Tune and Prepare!

Such a high view of the Church in the New Testament, carried over from the place of the Temple in the Old Testament as "God's house", where God lives, is at Home with his family & requires a certain lifestyle. We need to know "how to conduct ourselves" there.. 1Tim3:15. I have written so that you will know how people ought to act in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth. It's no ordinary place. Not the world. It's meant to be very different! Terry Virgo

God is Love – 1/3 ..how the two loves are linked A study on divine love and the intertwined Christian character Kindness and faithful love (hesed) pursue me every day of my life. I make my home in the house of YHWH for all time to come. Psalm 23:6 For this is how God loved (agape) the world: he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. John 3:16 What is Hesed? The word that is translated to “faithful love” is the Hebrew word “ Hesed (or ' checed' ).” This word is translated in other places as “kindness,” “faithfulness,” “mercy,” “goodness,” “loyalty,” and “steadfast love.” God's love for His covenant people in the Old Testament is expressed by the Hesed . This love expressed in the Hebrew texts as hesed we'emet for example in Gen 24:49; 32:11; 47:29; Ex 34:6; Jos 2:14; 2 Sam 2:6; 15:20. However hesed has a narrower definition than the English word " love ". In th...

Joseph Marie Vien: Sarah Presenting Hagar to Abraham Based on the Galatians 4 you can read here an overview +teaching about the old and new status of the believers. According to the apostolic teaching the old, child like status describes Israel and the new status refers to the adoption we have got in Christ. Meanwhile, the symbolic image of the two women, the two mothers (Abraham's concubine and his wife), gives a detailed picture of the complex spiritual family relationship between the Jewish and the Christian believer. We will use the ESV Bible. Pre When the apostle Paul speaks of the life of Abraham and about the Law, we need to see two states. One is a blessing: based on the voluntary mercy and grace of God, the other is a system: which God has prepared for the deliverance of His people and the building up of the Jewish nation. We can see that the promise, Abraham's blessing came 430 years before the giving of the Law. Moreover we will see that...

With all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:2-3) Ephesians 4 begins a whole new part of Paul’s letter. The first three chapters explain in glorious detail all that God has done for believers, freely by His grace. Starting with chapter 4, he tells believers how to live rightly, but only after having explained what God did for His people in Jesus Christ. Having considered and received all that God has done for us, we are to live with all lowliness and gentleness , not a pushy desire to defend our own rights and advance our own agenda. Before Christianity, the word lowliness always had a bad association to it. In the minds of many it still does; but it is a glorious Christian virtue (Philippians 2:1-10). It means that we can be happy and content when we are not in control or steering things our way. Having considered and received all that God has done fo...

Our Spiritual Journey Teaching and learning is not a lecture.. is there a way back to the informal? This article is part of the "Vitalize" pack In the tapestry of believer's life, teaching and learning are woven threads, strongly connected yet profoundly distinct from mere lectures and rote memorization. The teachings of Jesus Christ, the process of imparting knowledge transcends the mundane, becoming a sacred endeavor. Or - rather - challenge. One way or peer to peer? The postmodern life has a one way {consumerism or entertaining} culture. You can see the model: The person who's entertaining and the Audience who listens. In other words this is the Lecture culture or TED talk culture. Unfortunately this misleads us keeping our lives, hearts in the unilateral communication which is far far away from the peer to peer developing relationship during the {original} teaching. In the ancient culture the sages , seers and prophets or the pro...

God is Love – 2/3 ..how the three connect a study about divine love and interlocking Christian characters This article is part of the "Vitalize" pack “His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness..” 2Pt 1:3.. Pre In this very beginning I must say that there are a lot of ideas floating around about what the apostles teach about love. On the one hand, this is quite scary (knowing that there are theories about love) but it also gives us a great opportunity to investigate the original viewpoint. From the New Covenant perspective, it is important to note that God's love is much brighter for us than it was in the time of the Old Testament. I'm pro classical musician , learned to interpret the original concept and composition . My wife was a linguist so in such cases {and always} I go to the source rather than the traditional di...

Andreas Köstenberger In our day and age, few parts of Scripture are more controversial that the household codes of the New Testament. Indeed, as family structures continue to unravel and hierarchical relations, in the home, the church, or the workplace, are often abusive, the biblical teaching that men and woman have distinct, God-given roles and that women submit to their husbands has fallen on hard times. Yet, for those who are committed to Scripture, we must take a closer look to see what God says about male-female relationships, and women’s roles in particular, throughout Scripture. And one important place to do that is Titus 2. ... Paul’s instructions to Titus in chapter 2 are given as part of a household code that conceives of the church as God’s household. In keeping with this format, Paul gives ministry directives regarding older men (v. 2), older and young women (vv. 3–5), and younger men (v. 6), as well as bondservants (vv. 9–10). Like all the members in God’s ho...

Andreas Köstenberger God’s Word calls qualified men to teach and pastor God’s flock. In discussions of this topic, 1 Timothy 2–3 are central to explaining why Paul did not permit a woman to teach or have authority in the church and why the pastoral office is grounded in creation and not culture... .. In this post, I will provide a brief introduction to 1 Timothy 2–3, a passage that clearly affirms male eldership in the household of God. Paul’s first letter to Timothy contains vital and abiding instructions for the church and its leadership. Paul writes to his apostolic delegate, Timothy, toward the end of Paul’s life and ministry in order to leave a legacy and pass on the pattern of church leadership to his foremost disciple. These instructions are not limited to first-century Ephesus (where Timothy was at the time) but abiding principles grounded in God’s creation order (Paul writes similar instructions to Titus, who is on the island of Crete). The Church as God’...

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?.. Yet you are holy, enthroned {dwelling} on the praises of Israel. Psalm 22 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him 1 John 2:28 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us. 1 John 3:24 We are encouraged by John to abide in God, which has various meaning in the believer's life. In 1John chapter 2 and 3 we get dense apostolic visions how this relationship shapes our lives and makes ripples around us.. However, God is equally present in us and desires to live within our hearts' worship and adoration. Psalm 22, the great messianic-prophetic psalm, reveals this heavenly intimate relationship showing the out casted, Suffering Messiah who -In His Greatest sacrifice, in His death agony- gives us a glorious dimensions about Gd's dwelling...

by Andreas Köstenberger ... A nők szerepe a Titusz 2:3-5-ben Napjainkban és korunkban kevés olyan része van a Szentírásnak, amely annyira vitatott, mint az Újszövetség házi szabályai. Valóban, mivel a családi struktúrák egyre inkább felbomlanak, és a hierarchikus viszonyok - otthon, az egyházban vagy a munkahelyen - bizony gyakran visszaélésekkel, abúzussal járnak, a bibliai tanítás, miszerint a férfiaknak és a nőknek különálló, Isten adta szerepeik vannak és a nőknek alá kell vetniük magukat a férjüknek, nehéz helyzetbe jutott. Mégis, azok számára, akik elkötelezettek a Szentírás iránt, fontos közelebbről megvizsgálni, hogy mit mond Isten a férfi és a nő kapcsolatáról, és {most} különösen a nők szerepéről a Szentírásban. Az egyik fontos hely, ahol ezt megtehetjük, a Titusz 2. fejezet. További részletekért lásd a 6. fejezetet Isten tervezése a férfi és a nő számára. * { complementarian view: egymást kiegészítő szerepek } Pál apostol Titusznak adott utasí...

by Andreas Köstenberger ... Women’s Roles in Titus 2:3–5 In our day and age, few parts of Scripture are more controversial that the household codes of the New Testament. Indeed, as family structures continue to unravel and hierarchical relations, in the home, the church, or the workplace, are often abusive, the biblical teaching that men and woman have distinct, God-given roles and that women submit to their husbands has fallen on hard times. Yet, for those who are committed to Scripture, we must take a closer look to see what God says about male-female relationships, and women’s roles in particular, throughout Scripture. And one important place to do that is Titus 2. For more details, see chapter 6 in God’s Design for Man and Woman. Paul’s instructions to Titus in chapter 2 are given as part of a household code that conceives of the Church as God’s household . In keeping with this format, Paul gives ministry directives regarding older men (v. 2), older and...