The question is not whether some wars are justified, or whether Old Testament figures fought, or whether soldiers appear in the New Testament without being condemned. The question is whether Christ permits his followers to take human life in war. The answer found in the spirit…
Jesus established one church; it has never ceased; and because it was established at a definite time, place, and foundation, with definite terms and marks, it can still be identified today — and any body established otherwise cannot be it. Hundreds of different churches all claim…
The Christian life is lived under the figure of warfare — not physical warfare against human enemies, but spiritual warfare against the enemies of the soul, supremely the internal enemies: undisciplined thoughts, bodily passions, the self that must be mastered and crucified daily. God cannot use…
The New Testament church has identifying marks — undenominational, congregationally governed, missionary, made up of converted and worshipping and united and pure members — and every member should know them well enough to help keep the church true to the pattern. A congregation drifts the way…
Timothy’s life is the story of what faithful parents, a mentor-apostle, and willingness to be sent can produce. He was the son of a mixed household — Greek father, Jewish mother — with no obvious path to apostolic usefulness. By the end of Paul’s ministry he…
God has a purpose in all that he does. The first advent was purposeful: the prophets expressed it, Christ stated it, and he accomplished it completely — “It is finished” (John 19:30). The second advent is equally purposeful: not to establish a kingdom (already established), not…
The church is by its very nature a missionary institution: its God-given mission is to uphold and spread the truth of salvation and to seek and save the lost — the same mission as Christ’s — and every member shares it. A congregation that forgets why…
Every person who encounters the crucifixion takes one of three postures: sympathy (deliberate, costly love — those who stood near by choice), apathy (presence without personal investment — those who were there by command, chance, or curiosity), or antipathy (open contempt — those who came to…
The New Testament church spread the gospel to the whole world through the missionary zeal of independent local congregations — each one God’s fully equipped unit for evangelism — and that pattern, not human zeal alone, is how the work is to be done. The early…
The tetelestai of John 19:30 marks the completion of the atoning work — not the end of Christ’s activity. The risen, ascended Christ is presently reigning as king (Col. 1:13), interceding as mediator (Heb. 7:25), governing as head of the church (Col. 1:18), adding the obedient…