Author Archives: Paul Pavao

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About Paul Pavao

I am married, the father of six, and currently the grandfather of five. I teach, and I am always trying to learn to disciple others better than I have before. I believe God has gifted me to restore proper theological foundations to the Christian faith. In order to ensure that I do not become a heretic, I read the early church fathers from the second and third centuries. They were around when all the churches founded by the apostles were in unity. My philosophy for Bible reading is to understand each verse for exactly what it says in its local context. Only after accepting the verse for what it says do I compare it with other verses to develop my theology. If other verses seem to contradict a verse I just read, I will wait to say anything about those verses until I have an explanation that allows me to accept all the verses for what they say. This takes time, sometimes years, but eventually I have always been able to find something that does not require explaining verses away. The early church fathers have helped a lot with this. I argue and discuss these foundational doctrines with others to make sure my teaching really lines up with Scripture. I am encouraged by the fact that the several missionaries and pastors that I know well and admire as holy men love the things I teach. I hope you will be encouraged too. I am indeed tearing up old foundations created by tradition in order to re-establish the foundations found in Scripture and lived on by the churches during their 300 years of unity.

Paul’s Epistle to the Romans (PPPPPP version): Paul Pavao’s Potentially Prejudiced Personal Paraphrase

Paul Pavao’s Potentially Prejudiced Personal Paraphrase (PPPPPP) of Romans: Romans 1:1-17: I am not ashamed of my Good News because it is so powerful that over and over again, the people who believe it practice righteousness. My Good News is … Continue reading

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Paul’s Potentially Prejudiced Personal Paraphrase: 1 John 3:7 and 1 John 5:13

I’m hoping God lets me continue a series beginning with today’s “Paul’s Potentially Prejudiced Personal Paraphrase.” I told Lorie, my wife, about it, and she said, “Perfect!” (LOL). 1 John 3:7, NASB: “Little children, let no one lead you astray. … Continue reading

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Why the Earliest Churches Never Debated Faith vs. Works

Today to a person asked, “If faithfulness is required to inherit the kingdom [Col. 1:22-23; Gal. 5:19-21; 2 Pet. 1:10-11], doesn’t that violate saved by grace?” I wrote (you get the edited version): I’ve wrestled with these passages since 1986. … Continue reading

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Just Do It! No, Wait, Just Think It!

I get flak for all I say about works, especially when I say we have to stop explaining and apologizing when we say “good works.” Good works are “good.” No, you cannot be changed from dead in your sins to … Continue reading

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Bible Warnings and Why I Don’t Believe Eternal Security

I’ve never believed in eternal security. I attended two churches when I was first saved, an all-black Pentecostal Church every other week when my boss, the greatest Christian who ever lived, was preaching, and an almost all-white Assembly of God … Continue reading

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The Real Debate Behind Eternal Security: It’s Not About Security—It’s About the Atonement

I am going to try to explain a complicated idea as simply as I can. It starts with the idea that eternal security (once saved, always saved) depends on the doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement. If God took out his … Continue reading

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The Strange Case of Symbolic Baptism: A Doctrine in Search of a Text

I’m looking at a defense of symbolic baptism written by a an intelligent and godly man with long experience in the Scriptures. You may be like him, a follower of Jesus that, to borrow a John Wesley quote about Georg … Continue reading

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Will God Judge You by Your Church Membership?

I was asked, “Can I be saved if I don’t join the Eastern Orthodox?” I answered: I am so sorry you are having to ask this question. Here’s the simplest answer I can give you. Read Ezekiel 18:20-32; Matthew 25:31-46; … Continue reading

Posted in Bible, Church, Dealing with Scripture Honestly, Early Christianity, Gospel, Holiness, Modern Doctrines, Roman Catholic & Orthodox, Teachings that must not be lost, Unity | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Connecting the Dots: Why Paul and John Speak Differently About Eternal Life

I asked ChatGPT what I could do in the public forum to communicate better. In fact, I used the phrase “be more systematic.” It replied: If I were looking for one improvement in your public communication, it would not be … Continue reading

Posted in atonement, Bible, Dealing with Scripture Honestly, Evangelicals, Gospel, Modern Doctrines, Rebuilding the Foundations, Teachings that must not be lost | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

What Is Tradition: Jesus, the Apostles, and our Bible

I can’t do better than my long ago article, “Apostolic  Tradition.” It looks nicer than my blog does as well.

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