Hebrews (Program #56) – The Experiences of Christ for the Church Life

The book of Hebrews marvelously presents the heavenly Christ again and again. But, interwoven in the presentation is God’s purpose, the Church. Stay with us with for today’s life study of the Bible as we see the wonderful Christ together with the glorious Church in the book of Hebrews.

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Joshua (Program #7) – The Destruction of Jericho

Remember the story of Jericho, for 6 days the children of Israel bearing the ark borne by the priests marched around the fortified city of Jericho.  No doubt as the inhabitants watched from the top of the city wall and sure wondered at the strange behavior of these occupying force.

And then on the 7th day after the priests blew the trumpet and the people shouted and they came about when the people heard the sound of the trumpets that “the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat. And the people went up into the city, each straight ahead, and they captured the city.  And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city with the edge of the sword: both men and women, young and old, and oxen and sheep and donkeys. And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, Go to the house of the harlot, and bring out from there the woman and all that belongs to her, as you swore to her. And the young men who had been spies went and brought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and all that belonged to her; all her family they brought out and set outside the camp of Israel. And they burned the city with fire and all that was in it;” more…

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Joshua (Program #6) – Taking Possession of the Good Land

Listen to the Lord’s word to Joshua, in Joshua chapter 1, “Moses My servant is dead; now then arise, and cross over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, to the children of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads I have given to you, as I promised Moses…Be strong and take courage, for you will cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give to them.

This was the Lord’s strong word to Joshua, the one God had chosen to replace Moses and lead the children of Israel, not just into the land but also to possess it, to occupy it, labor on it and gain their full sustenance from it.  Actually if our eyes are opened today, we can realize that God is speaking a similar word to us, as His New Testament people, for He had placed Christ before us and has prepared everything that we might enter into Him and to posses Him, as the children of Israel were to possess the good land.

Listen now to Paul’s word in the New Testament Philippians chapter 3:8 “But moreover I also count all things to be loss on account of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, on account of whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as refuse that I may gain Christ.”

The children of Israel were about to gain the good land and we are exhorted by Paul to gain Christ. A real interesting parallel.

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Hebrews (Program #55) – Ten Practical Virtues for the Church Life

Near the end of the book of Hebrews, several practical virtues are extolled as they pertain to the practical daily living of the believers. They seem outward and obvious from a casual glance. But, a more critical examination reveals much about both God’s desire and need, as we will see today on the life study of the Bible.

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Hebrews (Program #54) – An Unshakable Kingdom

The earth, though seemingly very solid can and will be shaken.  Even the heavens that we gazed are vulnerable.  But the hope of all God’s redeemed is to receive a kingdom that cannot be shaken.   What is this kingdom?  What is it mean to us?

Today we come to a marvelous verse in Hebrews 12:28 “Therefore receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us have grace…”  It’s interesting here that the kingdom is something that we receive…

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Joshua (Program #5) – The Preparation Before the Attack

The children of Israel were preparing to enter into the good land to do battle with the kings that occupied the land that God had given them to occupy and possess. Prior to their engaging these enemies, Jehovah performed a miracle quite similar to one that He had performed for their fathers, a generation before when they escaped Egypt.  He once again held back the waters allowing them to cross. Only this time not the waters of the Red Sea but the waters of the Jordan River. News of this miracle reached the kings within the land and it caused them no small amount of fear for they realized that God was among the children of Israel once more. Yet the preparation of Israel was still not complete. As we consider the preparation of Israel in Joshua chapter 5, an interesting chapter.

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Hebrews (Program #53) – A Contrast Between the Sight of the Old Covenant and the Scene of the New Covenant

The most exciting game of the universe is God’s great salvation.  Portrait here in this contrast made in Hebrews 12.  It begins with Mount Zion and the city of the Living God in the heavenly Jerusalem.

A classic and universal Olympic-style race is the metaphor used by the apostle in several portions of the New Testament.  But no references are as graphic and as poignant as those in Hebrews chapter 12.  With a company of angelic beings looking on, we the believers become the participants in this great race.  We will join the scene on today’s life study of the Bible.

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Joshua (Program #4) – Crossing the River Jordan

On two occasions in the history of the children of Israel God caused waters to be held back so that Israel can pass over.  The first time of course was their crossing of the Red Sea providing them an escape or an exodus out of the land of Egypt. All Bible scholars agreed that this miracle is actually a type of our own baptism affecting our own escape from the corrupt world, that is under God’s condemnation and judgment.

The second time such a miracle occurred was when the children of Israel were crossing the Jordan river, this time providing them an entrance into the good land, the land of Canaan. The interpretation on this point is not so clearly understood. Many believed that this crossing refers to the believers passage through physical death and their entrance into heaven. But as we will see today such an interpretation misses the real significance of the crossing of the river Jordan

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Deuteronomy (Program #25) – The Final Exhortation and Charges, The Blessing of Moses

Deuteronomy, the mysterious little book with a very strange name. Actually it means re-speaking or second speaking as we have seen over the past weeks and this is the an account of Moses re-speaking the law with all of the statues and all the ordinances to a new generation of the children of Israel as they were about to enter into the land of Israel, the good land. But incorporated into this book were page after page of serious warnings of the curses that were befall Israel if they were to not listen to the word of Jehovah.

Near the end of the book, there is a long section, chapter 33, called the song of Moses that accounts in poetic form many incorporated in this book and it concludes this way, a very fitting conclusion to the entire book of Deuteronomy.  “So Israel dwelt securely, The fountain of Jacob in solitude, On a land of grain and new wine; And the heavens over him drop their dew. Happy are you, O Israel; who is like you? A people saved by Jehovah, The shield of your help And He who is the sword of your majesty! So your enemies shall come cringing to you, And you shall tread upon their high places.”

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Hebrews (Program #52) – Do Not Fall Away from Grace

No. Do not fall away from Grace. That is, don’t fall away from the enjoying of Christ in the New Covenant way. But rather, take grace, stand in grace, run the race, enjoying Christ every day.

Hebrews chapter 11 is a famous chapter in the Bible focusing on faith. It reveals marvelously that faith is the free gift of God, and further that it makes God real to us. But, there is a goal to the giving of this gift, and the goal is presented in chapter 12. The goal of faith is our topic today on the life study of the Bible.

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