Christianity was in its infancy when the New Testament was created, and it would have been important to the leaders of the Christian community to inspire some level - even a lot - of fear of retribution for failing the community and their faith. Th Continue Reading...
v. 9) I am the good shepherd" (10:11, 14) I am the resurrection and the life" (11:25) I am the way, and the truth, and the life" (14:6) I am the true vine" (15:1; cf. v. 5) It was John's responsibility to teach Christians that they can have ete Continue Reading...
[11: Kimball, Dan. The Emerging Church: Vintage Christianity for New Generations. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003.] The Emerging Church essentially sees Scripture as something that can be processed and changed with no problem. This is a direct in Continue Reading...
On June 27, 1844, hundreds swarmed the jail and brutally murdered the Smith brothers, leading their followers to conclude that they were martyred (Sisk). At Joseph's death, Brigham Young was president of the Twelve Apostles of their church and beca Continue Reading...
Holy Spirit is the cornerstone of the Acts of the Apostles, attributed to the apostle Luke. According to Lee, the Book of Acts refers to " the formative history of the Early Church," while establishing Luke as a "charismatic theologian who demonstra Continue Reading...
St. Justin was one of the earliest Christian apologists, and his Apology of the second century helps trace the laying of the Christian dogmatic foundation. The faith, as expressed by Justin, contains several of the elements that established the Chri Continue Reading...
6). For the early Christians, the Holy Spirit was experienced as a real power in their lives . The Holy Spirit empowered them to continue the work of Jesus. When a person received the Holy Spirit, they experienced a difference in their lives -- an Continue Reading...
Pastoral Theology: What it means to 'read the signs' One basic belief that lies behind the social teaching of Catholics is that the Almighty has shaped human history. This biblical era perception transcends time, prevailing even today. Indeed, it ho Continue Reading...
Religion the Gospel of Matthew There are a number of similarities between Helmut Koester's article, The Gospel of Matthew: Jesus as the New Moses, and that of Marilyn Moses, also entitled The Gospel of Moses. Both of these works examine the reason a Continue Reading...
However the boat is beset by terrible storms and the sailors determine by casting lots that it is Jonah's fault, so Jonah tells them to toss him overboard. They do, and God arranges for a giant fish to swallow Jonah. While inside the fish for three Continue Reading...
working through R. Paul Stevens' book, a reader is struck by how different this approach is to the ministry and the laity. In fact some of the ideas and passages are radically different from what one might expect in a book like this. The fact that S Continue Reading...
Religion and Theology: Church GrowthProblem StatementIt has been observed that good pastoring is often absent in The Apostolic Church of West African diaspora in the United States. Without proper leadership, which is missing in the form of good pasto Continue Reading...
Thomas Cranmer As the Archbishop of Canterbury during the tumultuous reign of Henry VIII, Thomas Cranmer was in an extraordinary position to effect changes in England's political and religious direction. Through his writings, Cranmer laid the founda Continue Reading...
The ways Mark and Anna react to the events that impact their lives illustrate how children are sometimes more morally mature than their parents are. Anna is her sister's keeper, and she devotes much of her life to caring for Kate. Anna's decision t Continue Reading...
Orthodoxy and the Establishment of the Canon The fact that the early leading churches, from Antioch to Alexandria to Rome, were separated by many miles and had their own issues and problems that were directly addressed in letters (that would go on t Continue Reading...
Grieving in Literary Works Wolterstorff is able to find joy after his loss in more than one way. Specifically, the author was actually able to transition through the various stages of grieving as outlined by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. Those stages inclu Continue Reading...
Jesus The central figure in the New Testament of Christianity is Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus in many ways has both historical and spiritual natures, due to his being born to a typical Jewish family (father Joseph and mother Mary) in Galilee but also be Continue Reading...
It seems to her, says Flaubert, that her being, rising toward God, is going to be annihilated in love like burning incense that dissipates in vapor. But her response during this phenomenon remains curiously erotic... The waving of the green palm lea Continue Reading...
Faith in Abstraction: A Comparative AnalysisThe early medieval period witnessed remarkable artistic developments in manuscripts, with the Ebbo Gospels Saint Matthew and the Book of Kells Chi-Rho page representing two distinctive yet equally compellin Continue Reading...
Matthew's Passion Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ The vast majority of Christian today look forward to the future glorious return of Christ and the realization of the Kingdom of God. This return was promised by Jesus himself, as he told his discip Continue Reading...
Jesus Through the Old Testament There is no denying the impact of Jesus on Christianity and on many of the fundamental tenets that form the core of this particular religion. However, the fulfillment of the prophecy that Jesus manifested is merely o Continue Reading...
Platt Book Critique Religion is an integral part of human culture -- a set of organized beliefs about the universe, humanity, and the larger questions surrounding the spiritual values akin to society. Philosophers have debated the notions of religio Continue Reading...
Sharing Jesus William Fay's 1999 spiritual text entitled Share Jesus Without Fear, is an emotional and poignant tale that encourages the followers of Jesus Christ into a harmonious practice of evangelical Christianity. Fay holds a unique position in Continue Reading...
Kaiser's Toward An Exegetical Theology And Goldsworthy's Preaching The Whole Bible As Christian Scripture Both Walter Kaiser and Graeme Goldsworthy take very different approaches to the Bible in their respective works Toward an Exegetical Theology Continue Reading...
Jesus through the Old Testament Christopher J.H. Wright's Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament is a book written to connect the two halves of scripture, in a way that helps Christians better understand that "…it is Jesus that gives meaning Continue Reading...
" It caused missionaries to deal with peoples of other cultures and even Christian traditions -- including the Orthodox -- as inferior. God's mission was understood to have depended upon human efforts, and this is why we came to hold unrealistic univ Continue Reading...
Christianity Book of Matthew Who is to be saved? According to Matthew, "whoever holds out to the end will be saved," (Matthew 24:13). However, the initial focus is on the "the lost sheep of the people of Israel," (Matthew 10:6). Matthew also mentio Continue Reading...
Lord's Supper by authors Oscar Cullmann and Franz Jehan Leenhardt One of the most perplexing issues facing any Christian today is the issue of how to view the taking of the Lord's Supper every Sunday. The ancient images of wine, bread, and physical Continue Reading...
He considers that one would be an ignorant if he were to declare himself a true Christian without being acquainted with parts of the Old Testament. It would be wrong if someone were to interpret the Old Testament on the basis of the information in Continue Reading...
Book of Revelation is a unique portion of the New Testament. Unlike the other Books found in the latter part of the Bible, the Book of Revelation is not presented as a historical document or an instructional discussion, but is essentially a propheti Continue Reading...
Islam venerates Mary highly and gets its concept of female fidelity from her (Finazzo). While Islam venerates the Virgin (indeed, the Koran is very high in its praise), it is this author's opinion that the rest of the Koran's attitudes toward women Continue Reading...
Jesus warns not just Peter but all of "them" about not boasting about the messiah in Mark, Matthew, and Luke too. Jesus's warning comes immediately after the miraculous healing of the blind man (Mark 8:30; Matthew 16:20; Luke 9:21). Interestingly, Continue Reading...
Furthermore it is with Isaiah that one first becomes acquainted with the idea that the Messiah would die. "And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mo Continue Reading...
Jesus was aware that he was a subversive power. Matthew does omit the part about Jesus needing to go into hiding. This suggests that the author had less of a need to emphasize the theme of persecution than Mark did. Mark makes sure this story is tol Continue Reading...
