Articles by Jason Patrick Hilburn
Jesus is called “The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), yet He told His disciples, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10:34). How can both statements be true?
There is no contradiction. In one sense, Jesus came to bring peace. In another sense, He knew that His coming and His teachings would bring division.
Jesus Came to Bring Peace
Jesus came to make it possible for men to have peace with God.… Read more
Some misuse Matthew 22:36-40, wrongly teaching that if we “just love God and love others,” we do not need to do anything else to please God. That is false.
Just because Jesus said that loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves are the greatest commandments does not mean they are the only commandments. In fact, love for God requires obedience and is demonstrated by obedience (John 14:15, 21, 24; 1 John 5:3). The two “greatest commandments” do not eliminate Christ’s other commandments.… Read more
Some claim that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are not distinct Persons at all, but are the same divine Person or Spirit revealed or manifested in different ways. Others claim that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are truly distinct divine Persons, yet share one undivided divine essence and are therefore regarded together as “the one God.” However, the New Testament most often uses “God” to refer to the Father and explicitly calls Him the “one God” in several key passages (Jn.… Read more
How is it that one of the plain truths of Ephesians 4:4-6 (often called “the seven ones of unity”) now sounds strange to many Christians? “One body… one Spirit… one hope… one Lord… one faith… one baptism… one God and Father of all, who is above all…” (Eph. 4:4-6).
These seven simple, Spirit-given truths are meant to produce unity, yet one of them — the truth about God the Father — has been largely overlooked, softened, or even denied by many children of God.… Read more
The Bible presents a clear yet profound understanding of “the Godhead” that emphasizes both the Father’s supremacy and the distinct roles of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The term “Godhead” refers to Godhood, the divine nature shared by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Romans 1:20; Colossians 2:9; Acts 17:29). While some theological terms such as “Trinity” have been used historically, what many think of when they hear “Trinity” may not be what the Bible teaches.… Read more
In Ephesians chapter four, Paul said Christians must endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit (unity based on what the Spirit revealed), being bound together in peace and love (Eph. 4:2-3), but unity and peace are destroyed when people deviate from what the Spirit revealed in the Bible. The Holy Spirit gave us the “seven ones” of unity (Eph. 4:4-6), and to be united we must all agree upon these critical criteria:
Just because someone thinks he knows God, that does not mean he really does. God can be known through His Word (Jn. 17:3; 1 Cor. 2:9-13; 1 Jn. 2:3-6), but God is who He says He is, not who someone may imagine He is. God said, “…Thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee…” (Psa. 50:21). Let us not be quick to assume anything about God, based on our own feelings or experiences, for God says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.… Read more
