Nailed to the Cross?

Nailed to the Cross? Contact Us Links Articles Arranged by Topic

Many Christians believe that God's law was "nailed to the cross.” But was it? Or was it something entirely different, something that should thrill every sinner?

To find out the answer to this and many more common Bible questions, choose from the list below

    Articles (in order they were originally written) or click here to see articles arranged by topic:
    Downloadable Brochures
    Downloadable Books
    Calendar Studies

Not sure where to start? You can either begin with the articles whose titles below are a bit larger and in bold print, or go to the articles arranged by topic and look for the "common errors" section.

Is this a salvational issue?
It took me by surprise when a friend of mine commented last week that he didn’t believe that something was a “salvational issue” so he didn’t think he needed to do it. Now, I won’t tell you what the issue was, because it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that 1) he acknowledged that the Bible shows that Jesus did it, 2) he acknowledged that the Bible shows that the disciples and new churches founded after the resurrection did it, and 3) he acknowledged that the Bible shows we will be doing it in heaven. But he doesn’t think he has to do it because he doesn’t think it is a “salvational issue”. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Old Law, New Grace?
Somewhere through the centuries, people have come up with the idea that the differences between the first covenant (Old Testament) and the renewed covenant (New Testament) are law versus grace, obedience versus faith, and an angry God versus the gospel of a loving Jesus. Nothing could be further from the truth. You will find law and grace, obedience and faith, and the wrath of God and the gospel of Jesus in both testaments. This is because there is one consistent God throughout all of scripture, throughout all of eternity. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Is Passover Relevant to Christians?
Each year, it seems that more and more Christians in all denominations recognize the fact that bunnies and eggs have nothing to do with the resurrection of our Saviour, and start getting back to the true Biblical roots of Christianity. Scripture tells us that when Jesus, the Word made flesh, came to this earth, He came to be the Lamb of God (a direct reference to Passover) to take away the sin of the world. Yet, several hundred years into the early history of the church, in an effort to distance themselves from the Israelites who rejected the Messiah and to increase unity in Rome, church leaders unscripturally moved away from God’s holy days and mingled pagan celebrations in their place. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

What was Nailed to the Cross?
Recently in this column, it was shown that God’s law, and the idea of being saved by faith rather than works of the law, is consistent in both the first and the new covenants. As a reminder, the new covenant states in Hebrews 8:10, “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, said the LORD; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.” It is God’s law in our hearts and mind that make us part of this new covenant. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Victory Prayer
About a year ago, I had the pleasure of hearing Mark Maccarone from Victory Ministries make a presentation about the process he goes through each day for his morning prayer. It was clear this man loved his Saviour with all his heart, and had the kind of walk with Jesus for which I long to have. I implemented his routine, plus added a bit of my own, and would like to share it with you. Hopefully you will clip this column and use it as a guide to get you started toward living a victorious life through the power of prayer. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Are we about to be raptured?
The idea of a pretribulation rapture has been around for awhile, and gained popularity when the fictional “Left Behind” series was written. The idea is that Jesus will come snatch his people from earth before all of the final tribulation and plagues detailed in the book of Revelation, thus saving us from having to endure these events. The people who are “left behind” will then either repent and be saved at the second coming, or face hellfire in the end. Let’s investigate to see if this idea is scriptural. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Warfare Prayer
In a recent column, I introduced you to the process of starting each morning with a victory prayer. This time I want to bring your attention to another type of prayer – one to use when under temptation from satan. This process is taken from the book Keys to Living Like You’ve Been Saved by Mark and Shauna Manfredine of Lighted Way Ministries. The book can be downloaded free at www.lightedway.org. Along with a few of my own thoughts, I have summarized from their book with their permission. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

What Really Happened at Pentecost?
We’ve all read about the tongues of fire, and people suddenly being able to speak in languages they had never known how to speak before, on the (so-called) first Pentecost. Actually, Pentecost is one of the few words in Scripture that the translators didn’t translate. It simply means “fiftieth”, as in 50th day. In the Old Testament it was known as the Feast of Weeks or Feast of Harvest, which always follows seven weeks and a day (50 days) after the first Sabbath after the spring feast of Unleavened Bread, so it always falls on a Sunday. (See Leviticus 23:15-16). (To continue reading this article, click here.)

What are you doing today?
Sure, we’ve all heard how Jesus is coming again. We even know the signs he tells us to watch for: wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes. It used to be rumors of war with Iran, now we have military action in Libya. Who’s next? China? North Korea? We’ve read about the recent earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand, with more predicted. The world has seen massive deaths from tsunamis, and several regions of the world have volcanoes erupting. Meanwhile, we continue to live our comfortable lives – eating, drinking, marrying (Matthew 24:38), not believing that the end could come any day. There is a term for it: normalcy bias, where people expect everything to continue as normal and deny the possibility of anything catastrophic happening to them. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Faith, Works, and Salvation
One of the most precious promises in all of scripture is found in Ephesians 2:8-9: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Since we are told in Romans 3:23 that we have all sinned and come short of God’s glory, we can cling to this promise that through our faith, despite our sin, we can still be saved. Without this promise, not one of us could even hope for eternal life in heaven. But does this promise absolve us of all responsibility to do good works? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How Big is God?
We have a tendency to view ourselves as the center of the universe, and sometimes feel that we have problems that are overwhelming. But the truth is that our minds can’t fully grasp the vastness of the universe, and by extension, the vastness of our God. If the purpose of this universe was to be a home for you and me, it is grossly oversized. But that isn’t its purpose. Scripture tells us in Psalm 19:1 that the heavens declare the glory of God. Based on the vastness of the universe, we have grossly undersized how big our God truly is. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Christian-Israel Connection: It’s Not What You Think
There is much confusion today as to what the term “Israel” means in Scripture, and for good reason, as it is used to mean a number of different things. Yet, understanding the meaning of the word is instrumental in understanding the prophecies that apply to Christians living in the final days of this earth’s history. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

We have inherited lies
“Take heed that no man deceive you.” These are the first words out of our Saviour’s mouth when his disciples asked him about the sign of his second coming. Matthew 24:4. He warns that many shall be deceived. In Matthew 7:14 he told us that his way to life is a narrow way which few find. If we believe the Bible, we must realize what this means for us. If you are following the majority instead of the few, you probably need to rethink your path. Throughout history, God’s people have always been in the minority. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How to avoid the mark of the beast
No one in their right mind wants to take the mark of the beast, but with all the theories of who the antichrist is, and what the mark of the beast is, how can we be sure that we don’t take it by innocent error? I’ve heard moderately convincing arguments that the antichrist/beast is Prince Charles, the papacy, and Islam, among others. I’ve heard reasonable people try to explain that the mark of the beast is bar codes on grocery items, social security numbers, and chips embedded into our hands. For fun, I typed “what is the mark of the beast” into Google and got over two million hits. “Who is the antichrist” produced well over a million hits. I’m not recommending the use of Google to determine Biblical truths, only using that to show how many different ideas there are. How are we to know the truth? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Science in the Bible
Despite a common belief that science and Scripture are at odds with each other, those of us who believe that God is the creator of this world also believe by extension that he is the creator of the science of this world. His Word, the Bible, backs up this belief. Many aspects of science are given in God’s word, showing that science and scripture are in harmony. It is only atheistic religion masquerading as science, such as evolution, that is contrary to scripture. But evolution is in the Bible, too. We’ll get to that shortly, but first, let’s look at some of the science in the Bible. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Is the Earth Billions of Years Old?
If Scripture is accurate, the earth is only about 6,000 years old. Yet evolutionists would have you believe that the earth is billions of years old. Frankly, how they’ve convinced themselves that pond scum could turn into all the life teeming on this planet in any time frame is beyond me, but those desperate to be their own gods will choose to believe the impossible rather than bow to the One True God. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Riddle in Proverbs 30:4
The book of Proverbs contains a bit of a riddle. Proverbs 30:4 reads: “Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound the waters in a garment? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?” (To continue reading this article, click here.)

On Which Rock was the Church Built?
The Catholic church claims that their roots began when Yeshua (Jesus) appointed Peter as the first Pope, based on Matthew 16:18: "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the power of death shall not prevail against it." Protestants will tell you that the rock is not Peter, but Jesus himself. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

God’s Plan of Redemption Revealed
In previous columns, we’ve seen that God has a number of annual holy Sabbath days that He proclaimed, Yeshua (Jesus) kept, the early Christian church kept after the resurrection, and we will keep in heaven. We’ve also seen how God’s holy Sabbaths are the seal of God that contrasts with the mark of the beast in the end of time. There is still much more that God reveals in his calendar, which is likely why satan has devoted so much energy into hiding God’s holy days from the church. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How to Watch for the Second Coming
We are about to start the most exciting month in God’s calendar – a month that teaches us what to expect when our Saviour returns to this earth. Just as Jesus’ first coming and his death and resurrection fulfilled the spring holy days, many Bible scholars believe that the second coming will fulfill the fall holy days. These days occur in the seventh Biblical month and consist of the Day of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Return to God
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the most solemn day of the year. This year, it should fall around October 10. In the sanctuary service of the original tabernacle, this was a day of permanently cleansing and removing all the sin of the prior year. It was a solemn day of fasting and prayer, during which everyone was to search their hearts to be sure that there was no sin left unconfessed and unrepented. Anyone that still had any sin left on their record had their name blotted from the Book of Life. Therefore, a common greeting on the Day of Atonement was “May your name be written in (or “not be blotted from”) the Book of Life.” (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Rejoice! God Dwells Among Us
After the Exodus from Egypt, when the children of Israel and the mixed multitude were in the desert, God directed Moses to have them build a tabernacle, so that God could dwell among them. (Exodus 25:8) God still wishes to dwell among His people. This point is shown in the final annual sabbath holy days of God’s calendar, which are the first and last days of the Feast of Tabernacles. It is the 7th feast of the year, in the 7th month, and lasts for seven days. Seven is the number for perfection, completion. The eighth day is a special day called Shemini Atzeret. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Abomination of Desolation
When Yeshua (Jesus) tells us the signs of his second coming, he quotes Daniel by telling us, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place … for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” (See Matthew 24:15-21 for complete quote.) Daniel 12:11 tells us that this abomination that maketh desolate will start a final count of 1290 days until the end of days, so recognizing it is very important to understanding Bible prophecy of the very end of time. But what does this phrase mean, and how will we recognize it when it happens? The following word study gives us some excellent clues. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Choose Ye This Day Whom You Will Serve
Among the many famous verses in Scripture is one that is found in Joshua 24:15, “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Note: When the King James Bible has LORD in all capital letters, it signifies that the Hebrew word here was the proper name of God, YHVH, often written as Yahweh. When it has Lord, with both upper and lower case, it is often the Hebrew word Adonai, a title that means “master” or “sovereign”.) (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How to Share with Atheists
The following is taken from a conversation between Herb Larsen, Jr. of Canada and an atheist he met on a plane (used with permission). Hopefully it will give us all a better idea of how to save a lost soul for Jesus. We must look at people as God sees them, as a weary soul, without peace. The first thing is to take the question of “Is there a God” off of the table. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How to tell where you are in your spiritual walk
Like my last column, this information comes from a sermon by Herb Larsen, Jr. of Canada. Having grown up the son of a preacher, and having founded two churches and held many positions in them, Herb still realized he didn’t really know Yeshua (Jesus). A family tragedy sent him to his knees and to his Bible, pleading daily with God for a true spiritual connection. During this time, he felt the Holy Spirit directing him to a simple question he could use to determine where he stood in his spiritual walk. That question is: “Can I think of anyone to whom I can honestly say I feel spiritually superior?” It is only when you can answer that question “no” that your heart is ready to receive the grace of God and to walk into the Kingdom of Heaven. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Pray the Bible
Those of us who have well worn Bibles know that there are many lovely prayers in them. We all know the Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:6-13, and Jesus’ prayer for us in John 17. The book of Psalms is full of prayers, one of my favorites being Psalm 51, David’s prayer of repentance after his sin with Bathsheba. I often quote verses 10-12 of this Psalm in my daily prayers. But something I didn’t realize when I first started reading Scripture was that nearly every verse can be a prayer. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The True Meaning of Christmas
Often this time of year, we hear people talk about “the true meaning of Christmas.” Presumably, they are making reference to the birth of our Saviour, and the joy we should feel as we celebrate the gift his birth brought us. But what is really the true meaning of Christmas? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Festival of Lights (Hanukkah)
Other than one simple mention in John 10:22 of Yahshua (Jesus) going to the temple to observe the Feast of Dedication (known as Hanukkah in Hebrew, and also as the Festival of Lights), this holiday is not mentioned in the Bible. The reason that it is not mentioned in the Old Testament is that it commemorates an event that took place after the Old Testament was written, about 200 years before the birth of Yahshua. In those days, the land of Israel had been conquered by enemies, and a madman ruler named Antiochus Epiphanes took control of the land. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Do you believe in ghosts?
Halloween is soon approaching, and pumpkins and witches and other such decorations abound. One source claims that Americans spend more on Halloween activities each year than was spent in the entire 2008 presidential race. Along with this madness, and the rising popularity of ghost-sighting events, we need to consider what Scripture teaches about ghosts, which is really a study of what happens when people die. Do they go straight to heaven or hell? Or do they hover around earth to be sighted by the living? Or, is the truth “none of the above”? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Truth About Ghosts
In my last column, we studied how Scripture teaches that death is likened to a state of sleep, during which time the dead person knows nothing. We also learned that we do not go directly to heaven or hell when we die, but instead the dead sleep in their graves until they rise at the second coming of Christ. Based on those facts, how can we explain the many documented instances of ghost-sighting or family visits from dead loved ones? There are many verifiable occurrences of supernatural visits from beyond the grave. In fact, I experienced one myself when my former husband died. So what is really going on when we experience the dead communicating with us? Who is doing this very real communicating? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Peter, Pork, and Abominations
At the time of creation, our Heavenly Father prescribed the perfect health food diet for us, as given in Genesis 1:29. “And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat (food).” This was the diet that was followed until Noah’s ark came to rest, and there was no vegetation yet grown after the flood for Noah and his family to eat. At that time, God revised the diet, with the first known record of the eating of animals, with stipulations. Genesis 9:4, “But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.” The specifics of the differences between clean and unclean animals were given in detail in Leviticus 11 and repeated in Deuteronomy 14. Please note that the term “unclean food” never appears in Scripture. After all, this phrase would be an oxymoron. If it is “unclean”, it is not “food”. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Hidden Messages of the Plagues
One of the most familiar stories in the Bible is found in the book of Exodus, which tells the story many people best know from Hollywood instead of the Bible – the story of the plagues and exodus from Egypt to the giving of the Ten Commandments. Had God’s purpose been only to free the Israelites from their slavery, he could have simply caused a temporary blindness or other condition to come upon the Egyptians, so the Hebrews could walk away. But there was a higher purpose, as he tells us in Exodus 14:4, “that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD.” Knowing the background of the existing Egyptian worship mentality at the time adds more depth to the story. Every one of the plagues had a direct tie-in to one of the many false gods who were worshipped by Egyptians at the time. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Do You Have a Short List?
Imagine that your only daughter just came home and announced that her boyfriend had proposed and that she accepted. But before you could react, she added this little tidbit: Along with the diamond ring, he gave her a list, all too short, of what he was willing to do as her husband. He would work a full time job, and carry out the trash and mow the lawn, but that was it. In return, she came up with her own list: she is willing to keep the house clean and cook five nights a week, but that she will only do three loads of laundry per week and expects to be taken out to dinner on weekends. Would you be happy for your daughter and advise this marriage to take place? Do you think this marriage will be full of love, and last until they part through death? It sounds very doubtful, doesn’t it? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Overcoming
This morning, I feel a little bit like the demoniac after his healing, in Mark 5:15, in my right mind once again. You see, I let satan get to me yesterday. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Our Need For Repentance
The message of John the Baptist, shown in Matthew 3:2, Mark 1:4, and Luke 3:3 is “repentance for the remission of sins”. When Jesus began his ministry after fasting and temptation in the wilderness, his first message was “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”. (Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15) Jesus told the Pharisees that his reason for coming to this earth was to call sinners to repentance. (Matthew 9:13, Mark 2:17, Luke 5:32) As soon as the twelve disciples were selected and began their ministry while Jesus was still alive, we are told that they went out to preach repentance. (Mark 6:12). After the resurrection, on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended and many were convicted in their heart, the first thing Peter told them to do was “repent, and be baptized” and this message was continually preached in the early church. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, Acts 8:22, Acts 17:30, Acts 26:20) In Revelation, repentance was a major part of the messages to the seven churches. (Revelation 2:5, 2:16, 2:21, 3:3, 3:19) (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Judas’ Seeds of Betrayal
As Passover season is here, this is a good time to look back at some of the events of the year when Jesus became our Passover lamb. A story that may have played a part in leading up to his betrayal is covered in all four gospels, and when you put all of the stories together, you get a fuller picture than you get it you just read any single version of the story. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Red Letter Pathway
When you read from a red-letter Bible, which has the words of Jesus in red, taken collectively, it tells the path a new Christian should walk. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

A Prayer to Our Father
It almost sounds like the beginning of a joke of some type: what does a white Israeli Jew have in common with a black American Christian pastor? But luckily for those of us who appreciate the richness of Scripture from the original Hebrew perspective, the answer is not a joke, but rather a wonderful journey into the Lord’s Prayer, called Avinu (Our Father) in Hebrew. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The End from the Beginning
In Isaiah 46, in verses 9 and 10, Yahovah tells us, “… I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done…” Have you ever tried to look at the beginning of God’s word, to see how he has declared the end from the beginning, how the ancient times declare the future not yet come? It’s there. A verse that gives an important hint on how the beginning of creation tells the earth’s history is found in 2 Peter 3:8, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Recognizing the True Messiah
Recently, I came across an exchange between an atheist and a Christian. The atheist asserted that the Bible cannot be trusted, and as his evidence, pointed to the four “conflicting” gospel versions of resurrection morning. The Christian went through all kinds of reasoning to explain away the different stories, but they both missed the point. Yes, the four accounts of the resurrection differ, and yes, there is a reasonable explanation. But that explanation is far different that those that the Christian was putting forth. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The False Trinity
My previous column about the True Sign of the Messiah generated more feedback than normal, so I thought it was appropriate to expand on it to answer some of the questions and comments. We have been so programmed over the years, that even when clear Scripture shows us something, our natural tendency seems to be to stick with the tradition we’ve lived with all of our lives. Yet we must keep in mind what Yahshua said about tradition being worship in vain (Matthew 15:9), and that we need to receive the word with readiness of mind and search the Scriptures to see what is true (Acts 17:11). It simply is not safe to use our own reason over the word of God because what may seem right to us can lead to our death (Proverbs 14:12).(To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Creator’s Fingerprint
If you’ve read my column before, you have seen many interesting insights about God’s holy day calendar. His holy days, from beginning to end, parallel the plan of redemption for fallen mankind, they parallel the book of Revelation, and they revealed the pattern of the first and future second coming of Messiah. Here is another fascinating pattern revealed in God’s holy days – it corresponds to the human gestation process. The discovery of this pattern is attributed to the late Dr. Zola Levitt. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Keep Your Eyes on Jerusalem
At least two different Jewish organizations are preparing for the building of a new temple in Jerusalem. These groups have been busily preparing for construction by assembling building materials and temple implements. The rebuilding of the temple is also highly anticipated by many Messianic believers (Christians who recognize that Jesus is the Hebrew Messiah who intended to preserve the institutions that God gave to the Hebrews, rather than a generic Messiah who came to start a new religion called Christianity). Unfortunately, I believe that many Messianic teachers are making a fatal error in their interpretation of Scripture, which could end up with their congregations being eternally lost. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Challenge of Forgiveness
This Sabbath morning, as I was acknowledging my Saviour and Creator, I asked how I should spend these set-apart hours. Almost immediately the thought entered my mind that I should write a column about forgiveness. Sometimes this can be the hardest thing in a Christian’s life, in my opinion. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

In The Beginning
It has been said that Hebrew sages can spend their entire lives just studying the very first word in Scripture, because it carries so much depth. Hebrew is a far more complex language than English. Every letter of the alphabet has a meaning and it has a numerical value. As a result, you can study a word by studying the meaning of each letter to make a phrase. You can also study the numerical value of the word and compare it to other words with the same total to gain deeper insight. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

No Birthday Party for Me
My birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks, but before you bake me a cake or throw me a party, please consider what Scripture says about celebrating birthdays. There are few birthday celebrations mentioned in Scripture, and none of them involved activity that was pleasing to our Heavenly Father. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Star of Bethlehem
Scripture tells us that the sun, moon, and stars were created to be signs (Genesis 1:14), and that the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1) and his righteousness (Psalm 97:6). God knows the number of the stars and calls them all by their names (Psalm 147:4). Arguably the most famous instance of the heavens declaring the signs, glory, and righteousness of God is the Star of Bethlehem at the time of the birth of Christ. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Do you practice sorcery unknowingly?
Until 1924, heroin was a legal drug, produced by the same company that still gives us Bayer Aspirin today. It was used as a cough suppressant, and the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal in 1900 assured us that there was “no danger of acquiring a habit”. Yet, by the time heroin was outlawed, an estimated 98% of all drug addicts were addicted to it. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Finding the Way
Recently, upon sharing with a dear friend that I longed for a deeper prayer life, she highly recommended a series of books that she felt has helped transform her prayer life and her view of how prayer operates, and she believed that it made a huge difference in her life. Based on knowing how the prayers of her heart had recently been answered beyond her wildest imaginations, I decided I would read the books as well. After reading the introduction, I was a bit concerned, as it seemed like it was trying to blend new age with religion. Having come out of the new age deception prior to my baptism in 1996, I prayed diligently to the best of my ability, and as I prepared for bed that evening, I asked God to give me a dream, to show me what path I should be taking to develop a deeper and more meaningful prayer life with Him. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

We’re Not Under the Law
I was recently visiting with an acquaintance who asked what church I attend. When I identified myself as a Sabbath-keeper, he replied that “we are not under the law”, a common response that all Sabbath-keepers get. This is a partial quote of Paul’s writing, found in Romans 6:14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” For context and clarity, here is the next verse: “What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.” Clearly Paul is not teaching us that we are free to sin (sin is defined as a transgression of the law in 1 John 3:4) because of the grace of our Saviour. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

What does it mean to be “under grace”?
In my last column, I made a case for the fact that Paul’s statement in Romans 6:14 that we are not “under the law” was not a valid reason to break any of God’s Commandments. In it, I promised to explain what this verse is really saying, by looking at it in context. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Lost in Translation
Are you familiar with the concept of something being “lost in translation” when two languages are being used? Seldom is everything cut and dried with a single definitive translation. Therefore, one of my favorite methods of Bible study involves studying the original language (Hebrew for Old Testament, Greek for New Testament) to better determine what a verse is saying. Often you can shed much light on a confusing or controversial interpretation of a text when you delve into the original language. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

By the Word of Their Testimony
Revelation 12:11 gives a twofold method for overcoming the accuser (satan): 1) by the blood of the Lamb, and 2) by the word of our testimony. More than once, I’ve heard people share stories of how God has worked in their lives, and it has been an encouragement to me. Just this week, I used my testimony to be an encouragement to a brother in the church. While I don’t normally talk about myself in this column, I’m going to share my testimony, realizing that I’m not really talking about myself; I’m talking about God and what he has done for me. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Signs in the Heavens
On December 21, 2010 there was a total lunar eclipse. There hadn’t been a total lunar eclipse on a winter solstice in nearly four centuries, since the year 1638. It has only happened one other time since the birth of Christ, so this was a rare spectacle indeed. We are told that the heavenly bodies are given for signs (Genesis 1:14), and how wise men discerned the heavens to know of the first coming of the Messiah (Matthew 2:2). We should also expect signs at his second coming. As I was looking out at the reddened moon, God immediately brought to my mind a passage that appears three times in Scripture: Joel 2:3, Acts 2:20; and Revelation 6:12. "The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come." (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Wrestling With the Words of Paul
In the course of my Bible study, I’ve run across articles that give reasons why Christians today no longer need to keep the seventh-day or annual Sabbaths. Most of them use writings from the Apostle Paul, who authored much of the New Testament, as their reasons for believing that God’s appointed times are no longer relevant. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How Long Did Jesus Minister on Earth?
Modern church tradition teaches that Jesus had a 3 1/2 year ministry, and cites the mentions of Passover in the book of John as the authority. But John is just one of four gospel witnesses. From the time Jesus’ ministry began, Matthew, Mark, and Luke all speak of only one Passover, the year of his crucifixion. Outside of Scripture, the earliest surviving written church history, by Flavius Josephus, says the ministry of Jesus was about one year. The only data that suggests that Jesus kept four Passovers comes from the book of John, which appears to mention more Passovers than the other four sources. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Why I keep the Feasts of YHVH, A "line upon line, precept upon precept" study:
I was very blessed on a recent Sabbath to be questioned by church members about the reason for the hope that is within me (1 Peter 3:15). As a result, I decided to write it down, line upon line, precept upon precept, to share with those beloved church members who were inquiring of me. Let us all pray for unity in truth in these last days of earth's history. Please pray for the Holy Spirit to give you discernment as you read this study. Please feel free to contact me to ask any questions you may have, or make any comments you would like to share. Please also feel free to share it with anyone else who is seeking God in these latter days. To read this study, click here.
To download it as a legal sized, tri-fold brochure, click here. (You may need to adjust your printer setting for it to print on legal sized paper)

The Messiah in the Beginning
On the Road to Emmaus, Jesus told “the things concerning himself” “beginning at Moses” (Luke 24:27). Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament. So open your Bibles to Genesis 1:1 and look for the Messiah. There he is – do you see it? Jesus is all over the very first word in the Bible. Of course, it isn’t so easy to see in our English translations, so let’s look at the word as the original Hebrew readers did. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

The Ten Commandments in the New Testament
We have one God, a consistent God (Malachi 3:6) who states that he will not alter the thing that comes out of his lips (Psalm 89:34). One easy way to see his consistency is to see how all ten of the commandments he gave at Mt. Sinai still appear in the New Testament. One of the first words from the lips of Jesus was that not one jot or one tittle of the law would pass away until heaven and earth passed away (Matthew 5:18). In fact, Jesus amplified many of the commandments during his Sermon on the Mount. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Exposing the Skeleton in the SDA Closet, by Norman Bradley
This study looks at the 1888 General Conference of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, and how it relates to God's Annual Sabbaths. Click here to open the PDF report.

A Modern Twist on a Challenging Text
Peter was known for engaging his mouth before his brain from time to time, but he sure said a true mouthful when he declared in 2 Peter 3:16 that some of Paul’s writings are hard to understand. One passage that is especially confusing to people is Colossians Chapter Two, which talks about what Jesus nailed to his cross. People who are understandably confused by this passage tend to make a serious mistake, in that they conclude it was the Torah based on verse 14 or the items listed in verse 16 that were nailed to the cross. Not only is that interpretation incorrect, but it has several major unintended consequences that don’t square with the rest of Scripture. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Four Often Mis-Interpreted Texts
Paul’s writing can be difficult to understand, as we are told in 2 Peter 3:16. Some of his writings are frequently cited among people who believe Scripture teaches that the Sabbath days (weekly and/or annual) are now invalid. Scripture teaches that Paul taught everything he was shown to teach (Acts 20:27), that he never taught against Torah (Acts 24:14, 25:8, 26:22, 28:17), that he kept the feasts with Christian converts (Acts 18:21, 20:6, 1 Corinthians 5:7, 16:8), and he was not a hypocrite (2 Corinthians 11:23-27). Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that his confusing passages are not teaching against Torah and the feasts, and we need to study them more carefully to see what they actually do teach. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Not If, But When
Most Christians are missing out on one of the Bible’s most serious techniques regarding how to come before God in prayer, petition, and repentance. In the Sermon on the Mount, including Matthew chapter six, Yahshua (Jesus) gives us four key areas of a Christian life. Verses 2-4 speak of when (not if) we do alms, or give charitably. Verses 5 – 15 speak of when (not if) we pray. Verses 16 – 18 speak of when (not if) we fast. Finally, verses 19 – 34 remind us that true wealth comes through trust in God, not money. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

How Long Till The End? Daniel End Time Series
This series of five articles helps you look at the book of Daniel and its relevance to what is happening in the world today.

The Sin of Fear
No doubt about it, Scripture is clear that many frightening events will occur in the last days of this earth’s history. Wars, earthquakes, pestilence, famine, and other events are foretold, which most reasonable people would anticipate with trepidation. We’re told that in the end, “men’s hearts will be failing them for fear” (Luke 21:26). Yet we are repeatedly told not to fear. In fact, those who are fearful are first on a list of those who will die the second death of the lake of fire, lumped in with murderers, idolaters, and liars! (Revelation 21:8) How is it that fear can be considered such a sin? (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Analyzing the New Covenant
Most Christians automatically assume that we are living in New Covenant times, mostly because of the manmade way the Bible was divided into Old and New Covenant (Testament) sections. Everything beginning with Matthew is regarded as referring to the time of the New Covenant. Yet, when looking at the wording of the new covenant, you’ll find two startling facts: 1) the language is all future tense, despite Hebrews 8 having been written well after the death and resurrection of the Messiah, and 2) the events that define the new covenant are events that have not yet occurred. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

When God and Man Disagree
In two separate conversations with friends in the last couple of weeks, the topic of homosexuality has come up. You can hardly turn on the news without getting a story about gay marriage, stories like the Penn State or Catholic church abuses, or situations like the Jane Pitt or Chick-fil-A brouhahas. Clearly this is an issue that is getting more and more press, lots of attention, and has passions roused on both sides. But this article isn’t about homosexuality. Instead, it is analyzing comments that both of these people have made; comments along the line that “I believe that God loves everybody” or “I don’t think God will condemn someone who was born that way”, etc. In other words, the Bible is wrong in the assertion that homosexuality is an abomination. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Passover and the Night to be Much Observed
The work of the death angel leading to the exodus from Egypt is one of the most dramatic events recorded in Scripture. Like all important times on God’s calendar, which satan loves to confuse to keep us from worshipping during God’s appointed times, it is subject to two different interpretations on when it occurred. Let’s study both to see which one is Scriptural. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Jesus in the Old Testament
Jesus made several statements about himself, referencing the fact that the Old Testament was about him. John 5:39-47 is one such passage. Here He states both that “the scriptures” (which in His day consisted solely of the Old Testament) “testify of me”, and that Moses “wrote of me”. Luke 24:25-27 records that after his resurrection, on the road to Emmaus, he began “at Moses and all the prophets” and “expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Everything on this website is designed to be shared. Permission to publish is granted provided that no changes are made, and a link to this website is included.

Please feel free to print the downloadable brochures (below), copy them, and scatter them like the leaves of autumn. Thank you.

Downloadable brochures

Click on the name of the brochure to open a PDF file to print.

Which Jesus do you Worship? (singlefold format) (When you fold this brochure, please make sure the "Which Jesus..." is the front page, the center are the two pages with arrows in the center, and "Would you feel honored?" is the back page.) This brochure shows true worship of Jesus versus false worship. A revised version of this inside page can be found below, titled "Come out of her, my people".

God's Days (trifold format) (When you fold this brochure, the front cover will have the image of the Bible and cross.) This brochure shows why we should honor all of God's holy days, both weekly and annually.

Why I keep the Feasts (This is a legal sized tri-fold brochure. You may need to adjust your printer settings for it to print on legal sized paper. When you fold the brochure, the front cover will be the title page.) This brochure gives a "line upon line, precept upon precept" (Isaiah 28:10-13) approach to showing why the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament, sometimes called the "Book of Moses", and often called "law" in the Old and New Testaments) is valid for believers in Jesus as the Messiah. To read the study online, rather than in PDF format, click here.

Come out of her, my people (Single 8.5 x 11 landscape format handout) Meant to have the next file printed on its reverse side.
How to watch for the second coming (Single 8.5 x 11 landscape format handout). Meant to be printed on the reverse side of the "Come out of her" handout.

Downloadable Books

A Different View of the Millennium - Click on article for more information and get free ebook by Danette Davis: Rapture Rubble and Millennium Muddle, Who Hijacked the Truth?
Much attention is given to the millennium mentioned in Scripture and how it will play into the second coming of Jesus and the end of the sinful world we now inhabit. Despite the entire Bible being full of end time prophecy, the millennium is only mentioned in one chapter of Scripture, Revelation 20. Many of the books of the Bible speak of the end time, but always use terms like “that day” (i.e.: 2 Timothy 4:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:4), “the day of the LORD” (i.e.: Isaiah 13:6, 9; Malachi 4:5; Acts 2:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10), or “the day of judgment” (i.e.: Matthew 10:15; 2 Peter 2:9; 1 John 4:17). Each of these phrases appears many times, both in the old and new testaments, and by many different writers. The only writer who references 1000 years is John, while everyone else seems to teach that these end time events all happen in a single day. We should be wary of any doctrine that can only be found in one place, especially if that place is the most symbol-filled book of Scripture. To continue reading, click here.

His Sign - Three Days and Three Nights, by Danette Davis
Numerous subjects have been debated and refuted, but none more hotly than the "knotty-three-days-and-three-nights-issue." Was Yahshua (Jesus) crucified on "Good Friday" as our Catholic friends have asserted? Did He come from the tomb early Sunday morning, just before sunrise, as most Christians assume? Why does it make any difference whether Yahshua did or did not present Himself to the Father at the time of the Wave Offering? The assumptions formerly made regarding these questions will herein be challenged. In the conclusion of this treatise, the reader will be further encouraged to answer the question: Is a belief "Christian" and "valid" without being substantiated by the Word of God? To continue reading this book, click here.

Calendar studies:

These studies look at common points of disagreement as to the proper timing of YHVH's holy feast days, to determine which method is Biblically correct..

Barley or Equinox. This is an in-depth study into the Biblical method of calculating the first month of the year. Some people keep the new year by the state of Abib (barley development) and others keep the new year by the timing of the equinox. This study delves into Scripture to see which method is ordained by YHVH. Click here to download this study as a PDF file. Click here to read this study online. Please note, in the online version, some formatting was lost, which shows the actual Hebrew alephbet characters for several key words of the study, so the PDF file is preferable to the online version.

Firstfruits - 16th day or first day of the week. This is an in-depth study into the Biblical method of calculating the dates of the feast of Firstfruits and the Feast of Weeks (aka Pentecost). Some people interpret Firstfruits as always falling on the 16th day of the first month, while others interpret Firstfruits as always falling on the first day of the week following the first day of Unleavened Bread. Click here to download this study as a PDF file. Click here to read this study.

Refuting the Lunar Sabbath. A list of fatal errors to the Lunar Sabbath theory - only one of which must be correct for the theory to be false.

Crucifixion - 3 days and 3 nights: Recognizing the True Messiah
How can you count three days and three nights between Friday afternoon and Sunday morning? You can't. Yahshua was not crucified on Friday, nor did he raise from the tomb on Sunday. (To continue reading this article, click here.)

Contact Us Links Articles Arranged by Topic