One of the main issues of church organization is to deal with discipline. How discipline helps to preserve church unity is sometimes a touchy subject and easily may be misunderstood. But from a biblical perspective, church discipline centers on two important areas: preserving purity of doctrine and preserving purity of church life and practice. As … Continue reading –>
Read 2 Timothy 2:15 and Titus 1:9. According to Paul’s counsels to Timothy and Titus, what crucial tasks are the responsibility of a faithful church leader and elder? Notice how much emphasis Paul puts on keeping the doctrines and teachings pure. This is crucial for unity, especially because one could argue that, more than anything else, our teachings … Continue reading –>
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 –>
While studying church organization and unity, this week, It is worthwhile for all of us to think about the role of government and our individual responsibility – not just secular government but church government as well. Former United States President Richard Nixon defended himself in the Watergate scandal, by telling one of the world’s most celebrated … 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 –>
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 –>
