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2 months ago | 
crossway.org | Thomas Schreiner |Benjamin L. Merkle |Andrew Naselli |Jay Thomas
This article is part of the Tough Passages series. Listen to the PassageRead the Passage23For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
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Nov 11, 2024 | 
theaquilareport.com | J. Crowley |Andrew Naselli
You can damage the gift of conscience, just as you can damage other gifts from God. Oddly enough, you can damage it in two opposite ways: by making it insensitive and by making it oversensitive. We make conscience insensitive by developing a habit of ignoring its voice of warning so that the voice gets weaker and weaker and finally disappears. Paul calls this “searing” the conscience: “Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron” (1 Tim.
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Nov 3, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Kevin DeYoung |Andrew Naselli |Bobby Jamieson
Election and ReprobationThe terms election and predestination are often used interchangeably, both referring to God’s gracious decree whereby he chooses some for eternal life. In Romans 8:30 Paul speaks of those whom God has predestined, called, justified, and (in the end) glorified. In Romans 8:33 Paul references the “elect,” apparently a synonym for the predestined ones described a few verses earlier.
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Nov 2, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Andrew Naselli |J. Crowley |Wayne Grudem
This article is part of the 10 Things You Should Know series. A Shoulder Angel? Most people probably think of the conscience as the “shoulder angel.” Comic strips and films often depict an angel dressed in white on a person’s right shoulder and a demon dressed in red and holding a pitchfork on the person’s left shoulder. The angel represents the person’s conscience, and the demon represents temptation.
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Jun 25, 2024 | 
theaquilareport.com | Andrew Naselli
We confirm that God called and elected us by cultivating the virtues listed in 1:5–7. We must be continually growing in those virtues. We must persevere in faith and good works until the end. Consequently, God will richly welcome us into his eternal kingdom (1:11)—like how the King richly welcomes Christian into the Celestial City at the end of John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. Election is not an excuse for lawlessness or laziness. We must put off sin and put on virtues (see Col. 3:1–4:1).
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Jun 16, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Andy Naselli |Andrew Naselli
You Are at WarElection is terrifying for some people. “Am I chosen by God? How can I know for sure? And what about ______ [my spouse, my child, my parent, my neighbor, or my friend]?” Election may be alarming because it means that God the Creator is supremely sovereign and that we the creatures are not. We prefer to be in control. But what God has revealed about election should be encouraging, comforting, humbling, exhilarating, and motivating.
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May 29, 2024 | 
theaquilareport.com | Andrew Naselli
If you’re genuinely saved, then you will persevere in faith and good works. And the reason we persevere is that God preserves us. As Philippians 2 says, we “work out our salvation” because God works in us—the willing and the working. I’ve heard it said “once saved, always saved.” It’s true, but I think it’s misleading. It’s misleading because it may imply that once you’re saved, it doesn’t matter how you live, that you’re “in” no matter what. But that’s not how the Bible speaks.
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May 21, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Andrew Naselli
This article is part of the I’ve Heard It Said series. Beware of ApostasyI’ve heard it said “once saved, always saved.” It’s true, but I think it’s misleading. It’s misleading because it may imply that once you’re saved, it doesn’t matter how you live, that you’re “in” no matter what. But that’s not how the Bible speaks. The Bible repeatedly warns us that God will not finally save you if you don’t persevere in the faith and good works.
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Mar 17, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Robert Letham |Andrew Naselli |Thomas Schreiner |Andreas J. Köstenberger
Orthodoxy and HeresyOrthodoxy means right doctrine or belief. In one very important sense it is essential to salvation. Although we are saved entirely by the grace of God, not on the basis of the correctness of our thinking, right views of God promote wonder, reverence, and love. Moreover, for future generations to believe in Christ, it is imperative that we guard the gospel without which no one can be saved (2 Tim. 1:14).
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Feb 23, 2024 | 
crossway.org | Andrew Naselli
The Basis of ElectionWe can distinguish the Arminian view of election from the Calvinist view of election by answering this question: What is the basis of God’s election? In other words, on what basis did God choose to save some individuals? Both Arminians and Calvinists agree that the answer is God’s foreknowledge. Romans 8 says, “Those whom he foreknew he also predestined.” 1 Peter 1 says that “those who are elect exiles . . .
