Bridge of Reason

The American 19 th Century was a religious boiling pot from which all kinds of ideas, abstractions, and movements emerged, from the early days of the Seventh Day Adventists, through the followers of William Miller (Millerites), and John Thomas (Christadelphians), to the Watchtower Society in the latter part of the century. Such groups were overwhelmingly preoccupied by the second Adventism that grew out of the 18 th century. With Christ's return insistently taught as imminent, caution was thrown to the wind as people sold off their properties, gave away money, and confessed teachings that, on reflection, they might have treated with greater caution. Date setting was commonplace, failed prophecies were legion, and teachings were not-so-subtly changed to accommodate new circumstances.   144,000 King-Priests We are familiar with the Watchtower teaching regarding the Old and New Covenants, that the Old, or Law, Covenant is between Jehovah and Israel, and the New Covenant is betwee...

What do you think of when your hear the word ‘sanctified?’ Paul’s first letter to Christians in Thessalonica is best summed up in verse one of chapter four, ‘How to live in order to please God.’ The context is very important if we are to appreciate its application today. Paul was writing to a church living in what was a hostile environment for Christians, calling them to live sanctified lives. We are beginning to experience this environment in what was traditionally a ‘Christian country.’ You might be aware of recent controversial developments in Ireland regarding gay marriage. Ireland (Eire) has voted to change the constitution to allow gay couples to marry. This has proved an enormous challenge to the Catholic Church that takes a traditional, biblical view on marriage . You might remember also, in Northern Ireland, Ashers Bakery was successfully prosecuted for refusing to bake a cake with a pro-gay message on it. They didn’t refuse custom to a gay man, but simply refused to put ...