2022

I’ve written a book that develops a new framework we can use to understand biblical prophecies better. I call it Inmillennialism: Redefining the Last Days. When someone tells me they have a copy, I say, “Please tell me what you think of it!” Some faithful souls have done so, and their…

I read the book of James in my private Bible reading this week and thought about its statement regarding firstfruits: “Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures” (Jam 1:18). This experience motivated me…

My Blog Overview contains the following statement: “This blog seeks to encourage Christians to embrace the kingdom of God and its King, Jesus Christ, as the central elements of their message to the modern world … through discussions related to the interpretation of prophetic passages throughout the Bible.” It also…

Paul believed a significant prophetic event would happen in his near future, perhaps during his lifetime, and he based that belief on the words of Christ. Inmillennialism, a prophetic view based on the Olivet Discourse and 1 Corinthians 15, accounts for this perspective. As I have said (here), the Apostle’s closing…

Paul believed a significant prophetic event would happen in his near future, perhaps during his lifetime, and he based that belief on the words of Christ. Inmillennialism, a prophetic view based on the Olivet Discourse and 1 Corinthians 15, accounts for this perspective. As I mentioned in my last post (here),…

The last paragraph of Paul’s first letter to Timothy shows his underlying prophetic perspective. As I’ve said, the pastoral nature of this epistle keeps this viewpoint in the background, but it sometimes crops out. The Apostle’s conclusion (1 Tim 6:13–21) is such a place. In this post, I will discuss…

As I was finishing the previous post (here), the following statement grabbed my attention: “Till I come (Gk. erchomai), give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine” (1 Tim 4:13). After a bit of thought, I recognized the reason for my sensitivity to this exhortation. In this non-prophetic context, Paul’s…

Our survey of 1 Timothy brings us to another passage that contrasts two ages: Paul says, “Bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come” (1 Tim 4:8). Commentators have long assumed that…

In his first letter to Timothy, Paul makes a statement that commentators have used to support their gloomy predictions for the church in history. The Apostle says, Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of…

In his first letter to Timothy, Paul tells him how to care for the flock over which the Holy Spirit has made him a shepherd (cp. Acts 20:28). Most of his instructions deal with practical matters of spiritual warfare: opposition from heretics (1 Tim 1:18–20); prayer (1 Tim 2:1–7); the…