Stephen Curto

The Gate is Small (Pt. 3)

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This is a continuation of an allegorical tale begun in The Gate is Small (Pt. 1) and continuing through The Gate is Small (Pt. 2). I suggest reading both posts prior to embarking on this one. Edging my way along the mountainside and grasping the rope tightly, I made steady progress along the path. It was slow going at points, but patient persistence and the occasional pause to pull myself together made for a pleasant hike. Eventually, the cliff side to my right smoothed out and a strip of soft green grass ran along that side of the path instead. The grass … [Read more]

Yes You’re a Sinner and No It’s Not “Okay”

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  There are two parts to this title and each reflects some common rhetoric I hear among Christians. I think the entire statement needs to be hammered into people’s skulls. Yes You’re a Sinner and No It’s Not “Okay.” It’s such a basic truth that I wonder why it needs saying, but we have to address the issues as they arise. Let’s look at the first half first. “Yes, you’re a sinner” Christians today usually fall into one of two camps on this, either they refuse to ever acknowledge sin, or they never get off of sin to talk about … [Read more]

The Righteous Shall Live By Faith

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The following is an exposition of Habakkuk and the quotation of Habakkuk 2:4 in Galatians 3. It was written for my advanced hermeneutics class, thus the confusing big words here and there. Don’t worry if you find it boring. It’s not supposed to be particularly interesting, just jam-packed full of interpretive considerations. enjoy!  Theological Themes There are a few theological themes I glean from this text, and they all revolve around salvation, or to be more specific, sparing one from judgment. From Habakkuk’s point of view, he is pleading to God to be spared, with the other righteous people in … [Read more]

Do Babies Go to Hell?

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If you believe the true gospel, you have to have had this thought. Before we get going on this, please know that if this question is personal for you, you may be offended by my “callous” or “heartless” approach. Know that I feel deeply for you and weep with you. It’s personal for me to. But in this post, I am trying to give the most clear and logical answer that I can from the biblical text, and that may mean saying things that you don’t want to hear. Here’s the Dilemma Everyone is born sinful. All have sinned and … [Read more]

The Bible’s Not Essential to Christianity

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I have recently written an update, clarification, and retraction of many of the statements in this blog post, but I felt it wrong to remove the original words. Instead, if you do read this post I STRONGLY INSIST that you read the post “Retraction and Reaction: My Words and Andy Stanley’s” The statements in this post are in some cases erroneous and in some cases simply poorly written, so please refer to the adjustments.   The Bible’s not essential to Christianity. Yes, the title is click bait, I know. But it’s also one-hundred percent true. Let me say now that … [Read more]