Bible Concepts

Obedience is a recurring theme throughout the Bible and describes the faithful response of those who trust God and submit to His will. From Abraham's willingness to follow God's call to Jesus Christ's perfect obedience to the Father, Scripture consistently connects genuine faith with obedient action. Biblical obedience is more than outward rule-following; it grows from trust, love, and recognition of God's authority. Christians do not obey in order to earn salvation, but because they have received God's grace and desire to live according to His purposes.

Peace is one of the Bible's great promises, but biblical peace means far more than freedom from conflict. The Hebrew word shalom conveys completeness, well-being, harmony, security, and relationships restored to their proper order. Scripture presents God as the source of true peace and reveals that humanity's rebellion disrupted the shalom of His creation. Through Jesus Christ, God offers peace with Himself and begins the restoration that will ultimately culminate in a new creation where conflict, suffering, and death are no more.

The Pharisees believed in an Oral Law that God gave to Moses at Sinai along with the Torah. The Torah, or Written Law, was thought to be open to interpretation. The Pharisees believed that God also gave Moses the knowledge of what these laws meant and how they should be applied. This oral tradition was codified and written down centuries later in the Talmud.

The concept of priesthood in the Bible refers to individuals who were set apart to serve God, represent the people before God, and perform sacrifices and religious duties. A priest acted as a mediator between God and humanity, offering sacrifices, leading worship, and teaching God’s law (Leviticus 10:11; Malachi 2:7). In the biblical system, the priesthood was closely connected with worship, sacrifice, and the presence of God.

Redemption is one of the central themes of the Bible and refers to the act of being rescued, delivered, or bought back from bondage through the payment of a price. In biblical language, redemption often involves liberation from slavery, debt, or captivity, and this concept becomes a key way of describing God’s saving work throughout Scripture (Exodus 6:6; Ephesians 1:7). In theological terms, redemption refers especially to deliverance from sin and its consequences through the work of Christ.

Repentance is one of the Bible's central themes and is inseparably linked with faith and salvation. In Scripture, repentance means more than simply feeling sorry for sin. It is a sincere change of heart and mind that leads a person to turn away from sin and toward God. From the prophets of the Old Testament to the preaching of John the Baptist, Jesus, and the apostles, God's message has remained consistent: He graciously calls people to repent so they may experience His forgiveness, restoration, and new life.

Resurrection is a central concept in the Bible and refers to the raising of the dead to life by the power of God. The word itself means “to rise again,” and in biblical teaching it refers not merely to spiritual survival after death but to the restoration of life, often including the body (Daniel 12:2; John 11:25). The doctrine of resurrection is foundational to Christian belief and is closely connected with the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the future resurrection of believers.

Righteousness is a central biblical concept describing what is morally right, just, and in harmony with the character of God. The Bible presents God as perfectly righteous in all that He is and does, while humanity repeatedly falls short of His standard. Scripture also reveals, however, that God provides a way for sinners to be counted righteous through faith in Jesus Christ. Righteousness therefore describes both God's perfect character and the transformed life He desires for those who belong to Him.

In ancient times, many peoples hoisted massive stones on their ends as objects of worship. While the monoliths at Stonehenge are among the most famous of these, people from a large variety of groups and civilizations have set up stones as a form of worship.

Sacrifice is one of the oldest and most important concepts in the Bible and refers to the offering of something valuable to God as an act of worship, thanksgiving, devotion, or atonement for sin. In biblical terms, a sacrifice was something brought before God and given up as an expression of faith, obedience, and dependence upon Him (Genesis 4:4; Exodus 20:24). The biblical concept of sacrifice is deeply rooted in the relationship between God and humanity and appears throughout both the Old and New Testaments.

During the time of Christ, the Sadducees were a religiopolitical group that held a great deal of power among the Jews in Israel. The Sadducees confronted Jesus on occasion, (Matthew 16:1; Mark 12:18), and they later opposed the preaching of the apostles (Acts 4:1–2).

Salvation is one of the central themes of the Bible and refers to God’s act of rescuing humanity from sin, death, and separation from Him, and restoring people to a right relationship with Himself. The word salvation literally means deliverance or rescue, and in the biblical sense it refers especially to being saved from the consequences and power of sin (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8–9). Salvation is therefore not merely rescue from punishment, but restoration to life with God.