Articles

Read Matthew 5:17-20 Having established Christ’s love for the Law, we’ll now proceed to consider three main points: 1. Jesus’ relationship to the Old Testament Law was one of continuity. 2. Jesus viewed the Old Testament canon as authoritative and inerrant. 3. Jesus instructs us as to the kind of...

In the previous articles on the Insider Movements (IM), we have surfaced four IM commitments which counter the teaching of Scripture. 1. IM calls believers to stay in. God’s Word calls believers to come out. [1] 2. IM makes the old trump the new . God’s Word makes the new trump the old. [2] 3. IM...

Read Matthew 5:17-20 The first verses in this chapter examined the Christian’s character as described by the Beatitudes. Following that, we saw what the influence of Christian would be. In these present verses, we proceed to a different subject—the Christian and the Law. Jesus wanted to make it...

When did you die? Michael Allen Rogers wrote recently that he died in 1957, when he was just eight years old. [1] Personally, I’ve had several near-death experiences, but I didn’t really die until 2006, partway through my undergraduate studies. The experience was simply unparalleled. All I can say...

Read Matthew 5:14-16 If you remember Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth…” then you’ll recognize the parallel with this second metaphor. First there is the emphatic affirmation. You (plural, ‘y’all disciples’) yourselves are the light of the world. Christ does not say you may be or will be...

This article is the fourth in a series on the Insider Movement. The first article is titled “ Stay in or Come Out? ” the second part is “ Old Trumps New or New Trumps Old ,” and the third is called " Who am I and Who Says? " Jesus or the Apostles? Understanding the relationship between the Kingdom...

Read Matthew 5:13-16 One of the things that is clear from the Beatitudes is that they cannot be practiced in total isolation. Evidently, the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount were not designed primarily for monastic living. You cannot be meek or merciful alone. It is impossible to follow those...

This article is the third in a series on the Insider Movement. The first article is titled “Stay in or Come Out?” and second part is “Old Trumps New or New Trumps Old.” Who Says? Since the events recorded in the third chapter of the Bible, a subtle and dangerous impetus frequently rebounds in the...

In our prior article responding to the Insider Movement (IM), entitled, “ Stay in or Come Out ,” we examined a prevailing contrast between IM and Scripture: IM calls believers to stay in. God’s Word calls believers to come out. In this second of five articles, we raise another prevailing...

Read Matthew 5:7-12 The Beatitudes provide moral virtues for believers. But to avoid moralism, we should also note how each of these was perfectly incarnate in Christ; they each point us to our Savior. #5 . Blessed are the merciful . (5:7) Jesus had so many opportunities to respond with coarseness...