Filter results by source database — Scripture Commentary, Theology, Mike Winger, or Pulpit. Click a tab to narrow to one database.

...more
All (173) Mike Winger (173)
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-23

1 Corinthians 16:20 — "greet one another with a holy kiss" is a culturally applied principle, not a universal command

Question from Sarah Taytano about whether the holy kiss is a binding commandment.

1 Corinthians 16:20 hermeneutics cultural hermeneutics 1 Corinthians 16:20
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-30

Whether lukewarm Christians are saved: this verse addresses corporate church impact, not individual salvation status

Mike addresses the specific salvation question from the Laodicea passage.

lukewarm Revelation 3:16 salvation lukewarm eternal security
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-30

Penal substitutionary atonement: two valid senses of God's wrath on the cross — displeasure toward sin; outward punishment of sin

Question from Zoe Abundant about whether Jesus experienced God's wrath and what that means.

Isaiah 53:10 crucifixion atonement Sodom and Gomorrah
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-06

Paul rebuked Peter publicly in Galatians 2 because his behavior impacted the whole community

Mike shows a biblical precedent for public confrontation of a leader

Galatians 2 Paul Peter Galatians 2
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-06

If Mark 16:17-18 is original, signs accompanying believers does not mean every believer at all times

Mike gives a conditional interpretation of Mark 16:17-18 assuming its authenticity

Acts Mark 16:17-18 signs and wonders speaking in tongues Acts
Mike Winger idea 2018-09-26

Handling a friend pursuing unbiblical mysticism — staged intervention using Galatians 6:1-2

Mike answers an emailed question from Nikki about a close Christian friend who keeps pursuing mystical and unbiblical things despite multiple conversations.

Matthew 18:15-17 Galatians 6:1-2 false teaching church discipline mysticism
Mike Winger idea 2018-09-26

Standing up for faith before it is taken away — Christians always stand; democracy creates gospel opportunity

A viewer asks at what point Christians should stand up for their faith before it is taken away.

Matthew 5:13-16 salt and light gospel proclamation religious persecution
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-11

Jewish feasts were commanded for Jews in Israel, not universally for all people; Gentiles were never given the Mosaic law and are not obligated to keep the feasts.

Question: why don't Christians celebrate Jewish holidays?

Hebrew Roots Movement Gentiles covenant theology
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-18

When someone professing faith lives as an unbeliever, the individual Christian's posture should shift from fellowship mode to outreach mode — still loving and gracious but with different relational goals.

Application of 1 Corinthians 5:11 to personal relationships with professing but lifestyle-unbelieving friends.

1 Corinthians 5:11 Evangelism 1 Corinthians 5:11 Church Discipline
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-18

Two issues with heresy hunters: (1) a divisive uncharitable attitude over secondary issues needing gentle correction toward unity; (2) the real possibility they are right — total openness to correction with zero self-defensiveness is required.

Continued advice on handling heresy hunters in ministry.

Humility Heresy Hunting / Online Critics Self-Defense vs. Service
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-08

A prayer opening Congress in the name of the Hindu god Brahma is blasphemy — but the appropriate Christian response is not rebellion

Question from Gorilla Christianity about a US Congress session opened in the name of Brahma

idolatry government early church
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-08

Enoch is actually multiple composite works; early Jewish tradition rejected its canonical status

Continued discussion of the Book of Enoch in relation to Jude

Jude canon Jude Book of Enoch
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-08

A hyper-sensitive conscience projects fear onto others and paralyzes daily life — the solution is more faith, not more scrutiny

Continuing response to the overly-scrupulous conscience question

Romans 14:23 Romans 14:23 conscience faith
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-08

The Holy Spirit specifically is said to grieve because He is the unifying presence dwelling within believers — our division grieves Him most directly

Question from Sandra about why Ephesians 4:30 says the Holy Spirit grieves but not the Father or Son

Ephesians 4:30 Ephesians 4:31 Trinity Holy Spirit Ephesians 4:30
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-15

Hillsong is not a progressive church — progressives target traditional Christianity, Hillsong seeks an inclusive umbrella

Answering whether Hillsong qualifies as theologically progressive.

Bethel Church Christian unity Hillsong
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-15

Catholic saint icons carry a superstitious protection function incompatible with biblical worship

Practical application of the icons question to Catholic devotional objects.

Prayer Idolatry Catholic devotional practices
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-15

John 17:21 — the oneness Jesus prays for is relational unity via the indwelling Spirit and Christ's mediation, not ontological Trinity participation

Question from David Foresight about what it means for believers to be "one" as the Father and Son are one in John 17:21.

John 17:21 John 14-16 Indwelling of the Holy Spirit Jesus as mediator John 17:21
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-15

Christian community love is an apologetic — Trinitarian unity manifested in the church is evidence that God sent Christ

Continuation of John 17:21 discussion.

John 17:21 John 13:35 Apologetics John 17:21 Christian unity as apologetic
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-29

Why care about false doctrine (prosperity gospel, word of faith)? Because doctrinal error has real-world spiritual consequences

Question from Tony about why false doctrine matters if it does not compromise salvation.

discernment prosperity gospel apostasy
Mike Winger idea 2021-02-12

Q11: Who can perform baptism? Scripture gives no explicit rule but establishes community precedent; a parent can baptize a child

Viewer 'Skirt Bobcat' asks who is authorized to perform baptism and whether a parent can baptize their children.

Paul the Apostle church authority baptism
Mike Winger idea 2021-02-19

Wise rule: pastor should live roughly at the level of his congregation

Mike's practical guideline for appropriate pastoral compensation.

church leadership pastoral ethics pastoral compensation
Mike Winger idea 2021-02-19

Question: Thoughts on the ecumenical movement — should I leave a church that is part of it?

Viewer in Finland asks about ecumenism, since most Finnish churches are officially part of the ecumenical movement.

church unity Calvary Chapel secondary issues
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-04

How to approach a pastor who uses the Passion Translation: lead with grace toward the person while critiquing the translation, not the person.

Continued advice to Jeff Gaitzens on handling a pastor using the Passion Translation.

Brian Simmons Passion Translation Pastoral accountability
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-04

Tips for an atheist starting to believe: gather intellectual reasons for God, practice spiritual disciplines, and make choices that shape belief.

Question from Emil Codrin about how to start believing after a lifetime of atheism.

Evidence for God Christopher Hitchens Spiritual disciplines
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-22

Dinosaurs and the age of the earth: three intra-Christian views summarized

Madison Torres asked how dinosaur fossils fit with Adam and Eve and the biblical timeline.

Genesis 1 Job 40-41 Genesis 1 young earth creationism age of the earth
Mike Winger idea 2021-01-22

Closing exhortation: Christians bring hope to the world, not from the world

Closing remarks at the end of the 20 Questions livestream.

eschatology Christian witness kingdom of God
Mike Winger idea 2021-03-05

Western churches may not give adequate attention to caring for the poor

Discussing the almsgiving interpretation of Luke 16:9

Galatians 2:10 1 Corinthians 1:26-28 early church care for the poor church responsibility
Mike Winger idea 2021-03-05

Christianity has a mountain of evidential support — fulfilled prophecy, unity of Scripture, historical verification

Closing the apologetics discussion by pointing to positive evidence for Christianity

apologetics biblical inspiration fulfilled prophecy
Mike Winger idea 2021-03-05

Satan is not omniscient; he did not know God's plan of salvation and that is why he crucified Christ

Responding to whether the hidden mystery of salvation implies Satan's omniscience since Jesus had to rebuke Peter

1 Corinthians 2:8 Mark 1:24 Matthew 16:23 omniscience Satan crucifixion
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-23

Sharing a stage with false prophets does not necessarily constitute endorsement; guilt-by-association logic can lead to unfair heresy-by-proxy labeling.

Q5 from Ricardo Sierra: are sound-doctrine pastors who share stages with false prophets guilty by association?

discernment false prophets/teachers guilty by association
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-23

Loving neighbors in restricted-mobility times means reorienting attitude and creativity, not relying on physical proximity.

Q15 from Joel Holmberg: how can we love our neighbor and honor God when we cannot congregate (COVID-era context)?

love your neighbor community and congregation COVID-era church life
Mike Winger idea 2021-03-12

Free will does not mean freedom from consequences — the golden calf judgment illustrates this

Q15 from Jill Sworzel-Stix: If God gives us free will to worship him, why did he have Moses command the Levites to kill 3,000 people who chose not to (Exodus 32:28)?

Exodus 32 Moses Aaron covenant
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-30

Ephesians 4:7-16 overview: gifts given to the church equip saints toward unity.

Question 1 from Tanya about Ephesians 4:7-16.

Ephesians 4:7-16 church unity pastor-teacher spiritual gifts
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-30

Unity of the faith in Ephesians 4 involves shared core doctrine, knowledge of Christ, and Christlike character.

Continuation of Question 1; applying the meaning of the faith to Ephesians 4 unity.

Ephesians 4 church unity Christian maturity Ephesians 4
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-30

Caution against broadly judging the church as disunified; American church worldliness is the real local issue.

Continuation of Question 1; addressing Tanya's concern that the church lacks unity.

Matthew 7 Ephesians 4:1-3 church unity self-examination worldliness
Mike Winger idea 2021-04-30

Couples should formalize their marriage as officially as possible rather than treating informal cohabitation as equivalent.

Question 17 from Dasha Castenko about being informally married to a fiance in another country due to COVID restrictions.

marriage Christian ethics cohabitation
Mike Winger idea 2020-01-08

Fourth option: written literature is the BEST medium for communicating detailed, specific information that can be preserved, studied in community, and shared worldwide. Other communication methods (prophets, dreams, miracles) are either also subject to interpretation, subjective, or lack specificity.

Response to Q1 — written text as optimal communication

1 Corinthians 12:12 1 Corinthians 12:27 Mark 12:30-31 hermeneutics hermeneutics divine communication
Mike Winger idea 2020-01-08

Cameron Bertuzzi identifies that Drew conflates suffering with unjustified suffering. The real burden is showing the suffering is unjustified, which Drew assumes but doesn't argue. Questions are not arguments — you must defend premises, not just state conclusions.

Additional response to Q1 — unjustified vs justified suffering

Cameron Bertuzzi justified suffering questions are not arguments
Mike Winger idea 2020-03-04

Q: Acts 4:32-37 communal living — why don't churches do this? Context: Jews from around the world came to Jerusalem for Pentecost, got saved, and didn't want to leave. They sold possessions to pool resources and learn from the apostles. This was a unique situation, not a policy — it doesn't appear in Ephesus, Corinth, or Antioch.

Q&A — Acts 4 communalism

Acts 4:32-37 Pentecost Pentecost Acts 4:32-37
Mike Winger idea 2020-03-11

Mike introduces a study on flat earth Bible verses. His goal is not to argue about the shape of the earth but to show that the Bible does NOT teach flat earth. Ground rules: not about conspiracies, geocentrism, or the firmament — only about whether specific verses teach a flat earth.

Introduction — flat earth Bible study

hermeneutics hermeneutics biblical cosmology
Mike Winger idea 2020-03-18

Q: 2 Corinthians 3:17 ("the Lord is the Spirit") — does it teach Jesus is the Holy Spirit? It affirms oneness in God but not Oneness Pentecostal theology. The Spirit is sometimes called the Spirit of Jesus; the Holy Spirit is Christ's presence with us. But the full NT also affirms distinct persons of the Trinity.

Q&A — 2 Corinthians 3:17 and the Trinity

2 Corinthians 3:17 Trinity Trinity 2 Corinthians 3:17
Mike Winger idea 2020-03-16

Selflessness should drive decisions — even if you're low-risk, older/vulnerable congregants face serious danger. Mike's personal practice: running errands for his elderly mother with COPD. Churches can close for a season without spiritual compromise — maintain community through calls, small groups, and online gatherings.

Selflessness and community during lockdown

Hebrews 10:25 Hebrews 10:25 COVID lockdown church closures
Mike Winger idea 2020-04-08

Mike presents a detailed gospel message: how to get saved. Romans 10:9 is the core verse — confess Jesus is Lord, believe God raised him from the dead, and you will be saved. Simple but with deep layers when you zoom in.

Introduction — how to get saved

Romans 10:9 gospel presentation Romans 10:9 how to get saved
Mike Winger idea 2020-06-03

How to find a good church: (1) Sound biblical teaching is #1 priority — does the pastor handle Scripture correctly? (2) Genuine community — not just Sunday performance. (3) Don't expect perfection — you'll bring your own imperfections too. (4) Be willing to serve, not just consume. (5) Size doesn't determine quality. Visit several, ask questions, look for fruit.

Finding a good church

expository preaching expository preaching finding a good church
Mike Winger idea 2020-09-28

The prayer promise is couched in the destruction-of-temple context because Jesus is inaugurating NEW COVENANT prayer — from temple-mediated access to direct access through Christ. Christians ARE the new temple.

The temple context explains WHY this prayer teaching appears here in Mark

1 Peter 2:5 Ephesians 2:19-22 2 Chronicles 6:24-40 1 Peter 2:5 Ephesians 2:19-22 2 Chronicles 6:24-40
Mike Winger idea 2020-09-28

Mark 14 (Gethsemane) is the intentional counterpoint to Mark 11 — Jesus with perfect faith, no sin, no unforgiveness prays and God says NO. Faith means trusting God both when he says yes AND when he says no.

The missing piece: Jesus' Gethsemane prayer as counterpoint to the prayer promise

Mark 14:35-36 Word of Faith Gethsemane prayer Word of Faith
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-12

In the parable, the son is sent "last of all" — not meaning no more messengers ever, but that the Son is the final opportunity before judgment falls on the leaders. Jesus is greater than every prophet: they are slaves; he is the beloved Son.

Analysis of the Son's unique status in the parable (Mark 12:6-8)

John 5 Mark 12:1-12 John 5 deity of Christ Mark 12:1-12
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-02

The death penalty is clearly supported by Scripture. Genesis 9:5-6 — given to ALL humanity (not just Israel) — establishes capital punishment for murder based on the image of God: "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed."

The foundational biblical case for the death penalty from Genesis 9

Genesis 9:5-6 image of God image of God capital punishment
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-02

Deuteronomy 19:11-13 shows the death penalty must be enacted even over compassion — "your eyes shall not pity him" — and failing to punish murderers spreads their guilt onto the entire community.

OT law reinforcing the death penalty with protections and communal guilt

Deuteronomy 19:11-13 Numbers 35:30-31 death penalty Deuteronomy 19:11-13 Numbers 35:30-31
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-02

God's justice is BOTH restorative AND retributive — using restoration to eliminate punishment is itself unjust. The solution to wrongful convictions is to reform the death penalty, not abolish it.

Restorative vs. retributive justice, and the wrongful conviction problem

Revelation 6:10 Roman Catholicism death penalty Revelation 6:10
← Prev Page 3 of 4 Next →