Replacing “Replacement theology”: Part 1
Imagine a family vineyard that once thrived under careful tending—rich soil, strong vines, abundant harvests. Over many years the heirs grow careless and rebellious. They ignore the pruning, chase after other interests, let weeds choke the rows, and even sell off parts of the land or let strangers trample it. The vineyard falls into ruin: collapsed fences, broken trellises, barren ground, fruitless vines that look dead. Neighbors write it off. Outsiders say the owner should abandon it forever. Years pass in desolation. (more…)
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Failure isn’t fatal
The initial Starship flight test on April 20, 2023, ended in a dramatic mid-air explosion. Leaking propellant caused fires which severed connection with the vehicle’s primary flight computer. This led to a loss of communications to the majority of booster engines and, ultimately, control of the vehicle. (more…)
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Are all sins equal?
This post comes from Philip Nunn, a missionary in Colombia.
Roman Catholic doctrine distinguishes two categories of sins, venial and mortal. A venial sin is a slight fault that does not break friendship with God, although it weakens it. On the other hand, a mortal sin is a serious transgression that completely separates the person from God’s grace. According to this doctrine, at death, venial sins are purified in purgatory in order to enter heaven clean. (more…)
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Islam and North Korea
I have written several articles on Islam: Basic Islam, Testing Islam, Islamic prayer and Monolingual Islam. Islam teaches that Allah is the only God and that Mohammad is His prophet.
The Australian government is taking measures against Islamophobia which would favor Islam over others in Australian public life, including mandating Islamic content in state school curriculums. In view of this, it is instructive to compare aspects of Islam against Christianity. (more…)
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Get into heaven for free
In everyday life, we love a good deal. We clip coupons, hunt for promotional codes and try to earn discounts through loyalty points or spending just enough money to qualify. We can apply this same mindset to God – hoping that if we do enough good deeds, avoid enough major mistakes, and keep a clean record, we will eventually “earn” enough credit to get into heaven. (more…)
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Nine life lessons from Barnabas
During their first brutal winter at Plymouth, the Mayflower Pilgrims were on the brink of collapse. They were starving, unskilled at hunting or farming in the new land. Then a native American named Squanto (Tisquantum) stepped in—teaching them how to fish, hunt, and plant crops. Without that quiet, practical encouragement, the colony might not have survived. He was like Barnabas in the New Testament. (more…)
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The gospel in one word
The Christian gospel is a message from God about Jesus. It offers the forgiveness of one’s sin and eternal life in heaven through trusting in the substitutionary death and the resurrection of Jesus. This benefit is available to anyone who believes it. (more…)
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The land promise
God’s promises are not like New Year’s resolutions, made sincerely but forgotten when circumstances change. They are more like a deeply rooted tree—steady through heat, drought and storms.
According to the Bible, God made many promises to the Israelites (descendants of Abraham), including a people (that’s the nation of Israel), a land (in the Middle East), and blessing for the world (the Messiah) through Abraham’s descendants (Gen. 12:1-3). In this post we look at the promise of the land. (more…)
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The ultimate Glow Up
Do you long to improve your physical appearance? Weight loss, muscle gain, glowing skin, whiter teeth, thicker hair, fuller lips, less wrinkles. A national survey by The Butterfly Foundation found 1 in 3 Australians are unhappy with the way they look. Cue the “glowup” phenomenon and the 19 to 25 billion dollars spent every year by Australians on their physical appearance. (more…)
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The great commandment: Coping with difficulties
The great commandment to love God and love ones neighbor should be the main thing that influences what Christians say and do. It should be the main thing in their lives. In this post we look at how these loves work. (more…)
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The great commission: Coping with pluralism
Diversity and tolerance are often promoted today. Pluralism is when multiple groups coexist within society. We can have multi-culturalism, multi-political groups, and multi-religious groups. How can a Christian cope with pluralism? (more…)
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What does not “fit for the kingdom” mean in Luke 9:62?
After two men gave excuses for not immediately following Jesus, He told them, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (ESV, CSB, NET). Alternatively, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God” (NLT). (more…)
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Living forever requires sacrifice
Living forever – is that something that appeals to you? (more…)
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Israel in scripture, anti-semitism and end times
By going through Israel’s place in scripture, we will see why anti-semitism doesn’t connect with what scripture says. (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He would be a prophet like Moses
I woke up early yesterday, so I watched the soccer [football]. In the world cup, the Australian socceroos played the pharaohs from Egypt. It reminded me of Moses and the Israelites verses Pharaoh and the Egyptians at the Red Sea. (more…)
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No surprises
Scott was surprised by an unexpected audit. Most of us don’t like to be surprised. Every boss hates surprises. The “no surprises” rule is a golden rule of workplace communication. It means alerting your manager of bad news before they hear about it from someone else.
This protects them from unexpected embarrassments. (more…)
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What Does the Bible say about civil authorities?
Presidents and Prime Ministers are often criticized online. But what does the Bible say about our attitude towards our leaders? (more…)
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World Cup victory
Even if you’re not a football fan, the FIFA World Cup probably captures your attention in one way or another. Held every four years, it is the most watched sporting event in the world, attracting an even larger audience than the Summer Olympics. Out of more than 200 national teams, only 48 qualify for the final tournament, and after 104 matches, one team is crowned champion. (more…)
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How people are like God
The Bible says that people are made in the image and likeness of God. The words “image” and “likeness” mean that humans are similar to God and or they can represent God, like a photo can represent a person. The phrase does not mean God has a physical body like ours. Rather, it means humans were created to resemble and represent God in the world. (more…)
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Dealing with conflict at Philippi
The city of Philippi was a Roman colony in Macedonia, which was named after Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great. It was located on an important trade route between Europe and Asia, which was the main route between Italy and the Middle East. The Egnatian Way was a Roman military highway from the Adriatic Sea (near Italy) to Byzantium (now Istanbul, near the Black Sea). It went 1120 km (696 miles) from modern Albania to modern Turkey. (more…)
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Core scriptural beliefs and practices
Everyone has a worldview. Our worldview is the way we look at the present world. Our belief systems shape the way that we live our lives.
Christianity is a theistic worldview – We believe God exists and is the source of all reality. The big bang can’t explain how something came from nothing. God tells us what we need to know in the Bible. It sees history as a linear story (with a beginning and end)—under God’s control—rather than a random sequence of events.
The Christian worldview is God-based. (more…)
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The avenue of trees
Here’s a song by Steve Messer about Australia’s war memorials.
Heading out of Ballarat towards the western plains
The tall white arch behind me, ahead the dual lane
On both sides of the highway, stripped bare by winter’s breeze
Ten miles of sad reminders, the avenue of trees (more…)
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Lest we forget the Lord
Yesterday was ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day when we remember all those who served for Australia in armed conflicts. In particular, we remember those who died in defending our nation and our allies. Theirs was a costly sacrifice of courage and devotion for our freedom. (more…)
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Bad news for the Big Bang Model
This post is based on a presentation by Dr Jason Lisle of the Biblical Science Institute.
Space telescopes give us clearer, sharper, and more complete views of the universe by eliminating the limitations imposed by earth’s atmosphere. The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) revolutionized our view of the universe with ultra-sharp images and UV capability. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) operating in infrared is seeing stars and galaxies further away than any other telescope. The next space telescope to be launched will be the Roman space telescope (Appendix A). (more…)
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