People

{THE CHURCH}

[Click on the title below to open an article]

{IDENTITY}

1. One New People - {PDF Copy} - (By his death, Jesus formed one covenant community - “one new Man” - based on faith in him, not ethnicity)
2. The People of the Last Days - {PDF Copy} - (The church is the battlefield where the final war is being waged between the Lamb and the Ancient Serpent, Satan)
3. Ekklésia - The Assembly of God - {PDF Copy} - (The Christian use of the term church or ekklésia is derived from the assembly of Yahweh gathered for worship as described in the Hebrew Bible)
4. The Sanctuary of God - {PDF Copy} - (In his letters, the Apostle Paul consistently applied Temple language to the church of Jesus Christ)
5. When Pentecost Arrived - {PDF Copy} - (On the day of Pentecost, the time of fulfillment arrived when Jesus bestowed the gift of the Spirit on his church)
6. The Promise of the Father - {PDF Copy} - (With the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham have commenced)
7. For All Nations - {PDF Copy} - (The gospel of the kingdom announced by Jesus is a message of life for men and women of every nation)
8. Heir of the World - {PDF Copy} - (According to Paul, the covenant promise of land for Abraham and his seed always envisioned the inclusion of the entire world)
9. Bless All Nations - {PDF Copy} - (The promise to bless all nations in Abraham finds its fulfillment in Jesus of Nazareth, the true seed of Abraham in whom God’s promises are fulfilled)
10. All are Heirs in Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (Returning to the custodianship of the Law means rebuilding walls between Jew and Gentile, but you are all one in Christ - heirs of Abraham)
11. Heirs of the Covenant - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the seed of Abraham through whom his disciples inherit the covenant promises, including the Spirit)
12. Inheritance of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (In Jesus, the original limited promise of territory to Abraham is transformed to encompass the entire creation)
13. Both Jew and Greek - {PDF Copy} - (The equality of Jew and Gentile before God is a pivotal theme in Romans. Members of either group stand or fall before Him on the same basis)
14. Priestly Kingdom - {PDF Copy} - (Disciples reign with Jesus by fulfilling their role as “priestly kings” who mediate His light to the world)
15. Disciples and the State - {PDF Copy} - (Paul instructs believers living in the Roman Empire not to resist the government since its existence and authority are arranged by God)
16. Christendom? - {PDF Copy} - (‘Christendom’ is the attempt to invoke God and Jesus to validate national and political institutions, agendas, and ideologies)
17. The Sign of the End - {PDF Copy} - (The end will not come until this gospel of the kingdom of God is proclaimed to all nations)
18. Hastening That Day - {PDF Copy} - (In the interim between Christ’s ascension and return, God has granted humanity the opportunity to repent)
19. True Spirituality - {PDF Copy} - (The spiritually-minded man understands that Christ Crucified is God’s true power and wisdom)
20. Spirit and Inheritance - {PDF Copy} - (The gift of the Spirit is part of the New Covenant and the first fruits of the New Creation, the gathering of the nations, and the resurrection)
21. A Kingdom of Priests - {PDF Copy} - (Disciples reign with Jesus as priests who render service in his Tabernacle and mediate his light in the world)
22. Overcoming Saints - {PDF Copy} - (In the book of Revelation, overcoming saints persevere in their testimony of Jesus whatever the cost, even a martyr’s death)

{MISSION AND MINISTRY}

1. The Mission of the Church - {PDF Copy} - (The mission of the church between now and the return of Jesus is to announce the Good News of his Kingdom to all nations)
2. Spirit and Mission -{PDF Copy} - (Jesus dispenses the gift of the Spirit to his people, and it empowers them to carry out gospel proclamation to all nations)
3. The Message of the Gospel - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus summons his disciples to proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God in every inhabited corner of the earth)
4. His Kingdom or Christendom? - {PDF Copy} - (The deception of ‘Christendom’ is the attempt to invoke God and Jesus to validate national institutions, political ideologies, and cultural values)
5. The Key Sign of the End of the Age - {PDF Copy} - (Matthew 24:14 - Jesus declared, definitively, that the “end” will not come until “this gospel of the kingdom of God is proclaimed to all nations”)
6. Upon These Last Days - {PDF Copy} - (The age of fulfillment began with the death, resurrection, and exaltation of the Son of God)
7. His Kingdom - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus proclaimed a new political reality, the Kingdom of God, and it bore little resemblance to the political systems of this world)
8. "The Promise is unto you!" - {PDF Copy} - (The gift of the Spirit is for all men who repent, even to those afar off, in fulfillment of the promise of the Father)
9. Stephen Bears Witness - {PDF Copy} - (Under the guidance of the Spirit, and in fulfillment of Scripture, Stephen gives effective testimony to the leaders of Israel)
10. Babylonian Territory - {PDF Copy} - (The so-called Seven Mountains of Culture are part of Babylon’s domain, but God is summoning His children to come out of her while time remains)

{EMULATING JESUS}

1. Following Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (The Messiah of Israel submitted to the way of the Cross and summoned his disciples to follow him on the very same path)
2. Love your Enemy - {PDF Copy} - (Acts of mercy and love are the defining characteristics of the true disciple and of the nature of God)
3. The Way of the Cross - {PDF Copy} - (To follow Jesus wherever he goes necessitates a lifetime of self-denial and sacrificial service for others)
4. The Mind of Christ - {PDF Copy} - (The obedient death of Jesus becomes the paradigm for service to others, the pattern disciples are summoned to emulate)
5. Servant of the Kingdom - {PDF Copy} - (His disciples are summoned to lives of self-sacrificial service to others, just as Jesus gave his life as the ransom price for many)
6. The Cost of Discipleship - {PDF Copy} - (To be his disciple means taking up the cross and following in his footsteps, even if it results in death - Mark 6:7-30)
7. Taking up the Cross - {PDF Copy} - (To be the Messiah of Israel means suffering and death, and he summons disciples to walk the same path)
8. Power and Wisdom - {PDF Copy} - (The power and wisdom of God are revealed in the proclamation of a Messiah who was crucified on Calvary)

{SUFFERING}

1. Responding to Persecutors - {PDF Copy} - (When Christians react to hostility with hostility, whether from government, society, or individuals, Satan triumphs)
2. Afflicted Disciples - {PDF Copy} - (In this life, the disciple of Jesus will endure “tribulation” and persecution for his sake – 1 Thessalonians 3:1-4)
3. Disciple and State - {PDF Copy} - (Paul instructed believers in the very heart of the Empire not to resist the government – Romans 13:1-8)
4. Tribulation and Endurance - {PDF Copy} - (Exiled on Patmos, John declared himself a “fellow-participant” in the tribulation and endurance “in Jesus”)
5. Tribulation vs Wrath - {PDF Copy} - (Disciples escape God’s wrath, but they endure tribulation. Indeed, the church has been appointed to suffer)

{SCRIPTURE}

1. Language of the New Testament - {PDF Copy} - (Was the New Testament originally composed in Greek or Hebrew? Overwhelmingly, the evidence points to the former)
2. Stand Fast - {PDF Copy} - (Believers prepare for the Apostasy and the coming Man of Lawlessness by standing firm in the apostolic tradition)
3. Even An Angel - {PDF Copy} - (Paul warned the Galatians not to heed any gospel that deviated from the one preached by him - even if it came from an angel)
4. Hidden Mysteries Revealed - {PDF Copy} - (God’s previously hidden mysteries are now revealed in Jesus, especially in his death and resurrection)
5. Unlocking Scripture - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus, the Word become flesh, is the interpretive key that opens the Hebrew scriptures and the book of Revelation)
6. Literal and Nonliteral Language - {PDF Copy} - (The book of Revelation informs the reader from the start that it communicates visually and symbolically)
7. Jesus, the Key - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the key that unlocks the Hebrew Scriptures and reveals the nature and redemptive purpose of God)
8. A Forgotten Hope - {PDF Copy} - (Central to the hope of the apostolic church was the bodily resurrection of the dead at the end of the age when Jesus returns)