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Acts 2:1–4
[Bible Verses]This passage recounts how the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples gathered on the day of Pentecost with a sound like a rushing wind and with tongues as of fire, and how they began to speak in other languages. The event is commemorated as the beginning of the church. What these tongues were, and whether the same experience continues today, are major points of disagreement among denominations.
1 John 5:7–8
[Bible Verses]This passage states that there are three that bear witness: the Spirit, the water, and the blood. Some Latin manuscripts and later translations add the words "there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost." This addition, known as the Johannine Comma, has become the most famous case in biblical textual criticism.
Third Council of Constantinople
[History]The Third Council of Constantinople was a council held from 680 to 681 in Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. It declared that Christ possesses both a divine will and a human will, condemned Monothelitism, and is counted as the sixth ecumenical council.
Second Council of Constantinople
[History]The Second Council of Constantinople was a church council convened in Constantinople in 553 by the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I. It condemned the so-called "Three Chapters" and reaffirmed the Christology of the Council of Chalcedon. The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church count it as the fifth ecumenical council.
Matthew 15
[Bible]Matthew 15 recounts the dispute over handwashing and the tradition of the elders, the faith of a Canaanite woman from the region of Tyre and Sidon, healings beside the Sea of Galilee, and the feeding of the four thousand.
Luke 16
[Bible]Luke 16 centers on the Parable of the Unjust Steward and the account of the rich man and Lazarus, addressing the proper attitude toward wealth, the enduring validity of the law, divorce, and destiny after death.
Eucharistic Controversy
[Controversies]The Eucharistic controversy is the debate over how Christ is present in the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper. The four principal views are transubstantiation, consubstantiation, spiritual presence, and memorialism; during the Reformation, Protestants themselves were divided on the question.
Religious Pluralism
[Controversies]Religious pluralism refers to the debate over whether religions outside Christianity offer a way of salvation. Positions in this debate are commonly grouped into three: exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism.
Romans 5:18–19
[Bible Verses]A passage in which Paul contrasts Adam's one trespass with Christ's one act of obedience, teaching that both condemnation and justification come to many through one man. It is frequently cited in discussions of original sin, justification, and the scope of salvation.
Resurrection of the Body
[Doctrine & Theology]The resurrection of the body is the Christian doctrine that on the last day the bodies of the dead will be raised and reunited with their souls. It is one of the articles confessed in the Apostles' Creed.
Limited Atonement
[Doctrine & Theology]Limited atonement is the Reformed doctrine that Christ's substitutionary death was intended for the salvation of those whom God has chosen and is certainly effective for them. Also called particular redemption or definite atonement, it stands in contrast to universal atonement.
Easter Controversy
[History]The Easter controversy is a dispute within the church, dating back to the second century, over when Easter should be observed. The term encompasses the Quartodeciman controversy in Asia Minor, the decision of the Council of Nicaea, and the calendar differences between the Western and Eastern churches.
Rabbinic Judaism
[History]Rabbinic Judaism is the form of Judaism that was reconstituted after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in AD 70, centered on the study of the Law, prayer, and the synagogue in place of sacrifice. Most of contemporary Judaism derives from this tradition.
Luke 15:20
[Bible Verses]Luke 15:20 is the verse in the Parable of the Prodigal Son in which the father sees his returning younger son from a distance, runs to him, embraces him, and kisses him. Because the father reaches his son before the son confesses his wrongdoing, the verse is widely cited as an illustration of God's grace and forgiveness.
World Mission Society Church of God
[Heresies & Cults]The World Mission Society Church of God is a religious group that split from an organization founded by Ahn Sahng-hong in Busan in 1964. Its members believe Ahn Sahng-hong to be Christ at His Second Coming and Zahng Gil-jah to be "God the Mother." Major Korean Protestant denominations and ecumenical bodies have designated the group as heretical.
Matthew 18:15–17
[Bible Verses]Matthew 18:15–17 sets out a step-by-step procedure for when a brother sins: one should first admonish him privately, then with one or two witnesses, and, if he still refuses to listen, tell it to the church. It is the foundational text for church discipline, and its scope of application is debated when it is applied to conflicts and crimes within the church.
Hebrews 13:15-16
[Bible Verses]A passage teaching that, after Christ's once-for-all sacrifice, the sacrifices believers offer are the praise of their lips and doing good and sharing with others. It is frequently cited in discussions of praise worship, almsgiving, and offerings.
Hebrews 2:3-4
[Bible Verses]A passage in which the author of Hebrews warns readers not to neglect "so great salvation." It states that this salvation was first spoken by the Lord, confirmed by those who heard him, and attested by God through signs and gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is frequently cited in discussions of whether spiritual gifts continue and of the authorship of Hebrews.
John 3:17–18
[Bible Verses]A passage stating that God sent his Son not to condemn the world but to save it, and that whoever believes is not condemned, while whoever does not believe is condemned already. Together with John 3:16, it is frequently cited to explain the relationship between salvation and judgment.
Matthias
[People]Matthias was chosen by lot to fill the place left vacant by Judas Iscariot and was numbered with the eleven apostles. In Scripture he appears only in Acts 1.