No, not necessarily. Let me back up in a historical perspective. It used to be that there was a clear dichotomy among ministers in the evangelical world. And there were only two kinds. You go back 150 years. There were only two kinds of ministers. There were those who were extremely well-educated and those who were absolutely uneducated and there was nothing in between. For instance, the entry requirement into the major theological seminaries in the 1850s was 10 years of classical Greek and 12 years of classical Latin.
This is of course a trick question, though not tricky. Paul's instructions are plain that we are to pursue both unity and doctrine. Further, pursuing both at the same time will be one indication that growth is occurring. "...till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men..." (Ephesians 4:13-14).
When I read about prosperity-preaching churches, my response is: "If I were not on the inside of Christianity, I wouldn’t want in." In other words, if this is the message of Jesus, no thank you.
Pastor George Mueller was born in Germany in 1805, spent most of his life in Bristol , England , preached nine times in Minneapolis in 1880, traveled to 42 countries between the ages of 70 and 87, and died at the age of 92, the most famous Orphanage founder in the world. He built 5 orphan houses, cared for 10,024 orphans in his lifetime, pastored the same church for 66 years, never incurred debt, never asked anyone for money, didn't take a salary for 68 years, and never went hungry.
In his gospel, Matthew emphasizes the royalty and authority of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was born a King. He is different from any other King but nonetheless a King. The difference is in His surpassing royalty, regal character, kingdom, and dominion, authority, and power. Matthew wants both Jew and Gentile to understand that Jesus is King and His birth is the birth of a King. Therefore, in the first chapter he focuses on the royal aspects of the birth of Jesus.
It has become increasingly popular to accept certain parts of the Bible and to reject other parts. Such amazing events as the miracle of Creation, Jonah’s being swallowed by a sea creature, and the Flood of Noah often are brushed aside as mere myth, while more "credible" things such as the teachings of Jesus are accepted as fact. Although this line of reasoning might have some initial appeal to our "enlightened" society that rejects biblical miracles off hand, it contains a major flaw.
The light shone brightly into the eyes of the suspect who was seated between two FBI special agents in black suits. "Where were you the night of October 31, 2000?" demanded one of the agents. The suspect nervously muttered, "I already told you, I was at a Halloween party with some friends." The interrogation continued: "And what exactly were you doing at the party?" asked the same demanding voice. "I bobbed for apples," retorted the suspect in his shaky voice.
