"…the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." —1 Tim. 3:15
Did you know there are over 30,000 various “Christian” “churches” in the world today? Did you know that—in the New Testament (NT)—there is only ONE church (Matt. 16:18; Rom. 12:4,5; 1 Cor. 12:12,13,20; et al.)? That leads to this eternally important question: HOW DO I KNOW WHICH CHURCH IS THE CHURCH? In the New Testament—especially in the
QUICK RECAP FROM PART 1: A “tongue” is simply a “language.” The “tongues” that some first-century Christians spoke were actual, intelligible, human languages, the knowledge of which was given to them miraculously by the Holy Spirit. Hence, “the gift of languages.” But there is more. In 1 Corinthians 14, over half of the chapter is
What does it mean to “speak in tongues”? Most would likely say “tongues” are languages that are unknown to the human race, and that only God (and perhaps angels) can understand. But they would be wrong. The first thing we must understand is that the word “tongue” is simply a synonym for “language.” Thus, to
What is religious unity? Many would say that the essence of “religious unity” is “agreeing to disagree,” or getting along despite your differences. Well, God is certainly a proponent of “getting along” despite differences (cf. Rom. 12:18); but He is NOT a proponent of “agreeing to disagree” in matters of religion. In The Test of
Do you hate God? Don’t answer yet. Properly ponder over this pragmatically prolific profundity—er, just think about it for a few seconds. In Mark 12:30, Jesus said the greatest commandment is that man love God with every fiber of his being (cp. Deut. 6:4,5). So, what about you? Do you love God, or hate Him? (Thinking
Without controversy, one can declare that God does not change (Mal. 3:6). But what many may not realize is that the same is true of God’s spiritual principles. Among these is the exclusive nature of God’s “positive” commands—that is, “When God says, ‘Do THIS,’ it means, ‘Don’t do THAT.’” Let us briefly consider the clearest
Are you a member of the body, or a citizen of the kingdom? WAIT! Whew, that was close… Before you answer, we have to consider what these two designations mean. Just hold your little horses for a minute… MEMBER OF THE BODY In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul has an extended discussion on the body of
In Genesis 3, man falls from the grace and fellowship of Jehovah God. Eve was deceived by the serpent; Adam was tempted by Eve; and both of them ate of the one tree from which God had commanded them to abstain. As a result, “the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that
So what, then, does the Bible say about the meaning of life? Why are we here on the earth? What are we to do? What is my purpose on this earth? What is your purpose? What is uncle Steve’s purpose? LOOK FOR THE TRUTH Paul the apostle strolls into the city of Athens, Greece, a notorious haven
In the second chapter of the book of Genesis, Moses records an epic statement from the Creation: “And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of LIFE, and the man became a living soul.” — Genesis 2:7 — For as long as man can remember, he