The book of Revelation is highly symbolic. The entire 21st chapter of Revelation is about the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. We believe that the New Jerusalem represents an all-powerful religious government, composed of our Lord and his saints (the Church in glory) that [...]
“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left [...]
We believe the scriptures teach that the administration of justice within the Church is a whole Church matter. Therefore, in the event that the pastor and elders are the offending parties, they would be subject to the same disciplinary process as any other Church [...]
The concept of the five-fold ministry comes from Ephesians 4:11-13 which states, “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, [...]
Ephesians 4:11-13 states, “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built [...]
The concept of confession of sin to a priest is nowhere taught in either the Old or New Testaments. In fact, the New Testament teaches that all true believers are priests. 1 Peter 2:9-10 describes believers as a “holy priesthood” and a “royal priesthood,” “a [...]
We are sorry that the desire to change the service was not first discussed with all the membership before any action was taken. We believe the entire congregation should have been informed that the elders were considering a contemporary service, thereby giving everyone a [...]
The knowledge of God, the Creator, that He is wise and just, loving and all powerful, and that He is our loving Heavenly Father, one that we can draw nigh unto with confidence and trust in every time of need, through the merits of [...]
In the symbolisms of the Scriptures a "woman" represents a church. Just as the church of Christ is said to be the "Bride, the Lamb's wife," the false churches or anti-Christian religious systems are symbolized as wicked women. (Revelation 17:5) The number seven in Scripture [...]
This Scripture is in conformity with the united testimony of the teachings of all the Prophets and the Apostles to the effect that the world's judgment day, or trial time, is not in this present Christian Era, but is yet future--"God hath appointed a [...]
“For we that are in this tabernacle [earthly body] do groan, being burdened [oppressed by the evil influence of the world]: not for that we would be unclothed [lose our imperfect human bodies in death], but clothed upon [be clothed with our heavenly dwelling], [...]
Whatever may be the meaning of the Master's words, it is obvious that not any of His followers have ever been able to do "greater works" than he accomplished as regards the miraculous works of opening the blind eyes, unstopping the deaf ears, raising [...]
The "branches" do not represent the various different religious denominations of Christendom. At the time the parable was given, there were no denominations, and none were organized until several centuries afterward. Jesus never authorized the formation of these denominational systems, and furthermore, he has never recognized [...]
In the Genesis account of the creation of man, it is stated that he was in the "image and likeness of God." The thought of 1 Corinthians 11:7 would more properly be: "Man . . . is the glorious image of God." These words of [...]
To understand this statement of the Master it is necessary to remember the clearly marked distinction between the different ages of time. John was the last of the prophets and belonged to the time period that was coming to an end - the “Jewish [...]
This is a prophecy relating to the Church, the Kingdom class, the Kingdom of Heaven in its embryonic state. It has been remarkably fulfilled in the history of the true Church of Christ from the days of John to the present. The "violent," those of the Ishmael and Esau [...]
The "extremely critical" are the very ones to recognize the reasonableness of the doctrine of election so positively outlined in this passage. It is the thinking, critical minds that are rejecting the antiquated, obsolete theories of the past, and now are coming to see [...]
This will he fulfilled in the future for the following reasons: There is no "Bride" now. Jesus during the Gospel Age has been preparing a place for the Bride as he declared (`John 14:2-4`). The union of the Bride and the Bridegroom takes place [...]
Looking at the context, we see this is one of the “Messianic Psalms,” and is mainly a prophecy relating to the church of Christ - the “bride” class, the faithful followers of Jesus who receive a heavenly reward. The “king's daughter,” the bride of the [...]
Yes, it seems to us that Jesus would be treated the same if his first advent were repeated in our day. People received Jesus at his first advent according to their heart attitude. It is reasonable to assume that this would also be true [...]
