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The Message of Romans You're NOT Likely to Hear
What motivated the apostle Paul? Paul's letter to the Romans is one of the most preached books of the Bible. And much (most?) of that preaching has focused in on one theme in particular. If you've heard a sermon from Romans lately, there's a good chance this topic was the topic . And if you've not already guessed, the particularly common focus of preaching and writing on Romans is nothing less than justification by faith . For the last 500 years, this has been taken to be
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Why did Jesus come?
I speak with people about holiness a lot. People sometimes respond with skepticism (and sometimes antagonism), and they often quote 1...
Matt O'Reilly
7 min read
New Book: Free to Be Holy (from Seedbed)
I'm excited to announce that my new book, Free to Be Holy: A Biblical Theology of Sanctification , released from Seedbed recently. This...
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
Who Jesus Is & What Jesus Does
Who is Jesus? What has he done? What problem does he address? Why is he uniquely suited to address that problem? This sermon takes up...
Matt O'Reilly
1 min read
35 Axioms of Wesleyan Theology
As a pastor, I frequently encounter questions about how to understand salvation and grace. The nature and scope of Christ's saving work...
Matt O'Reilly
4 min read
Did God (really) forsake Jesus on the cross?
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus' cry of dereliction from the cross is often taken to mean that God the Father turned...
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
Five Points John Calvin Got Wrong about Romans 9
Romans 9 is often taken as obvious scriptural evidence for a Calvinist (or Reformed) understanding of election and salvation. Named for...
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
From Grand Deposit to Poor Farce? Chris Lohrstorfer on Recovering Biblical Holiness
Dr. Chris Lohrstorfer is Associate Professor of Wesleyan Theology at Wesley Biblical Seminary and Senior Pastor at Hinds Independent...
Contributor
4 min read
Begin with God: Jason Vickers on Reconstructing Methodism
If we are going to think theologically about the church, we cannot begin with the church; we must begin with God. This is not something...
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
ChatGPT on the Difference between Pastor Theologians and Academic Theologians
How does artificial intelligence explain the contrast between pastor theologians and academic theologians?
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
Important New Resource for the Wesleyan-Methodist Tradition
Check out this new resource from leading Wesleyan scholars.
Matt O'Reilly
2 min read
Did John Calvin Teach Christian Perfection (or Entire Sanctification)?
The answer surprised me. Check out these quotes from Calvin on Christian perfection and entire sanctification.
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
Complementarian Rhetoric Calmy Considered: A Response to Denny Burk and Owen Strachan
The debate over women in ministry often conflates the interpretation of Scripture with the truth of Scripture. Here's why that's flawed.
Matt O'Reilly
6 min read
Why C.S. Lewis Was Not A Calvinist
From time to time, someone will (oddly) suggest that C. S. Lewis was a Calvinist. Douglas Wilson did it. Then he did it again....
Matt O'Reilly
3 min read
What is theology for?
In their 2019 book For the Life of the World: Theology That Makes a Difference, Miroslav Volf and Matthew Croasmun argue that academic...
Matt O'Reilly
2 min read
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