The GOSPEL of MATTHEW: Ch. 17 – The MESSIAH and HIS KINGDOM MESSAGE

~ By James Fire 

In the previous article, we looked at MATTHEW 16, and in the study we particularly noted verse 28 where He said:

MATTHEW 16:28
28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

Many have wrongly assumed that this meant that the LORD's Second Coming would be within the life time of some of those who heard Him make this declaration. But as we examine this passage in light of the parallel passages in the other Gospel accounts, we will, by the Spirit of God rightly discern what the LORD meant by this. We will also learn more about the ministry of John the Baptist; witness the deliverance of another demon possessed person and the rudiments of faith, the essence of salvation and the LORD's perspective on taxation. All that and more in this chapter of 27 verses. So let's get ready to partake!

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The CANON of SCRIPTURE: SECTION ONE, ARTICLE TWO

SECTION ONE – ARTICLE TWO: The JOURNEY CONTINUES, TRAVELING THE TORAH and BEYOND      

By James Fire

HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION – 

Any building is only as firm as the foundation upon which it is built. From this observation, we consider that all of the books of the Bible are founded upon previous revelation. The authentication of the New Testament is based on that which was proposed, promised and prophesied in the Old Testament. Likewise the epistles of the New Testament are based on the Gospel accounts of the teachings of Christ Himself, Who is in fact, the very foundation and 'founder' of the Truth

We must affirm and emphasize that canon of Scripture was never determined by the church; rather, it was discovered by the church (and Israel before her) when God revealed His Word to His saints. How was the Word of God recognized as opposed to other writings which may have made such claims as being Divinely inspired?

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The GOSPEL of MATTHEW: Ch. 16 – The MESSIAH and HIS KINGDOM MESSAGE

By James Fire

We  have crossed the midway point in the Gospel of MATTHEW, and have completed chapter 15. We now have the privilege of examining the next chapter that includes a warning from the LORD Jesus to “beware of the leaven [doctrine] of Pharisees” who seek signs from God for their own gratification, but ignore those signs which the LORD has given! 

Believing themselves to be the spiritual authorities of Israel (and in a sense, they were), they expected a warrior Messiah Who would vanquish Israel's enemies, and raise up the nation to glorious heights; of course, with themselves prominently in power.

. . . Wrong! The Messiah came first as the LAMB of GOD and the kinsman goel to take away the sins of the world, and later return as the LION of the TRIBE of JUDAH and the kinsman redeemer as well as the avenger of blood.

In this chapter we also read about the awesome pronouncement of the church and her authority based on the Rock – mentioned for the first time by the LORD. Also the requirements of discipleship are mentioned here. It's going to be a great study!

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The MILLENNIUM: REIGN of the MESSIAH - Part Five

By James Fire

ISAIAH 61:1-6
 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. 4 And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. 5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

Here we have before us one of the most well known verses and supreme declarations of prophecy regarding the Messiah. This is the very passage that the LORD Himself quoted during His earthly ministry (LUKE 4:18; The reader should note that He didn't quote the entire passage though, and for good reason! We will get into that a bit later...). 

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The CANON of SCRIPTURE: SECTION ONE, ARTICLE ONE

Article One: General Admissions, Observations, and Beginning the Journey

By James Fire

This is a very deep and involved subject; of course careful research must be done and it is my prayerful endeavor to do so. This series will be developed into two primary sections and in each section, a series of articles.

The first section is the one that I am researching, documenting, and writing even now; this will include general information, observations and inclusions or admissions of truth which is generally accepted by all Bible-believing Christians. In this section, we will begin looking into the Old Testament and New Testament writings.

Once complete, I will begin the second section and develop articles for it. This section will re-trace our steps in both Old and New Testaments and go through them with a finer toothed comb so as to excite greater details and evidences that reveals the true canon and why we can express complete confidence in it. 

The TRUTH THAT ENDURES – 

We have dealt with the subject of truth in an extensive series on TTUF before, using as one of the primary sources, John MacArthur's The TRUTH War; we entitled this series GOT TRUTH? comprised of five articles.     

We also provided some commentary on John MacArthur's book itself, The TRUTH War in a separate article Are YOU A FIDEI DEFENSOR For TRUTH?
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ON THE ISSUE OF SALVATION: IMPUTATION – It's Doctrinal Validity and Spiritual Necessity

~ By James Fire

I have recently come across, via social media, some professing Christians who believe that the doctrine of imputation is unbiblical. Having never before encountered such bold assertions, I was both alarmed and curious as to what exactly they believed.

How were they then saved? What did Christ accomplish then on the cross?
If Christ's righteousness is not attributed to us, how then can our sins be attributed to Him in His vicarious office of Substitute and sacrificial Lamb?

The answers I received to these questions were wholly unsatisfactory, having not been given Scripture sufficient for convincing me of this aberrant teaching. In doing the research I have found one Professor Vincent Taylor, who likewise believed and taught this doctrine (profile):

““Imputation...can never be anything else than an ethical fiction....righteousness cannot be transferred from the account of one person to another. Righteousness can no more be imputed to a sinner than bravery to a coward or wisdom to a fool. If through faith a man is accounted righteous, it must be because, in a reputable sense of the term, he is righteous, and not because another is righteous in his stead” (Forgiveness and Reconciliation [1948], p. 57). 

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