Search — Theology Explorer

Isaiah 53:5 hermeneutics healing Word of Faith

Isaiah 53:5 interpretation — "by his stripes we are healed" in context

Question from Cindy Johanneson about Word of Faith use of Isaiah 53:5 to support divine health and the claim believers should never be sick.

Isaiah 53:5 1 Peter 2:24 healing sin atonement

1 Peter 2:24 quotes Isaiah 53:5 in a spiritual/relational healing context, not physical

Continuing the Isaiah 53:5 / healing-in-the-atonement discussion.

Matthew 8:16-17 Isaiah 53:4 healing atonement messianic prophecy

Matthew 8:16-17 applies Isaiah 53 to Jesus's physical healings — physical healing is in the atonement

Continuing Isaiah 53 / healing discussion; a complicating text for those who deny physical healing in the atonement.

Mark 9:49-50 Old Testament typology discipleship

Old Testament sacrifices seasoned with salt — salt as covenant symbol and godly character

Question from Molly Thompson about the spiritual/messianic meaning of salting OT sacrifices.

Luke 17:5-6 faith discipleship mustard seed

Faith as small as a mustard seed — the call is to use existing faith, not to manufacture more

Question from Lavell Martinez about the tension between being told to have great faith and Jesus saying mustard-seed faith moves mountains.

Acts 3:6 prayer spiritual gifts healing

Should we command healing (like Peter in Acts 3:6) or pray to God for healing? — Pray with faith; commanding is not a universal prescription

Question from Lasik's 97 about whether Christians should speak authoritatively over the sick rather than asking God.

Mark 16:17-18 Acts 28 textual criticism healing prosperity gospel

Mark 16:17-18 — the signs follow believers as a community/historically, not as individual mandates for every Christian

Question from Chretienis about Mark 16:17-18 and helping people escape the prosperity gospel.

false teaching heresy discernment

Avoiding heresy-tracking burnout — know your realm of responsibility in the body of Christ

Question from Judah Matthews about discernment without anxiety over every false teaching.

Matthew 5:44 Luke 6:28 prayer sanctification forgiveness

How to overcome long-held bitterness — pray for the person consistently; blessing them changes your own heart

Final question from Lillian McDonald about stopping bitterness held for years.

gifts of the Spirit tongues and salvation spiritual abuse

Personal testimony: as a teenager Mike was told he was not saved because he had not spoken in tongues

Opening introduction before answering the first question about tongues and salvation

pastoral care tongues and salvation spiritual abuse

Declaring tongues required for salvation is spiritually abusive and demands repentance

Mike's moral and pastoral assessment before turning to the biblical argument

Matthew 25 spiritual gifts stewardship Matthew 25

Parable of the Talents: the main point is investing what God has given you for his kingdom

Q&A from Faded Princess about the Parable of the Talents and discerning spiritual gifts

spiritual gifts vocation gifts of the Spirit

Spiritual gifts are discerned by what you are good at, not merely what excites you

Second part of Faded Princess's question about how to identify one's gifts

spiritual gifts vocation body of Christ

Discovering gifts requires doing everything first and then observing where you excel

Practical application of gift discernment

Calvary Chapel tradition vs Scripture church tradition

Calvary Chapel's informal warehouse-church aesthetic is itself a tradition, not an inherently superior form

Mike's reflection on his Calvary Chapel upbringing and liturgy

Psalms Psalms anthropology psuche

The soul may relate to the emotional/intellectual center — Davidic Psalms and soul language

Further speculation on the distinction between soul and spirit

Christian ethics same-sex marriage sexual ethics

Attending a same-sex wedding generally expresses affirmation, not merely love — Christians should decline

Q&A from Joel Holmberg about attending a same-sex wedding

Christian ethics video games witchcraft

Fantasy magic vs. actual witchcraft: the distinction matters for whether a video game element is spiritually dangerous

Applying principles to the specific RPG magic question

discernment Christian liberty Christian ethics

Two problematic extremes: hyper-strict rules and almost no rules about entertainment — both are spiritually dangerous

Summation of the video game and entertainment ethics discussion

Christian ethics spiritual disciplines fasting

Fasting: the question is better framed as "is it good?" rather than "must I?"

Q&A from Sweet Eats 2 about whether Christians should fast

spiritual disciplines self-denial fasting

Fasting's primary purpose is denying the flesh and gaining mastery over physical desires, not achieving spiritual mountaintop experiences

Correcting a common misunderstanding about fasting

prayer spiritual disciplines fasting

Fasting creates additional prayer time and a spiritually focused mindset

Additional practical benefits of fasting

spiritual disciplines fasting

Scripture assumes fasting is part of normal Christian life without mandating specific schedules; fasting for a single meal is valid

Scope and flexibility of fasting

holiness Christian humor reverence for God

Memes about Jesus and Christian humor — the danger of making light of holy things

Question about pages like "Memes for Jesus" and joking about Bible stories

Bethel Church Bill Johnson Physics of Heaven

Physics of Heaven — Bethel/Bill Johnson endorsed book promoting adoption of New Age practices

Question from April Stafford about spiritualism and New Age practices being "rescued" for Christian use

Deuteronomy Deuteronomy New Age syncretism

Deuteronomy prohibits worshiping God the way pagan nations worship their gods

Old Testament argument against adopting pagan spiritual practices

Colossians Paul Colossians New Age

Colossians — New Testament prohibition against borrowing pagan or Old Covenant practices

New Testament argument against adopting New Age spiritual practices

spiritual gifts Holy Spirit discernment

Root cause of New Age adoption: absence of Holy Spirit necessitates manufactured methods

Theological diagnosis of why Christians turn to New Age practices

spiritual discernment New Age syncretism

Christian adoption of New Age practices is "a forgery of a forgery"

Conclusion of New Age syncretism argument

prayer Jesus as mediator prayer in Jesus's name

"In Jesus's name" is not a required formula but a meaningful expression of mediation

Practical application of praying in Jesus's name

Revelation 2 Revelation 2 church of Ephesus first love

Renewing love for God — Revelation 2 letter to Ephesus: remember, return, repeat

Question from Trippy Penguin about renewing love for God when faith feels commonplace

Revelation 2 spiritual disciplines Revelation 2 first love

Spiritual dryness — returning to first works as the remedy

Continued application from Revelation 2

Satan Paganism Demon Possession

Demon possession: less visible in Western cultures due to secular/medical framing

Q&A question from "Only in Antarctica" about why demon possession seems less prevalent today given population growth.

Mark 16:15 Evangelism Mark 16:15 Great Commission

"My faith is personal" — Mike says this is unbiblical and reflects spiritual deception

Q from Proverbs 17:11 about Christians who refuse to discuss religion because it is personal.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Psalm 62:8 Proverbs 3:5-6 Faith Guidance

Favorite Bible verses for daily courage — Proverbs 3:5-6 and Psalm 62:8

Q from Eighth Day Adventist about Mike's favorite Bible verse for daily encouragement.

1 Corinthians 10:13 Romans 13:14 1 Corinthians 10:13 Spiritual Warfare Pornography

Fighting pornography addiction — battle is lost before you even feel overwhelmed

Q from Nathan P about why prayer seems ineffective against porn addiction.

Jehovah's Witnesses New World Translation spiritual abuse

JWs are victims of their organization's false teaching, not perpetrators

Mike closes the JW section with a pastoral appeal.

Numbers 5:27 Numbers 5 NIV abortion divine judgment

Numbers 5 — the Bitter Water trial does not describe an abortion; the NIV translation is mistaken on this point

Question from Dakota Ballard about pro-choice advocates using Numbers 5:27 to support abortion.

John 6 Mark 7:27-28 Lord's Supper Eucharist John 6

Mark 7:27-28 (Syrophoenician woman and children's bread) is not connected to the Eucharist debate

Question from Caleb Lindsey about whether Mark 7:27-28 supports a spiritual (non-physical) view of the Eucharist.

Proverbs Proverbs 13:24 Proverbs parenting corporal punishment

Proverbs 13:24 — the rod is literal corporal punishment; wisdom literature genre does not dissolve literal content

Question from Bethany Ferguson about whether "the rod" is physical punishment or a metaphor for accountability.

Romans 8:15 assurance of salvation witness of the Holy Spirit Romans 8:15

Witness of the Holy Spirit is mental/spiritual awareness of sonship, not necessarily emotional feeling; love for God is primarily volitional, not emotional

Question from "JW" about not feeling the witness of the Holy Spirit or love for God despite trusting Christ.

1 Samuel 16 Luke 4:18 spiritual gifts Holy Spirit charismatic movement

"The Anointing" — biblical basis is real but the charismatic formulaic packaging of it is concerning

Question from Lavell Martinez about whether "the anointing" is biblical.

1 Corinthians 10 1 Corinthians 10:22 1 Corinthians 8 Christian liberty 1 Corinthians 10 idolatry

1 Corinthians 10 — food offered to idols has different rules depending on marketplace vs. temple context and whether a pagan makes it explicit

Mike addresses the idol food question in 1 Corinthians 10 as related to the Christian liberty discussion.

John 3 Calvinism born again regeneration

John 3 born-again analogy: the Calvinist 'you don't choose to be born' argument is overextended

Question from Chris Glynn about whether John 3's born-again analogy implies no human choice in regeneration.

soul trichotomy biblical anthropology

Spirit, soul, mind, body, heart: biblical anthropology terms overlap and resist precise systematic separation

Question from Juris de los Santos about the distinct biblical components of human nature.

lukewarm Revelation 3:16 lukewarm worldliness zeal

Lukewarm defined: a Christian who has conformed to surrounding culture — worldliness that replaced former zeal

Mike's interpretation of the hot/cold/lukewarm symbolism in Revelation 3.

crucifixion atonement shame

Shame and guilt on the cross: Jesus experienced the full weight of all human guilt — an underappreciated dimension of atonement

Mike adds to the physical and death dimensions of what Jesus suffered.