“What does Bible study even mean?” Strange as that may sound, not everything that calls itself “Bible Study” is.

What It's Not

Unfortunately, this phrase gets attached to...

It is not in spite of, but because of our love for our ancient, precious biblical texts, that we, with energy, seek out how to read them. We respect methods developed over centuries, and they are...

How do you know when the Spirit of God is speaking? 

Claiming that "the Spirit told me" something is very easy to do.  And when you hear someone say that, it's...

All readings of biblical texts should be Spirit-led. If any method of reading is Spirit-led, it will at least attempt to be responsible to what that text is trying to say and do.

The Psalmist says,...

We’re talking about reading the Bible. So, right up front, let’s put this on the table: When reading the Bible, we need the Spirit of God. All reading of biblical texts...

Power-Reading the Bible can fundamentally transform how we look at the Bible, how we handle it, what we get from it, and how we apply it to ourselves and to others. 

So, starting now,...

Note:  this post is an early version of the introduction of a new translation of the Apocalypse now available only for private sale (by personal request), or as a promotional gift under the...

If free speech is a desirable thing, and if Christians are sometimes schizophrenic about it (see previous post), should we be thoughtful in how we pursue it?  Such a question will cause most...

Free speech. An important concept. Worthy of discussion.  Of course to do that, some measure of it has to exist already. 

Saying "I believe in the importance of freedom of speech," is...

Like a timely chess move, during March 2023, the social media presence of IABC is moving off of Facebook and onto a platform called MeWe.  Those who sign up for a free account...

A society, large or small, built on the pursuit of critical inquiry is a precious thing. Where there is a collective hunger for the genuine exchange of ideas, of testing and evaluating what and how...

A very hot topic—abortion as a religious value—was brought into focus today on a short Fox Entertainment interview of two people: (1) a pastor [Shane Idleman] and (2) the president of...

In the movie, Gladiator, young Commodus says to his father, Marcus Aurelius (emperor of Rome 161-180 CE):

You wrote to me once, listing the Four Cardinal Virtues: 

1. Wisdom,
2. Justice,
3. ...

I’m certain that I would not be considered a patriot by many people. I am grateful for many things about the country of my birth and life, and I could write extensively about those things,...

By Gary D. Collier (Index:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5  )

I want to thank you, Alan, for kindly inviting us to look over your shoulder...

Response by Alan Mudd  (Index:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5  )

I don't know how to respond to the list of questions you made. To me, they do...

Response by Gary D. Collier  (Index:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5  )

Being in near total agreement with your entire treatment of this subject,...

Response by Alan Mudd  (Index:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5  ) 
(See editor's note at the end.)

I take it from your post that your position on...

By Gary D. Collier (Index:  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5  ) 

What do you think?  Could Adam and Eve have left the garden on their own had they...

The list below—an instance of what I'll term CAD—was projected during a sermon I heard.

 With some guidance, one might legitimately compare brief texts by six different authors...

My encouragement to all who would read the book of Revelation is this:  Spend less time listening to theories about the book (how it is said to apply to this or that thing today or tomorrow),...

A reader has sent the following paragraph and granted the right to post it: 

Yet, I see the author(s) of the book of Revelation giving their interpretation and ideas of what is going on...

By the time we get to Revelation 18:20, the beast-riding woman from chapter 17 is promised for swift destruction in a futile attempt at war against God.  And so we come to this: 

...

Yahweh was passing by.
     Before him a raging wind 
          digging into the mountain, 
             ...