The Spirit of Direct obedience was a book that flared the creativity of hope within me to continue to write, there were six hundred pages of notes that were scheduled to go into that first book, so after several years, I had to find something to do with all of those notes, and this is the outcome, Spiritual Obedience was a book that told me a lot about who I was, and who I was to become, this writing is not a, this is going to change your life kind of thing, however, if properly applied, and you dedicate your life to study and prayer, then yes, this will change your life. Spiritual Obedience as said, has very little to do with who we are as a people, but it has everything to do with who God is, The reason God sent his Son to die for us, is that through the revealed Glory of who he actually is, we then can find life in Christ, and, we then can find the key to the gate, that will lead us to the path, that will take us all to the Kingdom of God.

The fourth volume in von Balthasar's essays is built around the theme of Spirit and Institution, the two central features of the Church which Balthasar approaches from different angles. The third volume is built around the theme of the Holy Spirit as the Creator Spirit. The first volume was constructed around the mid-point of the Word become man, and the second volume around the Church which becomes configured to him. The first part of the book looks at who man is, and then examines the distinctively Christian experience of God. Part two is a whole section on the Church which includes topics like celibacy and the priesthood today, how we should love the Church, and understanding Christian mysticism. The third and final part is an eschatology in which Balthasar gives a brilliant summary of heaven, hell and purgatory.

St. Birgitta of Sweden (1303-1373, canonized 1391) was one of the most charismatic and influential female visionaries of the later Middle Ages. Altogether, she received some 700 revelations, dealing with subjects ranging from meditations on the human condition, domestic affairs in Sweden, and ecclesiastical matters in Rome, to revelations in praise of the Incarnation and devotion to the Virgin. Her Revelations, collected and ordered by her confessors, circulated widely throughout Europe and long after her death. Many eminent individuals, including Cardinal Juan Torquemada, Jean Gerson, and Martin Luther, read and commented on her writings, which influenced the spiritual lives of countless individuals. Birgitta was also the founder of a new monastic order, which still exists today. She is the patron saint of Sweden, and in 2000 was declared (with Catherine of Siena and Edith Stein) co-patroness of Europe. Birgitta's Revelations present her as a commanding and dauntless visionary who develops a contemplative mysticism that is always interwoven with social engagement and a commitment to the salvation of the world. The varied styles of her revelations are dominated by frequent juxtapositions of memorable images and allegories that illustrate her fierce and fertile imagination, her sharp powers of observation and understanding, and her passionate and receptive storytelling powers. This fourth and final volume of the translation of the Revelations of St. Birgitta of Sweden, comprises The Heavenly Emperor's Book to Kings, The Rule, and Minor Works. While the complete collection of Birgitta's books--called Liber caelestis--ends with Books VII, the eighth book, also referred to as The Heavenly Emperor's Book to Kings, was added after her death. It was compiled by Alfonso of Jaén, and is prefaced by his own treatise, titled The Hermit's Letter to Kings, which examines the ways in which revelations are tested and proven to be true visions conferred by the Holy Spirit. This volume also contains the Birgittine Rule, the Matins readings intended for the nuns, four prayers, and a collection of scattered revelations that lie on the periphery of the main corpus of texts. The translation is based on the recently completed critical edition of the Latin text and promises to be the standard English translation of the Revelations for years to come.

It is an interesting fact of history that as the Reformation progressed, the Reformers adopted the Received Text in union with the Waldenses; the Jesuit-inspired counter-Reformation adopted the Latin Vulgate and the Vaticanus. What do we see today? Most of the modern versions are based upon the text of the counter-Reformation. In addition, we see increased negativity toward the Textus Receptus and the King James Version. This has not been without adverse effects upon all of Protestantism and Adventism, specifically. This book provides insights into the causes and effects that the doctrinal pluralism of the common text Bibles of the counter-Reformation have had on Adventist doctrine. Since doctrinally pluralistic Bibles cannot function as self-interpretive units, an interpretive authority from outside of Scripture is brought into play. As a result, creedalism is overtaking Biblical authority. History has demonstrated the sure results of this misplaced authority.

Volume 4 of Dutton's writings includes her early work The New Birth(1734); her unique pseudonymous work Treatise on Justification (1778); her work on grace A Discourse concerning God's Action of Adoption (1737); A Discourse on the Inheritance of the Adopted Sons of God (1748); and her theological letters on the marks of a child of God (1761) which offer advice in holiness from the end of her literary career. Anne Dutton's many writings are significant because they impacted evan-gelical revival in England (and in the colonies). Particularly significant is her voice as a Baptist writer responding to revival in England and in America. She addressed the issues of free grace, election, justification, and the new birth in Christ.

This fourth volume in Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen's ambitious five volume systematic theology develops a constructive Christian pneumatology and soteriology in dialogue with the Christian tradition, with contemporary theology in all its global and contextual diversity, and with other major living faiths -- Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Kärkkäinen constructs a wide and deep theology of the Holy Spirit, examining creation and the sciences, other cosmic powers and beings, the concepts of spirits in other religions, and the Spirit's place in society and politics. He also goes beyond traditional ways of understanding salvation -- election, forgiveness, justification, sanctification, and glorification -- and includes discussions of Spirit-baptism, healing and restoration, reconciliation, liberation, and peace-building, carefully comparing Christian perspectives with the salvific views of other religions.

This is a special combined issue (July/August 2005) of The Ministry. It contains a complete record of the messages given in Anaheim, California, during the 2005 Summer Training on the Crystallization-study of 1 and 2 Thessalonians and Song of Songs 7--8. Ten messages were given on 1 and 2 Thessalonians and two messages were given on Song of Songs 7--8. The relationship between these books is remarkable: At an intrinsic level, the crystals in Song of Songs 7--8 interface beautifully with those in 1 and 2 Thessalonians. In Song of Songs 7 we see the type of the deified lover of the Lord becoming His co-worker, working with Him for His Body. This matches what is revealed in 1 Thessalonians concerning Paul and the brothers as patterns [1:5]...Song of Songs 8 expresses in type the longing of the lover of the Lord to be raptured, hoping to be transfigured and praying for the Lord to make haste to come. This matches, in spirit, what is revealed particularly in 1 Thessalonians, which ends every chapter with the mention of the Lord's coming back (1:10; 2:19; 3:13; 4:15-17; 5:23). The crucial truth and burden embodied in these twelve messages may be summarized in two sets of statements. The first set of four statements concerns the books of 1 and 2 Thessalonians: (1) we need to see a vision of the church in God the Father with His life and nature and in the Lord Jesus Christ with all He is and has done; (2) faith as the nature and strength of the work, love as the motivation for and characteristic of labor, and hope as the source of endurance are the structure of a holy life for the church life; (3) to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls us into His kingdom and glory, is to live God and express God in our daily living by walking according to the mingled spirit; and (4) in order to live a holy life for the church life, we need to cooperate with God's operation to establish our heart blameless in holiness and to sanctify us wholly, with our spirit, soul, and body preserved complete. The second set of two statements concerns Song of Songs 7--8: (1) as we become the same as Christ in life, nature, expression, and function, we are qualified to work with Him for His Body; (2) as we trust in the Lord helplessly, depend on Him as our love and strength, and listen to His speaking, our hope is to be raptured through the redemption of our body, and our prayer is--"Come, Lord Jesus!" We include reports concerning the Lord's move in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary, and concerning the need for a property in London. The Announcements section contains dates and locations for upcoming Living Stream Ministry trainings and conferences.