Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 0039 This question reflects a misunderstanding that some sincere Christians hold; the idea that because we have the indwelling Spirit, we can bypass careful study and simply rely on direct spiritual insight. It sounds humble and spiritual, but it actually contradicts what Scripture itself teaches. The Spirit-Led Life and the Word Yes, every believer…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 04010 Galatians 5:22-23 lists what many Christians have memorised as the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The question of whether every believer possesses all of these, or whether they are distributed differently among different people, touches on the nature of spiritual growth and the relationship…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 4008 The question of how the Spirit guides believers is one of the most practically significant in all of pneumatology. It touches directly on decision-making, on the discernment of God’s will, and on the texture of Christian life at a day-to-day level. Romans 8:14 states that “all who are led by the Spirit of…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 4007 Few phrases have been borrowed more freely from their original context than “the still small voice.” It has become a standard way of describing the Holy Spirit’s gentle inner promptings, invoked in worship songs, devotional talks, and spiritual direction conversations. The phrase comes from 1 Kings 19:12 in the King James Version. The…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 4004 Ephesians 4:30 contains a command that is both sobering and, on reflection, remarkable: “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” That the Spirit of God can be grieved is not a peripheral observation. It tells us something important about who the Spirit…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 4003 Christians sometimes speak of being filled with the Spirit as though it were an elusive spiritual state achieved only by the most devoted believers, or conversely, as though it is synonymous with emotional intensity in worship. Neither captures what the New Testament is actually talking about. The idea of Spirit-filling is important, biblical,…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 4009 In Galatians 5:22-23, Paul lists what he calls “the fruit of the Spirit”: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It is one of the most quoted passages in Christian devotional literature. But familiarity can blunt the sharpness of what Paul is actually saying. Understanding what the fruit of the…
Reading Time: 7 minutesQuestion 1139 Paul’s second letter to Timothy stands as one of the most personal and urgent letters in the New Testament. Written from a Roman prison cell, likely during Nero’s persecution around AD 67, this letter represents Paul’s final words to his beloved son in the faith. The apostle knew his execution was imminent, he…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 1100 Few phrases generate as much heat in Christian circles today as ‘social justice.’ For some, it represents the heart of the gospel lived out; for others, it signals a departure from biblical Christianity into secular ideology. But what does Scripture actually say? This is the only question that matters. Is the pursuit of…
Reading Time: 5 minutesQuestion 0005 The word “theologian” carries a certain mystique. We imagine scholars in book-lined studies, poring over ancient manuscripts, debating the fine points of doctrine in language most people cannot understand, which for some, is true! Theology seems like a specialist pursuit, for the select few. But in reality, every person who has ever thought…