Many of us who grew up in a more or less fundamentalist form of Christianity are quite familiar with legalism. It has a long, though not exactly distinguished, history in the church. In fact, legalism is a significant theme in the New Testament itself. Basically legalism is Christianity by keeping a set of rules: I don’t smoke, drink, dance, or chew, and I don’t go out with girls who do. Judaism tried to make legalism a stand-in for faith in becoming a Christian, but its primary application is in the doctrine of sanctification, the theme of Galatians. The right way to become like Christ is to Read the rest of this entry →

After their successful July 1969 landing on the moon’s surface, the lunar module, named “Eagle” blasted off the surface of the moon carrying Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to dock with Columbia, their command module piloted by Mike Collins. Only after Eagle had reconnected to Columbia were the three astronauts able to return to earth. Another way to describe their reconnecting is to say the two ships were once again “reconciled” to each other. Read the rest of this entry →

Upon receiving a jury summons, the judge told those of us in the courtroom that if seated on the jury, we would not be deciding the innocence of the defendant, but his guilt. A jury can find a defendant “not guilty,” but that doesn’t mean he or she is innocent of the crime. A jury, after weighing all the evidence presented, is expected to render a fair and impartial verdict declaring the individual either guilty or not guilty. They cannot declare him innocent or righteous. Read the rest of this entry →

The theological word atonement commonly refers to the sacrificial act of our Lord Jesus Christ giving his life as a ransom through his death on the cross. It is traced to the Hebrew word kippur and the Jewish holiday of Yon Kippur, “the day of atonement;” in which the sin of a nation was covered for a year. It encompasses the work of Christ in which he redeems for himself a people, completed on the cross once for all time. Read the rest of this entry →

Soteriology, the doctrine of salvation, is the great theme of the Bible and the heart of the Christian faith. As such it contains many important terms and concepts that will take some time to work through. This article serves to introduce the topic and give a little review to place it in context. Read the rest of this entry →