During His ministry with His disciples, Jesus repeatedly experienced moments when He probably felt exasperated by the envy for power they seemed to have. The apostles appeared to be anxious to become powerful leaders of Jesus’ kingdom (Mark 9:33-34; Luke 9:46). Even as the disciples were eating the Last Supper together, these feelings of domination and supremacy … Continue reading –>
As we have seen already in an earlier lesson, in the New Testament the church is represented by the metaphor of body. The church is the body of Christ. This metaphor alludes to several aspects of the church and the relation between Christ and His people. As the body of Christ, the church depends on … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Eph. 5:23-27; Matt. 20:25-28; Titus 1:9; Matt. 16:19; Gal. 6:1-2; Matt. 28:18-20. Memory Text: “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave” (Matthew 20:26-27, NKJV). As Seventh-day Adventists, we are Protestant Christians … Continue reading –>
By Andrew McChesney, Adventist Mission Construction company chief Vladimir Vladovskyy knew it would take a miracle to build a Seventh-day Adventist church in the northern Russian seaport of Arkhangelsk. He had no blueprint for the project. He had only a few summer months to build the church. And a senior city administrator, without giving a … Continue reading –>
Further Thought: Read the articles “Prayer”, pages 1044-1046, and “Worship”, pages 1290, 1291, in The Ellen G. White Encyclopedia. “‘The importance of the Sabbath as the memorial of creation is that it keeps ever present the true reason why worship is due to God’ – because He is the Creator, and we are His creatures. ‘The Sabbath … Continue reading –>
Whatever the challenges the early church faced, they were united in their common faith in Jesus and in the truth He had entrusted them to spread to the world. It’s what Peter even called “present truth” (2 Pet. 1:12). And thus, united in the truth, they expressed their unity in a number of ways. “And they continued … Continue reading –>
Read Acts 2:42. What were some of the elements of early Christian worship? “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship” (Acts 2:42, NKJV). From the earliest moments of the church, worship has been characterized by the centrality of the study of the Word of God given to us by the apostles. The first Christians … Continue reading –>
Seventh-day Adventists see the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:6-12 as depicting their mission and the core of their message just before the second coming of Jesus (Rev. 14:14-20). These are the important messages to be preached with “a loud voice” to all inhabitants of the earth. Read Revelation 14:6-7. What is the first angel’s message, and what does … Continue reading –>
Read Matthew 4:8-9. What was Jesus’ third temptation in the wilderness? With pride and arrogance, Satan declared himself to be the rightful ruler of the world, the owner of all its riches and glory, claiming the honor and respect of all who live in it, as if he had created the world. What an insult to … Continue reading –>
In discussions about worship, we often highlight elements of worship, what it includes and how it is done. But what is the deep meaning of worship? What does it mean to worship God? And why do we do it? In Psalm 29:2, David states: “Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name; worship the … Continue reading –>
