Some have taught that Jesus said that Christians are supposed to bind and loose things on earth and in heaven. Especially financial power, praying for political victories, and demons. This teaching is based on Matt 16:19 and Matt 18:18. What does this mean and more importantly what does it mean in context?
Continue readingCategory Archives: Ecclesia (The Church)
Various essays on issues in the church and deaing with church culture.
The False Gospel Starts With Bad News
Jesus said to preach the gospel to everyone (Matt 18:18-20). The word Gospel comes from the Greek Euangelion (εὐαγγέλιον) or Evangelium in Latin, which in Old English becomes “gōdspel” (gōd “good” + spel “news”), all of which means good news. Jesus is the Messiah (the Christ) which means “anointed one” and the good news is about him saving us. However, the Bible says there will be an Antichrist or false Messiah and this false Messiah will have his own false gospel.
Continue readingPraying For The Government
In Matt 22:34-40, Jesus said the two greatest commandments are to, “love God with all of your heart, soul, and strength” (Deut 6:4-5), and “love your neighbor as yourself (Lev 19:18). 1 Tim 2:1-8 says to pray for all people and give thanks for them, including those in governmental authority. In verse 8 Paul says to do this “free from anger and controversy”. The government itself is an institution from God that exists to keep peace in order and it’s for our benefit according to Romans 13:1-7. However, it is made up of fallible and corrupt humans so we must pray for them.
Continue readingSharing The Gospel
The Gospel is supposed to be presented as good news. It is supposed to be a sign of relief from the desert that is the world. Living Water (John 7:38) for a world of people who are dying of thirst. Or the Bread of Life (John 6:35) for those who are scavenging for scraps to eat. The gospel is that Jesus is the oasis in the desert and the source of the Living Water and the Bread of Life. Believers are those who have already “tasted and seen that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8). Believers are to carry that bread and water with them to share with others and point them to the source. Believers cannot force anyone to eat or drink, but only give them the option. One cannot threaten someone with good news (the gospel), if they reject it then they miss out.
Continue readingOn Baptism
What is Baptism? Is it necessary to be saved, or is it something you do after believing in Jesus? Does baptizing babies overwrite apostasy as an adult?
Continue readingNew Covenant Tithing
What is tithing? How does it differ from offerings? Does it still apply in the New Covenant? What did Jesus say about tithing and the law?
Continue readingWealth Transfer
Many have heard and quoted the second half of Proverbs 13:22 which says, “A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.” What does that actually look like when the wealth of the wicked is stored up for the just? Are there examples of this in the Bible? In the Old Testament, we can see a wealth transfer in the form of reparations given to the Israelites when they came out of Egypt. There is also a long-promised wealth transfer of Canaan (the land of milk and honey) to Abraham’s descendants. This milk and honey clause from Ex 3:8 implies that the people in the land were rich, but throughout the Torah, we are also told of their sinfulness. And some of Jesus’ parables allude to this transfer as well like the Parable of the 3 Servants (Matt 25:14-30) or the 10 Servants (Luke 19:11-27).
Continue readingJesus Is The Only Way
The bible doesn’t teach that there are multiple ways to the Kingdom of Heaven. In fact, it would be heresy for any Christian to say a thing. In John 14:6 Jesus actually said that he was the way, the truth, and the light and that no one goes through the father except through him. In John 10:1-16 he said that he was the “sheep gate” meaning that all of God’s sheep come to pasture through him, since only he is the good shepherd, it is only he that can protect the sheep.
Continue readingConsuming Flesh and Blood
The act of taking communion is done in remembrance of what Jesus did for us. This was based on his last supper and the elements in communion are a revelation of the true meaning of the Passover story. Transubstantiation, which is the idea that the communion wine transforms into Christ’s blood, is not a biblical concept. Blood drinking is not only forbidden in the Noahide (Gen 9:3-4) and Sinaitic covenants (Lev 7:26-27, 17:24, 19:26, Deut 12:16-25, 15:23), but also in the Messianic covenant (Acts 15:19-21). This is a sin for everyone, both Jew and Gentile, for all time from the beginning to the end.
Continue readingPerpetual Virgin Mary
Was Mary a sinless perpetual virgin? Well, scripture says that the only person that never sinned was Jesus (Rom 3:23, Heb 4:14-15, & 2 Cor 5:21), and it also implies that Mary had children with Joseph after Jesus (Acts 1:14), and it specifies that they had intercourse after Jesus was born (Matt 1:25). This seems like a non-biblical church tradition. Believers are only accountable for believing what is written not what we are told out of tradition. There are a lot of traditions that straight-up contradict the bible or are based on pagan traditions in Christendom. This is even true in Judaism, the Talmud records the oral traditions of the Pharisees and includes things never mentioned in the old testament (the Tanakh). In Mark 7:1-13 Jesus called and scolded the Pharisees for teaching man-made traditions, like “Netilat Yadayim” (ritual handwashing) as if they were commands from God. So Jesus is against glorifying traditions that are not instructions from God in scripture. Only scripture is inspired by God. So it’s best if Christians avoid accepting things as if they are backed by biblical authority when they aren’t stated explicitly in scripture or shown by physical historical evidence, especially if contradicted by scripture.
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