Blog Archives

05 Jun 2022 1 Peter (Program #22)

1 Peter (Program #22) -Christian Life and Its Sufferings (10)

As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ we have received as part of our full salvation, an escape from the eternal perdition that awaits the disobedient and rebellious.  But many believers mistakenly take this to mean that Christians face no manner of judgment at all from the righteous  and holy God.  Regardless of how popular such a thought might be, the Bible does just not support it.  Take for example Peter’s word in his first epistle in chapter 4.  In verse 12 he says “Beloved do not think that the fiery ordeal among you coming to you for a trial, is strange.”  Then in verse 17 he adds “For it is time for the judgment to begin from the house of God;”  These verses made very clear that our righteous and loving Father does judge, discipline and purify His children will never putting our eternal destiny in jeopardy.

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04 Jun 2022 1 Peter (Program #21)

1 Peter (Program #21) -Christian Life and Its Sufferings (9)

The Old Testament record is one that includes many accounts of God’s judgment.  He not only judge rebellious and evil persons but even cities were condemned and judged by God.  Today many people believe that the time of God’s  judging has passed and that is New Testament believers we need to have no fear of God.  But this kind of thinking reflects not only an inadequate understanding of the truth of the Scripture but also a totally inaccurate one  as well.  In fact God is still judging.  But what is striking to know and most often overlooked in this age of comforting words is that His judgment in this age begins with His own household.

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18 Mar 2022 Hebrews (Program #23)

Hebrews (Program #23) – The Remaining Sabbath Rest (6)

Today we look again at the Sabbath rest and how it is related to God’s dealing with His people and His judgment upon them that they could enter into that rest.  Hebrew is a book of warnings.  Warnings to believers.  We know that in our salvation we are spared God’s judgment on our sins.  But what does it mean that “judgment begins at the House of God?”  We will look at how God will judge His children in the coming age.

We are going to begin today’s life study of Hebrews by looking at a verse in 1 Peter 4:17 “judgment begins at the House of God”.  Surely this refers to us, the church.  Yet Christians don’t typically think of judgment having any implication for us once we are saved.  What is the context that God will judge His believers?

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13 Mar 2022 Numbers (Program #23)

Numbers (Program #23) – Fighting (4)

Numbers is a book that records many wonderful items related to God’s people Israel and their journey through the wilderness on their way to the good land.  But it also records some of their greatest failures.  Perhaps the greatest among these was that spoken of in chapter 25 where many among Israel committed fornication and adultery with some of the idolatrous and pagan people dwelling in the land.  This brought in God’s judgment as seen by the plague that fell upon Israel consuming 24,000.  But this judgment served as kind of purifying of the people and it enabled them eventually to go in and possess the land that they have been 40 years journeying toward.  The renumbering of God’s people for the possession of the good land is our topic today.

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08 Mar 2022 Numbers (Program #18)

Numbers (Program #18) – Journeying (11)

In Numbers chapter 20, the people of God were journeying through the wilderness on their way to the good land.  But water was scarce and the two million Hebrews with their substantial flocks and herds were suffering.  As might be expected, this cause people to complain and contend with Moses.  The attitude of the people brought out frustration and even anger on the part of Moses who had seen the Lord’s own anger and judgment brought upon the people for their previous rebellion.  But Moses’ dealing with them in this case, brought in God’s judgment once more.  Only this time not upon the people, but upon Moses.

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29 Jan 2022 1 Timothy (Program #5)

1 Timothy (Program #5) – Overseers and Deacons for the Church’s Administration

In Chapter 3 of the apostle Paul first epistle to Timothy, he comes to the crucial and the highest point in the whole letter. But before he does, he first gives Timothy the important requirements or prerequisites for proper leadership in the Church.  Listen, as Paul details these necessary attributes:

Faithful is the word: If anyone aspires to the overseership, he desires a good work. The overseer then must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, of a sober mind, orderly, hospitable, apt to teach; Not an excessive drinker; not a striker, but gentle; not contentious; not fond of money; One who manages well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity (But if one does not know how to manage his own house, how will he care for the church of God?); Not a new convert, lest being blinded with pride he fall into the judgment suffered by the devil. And he also must have a good testimony from those outside, that he may not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Deacons must similarly be grave, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for base gain; Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

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18 Jul 2021 Ephesians (Program #21)

Ephesians (Program #21) – Once Far Off, but Now Near

Let me ask you a question, before we were saved, what was our status before God?   Well, yes, we were sinners condemned to judgment. But actually according to Paul in Ephesians we had 2 major problems: first our nature.  We were dead in offenses and in sins, that’s verse 1 and 2 of Chapter 2.  But our problem also involved our status before God. As he points out in verses 12-13 “That you were at that time apart from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have become near in the blood of Christ.”  So, we see that our problem before God extend far beyond sins and even beyond our being dead before Him. We have a status problem.

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