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This expression takes its rise from the language employed by Christ in his conversation with Nicodemus (Jn. 3:1ff). The facts regarding the "new birth" are these. (a) It is an absolutely essential requirement for entering the kingdom of God. Jesus said that "except" one is born "anew" he cannot e...
Repentance has a variety of uses in the Scriptures. (a) One form of "repentance" is simply a feeling of remorse. It was in this sense that Judas "repented" (Mt. 27:3) just before he hanged himself and perished eternally (Jn. 17:12). (b) Valid repentance is a "change of mind" that results in a cha...
The word "exegesis" means "to lead out." It is a part of the larger science of interpretation known as "hermeneutics." A form of the original word appears in John 1:18, where the apostle affirmed that Jesus came to "declare" (exegeomai) the Father, i.e., to make him known, to explain him, to serv...
The New Testament is a collection of twenty-seven documents with the following characteristics: • They are classified as "scripture," a term suggesting a divine writing (1 Tim. 5:18; 2 Pet. 3:16). • Eight known writers — Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter, James, and Jude — produced these boo...
The New Testament uses two principal Greek words to represent the idea of "fighting" and "war." Polemeo (18 times) means to "fight" or "make war." Strateuomai (7 times) means to "carry out a military engagement, to be a soldier." The Scriptures use war in both literal and figurative senses. Physi...
Literally, this term has to do with the implantation of seed by which a child is conceived. The word is used in Scripture figuratively to illustrate the spiritual agency, namely the word of God, by which one becomes a believer in Christ. When Paul preached the gospel to the people of Corinth (Act...
Justification may be defined as the divine process by which God acquits the sinner and reckons him as righteous. The noun dikaiosis ("justification") is used but twice in the N.T. (Rom. 4:25; 5:18). The verb dikaioo is employed thirty-nine times in the N.T., and it describes the result of the pro...
A number of terms, both in the O.T. and the N.T., suggest the idea of a "path" or "way" of travel. The words come to be employed of a "course of conduct," whether for good (Ex. 18:20; 32:8; Dt. 31:29; Jer. 6:16) or evil (Num. 22:32; Psa. 139:24; Isa. 65:2; Acts 14:16). (a) Jesus declared that he ...
The expression "Great Commission" is commonly used to refer to a special directive Christ gave in a post-resurrection appearance before he ascended back into heaven. The "commission" is found in three complementary forms (Mt 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15-16; Lk. 24:47-27). A harmony of its elements reveals...
The term "body" is used in Scripture in both literal and figurative sense. Literal user of the body In a literal sense, the term "body" in Scripture refers to the physical "tabernacle" in which the spirit of man dwells (2 Cor. 5:1ff). This human body was fashioned on the sixth day of the creation...
The term "grace" occurs about 155 times in the New Testament. The word relates to the Greek term chairo, meaning "to rejoice," and grace itself comes to mean favor, gratification, or gratitude -- depending on the context. The New Testament emphasizes that salvation is the result of God's grace (E...
Paul wrote this epistle to a church he had established on his second missionary campaign (Acts 18:1-11). It deals with problems within that local congregation, such as division (1:10ff), carnality (3:1ff), immorality (5:1ff), and litigation (6:1ff). It also responds to a series of questions sent ...
The church in Thessalonica was established on Paul's second missionary journey (Acts 17:1ff). After he left the region, he received a report regarding the congregation in Thessalonica, containing both positive and negative news. This letter, written from Corinth (Acts 18:1, 5), is a response to t...
Death is a term that, in one sense or another, suggests the idea of separation. Physical death is that state of the body which is separated from the "spirit" or "soul" (Gen. 25:8; 35:18; Jas. 2:26). Death is a mystery that demands an explanation. Atheism is unable to provide one. If nature has th...
The text of the Bible consists of three languages. (a) The O.T. was composed principally in Hebrew. This Semitic tongue was well adapted to emotional, poetic, and religious expression. It was ideal for the revelation of divine religion in the early days of man's history. (b) Some portions of the ...
Praise, in the highest sense of the term, is a feeling toward, and/or outward expression of, devotion to deity. It acknowledges thanksgiving for Heaven's glorious creation, beneficent providence, and redemptive mercy (cf. Ex. 15:1-19; Rev. 4:8, 11; 5:9, 12-13). Deity, because of his very nature, ...
The Greek term for "man" is anthropos. Plato suggested that the word reflects the idea of an "upward looking" one, hinting, perhaps, that man finds no rest upon this planet. He is ever searching for his Maker. The term "man" is used generically -- for human kind. "Let us make man in our image mal...
The most common word in the Greek New Testament that conveys the idea of "forgiveness" is aphesis, a compound term meaning "to send away from." Forgiveness is a divine response to human sin, flowing from the loving and merciful disposition of God (Jn. 3:16; Eph. 2:4). Forgiveness is possible beca...
The idea of "intercession" is expressed in both Testaments of the Bible. The Greek verb entunchano suggests the concept of making an appeal to someone with reference to another person. It can mean to make an appeal against another, as when the Jews "made suit" to Festus that Paul should not live ...
Discipline is actually a process of training that begins at the point of one's conversion and continues throughout one's life. It includes teaching, example, exhortation, admonition, etc. (2 Timothy 3:16–17). The most extreme and ultimate form of church discipline, however, is the withdrawal of f...
