Whereas in English we have one word to express all kinds of love, in Greek there are four different words for love. Let's take a quick look at those words. We’ll combine two of them with related meanings into one category, differentiating three distinct kinds of love. Then we'll affirm three significant life truths that arise from our understanding of the different kinds of love. 3 KINDS OF LOVE 1. Eros refers to physical or sexual love. The word eros was commonly used in the ... Read More
3 Reasons Not to Take a Spiritual Gifts Inventory (Session 7; 1 Cor. 12:4-12,21-26)
Questions about spiritual gifts have been around for a long time. What are they? How many are there? Who has them? What is their purpose? Do I have one; and, if so, how can I know which gift I have? To the end that individual Christians might be able to identify and better utilize their spiritual gifts, a team of church leaders in the 1970s developed a spiritual gifts inventory along the lines of a popular personality-type questionnaire. This work was followed by the publication of books such ... Read More
Remember Why (Session 6: 1 Cor. 11:17-29)
Explaining why we do something usually puts us on the defensive. We feel challenged when asked “why?” as if our character is being questioned. Why we do something matters. That is not only true for the things we do, but the activities we plan. Publicity, preparation, and the final picture are all impacted by our why. Let’s apply these three things to Paul’s challenge to the Corinthians to why they gathered to observe the Lord’s Supper. Publicity. We don’t know how the event was announced, so ... Read More
5 Kinds of Firstfruits (Session 5 – John 20:3-9; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28)
“The firstfruits” is a common expression found in both Old and New Testaments. It is used in Scripture with both literal and figurative meanings. So when Paul said Christ was “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor. 15:20), he was using terminology and imagery rich in history and meaning. At least five kinds of firstfruits can be identified in Scripture: 1. The First Harvest In the Old Testament, God commanded His people to give the first and best portions of the harvest ... Read More
4 Essential Qualities of a Soul-Winner (Session 4; 1 Cor. 9:19-27; 10:31-33; 11:1)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise. — Proverbs 11:30 (KJV) Not many Christian leaders use the language of “soul-winning” today. We hear a lot about making disciples, which of course is equally biblical and theologically sound terminology. After all, Jesus’ mandate for the church in the Great Commission was (and is) to “go … and make disciples” (Matt. 28:19). Still, none other than the apostle Paul—a staunch advocate and practitioner of ... Read More
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