Author: markwchristy

Was Paul Guilty of Reviling the High Priest?: A Hermeneutical Study of Acts 23:1-5

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD Standing before the Council, Paul confronted the high priest Ananias for his unlawful act which was committed when Ananias ordered that Paul be struck even though Paul had not yet been accused, much less been found guilty, of a crime (Acts 23:1-2). Specifically, Paul reproached the high priest by saying, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me to be struck?” (23:3).[1] Those who...
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Self-Centered Love in the Contemporary Evangelical Church: A Biblical Analysis of the Problem and Its Solution

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD A constant theme throughout the New Testament is the love of Christ which He exhibited to all during His crucifixion. Alongside this is the accompanying call of Christ to His disciples whereby He commands them to exhibit such love. While all Christians are directed to adhere to His mandate, many Christians (and their churches) seem to exhibit more self-love than the sort of selfless love exhibited and commanded by Christ. With this in mind, this article will examine C...
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God’s Call to Unjust Suffering: The Purpose that Rick Warren Overlooked

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD In the second and third chapters of 1 Peter, the Apostle calls on believers to submit to civil authorities, employers, spouses, and to their fellow church members in accordance with their various roles. Within this discussion, Peter draws yet another purpose for believers: “For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly” (1 Pet 2:19; cf. 21-24).[1] To be clear, the Apostle plainly states that Chri...
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Should Christians Require Repentance of Those Who Would be Forgiven?

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By Mark W. Christy In Colossians 3:12-13 and Ephesians 4:32, Paul declares that Christians should have a heart that desires forgiveness of those who cause offense. In addition to a forgiving disposition, Paul adds that Christians should manifest forgiveness in line with the example of God Himself. Many Christians, aware of the biblical admonishments regarding forgiveness, often interpret these directives to be saying that those who are truly loving disciples of Christ must forgive others in ...
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Confession and Commitment: The Marks of True Discipleship Based on Christ’s Words in Luke 14:25-35

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD In modern times, evangelical churches have become increasingly focused on an overly simplified gospel which focuses exclusively on the procurement of a (verbal) believing response irrespective of a lasting change in disposition that increasingly mirrors the holiness of God. To support their efforts, they appeal to passages like Romans 10:13 where Paul writes, “if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, yo...
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The Fall of the Pastorate: An Indictment against the Unbiblical Criteria Used in the Hiring of Pastors and a Call for Change

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD Nowadays, every church (or so it seems) wants to be that next mega-church, and every pastor is often judged solely by the number of those in attendance. This hyper-focus on numerical results has coincided with a devaluation in the biblical appeals for Godly character, soundness in doctrine, and steadfastness in proclamation. Instead of these biblical qualities which should be exhibited by pastors and reproduced in the laity, the qualities that now achieve prominence i...
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Can You, Like Paul, Say that Your Conscience Testifies with You?

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD In Romans 9:1, Paul defends his integrity before the Lord, and then adds, “my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit.” How is it that Paul could use his own conscience as a part of his gospel witness? To answer this, this article will discuss the role of the conscience in one’s life, the hardening effect of sin upon it, the cleansing effect of the Word of God, and the call upon Christians to actively maintain a clean conscience so as to properly empower their...
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Assessing the Cumulative Weight of Arguments for Both the Pre-70 A.D. and Post-70 A.D. Dating of Revelation

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By Mark W. Christy The dating of Revelation is extremely important to those who desire to properly determine the identities behind its symbolism. Among the various over-arching perspectives on John’s content, Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Preterism favor a dating that occurs before the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D and during the reign of Nero, as this would allow them to associate much of the events recorded by John to be directly associated with Jerusalem and thus consigned to histo...
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Learning from the Disciples’ Self-Serving Evaluation of Christ’s Cross

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD Having informed the disciples of His impending death, Jesus spends significant time, beginning in John 14, comforting the disciples, knowing that His death will be difficult for them to bear. Given that it was Christ who would die, one would think that the disciples would have been ministering to Christ in the same way. This, however, was not the case. To understand this remarkable failure of the disciples, this article will examine Christ’s rebuke in John 14:28 and i...
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Avoiding the Hermeneutical Trap of Arminianism: Part 7 – 2 Peter 3:9

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By Mark W. Christy, PhD (This series has been adapted from several sermons that covered verses relied upon by Arminians to defend their stance. In order to properly undergird their position, the Arminians are tasked with finding clear biblical support for the human will being an active part (and therefore, completely free and beyond the control of God’s sovereign will) of the salvation process. If this can be accomplished, then they must, of necessity, engage the verses that appear to direct...
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