A Biblical Examination Of The Hymns Of Christmas

Posted on December 9, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by cottonbro studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-black-suit-standing-in-front-of-kids-singing-7567334/

I love Christmas and the Christmas Carols. So it’s not my intent to be a “Scrooge” tonight. This past Sunday Jerry mentioned “We Three Kings” as being one of the most theologically incorrect songs in our hymnal. That kind of peaked my interest, so I thought tonight we’d examine a few of the Christmas songs we sing and see if they are Scripturally accurate.

Away In A Manger

Away In A Manger is a beautiful song that focuses on the birthplace of our Lord Jesus. The song is supposed to reflect the Scriptures in:

Luke 2:4-7 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

The first four stanzas are:

Away in a manger, No crib for a bed.
The little Lord Jesus, Laid down His sweet head.

The stars in the sky, Look down where He lay.
The little Lord Jesus, Asleep on the hay.

The cattle are lowing, The Baby awakes.
But little Lord Jesus, No crying He makes.

I love You, Lord Jesus, Look down from the sky.
And stay by my cradle, Till morning is nigh.

The song has been wrongly attributed to the German Reformer Martin Luther, saying that he wrote it for his child. This is not true. This false association can be traced back to a book written by James R. Murray (1841-1905) called “Dainty Songs for Little Lads and Lasses” (1887). Discipleship Ministries notes

“… the hymn first appeared with two stanzas in Little Children’s Book for Schools and Families, a Sunday school collection published in 1885 by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America. Stanza three first appeared unattributed in Gabriel’s Vineyard Songs (1892), compiled by gospel composer Charles H. Gabriel (1856-1932).”

The song is not a terribly bad song – until the third stanza. It reads:

The cattle are lowing, The Baby awakes.
But little Lord Jesus, No crying He makes.

A baby that does not cry is a baby in trouble. Babies cry for a variety of reasons. They can be hungry, have a dirty diaper, or have a need to burp. Babies need attention, and crying helps them bond with their parents. The Bible says of Jesus that:

Hebrews 2:14-18 (ESV) Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Jesus Christ – though Eternal God prior to His incarnation, when He became incarnate He became “like his brothers in every respect” – and yet, “WITHOUT SIN” (see Hebrews 4:15). Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God without spot or blemish. When He went to the Cross, Jesus went without complaint. We are told in

Isaiah 53:7 (ESV) He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

Though Jesus was born of a virgin, supernaturally induced by God the Holy Spirit (see Luke 1:35), He was just as human as we are. He had to be, in order to make payment for our sins.

In the early Church there was a cult that sprang up called
Docetism, that taught that Jesus only had a body
that seemed like a human body.

The Apostle John wrote against this in:

1 John 4:1-3 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

Jesus Christ “CAME or WAS INCARNATE IN THE FLESH” so He could pay for our sins. Throughout His life Jesus behaved like a regular human being:

Jesus wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41; Hebrews 5:7-9
Jesus was weary (John 4:5-6)
Jesus slept (Matthew 8:18-22)
Jesus was hungry (Mark 11:12; Luke 4:2)
Jesus got angry (John 2:17; Mark 3:5; John 11:38)

So though we don’t know whether there were “cattle lowing” around Jesus, we do know that, like a normal baby, Jesus cried and made sounds. He came into this world (incarnate) a perfectly sinless baby.

We Three Kings Of Orient Are

“We Three Kings” was composed by an American preacher John Henry Hopkins, Jr, and appeared in his Carols, Hymns, and Songs collection (1872). The song was referencing:

Matthew 2:1-12 (ESV) Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 6 “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” 7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

As Jerry brought out on Sunday, there were not “Three Kings” who went to see Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem. These were “wise men from the east”, called “Magi” or “Astrologers”. There is evidence that these men – number undetermined – came from Babylon to Jerusalem. The Prophet Daniel was assigned to the High Office of

Daniel 5:11 … (ESV) chief of the magicians, enchanters, Chaldeans, and astrologers ..

by King Nebuchadnezzar. A group called “Stand To Reason” notes:

“How did Babylonians know about Jewish prophecy at all, and what led them to believe that this particular star was the one that would lead them to a great, newborn king? …

This is where the prophet Daniel comes in. Not only was Daniel chief of the Magi, but his prophecies became known throughout the ancient Near East. Even the Romans were aware of his prophecies of a coming king of Israel.

The Magi of the first century would have most certainly studied the writing of Daniel and possibly other Jewish writings Daniel likely referenced, such as the book of Isaiah. This connection between Daniel and the Magi may help to explain why almost six hundred years later, the Magi in question expected a Jewish king to arrive in Judea near the end of the first century B.C. It is likely that the Magi followed the star based on their study of the prophet Daniel’s writings.”

Craig Chester a past President of the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy”wrote:

“Magi often wandered from court to court, and it was not unusual for them to cover great distances in order to attend the birth or crowning of a king, paying their respects and offering gifts. It is not surprising, therefore, that Matthew would mention them as validation of Jesus’ kingship, or that Herod would regard their arrival as a very serious matter”.

The account in Matthew does not tell us how many Magi there were, but it tells us that they brought three gifts to Jesus: Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. These Magi were considered “King Makers” because their predictions of future kings are unquestioned. This is the reason King Herod was troubled (Matthew 2:3) at the appearance of the Magi. And his disturbance led to the murder of all the children in Bethlehem two years old and younger (Matthew 2:16), a fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:15.

Hark, the Herald Angels Sing & Other Great Songs

In a recent Breakpoint article, John Stonestreet and Kasey Leander wrote on “How The Hymns of Christmas Teach Right Doctrine”. They noted that “Hark The Herald Angels Sing” (1739) written by Charles Wesley was written to specifically answer the false doctrine called Arianism.

Whereas Docetism taught that Jesus only “looked human”, Arianism taught that Jesus was merely a created being and NOT God among us.

The Bible teaches us that the Angel of the Lord told Joseph:

Matthew 1:20-23 … Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

When Jesus was born (as was prophesied) He came to “save his people from their sins”. Jesus’ birth was a fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14:

“… the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel.”

Matthew quotes this verse, adding the definition of Emmanuel: “a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us”.

According to the most recent study that Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research have made, 43% of Evangelical Christians believe “Jesus was a great teacher, but not God”. Hark The Herald Angels Sing teaches us that:

(Stanza 2) Christ, by highest heaven adored, Christ, the everlasting Lord,
Late in time behold him come, offspring of the Virgin’s womb:
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Refrain: Hark! the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King”

“Hark the Herald” celebrates the great truth that God came from Heaven to earth, so that He could take man from earth to Heaven. Because of Jesus “God and sinners (are) reconciled”.

Another song “O Holy Night” brings in the reconciliation we have to God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till he appear’d and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary soul rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!

Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices.
Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born.
Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born!

Or another favorite, “God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen” tells us that “Christ was born on Christmas Day”. We don’t know that Jesus was born on December 25th, but that is when we celebrate His incarnation. And it is Scripturally true that Jesus was born:

To save us all from Satan’s pow’r, When we were gone astray
Oh tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

When we look at the Christmas Carols, there are more that are Biblically accurate than those that are not. So this Christmas let’s sing praises to Jesus. He is worthy. He is the Only Way unto God. Let’s not lose Jesus in the midst of Santa Claus and Black Friday, Christmas Trees and lawn decorations. Praise God for Jesus. Or I will close with the second verse of “Angels From The Realms of Glory”:

Sinners, wrung with true repentance, Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
Justice now revokes the sentence, Mercy calls you; break your chains.

I love Christmas and the Christmas Carols. So it’s not my intent to be a “Scrooge” tonight. This past Sunday Jerry mentioned “We Three Kings” as being one of the most theologically incorrect songs in our hymnal. That kind of peaked my interest, so I thought tonight we’d examine a few of the Christmas songs we sing and see if they are Scripturally accurate.

Away In A Manger

Away In A Manger is a beautiful song that focuses on the birthplace of our Lord Jesus. The song is supposed to reflect the Scriptures in:

Luke 2:4-7 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

The first four stanzas are:

Away in a manger, No crib for a bed.
The little Lord Jesus, Laid down His sweet head.

The stars in the sky, Look down where He lay.
The little Lord Jesus, Asleep on the hay.

The cattle are lowing, The Baby awakes.
But little Lord Jesus, No crying He makes.

I love You, Lord Jesus, Look down from the sky.
And stay by my cradle, Till morning is nigh.

The song has been wrongly attributed to the German Reformer Martin Luther, saying that he wrote it for his child. This is not true. This false association can be traced back to a book written by James R. Murray (1841-1905) called “Dainty Songs for Little Lads and Lasses” (1887). Discipleship Ministries notes

“… the hymn first appeared with two stanzas in Little Children’s Book for Schools and Families, a Sunday school collection published in 1885 by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America. Stanza three first appeared unattributed in Gabriel’s Vineyard Songs (1892), compiled by gospel composer Charles H. Gabriel (1856-1932).”

The song is not a terribly bad song – until the third stanza. It reads:

The cattle are lowing, The Baby awakes.
But little Lord Jesus, No crying He makes.

A baby that does not cry is a baby in trouble. Babies cry for a variety of reasons. They can be hungry, have a dirty diaper, or have a need to burp. Babies need attention, and crying helps them bond with their parents. The Bible says of Jesus that:

Hebrews 2:14-18 (ESV) Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Jesus Christ – though Eternal God prior to His incarnation, when He became incarnate He became “like his brothers in every respect” – and yet, “WITHOUT SIN” (see Hebrews 4:15). Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God without spot or blemish. When He went to the Cross, Jesus went without complaint. We are told in

Isaiah 53:7 (ESV) He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

Though Jesus was born of a virgin, supernaturally induced by God the Holy Spirit (see Luke 1:35), He was just as human as we are. He had to be, in order to make payment for our sins.

In the early Church there was a cult that sprang up called
Docetism, that taught that Jesus only had a body
that seemed like a human body.

The Apostle John wrote against this in:

1 John 4:1-3 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

Jesus Christ “CAME or WAS INCARNATE IN THE FLESH” so He could pay for our sins. Throughout His life Jesus behaved like a regular human being:

Jesus wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41; Hebrews 5:7-9
Jesus was weary (John 4:5-6)
Jesus slept (Matthew 8:18-22)
Jesus was hungry (Mark 11:12; Luke 4:2)
Jesus got angry (John 2:17; Mark 3:5; John 11:38)

So though we don’t know whether there were “cattle lowing” around Jesus, we do know that, like a normal baby, Jesus cried and made sounds. He came into this world (incarnate) a perfectly sinless baby.

We Three Kings Of Orient Are

“We Three Kings” was composed by an American preacher John Henry Hopkins, Jr, and appeared in his Carols, Hymns, and Songs collection (1872). The song was referencing:

Matthew 2:1-12 (ESV) Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 6 “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” 7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

As Jerry brought out on Sunday, there were not “Three Kings” who went to see Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem. These were “wise men from the east”, called “Magi” or “Astrologers”. There is evidence that these men – number undetermined – came from Babylon to Jerusalem. The Prophet Daniel was assigned to the High Office of

Daniel 5:11 … (ESV) chief of the magicians, enchanters, Chaldeans, and astrologers ..

by King Nebuchadnezzar. A group called “Stand To Reason” notes:

“How did Babylonians know about Jewish prophecy at all, and what led them to believe that this particular star was the one that would lead them to a great, newborn king? …

This is where the prophet Daniel comes in. Not only was Daniel chief of the Magi, but his prophecies became known throughout the ancient Near East. Even the Romans were aware of his prophecies of a coming king of Israel.

The Magi of the first century would have most certainly studied the writing of Daniel and possibly other Jewish writings Daniel likely referenced, such as the book of Isaiah. This connection between Daniel and the Magi may help to explain why almost six hundred years later, the Magi in question expected a Jewish king to arrive in Judea near the end of the first century B.C. It is likely that the Magi followed the star based on their study of the prophet Daniel’s writings.”

Craig Chester a past President of the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy”wrote:

“Magi often wandered from court to court, and it was not unusual for them to cover great distances in order to attend the birth or crowning of a king, paying their respects and offering gifts. It is not surprising, therefore, that Matthew would mention them as validation of Jesus’ kingship, or that Herod would regard their arrival as a very serious matter”.

The account in Matthew does not tell us how many Magi there were, but it tells us that they brought three gifts to Jesus: Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. These Magi were considered “King Makers” because their predictions of future kings are unquestioned. This is the reason King Herod was troubled (Matthew 2:3) at the appearance of the Magi. And his disturbance led to the murder of all the children in Bethlehem two years old and younger (Matthew 2:16), a fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:15.

Hark, the Herald Angels Sing & Other Great Songs

In a recent Breakpoint article, John Stonestreet and Kasey Leander wrote on “How The Hymns of Christmas Teach Right Doctrine”. They noted that “Hark The Herald Angels Sing” (1739) written by Charles Wesley was written to specifically answer the false doctrine called Arianism.

Whereas Docetism taught that Jesus only “looked human”, Arianism taught that Jesus was merely a created being and NOT God among us.

The Bible teaches us that the Angel of the Lord told Joseph:

Matthew 1:20-23 … Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

When Jesus was born (as was prophesied) He came to “save his people from their sins”. Jesus’ birth was a fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14:

“… the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel.”

Matthew quotes this verse, adding the definition of Emmanuel: “a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us”.

According to the most recent study that Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research have made, 43% of Evangelical Christians believe “Jesus was a great teacher, but not God”. Hark The Herald Angels Sing teaches us that:

(Stanza 2) Christ, by highest heaven adored, Christ, the everlasting Lord,
Late in time behold him come, offspring of the Virgin’s womb:
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Refrain: Hark! the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King”

“Hark the Herald” celebrates the great truth that God came from Heaven to earth, so that He could take man from earth to Heaven. Because of Jesus “God and sinners (are) reconciled”.

Another song “O Holy Night” brings in the reconciliation we have to God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till he appear’d and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary soul rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!

Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices.
Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born.
Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born!

Or another favorite, “God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen” tells us that “Christ was born on Christmas Day”. We don’t know that Jesus was born on December 25th, but that is when we celebrate His incarnation. And it is Scripturally true that Jesus was born:

To save us all from Satan’s pow’r, When we were gone astray
Oh tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

When we look at the Christmas Carols, there are more that are Biblically accurate than those that are not. So this Christmas let’s sing praises to Jesus. He is worthy. He is the Only Way unto God. Let’s not lose Jesus in the midst of Santa Claus and Black Friday, Christmas Trees and lawn decorations. Praise God for Jesus. Or I will close with the second verse of “Angels From The Realms of Glory”:

Sinners, wrung with true repentance, Doomed for guilt to endless pains,
Justice now revokes the sentence, Mercy calls you; break your chains.
Come and worship, come and worship, Worship Christ, the newborn King.
Come and worship, come and worship, Worship Christ, the newborn King.

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Do You Love Jesus?

Posted on December 5, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Tara Winstead: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-person-s-palm-with-letters-8383448/

Hebrews 7:22-25 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. 23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: 24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

John 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.

Do You Love Jesus? This Is Faith’s Thermometer

Opening: I was reading an article on “The 3 Misconceptions That Many Muslims Have About Christianity” the other day. I love to read, and learn much by it. One of the largest problems in witnessing Christ to Muslims is that they believe the West is “Christian”. Muslims regard their faith – Islam – as both a religion and a state. If I had never been exposed to Christianity and was told “America is a Christian nation”, I’d have some serious problems with that. If you brand America as “Christian”, then you must believe that sexual immorality, shedding of blood, and celebration of drug and alcohol use are endorsed by Christ. That’s not true. Neither America nor the West are Christian. The bloody “Christian” Crusades endorsed by the Roman Catholic Church are not “Christian”.

Do you know what “Christian” is? It is to love Jesus. It is to obey His Commands, regardless as to what anyone thinks. That’s “Christian”. Anything else is fake.

Being “Religious” does not make you “Christian”. You can know all the songs in the Baptist hymnal by heart and be lost. Jesus’ greatest critics were the Pharisees, who were extremely religious. God turned the tables on the Pharisees when He knocked down the one called Saul of Tarsus (Acts 23:6 & Philippians 3:5) on the Damascus Road, converting him to Christianity. After Saul of Tarsus became Paul the Apostle he often spoke against those who …

“had a form of godliness, but denied the power of God”
(2 Timothy 3:5).

Illustrate: Have you ever seen a Rubik’s Cube? I owned one years ago. The Rubik’s Cube has 43 quintillion (a quintillion has 18 zeros), 252 quadrillion, 3 trillion, 274 billion, 489 million, 856 thousand likely patterns that you have to overcome to unscramble it. I figured out how to unscramble a Rubik’s Cube in about 10 minutes. I peeled off the little paper colored squares, and re-pasted them where they were supposed to be.

In short, I cheated!

It is possible to solve the Rubik’s Cube without cheating. There are people smart enough who have figured out its patterns, and have written books on solving that Cube. The Rubik’s Cube was made by a man. I want you to imagine a Rubik’s Cube created not by man, but by God. That’s what the Law of God is. It is a Rubik’s Cube made by God. It cannot be resolved by human prowess or human intellect. The Rubik’s Cube of the Law was designed specifically to show us that we – that is ALL OF US – do not measure up to God’s standard. That Pharisee Saul who God remade into the Apostle Paul wrote:

Romans 3:19-20 (ESV) whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law {that’s all of us}, so that every mouth may be stopped, {shut yo’ mouth!} and the whole world may be held accountable to God. {You’re not excluded} 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since

through the law comes knowledge of sin.

God gave the Law to a saved but hard headed Israel as they camped at the foot of Sinai. God gave the Law to make Israel understand that no one deserves God’s salvation. We must be saved by faith in God.

When God gave the Law to Moses on Israel, Israel had already been saved from Egypt. The Law was given to show God’s Israel that they must be saved by faith in Him. Many people today do what the Pharisees do. They watered down or twist the Law of God. You say, “But I’ve never done that”. Sure you have. Consider the Sixth Commandment, which simply states:

Exodus 20:13 You shall not murder.

How many murderers do we have in here? I don’t expect to see any hands raised – I hope. BUT have you ever treasured anger in your heart toward another human? Jesus told us:

Matthew 5:21-22 (ESV) You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

Murder begins in the heart. The Pharisees held hatred in the hearts for Jesus. They

Matthew 12:14 …. held a council against {Jesus}, how they might destroy him.

Have you ever held a grudge against someone else? Do you cherish anger against another? In your secret place, have you imagined evil against an enemy? We all have. This is murder. Now consider the seventh commandment:

Exodus 20:14 (ESV) You shall not commit adultery.

Again, if I were to ask a show of hands as to who has committed the sexual sin of adultery, I don’t expect I would see any hands raised. The Pharisees prided themselves on not committing adultery. But have you ever held lust for a woman or man not your own in your heart? Jesus said:

Matthew 5:28 (ESV) I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Sexual sin begins in the heart, and is culminated in the flesh. Trans-sexuality, homosexuality, all heterosexual expression outside of Biblical marriage begins in the heart before manifested in the flesh.

But here’s the key. The Law is given by a Just and Holy God. If you break but ONE of its provisions, you have broken ALL because you have offended God. The Bible says:

James 2:10-11 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. {11} For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

The Law was “a yoke that the fathers could not bear” (Acts 15:10). That was the intent of the Law. The Law is an impossible Rubik’s Cube that I cannot solve …

but Jesus can!

Galatians 3:19-22 (ESV) Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the Offspring {this is Jesus} should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary {This is Moses}. … 21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything {and everyone} under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

Illustrate: I cannot solve a Rubik’s Cube without cheating … unless I buy and read a book by one of the genius’ who have unlocked it. I cannot solve God’s Rubik’s Cube unless I buy the Book that the Son of God wrote, and lovingly believe in Him. Oh, how I love Jesus! Jesus is the Prophesied Savior, the One promised in the Garden of Eden:

Genesis 3:15 (NKJV) And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.

In Genesis, Jesus is the Seed of the Woman
In Exodus, Jesus is the Passover Lamb
In Leviticus, Jesus is our High Priest
In Numbers, Jesus is the Pillar of Cloud and Pillar of Fire leading, and the Rock feeding
In Deuteronomy, Jesus is the Prophet like unto Moses

Jesus is in every book of this Scripture. He is the Good Shepherd of the Psalms. Jesus is the Bridegroom of the Church in Song of Solomon. Jesus is the Glorious Lord of Ezekiel, and the Giver of the Holy Spirit in Joel. Oh, how I wish I could preach! Jesus is the Burden Bearer of Amos, and the Ruler from Bethlehem in Micah. Jesus is the One Mighty to Save in Zephaniah, and the Son of Righteousness in Malachi.

As we enter the Christmas Season we will see that Jesus was MADE and not CREATED. He is no mere mortal, but God become Perfect Man for us!

We Love Jesus Because HE WAS MADE For Us

I didn’t forget Hebrews. Go back to …

Hebrews 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.

Word Study: Three words are KEY to understanding this verse. The words “made”, “surety”, and “testament”. The word “made” is the Greek γίνομαι gínomai, {pronounced ghin’-om-ahee} which means to come from one state to another. The Devil used this word in the wilderness when he tempted Jesus, saying,

(Matthew 4:3) If You are the Son of God, command these stones be MADE bread

Satan wanted Jesus to command the stones to be turned from stone to bread. I cannot make stone into bread. I can ground stone. I can bake stone. I can put stone on your plate. But I can’t bring stone from a non-food item to a food item unless I am God. God can do anything! The Devil wanted Jesus to gínomai stone to bread. We see in Hebrews, Jesus was ginomai(-ed). He came from one state to another.

Jesus WAS God, but GINOMAI, was MADE Perfect Man!
His birth is unique.

God prophesied of the day that He would come to us. He said in …

Isaiah 7:14 (ESV) Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

This is unprecedented. What “virgin shall conceive and bear a Son”? Only God can turn stone to bread. Only God can take eternal, and bring it into human flesh. The Child born shall be called “Immanuel” or “God with us”. This happened in Jesus. The Angel came to Joseph the husband of the little virgin named Mary and said:

Matthew 1:20-23 (ESV) Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel”(which means, God with us)

Jesus Christ is God become flesh. Jesus is MADE.

Hebrews 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety

Word Study: Jesus was made a “surety”. Oh, I love the King James, but sometimes that Old English confuses me. This is the Greek ἔγγυος éngyos, {pronounced eng’-goo-os}, which means “the SPONSOR, the REPRESENTATIVE of the Covenant”. We have had wonderful sponsors among men.

– Consider Abraham, the Father of Faith. What a wonderful representative he is. He followed God without question. God made a covenant with Abraham. But is Abraham perfect? No! Abraham lied twice, saying his wife was his sister in order to protect himself.

– Consider Moses, by whom God gave the Law. What a wonderful representative he is as he stands with the “rod of God”, parting the Red Sea. But look! Now in the wilderness he disobeys God, striking the rock rather than doing as God says, taking credit to himself.

– Consider David, the shepherd become King. He defeated Goliath! He loves the Lord with all his heart. But then he steals another man’s wife, and murders him.

No matter where you look throughout our Bible you will find flawed men and women who loved God and were saved by faith. Look at the Priests, and the High Priest Aaron. It was Aaron who – when Moses went up into Mount Sinai to receive the Law from God – barely 40 days passed before Israel stood before him demanding another god. “Make us a god to lead us back to Egypt”, the people demanded. Did Aaron tell them “Get lost! I obey only God!” No he didn’t. He told them:

Exodus 32:2, 4 (NKJV) “Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” … 4 And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf.

Every representative or sponsor among mankind – born of Adam – has one terrible flaw. We are all subject to sin. The éngyos or sponsor of the Abrahamic Covenant was a sinner. The éngyos or sponsor of the Davidic Covenant was a sinner. The éngyos or sponsors of the Law, Moses and Aaron, were sinners. Not so Christ. Jesus Christ is the High Priest of the New Covenant. We read:

Hebrews 7:26-27 For such an High Priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; {27} Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up Himself.

The Levitical High Priest always had to atone for their sins before they could atone for others. The blood of an animal had to be shed. The blood of a specific – unmarked or unblemished animal – had to be killed, and its blood sprinkled on the altar and on the people. But this was only temporary.

No so Jesus. He was MADE – God become Man – so that He might represent us. Jesus Christ is described as:

holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,
and made higher than the heavens

God demands His people be HOLY. He has said:

1 Peter 1:16 … You shall be HOLY, for I AM HOLY

And yet, God alone is holy (Revelation 15:4). Where do we find perfect holiness? By hiding ourselves by faith in Jesus. We who are saved believe in, and surrender to Him. He is the Author and Finisher of a better Covenant, a New Covenant.

Hebrews 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.

Word Study: The third word is “testament”. Jesus came from one state to another (ginomai). Jesus was made Man from God to be our Perfect Sponsor (engyos). Why did God through all this trouble. To bring us into a better “testament” or diathēkē (Covenant). Jesus is the Author and Finisher of the New Covenant. The Old Covenant was represented by very temporary Priests.We read:

Hebrews 7:23-24And they {the Old Covenant priests} truly were MANY priests, because they were not {allowed} to continue by reason of death: 24 But THIS Man, because He continueth {for}ever, hath an unchangeable Priesthood

The Old Covenant priests offered sacrifices for their sins, then for the sins of people. But Jesus Christ – God become Man – became Man from God to lay down His life for us. Dying on the Cross of Calvary, He gave His life for your sins and mine. Jesus is not only

John 1:29 The Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world (also John 1:36)

but He is the High Priest Who offered that Lamb. Jesus said:

John 10:18 No man taketh {My life} from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have POWER to lay it down, and I have POWER to take it again. …

Jesus died for our sins – but death could not conquer Him. The Scripture says “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). He “hath an unchangeable priesthood”. Because Jesus Christ, the Son of God, cannot die as other High Priests, His intercession for His people cannot be interrupted. We are told:

Hebrews 7:25 Wherefore {Jesus} is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

We Love Jesus Because He Saves To The Uttermost

There are times I betray my God – but there is never a time when my Jesus betrays me. Jesus Christ saves to the uttermost. If you are saved, the Bible says that Jesus Christ sits at the right hand of God interceding for you. The Apostle said:

Romans 8:34 (ESV) Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Why is this important? Because Jesus has a Name above every Name. The Bible says:

1 Peter 3:22 (ESV) {Jesus} has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to Him.

Who is it that intercedes for the believer? It is GOD! Jesus is

Hebrews 1:3 (ESV) … the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Oh, how I love Jesus! Without Jesus in our lives …

Isaiah 64:6 … we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

But Jesus saves us. You may slip when following Jesus. Who has not slipped. But you will NOT rejoice in sin if you are a child of God by faith in Christ. Jesus Christ came to save us TO THE UTTERMOST. He not only saves us by COVERING our sins, but He saves us by FREEING us from our sins. Jesus told the Pharisees

John 8:34-36 (NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.

The saved are not enslaved to their sins. They are bound to God by a New Covenant. God said of the New Covenant:

Jeremiah 31:33 … I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The saved do not rejoice in what God has said is sin. We love Jesus. We love our Heavenly Father. When we sin – and we do slip – we like children run back to the arms of Jesus, back to the arms of His Holy Spirit. We live, because he lives. We shine, because He shines. Do not be deceived. God did not save us in Christ so that we can do the works of the devil. Jesus did not save us to enable us to sin guiltlessly. Jesus Christ saves us to bring us into the Family of God. Jesus Christ saves us to “bring many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10).

Do you know Him? Do you know our Jesus? If not, believe that He loves you so. Believe that He came to save you. And believe that He – God became Man – that He might bring us to God, not to Satan. May God the Holy Spirit draw us deeply into His Word, for Christ’s glory. Amen and Amen.

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A Word For America Today

Posted on December 5, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Karolina Grabowska: https://www.pexels.com/photo/crop-unrecognizable-patriot-celebrating-memorial-day-showing-american-flag-4386232/

Romans 1:7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We live in strange days in America.

Our First Amendment rights are slowly being removed – and it seems that no one cares. It happens in subtle ways. During the Covid-19 Pandemic (and its still there) some made the remark that this was the Wuhan or Chinese Virus, only to be shouted down as being politically incorrect. The reason we call it the Wuhan Virus is because Wuhan is the place that recorded the first major COVID-19 outbreak. The virus was traced to that area. When people speak of the Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever it is not racism that gives it that title. It is called the “Rocky Mountain” Spotted Fever because it was first identified in the Rocky Mountains. Likewise the sickness called MERS or the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is so named because it was first identified in the Middle East.

The 1996 “Defense of Marriage” Act was passed by the 104th U.S. Congress and signed into law by Bill Clinton. This Act banned federal recognition of same sex marriage by limiting the definition of marriage to the union of one man and one woman. Just recently the U.S. Senate passed the 2022 “Respect for Marriage” Act. One of the sponsors of the Act Susan Collins (R-Maine) said “The Respect for Marriage Act would ensure that all married couples—including same-sex and interracial couples—are entitled to the rights and responsibilities of marriage, regardless of the state in which they live.” Though it must pass in the U.S. House, all indications are the it will be signed into law soon.

At last count I heard there are from 147 to 68 genders in America. God is not the Author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33), but Satan and the world are.

A lady recently sued Kraft for 5 Million Dollars because the “time it takes to make its microwaveable cup of Velveeta macaroni and cheese is longer than what the claims on the label indicate”. The label says “ready in 3 ½ minutes”, but doesn’t include the amount of time it takes to open the packaging and add the water and stir it. No, I’m not making this up.

America has lost its mind, but the Church that Jesus loved
and died for must NOT lose it’s mind.

How do we deal with the madness going on all around us? We keep our eyes on God’s Word, and speak His truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) regardless as to what others may do. As the Apostle Paul addressed the Church in Rome – a Church surrounded by the same madness that we see in America today – he wants Christ’s Church to not lose hope.

To ALL That Be In Rome, Beloved Of God

God speaks to ALL of His Church in Rome. Though madness has gripped the land, God is STILL in control. How can we say this? Well, look at the first two verses of our text:

Romans 1:1-2 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)

Let’s consider first the Messenger

When we read the Scripture, we are reading text written by – as Peter said – by

2 Peter 1:21 … Men who spoke from God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit

So Paul must have walked with Jesus while our Lord walked this earth. Did he? Absolutely not! God has a great sense of humor. He could have chosen anyone to go and spread His Gospel to the Gentiles. But who did God choose? Jesus chose someone who described himself as:

Acts 23:6 (ESV) … a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees …

Paul was at one time Saul, “an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin” (Romans 11:1). As all Pharisees did, when Paul was Saul he hated the Gentiles. Paul was “circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law of Moses, a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). Saul hated Gentiles, but the thing he hated most was the Church of God.

Starting at the execution of the Deacon and Evangelist Stephen, Saul “breathed out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord. He went to the High Priest and asked for warrants for Damascus, so if he found any following Jesus, he could bring them bound to Jerusalem” (Acts 9:1-2). It was on the Damascus Road that this racist and hateful man found Jesus – or rather, Jesus found him. And – miracle of miracles – Jesus chose Saul to be Paul the Apostle. His calling was absolutely undeserved. Paul would later write the Churches and say:

1 Corinthians 15:9-10 (ESV) I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain.

And in another place:

Galatians 1:11-16 I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles

It was only after Saul met Jesus on the Damascus Road that he realized Christ is indeed the Gospel. As a Pharisee Saul went forward to promote Judaism, thinking that he was doing the work of God. But then God knocked him down on Damascus, and by Grace called him to preach the Gospel. Paul described his call by saying:

Galatians 1:15 he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace

When Saul traveled through the streets of Judea, capturing and killing Christians, he followed the pathway of darkness. God allowed him to do so for a little time. But then God called the messenger. He not only called, but he converted, then equipped Saul to be Paul. And though Paul often looked back on his time as a Pharisee, he nonetheless praised God daily. Paul said:

1 Corinthians 15:10 His grace toward me was not in vain

No matter how dark the days may seem, God is still in control. As America goes through the degradation of sin and the darkness, God can still change whatever God can change.

If God can change a Saul into a Paul, God can change any lost person into a son or daughter of God. Our God is able.

Saved by Grace, the Messenger Paul was 100% committed to sharing the Gospel outside of his comfort zone. Though Paul loved to go to the Temple and Synagogues, speaking the the lost Jews, he nonetheless kept his eyes on what Jesus called him to do. Paul wrote:

Romans 1:14-15 I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. 15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.

One of the biggest barriers to salvation is the hardened heart – yet Christ was able to break through the heart of this “Pharisee of Pharisees”. Paul was saved on purpose for a purpose.

Word Study: Paul said that he was a “debtor” not to the Jews (though he shared the Gospel with the Jews) but to the “Greeks” and “Barbarians”. The word “debtor” is the Greek opheiletēs (pronounced of-i-let’-ace), which means “to be indebted to, to owe another, to be under obligation to or bound by duty to”. Paul knew that God entrusted the Gospel to him not to hide it, but to share it with the Gentiles. Notice that Paul breaks the Gentiles down into two different categories:

“Greeks” and
“Barbarians”

Why does he do this? Geoffrey Stone, the Edward H. Levi Distinguished Service Professor of Law at the University of Chicago wrote in his book “Sex And The Constitution”:

“From the sixth to the fourth century B.C. … The Greeks of this era generally {deliberately avoided using} the legal enforcement of moral or religious notions of “right sexual conduct.” Classical Greek morality and law focused not on sexual sin, but on whether an individual’s conduct was harmful to others.

The Greek gods indulged freely in sexual pleasure. In Greek mythology, Zeus variously became a bull, a swan and even rain with the goal of seducing mortals. Aphrodite was the goddess of love and of sexual rapture. Sex was “ta aphrodísiæ” — “the things of Aphrodite.” It is said that during the festival of Aphrodite her priestesses had sexual intercourse with strangers as a form of worship.

A distinctive feature of classical Greek sexual life was the practice of pæderasty. Adult men, both married and single, often had sexual relationships with adolescent boys. (These relationships did not involve children, but post-pubescent adolescents, usually between the ages of 15 and 19. Sex with prepubescent boys was punished, sometimes quite harshly.)

Greek boys were not taught to see themselves as either heterosexual or homosexual, a distinction that did not exist for another 2,000 years. Instead, Greek culture acknowledged that same-sex and opposite-sex sexual desires could naturally coexist in varying degrees in the same individual, just as we today might think of the different desires individuals might have to engage in some sexual acts more than others. To the Greeks, same-sex sex was simply a sexual act. It did not define a type of person.”

I believe the reason Paul spoke of being under obligation to both “Greeks” and
“Barbarians” was to distinguish between the sexually confused Gentiles of his day, and the other Gentiles who were not so afflicted. Rather than run away from sexual sinners, the Apostle shared the Gospel with them. The sexual immorality we see in America today is – as King Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 1:9

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun”

Because it is strange or seemingly insurmountable to us, do not believe that God cannot fix it through Christ. Paul was not discouraged. He said:

I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also

Paul did not rely on his own power,
nor the power of politics,
nor the power of peer pressure,
but only on the power of God by sharing the Gospel.

Let’s next consider the Message

Romans 1:1 Paul … separated unto the gospel of God,

What is “the gospel of God”? First of all, the GOSPEL is the ONLY WAY anyone can be saved. The Gospel is God’s Grand plan of Salvation.

Romans 1:2 (Which {Gospel} He had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)

The GOSPEL is not a last minute, “Hail Mary” pass from God to help defeat the devil. The Gospel was promised by God BY HIS PROPHETS in the Holy Scriptures. Paul is speaking of the Old Testament. As he writes these words, the New Testament has not yet been written. The Church will be

Ephesians 2:20 … BUILT on the foundation of the APOSTLES (Jesus’ hand picked representatives following His incarnation to humanity) and PROPHETS (Jesus’ hand picked representatives under the Old Covenant or Old Testament), with Christ Jesus Himself as the Chief Cornerstone …

God foretold the Gospel all throughout the Old Testament. Starting in Genesis 3:15 God foretold the “Seed of the Woman” would crush Satan’s head. Our Jesus took upon Himself flesh and blood,

Hebrews 2:14 … (ESV) that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil

Jesus did not come to make peace with sin nor the devil, but He came to “destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). In Abraham God promised

Genesis 12:3 … in you {Abraham} shall all the families of the earth be blessed

The Apostle Paul tied into this promise in …

Galatians 3:8 (ESV) And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.”

The Gospel is God’s Grand Design, foretold from the beginning of creation. When Abraham paid tithes to an ancient Priest named Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18), he was paying tithes to a pre-incarnate Jesus Christ (Hebrews 6:20). When Melchizedek brought out bread and wine (Genesis 14:18) this was a foreshadowing of the Last Supper (Matthew 26:26-29), where Jesus took bread and said, “Take, eat, this is My body, broken for you. Take, drink, this is My blood of the New Covenant, poured out for the forgiveness of sins”.

It was in Isaac, the son of Abraham that God said:

Genesis 17:19 (ESV) … Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.

Jesus Christ – God become Man – is the everlasting offspring of Isaac. When Jacob slept and saw a staircase to Heaven (Genesis 28:12), Jesus was that staircase. He said, “I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (John 1:51).

Our Lord Jesus is the Shiloh (Genesis 49:10), the Eternal Life from God (John 17:3).

Our Lord Jesus is the Lamb without spot or blemish (Exodus 12:5), sacrificed for the sins of the people.

Hebrews 9:13-14 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

It is His Blood that saves once and for all. It is His precious Blood, like that of a Lamb without spot or blemish that makes us right before God (1 Peter 1:19). The power is in the Gospel of Christ!

When Moses stood before the Rock at Horeb (Exodus 17:6), and struck that Rock, Moses was showing the Gospel. We read:

1 Corinthians 10:4 (ESV) {Israel} drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.

Jesus is the Gospel. Jesus is all throughout the Old Testament. Oh, how I wish I could preach! When the sacrifice was killed outside the camp (Leviticus 16:27), this is a picture of Jesus Christ coming to Golgotha (Matthew 27:33), the Place of the Skull. Though we rightfully call it “Calvary”, the original term is that ugly word “Golgotha”. A place of horror, a place of suffering. It was outside the city of Jerusalem, a place where only lepers and trash was gathered. There Jesus died that lonely death – nailed to a tree between two thieves – for you and for me. We who believe in Jesus cry out with Job:

Job 19:25-27 … (ESV) I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. 26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!

This Message – this Gospel – has been preached by Jehovah through His Prophets and Apostles from the beginning of time. This is why Saul become Paul preaches:

Romans 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

The Gospel has the power to save anyone – even the sexual sinner. Therefore:

We Must Not Turn Away From The Message Of The Gospel

Many churches today have compromised with the darkness. They have either become abusive toward the sexual sinner, or untruthful toward the sexual sinner. Beloved, God’s standard and God’s design is not subject to debate or vote. What God has said stands true forever.

After discussing the Gospel, the Apostle turns to this:

Romans 1:18-20 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

God will judge all “ungodliness and unrighteousness of men”. Those who reject Christ “hold the truth in unrighteousness”. The word translated “hold” is the Greek katéchō, {pronounced kat-ekh’-o}, which means “to hold back, detain, or restrain”. Those who HOLD BACK the truth are supporting unrighteousness and darkness, not light. God has left Himself a witness that is outside of the Bible, and this is the Creation all about us. As we are told in verse 20, “the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen”. People know that this current creation did not just spontaneously evolve into what it is. All creation shows an order. All creation shows the hand of a Creator. And all people know this.

When people turn against God, they invoke His “wrath”. God does not wink at sin. He does not look the other way. God punishes sin. And yet, though God has left us the witness of Creation and the witness of our Consciences, some choose to turn away.

They move into idolatry.

Romans 1:21-23 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

If a person rejects the Creator God, then they will turn to empty idols to worship. We were designed by God to worship. An empty faith in a false god will make you worship yourself, the creation of your own gods.

This is where sexual deviancy comes from.

Romans 1:24-28 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Sexual sin, whether heterosexual or homosexual, sexual confusion that leads to 147 genders, these things are where the idolatrous Greeks went once upon a time. This is where America is today. And yet, God is able … if we cling to and continue to present the Gospel.

But we must not compromise.

We cannot show acts of hatred toward the sexual sinner, nor should we justify their sins. We must stand firm on sharing the Gospel to them as lost ones whom God wants to save. We must not compromise. We must remember that – though we are in Rome …

Romans 1:7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are “beloved of God, called to be saints”. Jesus can fix anyone. He fixed Saul, and turned him to Paul. We are not able, but Jesus is able. Let us stand firm on His Gospel, for His glory. In Christ name I pray. Amen and Amen.

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Come Join Our Team

Posted on December 2, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Belle Co: https://www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-photography-of-group-of-people-jumping-during-golden-time-1000445/

Psalm 103:1-5 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: 3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; 4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; 5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Do you KNOW where you are going?

Opening: Two friends were traveling through Louisiana when they saw a sign that said, (and I’m going to spell this):

N_a_t_c_h_i_t_o_c_h_e_s
5 Miles

How do you think you’d say that word? Unless you were born there, you probably wouldn’t know it’s pronounced Nack-a-tish. It’s a French word. Well, they began to argue about how the name of the town was pronounced. When they got to town, they pulled into a fast food restaurant and went inside. After ordering their meal, one asked the cashier, “Can you settle an argument for us? Very slowly, tell us where we are.” The cashier leaned over the register and very slowly said:

“Burrrgerrr Kinnnng”

America has lost its way. People don’t know where they are. Our current President said are 54 states in the union. A past President said there were 57 states. One reporter asked people on the streets of New York city simple questions like “Where is Mount Rushmore”. Several thought it was in Korea.

As a nation we’re having trouble getting people to work. Many young people today have said – I’ve heard it – “Just print more money and give it out. Let everybody have 75,000.00 dollars a year!” Millennials (those born from1981 to 1996, and who reached adulthood after 2000) and Generation Z (born from 1997 to 2012) have been taught that everyone deserves a paycheck whether they work or not. The Apostle said:

2 Thessalonians 3:10 If any would not work, neither should he eat ..

The mentality that pushes Socialism over Capitalism
has horribly afflicted our country.

Many businesses are putting out signs now – flags fluttering – proclaiming to the world the need for workers. I passed by a gas station the other day that had these huge self standing banners out front, 5 or six of them. The ones that caught my eye said:

Join our Team!
Great Benefits!
High Starting Pay!
Wonderful Retirement Plan!

I nearly pulled over myself and went in to get an application!

I began to think along these lines. Why don’t we have signs like this outside of every Church in America? We serve a great God! I think the reason is what Clay Hallmark, the President of the Tennessee Baptist Convention preached during our recent Annual Meeting. The Baptist & Reflector notes:

“In a sermon titled, “We are the mission field,” Hallmark declared, “The largest mission field in Tennessee right now is sitting in … Tennessee Baptist churches” because “Tennessee Baptist churches are filled with cultural Christians who are not committed to Jesus Christ.” … While crime, suicide, pornography and other social issues continue to rise across the state, the greater tragedy is that churches are powerless because they have “substituted the power of God for programs, processes, and personalities” Hallmark said.”

We need to return from where we have fallen. We need to get back to Jesus!

The World Desperately Needs Jesus

Illustrate: Not too long ago a shooter went into a LGBTQ bar in Colorado Springs, Colorado and killed 5 people, injuring 19 others. Christians were blamed for the attack. It was later revealed that the shooter was not Christian, but a self identified non-binary named Anderson Lee Aldrich. Major news networks were “left speechless” at the revelation because they couldn’t blame the Christian. Don’t be surprised. The early Church was blamed for burning Rome, though the evil Emperor Nero was the culprit. The darkness will always try to suppress the light. Jesus told us this. He said:

John 16:33, “in the world you will have tribulation. But take courage, I HAVE OVERCOME the world”.

We cannot find our solace in politics, social networks, or tribes. When Adam fell, he brought thorns and thistles into the world. We tried from Adam – through Noah – through the Law given at Sinai – up until the time of Christ’s coming to find peace.

We all need Jesus! Not just a little Jesus, but Jesus every day. Billy Graham said: “The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement”. He still needed Jesus. Knowing Jesus does not take away all pain – but gives us confidence even in trials. The Psalmist sang:

Psalm 103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul…

As creatures made in the image of God (James 3:9), we have bodies and souls. Those who are in the family of God have a place to turn when in suffering. Notice the Psalmist doesn’t say, “Bless the Lord, O MY BODY”. There are times when the sin riddled world Adam gave to us brings forth “thorns and thistles” (Genesis 3:18). I mentioned this earlier. Why “thorns AND thistles”. Thorns is the bad stuff you can see, but thistles are the bad things you can’t see.

Thorns are the bad terrors you see coming.
Thistles are the hidden terrors.
The cancers. The lupus. The diseases.

There are times when we say in our bodies, “O me! O my!” Nonetheless we are encouraged by God’s Spirit to say “Bless the Lord, O my soul”. He is the Lord. Whatever comes my way as His Child is His responsibility.

Psalm 103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and
all that is within me,

We do not curse God when we who are saved suffer. We run to Jesus. We know that our completion is in Him. We don’t just bless the Lord for what we consider good. We bless God for what we consider bad. It all serves a purpose for the Christian. If we believe the Scripture of

Romans 8:28, ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER for good to those who love the Lord,

Trials purify Christian faith, but putrefy the Charlatan!

Have you ever prayed, “Lord, make me more like Jesus” ? If so, know that God makes Children through the trials of life. It is through the carving of pain that we become the workmanship of God. Once you understand this, you begin to praise God for your pain and suffering. The Apostle suffered terribly for the faith once delivered, but nonetheless said:

Romans 5:3-5 (ESV) … we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

“We REJOICE in our sufferings”. Everything that comes to the believer in Christ comes for a purpose. It comes to make you more like Jesus. What else? One of the first martyrs of the faith James wrote:

James 1:2-4 (ESV) Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

James 1:12 (ESV) Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

I mentioned that grand old Saint Job this past Sunday. Consider his example in suffering. Losing all that he had he “fell on the ground and worshiped” God, saying:

Job 1:21 The LORD gives and the Lord takes away, BLESSED be the Name of the LORD”

When later his wife encouraged him to “Curse God and die”, Job rightly told her,

Job 2:10 You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive {the bad}?

The Greatest Blessing You Can Receive From God Is Christ

Psalm 103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

What is the highest good that God can give to you?

Money? The devil can give money.
Fame? The world can grant fame.
Good health? Medical science can aid us with our health.

There is something God can give you that neither the devil, nor the world, nor science and technology can give you. Do you know what that is?

Only God can offer forgiveness of sin.
Only God can make us acceptable to Him.
Only God can impute to us Holiness.
God is HOLY!

Listen Beloved, “Bless His HOLY Name”. God is HOLY. He is RIGHTEOUS. His ways are PURE. His JUDGMENTS RIGHT.

When Isaiah was graciously shown into the gates of glory, he cried out in shock: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5). When we are compared to the holiness of God of God we fall so far short that we should be horrified. Consider all His commandments. Consider what Jesus said:

Matthew 22:37-38 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment”

Do we love God above all else? Does God hold first place in our hearts? I think we can all say that we fall short of this standard. But until we love God and put Him first, we will not love our neighbor who is created in the image of God. Jesus said:

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39)

God calls us to His side. Until we see Jesus as the greatest gift, and others through the eyes of Christ, America will flounder.

God calls us to repent and believe on the name of Jesus. When we come to God through Christ, bending our knee to Him, He forgives us our sins and shortcomings. The Psalmist said:

Psalm 103:2-3 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: 3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities …

God is holy. But we are fallen creatures. We must have Jesus!

We are imperfect, prone to sin. We are, as the Psalmist said in another place, “wicked from the womb” (Psalm 58:3). We think we are good, but the Law of God convicts us of sin. What did our Lord Jesus teach? He plainly said:

“…there is none good, but ONE, that is, God” (Mark 10:18)

Illustrate: In our humanity we believe that we are fine. It’s like the young student who burst into his college professor’s office. He said, “Professor, I don’t believe I deserve this ‘F’ that you gave me!” The professor said, “I agree. You don’t deserve the ‘F’. Unfortunately, an ‘F” is the lowest grade I can give you.”

The God of the Scripture is Holy, Righteous, and Just. The Bible says that

Habakkuk 1:13 God is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and can not look on iniquity.

God is Holy – and we are not. God would be entirely justified in destroying this world and all that is in it. And yet, God does not.

Psalm 103:8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

God cannot call sin “good”. God must judge sin.
He must punish sin. But God delays. He offers us all an alternative.

Jesus is the alternative. Jesus said:

John 14:6 I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by Me

When Jesus said these words, His disciples had no concept as to how horrible and yet wonderful this statement would be. God cannot just look the other way on sin. He cannot. Throughout the Old Testament He taught His Israel:

Hebrews 9:22 … without shedding of blood, there is NO FORGIVENESS

The Jew brought the sacrifice to the Temple over and over again. No animal could pay for our sins. But God sent His Beloved Son to this earth to give Himself for our brokenness. Blood had to be shed. Jesus was born of a virgin, born into humanity perfect and holy. He was born to be the “Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Do you see Him? Beaten by soldiers, abandoned by friends. See Him carrying His Cross down that dusty road. See Him dragging that tree, impressed into His blood soaked shoulders. Up the hill called Calvary. There He is, stripped naked, shown in shame to the world. Nailed to that terrible Tree, He is raised up as a bloody flag.

Mocked.
Shunned.
Bleeding.
Dying.
Struggling.

Was it an accident? Was it a mistake? No. It was the plan of God. Pastor A.W. Pink wrote:

“The Lord Jesus died as none other ever did. His life was not taken from Him; He laid it down of Himself. This was His claim: “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” (John 10:17-18).”

It is only Jesus Who gives us peace with God. God’s anger at sin cannot be appeased by anything we do. His anger at sin is appeased through His own death on the Cross.

Psalm 103:9-12 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. 10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

To those who come to Christ, repenting of their sins, He covers their sins with His perfect work of Calvary. A.W. Pink went on to say:

“No one else ever did this or died in this way. His birth was unique. His life was unique. His death also was unique. In “laying down” His life, His death was differentiated from all other deaths. He died by an act of His own volition! Who but a divine person could have done this? In a mere man it would have been suicide: but in Him it was a proof of His perfection and uniqueness. He died like the Prince of Life!”

Truly Saved People FEAR The Lord

Psalm 103:13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

Salvation is a free gift from God. But once the Free Gift
is received, your life belongs to God.

A Christian “fears God”. Salvation is indeed a free gift from God. But you may not know this, but the words “free gift” are only found in THREE VERSES IN ALL OF THE SCRIPTURE. This is in Romans 5:15-18. In that context the Apostle Paul emphasizes that when Adam sinned he brought spiritual death into the world – and that all are equally dead and divorced from God. Our works cannot make us right before God, because “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). Beloved, none of is have the ability to save ourselves (Ephesians 2:1). We are all – outside of Christ – dead in trespasses and sins.

Salvation is of necessity a “free gift”.
But do not think because it is a “free gift” that it is a “cheap gift”.

Once saved, you become a member of the Family of God. Once saved, you become a son of God. Once saved, you become the workmanship of God (Ephesians 2:10). Once saved, you are accountable to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Psalm 103:15-19 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.16 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children;18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.19 The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

Once saved, you are members of the Family of God. As such, you are expected to DO what God tells you to do. You are to obey His commands, rain or shine, mountaintop or valley, good days or bad days.

Are you His? Do you know Christ as your Lord and Savior? If so, bless the Lord, O my soul! If not, today give yourselves to Jesus! There is only one place that you will discover peace with yourself, and peace with God. That is in the arms of Christ. Run to Him. Give your lives to Him not just once, but daily and forever. For in Christ is power and glory.

May God the Holy Spirit draw you to His side. Amen and Amen.

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Rightly Dividing God’s Word Part 3

Posted on November 29, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Mat Brown: https://www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-of-wind-vane-552600/

Turn with me in your Bibles to:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved {δόκιμος dokimos} unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing {ὀρθοτομέω orthotomeō} the word of truth.

The Apostle tells us that we are to prove the genuineness of our salvation through study of God’s Word. But we are not to just take scriptures singularly or out of context. We are to “rightly divide” the Scripture, a word that means “to handle aright, to teach the truth directly and correctly”. When the Scripture is not “rightly divided”, when Bible verses are read out of Scriptural or historic context, problems occur. For instance, some people quote:

2 Peter 3:8 beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

and use this to support Evolutionary Theory. They say, “This proves the earth is millions of years old just as Evolutionary Scientists teach”. Hogwash! When we study the Bible, we will see that God created all things within a six day, 24 hour day. If you disbelieve this, you disbelieve the Bible.

“Rightly dividing” the Scripture reads the Bible verse in context. What is around the text of 2 Peter 3:8? Peter is addressing those unbelievers who say:

2 Peter 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: 6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: 7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

These unbelievers, “scoffers”, say “We’ve heard that God is coming again. If He is, then why does He linger?” Peter tells us that God does all things according to His timetable, not according to ours. God is eternal. What God promised – like the Noahic Flood – God will accomplish in His time.

Context Teaches Us What Applies To Our Lives

Illustrate: It seems as if you can hardly turn on the television without seeing someone push one of the following:

Transgenderism or Gender Dysphoria
Same Sex Marriage (LGBTQ2S+)
Heterosexuality outside of traditional marriage
Polygamy or Polyamorous Relationships

I am told that there are 57 different genders that a person could be – though that number is debated (for anything not of God can be confusing – 1 Corinthians 14:33). Most of the confusion could be cleared up if people would believe God and read His Bible! Turn with me to Genesis chapter 1. The first five books of the Bible are written by Moses as he was inspired by God (Jesus spoke of this in Mark 1:44; 7:10; 10:3; 12:19; Luke 16:29; Et al.). The Law of God to Israel was written by Moses – again, as God directed. In three parts, the Mosaic Law had moral codes that were to all people, social codes that were to Israel alone, and ceremonial codes that were temporary shadows or teachings of the coming Christ.

Though not all of the Mosaic Law applies to anyone but Israel, Moses also wrote the Creation Account which precedes the creation of Israel, and applies to ALL PEOPLE.

How do we KNOW that God created all things in six – 24 hour days? We know from the Creation Account of Genesis. Read with me:

Genesis 1:5 And the evening and the morning were the first day.
Genesis 1:8 And the evening and the morning were the second day.
Genesis 1:13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.
Genesis 1:19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
Genesis 1:23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

The phrases “ evening and evening” are normal language for a 24 hour day. God created everything but the land creatures on the first five days. On the sixth day God spoke into creation the land creature out of the soil of the earth:

Genesis 1:24 Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

All creatures were spoken into being by ‘ĕlōhîm – except mankind. Mankind was MADE or MANUFACTURED by God.

Genesis 1:26-27 And God {‘ĕlōhîm} said, Let us make {ʻâsâh, aw-saw’, to manufacture} man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them

Word Study: Chapter one tells us that humanity was deliberately made or manufactured by ‘ĕlōhîm – this being the Triune Name of God. God is an OUR and a US in our creation. God is Triune or a Trinity, and all of God was involved in our creation. God says to Himself:

Let us make {ʻâsâh, aw-saw’, to manufacture} man
in our image, after our likeness

God is One God in three Persons – Father, Son, and Spirit – a Compound Unity. “Man” is in God’s image, and is a compound unity like God is. Genesis Chapter 2 is a periscope that gives us more information on the creation of humanity:

Genesis 2:7 And the Lord {Yᵊhōvâ} God {‘ĕlōhîm} formed man {‘āḏām} of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

“Yᵊhōvâ ‘ĕlōhîm” created man by breathing into Adam life. He did not do this with animals. After the breath of God entered Adam, he became “a living soul”. Only man has a living soul. God created man distinctly different than the other creatures because man was to rule creation:

Genesis 1:28-30 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. 29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

Though creatures have life, they do not have the image of God. Humanity was told to “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion”. Mankind, not animal-kind, was given orders to follow.

Genesis 2:15-19 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 18 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. 19 And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

Adam was created BEFORE Eve. God gave Adam very specific instructions – commands – and told him what would occur in he, Adam, disobeyed. It was only after Adam was given these instructions that we read that woman was created.

Genesis 2:21-24 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22 And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Why wasn’t Eve formed of the dust of the ground as was Adam? Because Man and Woman are in “The Image of God”. Within the Godhead, the Father leads the Trinity, whereas the Son and the Spirit follow.

Father, Son, and Spirit are co equal in worth and in Godhood
– but the Father leads the Compound Unity called the Trinity.

Woman is equal in value to man, and BOTH woman and man were commissioned to “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion”.

Just as the Father leads the Trinity, Man leads in the Marriage.

The Pattern of Creation Precedes The Mosaic Law

Though we know that the Mosaic Law largely applies to Israel alone, the Design of God in creation precedes the creation of the nation of Israel. What God designed in the Garden of Eden is a pattern that applies to ALL people today. Rightly dividing the Word of Truth helps us to understand this. When someone asks the question:

“Why don’tyou believe inordaining women Pastors?”

my answer is simply, “Because of God’s design in creation”. Man and woman are of equal value in the eyes of God. Yet in a Compound Unity, one must lead. God created man to lead in the marital union. Some have suggested that this policy only applied while in the Garden of Eden. Yet the Apostle Paul applied the creation account to the Church itself.

1 Timothy 2:11-15 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12 But I {do not allow} a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 15 Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.

In our modern age you might be tempted to call Paul misogynistic (a woman hater). You would be wrong. In Romans we read:

R omans 16:1-5 I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: 2 That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you: for she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also. 3 Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus: 4 Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. 5 Likewise greet the church that is in their house. …

Paul was not a woman hater, but commended women who worked with him in ministry. Yet Paul is careful to affirm the Divine Design of Genesis 1-2 of the marital union. Within the marital relationship, the man is to instruct and guide his wife in the Word and Will of God. The statements that we see above relate to Adam and Eve, or the bonds of marriage.

God demands that man be the leader in the marriage.

The Divine Design of the Garden translates to the leadership of the Church itself. Paul wrote:

1 Timothy 3:1-7 This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop {ἐπισκοπή episkopē, the office of the Overseer}, he desireth a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; 3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; 4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; 5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) 6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

The “episkopē” or the Office of the Overseer or Pastor is limited to men who are mature in the faith, and the husband of but one wife. Furthermore, the “episkopē” or Overseer must “rule well his own house”or his family. The question is asked:

For if a man know not how to rule his own house,
how shall he take care of the church of God?

I have known young men who wanted to move into the office of Pastor who were disqualified because they did not lead their families. A man who will not lovingly lead in marriage is not needed in the Pastorate. It is the call of men to lead. Paul told the Pastors at Ephesus:

Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

Deacons likewise are expected to lovingly lead and serve their families:

1 Timothy 3:8-13 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; 9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. 10 And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. 11 Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. 12 Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. 13 For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

Deacons are to be the husbands of one wife, and leaders in their family. This is based on the design of God in creation. Again, both man and woman is of equal worth. However, in the marital relationship, the man is to lovingly lead and the wife to lovingly follow his leadership.

The Effect Of Poor Leadership In Marriage
Led To The Fall Of Humanity

The Covenant that God made with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is called “The Edenic Covenant”. As long as man led his family to love God, then the family would enjoy the blessings of Paradise. Both man and woman are called to together oversee God’s creation, and man was to lead in this oversight. What caused the fall of man from Paradise? Man failed to protect creation and to lead and protect his family. The Serpent (Satan, that Old Serpent – see Revelation 12:9; 20:2) came into the Garden. He came to Eve, not Adam and asked:

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

The Devil came into the marriage, and tested Adam and Eve. Did Adam lead in the marriage when challenged by Satan? No. We read:

Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

Adam was with Eve while Satan was tempting her. The Bible says that the husband is to

E phesians 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Husbands must lead in the family. The reason that children grow up to be adults who are confused sexually is because they grew up in a household that did not follow Divine Design. The way to blessing is to do as God directs, to be as God has made you. Do not fall for the trap that Satan has set before America.

May God the Holy Spirit guide you to the truths of God’s Word. Amen and Amen!

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Let Us Be Light

Posted on November 27, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Jonathan Petersson: https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-and-green-grass-field-during-sunset-1237119/

Isaiah 49:6b … I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

This was the focus of the 2022 Annual Meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention. We stopped frequently throughout the Convention to pray that God’s Holy Spirit would move on us, on our churches, and on our nation. The theme of our convention was:

Across the Streets
Across the States
Across the Seas

The Convention Scripture is the one we started our message with today, a portion of Isaiah 49:6. So I thought I’d preach on that tonight, and on the faithfulness of our God.

We Must Not Be Discouraged, For God Is Faithful

Isaiah lived in a particularly bad time in Israel’s history, some 700 years before Christ would be born of the Virgin Mary. Israel has divided into Northern and Southern Israel. The Ten Northern Tribes of Israel has established their own worship system apart from the Temple of God in Jerusalem. As Israel drifted away from the Word of God, she began to worship false gods and goddesses, contrary to the command of God their Savior.

Isaiah was raised up of God to do His will, to preach repentance to a people that would not repent. Yet God wanted Israel to know that He was not done with His people. But before He could assure Israel, God had to assure Isaiah. Isaiah’s ministry was very discouraging. The words we see above are not addressed to Israel, but to Isaiah. Though the TBC {Tennessee Baptist Convention} only quoted part of the text, let’s read the WHOLE text:

Isaiah 49:6 And {God} said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

Word Study: Isaiah had begun to wonder if there was any hope for Israel, any hope for his ministry. But God told Isaiah “It is a light thing” that God raised up Isaiah. This is the Hebrew qâlal, {kaw-lal’}, which means “something very small and insignificant, a trifle, a feather’s touch”. The Lord told Isaiah, “What I did when calling you was so simple. If your calling was so simple, then I certainly can use you to reach the remnant of Israel”. What did God do in calling Isaiah? Isaiah said:

Isaiah 49:1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

God needed Isaiah to be His Prophet to Israel, and not just to Israel, but to the Gentiles. It was God’s plan to reach the Gentiles through Israel. This is what God promised Abraham, the Father of faith. He told him:

Genesis 12:2-3 … I will make of thee {Abraham} a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

God would, from Abraham, make “a great nation” or Israel. This was God’s promise. “God is not a man, that He should lie”(Numbers 23:19). “Not ONE of ALL the Lord’s good PROMISES to Israel failed; every one WAS FULFILLED” (Joshua 21:45). “The Lord has done what he planned; he has fulfilled his word, which he decreed long ago” (Lamentations 2:17). God’s Word will always come to pass regardless as to the conditions of mankind. Isaiah was becoming depressed, discouraged. But God tells Isaiah, and tells us:

Galatians 6:9 … let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

It was not Isaiah’s mama and daddy that made him a prophet to Israel. It was God. God called Isaiah to be a prophet to Israel before the sperm met the egg. He called Isaiah to be a prophet to Israel before his mama and daddy’s parents were even born. Isaiah is in the mind of God from eternity, and God’s will will be done.

Isaiah 49:2 And {God} hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand hath He hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in His quiver hath He hid me;

When God called Moses to go to Pharaoh with the message, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me in the wilderness”, Moses told God:

Exodus 4:10 O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.

God told Moses,

Exodus 4:11-12 … Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.

It is God Who raises up the Prophet and the People. It is God Who will give Isaiah the Word to speak. God did not want Isaiah to fear man, but to trust Him. “In the shadow of His hand hath He hid me”.

Isaiah is to be AVAILABLE to God, resting in God’s hand.

Isaiah is but an ARROW, something to be pulled from God’s quiver, and notched on God’s bow. Isaiah could not control the direction he was to be shot, nor the target that he would hit. Isaiah’s responsibility was to allow God to speak, allow God to use him, allow God to place him. Isaiah struggled with his worth. We see the struggle in:

Isaiah 49:3-4 And {God} said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. 4 Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for naught, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.

Every servant of God struggles with self worth. The Apostle Paul, blessed man of God, wrote:

Romans 7:22-25 I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Struggle is part of the Christian way of life. God needed Isaiah to trust Him, and to do as He asked, to speak the Word that was given him. God told Isaiah that his calling was not in vain. Isaiah said:

Isaiah 49:5 And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.

Isaiah said that he would trust not what his eyes saw, but what His God said. What does the Scripture say that FAITH is?

Hebrews 11:1-2 Now FAITH is the substance of things HOPED for, the evidence of things NOT SEEN. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good report.

FAITH “must believe that GOD is, and that GOD is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6). Faith follows God, trusting His will. We will not always see the harvest of what our faith planted.

Abraham never saw Israel, though he was promised Israel.
Moses never saw Israel take the Promised Land, though God promised they would.
Daniel saw the mouths of lions stopped, but never saw the Promised Messiah.
Isaiah will not see the restoration of Israel, but will be put in a hollow tree,
and sawn asunder under the orders of evil King Manasseh.


Isaiah’s name in Hebrew, yᵊšaʿyâ (pronounced yesh-ah-yaw’) means “Jehovah has Saved”. His promises are sure!

I had a dear pastor friend who years ago preached revival at a Church I shepherded. One thing he said stuck in my mind. He said, “When you do not understand what the hand of God allows, trust in the heart of God”. God loves His people. God loved His Israel in the Old Testament under the Old Covenant, and loves His Church today under the New Covenant. God tells Isaiah:

Isaiah 49:8-10 Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; 9 That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places. 10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.

God had a long range plan in place. God was going to keep Israel from total destruction so that the Messiah could come to the world. The devil would do – and will do – all that he can to stop the plan of salvation. But God’s will will be done. The Apostle Paul would quote a portion of this passage in Isaiah to the Church at Corinth:

2 Corinthians 6:2 (For {God} saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succored thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)

God preserves His people so that we can share the glorious Gospel of Salvation through Christ Jesus. We are not preserved for our sake. We are preserved for the sake of the Gospel. God wanted Isaiah to know that – though it looked bleak – the Messiah was going to come. God was going to fulfill His plan of salvation.

God Will Not Abandon His People:
We Are Graven On His Hands

God will bring all of His Children home. His Children are not those who are just Jewish by blood, but His Children are those who look for and believe in the Messiah. Jesus told the Pharisees:

John 8:42-44 If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. … Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do…

Those who belong to God’s True Israel love Jesus. They, like Abraham before them, saw Jesus as Messiah and rejoiced
(John 8:56)

True Israel believes on and follows God. The true Church believes on and follows the Lord. God tells us that “they are not all Israel, which are of Israel” (Romans 9:6). Being born a Jew will not save you. Being born again by faith in God WILL save you! God will call His Israel back to the land. He will bring Messiah through His Israel. He tells Isaiah:

Isaiah 49:12-15 Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim. 13 Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. 14 But Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. 15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

In our day many women murder their children through abortion, which is a sad truth in our “me too” America. I look for America to codify abortion into law, a truly abominable thing! Yet God will never forget His people. Though His people wandered away from Him, He loves them still. God will regather Israel. God will triumph in His Church!

God prophesies of the Messiah.

Isaiah 49:16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

Word Study: God told Isaiah, “I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands”. The word “” is the Hebrew châqaq, (pronounced khaw-kak’), which means “to cut in, to scribe, to cause a scar, to inscribe”. Verse 16 begins with “Behold”, a word of astonishment.

All of Heaven and Earth would not be astonished to see the name of God engraved on the palms of His hands, for His Name is Holy (Psalm 103:1). God is righteous, and God is right.

We would not be astonished to see the names of Michael the Arch Angel, or Gabriel the Arch Trumpeter of Heaven written on the palms of God’s hands. These angels, unlike Lucifer, have been faithful and true.

Yet the Lord has not written His own Name in His palms, nor the holy angels, but behold, He has written the names of those who have believed in Him in that wondrous place. Can you imagine that? When we compare ourselves with God we must say along with Bildad:

Job 25:4-6 How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman? {5} Behold even to the moon, and it shineth not; yea, the stars are not pure in his sight. {6} How much less man, that is a worm? and the son of man, which is a worm?

We are nothing, yet our little faith causes Infinite God to do the unimaginable. “Behold, I have graven thee”. Note that we did not do this great thing, but God – in His infinite mercy – did this. It was not our goodness, our rituals, our prayers, or our tears that put us on God’s hands. It is merely that we did as He said. We REPENTED, and gave our broken lives to Him. We BELIEVED what God told us about Jesus.

Dear Christian, we live in some of the darkest days of America. And yet, do not give up. Trust in Him. Believe in Him! God loves to see the soul saved. Doesn’t the Scripture say:

Luke 15:7, 10 Joy shall be in Heaven over one sinner that repententh. There is joy in Heaven in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repententh.

In the history of eternity there has never been a time when God has forgiven an unpunished violation of His Law. Never! Never! Look in the palms of His hands and what do you see? Nail scars! Nail scars!

Galatians 3:13-14 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: {14} That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

These terrible wounds, these graven marks cry out to you and to all the angels and saints of Heaven “It is finished”. You are graven in the palms of His hands. The holes there remind you that He paid your debt. He paid all of your debt. All that is you is in the palms of His hands. Your person, your works, your temptations, your weaknesses, your wants, your everything is graven in His hands. There are those who believe that a Christian may be saved one day, lost the next – what utter foolishness! It was God Who engraved you on the palms of His hands. It was Infinite and All Knowing God Who engraved you – knowing all about you – on the palms of His hands. It was infinite and never changing God Who engraved mortal you on His immortal hands. The Scripture tells us:

Hebrews 1:10-12 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: {11} They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; {12} And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

Illustrate: The works of God’s hands shall perish when He Himself remains. And you, dear believer, are graven in the palms of His hands. Make a fist with me. What is protected? It is the palm of your hands. We are graven on God’s palms. One day Jesus shall return to rule and reign on this earth. He will smite the enemy with His fists, and we shall be with Him. Yet as He smites, we are protected. God’s Children by faith are always protected.

The three Hebrew Children were protected, though cast in a fiery furnace.
The Shepherd David was protected, though he charged a giant with a rock and a sling.
Gideon threshed wheat in hiding, yet God used him and 300 men to defeat the enemy.

When the Church came together and preached the Gospel on the Day of Pentecost, it was not the strength of the Apostles nor the power of the 120 in the upper room that led many to salvation. It was that God’s people went into that upper room and prayed until the power of God came upon them. I’ll close with this text:

Acts 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

Let us not be discouraged, but trust in God and His power. Amen and Amen!

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Joy Not In Things, But In God

Posted on November 18, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Rakicevic Nenad: https://www.pexels.com/photo/creative-photo-of-person-holding-glass-mason-jar-under-a-starry-sky-1274260/

People today find their joy in all the wrong places. In Psalm 100, one of my favorite, we see the Scripture telling us over and over to rejoice, to praise, to be happy, to be glad. The entire Psalm, meant to be sung in the Temple of God by a Cantor or Worship Leader, is one long praise. The song begins by telling us to give a cry of victory over the trials of life, then commands us to rejoice as we serve our God. Yes, the entire Psalm is about being happy, rejoicing, being satisfied beyond belief. Read with me:

Psalm 100 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. 2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. 3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Only The Saved Know Where Joy Comes From

C.H. Spurgeon wrote in his sermon “The Claims of God”:

BRETHREN, it is a trick of Satan to distract us from the most important and vital matters by the suggestion of trivial considerations. {That old Devil} will fill our eyes with dust to prevent our looking to the bronze serpent for healing; from the preaching of Jesus he endeavored to distract human attention by debates upon the tithing of mint, and anise, and cumin; the making broad of the borders of one’s garments; the wearing of phylacteries … {Satan} followed this method at Jacob’s well. When our Lord spoke to the {Samaritan} woman about living water, and the salvation of her soul, the evil spirit prompted her to {say,}“Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and You say that in Jerusalem men ought to worship.” With this same art Satan still works!

The devil tried to do the same thing with our Lord Jesus Christ in the wilderness. The devil offered Jesus food, prestige, and power as avenues to joy. Jesus’ simple reply was, “It is written”.

Oh that we would learn from Jesus. Satan is destroying our nation through trivial and godless things, distractions from the most important truths. I am told that one political party made great gains in this last election because they capitalized on the anger generated by the Supreme Court overturning Roe vs Wade. Thank God it was overturned! People are upset because the Supreme Court has sent the question of legalized abortion back to the states, where it should have always been. One party has said that they will codify abortion into U.S. Law. Even if they do, people will not find joy in this. There is no joy in evil and selfishness. There is no genuine joy to be found in things.

Illustrate: I guarantee if you’re driving a Cadillac and I’m driving a beaten up Pontiac, if your Cadillac breaks down on the highway my working Pontiac will look better to you when I pass you stranded on the side of the road. Amen? A thing may bring joy, but if a thing – what the Bible calls an idol brings joy, that joy will only be temporary.

Joy is not in sin,
Joy is not in things.
Joy is not in technology.

Someone once jokingly said “money may not buy happiness, but it makes a good down payment on it”. No, my friend, money doesn’t even make a down payment on happiness. Money is the thing that drives the drug cartels, and money has caused more misery and death than you could imagine. Where is suicide most often found? Among the poor and struggling? No, but among the rich, the well to do. When struggling to survive you have purpose, and no person with a fixed purpose ever commits suicide. Purpose is life.

Psalm 100 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

The place where joy is found is in Yᵊhōvâ, our God. The Psalmist calls on “all ye lands” to sing praises to our Lord. In fact, this is a common command in the scripture. We read:

Psalm 98:4 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!

Psalm 66:1 Shout for joy to God, all the earth;

Psalm 117:1-2 Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord!

Psalm 67:4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Selah

Psalm 66:8 All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name.” Selah

The whole earth should praise God, and should look to Him for joy. Why? Because “God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son” (John 3:16). Jesus is “the Lamb of God that taketh away the SIN OF THE WORLD” (John 1:29). Jesus died for the sins of every person, male or female, and for every color and culture. There is no prejudice or “respect of persons” with Jesus. If you are broken, He died for you. If you are weak, He rose from the dead to lift you up.

Though the world does not today “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord”, there will be a day when this is true. God has promised to bring forth “new Heavens and a new earth” (Isaiah 65:17; 66:12). As Christians, we believe the promise of God. As the Chief Apostle said:

2 Peter 3:13 …. we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

Until Jesus comes, righteousness will not cover our earth. We wait for the fulfillment of John’s vision,

Revelation 21:2 the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

When Jesus rules and reigns righteousness will
not be an intruder, but a welcome guest.

We who are saved will be face to face with Jesus. I am looking forward to that day when:

Revelation 21:4 God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Christian, Serve The Lord Where You Are WITH GLADNESS

Psalm 100:2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His presence with singing.

Today as believers under the New Covenant we should “Serve the Lord with gladness”. Notice that the Psalmist puts no conditions on serving God and gladness. He does not say,

“Serve the Lord with gladness if you’re rich”, or
“Serve the Lord with gladness if you’re in good health”, or
“Serve the Lord with gladness if you’re famous, or
“Serve the Lord with gladness if you’ve got a great job”

We want to put limitations on our service to God. But King David said:

Psalm 84:9-12 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed. 10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. 11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. 12 O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

King David was willing to serve God as a lowly guard at the door of God’s house. John Newton, a man who was an English Slave Trader, but on conversion was led by God into the ministry of Christ, once wrote:

“If two angels were to receive at the same moment a commission from God, one to go down and rule earth’s grandest empire, the other to go and sweep the streets of its meanest village, it would be a matter of entire indifference to each which service fell to his lot, the post of ruler or the post of scavenger; for the joy of the angels lies only in obedience to God’s will, and with equal joy they would lift a Lazarus in his rags to Abraham’s bosom, or be a chariot of fire to carry an Elijah home.”

John Newton would later write the words of that wonderful hymn, Amazing Grace:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a WRETCH like me;
I once was lost, but now am found. Was blind, but now I see.

The Christian understands that we are to “serve the Lord with gladness”, no matter where we find Him.

God tells us that His Children are to be
HE serving, not ME serving.

The Bible tells us in Romans 8:28 All things work TOGETHER for good to them who LOVE THE LORD, to them who are CALL ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.

God created all things “good”. Then our God made man on the sixth day, and said “this is VERY GOOD”. Man was very good because, of all the creatures, only man was made “in the image of God”.

Genesis 1:27 … God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

God put Adam and Eve in the midst of a beautiful Garden, a place in which there was nothing that could harm or hurt. It was man who – disobeying God – brought sin into the world. Man looked at a thing that God forbade, and thought, “If I could but have that thing, I would be happy”. The thing that Adam did brought no joy to either him or Eve. The thing cherished above God destroyed paradise for Adam, and for us all. By one man sin entered the world, and death by sin (Romans 5:12).

When Man was created on the 6th day “Very Good”, everything was “Very Good” until he second guessed God. It wasn’t long after this that Cain murdered his brother Abel. A search for happiness outside of what was granted on the 6th day led to MURDER, a violation of the 6th commandment.

Had Adam spent his days “Serving the Lord with gladness” we would still be in Paradise today. We should learn a lesson from this. When we are selfish, and step outside of service – which is the call of the son of God – we bring misery on ourselves. So often we come before God with a frown on our faces, miserable because of the bad choices we have made. But the Scripture tells us to

But even though Adam failed – and even though we still fail today – God never fails. We can ….

Psalm 100:2 come before His presence with singing.

Illustrate: In the ancient times, those who came to stand before a King were cautioned not to have a sad face. If you came into an earthly King’s court ion such a way, he would – as my mama used to say – “Give you something to be sad about”. Beloved, God will not MAKE us come into His presence with singing – but you should want to be so. The sin of man cannot overwhelm the goodness of God. All that happens to us, happens in accordance with His will. And even though we have low moments, our God’s goodness to us LASTS. The Scripture says:

Psalm 52:1 … the goodness of God endureth continually.

God Knows Best – And Puts Us In The Best Pasture

Psalm 100:3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Word Study: The first phrase in verse 3 notes “Know ye that the Lord he is God”. The word “Lord” is the Hebrew Yᵊhōvâ, and the word translated “God” is the Hebrew ĕlōhîm. Our God is the same “ĕlōhîm” mentioned in Genesis 1:1:

In the beginning God (“ĕlōhîm”) created the heaven and the earth.

The God Who made all things is the One Who made us. He made us physically. We are not accidents of birth, nor evolutionary byproducts. We are made by God. God also made us spiritually. I am not a son of God because I am worthy, but because of His Grace. The Scripture says:

John 1:12-13 But as many as received {Jesus as Lord and Savior}, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

We are “his people, and the sheep of his pasture”. We belong to God as His Children and as His Citizens. The Scripture says:

1 Corinthians 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

We are purchased, not with silver or gold, but “with the precious Blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:19). God paid the highest price He could pay for us at the Cross. We are not just Sheep. We are:

… the sheep of his pasture

God will meet our needs. So we look to Him, and trust in Him. We do not let worry or anxiety – the devil’s tools – detract our vision from our Blessed Lord. We trust Him, the “Good Shepherd Who gave His life for His sheep” (John 10:11).

Psalm 100:4-5 … Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 5 For the Lord is good…

God owns the pasture, and controls the pasture for the greater good of those who love Him. While your eyes are on Jesus no thing has power over you:

Psalms 37:23-25 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way. {24} Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand. {25} I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

Every step you take for God in Christ is ordered, controlled, by the King you love. “But Brother David, I just don’t have many things!” Praise God, and trust Him. He supplies the things for your own blessing. The Scripture says:

Psalms 84:11 (KJV) “For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no GOOD THING will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Psalm 100:5 … His mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

It is time for all of us to learn these four great truths:

  1. First, happiness doesn’t come from things, but from God.
  2. Second, even if “good”, things may distract from the best. They may come between you and your family, or you and your Creator.
  3. Third, things may make you believe you don’t need God. Remember what Jesus said in …

Matthew 19:24 It is easier for a camel to go through the eyes of a needle than a rich man to get into Heaven.

  1. Finally, things can lead eternal damnation. The rich young ruler walked away from God in Christ because his possessions were too great to give up.The Apostle writes:

Philippians 4:11-13 … I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. {12} I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. {13} I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Things are but temporary, but the relationship you have with God in Christ will last throughout eternity. Give yourselves to Him Who gave Himself to you! Do not live one more minute without the Best Friend and Companion you’ll ever have. May God lead you all to repent, and turn to Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior. Amen and Amen.

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Rightly Dividing God’s Word Part 2: God, Stewardships, & The Age of Innocence

Posted on November 15, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Frank Cone: https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-and-purple-sky-with-stars-3607542/

To recap, last Wednesday we examined the Scripture:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

We discussed that, as we study, the Word of God is to be “rightly divided”. It is God’s Word, this “Word of Truth”, and we are given the Gift of the Holy Spirit to enable us to study it. The Christian is saved by faith in Christ, but sanctified – made more like Jesus – through the study and application of God’s Word to our lives. As we study the Scripture we are:

  • Taught to be more like Jesus
  • Our faith is proved and tested
  • We are restored to an upright or Godly state
  • We walk pleasing to God

Salvation is not by our works, but by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. He died for our sins, and rose again to lead us as believers, His Church. As we study the Scripture, we are always aware that:

All Scripture Is Written TO The Believer, But
Not All Scripture Is Written FOR The Believer

The Social and Ceremonial portions of the Mosaic Law found in the Old Testament are written not FOR the Gentiles nor the Church, but FOR Israel. We did establish this: Whether OLD or NEW Covenant, no one has EVER been saved by their works, but by faith in God. Once saved, however, the believer is to follow the commandments of God.

The Bible Addresses Different Times Or Ages,
Though God Never Changes, Nor Does Salvation Change

Turn with me in your Bibles to:

Ephesians 3:1-5For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

As Paul begins to address the Gentile Church at Ephesus, he wants to clarify a few truths that God gave to him as an Apostle. Paul – a student of Gamaliel and an ex-member of the ruling counsel of the Jews called the Sanhedrin – explains why he reaching out to Gentiles. It was God’s intent from the beginning of humanity to save ALL PEOPLE by Grace. Paul calls this the “dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you”.

Word Study: The word “dispensation” is the Greek oikonomía, which literally means “a stewardship”.

A stewardship is something that is in your possession, something that does not belong to you but it has been entrusted to you by a higher authority.

God owns everything. From the beginning of creation to today, God made all things and then gave them to us as a oikonomía or a stewardship. Grace is a stewardship from God. God saves by Grace. He entrusted the stewardship of Grace to Israel in the Old Testament, and to the Church in the New Testament.

Under the Old Covenant, the Jew – saved by Grace – kept the Moral, Social, and Ceremonial Laws, something the Bible calls the “Mosaic Law” or “The Law of Moses”. In the Old Testament Israel began to believe that only Israel was to be saved. In other words, when Christ came and began to offer the Gospel to those who were not Jews, this made the Pharisees angry. They thought that Jesus was betraying the faith. This was the reason that before Paul was saved, as:

(Acts 9:1) Saul breathed out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord

God’s Israel through idolatry had largely drifted away from their original calling. Abraham himself was not a Jew properly, but from Ur of the Chaldees or ancient Babylon.

  • Abraham was to be the Father of Faith to all nations (Genesis 17:5), and through him all nations were to be blessed (Genesis 12:3).
  • When King Solomon dedicated the Temple it was so that “all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no one else”. (1 Kings 8:60)
  • When God made the Temple, it had places of worship for all people, not just the Jews. God told Israel through Isaiah, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples” (Isaiah 56:7).
  • When God prophesied the Messiah coming from Israel, He told His people “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations” (Isaiah 42:6). He also told them “I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

As Israel drifted from God, she forgot that Grace was her stewardship. Only God can save, and God reaches the nations through His people. As Israel became blind to her stewardship God sent His Son into this world to correct Israel’s error, and to usher in the New Covenant through His shed Blood on Calvary. When Saul went out destroying Christians, Jesus knocked him down on the Damascus Road. He speaks of this, saying:

Ephesians 3:3 … by revelation {GOD} made known unto me the mystery…

Word Study: The word “mystery” is the Greek mystḗrion, which means “a truth once revealed to a select group which became hidden, a fraternal secret”. At one time Israel knew that she was to share the Grace of God with the world. But Israel became secular, and her stewardship became mystḗrion, hidden, forgotten. This is one of the reasons why Samaritans – hated Gentiles – are often mentioned in their encounters with Jesus (see Luke 10:33; 17:16; John 4:4, 9; 4:39-40). When Christ struck Saul down on the Damascus Road, He made him aware that what he was doing (destroying the Church) was counter productive to the stewardship of the Gospel.

God saved Israel so that Israel could tell others about the Saving God we serve. God saved the Church so that the Church could tell others about the Saving God we serve.

Ephesians 3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

The formation of the Church, the Kingdom of God on this earth, was a mystery that was not fully revealed until the formation of the New Testament. God revealed the Church’s mission – the stewardship of the Gospel unto the world – through Christ’s “holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit”. Paul goes on to say:

Ephesians 3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; 9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

Our God has a great sense of humor. As Israel would not reach out to the Gentiles with the stewardship of Grace, Jesus caused Saul – a Rabbi of Israel – to be the Apostle to the Gentiles. Paul went out preaching “among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ”. It was God’s plan to save whosoever will through the preaching of the Gospel of Christ.

Israel, Saved By Grace, Was Under The Mosaic Law
The Church, Saved By Grace, Is Under The Royal Law

The “Royal Law” is so named by James, the stepbrother of Jesus. He wrote:

James 2:8-9 If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well: 9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

The Royal Law was not a new thing, but was contained within the Mosaic Law. “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” is found in:

Leviticus 19:18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

The Pharisees, Sadducees, Scribes, and Priests of Israel, in studying the Social and Ceremonial portions of the Law, forgot that the heart of the Mosaic Law was love. Our Lord Jesus brought this back from the dustbins of legalism. A young Lawyer asked Jesus one day what the “Great Commandment” was. Jesus answered with the Royal Law. He said:

Matthew 22:37-39 … Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

This “Royal Law” transcends every Age, from Creation until today. The “Royal Law” is the heartbeat of the Mosaic Law, and the Law the Christian follows today. Why did God call Israel to be His people in the Old Testament? Was it because they were superior? No! God told Israel:

Deuteronomy 7:7-8 The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: 8 But because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

Deuteronomy 9:6 Understand therefore, that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people.

Israel was not worthy to receive Grace, nor was she worthy to be the stewards of Grace. But this is the same for the Church today. Is the Church worthy? God tells us through Paul:

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are: 29 That no flesh should glory in his presence. 30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: 31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

God chose Israel because of the promise He made to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), and because Israel was weak, ignoble, foolish, and unable – in short, BROKEN. Grace is given by God to the broken who repent.

Why did God choose the Church and the Gentiles, that’s you and I? Because we are weak, ignoble, foolish, and unable – in short, BROKEN. Grace is given by God to the broken who repent.

The Royal Law is extended to the Broken. We are to be keepers of the Royal Law. The Apostle said:

Galatians 5:13-14 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

R omans 13:8-10 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

“Love worketh no ill to his neighbor”. The Bible tells us that:

Love does no harm, but does only good to God and to others.

Love is God’s Law from the beginning of human history, and into eternity. Mass failure in The Royal Law of love causes disaster in each Age of Humanity.

The First Age Or Period Of Man Is Called The Age Of Innocence

Human history begins with the Book of Genesis. Turn with me in your Bibles to:

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

This is one of the most profound statements found in Scripture. It answers the question, “How did we all get here?” Scientists at NASA state that:

“The big bang is how astronomers explain the way the universe began. It is the idea that the universe began as just a single point, then expanded and stretched to grow as large as it is right now—and it is still stretching!”

This was a theory that was postulated by Astronomer Georges Lemaître in 1927. According to certain scientists, the universe, our Solar System, and our planet with all life was just an accident of nature. Even if all that we see were just an “accident”, the question scientists cannot explain is “what was the first cause of all things?” Science has no answer for that. The Bible does. The Bible tells us “In the beginning God”.

Word Study: There are several Hebrew or Arabic words found in the Bible that are translated “God”: elōhê, ʾEl, ʾEl šaday, ‘Elah, and ʾĕlōhīm. In Genesis 1:1 “God” is the Hebrewʾĕlōhīm, which is the compound name of the Triune God. God the Father has created all things, and God the Father created all things through God the Son. We are told in:

1 Corinthians 8:6 (ESV) … for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

God the Father created everything (Isaiah 64:8; Malachi 2:10; James 1:17), but His power flowed through Christ. The Bible says:

Colossians 1:12-19 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: 15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell;

When the Bible says “In the beginning God {ʾĕlōhīm} created”, this is God the Father creating all things through God the Son. Furthermore, God the Holy Spirit was at work in creation.

Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

You see the Triune God at work in creation. The Bible tells us that “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16). Love does no ill to its neighbor. Love does good where good is needed. Remember we noted earlier that God came to Israel because she was the least and the broken. God saves the Church because it is the least and the broken. NOW we see God moving on a broken, dark planet. Love demands that good be done. Love demands that light be given.

Genesis 1:3 And God (ʾĕlōhīm) said, Let there be light: and there was light.

When God spoke, it was not to create chaos, but to bring order from chaos. When God spoke, He spoke light. Light was formed before there was ever a light source, before there was ever a star named “The Sun” and a reflector called “The Moon”. God’s Word brings light, not darkness. God’s Word brings LIFE, not DEATH. God’s light was good. God established Light and Darkness as a principle. It is up to God to determine if something is LIGHT or DARK. That is the point of the Creation account.

Genesis 1:3-5 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

Why is God showing us every step in the Creation of humanity? It is to show us that love does good. Love brings light. Love is not destructive, nor non-productive. As God is, so must we learn to be.

I’ll return to this subject next Wednesday. May God open your eyes to His Word through His Spirit. Amen and Amen!

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False Prophets and False Teachers Bring Fast Destruction

Posted on November 13, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Pixabay: https://www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-of-person-standing-beside-cross-during-sunset-54333/

My final target is the text of 2 Peter 2:9, but I want to read the verses that lead up to it. These are dark verses, but very applicable to the Church today. Let’s read:

2 Peter 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

The Wise Pay Attention To The BUTS Of Scripture

Let’s stop right there. The Apostle begins with “But”. Anytime you see the word “But”, you know that it is giving you and EXCEPTION to something else. Peter tells us that there WERE “false prophets also among the People”. He’s talking about the Old Testament People, God’s Israel. False prophets came in among Israel.

Why would false prophets come in to God’s people? Because the devil is real, and will do all he can to destroy God’s people.

God has given a sure word of prophecy to His people. He has given us the Bible. Peter spoke of the Bible on the left side of this BUT. The POWER of God to save and to sanctify is found only through God’s Word. It is God’s Word that speaks life to the dead, and light to the darkness. God gave His Word through faithful prophets and apostles. We read:

2 Peter 1:20-21 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Prophecy is the Word of God. Prophecy is what we have in the Bible. True Prophecy does not come by “the will of man”, but it is Holy Spirit driven. This is plain. “Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost”. False prophets plagued Israel. God warned Israel to be careful of the false prophets. He told them in:

Deuteronomy 18:21-22 .. How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? 22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.

But Israel was not discerning. False prophets rose up, and drew the people away from God. Elijah stood alone on Mount Carmel, facing 450 prophets of Baal and 400 Asheroth (Prophets of the Grove) [1 Kings 18:19]. All of Israel had been consumed by the false prophets endorsed by King Ahab and Jezebel, so much so that Elijah was by himself. Elijah asked the people:

1 Kings 18:21 (ESV) How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.

Though Elijah stood with God and won the day, the false prophets did not go away. One of the reasons the false prophets were so successful in Israel is because they ignored God’s first command when going into the Promised Land. God told His people of the Canaanites:

Deuteronomy 7:2-4 (ESV) …. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. 3 You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, 4 for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods.

Israel ignored God’s command. They made covenants with the lost, and entered into marriages with them. This caused Israel to drift away from God. When God called His true prophets out, men like Ezekiel and Jeremiah, Daniel and Hosea, these prophets fought an uphill battle against the evil spread by the false. God speaking through the Prophet Jeremiah said:

Jeremiah 23:13-14 (ESV) In the prophets of Samaria I saw an unsavory thing: they prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray. 14 But in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his evil; all of them have become like Sodom to me, and its inhabitants like Gomorrah.”

The false prophets do not teach Biblical and Godly Repentance, but rather “strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his evil”

Without repentance, there is no remission of sin. Israel became consumed by the sin of the lost, and lost her blessing before God. Peter tells us – again:

2 Peter 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

Just as there WERE “False Prophets” against God’s Israel,
There SHALL BE “False Teachers” against Christ’s Church

“The Wages of Sin is DEATH” (Romans 6:23). This is an absolute as sure as gravity. These false teachers “bring in damnable heresies”, that is, they teach doctrines that lead souls to be damned from Heaven. We assume that, as Southern Baptists, we are safe from this. Not true. Some of the books that Lifeway sells are departures from the Word of God.

Illustrate: Consider a popular fictional book called The Shack (author William P. Young). In this book God says this:

“I don’t need to punish people for sin. Sin is its own punishment, devouring you from the inside. It’s not My purpose to punish it. It’s my joy to cure it.”

Is that what the Bible says? No, it’s not.

Psalm 145:20 The Lord preserves all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.

You say, “well, this is the Old Testament”. All right, let’s see what Jesus said. Our Lord Jesus came to bring in the New Covenant, a Covenant where God writes His Law on our hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 10:16). Our Lord Jesus said those who are loveless and hateful to those around them (Matthew 25:41-46):

I was hungry and you gave Me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink,
I was a stranger, and you did not welcome Me,
I was naked, and you did not clothe Me.
I was in prison, and you did not visit Me.

Jesus said, “As you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me. AND THESE WILL GO AWAY INTO ETERNAL PUNISHMENT, but THE RIGHTEOUS INTO ETERNAL LIFE” (Matthew 25:46).

God will save from sin, but there MUST BE REPENTANCE. What did Jesus preach?

Matthew 4:17 … REPENT: for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand

Matthew 9:13 … I am not come to call the righteous, but SINNERS TO REPENTANCE

God MUST punish sin, for God IS HOLY. If God doesn’t “punish people for sin”, then WHY the Cross?

See Him, the Christ, nailed to that Tree. See Him naked, bleeding, a crown of thorns pushed down on the head that once held the Crown of Heaven. See Him in the Garden WEEPING, tears like blood pouring from His eyes. “Father, if it be Thy will, let THIS CUP – THIS CROSS – pass from Me. NEVERTHELESS NOT MY WILL BUT THINE BE DONE (Luke 22:42).

God will punish sin. As Jesus cried out “My God, My God, Why hast Thou forsaken Me?”, this in itself shows us God’s attitude toward sin. Sin is an affront to His Holy Name.

Illustrate: The book written by false teacher Rob Bell called “Love Wins” undermines the Doctrine of Hell. He asks,

“Has God created millions of people over tens of thousands of years who are going to spend eternity in anguish? Can God do this, or even allow this, and still claim to be a loving God? Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?”

Bell’s questions remind me of the questions that Old Serpent gave to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden: “Hath God really said that you shall not eat of every tree?”. Does God punish sin? If so, how long does God punish sin? Read in our context:

2 Peter 2:4-5 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; 5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;

God did not spare “the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell”. God did not bind all the fallen angels, but left some – along with Lucifer – free for a certain amount of time. Yet Satan Himself can go no farther than God allows (for proof, read Job 1-3). In the end of time – when God’s plan is completed – the Scripture says:

Revelation 20:10 … the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Here’s a philosophic question for you. “Would a loving God drown children and babies”? Well, what does the Scripture say? God saw that the wickedness of our world had grown so great that – the Bible says –

Genesis 6:5-8 (ESV) The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.

We see another “But” of Scripture, and we praise God for this. “But Noah found FAVOR – literally – grace – in the eyes of the Lord”.

God is holy, and must punish sin. BUT if one REPENT as Noah did, and turn UNTO GOD as Noah did, then Grace is to be found. If you reject the loving invitation of God to repent and follow Him, then the judgment of God is what is left. The Scripture declares that God flooded an entire world because of sin. A God Who offered love, but was shunned, did that. Man, woman, child, infant, all who were NOT on the ARK OF SALVATION drowned under that terrible flood.

The false teacher believes God grins at sin. God does not grin at sin. God is not faintly amused by it. God brought a “flood upon the world of the ungodly”.

Illustrate: Author Matthew Vines notes in his book, “God And The Gay Christian”,

“Christians who affirm the full authority of Scripture can also affirm committed, monogamous same-sex relationships.” He says that once this “truth” be affirmed, that, “The fiercest objections to LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] equality — those based on religious beliefs — can begin to fall away. The tremendous pain endured by LGBT youth in many Christian homes can become a relic of the past. Christianity’s reputation in much of the Western world can begin to rebound. Together we can reclaim our light.”

There are six passages in Scripture that specifically decree that same sex intimacy is against the design of and forbidden by God (see Genesis 19:5; Leviticus 18:22; Leviticus 20:13; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9; and 1 Timothy 1:10). How does God feel about same sex relationships? Peter addresses this. Read with me:

2 Peter 2:6-8 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an {EXAMPLE} unto those that after should live ungodly; 7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

Why did God destroy “Sodom and Gomorrah”? It was to give everyone a graphic “{EXAMPLE} unto those that after should live ungodly”. God considers a same sex intimacy to be “ungodly”. God did not destroy ALL of the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah. He sent His Angels to lead “just or righteous Lot”. Lot was saved by faith in God. Though horribly imperfect, when Lot was warned that God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot followed GOD out of those wicked places. Repentance is to follow God’s lead, not the world’s lead. His family followed Lot so far, all but HIS WIFE.

Genesis 19:26 But {Lot’s} wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

Was “{Lot’s} wife” saved from destruction? She could have been, but she looked backward, and turned her heart toward evil. Once more we see a “But” of Scripture. What a sadness this would be! Jesus said,

Luke 9:62 … No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

Illustrate: When I joined the Air Force many, many years ago, I took an oath:

“I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States; Against all enemies, foreign and domestic; That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; And that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States; and the orders of the officers appointed over me; According to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice; so help me, God.”

I pledged to support and defend the “Constitution of the United States” as an Airman. As Christians, we pledge our allegiance to our Jesus and to the Word of God, the Bible. He is our Commander in Chief, the King of kings and Lord of lords. His people do not look backward – else we will fall under the judgment of sin! Look to the example of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Though Lot was imperfect just as all Christians are imperfect, Lot never compromised his love for God and His directives. Though Lot was in the midst of Sodom and in the midst of evil, his “righteous soul {was vexed} from day to day with their unlawful deeds”. He did not seek to justify what God has said is wicked.

Why did Jesus come to this earth if God was willing to ignore sin? The father of John the Baptist, Zecharias filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke of Jesus’ coming.

Luke 1:78-79 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the Dayspring from on high (this is Jesus!) hath visited us, 79 To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Jesus Christ did not come to this earth to minimize or make light of sin. He came to save us, and to “guide our feet into the way of peace”. The Christian does not follow after sin, but follows after Jesus. When the Apostle writes of the lost, he says:

Romans 3:10-12, 17-18 … There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.

Those who are saved, are saved by REPENTING and coming, broken as we are, to Christ. We do not justify sin, but reject it. We come to Him Who died for us to save us. What was it the Scripture says?

Matthew 1:21 And {Mary} shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name JESUS; for He shall save His people from their sins …

Jesus did not die to justify our sins, but to justify US.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) For our sake {God the Father} made {God the Son} to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 Peter 2:24 (ESV) {Jesus Christ} Himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might DIE TO SIN AND LIVE TO RIGHTEOUSNESS. By His wounds you have been healed.

Does God punish sin? Yes! Does God love us? Yes! How does God prove His love? He provides a way by which our sins can be covered, and our lives restored to a right walk with God. Where salvation comes, the life changes. What does the Apostle say?

Titus 2:11-13 (ESV) For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

Where the Grace of God is, it not only brings about salvation. But Grace “train{s} us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age”. The Christian is not perfect. No Christian is perfect. But the Christian follows a perfect God. The Christian is indwelt by the Spirit of God. The Christian, saved by faith in Christ, has written on his or her heart love toward God and love toward their neighbor. God is to be loved ABOVE ALL ELSE. And your neighbor, to be loved as God has loved you.

God Knows Them That Are His

This was the target I was aiming at. Read with me:

2 Peter 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished

God’s children are “godly”. A Christian is a walking miracle. A Christian is “born again of the Spirit of God” (John 3:3; 3:7). A Christian is “born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, BY THE WORD OF GOD, which liveth and abideth forever” (1 Peter 1:23). A Christian is not saved by their works, but by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, receiving him as Savior.

Titus 3:5-6 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior;

A Christian will, like Father Abraham, “work the works of God”. A Christian “believes on the One Whom God hath sent” (John 6:29). A Christian has called upon the name of the Lord, repenting of their sins. Once saved, the Christian becomes a son of God by faith (Galatians 3:26). Those whom God saves, He knows how to deliver. “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations”.

Do you know Jesus? Do you? If you have obeyed the Gospel call, the same message that has never changed:

Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

2 Timothy 2:19 … the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

If you are saved, you belong to God, not to yourself. You are his Child, His Workmanship, His Treasure, His Love. The Child He receives by faith is a miracle, a citizen of Heaven. His children are called to “walk in the light as Christ is in the light” (1 John 1:7). But if you reject Christ, if you refuse to repent and cast yourself upon the loving mercy of God, do not believe that you shall escape the wrath of God.

Illustrate: In the Book “Purpose Driven Life” Rick Warren wrote:

“Wherever you are reading this, I invite you to bow your head and quietly whisper the prayer that will change your eternity. ‘Jesus, I believe in You and I receive You’. Go ahead. If you sincerely meant that prayer, congratulations! Welcome to the family of God!”

With all due respect to Rick, what is missing from this statement? REPENT. Those who come to Christ without repentance are not saved, but continue to live in godlessness. Jesus will one day say to them,

Matthew 7:23 … I will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY

Salvation is an unconditional surrender of the sinner to the Lord Savior. We acknowledge that we are NOT God, but Jesus is God, and that we have no hope of salvation apart from Him. Love or wrath. That is YOUR choice. Which will you choose? May God the Holy Spirit draw you to Christ this very moment, for the glory of God, and the increase of His Kingdom. Amen and Amen.

Posted in 2 Peter, God's Children, gospel, grace, Great Commission, Sermons Preached | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Rightly Dividing God’s Word: Part 1, Introduction To The Ages

Posted on November 11, 2022 by bibleteacherorg
Photo by Oladimeji Ajegbile: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-man-reading-indoor-2325729/

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

The Apostle Paul was nearing the end of his ministry. He told Timothy – a young man he was training:

2 Timothy 4:6-8 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

Paul knew that shortly he would be standing before the Roman Emperor Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (rule 54-68AD), and that he would be – in all likelihood – beheaded for his preaching of Christ. One Source notes,

“Based on historical events of the day, it is likely that Paul was beheaded, possibly around the same time that Peter was crucified.”

Before Paul was saved on the Damascus Road, he trained under the noted Bible Scholar, Rabbi Gamaliel (Acts 5:34; 22:3). Paul was “taught according to the perfect manner of the Law of the fathers”, the Scripture. As Paul prepared to die he wanted to leave Timothy with the best advice on how to live and promote the Gospel of Christ.

Saved By Grace, We Are Sanctified By Study Of The Scripture

He encouraged Timothy to study the Scripture. He told Timothy:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved…

Word Study: Let’s break this down. “Study” is the Greek spoudazō, which means “to labor over, be diligent to look into, to hasten to examine, to study”. Timothy was to study “the Word of truth”. What is “the Word of truth”? Jesus told us what “the Word of truth” is in His prayer for the Church. He prayed to the Father:

John 17:17 Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word {O Father God} is truth.

The Bible contains the truth of God. We are to spoudazō, to “Study” the Bible, the Word of God. The Christian is given the Holy Spirit of God to aid us in studying and applying God’s Word. One of the nicknames that Jesus gave to the Holy Spirit is “Spirit of truth” (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:13) because it is His function to “Guide us unto all truth”. Jesus said:

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

Question: Why was the Holy Spirit given to the Christian? __________________________

The phrase that describes the Scripture, “Word of truth”, is found in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Psalmist spoke saying that salvation comes only through the Word of God:

Psalm 119:41-45 Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation, according to thy word. 42 So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me: for I trust in thy word. 43 And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth; for I have hoped in thy judgments. 44 So shall I keep thy law continually for ever and ever. 45 And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts.

Salvation comes by the “Word of truth”. The Apostle Paul speaks of proving himself as a minister of God by holding fast to the “Word of truth” (see 2 Corinthians 6:7). It is the “Word of truth” that saves us. Paul told the Church at Ephesus:

Ephesians 1:12-13 … we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

The Bible is the “Word of truth”. Paul tells Timothy to study that Bible:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God…

Word Study: The word “approved” is the Greek dókimos, which means “accepted, pleasing”.

Notice the text doesn’t tell you to study or examine the Scripture to be saved. It tells us to study or examine the Scripture to prove the genuineness of our salvation.

The Scripture is given to the Christian to help shape our minds to be like Christ’s mind. Paul told Timothy in another place:

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect {mature, like Jesus}, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

The Scripture – Old and New Testament – is “given by inspiration of God”. All Scripture is “profitable”. The Scripture contains four elements related to our growth:

Doctrine (didaskalia) = Teaching us how to be like Jesus
Reproof (élenchos) = That by which our faith is proved or tested
Correction (epanorthōsis) = That which restores one to an upright state
Instruction In Righteousness = How to be pleasing to God

Going back to our focal text:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

When we study the Scripture, we are to always be “rightly dividing” the text. The Bible tells us that – though God used people to write it – that God Himself is the ultimate Author of the Scripture. The Chief Apostle writes:

2 Peter 1:20-21 no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Since the Holy Text was written by “holy men of God who spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit”, then the Scripture MUST interpret the Scripture. Only God’s Word can properly interpret God’s Word.

Does All Of Scripture Apply TO Me?

God gave the entire Bible to the believer in Christ, both Old and New Testaments. As Christians, when we read the Scripture, we need to read

in Context, and
in the Spirit.

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Word Study: “rightly dividing” is the Greek orthotomeō, meaning “to make straight and smooth, to handle correctly, to teach the truth in a Godly manner”. The Scripture is not to be twisted or turned to suit our opinions. One of the things I have learned over the years is that:

All Scripture is written TO the believer, but
not all Scripture is written FOR the believer.

The Scripture has divisions and applications that are addressed to:

  1. ALL people at all times, and
  2. CERTAIN people at certain times

This is the reason our Bibles are divided into OLD Testament (or Covenant) and NEW Testament (or Covenant).

Under the Old Covenant God had a people
He saved by Grace called “Israel”.

The nation Israel itself was created because of a promise that God made to a man called Abram or Abraham. Abraham was not saved by his own goodness, but by faith in God. Abraham’s name is mentioned 230 times in the King James text. The Apostle Paul said of Abraham:

R omans 4:2-3 … if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

Salvation from sin came to Abraham just as it comes to us. We believe God, and God counts or imputes righteousness to us because we believe. Paul goes on to quote The Psalmist David who, in Psalm 32:1-2 said:

R omans 4:6-8 … as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, 7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

Salvation has ALWAYS been by faith in God. It has never been a thing that you can work toward. ONCE GOD SAVED ISRAEL OUT OF EGYPT (see Exodus 14:13, “Fear not, STAND STILL and SEE THE SALVATION OF THE LORD, which He will show to you today”) it was THEN that God gave His people rules for living.

Those whom God saves, He saves by Grace. Once He saves His people, God, as King, gives His people rules to live by.

This has never varied. Whether Old Covenant (Testament) or New Covenant (Testament), God gives His people rules to live by. Our Lord Jesus said to His Church:

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.

But our Lord told His Old Covenant Israel:

Leviticus 22:31 Therefore shall ye keep my commandments, and do them: I am the Lord.

Leviticus 26:2-5 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord. 3 If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; 4 Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.

A believer is saved by Grace and the mercy of God. A believer is saved by faith in the Savior. But once saved, as believers (Old or New Covenant) we are to follow the commands that God our Savior gives to us. This is where RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE TRUTH comes into play.

As I said before, all Scripture is FOR us, but not all Scripture is TO us.

God gave His Law to Israel from Mount Sinai. In that Law were:

The MORAL Law
The Judgments or SOCIAL Law
The Ordinances or CEREMONIAL Law

The Moral Law (such as the Ten Commandments, the injunctions against sexual sin and perversion) is consistent between both Old and New Testaments. For instance,

  1. Murder is prohibited in both the Old Testament (Genesis 9:6; Leviticus 24:17; Numbers 35:30-31) as well as the New Testament (Romans 1:29; Galatians 5:21; 1 Peter 4:15).
  2. Sexual sin is prohibited in both the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 22:21; Exodus 20:14) as well as the New Testament (1 Corinthians 6:18; 7:2; Hebrews 13:4; Matthew 15:19). Some have said that homosexuality has been forbidden only in the Old Testament (Covenant – see Leviticus 18:22; 20:13) but not in the New Testament (Covenant). This is NOT true. The Apostle Paul condemned homosexuality in Romans 1:26-27 & 1 Corinthians 6:9. Jesus condemned same sex marriage when He said, “Have you NOT READ that He Who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Matthew 19:4-6, NKJV).
  3. Of the TEN Commandments, only ONE, the Commandment to “Keep the Sabbath” is NOT repeated in the New Testament.

The Social Law covered laws that specifically related to Israel (see Exodus 21:1-23:13). The Social Laws specifically governed Israel in her diet, secular, political and economic life. A good example of the Social Law is found in:

Numbers 19:16-19 And whosoever toucheth one that is slain with a sword in the open fields, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days. 17 And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel: 18 And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave: 19 And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day: and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even.

If an Israelite touched any portion of a dead body, they had to go through a CEREMONIAL cleansing after a seven day quarantine. This commandment was for Israel alone, not for the Church under the New Covenant, as it is not repeated in the New Testament. Which brings us to:

The Ceremonial Law. This is the religious portion of Israel’s Law that guided the nation in worship and fellowship with God. Under the ceremonial law you find the rules governing the priesthood, the tabernacle or Temple, and the sacrifices. The Ceremonial Law pointed to the coming ministry of Jesus Christ as the Messiah of His people. The Book of Hebrews tells us that:

H ebrews 10:1-10 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshipers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. 5 Wherefore when He {a reference to Jesus} cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: 6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. 7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. 8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; 9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. 10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

The Ceremonial Law of Israel was NEVER given to make those who came to God “perfect” or right before God. Every animal sacrificed showed Israel (and us) that:

  1. Sin is no joke, but a serious thing with God
  2. Sin separates us from God, and we cannot fix that separation with our good works
  3. The blood of an innocent must be spilled to atone for or cover sin
  4. No one has EVER been saved by works, for animal sacrifices were repeated on a regular basis
  5. Animal sacrifices could never satisfy God, thus Jesus had to come for our sins.
  6. We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all

Jesus satisfied the requirements of the Law. Because of Jesus we who are New Covenant believers are “not under the Law, but under grace”. The Old Covenant believer was dominated by sin because the ceremonial Law kept him bound to the Temple or the Tabernacle, to the Levitical Priesthood and the High Priest. The New Testament believer, however, is not under the shadow of the Law. The Bible says:

R omans 6:12-18 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Freed from the Ceremonial & Social Law of Israel, we do not become amoral, but we become “servants of righteousness”. We strive to live our lives – not according to Social or Ceremonial Mosaic Law – but to imitate Christ. But Scripture – whether Old or New Testament – is FOR all Christians, though it may not be TO us.

The Bible Addresses Different Times Or Ages,
Though God Never Changes, Nor Does Salvation Change

In the Old Testament God used Israel and the Jews to introduce us to Himself. As we study the Scriptures, there are seven major divisions or ages that we are introduced to in both Old and New Testaments. Theologians (those who study the Bible professionally) call these time periods “Dispensations” or “Ages”. Grace and the goodness of God are a continuing theme through these “Ages”. Under the Old Covenant, the Jew – saved by Grace – kept the Moral, Social, and Ceremonial Laws, something the Bible calls the “Mosaic Law” or “The Law of Moses”. In the Old Testament Israel began to believe that only Israel was to be saved. This is what the Apostle Paul believed before he met Jesus on the Damascus Road. After meeting Jesus, Saul (now called Paul) came to understand that God wanted to save whosoever will. He spoke of this in:

E phesians 3:1-11 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; 9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

The Jews had come to believe that God only loved the Jews. Yet this is not the truth. God loves every person, and calls whosoever will to His side through faith in Christ Jesus. Once a believer is saved by Grace, that believer falls under the Royal Law of God:

James 2:8-9 If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well: 9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

The “royal law according to the scripture” is that the believer, saved by Grace through faith in Christ, shall as Jesus said:

Matthew 22:37-39 … Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

This “Royal Law” transcends every Age, from Creation until today. The “Royal Law” is the heartbeat of the Mosaic Law, and the Law the Christian follows today.

This Sunday night we will begin to start talking about the Seven Ages found in the Scripture, and the Covenants that God gave during each of those Ages. May God tough your hearts to grow in your knowledge of Him. Amen and Amen.

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