Category Archives: Soteriology

An arranged marriage One more story. A couple is married at the age of 8 days. They are from a province in India where the parents arrange and make marriages for their children. Many years later, when the children are … Continue reading →

Why does God want believers to be baptized? Well, actions matters, just as words matter. * The requirement to be baptized forces another requirement — confession. I can have something like faith and keep it a secret. But when I … Continue reading →

Sixth point: For some reason, God wants his converts baptized in water. There’s not the least hint of water baptism in the OT. It was introduced by John the Baptist as a sign associated with the coming Kingdom and adopted by … Continue reading →

Fifth point: The faith that saves is the faith of Abraham. Paul says so in Rom 4 and Gal 3. The one wrinkle is that, after the resurrection, Abraham’s faith in God becomes faith in God the Father and the … Continue reading →

Third point: I’m not arguing that there’s a missing verse that says “faith alone,” and I’m not under the influence of Martin Luther’s German translation. Rather, verses that say things like “everyone who believes” will be saved should be read as … Continue reading →

Second point: I know each and every Church of Christ proof text on baptism. So do the other readers. Please don’t insult me or the other readers by filling the comments with quotations of the very familiar baptism texts. (I’ve … Continue reading →

Justification Baptism I’ve written so much and so long on baptism that I really just want to hit the high points. Of course, when it comes to baptism, there are a lot of high points. First point: It is my view … Continue reading →

Chris asked this question in the comments: Jay, what exactly does it mean to “call upon the Lord.” What Greek word is used here to denote this action? Is it a prayer? A plea? An appeal? Is it an outward … Continue reading →