Should I read the short books in the New Testament?

In our previous post we discussed the importance of the New Testament. Today we are going to discuss whether one should read the entire New Testament.

The first four books in the New Testament are the Gospels. These books are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Modern scholars know that Luke also wrote the fifth book in the New Testament as an extension to the Gospel. In other words the fifth book is an extension of the third one. The first five books can be seen as a unit which contains the story of Jesus and the early church.

The books: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John sometimes differ a bit. This is due to how the writers recalled the events of the life of Christ. But these four writers is most definitely describing or telling exactly one and the same story– the story of Jesus and His early church.

The next section in the Bible consists of letters which instructs the reader on the teachings of Jesus. Most of these letters was written by the Apostle Paul. We also see letters from John and Peter. Just like the book of Hebrews in the New Testament, the writer wants to tell how they believe in Christ. The accounts of these people have shaped modern day Christianity!

And lastly we find the Book of Revelation at the end of the New Testament. It stands on its own as God lets John see into the future and into Heaven. John sees the end of the word, also known as the apocalypse.

The New Testament is interesting to read. Between the life of Christ on Earth in the first four books, the explanation of the Christian faith and the book of Revelation you will most certainly find spiritual growth! I can recommend it all!

How do you feel about the New Testament?

Till next time.

Is the Old Testament relevant to Christians?

In a post a few weeks ago I discussed the different sources of theology. There I said that Scripture is a source of theology. But what is scripture for Christians? Is Scripture the entire Bible or is it just the passages that talk about Jesus? What should Christians do with the Old Testament? Is the Old Testament still relevant to Christians?

The Old Testament starts with God creating the heavens and the earth and it ends about 400 years before Christ. It contains the stories and teachings of God before Christ. These stories are mostly about Gods people- they are the Israelites.

The Israelites spoke Hebrew and they can also be called the Hebrew people. Since the Old Testament is about them the Old Testament also took the name: “Hebrew Bible”. The actual Hebrew word is: “Tanakh”.

For Christians the Old Testament gives an introduction to the story of Jesus. The main reason for this is because the Old Testament contains prophecies that a Messiah is coming. The word “Messiah” is a Hebrew word which, when translated in Greek is “Christos” or Christ. Christians believe that Jesus is the Christ- That’s why we call Him Jesus Christ; the Messiah!

Thus the Old Testament paves the road for Jesus (John 1:23). Jesus also successfully fulfills the prophecies and the law in the Old Testament (Romans 8:1-4)

Till next time!

Where can we find the will of God?

In my church I hear people saying: “God wants to do this or God wants to do that”. How do they know? 

How do they know it was God that spoke to them? How do they know that what they heard was in line with Gods will? Oh and where does the Bible come into all of this?

These are all very Good questions! We can talk all day about each of these questions. In this post I want to discuss the sources that God uses to communicate with people and the church.

Perhaps the word “Theology” can help us in this quest. The word Theology is a combination of two words. The first is “Theos”, meaning “God” and the second is “logos”, meaning “word”. So Theology can be translated with the “Word of God”. What are the sources of Theology? In other words, what sources can we use to hear the Word of God? In short I can name four:

1.       THE SCRIPTURE. Most Christians and almost all the churches use the Bible as the infallible (never-failing) Word of God. In short the Bible is Spirit breathed. It is not uncommon to say that the Bible is the “Word of God”.

2.       TRADITIONS. For most Christians it is standard to go to church every Sunday. This has been the way of Christianity for centuries and therefore a tradition. People go to church to hear the Word of God and to learn more about Him.

3.       REASON! Sometimes the Bible or traditions cannot help us because some problems did not exist in Biblical times. I mean the Bible is not going to help you with some sort of computer problem; electronics did not exist in Biblical times! Sometimes we must think about something and make the correct decisions. In this case it means we have to think!

4.       PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. Most Christians believe that God speaks to them directly. Maybe you just know what’s right or maybe you just feel it in your spirit. Perhaps a series of events can show you the correct way to follow.

God is good with communication. Share your thoughts on the way that God speaks to you!