Homosexual activity is sexual intimacy between two persons of the same gender. This form of sexual conduct is uniformly condemned in the Bible. (a) It stands outside the divinely prescribed realm o...

If the New Testament places upon the Christian the obligation to “give” of his means unto God, and he neglects that responsibility, he has refused to worship his Maker, at least in that respect.

The book of Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings, many of which were written by Solomon, king of Israel (cf. 1 Kgs. 4:32), and addressed to his son (presumably Rehoboam). The material within th...

In the Old Testament, anointing with oil was used ceremonially to set apart special roles, especially those of prophets (1 Kgs. 19:16), priests (Ex. 28:41), and kings (1 Sam. 9:16).

The most comm...

John’s first epistle is a defense against the “gnostic” doctrine that alleged that Jesus Christ was not a real, flesh-and-blood human being. This sect claimed a special “knowledge” received directl...

Is the gift of speaking in tongues still being given by the Holy Spirit?

Is performance singing with praise teams, choirs, or solos acceptable in the worship of Christ’s assembly? What are the arguments for and against this modern movement?

What is a command in the New Testament and what is merely cultural and not binding today?

This word is an anglicized form of the Greek apologeia, literally meaning “a verbal defense.” It is found eight times in the New Testament, and a verb form occurs some ten times.

For example, Luke...

A recent news item regarding the Mormon doctrine of “proxy baptism” highlights the inconsistencies of the practice and is the subject of this week’s Penpoints.

The word “providence,” is not used explicitly of divine activity in the Scriptures, though the concept is apparent in both Testaments. The word basically means “foresight.” Theologically, it has be...

The first three Gospel accounts (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) are called SYNOPTICS (see), because they present the life of Christ from roughly the same vantage point. John’s account is different. His r...

Paul informed Timothy that Jesus Christ “abolished death” (2 Tim. 1:10). Yet, elsewhere the apostle indicates that death will not be abolished until the return of the Lord (see 1 Cor. 15:24-26). How is the Bible student to reconcile this seeming conflict?

There have always been those who found the concept of the bodily resurrection incredible, i.e., unbelievable, and their modern counterparts are appearing increasingly—even in today’s church.

The word “soul” is used in several senses in the Bible. (a) It may signify an individual person (Ezek. 18:20). (b) It may be employed of mere biological life (Gen. 1:30). (c) It can have to do with...

The Greek term porne is a comprehensive term, covering every form of illicit sexual activity by human beings. Note the following passages that help us understand this word.

Single people who wish ...

This English term is a rendition of the Greek zoopoieo, “to make alive.” It is found about a dozen times in the N.T. and is rendered by such expressions as “quicken,” “give life,” and “make alive.”...

The Greek word krino means to render a verdict (Lk. 7:43; Acts 15:9). Prepositions may be attached as prefixes to provide some direction to the term. For example, diakrino suggests the idea of dist...

The commands found in the Bible may be classified in several ways to help our understanding.

In the phenonemon known as the “incarnation,” God (the Logos – John 1:1, known in the New Testament as “Christ”) became man. When he ascended back to the Father, did Jesus lay aside his “human” nature? This question deserves our careful attention.