9/26/10

The Kingdom and the Church

The foundation of our new book is that the kingdom of God was Jesus’ main message. Interestingly, he hardly mentions the church in the Gospels, but it is prominently discussed in the New Testament letters. So what is the relationship between the two?

9/19/10

Ain’t Gonna Study War No More

In our book on the Kingdom, Steve and I spend considerable time looking at the prophecies of Isaiah that describe the coming Kingdom. To give you just a taste, we note that Isaiah 2 predicts a kingdom where its citizens, famously, will beat their swords into plow shares or farming implements, and their spears into pruning hooks and learn war no more.

9/16/10

The Kingdom of God Is Here

First copy--nice feeling
A couple of days ago my wife Sheila appeared in my office doorway and said with a smile “The Kingdom of God is near.” She was not trying to be a female version of John the Baptist. She was letting me know that the first copy of our new book on the Kingdom of God had been shipped.

9/12/10

I Pledge Allegiance to...

The Kingdom of God in the Scripture is a kingdom totally different from all the kingdoms of this world. In chapter three of our new book we address the fact that every kingdom of this world operates by the world’s wisdom and not by the wisdom of God. While there can be, and are, governments that are more morally repugnant than others, there are no godly nations that carry on business, seeking the will of God. All 192 of them “have in mind the things of men, not the things of God.”


9/10/10

Grace to Go for It

There is no question about it: Jesus' kingdom teaching about age-to-come lifestyles is challenging. Sometimes it stops us in our tracks. Because of this, we say early in our book that all through this study, we must keep a clear view of God’s grace.

9/5/10

Into a Different World

In chapter three of our new book on the Kingdom of God we note that we cannot enter it without repentance and without new birth. It is our great concern to understand why this is true. These are not two hoops to jump through, two doctrines to believe, two ceremonies to go through or two items to add to a check list.

9/1/10

How Do You Feel About the Priesthood?


Imagine that you are a first century Jew looking forward to the coming of the Kingdom of God. You believe that when it comes the mighty Roman army will be driven out. How would you feel if you were told that what is coming will not be a kingdom of warriors and freedom fighters, but a kingdom of priests? You know we really don’t have to guess.