The Work of the Holy Spirit

It’s shocking that at the start of Acts 1, after Jesus’ death and resurrection, his mission is still misunderstood. Luke writes, On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized … Read more

Prophecy in the New Testament

I grew up in charismatic churches so listening to prophetic messages was not uncommon for me. Usually, during the singing or in between songs, someone would raise their voice and address the congregation. Frequently, their exhortation would begin with, “the Lord says” then continue with quotations from the Bible. Occasionally someone would give a prophecy … Read more

A Problem with Pentecostalism: Speaking in Tongues in the Bible

Two thousand years ago on the day of Pentecost something remarkable happened. A group of believers, including the apostles, were “all together in one place” when Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues … Read more

Did God Kill his Son?

“God loved you so much that he killed his Son for you!” the guest speaker exclaimed. Throughout his message, he repeated the same idea. Each time he said it I cringed. It didn’t sound right. We were having a special assembly in our international school. Later in class one of my students asked, “How is … Read more