The Greek verb phroneo, meaning “to think, to set the mind upon, or to have a disposition toward,” appears throughout the New Testament as one of its most defining words about the interior life of the believer. It has in view the whole orientation of the soul — what a person habitually esteems, savors, and sets his affections upon. When Paul employs phroneo in Romans 8:5 – “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the...

One would assume that one of Christ’s churches will obey Him as the Head of the church. Those churches have the authority of Heaven. Here are some of the primary verses that support the authority of individual biblical churches on earth, which emphasize the church's role in maintaining purity, teaching doctrine, and acting on behalf of Christ. Matthew 16:19 along with 18:17-18 speak of the authority of binding and loosing, which is church discipline. The former outlines the church's final...

The New Testament presents a church as possessing a vertical authority derived from Christ as its sovereign Head and a horizontal authority expressed in the self-governing, mutually accountable fellowship of its members. The former is grounded in the lordship of Christ Himself. Christ purchased each church with His blood and constituted it by His will. Ephesians 1:22–23 elaborates His Headship, Paul affirming that God “hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all...