...“I think that we should see other people.” Hmm… it’s a common line in our worldly relationships, and not always the most pleasant to hear, but what implications would those words have on our relationship with the church, the so-called “bride of Christ.” Before answering that question, bounce a bit with me, back to my years of seminary; a time when I balanced (and paid for) the theological world of academia by working as personal trainer at the local YMCA. There were many perks that came from working at the gym, of which relationships ending with the aforementioned line were the first. The free membership allowed me to sweat off the Hebrew scribbles ceaselessly swirling around my head, the community allowed for conversations void of the terms “systematic theology” or “documentary hypothesis theory,” and a steady paycheck provided worldly bread to fill my stomach as I studied and sought the metaphoric, “bread of life.” In light of today’s question though, the YMCA provided an interesting analogy for our relationship with, and development as disciples of, the congregational and universal Church. Many a fitness fanatic will refer to the gym as their “church,” sees sweat as their tithe, and may even view their trainer as a pastor. A workout quickly becomes a religious ritual for many, and after a mere two weeks on the job I could set my watch according to who was on the floor at any given time as well as recite the exact workout routines, choice machines, and even the magazines...
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...A STUDY ON THE KINGDOM OF GOD A PROJECT SUBMITTED TO DR. JOEL AJAYI IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COURSE OBST 592 OLD TESTAMENT ORIENTATION II BY JAMES D. PERKINS Student ID: 3437129 jdperkins3@liberty.edu LOUISVILLE, KY 5 OCTOBER, 2012 08 Fall 08 Fall Introduction The angel Gabriel visited the Virgin Mary and heralded one of the most debated and controversial eschatological statements in all of Scripture. "With breathtaking brevity, in one vast, glorious, revelation Gabriel succinctly summarized the entire ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ". There was nothing theologically new in the angel's announcement for much of it had been the subject of the Old Testament prophets, yet there is little agreement among scholars regarding its fulfillment. Gabriel, having come from the presence and glory of God (Luke 1:19), no doubt relayed the words of God in precise detail: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end" (Luke 1:30-33 ESV). These words would have rung with Messianic overtones to any Jewish person living at that time, and Mary probably understood this to mean the inauguration of the anticipated Jewish...
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...“You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.” ’ 20He said to him, ‘Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.’ 21Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ 22When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions. 23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!’ 24And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, ‘Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’ 26They were greatly astounded and said to one another, ‘Then who can be saved?’ 27Jesus looked at them and said, ‘For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.’ 28 Peter began to say to him, ‘Look, we have left everything and followed you.’ 29Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, 30who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to...
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...The Eastern Church vs. the Western Church In the year 1054, due to political, cultural and religious reasons, the Great Schism divided Christianity into the Eastern Church (the Orthodox Church) and the Western Church (the Catholic Church). As a result of the Schism, differences increased between the two. The primary differences are the Papal claims of authority and the insertion of the filioque clause into the Nicene Creed (Ware, 1963). Since the two were one prior to the Schism, there are similarities; for example, both celebrate the seven Sacraments, partake of Holy Communion, have Apostolic origins, have a hierarchical priesthood and celebrate Easter; however, even within these similarities are differences. The primary difference between the Eastern Church and the Western Church is in regards to the title and role of the head of the Church. The Pope is the head of the Western Church; whereas, the Patriarch is the leader of the Eastern Church. In the Catholic Church, the Pope is infallible. He can contradict lower ranking Church leaders. On the other hand, in the Orthodox Church, the Patriarch of Constantinople, also known as the Ecumenical Patriarch, is not infallible and does not have supreme authority. Sitting at the head of a council of Orthodox bishops, he is considered a "first among equals" (Brown, 2013). In addition to the difference between the Pope and Patriarch, is the insertion of the filioque clause into the Nicene Creed. Originally the Nicene Creed...
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...Describe and explain the different forms of church governance in Zimbabwe Governance is a set of policies, power and structure by which the rights, powers and privileges of people are processed and protected. The term “government” refers to the management, administration, rule or direction, control, command, authority or leadership which processes and sees to the implementation of these policies. The Church government is set to manage and control the privileges of the children of God e.g. prosperity, healing etc. Simplified, it is the organization pattern by which the church movement or congregation rules, controls or directs itself. Even in the church in Zimbabwe, there are different forms of governments because of different understandings of scripture. * Episcopal form of government This is also known as the hierarchical form. The word Episcopal comes from the words “Epis/ epic” which means top and “scopos” which means to see, look or sight. This means that there is a man at the top to oversee what is happening below him. The principal officer in this type of government is the Bishop/overseer who is followed by a Priest/ Presbyter/ elder and then the deacons. The Bishop has a right to ordain the elder and he governs the church. Every decision at local level comes from the Bishop at Head office. It’s not a scriptural system but simply draws from the fact that in the Bible Moses was an overseer, followed by Aaron the High Priest. There were also elders who helped judge...
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...Southeastern University Biblical Family Ministry Paper: Segmentation vs. Integration William Davis PMIN 3273 Professor Vasquez 17 September 2015 Biblical Family Ministry Paper: Segmentation vs. Integration Throughout history churches have always been segmented-programmatic to accommodate different ages individually in their own classrooms learning their own thing. A segmented-programmatic church means that the family is never together and are all learning something different. However, many churches have found that this method is becoming old and they are finding it to no longer work with today’s times. Researchers have shown that 70 percent of young people leave the church by age 22 this is because churches are failing to bring in young worshipers and keep new the old ones. Now, many churches are starting to lean towards a more family-integrated service. A family-integrated service is one in which all of the different classes you get with segmented model is eliminated. There is no youth group or children’s church, everything is done in the main sanctuary and the family is always together. The segmented-programmatic church model came out of the nineteenth century when school systems started putting students in tightly in tightly-graded classes. The church saw that this was a functioning model in society and they believe that it would work within their walls. The segmented-programmatic model has a couple good things that can come out of it; however, there are...
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...In 399 B.C, The greek philosopher socrates was forced to drink hemlock, a poison people used in Athens. Between 400 and 1400 A.D Thousands of people were executed for crimes against the church. During the French revolution (1789-1799) the revolutionary government executed 40,000 people. One method was the guillotine, a beheading machine. In the old testament times of the bible life was a lot more harsh. The religious leaders would condemn you for going against the law of the lord. Going against the law of the lord was basically being homosexual. Dissing on the name of the lord was a major offense. Finally false prophecy if you were giving false testimonies of the lord to god’s people and leading them in the wrong direction. About 60 countries-including the United states and many African nations and asian nations still see a need for capital punishment. Canada, Australia, most European and latin American nations have abolished...
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...communication and exchange networks o Forms of state organize. Diversify o All societies increased productive capacity • Pre-Islamic Arabia - Bedoin culture based on Kin/clan/tribal networks o Survival dependent on loyalty to clan o Magnified by harsh environment - Shayks- clan/tribal leaders o Conflict was frequent o Society was fragmented - Fierce inter clan rivalries and struggles for resources o Emphasis on revenge, “male honor” - Towns and long distance trade----Mecca and Medina o Medina (Yathrib) (established on oasis) o Mecca more important – Umayyad (ruling clan) – Quraysh; (Ka’ba) - Status of women varied by clan o More respect vs. less respect - Little art/architechture (no big civs) o Focus on poetry 1. Gives glimpse into daily life - Bedovin religions- blend of animism and polytheism o Animism- nature worship - The life of Myhammad and Genesis of Islam o Born around 570 CE – Merchant, married Khadijah o One of many prophets concerned about life in Arabia o 610 CE – Muhammad receives revelations from angel Gabriel 1. tells him he is final prophet (revelations) Qu’ran – basis of new religion - The fight for Islam in Arabia o Umayyad’s in Mecca saw Muhammed as a threat o Muhammad flees to Medina – Hijra (1st month of calendar)...
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...Name Institution Course Instructor Date Interpretation of Revelation 3: 14-22 Introduction Laodicea is one of the seven churches listed in Revelation. The church became one of the main churches following the end of 20th century. The church of Laodicea was located a wealthy business place. This resulted in a materialistic church that started to boast for its success as well as tapping into God’s power. Jesus Christ condemned the church of Laodicea due to its lack of awareness of the spiritual wealth need. The church was located in a wealthy city and this resulted in the believers being immature, self satisfied and lacking vision. The present essay gives an interpretation of Revelation 13: 14-22. Socio-historical context Laodicea city was located in South-western Asia Minor on one of the ancient highways that was connecting Ephesus and Syria. At the time the letter to Laodicea was being written, the city of Laodicea already existed and had lasted for some hundred years. The city of Laodicea was founded by King Antiochus II during (261-246BC).The city of Laodicea was famous for its riches and wealth. This wealth was as a result of black wool garments’ production that took place in the city. Under the rule of Roman, Laodicea was made a banking center, and its residents mainly associated themselves with black wool production. The city was associated with black wool production, which was the raw material for making garments. Due to its riches and wealth, the city became a self-sufficient...
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...Baptism and the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts Water Baptism vs Baptized with the Spirit and Power The book of Acts begins with Jesus' parting words to His apostles before His ascension to the right hand of God the Father. In His opening statement Jesus promises the Holy Spirit, and He does this by distinguishing the coming of the Spirit from the baptism of John. “For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:5) John had testified the same of his baptism, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11, also in all the other Gospels: Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33) So there are two types of baptisms in the book of Acts, what the old theologians called baptismus flaminis (the outpouring of special gifts of the Holy Spirit) and baptismis fluminis (the Baptism of water which is a Sacrament of the remission of sins). (See Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, II.289, note 53) Water Baptism: John's, Jesus' and the Church's Baptism (baptismis fluminis) Of these two types of baptism, the first is the baptism of John, and then commanded (and expanded) by Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20) and given to all the converts on Pentecost, etc. (This is the normal baptism that continues today. We see many of these in Acts, including Acts 2:41; 8:12-16, 36-38; 9:18; 10:47; 16:15...
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...Because I chose to believe God’s Word, I know that what we may label today as “fundamental change in our culture” will inevitably completely destroy marriage and the family unit, at some point in the future.(1) Our culture has changed; however, "traditional marriage" still has a place in the modern world, and is therefore not an outdated and archaic institution. If we look closely at those that believe otherwise, we will most likely find their choice to be founded on hurt, resulting from marriage, or a lack thereof. Indeed, “[the] CDC finds [that] more U.S. couples [are] living together instead of marrying” (Health Day, 2013); further, a cursory comparison between 2000 and 2013 statistics, gives the impression of an alarming trend toward cohabitation.(2) However, for the time being, the same statistics demonstrate that the majority of In the modern world, does "traditional marriage" still have a place, or are we seeing a fundamental change in our culture?either marry or break up; therefore, cohabitation is not (currently) intended (by the majority) to replace marriage. Although deceptively attractive, easy and convenient, in my opinion, cohabitation, is caused (at the root) by poor parenting, characterized by dysfunctional, unsupported and selfish parents that recycle and multiply unhappiness and an unfulfilled need for companionship, coupled with fear of commitment.(3) “Marriage is the most basic and fundamental part of our society, and as such it should be protected...
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...LITTLE ROCK CHURCH OF DELIVERANCE: PROPOSAL FOR STRATEGIC PLANNING __________________ A Paper Presented to Dr. Daniel Moosbrugger Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary __________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for CLED 620 __________________ by Melvin A. Moore 25 May 2011 Preface To the readers of this paper, you will notice that the name of [sic] G-d is not spelled out as it is done with reverence to the name and sovereignty therein. Furthermore, with consideration that this paper might be defaced or destroyed at a later time and this should not come of the name as identified in Deuteronomy 12:3-4. However, this shall not apply when relating scripture as to be obedient to the instruction of Deuteronomy 4:2. Introduction Little Rock Church of Deliverance (the Rock) is a settled church located in the Seventh Ward, South East sector of Washington, the District of Columbia. The church leadership comprises of a pastor, assistant pastor, youth pastor, evangelists, elders, deacons, trustees, and auxiliary leaders; furthermore, its roster is accounted as 250 members with a steadfast increase of new members entering the fold monthly. Serving as the headquarters of the Church of Deliverance Conference (C.O.D.), the leadership gives oversight to several other churches as the pastor is the Chief Apostle, Bishop of Administration, Minister of Music, President of the Women’s Department, and several other departments and ministries. It...
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...formation of a Civil Rights Committee from campus organization leaders a. Organized sit ins on April 1943 at Little Palace Cafeteria on 14th U b. April 1944 a sit in took place at Thompsons Restaurant at 11th and Pennsylvania Ave – 2 weeks i. 56 students sat in, while representatives negotiated with the management 3. But these events did not become common knowledge within the media 4. In 1943, Core had started with sit-ins in The Jack Spratt Coffee House, in Chicago a. This was settled within a day by police officers b. This event also was viewed as regional – moment vs. movement b. Moment to Movement i. What does this mean? 1. Moments to Movements a. Irene Morgan vs. Rosa Parks i. Morgan refused to give up her seat in 1944 and was arrested ii. She went to the Supreme Court, and won iii. Morgan vs. Commonwealth of Virginia – Virginia Law (segregated seating) unconstitutional in Interstate Traffic b. Inspired Journey of Reconciliation (1947) with 16 Chicago activist (CORE) to ride busses in upper south i. Led by Bayard Rustin c. Parks refused to give up her seat in 1955 and was arrested i. She was secretary of the Montgomery NAACP, attended activist training seminars, and was in close...
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...CATHOLICISM vs. CHRISTIANITY HUM/130 SEPTEMBER 15 2011 CATHOLICISM vs. CHRISTIANITY Introduction Christianity is a practiced religion following the teachings of Jesus Christ, which started around 1 AD, and grew stronger after 3 AD when Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross by the Pharisees, Jewish religious leaders, and the Roman government for what the Jewish leaders said was blasphemy of the Jewish belief that Christ Jesus was calling himself the Son of God. The strength of this religion goes by what Jesus Christ said he would do when he was put to death. He proclaimed that after three days he would rise from his tomb, and on the third day he did just that according to scriptures in the New Testament. Before Jesus was born, the Judea or Jewish laws as described in the Torah were the only religion that offered forgiveness of ones sins from God by sacrifice of a lamb, goat, sheep, or wing animal depending on your sin, that is what you had to buy for the Pharisee to offer to God as your sacrifice. Along came Jesus to offer another way for forgiveness of sin by offering himself as the sacrifice. He was also accused of teaching Gods law to all Gentile and Jew, when the Jews thought they were the only ones worthy of God’s laws and forgiveness. Catholicism was born from Christianity. Having the same structured beliefs Catholicism separates its beliefs by adding other religious figures into its religion. Mary mother of Jesus is hailed as a holy person because she was chosen as the...
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...beginning the christian life “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ...” 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord, then you are a Christian. According to the New Testament, you are also a new creation. You are beginning a whole new life! And just as a newborn baby needs certain things in order to be healthy and to grow up, so do you, as a new Christian, need certain things to grow spiritually. First, you need to be in fellowship with other Christians. It is through fellowship that you will learn more about God and about how to live as a Christian. You should plan to attend church regularly and join a kinship group so that you can develop close friendships with other believers. Vineyard has many kinship groups that meet on different days and in different locations throughout central Ohio. Choose one that is convenient for you so that you can be encouraged in your new relationship with God! Second, you need to pray, which is simply talking to God. Prayer is how you will grow in your relationship with God and how you can begin to allow Him to work in areas of your life. And third, you need to read the Bible on a regular basis. It is through the Bible that God will speak to you about Himself and your life needs. Beginning the Christian Life Series was developed by Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Columbus for new Christians...
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