"I wear the chain I forged in life.... I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it." Jacob Marley The quote cited above, of course, is from Charles Dickens' beloved story, A Christmas Carol - a story … Continue reading The Gospel According to Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”
Month: November 2017
Where Are the Other Nine?
Rembrandt - Jesus Healing the Leper Recorded only in Luke's gospel is the story of Jesus' encounter with ten lepers while on His way to Jerusalem. When they saw Him, the ostracized, disenfranchised lepers all cried, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" Jesus did just that. And then He instructed them to follow through with … Continue reading Where Are the Other Nine?
Purging Purgatory from “Biblical” Teaching
In his outstanding book, The Unquenchable Flame, Michael Reeves writes in detail about the medieval (and, sadly, modern) unbiblical belief that salvation could/can be earned by human effort. He writes, "In 1215, the fourth Lateran Council came up with what it hoped would be a useful aid for all those seeking to be 'justified' (to … Continue reading Purging Purgatory from “Biblical” Teaching