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Fasting: A spiritual and physical discipline

...on to the Early Church Fathers that is spread across forty days, originally written as a Lenten reading plan. You can get a copy by clicking here. http://steadfastlutherans.org/2014/03/redeeming-holy-days-from-pagan-lies-ash-wednesday-and-lent-2/ http://www.catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/history-of-lent.html http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf204.xxv.iii.iii.iii.html http://www.goarch.org/chapel/calendar/ http://www.infoplease.com/spot/easter1.html http://www.thedidache.com http://www.newadvent.org/Fathers/07157.htm https://www.buzzsprout.com/3196/52849-fasting-for-divine-intervention-fasting-edition-45 http://sacred-texts.co...

How Old Was Jesus When He Died? A Fresh Look At The Historical Clues

...We often hear that Jesus was “about 33 years old” when he was crucified and only had a three-year ministry. But have you ever wondered how precise that number is, or why we assume that was his age, especially when Scripture doesn’t specify? Table of Contents The Gospel of Luke: “About Thirty” Early Church Testimony: Irenaeus and the Longer Ministry Historical Anchors: Birth, Pilate, and the Crucifixion Window The Death of Herod Cross-referencing with Pilate, Caiaphas, and Jesus When Did Tiberius Begin to Reign? 1. From his co-regency with Augustus (AD 11–12) 2. From the death of Augustus (AD 14) How Does This Affect Jesus’ Ag...

Francis Chan turns towards a more historical and ancient view of Communion

...gs of the Early Church Fathers and was forced to come to the same conclusion that there was something there to seriously consider. If the Church had always understood Jesus’ words and the interpretation of Scripture in a fairly singular and unified way for nEarly two millennia, then who was I to come along and say my understanding exceeds the wisdom of everyone before me? It was actually one of the earliest texts, from a second century bishop called Ignatius, that really tipped me over the edge from a “memorialist” view (that the bread and wine are purely symbolic, nothing more), to a sacramental view (that the bread and wine are a means of grace that God...

What is Monarchical Trinitarianism?

...Monarchical Trinitarianism, also referred to as the “Monarchy of the Father,” is a theological perspective that asserts the Father as the sole source (or monarch) within the Trinity. This view maintains a clear distinction of roles among the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit while upholding their unity in essence. It is essential to distinguish this from Monarchianism, a heretical belief condemned in the 4th century, which posited that God is a single person rather than three distinct persons. The Eternal Begottenness of the Son The term “created” used by the Early pre-Nicene Fathers does not align with the Arian view, which posits that the Son was...

Lent Day 18: Cyprian: On the Unity of the Church: 1-9

...Day Eighteen: St. Cyprian: On the Unity of the Church: 1-9 Who: Third century bishop of Carthage (in modern Tunisia), and martyr from Africa What: A letter to encourage the unity of the Church against schisms and heresy during massive Roman persecution Why: A disturbance had happened in the Church because of a priest called Novatian — a schismatic of the third century, and founder of the sect of the Novatians. Cyprian wrote to counter this and argues that there can only be one united Church, and the Novatian breakaway was a false Church and that Novatian was an antipope.When: Around 249 AD You can find today’s reading on page 92 here: lentFatherscomplete...

Who is the New Jerusalem?

...This is a sort of ‘addendum’ to the Revelation Fulfilled? article    Yes you read the title correct: WHO (not what) is the New Jerusalem?   To answer this, you must ask yourself: who is the Bride of Christ?   If you answered “the Church” (as in, the body of believers, not buildings) then you’d be correct as they are both one and the same!   Roughly 1500 miles square.   Maybe you’ve always wondered why the Church is called the “bride”? Well, let’s examine some Scriptures and see! 2 Corinthians 11:2I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a chaste virgin to Chris...