Month: February 2017

Paul’s Commission, Part 1

On By Charles MillerIn Understanding the Commissions2 Comments

As I wrote in previous studies about the Apostolic commissions, no study would be complete without writing on Paul’s great commission and where it fits within the entirety of Scripture.  Witness from his own testimony the commission and apostleship that he received from Christ our Lord:

Acts 26:13–18—At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And He said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.

vlcsnap-2015-05-18-11h17m18s44Three times in the book of Acts, there is a retelling of the story of the Lord Jesus’ “arrest” of Saul of Tarsus.  While there are many important events in the Acts account, this event gets the most mentions.

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The Person of Christ

On By Charles MillerIn C. R. Stam, Colossians Study1 Comment

This portion of Pastor C.R. Stam’s commentary on Colossians is very relevant to the study that we are continuing in Colossians, as well as the recent response to criticism that I recently posted.

Do We Belittle Christ

by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam

colossians-new-2015-250x358Again, as with the crucifixion and resurrection, the Old Testament presents Christ, the Son of God, only in veiled phraseology and in types.  The Trinity is only hinted at.  This is one reason why the Jew insists there is but one God and that He did not, and will not, have a Son.  True, Psalm 40:7 says:  “In the volume of the book it is written of Me” but, again, who is the “ME”?  We do not find out until some time after the Son of God has appeared incarnate.

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Answering Bob DeWaay

On By Charles MillerIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

I have added a page to my site that has received a pretty good amount of traffic from search engines.  This page is answering a critic.  He is not a critic that has come to Distinguishing Truth, but a critic that seems to be the “go to guy” when someone is looking to speak against Bible believing Christians such as myself, who recognize the distinctiveness of the revelation that the Lord Jesus gave to Paul as the distinct revelation for the Body of Christ in this Dispensation of Grace.

It is a rather long essay, because it includes the entire article that Mr. DeWaay published as well as my comments.  The article by Bob DeWaay in Critical Issues Commentary goes back to 2008, but came to my attention in 2015, as it was used as the most important article in discrediting certain doctrines that I held and continue to hold.  It is not a quick read, which is why I did not add it as a blog post.  He writes from what seems to be a “Reformed Dispensationalist” perspective, or what seems to be “dispensational in eschatology only”.  That means that he understands a future for Israel, and that is about it.

DeWaay, an “antihyperdispensationalist”, and it seems a disciple of John MacArthur, wrote an appallingly unscriptural and misrepresentative attack against people he determined to be “hyperdispensationalists”…

The page on Distinguishing Truth is here: Answering Bob DeWaay

Christ the Sustainer

On By Charles MillerIn Colossians Study1 Comment

He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. (Colossians 1:17)

We left the last verse discussing the greatness of our Lord Jesus as the creator of all things.  Continuing on that thought, we will begin by looking at just what it means that He is before all things.  Does it mean before all things in time, or does it mean that He is before all things in position?

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Grace Enthroned

On By Charles MillerIn Sir Robert Anderson, Useful QuotesLeave a comment

Chapter 4 from Forgotten Truths by Sir Robert Anderson

church-history-graphicIt is extraordinary that any student of Scripture can miss the clearly marked difference between the gospel of the opening clause of the Epistle to the Romans, and the gospel specified in the characteristically “Pauline” postscript at its close.

“Sojourners from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,” were among the multitudes who heard the Divine amnesty proclaimed at Pentecost. And it was “to Jews only” that in those early days the word of that gospel was preached. (Acts 11:19) In Rome therefore, as elsewhere, Jews and proselytes constituted the nucleus and rallying centre of the Church. And we read the Epistle to the Romans amiss, if we fail to recognize what an important place its teaching accords to those Hebrew Christians. The word which had won them to Christ was that “gospel of God which He had promised afore by His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son who was born of the seed of David.” Language could not more definitely indicate that it was the fulfillment of the hope of every true Israelite. Hence his words to the “Chief of the Jews” in Rome “For the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain.” (Acts 28:20) And, as already noticed, his answer to the charge on which he was imprisoned was that his preaching to the Jews was based entirely on the Law and the Prophets. (Acts 26:22)

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The Testimony of Paul

On By Charles MillerIn Colossians Study, Sir Robert Anderson, Useful QuotesLeave a comment

church-history-graphic{From The Lord From Heaven by Sir Robert Anderson, Chapter 8.  This book has been one of my favorites over the years since my parents gave it to me years ago. I have shared it with with others since, and then hunted down new copies to replace those that I gave away. This particular book is available from Amazon, and it looks like there is a new edition available:  Click this link if you are interested. This chapter fits well into the study on Colossians, so this week I will share it with you.  Enjoy!} Continue reading “The Testimony of Paul” →

The Ten Virgins

On By Charles MillerIn Kingdom1 Comment

I, along with others who listen in and attend weekly online Bible studies received a challenge from Pastor Steve Ellis of the Church of the Servant King about an article in the January/February 2017 issue of “Grace in Focus”, the monthly magazine of the Grace Evangelical Society.  The feature article is about the ten virgin parable of Matthew 25:1-13, by Bob Wilkin.  Below, I have shared my thoughts regarding this parable:

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Christ the Creator

On By Charles MillerIn Colossians Study1 Comment

For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him…(Colossians 1:16)

Now we will look at a truth in Scripture that when properly understood, will satisfy at once the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself as the manifestation of God in the flesh.  The very first verse in all of Scripture states:

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

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