Tag Archives: salvation

Message From A Basket

Posted on February 14, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

Turn with me in your Bibles to Acts 9:15.

Last week we saw a man named Saul knocked down on the Damascus Road by Jesus Christ our Lord. The man was arrogant. The man was self righteous. The man was murderous. The man was calloused, with a hardened heart. But Jesus had a plan for this man’s life. Knocked down and blinded, this now repentant man was led to Damascus, where he waited three days without sight, food, or water (Acts 9:9).

Saul waited on the Lord … and on the Lord’s servant Ananias. On the third day Jesus spoke to Ananias and told him to “put your hand on him, that he might receive his sight”. Jesus was talking about more than just physical sight. When Ananias touched Saul, he would gain both physical and spiritual sight.

Saul Is A Chosen Vessel

Ananias was scared to go to Saul, but the Lord assured him. Read with me:

Acts 9:15-18 But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: 16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. 17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy {Spirit}. 18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized … Continue reading →

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Run That You May Obtain

Posted on February 2, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

We who follow Jesus are saved by faith in Christ, not by our works. Salvation is a gift from God given to whosoever will receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. What does the Scripture say?

Romans 10:8-13 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the LORD Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same LORD over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the LORD shall be saved.

When God the Holy Spirit convicts a person of sin, and of righteousness, and of certain judgment (John 16:8), opening the eyes of the convert, that convert “calls upon the name of the LORD” and is saved. The necessary part of saving faith is that you confess Jesus is Lord, and that Jesus resurrected from the dead, being the full payment for our sins.

“The Gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD”
(Romans 6:23)

“For by Grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the Gift of God, NOT of works, lest any man should boast”
(Ephesians 2:8-9)

“Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what Law? Of works? Nay: but by the Law of Faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified {made right with God} by faith without the deeds of the Law.”
(Romans 3:27-28)… Continue reading →

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God Is In The Relocation Business

Posted on January 31, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

If you study the Scripture you will find that MAN is not the focal point in human history. GOD is. God made everything. The Scripture opens with:

In the beginning GOD created … (Genesis 1:1)

and ends with:

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you (Revelation 22:21)

God made us. God loves us. God knows what is best for us. God will be glorified. God will ultimately triumph. God said:

Isaiah 45:5-10 I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: 6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. 7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things. 8 Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness: let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together; I the Lord have created it. 9 Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands? 10 Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou? or to the woman, What hast thou brought forth?

God is the first cause of all things. God is the Creator of all life. God is. Not us, but God. God is the Source of all life. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords (1 Timothy 6:15). God’s Will will come to pass. The story of Scripture is that God made us, we rebelled against God, but God pursues us still. He wants to bring us into union with Himself.

John 3:17 God sent His Son into the world not to condemn it, but that the world through Jesus might be saved (my paraphrase)

God is not glorified in a lost world.
God is not glorified when racism abounds.
God is not glorified when people hate – and hurt – people.
God is not glorified when humans try and be God.

We need to relocate our hearts and minds to God…. Continue reading →

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Baptist Distinctives 4: The Holy Spirit Makes Salvation Real

Posted on January 27, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

We’re going to start in Galatians chapter three tonight as we continue our Baptist Distinctives study. Tonight we’ll be talking about the Holy Spirit of God. The 2000 Baptist Faith and Message states:

“The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to under- stand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration. At the moment of regeneration He baptizes every believer into the Body of Christ. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which they serve God through His church. He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the guarantee that God will bring the believer into the fullness of the stature of Christ. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.”

When we speak of the Holy Spirit, we are not talking about a POWER but a PERSON.

The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity of God. The Father is the Leader of the Trinity, the Head of the Family of God. The Son is the Mediator and the Covering for sin, the One Who made a way whereby we can come to the Father. The Holy Spirit is the Enabler, the Member of the Godhead that most personally comes to the believer. The Holy Spirit makes every… Continue reading →

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Baptist Distinctives #3: Jesus Is God Our Brother

Posted on January 20, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

During our “Snow Day” last Sunday, I listened to an online preacher talking about the Dangers of Idolatry. It was a very interesting sermon/ teaching, and very much enjoyed it. In the sermon the minister noted that “everybody worships something”, and that when God took His people out of Egypt under Moses’ leadership, one of the first requirements that God gave His people was:

Exodus 20:2-3 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

God identified Himself as Israel’s Savior, and Israel as a people saved. God commanded that His people have no other gods before the God Who saved them. God identifies Himself frequently throughout the Scripture, using the same terminology He uses in Exodus 20:2 ..

Deuteronomy 5:6 I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt …

Psalm 81:10 I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt …

Isaiah 43:3 For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior: I gave Egypt for thy ransom …

Hosea 13:4 Yet I am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no savior beside me.

God identifies Himself as Israel’s Savior.
God identifies Himself as OUR Savior.

When we make an idol of anything, if we worship anything or anyone outside of the God of the Scripture, we demean God our Savior. It is God Who saves us, and not we ourselves. When the commercials today say “Keep on doing YOU”, they are bidding us to follow idols. … Continue reading →

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The Most Important Thing

Posted on January 12, 2022 by bibleteacherorg

1 Corinthians 9:16-23 For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel! 17 For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me. 18 What is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel. 19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. 20 And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; 21 To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. 22 To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23 And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.

Paul Kept The Main Thing The Main Thing

The Apostle Paul saw His calling as a preacher of the Gospel to be a great blessing from God. He said “Though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!”. When Jesus knocked Saul down on the Damascus Road, He set Saul (soon to be Paul) apart to preach the Gospel. God told Ananias:

Acts 9:15-16 Go thy way {to Paul, and help him}: for {Paul} is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: 16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. … Continue reading →

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The Best Christmas Ever!

Posted on December 19, 2021 by bibleteacherorg

Moses was the Chief Prophet of the Old Covenant of God. When Moses prepared to die he promised that another Prophet like himself would come.

Acts 3:22 … A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.

Jesus Christ is that Prophet. Jesus took the place of
Moses as leader of God’s people.

There are a lot of similarities between the life of Moses and the life of Jesus. Both Moses and Jesus were preserved in their childhood. When Pharaoh wanted Moses dead, his mother hid her son in a little “ark of bulrushes” (Exodus 2:3), and hid him in the weeds at the edge of the river Nile. It was here that the princess of Egypt found Moses, and having compassion for him, brought Moses into the palace to raise as her own.

By God’s Grace Moses had access to the best food, the finest clothing, the best teachers, the most comfortable places to live. Moses grew up in a palace.

If Moses enjoyed the abundance of God’s Grace in the palace, you would think that Jesus Christ, God’s Only Begotten Son, would also be embraced… Continue reading →

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The Testimony Of God

Posted on November 28, 2021 by bibleteacherorg

The Church at Corinth was one of Paul’s biggest successes. As we studied before, Paul “reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” (Acts 18:4). Paul emphasized to the Jews that “Jesus was Christ”, but they rejected that message (Acts 18:5). At that point, the Apostle focused on the Gentiles. This brought it’s own challenges.

Corinth was a Roman Colony, populated largely by freed slaves . As the city existed because of the benevolence of Rome, the citizens would have participated in banquets honoring the Emperor. To show loyalty to the empire, the citizens were expected to honor the gods of Rome, and in particular the chief god, the Roman Emperor. One commentary notes:

“Corinth is probably the Church of the New Testament that is most like the modern Church.”

Though Corinth had many faults, it was by the Grace of God and the Power of His Spirit that the Church stood at all. As Paul writes Corinth, he reminds them that he relied on the Testimony of God – The Gospel – to found Corinth.

The Testimony Of God Is That We Are Broken,
And Only Christ Can Fix Us

1 Corinthians 2:1-2 And I, brethren, when… Continue reading →

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Glory In The Lord

Posted on November 21, 2021 by bibleteacherorg

1 Corinthians 1:30-31 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.

Last Sunday night we began a journey through the book of 1 Corinthians. Though all of the “Church Letters” (writings like Romans, Colossians, Philippians, Thessalonians – to name just a few) are necessary for the local Church to learn, I believe 1 Corinthians is a particularly timely book for the day we live in. I came across an article submitted to the Gospel Coalition entitled “Self-Worship Is The World’s Fastest Growing Religion”. Author Thaddeus Williams noted:

“In their recent book Good Faith: Being a Christian When Society Thinks You’re Irrelevant and Extreme, David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons document that 84 percent of Americans believe that “enjoying yourself is the highest goal of life.” … Further, 86 percent believe that to enjoy yourself you must “pursue the things you desire most.” … And 91 percent affirm this statement: “To find yourself, look within yourself.””

You can see this everywhere you look. A commercial came on television the other day for H&M, a Swedish multinational clothing company. A stylish black man comes on screen, and as he walks toward the camera telling us “You do you. The most important thing is to love yourself. I know I do.”… Continue reading →

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Four Witnesses For Jesus

Posted on November 14, 2021 by bibleteacherorg

According to the Gospels, John the Baptist came as a fulfillment of these prophesies (John 1:23; Mark 1:2-5; Matthew 3:1-3). When John was still forming as a baby in his mother Elisabeth, when Mary came to visit her cousin. As soon as Mary spoke to Elisabeth, that baby John leaped in her womb (Luke 1:41). Elisabeth told Mary,

Luke 1:44 … as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

John was born about six months before Jesus Christ Himself came into the world. His ministry started about six months before Jesus’ ministry started. John was asked at one time if he was the Messiah. John told that he was NOT the Messiah, but that “the One Who is coming is over me, who’s shoestrings I am not worthy to untie” (John 1:27). When John saw Jesus, he told the crowd:

John 1:29-31 … Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. 30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. 31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.

John’s entire mission of baptizing was to make Jesus Christ “manifest to Israel” as the Messiah. John the Baptist told the Pharisees:… Continue reading →

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