Search — Theology Explorer

Acts 21:23-24 Nazirite vow Paul the Apostle Law of Moses

Acts 21:23-24 -- Paul is asked to join four men under a vow and pay their expenses, demonstrating publicly that he walks orderly and keeps the law -- to refute the false rumor

Survey of Acts 21:23-24, Paul and the vow

James (brother of Jesus) Acts 21:25 James (brother of Jesus) Apostolic Decree Acts 21:25

Acts 21:25 -- James reminds Paul of the Acts 15 Apostolic Decree: the Gentiles only need the four abstentions. The Jew/Gentile distinction in the decree is explicitly restated.

Acts 21:25, restatement of the Acts 15 decree

Acts 21 Torah observance Acts 21 Jewish believers

Three conclusions from Acts 21: (1) Jews may continue obeying the law (beware Pharisaical additions); (2) Gentiles still have only the four commands; (3) Jewish believers in Jerusalem years later are still Torah-observant -- and that is fine.

Summary of Acts 21 analysis

Acts 25:8 Paul the Apostle Law of Moses fulfillment theology

Acts 25:8 -- Paul says he committed no offense against the law of the Jews. Consistent with fulfillment theology: Paul in Christ has not violated the true spirit of the law.

Survey of Acts 25:8

Acts 28:17 Paul the Apostle fulfillment theology Acts 28:17

Acts 28:17 -- Paul says he has done nothing against the customs of our fathers. Again consistent with fulfillment theology.

Survey of Acts 28:17

Acts (book) Torah observance Law of Moses Acts (book)

Final summary of Acts survey: (1) prior law observers continued; (2) non-law observers continued not following it; (3) obedience to law is not required for salvation OR sanctification; (4) the question is what fulfillment means, not abolishment

Concluding summary of the entire Acts survey

Acts 15 Acts 13 Acts 15 Hebrew Roots movement apologetics

Q&A: strategy for reaching those deeply in Hebrew Roots movement -- speak truth in love, handle one issue at a time, use Acts 13-15 in Bible study format

Q&A response about evangelizing Hebrew Roots adherents

Sabbath observance Gentile believers Lord's Day (Sunday worship)

Q&A: Gentiles and Sabbath/Sunday worship -- Winger says the day of worship does not matter; the Sabbath has not shifted from Saturday to Sunday

Q&A on Sabbath observance for Gentiles

resurrection Gentile evangelism Messiah (title)

Q&A: difference between preaching Jesus as Christ to Jews vs. as Lord to Gentiles -- connects to what the audience already knows from Scripture

Q&A on Jewish vs. Gentile evangelism vocabulary

Law of Moses Ten Commandments law of Christ

Q&A: the Ten Commandments are not selectively binding because they are in the Ten Commandments -- believers are not under the law, but follow the heart of God as fulfilled in Christ

Q&A on Ten Commandments and Sabbath

New Covenant Law of Moses Levites

Q&A: tithing -- the tithe is a Mosaic law (10% to Levites/temple) and is not required for believers; Christians should give freely as the Lord directs to the poor, persecuted, and ministers

Q&A on tithing

Revelation 20-21 eschatology Law of Moses new heavens and new earth

Q&A: Revelation 20-21 as the end of the Mosaic law -- Winger is uncertain; notes a real transition happens in new heavens/new earth but declines to definitively call it the end of the law

Q&A on eschatology and the law

Hebrew Roots movement Messianic Judaism Jewish believers

Q&A: difference between Hebrew Roots movement (HRM) and Messianic Judaism -- HRM is predominantly Gentiles taking on Torah; Messianic Judaism is Jews who believe Jesus is Messiah

Q&A distinguishing HRM from Messianic Judaism

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-05

Summary of the four-part Hebrew Roots series: Parts 1–3 recap

Series overview for new viewers

Matthew 5 Acts circumcision Matthew 5 Acts

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-05

Jewish believers who come to faith in Jesus should expect to continue being very Jewish

Q&A: Rachel asks about present-day Jews and circumcision/law observance

Acts circumcision Acts Jewish believers

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-13

Two truths the world and Anderson each reject: all sin is terrible; yet God loves and saves

Symmetry of error between secular culture and Anderson

God's love sin Steven Anderson

Acts James (brother of Jesus) John 7 Acts James (brother of Jesus) resurrection appearances

John 7 records Jesus's brothers not believing in him during his ministry, then Acts records them as believers after resurrection — this disbelief/conversion arc supports biological relationship

The conversion of Jesus's brothers as evidence for their biological relationship

scholarly consensus resurrection crucifixion of Jesus

Virtual scholarly consensus on historical facts about Jesus: lived in Palestine, believed special relationship with God, performed astonishing deeds, taught in parables, criticized Jewish leaders, crucified under Pilate

Summarizing the bedrock facts about Jesus accepted by virtually all historians including non-Christians

Acts Hebrews Paul Peter Acts

Audience Q: Why doesn't anyone reference Tacitus on Christian persecution until the 4th century? — Multiple 1st-century sources confirm early persecution of Christians

Audience question from "Godless Engineer" about Christian persecution attestation

Acts 18 argument from silence Josephus extra-biblical sources

Suetonius's report of Claudius expelling Jews from Rome matches Acts 18 — illustrating how omissions in one source don't prove falsehood; Josephus doesn't mention this expulsion

Cross-referencing Suetonius and Acts; illustrating argument from silence

Acts 9 Paul resurrection appearances hallucination hypothesis

Did Paul hallucinate seeing Jesus? Hallucinations are private, not group experiences — Paul's companions also saw the light and heard the voice (Acts 9)

Audience Q about whether Paul hallucinated his encounter with the risen Jesus

Acts 13 Psalm 16:10 David Paul resurrection

Paul quotes Psalm 16:10 in Acts 13, arguing Jesus's body did not decay — therefore the resurrection was physical and bodily, not merely visionary

Paul's bodily resurrection theology inferred from Acts 13

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-26

Cessationist Interpretation 2 (Masters Seminary): prophecy and knowledge = inscripturated revelation; massive time gap between vv. 11 and 12; "the perfect" = the church brought to maturity by the Bible.

Summary of the three key concepts in the Masters Seminary article that underpin its cessationist reading of 1 Cor 13.

1 Corinthians 13:8-12 cessationism canon of Scripture to teleion

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-26

Rebuttal: the inscripturation claim for prophecy and knowledge is unsubstantiated; New Testament prophets generally did not produce Scripture.

First major exegetical objection to the Masters Seminary argument. Winger demonstrates that NT prophets were not primarily Scripture-writers.

Acts 21:9 Acts 11 Acts 21:9 cessationism prophecy

Mike Winger idea 2019-07-03

Good derives from God's nature; evil is the contrast to God's goodness, requiring permission not creation

Positive account of where good and evil come from

free will evil as privation origin of evil

Mike Winger idea 2019-07-03

Moral evil as the result of free will; natural evil as a separate category

Mike distinguishes two major categories of evil

Satan free will moral evil

Mike Winger idea 2019-08-07

Q&A: Acts 13:48 — 'appointed to eternal life' and the election/free will question

Viewer asks about the Calvinist proof text in Acts 13:48.

Acts 13:48 election Calvinism Molinism

infant baptism paedobaptism believers baptism

Introduction and five-part outline for analyzing infant baptism biblically

Mike Winger opens the livestream by laying out the structure of his biblical analysis of infant baptism, listing the five areas he will cover.

Acts 2:38 Acts 2:39 Pentecost repentance covenant

Acts 2:38 — baptism is commanded alongside repentance, ruling out infants; "for your children" means descendants not infants

Winger analyzes Peter's Pentecost sermon as establishing the baptism-repentance link and addresses the "for your children" clause.

Acts 2:40-41 faith infant baptism believers baptism

Acts 2:40-41 — only those who received the word were baptized, implying cognizant response

Further analysis of Acts 2 to show baptism requires comprehension and reception of the gospel.

Acts Acts infant baptism paedobaptism

Part 2: Introduction to the household baptism argument for infant baptism

Winger presents the paedo-baptist household baptism case charitably before critiquing it.

Acts 10:2 Acts 10:33 Acts 10:44 Cornelius Holy Spirit infant baptism

Acts 10-11: Cornelius's household — all feared God, heard, received the Spirit, and spoke in tongues, excluding infants

Detailed exegesis of the Cornelius household baptism narrative.

Acts 16:31-34 faith infant baptism household baptism

Acts 16:31-34: Philippian jailer's household — all heard the word, believed, and rejoiced, excluding passive infants

Exegesis of the Philippian jailer conversion and household baptism.

Acts 16:15 Acts 16:14 Lydia Acts 16:15 Acts 16:14

Acts 16:15: Lydia's household baptism — likely no infants present given her context as a traveling businesswoman

Examination of the Lydia household baptism passage and contextual clues.

John 4:53 Acts 18:8 Philippians 4:22 faith infant baptism John 4:53

Three additional passages show "household" belief language does not imply infants: John 4:53, Acts 18:8, Philippians 4:22

Winger broadens the argument to show that household believing/greeting language consistently excludes passive infants.

Mike Winger idea 2020-08-28

The Great Commission applies to all Christians at some level; discipleship includes both evangelism (initiation) and ongoing teaching

Question from Cass Magnuson about how Matthew 28:18-20 applies to individual Christians and what making a disciple involves.

Acts Matthew 28:18-20 Great Commission discipleship baptism

Mike Winger idea 2020-09-11

Distinction between temptation and lust/sin: sin begins when the will yields to desire, not at first awareness of attraction

Response to Hot Wax 93 asking the difference between simple sexual attraction and lust.

James 1:13-15 Matthew 5:28 temptation sin sexual sin

Psalm 15:4 marriage covenant contracts

Are marriage contracts biblical? — Yes, with wisdom; keeping one's word is a biblical principle

Question from Mahit (likely from India) about whether signing a pre-marriage contract is biblical.

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.

Romans Acts Hebrews Romans Acts Hebrews

How to start reading the Bible — begin with the Gospels, Acts, Romans, Hebrews; not Genesis-to-Revelation in order

Question from Dallin Byrd about the best starting point for Bible reading.

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.

Acts hermeneutics Acts tongues and salvation

The case for tongues-required-for-salvation rests on a few Acts passages used without context

Beginning the biblical refutation of the tongues-salvation link

Acts 2 Acts 2 new covenant gifts of the Spirit

Acts 2 — the inauguration of the Holy Spirit: all present spoke in tongues

First of three Acts passages cited by tongues-required proponents

Acts 10 Acts 10 Jewish-Gentile distinction tongues and salvation

Acts 10 — Cornelius and the Gentiles speak in tongues

Second Acts passage cited by tongues-required proponents

Acts 19 Acts 19 gifts of the Spirit tongues and salvation

Acts 19 — group that had not heard of the Holy Spirit is baptized and speaks in tongues

Third Acts passage cited by tongues-required proponents

hermeneutics tongues and salvation descriptive vs prescriptive

The absence of a universal prescriptive statement is the key problem with the tongues-salvation argument

Mike's core logical point about what Scripture would need to say to support the tongues-salvation requirement

Acts 10 Acts 2 Acts 10 Acts 2 new covenant

Acts 2 purpose: inauguration of the new covenant Spirit; Acts 10 purpose: extending that work to Gentiles

Mike's theological interpretation of the Acts tongues episodes