Whenever I hear this carol during Christmastime, I’m always piqued by its solemn, flowing tune against the refrain “rejoice, rejoice”. Composed in a minor key, O Come, O Come Emmanuel sits in stark contrast to other Christmas carols with more…
Our Lord Jesus describes the Pharisees as “whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full…
The Lord Jesus Christ has foretold that the end times will be characterized by spiritual coldness: “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” (Matthew 24:12). Perhaps it has become so common today that many have…
Perseverance – /pəːsɪˈvɪər(ə)ns/:continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or oppositionPreservation – /ˌprezəˈveɪʃn/:the act, process, or result of preserving something Introduction The term Perseverance of the Saints was defined by Aurelius Augustine of Hippo in his book…
Introduction The doctrine of “irresistible” grace is very often misunderstood because of the use of the word “irresistible”. It suggests that the grace of God cannot be resisted. It suggests that believers are dragged to Christ against their will, kicking…
An Attempt to Understand Limited Atonement Limited atonement refers to the particular love of God in unconditionally electing some totally depraved sinners to salvation, but not others. It is the belief that Christ’s death on the cross as atonement for…
Introduction While all 5 points of T.U.L.I.P have their objections and detractors, there is none so mysterious as Unconditional Election. Indeed, it is not implying that God’s election has no conditions at all but rather that the conditions are not…
Introduction Paul says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”. This is Total Depravity in a nutshell. It is a Reformed and Calvinistic theological term which believes that all men are enslaved…
Thomas Watson’s call to godliness as a distinctive mark and portrait of the Christian is what the apostles have been teaching. Paul says that as Christians, we are to “lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty”…
(In memory of Elder Tan Cheow Hock, who shared this devotion 3 months before his passing due to cancer. May we all have the same enduring faith regardless of our circumstances in life.) A couple of years back, I came…