Bible, theology, culture, etc.
Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the … Continue reading Two Hundred Million Chimaeras (Rev 9:12-21)
Last week I wrote about the fifth trumpet found in Revelation 9:1-11 and while discussing when we should anticipate these events to take place said: "...there is nothing in the text that refers to a specific seven year period prior to Christ’s return that these events take place during." I thought now may be the right time … Continue reading What is the “Great Tribulation”?
The seven trumpets in the book of Revelation (along with the seven seals and bowls) contain some of the most unusual elements of John's apocalyptic vision. The fifth trumpet has led to some of the most interesting interpretive conclusions. Hal Lindsey, back in 1973, was the first to conjecture that the locusts described in this … Continue reading A Swarm of Locusts: Rev 9:1-11
"This is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but with a whimper," - T.S. Eliot, The Hollow Men How will the pandemic end? Will it be with a "bang" or a "whimper"? Will there be a definitive moment where the sun will shine through the clouds, trumpets blast and the masses emerge … Continue reading A Whimper, Not a Bang
I'm always a sucker for "best books of the year" blogs (some of my favorites are here, here, and here). Below represents my favorite books I read this year. This is not limited to books that were published this year, but simply books I read this year. But before that a brief word on the … Continue reading My 10 Favorite Books This Year (2021)
I have spent the past month or so writing about how Christians should respond to the covid vaccine mandate set to take effect any day now. This blog represents my final thoughts on the matter and have been where I have been wanting to go all along, but first needed to make some qualifications and … Continue reading Civil Disobedience for Calvinists
If you are unfamiliar with the term, a "slippery slope" is an informal fallacy that asserts "that a proposed, relatively small, first action will inevitably lead to a chain of related events resulting in a significant and negative event and, therefore, should not be permitted." For an example, here is the always incisive Dilbert: In … Continue reading The (Ignored) Slippery Slope
If Christians are to submit themselves to the governing authorities per Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2, if Jesus Himself submitted Himself to governing authorities and taught others to do likewise with His "render to Caesar that which is Caesar's" comment, then is there any scenario where the government can ask Christians to do something … Continue reading The Purpose and Limits of Government
In my previous article I wrote a summary of what I thought were the strongest arguments for a Christian resisting the vaccine mandate. I have argued elsewhere that aside from issues of conscience and health, if a Christian is under the vaccine mandate they should consent and be vaccinated. Many people helpfully responded that they … Continue reading Are Vaccine Mandates Unconstitutional?
A few weeks ago I wrote an article on what Christians should do in response to vaccine mandates, looking specifically at Matthew 5:38-42 and leaning heavily on Mathew Henry, John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, and Martyn Lloyd-Jones. From that post I concluded three basic conclusions for Christians under the vaccine mandate: If receiving the vaccine would … Continue reading A “Steel-Man” Argument to Resist the Vaccine Mandate
Marc Sims 