What is the Kingdom of God? I don’t think we can overstate the importance of the answer to the question. There are so many theories out there about different systems of belief including different definitions of the Kingdom of God. We need to think about the end result of what those beliefs produce and about what the implications of their version of reality are. The idea of the Kingdom of God was clearly central to Christ’s ministry making it a fundamental premise of our hope, of our purpose, … [Read more...] about What Is the Kingdom of God?
Citizenship
The Garden of Eden Prototype
When God created mankind there was a strong bond between the Creator and the Created. This bond extended to the rest of the earthly creation that God had made. Man was to work with the environment to subdue it and have dominion. In other words, he was to dress and keep it. God and man walked together, they talked together, and they worked together. All of those things are contained in the first chapters of Genesis. The Creator, Man, and the environment all worked … [Read more...] about The Garden of Eden Prototype
2024 Relationship Challenges
Due to the natural proclivity of the human mind to focus inward on self, relationships in “the world” are deteriorating. Nations are turning inward as are the communities that form a nation. We see the emergence of what is being called “Identity Politics” and the “New Tribalism.” This is a form of polarization which has as its underpinning an emphasis on self. This should not surprise us as we know the god of this world is a self-promoter. At the personal level, our present cancel culture is … [Read more...] about 2024 Relationship Challenges
Godly Justice
Administering justice is a major theme of the Bible. King David administered justice to all his people (2 Samuel 8:15). Indeed, God expects His people to administer justice: "Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?" (1 Corinthians 6.2-3). So that is the question: Do you and I practice justice … [Read more...] about Godly Justice
Pentecost, the Spiritual Connection
There are many things that we can learn and understand in our walk with God when we observe God’s walk with the nation of ancient Israel. There’s much about the nation of Israel that sets a pattern for us to learn from. By covenant, they became a called-out people who were destined to live according to the will of God as expressed by His law. The feature of the special relationship was the fact that God would dwell among them. “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell … [Read more...] about Pentecost, the Spiritual Connection
Ethnic Gnosticism
Ethnic Gnosticism is a term crafted by Voddie Baucham to explain the phenomenon of people believing that somehow because of one’s ethnicity that one is able to know when something or someone is racist. Voddie Baucham is an American who is currently Dean of Theology at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia. He sheds light on the way this ideology is undermining the gospel and compromising genuine Christian relationships in the broader Christian church today. His message is not from … [Read more...] about Ethnic Gnosticism
Relationships within the Body of Christ
How important are relationships within the Body of Christ? This question is prompted by the state of affairs in what we broadly refer to as “the world.” The world is a generic term for planet earth and all life on it, including human civilization. We use it generally to address our environment. Currently, much press is devoted to the subject of the rise of nationalism. Remember how globalization once held out the carrot of the world coming together in one big homogenization of nations and … [Read more...] about Relationships within the Body of Christ