What comes to mind when you hear “the Law”? Most people I meet in mainstream Christianity immediately associate “Law” as something negative. Something harsh. Something undesirable. Something they want to get away from. Continue reading What’s Your View on “The Law”?
Mainstream Christian doctrine teaches souls are immortal spirits that live forever after we die. Souls are believed to possess our thought, memory, and persona. The souls of the saved are believed to go to Heaven; the souls of the damned are said to go to Hell (where they are tortured for eternity). The ultimate goal of the faith is to receive salvation, achieve the desirable afterlife in Heaven, and avoid being tortured forever in Hell.
These beliefs are pagan. Continue reading People Against God And Nomos
YHWH (the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) is a God of order and peace. YHWH gave us His teachings, instructions, and commandments so we can know His will and His way. God’s Law establishes a framework of acceptable behavior and acceptable disciplinary actions. God’s Law is the standard by which He, His people, and His kingdom as a whole must live by. There is one Law for both the native-born Israelite and the foreigner living among us; and, all are accountable to that Law.
Is torture consistent with God’s Law? Does God permit us to torture people for any reason? Is torture ever an acceptable form of punishment in the Kingdom of Heaven? Or, is torture against God’s Law? Continue reading Holy God or Lawless Tyrant?
Hell is a very hot topic; it provokes scalding arguments on all sides. Historically, sermons on Hell have been wielded as weapons of fear to terrorize people into obeying church doctrines. Presently, many congregations tip-toe around the topic of Hell to avoid offending or upsetting people. To the believer, Hell can be a necessary component of the gospel message. To the unbeliever, Hell can seem exceedingly cruel and merciless.
This is the first installment in our “Go to Hell” series. Over the next few articles we’ll explore the concept of Hell as it relates to God, the Bible, and the faith. Continue reading Holy, Perfect, and Just Awful
We are warned not to be ignorant of the devil’s schemes and to guard ourselves against his deceptions. To overcome ignorance and prepare ourselves to resist the devil, we must understand Satan’s tactics. How does Satan mislead people away from God, away from Messiah, and towards a counterfeit messiah?
