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The Coming of Jesus: Revelation Fulfilled?

Don’t let the title put you off, we’re about to go on a mad journey through the annuls of history and the Roman Empire, contrasting what John saw in his vision with what has already played out on the “world’s stage” and what we possibly have to look forward to! First though, let’s look at a little history concerning the book itself before delving into its contents. Why do this? For a couple of reasons really: one, Revelation has some dispute over the year in which it was written, which can impact on the interpretation. Two, at various points in early church history, the book was held in suspicion of being spurious and almost...

Will the Real Heretics Please Stand Up (book Review)

Straight off, this book will challenge you in your thinking and quite possibly in your practice and outworking of life as a Christian—especially if you are from an evangelical/Baptist/non-denominational background. Will the Real HereticsPlease Stand Up The book starts of taking you carefully through some of the practices and beliefs of the early church and those who knew the Apostles personally. It all feels very hopeful and like you're being led onward in a journey towards a certain goal, much of which I'm sure you'll find agreeable in what Bercot points out as discrepancies between early Christianity and today. Then we get to a few points about the Re...

Rob Bell's “Love Wins” (Review)

book review on Rob Bell's “Love Wins” (originally written March 2013) This book was quite openly condemned by some prominent Christian leaders when the book was first announced back around Spring 2011, mainly mainly accusing Bell of being a universalist and denying the existence of hell. Lots of leaders formed opinions about the book and thus lots and laypeople took on various opinions as their own without much insight or research. The problem was that these leaders hadn't even READ the book! It wasn't released yet at the time. They decided their opinions based on the blurb and promo video which posed provocative questions about the doctrine of hell. Th...

Who was the real Santa Claus?

...pt from a book called The book of the Saints, which details some of the main aspects we know about St. Nicholas’ life and the miracles attributed to him: ST. NICHOLAS was born into a wealthy family at Patara, Lycia, Asia Minor. He was imprisoned during the persecution of Diocletian, attended the Council of Nicaea, and died at Myra, where he was buried in the cathedral. Nicholas was chosen Bishop of Myra and devoted himself to helping the poor. Tradition says that Nicholas devoted himself to works of charity. Hearing that an impoverished father had to sell his three daughters into prostitution because he had no money for their marriage dowry, Nicholas threw...

Armageddon Is Not A Battle Plan: What Revelation Actually Says — And Why It Matters Right Now

...se in the book must be read. When we lose it, we lose the book and its purpose. Nero’s name and title adding up to “666” There Is No “Battle” of Armageddon Let us be precise here, because precision matters enormously in this conversation. The word “Armageddon” appears exactly once in the New Testament, in Revelation 16:16, and is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name har məgīddō (הר מגידו). John writes that the kings of the earth are gathered at Har-Megiddo — the Mount of Megiddo/Armageddon — a site in northern Israel deeply resonant in the Old Testament as a location of decisive conflict (Judg. 5:19; 2 Kgs. 23:2...

An Examination of Conditional Immortality (Part Two)

...rone, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books. And the sea gave up the dead that were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and all were judged according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire; and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire. There’s a lot packed into these two passages, so let’s break them down and look at the imagery and phrases used one by one. First, “their smoke will go up fore...