Religious leaders arrested the apostles and told them not to preach in the name of Jesus, but God’s angel released them from the jail! When they got them out, they kept on preaching despite men’s orders. “We ought to obey God rather than men!” (Acts 5:27-29) It is required that Christians submit to the authority
There are two directions which can be taken: The road to restoration, or the road to apostasy. The road to restoration means a return to the narrow way, the faith of the New Testament church. The road to apostasy means to depart from the “faith once and for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 3).
“By what authority are you doing these things?” The chief priests and elders asked Jesus this question (Mt 21:23-27). Jesus replied by asking them a question: “I will ask you one question … John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?” Since they could not answer Jesus, neither did He
“Do Not Go Beyond What Is Written” (I Cor 4:6). This command was written to the church in Corinth. They had trouble with division because some did not hold their teaching, their behavior, their worship to the “pattern of sound words” (2 Tim 1:13). Unity among Christians is only achieved and maintained by “speaking the
Go ahead, guess. 12 inches? 11 inches? 10? 13? You can’t know until you take a ruler and measure. Only by using the same ruler will all answers be the same. Let us apply this principle to religion, where all the answers are different. How does one become a Christian? How should we live? How
Many things are commonly practiced among churches about which the New Testament says nothing: song books, microphones, pews, printing machines, P.A. systems, videos, etc. There is a realm of freedom for Christians to use modern conveniences. An expedient is “that which benefits or helps one in keeping specified instructions.” When God gives a command to
While imprisoned for nearly 20 years, Napoleon (1769-1821) carefully studied the life of Jesus Christ and concluded: “I know men, and I tell you that Jesus is not a man. Everything in Him amazes me. Comparison is impossible between Him and any other being in the world. His ideas … the truth that He announces,
As early as 2100 BC, Babylonians are recorded as tithing to their gods. Greeks tithed to Diana. The Roman earliest civilizations tithed (gave 1/10th) to their god Hercules. Why did these heathen people give a tenth to their gods? Where did this law begin which went to all parts of the world? Only one reasonable
There is “One FAITH”. This is continuing the 7 “ones” in Ephesians 4:1-5. This FAITH, this system of doctrine, was “once and for all time delivered to the saints” (believers) in the first century of Christianity (Jude 3). You and I are to believe it, live by it and teach it until the end of
“There is one body and one spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God …” (Eph 4:4-6 NIV). Last week, we looked at “one body, the church.” Later, Lord willing, we shall study the other 5 “ones.” Today, “One Spirit.” The Spirit is one