Author Archives: Plymothian

It is very unAmerican to back down.  That is according to the 2009 Dodge Ram promotion campaign.  If someone breaks into your house, you should defend your turf with a shotgun.  This sounds tough, but it is not a Christian … Continue reading →

Christians should not take each other to court.  It creates bad publicity when a Christian takes another to court.  The method here is to get an arbitrator who knows God and that you both trust and work these things through … Continue reading →

I can’t say that I like the idea of church discipline.  If you look at how it has been practiced in many churches, the exercise can be vindictive and confused.  The sins that are pursued are the ones that those … Continue reading →

1 Corinthians 5:12,13 would indicate that there are different governing standards for the church and state.  The state should have lower standards that the wider community can agree upon.  However, as the Spirit of God leads us into holiness there should … Continue reading →

The Plymouth Brethren have a notorious rule that if someone in their family is not a believer they will set them apart at mealtimes.  My mother-in-law and father-in-law went to a church that quoted ‘be ye seperate from among them’ and would … Continue reading →

Yeast is a term used in the Bible for evil.  In the Passover ritual a devout family will search the whole house to expel any yeast.  It is considered so evil that they won’t touch it.  Sin is like this.  In our … Continue reading →

Doesn’t handing a fellow church member over to Satan because of their private sexual practices sound harsh?  This kind of thing is what has got Christians into hot water for the past decade.  As sexual orientation and practices have been made more … Continue reading →

The chapter contrasts the authority of Paul’s position with the active posture he has taken with the church in Corinth.  He doesn’t come out guns blazing and kicking over tables, he gently lays out how he has put aside authority that is … Continue reading →

Here we have Paul ‘The Velevet Sledgehammer’. I play a computer game which updates a famous phrase by saying, “Talk softly and carry a big gun”.  There is a time to call another person’s bluff.  In the affairs of men … Continue reading →

 I know that some of us find it difficult to deal with Paul’s tone in his letters.  He seems forceful and even aggressive at times.  However, some parents are forceful and aggressive when they need to be.  As an elementary school … Continue reading →