How many hundreds of millions of Christians are there in the world by now? What is your guess? Well, I looked it up. Christianity of all stripes is the largest religion in the world and …
Christian Origins #2 - Acts
And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled …
Christian Origins #3 - Acts
Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at …
Christian Origins #4 - Acts
I remember my first experience with power. It was behind the wheel of a 1948 Chevrolet. Granted, by today’s standards, that is not a lot of power, but it was power to me. If I …
Christian Origins #5 - Acts
I think it is fair to say that God used the power of the Holy Spirit to jump start the early Christian church. They started with 120 members, then baptized 3,000 people in one day. …
Christian Origins #6 - Acts
There is a great divide between Christianity and Judaism. And it goes back a lot further than most people realize. It goes back way beyond Paul, and way beyond the early days of the church. …
Christian Origins #7 - Acts
You have to wonder about a man like Saul of Tarsus. Here’s a man that we will come to know as the apostle Paul—probably the strongest intellectual figure in the history of Christianity, the man …
Christian Origins #8 - Acts
I would not like to suggest the apostles of Jesus were stubborn or blockheaded, because that would not be fair. The transition they were having to make was no simple matter. It is easy from …
Christian Origins #9 - Acts
The greatest missionary church in history was established by men whose names we do not even know. No, it wasn’t Jerusalem, in spite of everything that happened there. We know that every missionary effort ever …
Christian Origins #10 - Acts
The very first Christian missionaries in all history were a couple of men named Saul and Barnabas. (We know Saul better as the Apostle Paul.) They had no pattern to go by, no methodology, no …
Christian Origins #11 - Acts
Imagine that you attend a small church of, say, 50 people. You have been meeting together for quite a long time. You have a common set of beliefs and practices. You get along well together. …
Christian Origins #12 - Acts
When you read the New Testament, you really want to see a group of people united in purpose, thoroughly converted, working together for the greater purpose of converting the world to Christ. It is a …
Christian Origins #13 - Acts & Galatians
It is almost funny, in reading thorough the life of the apostle Paul, how often his friends had to get him out of town to save his neck. Paul was a firebrand. He was a …
Christian Origins #14 - Galatians
It is odd, don’t you think, that man is so dissatisfied with God? Seriously, we seem to think that we can improve on what he has done. It is one thing when we do this …
Christian Origins #15 - Galatians
Visualize a horizontal line. That line represents perfection in keeping the law. Everything below that line is sin. Everything above that line is righteousness. Simple, right? But wait, if the line represents perfection in keeping …
Christian Origins #16 - Galatians
Sometimes we answer questions too quickly, when we would be far better off saying I don’t know and waiting until we do. Nowhere is this more true than in religion. It is hard to discuss …
Christian Origins #17 - Galatians
I know this may seem obvious, but it must be said: Christianity and Judaism are two very different religions. I think Jews know this better than Christians. We speak of things Judeo-Christian as though they …
Christian Origins #18 - Galatians
I know sometimes it is a little hard to grasp, but the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees was a matter of power and control. When this conflict reached the churches of Galatia, it split …
Christian Origins #19 - Thessalonians
Is it hard to be a Christian? I suppose it depends on where you are and what you are doing. There are people in the world, right now, who are being shamefully and brutally treated …
Christian Origins #20 - Thessalonians
Everyone knows the end of the world is coming. The only questions left are when and how. Scientists tell us that in 3 to 4 billion years our sun will blow up and turn our …