Reformed Blogging

The Book of Esther is a very interesting read. The word "God" doesn't appear at all yet it shows the providence of God. It also is a book that reveals that there were still some Jews in Persia who were outside the will of God. Even the godly Mordecai might be considered a backslider since he was still in Persia at that time rather than in Jerusalem. Though, I think the land was hardly restored and maybe, just maybe, Mordecai was helping restore Jerusalem but it wasn't fully restored in his time. You can see a glimpse of Persian history in this book. I was thinking about the whole incident of Xerxes who is seldom called Ahasuerus . McGee mentions in his commentary that Ahasuerus was not the name of a man but a title for a king. Egyptian kings were called Pharaoh. McGee has some secular historical references. The Bible also mentioned some non-inspired books to back up its validity like the Book of Jasher or the Sayings of Iddo. Just because a source is not fallible does...

I may not agree with Paul Washer all the time (though these areas for me are very minor) but he has very powerful statements. One of his biggest statements is the truth that the Church is one. I'm referring to the holy catholic apostolic church and not the Roman Catholic institution. The word catholic is derived from the Greek word katholes which means universal. Consider how Acts 9:31 which means "all throughout". The word catholic is synonymous to universal. In the times of a great pandemic - I do have the comfort that the Christian church remains in it catholicity (or universality), apostolic, and holy church. The Bible may refer to "churches" and the Church. How can there be the churches and the Church? It's because the churches may be divided organizationally but they are united spiritually .  How can the churches be united spiritually while being organizationally divided? For one, I'm not a Baptist Brider. I don't consider myself a Prote...

I'm aware Valentine's Day is a controversial issue especially due to February 14 is associated with the feast of lust. However, Reformation Day hits on the same day as Halloween does, right? Right now, I think some fundamentalists have gone too far without knowing what Valentine's Day is and who the Christian martyr Valentine was. Here's what Got Questions reveals about Valentine the Christian martyr: The history is somewhat murky as to how Valentine’s Day has come to be what we now know and celebrate. Saint Valentine served in third-century Rome. Emperor Claudius decided that single men made better soldiers. Therefore, Claudius banned soldiers from being married. One version of the story is that Valentine continued to perform the weddings of young soldiers who were in love, and Claudius had Valentine imprisoned. While imprisoned, Valentine reportedly fell in love with the jailer’s daughter. Valentine sent her a card and signed it, "Love, your Valentine....