Author: rey

Distinguishing between Israel and the Church

Post author By rey
Post date July 23, 2004
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David Dunlap

Distinguishing things that differ is essential in the interpretation of Scripture and failure to do so results in doctrinal and practical consequences. This is true in all of Scripture. Church history will show that those who were cavilier concerning subtle and important theological differences have brought great harm to the Church. The failure to distinguish between justification and sanctification damages the doctrine of grace. The failure to distinguish between law and grace muddies our understanding of salvation by grace through faith alone. So too, the failure to distinguish Israel from the Church will lead to grave consequences. Reluctance to distinguish Israel from the Church has caused some to return to barren liturgical ritual, the unbiblical separation of the clergy and the laity, and the use of military might to accomplish the will of God. Oliver Cromwell(1599-1658) serves as an illustration of the necessity of right thinking in this area.

christ worship

The Riches in Christ – 09 Streets of Gold

Post author By rey
Post date July 21, 2004
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reynaldo reynoso (admin)

The reading is from Revelations 21

J.B. Nicholson Jr. (fondly referred to as Jabe) was speaking the other day and he was telling of a day that him and his family went to a museum to see some precious jewels exhibit. He said that they went in and they stood before this case where some of these precious objects were on display and they examined a jewel the size of a golf-ball. When he told the story I was immediately reminded of going to D.C. and seeing the Hope Diamond, huge and gaudy and really bigger than anyone needed and probably more expensive than anyone could handle.

brethren study

Bible Study Heritage

David Dunlap

For over 150 years those known as “Plymouth Brethren” were renown for their command of the Scriptures. This movement exerted great influence over their generation, and their impact continues to be felt in the church. They were held in high esteem by leaders of many denominations. A. T. Pierson, a Baptist minister and author, wrote concerning the spiritual stature of the brethren, “and in those days there were giants in the land.” He was referring to men such as John Nelson Darby, C. H. Macintosh, William Kelly and others. The spiritual power of the early brethren was unmistakable. The movement bore the marks of a mighty work of God. Powerful Bible teaching by deeply spiritual men, earnest prayer, and evangelistic zeal characterized this movement. God’s hand of blessing was evident. One writer reported that by the year 1878, 50 years after the first assembly was established, there were 1,388 gatherings of believers in 29 different lands. ⁽¹⁾

Many have speculated as to the reasons behind this remarkable spiritual growth.

Tags brethren, Plymouth Brethren

church

Knowing Gods Will in the Work

Post author By rey
Post date July 13, 2004
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reynaldo reynoso

Now, some time ago I posted an article on knowing God’s will. In all honesty I side-stepped the heart of the question by focusing on the foundational issue about actually obeying God in what He has already explicitly said. In that article I merely touched on the idea that God would entrust more of His will to those who are already faithful with what He has entrusted them with thus far.

Marvelous. God will entrust us with more of His will if we are faithful. That’s simply wonderful. The thing is that there are times when Christians are going about trying to do the will of God (or what they think it to be) and things happen which prevent the completion of the task.

The question that inevitably comes up in a faithful believer’s mind who is genuinely trying to do God’s will is this ?who is doing the blocking??

eschatology

Timetables of Prophecy

r.p.amos

This 1st chronicle of the prophecy series will take a structural and doctrinal look at God?s program for the world. Understanding the ?big picture? and how prophecy is framed preserves us from fanciful interpretations.

To understand God?s prophetic plan it is important to realize that God views humanity in three distinct arenas. 1Cor. 10:32 says: ?Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God.?

1. Jews – God?s Old Testament nation from the racial line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Israel), chosen for special service on earth.

2. Gentiles – all non Jews. They comprise all the other nations of the world. They are pagan in their practice and look to gods rather than God.

3. The Church – the body of believers in God?s chosen Savior, Jesus Christ, called ?sons of God.? Both Jew and Gentile are equally indwelt by God the Holy Spirit, thus forming a new race.

God reveals a structural time program for each of the three types of humanity: Israel; the Gentile nations; and the church. We will now consider each timetable.