of justification like what we find in Romans. After spending some time on this passage and in the Gospel of Mark as a whole I think both of these approaches are wrong. This will be a careful, vs by vs study of Jesus' interaction with the rich man in Mark 10. We'll look at some controversy about this passage but our main concern will be to hear Jesus' r...
Aug 03, 2020•1 hr 9 min
Jesus' interaction with the rich, young ruler has been used by some to promote socialism and others have approached it looking for an explanation of justification like what we find in Romans. After spending some time on this passage and in the Gospel of Mark as a whole I think both of these approaches are wrong. This will be a careful, vs by vs study of Jesus' interaction with the rich man in Mark 10. We'll look at some controversy about this passage but our main concern will be to hear Jesus' r...
Aug 03, 2020•1 hr 9 min
This is a common and terrible tactic in trying to get away from an interpretation you don't like. I'm not surprised to see this come up in the comments section of my video but I am surprised to see respectful and thoughtful men like Gordon Wenham using this sort of nonsense in print. The objection goes as follows; "When you say that adultery is justification for divorce you actually encourage people to go out and commit adultery so they can have a justified divorce". Here's the playlist with all...
Jul 29, 2020•4 min
This is a common and terrible tactic in trying to get away from an interpretation you don't like. I'm not surprised to see this come up in the comments section of my video but I am surprised to see respectful and thoughtful men like Gordon Wenham using this sort of nonsense in print. The objection goes as follows; "When you say that adultery is justification for divorce you actually encourage people to go out and commit adultery so they can have a justified divorce". Here's the playlist with all...
Jul 29, 2020•4 min
Teaching that all babies who die go to heaven immediately brings up a number of important theological questions. Question Time Stamps for Quick Reference: 0:00 Introduction 1. 5:10 How do we determine when a person is accountable? 2. 11:52 What role does sin nature have? 3. 19:00 What role does Jesus have in their salvation? 4. 20:53 What about free will? 5. 43:53 Does this give people an excuse to commit abortion? All this and more in today's follow-up study looking at the theological implicati...
Jul 27, 2020•54 min
Teaching that all babies who die go to heaven immediately brings up a number of important theological questions. Question Time Stamps for Quick Reference: 0:00 Introduction 1. 5:10 How do we determine when a person is accountable? 2. 11:52 What role does sin nature have? 3. 19:00 What role does Jesus have in their salvation? 4. 20:53 What about free will? 5. 43:53 Does this give people an excuse to commit abortion? All this and more in today's follow-up study looking at the theological implicati...
Jul 27, 2020•54 min
Any correct interpretation of Jesus' teaching on divorce needs to account for the fact that the disciples were so shocked by Jesus that they said it was better to just stay single. In this video I try to explain how I account for the shock of the disciples with my view of Jesus' teaching on divorce and remarriage. Here's the playlist of all my videos on the topic of divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ3iRMLYFlHtBvJzugPJp9P5X1T-hA91j My web site https://BibleThinker.o...
Jul 22, 2020•6 min
Any correct interpretation of Jesus' teaching on divorce needs to account for the fact that the disciples were so shocked by Jesus that they said it was better to just stay single. In this video I try to explain how I account for the shock of the disciples with my view of Jesus' teaching on divorce and remarriage. Here's the playlist of all my videos on the topic of divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ3iRMLYFlHtBvJzugPJp9P5X1T-hA91j My web site https://BibleThinker.o...
Jul 22, 2020•6 min
This is a heavy issue and while many people think the Bible doesn't give us much to go on, I disagree. In this study I am going to examine a number of passages people use when trying to explain what the eternal fate of those who die in infancy is. It starts with a survey of Bible passages which don't seem to help us answer our question and then a survey of passages which do. This is part of the "Mark Series" where I am going vs by vs through the Gospel of Mark, covering theology, apologetics and...
Jul 20, 2020•1 hr 16 min
This is a heavy issue and while many people think the Bible doesn't give us much to go on, I disagree. In this study I am going to examine a number of passages people use when trying to explain what the eternal fate of those who die in infancy is. It starts with a survey of Bible passages which don't seem to help us answer our question and then a survey of passages which do. This is part of the "Mark Series" where I am going vs by vs through the Gospel of Mark, covering theology, apologetics and...
Jul 20, 2020•1 hr 16 min
Some tough situations have us asking whether a divorce can be justified for things not clearly mentioned in scripture. Not only do I give my best answer to the question of divorce for a spouse habitually draining the bank account, I hope that this answer will help you work through other tough questions like this one. I think the principles here apply very broadly. Here's my playlist with ALL my teaching on divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ3iRMLYFlHtBvJzugPJp9P5X1T...
Jul 17, 2020•6 min
Some tough situations have us asking whether a divorce can be justified for things not clearly mentioned in scripture. Not only do I give my best answer to the question of divorce for a spouse habitually draining the bank account, I hope that this answer will help you work through other tough questions like this one. I think the principles here apply very broadly. Here's my playlist with ALL my teaching on divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ3iRMLYFlHtBvJzugPJp9P5X1T...
Jul 17, 2020•6 min
While the Bible teaches that some divorces are justified, some people think that the command to “forgive… as God in Christ forgave you” requires us to NEVER divorce, because we must forgive even those offenses that would normally justify a divorce. This a challenging question, and I hope that my answer helps! Here’s my playlist with all my teaching on divorce and remarriage....
Jul 15, 2020•9 min
While the Bible teaches that some divorces are justified, some people think that the command to “forgive… as God in Christ forgave you” requires us to NEVER divorce, because we must forgive even those offenses that would normally justify a divorce. This a challenging question, and I hope that my answer helps! Here’s my playlist with all my teaching on divorce and remarriage.
Jul 15, 2020•9 min
People in Jesus' time had a bad attitude about marriage, just like today. They seemed to think it was a person's right to divorce whenever they decided they wanted to, just like today. But Jesus corrected this by pointing them toward the nature of marriage and showing that marriage it a holy and wonderful union that God Himself has created. Jesus takes away their excuses and calls them to get back to the heart of marriage rather than seeking excuses to divorce. It was a message people desperatel...
Jul 13, 2020•47 min
People in Jesus' time had a bad attitude about marriage, just like today. They seemed to think it was a person's right to divorce whenever they decided they wanted to, just like today. But Jesus corrected this by pointing them toward the nature of marriage and showing that marriage it a holy and wonderful union that God Himself has created. Jesus takes away their excuses and calls them to get back to the heart of marriage rather than seeking excuses to divorce. It was a message people desperatel...
Jul 13, 2020•47 min
I went down a rabbit hole of research to find out how some people have taken Jesus' teaching on divorce to mean the opposite of what it seems like He was saying. The issue is whether there is a special definition of "put away" as compared to "writ of divorce". On this peculiar view "put away" is taken to mean "send away a spouse without a divorce certificate", which means that if you are "put away" you are still married. On the other hand, "writ of divorce" (or certificate of divorce) is taken t...
Jul 08, 2020•13 min
I went down a rabbit hole of research to find out how some people have taken Jesus' teaching on divorce to mean the opposite of what it seems like He was saying. The issue is whether there is a special definition of "put away" as compared to "writ of divorce". On this peculiar view "put away" is taken to mean "send away a spouse without a divorce certificate", which means that if you are "put away" you are still married. On the other hand, "writ of divorce" (or certificate of divorce) is taken t...
Jul 08, 2020•13 min
What did Jesus mean by "because of your hardness of hearts Moses permitted you to divorce your wives"? Does this mean you can get a divorce if your heart is hard? Does it mean you can get a divorce if your spouse has a hard heart? Does it mean that divorce was regulated with protections for human rights because people's hearts are so hard they are going to divorce anyways? Yeah, it's the third one. If you have a bunch more questions on divorce and remarriage then you should start with my big and...
Jul 06, 2020•7 min
What did Jesus mean by "because of your hardness of hearts Moses permitted you to divorce your wives"? Does this mean you can get a divorce if your heart is hard? Does it mean you can get a divorce if your spouse has a hard heart? Does it mean that divorce was regulated with protections for human rights because people's hearts are so hard they are going to divorce anyways? Yeah, it's the third one. If you have a bunch more questions on divorce and remarriage then you should start with my big and...
Jul 06, 2020•7 min
It may seem peculiar but I think that this solves a riddle about why scripture speaks the way it does on the topic of divorce. Jesus acknowledged divorce but taught that it didn't always free you from your moral obligation to your prior spouse. Paul, in 1 Cor 7, taught that a divorced couple was really divorced but still obliged to get back together or stay unmarried. In my view, this view comes naturally from taking the Bible at face value on it's teaching on divorce and remarriage. If you want...
Jul 01, 2020•4 min
It may seem peculiar but I think that this solves a riddle about why scripture speaks the way it does on the topic of divorce. Jesus acknowledged divorce but taught that it didn't always free you from your moral obligation to your prior spouse. Paul, in 1 Cor 7, taught that a divorced couple was really divorced but still obliged to get back together or stay unmarried. In my view, this view comes naturally from taking the Bible at face value on it's teaching on divorce and remarriage. If you want...
Jul 01, 2020•4 min
If sex doesn't equal marriage then what does? We will take a look at a number of biblical passages to find the answer to this question. The bottom line is that sex does join you to a person in a very intimate way, but that this alone does not constitute a marriage. Marriage is more than sex and it takes more to be truly married than to just start sleeping with someone. Here's the playlist for all the videos (as they come out) on marriage, divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?...
Jun 29, 2020•9 min
If sex doesn't equal marriage then what does? We will take a look at a number of biblical passages to find the answer to this question. The bottom line is that sex does join you to a person in a very intimate way, but that this alone does not constitute a marriage. Marriage is more than sex and it takes more to be truly married than to just start sleeping with someone. Here's the playlist for all the videos (as they come out) on marriage, divorce and remarriage. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?...
Jun 29, 2020•9 min
I try to graciously, honestly and without misrepresentation, deal with a number of important issues related to Catholicism; the Pope, purgatory, Mary, the authority claims of Roman Catholicism, historical challenges to official teachings of the RC church, theological problems with the gospel as it is taught in the official councils of Catholicism (especially Trent) and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The truth is that I wish I could say the disagreements I have with official Roman Catholic...
Jun 25, 2020•1 hr 54 min
I try to graciously, honestly and without misrepresentation, deal with a number of important issues related to Catholicism; the Pope, purgatory, Mary, the authority claims of Roman Catholicism, historical challenges to official teachings of the RC church, theological problems with the gospel as it is taught in the official councils of Catholicism (especially Trent) and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The truth is that I wish I could say the disagreements I have with official Roman Catholic...
Jun 25, 2020•1 hr 54 min
1. 0:00 Intro and explanation 2. 1:56 In Jeremiah, God divorced Israel but didn’t marry someone else - he offered them restoration! Doesn’t this undermine your case for remarriage? 3. 6:08 If a person who illegitimately divorced their spouse is unmarried and repentant and if their former spouse has remarried, may that person marry someone else? 4. 9:04 If the punishment for adultery was death under the law then how can adultery be a cause for divorce? 5. 19:49 Is addiction to porn considered sex...
Jun 19, 2020•1 hr 29 min
1. 0:00 Intro and explanation 2. 1:56 In Jeremiah, God divorced Israel but didn’t marry someone else - he offered them restoration! Doesn’t this undermine your case for remarriage? 3. 6:08 If a person who illegitimately divorced their spouse is unmarried and repentant and if their former spouse has remarried, may that person marry someone else? 4. 9:04 If the punishment for adultery was death under the law then how can adultery be a cause for divorce? 5. 19:49 Is addiction to porn considered sex...
Jun 19, 2020•1 hr 29 min
Some say the Bible forbids interracial marriage. Here's WHY they say it and WHY they are wrong. I'm still in the middle of making a series of videos on marriage, divorce and remarriage and since this particular question didn't really fit well into one of those videos I thought I'd make a stand alone video on it. I actually did some research to find out what passages of scripture people used to try to support a ban on interracial marriage (also called anti-miscegenation) and I'm responding to tho...
Jun 08, 2020•22 min
Some say the Bible forbids interracial marriage. Here's WHY they say it and WHY they are wrong. I'm still in the middle of making a series of videos on marriage, divorce and remarriage and since this particular question didn't really fit well into one of those videos I thought I'd make a stand alone video on it. I actually did some research to find out what passages of scripture people used to try to support a ban on interracial marriage (also called anti-miscegenation) and I'm responding to tho...
Jun 08, 2020•22 min
