Author: Vince
-
October 7th and the reawakening of an ancient hatred
October the 7th, 2023, was a tragedy for Israel. The unprovoked assault by Hamas, marked by the murder and kidnapping of civilians, shocked the world. In the early hours of that Sabbath morning, coinciding with the Jewish festival of Simchat Torah, over 3,000 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israeli towns and villages. Under the…
-
Once a son, always a son
Rembrandtâs Return of the Prodigal Son, depicting the fatherâs embrace of his wayward son. The sonâs ragged state did not nullify his sonship or the fatherâs love, illustrating the enduring bond between God and His children. For many readers, the parable of the prodigal son conjures up a dramatic conversion scene, an unbeliever hitting rock bottom…
-
Repentance and the Kingdom â Why Israel still matters
Iâve written and argued this point several times before, and for me, it really doesnât take more than a careful reading of Matthew 24 to see that the second coming of Jesus is a Judeo-centric event. It is Jerusalem that He mourns over. It is to Zion that He returns. And it is Israelâs national…
-
Hebrews and its contribution to soteriology
Soteriology is concerned with the theology of salvation (Young, 1990), the restoration of the sinner to divine favour and communion with God (Berkhof, 1996, p. 415). The term comes from the Greek words ÏáżŽÎ¶Ï (save, deliver) and ÏÏÏηÏία (salvation, deliverance); their major use in this discipline is to denote the salvific work of God on behalf of man (Chafer,…
-
Understanding 2 Corinthians 13:5
Test yourselves to see whether you are in the faith. Examine yourselves. Or do you yourselves not recognise that Jesus Christ is in you?âŻââunless you fail the test. â 2 Corinthians 13:5 (CSBA) This verse is often cited as a proof text for promoting self-examination as a requirement for assurance of salvation. Believers are frequently…
-
The Signature of Intelligence: Why DNA Points to God
As a computer scientist, Iâve spent my life working with code. I know the difference between randomness and logic, noise and signal. Code has structure. It has syntax. It follows rules and carries intention. You donât get code by accident. You donât get meaning without mind. Which brings me to the human genome, the very…
-
Why the Rapture Must Be Distinct and Pre-Tribulational
Or else, there’s no Rapture at all. Every now and again, the question of the Rapture comes upâespecially with a dear brother of mine who has always struggled to grasp the logic behind it. Though I do not divide over views of the Rapture, nor make it a test of orthodoxy, I do hold a…
-
Eternal Torment or Finished Work? One Canât Have Both
In our day, the dominant tradition concerning eternal punishment is that of Eternal Conscious Torment (ECT). I do not hold to it. In my view, annihilationism aligns more closely with the biblical data, for several compelling reasons. Of course, not all forms of annihilationism are identical, so to be perfectly clear: I believe that unbelievers…
-
The Burden of Experience and the Simplicity of Faith
The tragedy of our day is that the simple gospel has been increasingly overshadowed by a pernicious emphasis on subjective experience. I have already observed that this error has led to confusion and doubt, particularly concerning the question of baptism and the assurance of salvation. Yet the problem is even broader. It affects the very…
-
A Quick Clarification about Election and Predestination
In discussions on salvation, theology often gets tangled in complex interpretationsâespecially around the terms election and predestination. These words, frequently assumed to be interchangeable and linked to salvation, are often misunderstood. This article aims to be an introductory clarification about what Scripture truly teaches about these concepts, contrasting them with the common Calvinist and Arminian…