Disciples Global Network

In  Galatians , the Apostle Paul compares the Mosaic Law to a “ pedagogue ” in its supervision of Israel “ until the seed came .” That “ Seed ” was Jesus. In Greco-Roman society, the “pedagogue” was usually a slave with custodial and disciplinary authority over an underage child until he reached maturity. The minority status of the child and the authority of the custodian over him were both temporary.

“Spiritual warfare” is an idea based on the Apostle Paul’s words to the Assembly in Ephesus - “ Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood but against the principalities and powers… against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places .” So, how do believers wage war against these unseen forces of darkness?

The man who decides to follow Jesus joins his “ Kingdom of Priests ,” and as one of his priestly representatives, the new disciple rules with him, both now and in the future. This understanding raises the question: How, exactly, does a believer participate in the sovereignty of his Lord and exercise his authority? Fortunately, Jesus and Paul have provided us with straightforward answers.

Christ Crucified is the example we are summoned to follow daily, and it is the test of the genuine Apostolic Faith and true spirituality . The death of Jesus provides the indispensable pattern for how we must live in this fallen world, and the measuring rod for judging spirituality. Whether examining a man’s wisdom, teachings, conduct, or supernatural deeds, the Cross of Christ is the bright line between truth and falsehood. No man can know God apart from “ Christ crucified .” God has revealed Himself in His Son, the Crucified Messiah.

Fulfillment  is a key theme in the  Gospel of Matthew . With the arrival of the Messiah, the time of fulfillment began. What were the implications for the Law of Moses? In his ‘ Sermon on the Mount ’, Jesus provides clear answers. He did not come to settle the interpretive disputes between competing Jewish sects over the details of the Law but to  FULFILL  the “ Law and the Prophets .”

Paul concludes his first  Letter to the Thessalonians  with a series of exhortations calling on the disciples of Jesus to pursue righteous living in the interim between their conversion and his “ arrival ” from heaven. He ends by summoning the congregation to pursue complete sanctification, an exhortation with verbal links to the preceding sections of the Letter.