How Paul Turned a Dead Messiah Into Christianity’s Power

Last updated on: May 1, 2026 at 12:22 pm By William T. Orr, Jr.

This is a continuation of our investigation into the New Testament theologies cited by Jesus, quoted by the Gospels, and how the Canonical Gospels view Jesus and salvation. In this article, we will explore Paul’s more complex theology and how it might be reconciled with the theologies of the Gospels. Introduction: The Theological Problem Essentially, to be saved, one must follow the teachings of Jesus as outlined in the Canonical Gospels. This contrasts with how Paul views salvation. For Paul,... Read more

One Jesus, Four Gospels: Why They Disagree on Salvation

Last updated on: April 15, 2026 at 3:28 pm By William T. Orr, Jr.

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For more than 2,000 years, Christians have been evangelizing and converting non-Christians, promising a new good news understanding of God and of salvation from sin. Officially, that new theology is contained in the New Testament of the Bible. Priests, preachers and Sunday School teachers in every age since the first century CE. have presented Christian theology as a simple yet complete set of beliefs. A close examination of the Gospels and the book of Acts describe a much more complex... Read more

Bart Ehrman Decodes the Book of Revelation: What You Missed

Last updated on: March 9, 2026 at 11:16 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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Most Christians have some idea where they will be after the world ends. Many Christians will say they believe that the Bible, including the book of Revelation, is the inerrant, inspired, and unquestionable word of God. The truth is that most Christians have no real idea what the author of Revelation was writing about nor any real idea what it says or how it fits with the rest of the Bible. Who is Bart D. Ehrman? Dr. Bart Ehrman is... Read more

Slavery in the Bible: What Scripture Actually Says

Last updated on: February 12, 2026 at 12:35 pm By William T. Orr, Jr.

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The Bible’s Surprising Stance on Slavery The Bible does not explicitly condemn slavery. Several passages mentioning slavery do not present an arc toward the abolition of the practice. They do make commandments that support humane treatment of slaves, but even this can be shown to be unnecessarily cruel by modern standards. The books of the Bible, written within a 700 to 500 year span, must be seen within the context of its place in history and with an understanding that... Read more

How to Read the Bible: 10 Methods for Every Type of Reader

Last updated on: January 22, 2026 at 11:50 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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The Holy Bible remains the most popular and most important book in the world. Author’s note: Not all modern Bibles are the same. The Roman Catholic Bible contains 73 books; the Greek and Russian Orthodox Bible contains 79 books; the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible contains 81 books; the Protestant Bible contains 66 books. Except where noted, we will be discussing the Protestant Bible. As we saw previously, there are many reasons people read the Bible. We can identify some broad categories:... Read more

Was Christmas Really a Pagan Holiday First?

Last updated on: December 13, 2025 at 9:19 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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Christmas and Yule: Ancient Connections? Christians celebrate Christmas (the Nativity or birth of Jesus of Nazareth), the Christian Messiah, on December 25 every year. The Winter Solstice is on December 21. Pagans celebrate the Yuletide on the date of Solstice. In this article, we will discuss the connections among these things. Before we can look at these connections, we need to clarify the terms we are using. Winter Solstice This phenomenon is the day when the pitch of the Earth’s... Read more

I Have All The Time In The World

Last updated on: November 16, 2025 at 10:50 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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“I have all the time In the world.” This is what we think. We tell ourselves we have time for everything: our work, our families, our faith, our hobbies and avocations. We budget our time, first around the things we think are required and then around the things we desire to do. We tend to lose sight of the fact that we only live so long and that each passing day brings us closer to death. I have recently been... Read more

Unlocking Scripture: 8 Must-Read Books on the Bible’s Origin

Last updated on: August 7, 2025 at 11:59 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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August 9 is National Book Lovers Day. When we think of books we love, we have to start with the Bible. But there are many, many other books that can help us understand the Bible, its authors, their audience, their purpose and the time when they were writing. In this article, I will introduce a few books that helped me to understand things better and might help you do so as well. I will start with the Hebrew Bible and... Read more

How to Be the Friend Jesus Calls You to Be

Last updated on: August 4, 2025 at 12:33 pm By William T. Orr, Jr.

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Jesus commissions us to love others as ourselves. We might wonder how this informs our relationships as family members and friends. It is how we relate as friends that this article addresses. A Christian can show their faith in many ways in how they relate and interact with their friends. There are many ways to show friendship and Christians should always strive to be the best friends they can be. How can a Christian show their friendship? There are several... Read more

Who The Devil Is Satan And Where The Hell Did He Come From?

Last updated on: July 28, 2025 at 11:01 am By William T. Orr, Jr.

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Who is Satan? We all know the devil. He is probably red, male, has horns and a pointy tail, goat feet, and he carries a pitchfork. Whether or not you were raised in church, this is the generic description. What might be surprising is that none of this is Biblical. In fact, in the Hebrew Bible, Satan is not even a proper name. It is the name of YHWH’s prosecutor or adversary in the Heavenly Council. In the Hebrew... Read more

True or False: Mark records Jesus' birth narrative in Bethlehem.