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

...more
All (36) Mike Winger (36)
Mike Winger idea 2018-03-14

Degrees of sin — some sins are worse than others; the Law has different consequences; Jesus said some will suffer greater judgment

Within the Q&A on murder and saving faith

Matthew degrees of sin Mosaic Law judgment
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

The claim 'all sin is the same' contains a kernel of truth but is ultimately inaccurate and too imprecise to be useful.

Mike opens the livestream by stating the topic: is all sin really the same? He acknowledges the idea has partial truth but argues it is clumsy and misleading.

hermeneutics sin Christian living
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Old Testament law assigns different penalties to different sins, which itself demonstrates that God does not treat all sin the same.

Mike begins his Old Testament survey by pointing to the differentiated penal codes in the Mosaic law.

Exodus 22 sin Old Testament law penalty
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

1 Kings 16:25 — Omri 'did more evil than all who were before him,' implying qualitative, not merely quantitative, differences in wickedness.

Mike moves from the law to narrative descriptions of individuals to show that Scripture uses qualitative language about degrees of evil.

1 Kings 16:25 hierarchy of sin 1 Kings 16:25 Omri
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Jeremiah 7:24-26 — Israel 'did worse than their fathers,' a qualitative moral judgment, not merely a count of more sins.

Mike cites another Old Testament narrative statement about moral deterioration across generations to reinforce qualitative distinctions in sin.

Jeremiah 7:24-26 hierarchy of sin qualitative sin Old Testament narrative
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

James 2:10 does not teach that all sins are identical; it teaches that breaking any one point of the law makes a person a law-breaker before the same Lawgiver — a relational, not equivalence, statement.

Mike addresses the primary proof-text used to argue all sin is the same and offers an exegesis that resolves the apparent tension.

James 2:10 James 2:11 Romans 3:23 hermeneutics exegesis James 2:10
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

No sin is trivially small because every sin is a personal offense against a holy God — the error is in using 'not all sin is the same' as a license to minimize some sins.

Mike offers the first pastoral guard against misusing the hierarchy-of-sin principle.

sin holiness Christian living
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Matthew 5:27 — Lusting in the heart is adultery in the heart, but it is not the same act as physical adultery; using 'all sin is the same' to justify the full act is logically incoherent.

Mike examines Jesus' teaching on lust to show how the 'all sin is the same' doctrine can be weaponized to rationalize escalating sin.

Matthew 5:27-28 adultery Christian living hierarchy of sin
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Personal anecdote: a young woman used 'all sin is the same' to equate fornication with stealing a pencil, which prompted Mike's investigation of this doctrine.

Mike shares an early formative experience that drove him to examine this topic biblically.

1 Corinthians 6 personal testimony 1 Corinthians 6 Christian living
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Sexual sin is categorically worse than non-sexual sins according to 1 Corinthians 6, and comparing homosexuality to gluttony as though they are equivalent misuses the 'all sin is the same' argument.

Mike addresses a common rhetorical move in contemporary Christian discourse where sexual ethics are deflected by invoking other common sins.

1 Corinthians 6 1 Corinthians 6 hierarchy of sin sexual sin
Mike Winger idea 2018-10-17

Two errors bracket this topic: claiming all sin is the same (minimizes serious sin) and believing some sins are so minor they are barely wicked at all (hardens the conscience).

Mike summarizes the two ditches on either side of the correct biblical position.

conscience sin Christian living
Mike Winger idea 2018-12-05

The real offense of the gospel is not Jesus' love but Jesus' holiness — and that is what must be proclaimed

Closing summary tying the Lauren Daigle situation back to the nature of the gospel.

repentance gospel holiness
Mike Winger idea 2019-06-13

Matthew 9:11-13: Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners — his heart is toward sinners

Jesus's posture of reaching toward sinners rather than destroying them

Matthew 9:11-13 Hosea 6:6 Matthew 9:11-13 tax collectors and sinners compassion over sacrifice
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
Mike Winger idea 2019-06-13

Jeremiah 2:13: Two evils — forsaking the fountain of living waters and digging broken cisterns

The nature of all sin: turning from God toward inadequate substitutes

Jeremiah 2:13 idolatry Jeremiah 2:13 fountain of living waters
Mike Winger idea 2019-07-24

Objection 5 stated: double jeopardy / double payment

If Christ paid for everyone's sins, it is unjust to punish anyone further.

hell divine justice limited atonement
Mike Winger idea 2019-07-24

John Owen's trilemma answered: extent and application are distinct; the trilemma conflates them

Mike's direct rebuttal to John Owen's trilemma / false dilemma.

John Owen faith universalism unlimited atonement
Mike Winger idea 2019-09-04

The real Watchtower error: denying the sufficiency of Christ's atonement, not just the shape of the cross

Winger argues that the cross-shape dispute, while useful in exposing Watchtower unreliability, is secondary to the far more serious Watchtower error: they deny that Jesus's death on the cross was sufficient to pay for sin.

Ephesians 2:8-9 John 19:30 justification by faith atonement Ephesians 2:8-9
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-02

Sexual sin is uniquely grave — it is a sin against one's own body in a way other sins are not

Expounding on 1 Corinthians 6:18 within the broader passage study

1 Corinthians 6:18 sexual immorality body as temple fornication
Mike Winger idea 2020-10-30

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.

crucifixion atonement shame
Mike Winger idea 2020-12-04

God's posture toward the backslidden is always welcoming return — the prodigal son parable and Jeremiah's call to Israel demonstrate this.

Question from Ethan Zaragoza, who drifted from faith for 1.5 years and fears God is done with him.

Jeremiah Hebrews 4:16 Luke 15 Jeremiah Hebrews 4:16 Repentance
Mike Winger idea 2020-04-15

Forgiveness: two types. (1) Heart forgiveness — releasing desire for vengeance/punishment — should be given to everyone unconditionally. (2) Relational restoration — actually restoring the relationship — reserved for those who repent, especially in cases of serious offenses. Parallels how God forgives: the cross pays for all sin, but it's not received until one comes with repentance.

Two types of forgiveness

two types of forgiveness heart forgiveness relational restoration
Mike Winger idea 2020-04-15

Can you lose salvation if Jesus paid for your sins? Depends on your view of the atonement. Calvinist (limited atonement): Jesus only paid for the elect's sins, so losing salvation would mean he 'unpaid' — impossible. Non-Calvinist (unlimited atonement): Jesus paid for all sins; the APPLICATION is upon those who receive Christ. If someone walks away, it's not that payment was reversed but that they left the relationship.

Losing salvation and the extent of the atonement

perseverance of the saints eternal security eternal security
Mike Winger idea 2020-08-14

Romans 5:12-21 and sin nature: Mike disagrees with the Augustinian doctrine that we inherit guilt from Adam's sin. Augustine was influenced by a mistranslation in the Latin Vulgate ("in whom all sinned" vs "because all sinned"). Romans 5:14 says some "had not sinned according to the likeness of Adam's transgression" — challenging the idea that we literally sinned in Adam. Mike's view: we inherit sinful inclination (sin nature) but not personal guilt until we individually sin. Babies have no actual guilt.

Sin nature — inclination vs inherited guilt (Romans 5)

Romans 5:12-21 Romans 5:14 original sin Latin Vulgate infant salvation
Mike Winger idea 2020-11-23

The greatest commandment — love God with ALL your heart, soul, mind, strength — is what everyone gets wrong about morality. Love of GOD comes first, love of neighbor second. Not all sins are equal; violating this foremost command is the most serious.

Mark 12:28-34 verse-by-verse study on the greatest commandment

Mark 12:28-34 Deuteronomy 6:4-5 Leviticus 19:18 Mark 12:28-34 Shema Deuteronomy 6:4-5
Mike Winger idea 2022-04-01

Can All Sins Be Forgiven?: What does Matthew 12: 32 mean?

Q&A question: Can All Sins Be Forgiven?

Matthew 12 Matthew Matthew 12 Matthew
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Is All Sin the Same?: Is it biblical to say that all sin is the same, and is equally bad?

Q&A question: Is All Sin the Same?
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Prophets Today?: Should the Church appoint/recognize official prophets, or is this something similar to apostles (only the original 12 + Paul)? See 1 Corinthians 12: 28, Ephesians 4: 11. Is it an office, a gift, or some mixture of the two?

Q&A question: Prophets Today?

1 Corinthians 12 Ephesians 4 prophecy Apostles 1 Corinthians 12
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Why Would God Allow a Pope?: Why would Christ allow someone to be appointed as His vicar on Earth? If the authority of the pope is illegitimate, how is that not the worst manifestation of blasphemy? How is it allowed by God?

Q&A question: Why Would God Allow a Pope?

blasphemy papacy
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Resentful of the Father but Not the Son?: After a long and HARD life, I sometimes feel almost resentful of GOD the Father whom I’ve never seen, heard, or felt. But every day I love JESUS more and more. Is this normal?

Q&A question: Resentful of the Father but Not the Son?

Jesus
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Why Doesn’t God Save Everyone?: My brother is an atheist and says he wouldn’t follow a God that he knows is real, who knowingly creates people who will reject Him and go to Hell, despite having power to save everyone. It’s hard to reason. Thoughts?

Q&A question: Why Doesn’t God Save Everyone?

atheism hell
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Jesus’ Spirit Separate from HS?: Does Jesus have a distinct Spirit apart from the Holy Spirit? It seems that Jesus has His own Spirit (Luke 23: 46) that is distinct from the Holy Spirit.

Q&A question: Jesus’ Spirit Separate from HS?

Luke 23 Jesus Luke 23
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Questioning our Pastors?: My pastor said that since God called him to shepherd, unless he is teaching false doctrine, you don't question your pastor even if you don't agree with something or they do something wrong. Is this right?

Q&A question: Questioning our Pastors?

pastoral ministry
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Advice for a Discouraged Pastor: I’m feeling discouraged in my new job as a youth pastor. I don’t know if I’m making an impact or if I’m meant to do this. Any advice?

Q&A question: Advice for a Discouraged Pastor

pastoral ministry
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Transitioning from Cult to Christianity!: I’m in the process of leaving the LDS church for real Christianity (thank you for your videos!!). Do you have any advice or resources for the deconstructing and reconstructing of faith after leaving?

Q&A question: Transitioning from Cult to Christianity!

Mormonism
Mike Winger idea 2025-05-09

Where is Jesus “Seated”?: What does Jesus sitting at the right hand of the Father mean when it’s also said that Jesus was seated on the throne in Revelation?

Q&A question: Where is Jesus “Seated”?

revelation Jesus revelation