There are three Judases in the New Testament that are often confused. Here are my conclusions. Judas Thaddaeus. By comparing with Luke we see that “Lebbaeus, who was surnamed Thaddaeus” must be Judas the brother of James. Since there were only two sons of Zebedee, it must mean that he was the brother of James […]
Traditions. Any tradition formed on any other basis than the Word of God will sooner or later be found in contradiction to the plain commandments of God. We see this with the copious traditions developed in the Catholic Church down through the centuries. Holy candles, holy robes, holy incense, holy smoke, etc. all are in […]
Main article: The Wilderness Experience Ten Temptations. We read of the “ten temptations” (Num. 14:22) where Israel tempted Jehovah in the wilderness. “Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened […]
Main article: Millennium and Eternal State Related: The Millennium New Heavens and Earth. Revelation 21:1 describes the new universe that God will create. “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea exists no more.” The “heaven” here refers […]
Related: Repentance Conversion means to have a change of heart toward God. Initially, a person is converted when they are born again, and receive divine life from God which is a contrast to the desires of the flesh. Upon being quickened, immediately a person is converted. Without an initial conversion, a person cannot be saved to enter […]
Related: The Grave of Christ The Sign of the Prophet Jonah. When the apostate Jewish leaders asked Jesus for a sign (after rejecting many others), Jesus replied: “But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the […]
Related: Sadducees; Sanhedrin; Essenes; Herodians; Leaven Pharisees. This name comes from the Hebrew word ‘parash’ which means ‘to separate’. This was a name given to a religious sect among the Jews beginning in the 2nd century BC, who called themselves ‘chasidim’, which means ‘pious ones.’ The movement began with good intentions in the era of […]
Spiritual blessings “in Christ Jesus”. All of our distinctive Christian blessings are said to be “in Christ” (Eph. 1:3). We have them because of our standing before God. We cannot earn them; they are freely given to us by God! This is our spiritual inheritance. What are these blessings? Election (Eph. 1:4) Predestination (Eph. 1:5; Rom. 8:29) […]
Main article: The Ordinance of Baptism John’s Baptism and the Baptism of Jesus on earth can be viewed as “Kingdom baptism” in contrast with “Christian Baptism”. Kingdom baptism is what disconnected the faithful Jews from the guilt of apostate Israel, while Christian baptism bring us into the Christian testimony. Kingdom baptism is connected with […]
ENCYCLOPEDIA of Bible subjects, names, terms, and places. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A Abraham, Abyss, Acts, Administrations, Administration (Assembly), Adoption, Adultery, Ages, Ages of Ages, Age to Come, Almighty God, Amos, Angels, Anointing of […]
Main article: The Sufferings of Christ Christ’s Anticipative Sufferings are what Christ passed through as He looked forward to the cross, and to the work of atonement which would be accomplished there. These sufferings intensified as the cross loomed nearer, but we see them concentrated in the garden of Gethsemane. Anticipative suffering is not merely […]
Related: Love The Light. A vast and important subject in scripture is that of light. The word has two primary meanings, which are closely related. Light as a character is moral purity, and as an agent is illumination.1 First, ‘light’ is a character or state of absolute moral purity. We read that “God is […]
Related: Light Various forms of Love. There are four different Greek words for love, and the distinctions between them are important to understand. The four words are: Eros, Storge, Philia, and Agape. Eros. This is love in a romantic sense; e.g. love between husband and wife. It the most “fiery” type of love, but also the most shallow […]
Related: Election Corporate Election. A clever denial of sovereign election has emerged and recently grown in popularity. The argument is intended to deny individual election by twisting the scriptures to support a different kind of election. Supporters of corporate election have found a convenient way to dispose of Eph. 1:4 and other verses that are crystal clear on […]
Related: Sanctification; Reconciliation; Rom. 3:24; Rom. 5:1 Justification. The verb “to justify” means ‘to declare a person righteous’. A nice example of this is in Num. 23:21, where God declared that He had not seen any iniquity in His erring people. Likewise, the Christian has been justified in that, while he has not lived righteously, yet God has declared […]
Reconciliation (Col. 1:20-22; Eph. 2:16; Rom. 5:11; 2 Cor. 5:18-19) has to do with God’s work of bringing lost and guilty sinners back to Himself. Reconciliation deals with alienation, and the feelings of enmity that are in the heart of the sinner. Alienation and enmity are the result of man’s sin. The fault is on our […]
The World. When scripture uses the word “world” it usually means one of three things, although sometimes there is a blend between them. The Greek word is kosmos, and in the broadest definition it means an ordered system. The World-place (“the planet”). In the most basic sense, the term refers to the literal planet earth. An […]
Main article: The Prophetic Week Related: The Great Tribulation “And the dragon was angry with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus.” (Revelation 12:17). The Jewish remnant is one of the most important people-groups in prophecy. Much […]
Related: Pharisees; Sadducees Essenes. This was one of three primary sects of the Jews in the first century. The sect arose apparently out of disgust for both the Pharisees and Sadducees. They were a monastic order, emphasizing isolation, a vegetarian diet, and celibacy. The name “Essenes” is not found in scripture, but they were […]
Related: The Assembly; The Body of Christ; The Bride of Christ; Office The House of God. The term ‘House of God’ basically means the “dwelling-place” of God. In a greater sense, the universe is the house of God (Heb. 3:4; Acts 7:48-50; Isa. 66:1). But on earth, God had a physical house in the […]