The Ante-Nicene Church Father Irenaeus taught extensively on Chiliasm (the Millennial Kingdom of Jesus upon the Earth beginning after His Second Coming) in his fifth book of Against Heresies. In chapter thirty-three, Irenaeus provides further proofs that mandate a Chiliastic or Premillennial realization of the Kingdom. This includes the blessing made from Isaac to Jacob: […]
Being a Son of Abraham Does Not Make You a Son of Jacob
April 8, 2014 by 7 Comments
Scripture allows for those who have not physically descended from Abraham to nevertheless be referred to as sons of Abraham. This has led many to conclude that Gentiles in Christ become Israelites or even constitute the true or, “spiritual Israel.” The cardinal verses are Galatians 3:6-9: just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him […]
The Jews Were Supposed to Return to the Land in Disobedience
March 27, 2014 by 5 Comments
Those who question or deny that the return of the Jews to the Promised Land beginning in 1948 was a fulfillment of prophecy often appeal to the people’s continued rejection of God. After all, the returns from the Babylonian captivity under Zerubbabel, Ezra and Nehemiah were done out of national obedience to God. And there […]
American Vision Accuses Ray Comfort of Incompetence and Dishonesty
March 21, 2014 by 2 Comments
Joel McDurmon of the Preterist organization American Vision recently produced a hit piece against the evangelist Ray Comfort, which at the time this article was published could be found here. McDurmon was criticizing the latest Comfort produced movie entitled, “Noah and the Last Days.” American Vision’s president Gary Demar often begins his criticism of other theological […]
The Seven Feasts of Israel are Fulfilled in Jesus
March 7, 2014 by 38 Comments
INTRODUCTION In Leviticus 23 we find the most comprehensive record of how the Israelites were commanded by God to observe seven feasts over a period of seven months. The Hebrew for feasts, moadim is strictly translated as appointed times. Four feasts were in the spring and the final three were observed in autumn. The feasts […]
Martin Luther Wants to Beat Sola Fide Into Your Head
February 24, 2014 by 2 Comments
In his commentary on Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians, Martin Luther famously stated: Here I must take counsel of the Gospel, I must hearken to the Gospel, which teaches me, not what I ought to do (for that is the proper office of the law), but what Jesus Christ the Son of God has done […]
J.C. Ryle Challenges You on the Meaning of ‘Israel’
January 29, 2014 by 8 Comments
The great 19th century theologian and Anglican Bishop John Charles Ryle issued a simple challenge that has never been satisfactorily answered. Below is the question in bold and the context in which it is found: The word ‘Israel’ is used nearly seven hundred times in the Bible. I can only discover three senses in which […]
The Song of Moses Makes a Distinction Between Israel and the Church
January 8, 2014 by Leave a Comment
There are a myriad of ways to clearly demonstrate from the Bible that Israel and the Church (i.e. Body of Christ) are not to be understood as the same entity. Here let us consider the example rooted in the Song of Moses: “They have made me jealous with what is no god; they have provoked […]
The Gospel of Matthew Was First Written in Hebrew
January 4, 2014 by 25 Comments
Though no copies are extant, there is good historical evidence that Matthew’s Gospel was first written in Hebrew. Around 130 A.D., Church father Papias (a former student of the Apostle John) explained: So then Matthew wrote the oracles in the Hebrew language, and everyone interpreted them as he was able. (Recorded by Eusebius in Church […]
The Star of Bethlehem Was the Shekinah Glory
December 15, 2013 by 18 Comments
Theories as to what the Star of Bethlehem was are myriad. The usual answers look to celestial objects ranging from real stars to comets. Indeed, the inquiry has been so wide sweeping that virtually every object appearing in the sky has been posited as the Bethlehem Star. However, when Scripture is examined the identity of […]
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