The Greek term antikristos is found five times in the New Testament — all references being in John’s writings (1 Jn. 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 Jn. 7). The meaning is “against Christ.”

John warns that man...

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...

The term atheism derives from two Greek roots, a (meaning “no”) and theos (“God”). It is a word that depicts the irrational ideology of the person who dogmatically says: “There is no God” (cf. Psa....

This word is an anglicized form of the Greek apologeia, literally meaning “a verbal defense.” It is found eight times in the New Testament, and a verb form occurs some ten times.

For example, Luke...

A word that denotes the commencement of anything with a point of origin. 

The “heavens and the earth” had a beginning (Gen. 1:1); hence, they are not eternal. Material origins must be explained su...

The most popular Greek word for “authority” is exousia (sometimes translated as “power”). The term, with various usages, is found 102 times in the New Testament. The word, together with some parall...

The English word “bible” means “scroll” or “book” and refers to the sixty-six documents that comprise the book of Scripture — thirty-nine Old Testament documents and twenty-seven New Testament boo...

On the night before his death, during the Passover celebration, Jesus instituted the communion supper for his disciples (Mt. 26:26ff; Mk. 14:22ff; Lk. 22:19ff; cf. 1 Cor. 11:23ff). The Lord’s Suppe...

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 t...

“Belief” is the noun form of the verb “believe.” True belief embraces several important elements. 
Despite God’s invisibility and inaudibility, our belief in him is not rooted in superstition. Beli...

In the first century, it was the Jewish custom to recline at the table during meals. Thus, the saying, “recline in the bosom,” signified a place of honor near the host. The apostle John enjoyed suc...

Citizenship is the legal relationship that one sustains to a city, state, or country. Paul was a citizen of Tarsus in Cilicia (Acts 21:39), and he enjoyed the privileges of “citizenship” in the Rom...

The term Catholic originates with a Greek word, katholikos, which means “general” or “universal.” The expression is not found in the Scriptures but has been employed in various senses in church his...

“Christian” is the name given to the disciples of Christ in Antioch of Syria following the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas (Acts 11:26).

The verb chrematizo (“called”) in this passa...

The Greek term pascha has been mistranslated as “Easter” in the King James Version of the Bible (Acts 12:4). The term is consistently rendered “passover” elsewhere in the New Testament (see Mt. 26:...

Luke wrote the Book of Acts. He addressed it to Theophilus, a Gentile Christian official. 

The aim of the narrative is to record the establishment of the church of Christ on the day of Pentecost (...

From the Greek word eschatos (“last”) comes “eschatology,” a study of “last things” (e.g., the second coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, the judgment day, the end of the world, heaven,...

The creation was the act of an omnipotent God, speaking into existence, from no previous materials, the entire Universe and everything within it. This concept is unique to Judeo-Christian theology....

“Communion” is a term applied to the Lord’s Supper because of its usage in 1 Corinthians 10:16. This act of worship emphasizes the fellowship (koinonia — sharing, participation) we enjoy with Chris...

Colossae was a city about 100 miles east of Ephesus. Paul wrote a letter to the church in this city. It was one of his four epistles from Rome (Acts 28), while he was in prison. 

The letter of Col...