It is considered more a history book than a blueprint for us today. With megachurches all the rage, its teachings are often ignored. Just as Atlantis has sunk to the depths, so this mythic church is gone, never to return. But the book of Acts is the word of God and its churches the pattern for us. The power of Peter and Paul can be ours, if we would just believe what they say and get out of the apostles' way. In his excellent treatise With One Accord, author Joe Conti gives the reasons why: > Pentecost is anti-Babel, and prayer beats that building project > A megachurch has nothing to do with...

Great Expectations If ever a man seemed to spring from the page, it must be the prophet Elijah. A spectacular phantom, controlling the clouds, he is master of water and fire. Like Melchizedek, he comes out of nowhere, going out in a blaze of glory. Love him or hate him, he gets our attention. Yet the church of today diminishes him, calling the man of God depressed. They fail to see what Elisha saw, that the whirlwind and chariot testify of his matchless spirit and power. In his excellent work The Chariot of Israel, author Joe Conti gives the reasons why: > Elijah's dealings with raven and...

Not of this World We know him from that Revelation that tends to set him apart. But John has penned another book that is likewise out of this world. His gospel is known for its verily, verily and a seven-fold use of I Am. The Son of Thunder wants us to know that Christ is heaven-sent. Ascent and descent belong to him - on earth, he alone is divine. He will have some competition below, as the nation given the Word of God resorts to playing God. "I said you are gods," the psalmist says, and these judges are lifted up. Their pride will cost the Savior his life, that men might be born from above....

From the Foundation of the World Everyone loves a mystery, unless they have been excluded. Bible believers are no exception, as everything about our creed is before the world's foundation. Faith, fellowship, godliness, and the good pleasure of His will - all proceed from that time before time, in the psalmist's dark sayings of old. But there is a downside to the faith that comes wrapped in a parabole. The apostles themselves would feel left in the dark, wanting the Lord to speak plainly. And those parables meant to exclude the proud would ensure Christ's death on the cross. Yet nothing is...

How Can God Be Just With Man? Not only is it the oldest in Scripture, but the one book we try to avoid. As we look into Job, it is looking back - we know it could happen to us. An upright man has lost everything because of a challenge above. "Is God really just?" is the question here, as he uses evil to his advantage, ensuring he gets the glory. But we are not the pawns we think, as God will make clear to Job. Everything formed has been for a purpose, whether mighty, wise, solitary, menacing, or absurd. In his latest work, There Was A Man, author Joe Conti gives the reasons why: 1. Effective...

Are Protestants Merely Having a Fling? Both sides say they have this goal, to recover our original unity. But with 45,000 denominations in a now-exponential rise, the Reformers' hope of escaping the Pope has not been realized. Even believers have to admit that something is terribly wrong. A house divided is not of the Lord, while Rome, recognizing its own, calls prodigals back to the fold. Van Impe and Graham would have us regard the Popes as men of faith. There are reasons for this disarray, the evangelicals' Babel. In his latest work, Make Us A Name, author Joseph B. Conti discusses why:...