Eternal Security and Christian Ethics
Practice is from position, but never to position. The ethical mandates of the New Testament are decisively clear that believers are to walk in the richness of the position we have been given (Eph1:3), and that the position is actually necessary for the walk (Heb...
10 Reasons to Study the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)
Ephesians 2:14-16 describes in some detail how Jesus Christ fulfilled the Mosaic Law. Further, we discover that God’s righteousness is revealed outside of the Law (Rom 3:21), that justification comes from faith not works of law (Rom 3:28), and that the growth of the...
New Book Announcement: Integrating Exegesis and Exposition
Available now, from Exegetica Publishing, is a new book by Dr. Christopher Cone – Integrating Exegesis and Exposition: Biblical Communication for Transformative Learning. ISBN# 978-0-9765930-5-8 / 302 pages / Retail:$23 / Available at Amazon and Other Fine Retailers....
“The most effective leadership, management, and efficiency models share traits common with each other, and traits that are ultimately traceable to the pages of the Bible. While these models are often not intentionally rooted in Biblical concepts by those that promote the models, the models illustrate how applying Biblical principles can set a trajectory of success in enterprise and in life. Led By a Lion is designed to introduce some of these leadership, management, and efficiency models, but goes a step further in identifying the Biblical genesis of many of the core traits that fuel the success of these models.”
The Genesis Account as Early Model for Scriptural Hermeneutics
Presented to the Symposium on Scripture, Hermeneutics, and Language, San Diego State University, April 13, 2015. "...From the opening of Genesis to its conclusion, the book records roughly two thousand years of history. Further, Genesis alleges that these two thousand...
Three Days That Changed Everything
A man named Jesus hung on a cross. To that point this man had endured the rejection of his people, arrest on false pretenses, an illegal trial in which he was falsely accused, beaten and abused, and ultimately condemned to die because of the spiritual arrogance of his...
Priority in Communicating to Mixed Audiences in a Church Setting
In any number of settings, a Bible communicator will not be aware of the spiritual/positional status of the listeners. In fact, only the Lord has the capacity to truly understand what is in the heart of man (1 Cor 4:5). Consequently, while we do observe a clear...
“This approach has the advantage of seeking to view all knowledge through the lens of Scripture, and to subject all knowledge to the authority of Scripture. It encourages science and research within the field of psychology. It offers a Biblical balance of description and prescription. Of course, if the Bible is unreliable, then the refractive power of Scripture is distortive rather than corrective, but the epistemological premise of this approach is that God’s word is authoritative and sufficient for our understanding, for our equipping, and for our practice. There are many extra-biblical resources that we can employ, but in seeking out how and when to do that, we mustn’t lose sight of the one reliable constant that God has provided for us – the Bible.” –Chapter 9
Patterns in Exposition: Biblical Dynamics for Preaching and Teaching
Biblical Rationale for Dynamics in Communication Just as we seek to discover our hermeneutic method from the pages of Scripture, and just as we seek to apply those principles consistently, we also need to recognize that Scripture has much to say regarding how we...
The Hermeneutic and Exegetical Implications of Descriptive and Prescriptive
The short-form process of discerning and appropriating the meaning of a Biblical passage includes the four basic steps of (1) observation, (2) interpretation, (3) correlation, and (4) application. The more detailed process exegetical process includes nine steps: (1)...
The Biblical Difference Between Preaching and Teaching
The Greek New Testament uses many different words to describe distinct methods of communicating. There are thirteen hundred and twenty-nine references in the Greek New Testament using forms of the word lego, which is to say or speak. Two hundred and ninety-six times...
“The Green Tree is an exceptional work…provides a vital tool for every Bible interpreter…Just as the root system is the foundation of a tree and directly impacts the health of a tree, hermeneutic method is at the root of one’s worldview. This illustration demonstrates that the hermeneutic method that an interpreter of the Bible employs will significantly affect the outcome. The tree will either be healthy, or it will not be healthy…The authors provide a unique examination of Revelation, Genesis, and Job that demonstrates that the LGH hermeneutic is derived from within Scripture, something that other hermeneutical methods fail to demonstrate. This is perhaps the most crucial principle demonstrated in The Green Tree, and it effectively demonstrates that the LGH hermeneutic is also the Biblical hermeneutic.” – Andrew Friend (Amazon Review)
What Kind of Literature is Genesis 1?
The Bible contains four basic genres of literature: historical narrative, poetry, prophetic, and epistolary. The genre classification of Genesis 1 is very important for our understanding of the overall message of Scripture, because the chapter deals with so many...
3 Ways to Understand and Communicate the Gospel
Sometimes it seems difficult to communicate the love of Christ to others. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer weight of Biblical data and become tongue-tied when trying to share how one can know Christ. Here are three ways to share God’s plan for salvation...
Psalm 90: New Year’s Resolutions For Every Day
Of the 150 psalms that constitute the largest book in the Bible, Moses penned only one, so we approach Psalm 90 with particular interest. What was so significant about the prayer of this one who spoke face to face with God (Exodus 33:11), that his prayer would later...
The Basis and Mandate of Christian Ethics
The simplicity of Paul’s ethical mandate for believers is unmistakable in 1 Corinthians 10:31: “Whatever then you eat or you drink or whatever you do – all unto God’s glory you are to do.” In that context Paul challenges the Corinthian believers specifically to handle...
The Two Commissions in Matthew’s Gospel
In a now published thesis,[1] James Fazio draws attention to an important component of Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life and ministry: specifically, that Jesus commissioned His disciples on two significant occasions, and for two very different purposes. The first,...
An Introduction to Solomon’s Philosophy of Mind and Concept of Self
Solomon uses the Hebrew word leb forty two times in Ecclesiastes. The term is more general than technical, and is typically translated as mind, heart, will, or inner man. It is worth noting that the word indicates a deep connection between the thinking and feeling...
What Must We Do To Have Eternal Life?
In the third installment of the Indiana Jones franchise (spoiler alert), the guardian of the "holy grail" warned Jones to “choose wisely, as the real grail brings eternal life, the false grail brings death.” Jones proves his wise choice by not disintegrating into a...
9 Steps for Bible Exegesis and Exposition, Part 1: First Things First
Bible study is not the exclusive possession of pastors or seminary professors. All believers are called to know God – in fact, Jesus explains that knowing God is the very core of eternal life (Jn 17:3). Consequently, if we want to live well, we need to allow His word...
John MacArthur: “Jesus Didn’t Pay For The Sins of Judas or Hitler”
John MacArthur holds to Calvinism’s five points, including limited atonement (the “L” in TULIP). He departs from his generally literal hermeneutic in handling 1 John 2:2, arguing that ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου does not refer to the whole world “Jesus didn’t pay for the sins of...
Spiritual Gift Myth #5: There Are Individual Gifts of Pastoring, Apostleship, and Evangelism
In discussing the unity and maturing of believers, Paul describes in Ephesians 4 how God’s comprehensive and unified work results in grace for each individual believer (Eph 4:7). Each of us can rejoice, knowing that God has given us individually the grace we need,...