Ephesians 4 Part 7 (10-30-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 7
Bible Study Time 10-30-05

In Ephesians, Chapter 4, the Apostle Paul says that there is one faith and one baptism. These two things bring to perfection the unity of the Spirit.

When God brought the children of Israel up out of Egypt, he gave them the Law of Moses, saying, “If you do these things, I will bless you, but if you do not do these things, I will curse you.” The nation of Israel, in general, took this challenge to mean that God judges all people on the basis of their good works, and many people today feel the same way.

The Jews of the Old Testament quickly realized, however, that no one can really keep the Law perfectly in every detail. As a result, they concluded that God simply accepts those whose works are better than everyone else. In other words, nobody’s perfect, but if you work really hard, you might earn God’s acceptance.

This kind of thinking seems logical to man, but it is not at all logical to God. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, and His ways are higher than our ways. God said that those who fall short of His perfect standard will find themselves cursed of God. Paul said in Galatians 3:10,

Galatians 3:10 (NIV)
10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law."

This is a difficult thing for us to understand. Why would God give the Law if it was going to result in everyone being under the curse of the Law? Was it given simply to guarantee that nobody would be able to enjoy the blessings of God? Not at all. The Law itself promised Israel peace and prosperity, but God had given greater promises than these to Abraham 400 years before the giving of the Law. In Genesis 18:18, God said:

Genesis 18:18 (NKJ)
18 " . . . Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?

This promise of a worldwide kingdom goes far beyond any of the promises of the Law, and it was not based on Abraham’s good works. Genesis 15 says that when Abraham believed God’s promise, God counted his faith for righteousness. Paul was referring to this very thing when in Galatians 3 he said:

Galatians 3:9-13, 21-23 (NKJ)
9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.
10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them."
11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith."
12 Yet the law is not of faith, but "the man who does them shall live by them."
13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"),

Paul then asked,
21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.
22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed.

The New International Version says that we were locked up by the law until faith was revealed, but I prefer the versions of the Bible which say “until The Faith was revealed.” According to Strong’s Greek Dictionary, the definite article is present.

Paul made it clear in the previous chapter that The Faith is the faith which is fully invested in Jesus Christ who died upon the cross for our sins. Paul stated in Galatians 2:

Galatians 2:16
16 "knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ. Even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.

Then Paul went on to say:
Galatians 2:19-20
19 "For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.
20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Faith in the Son of God is The Faith for which mankind had been kept or preserved under the Law. All were found guilty under the Law, but now all have the opportunity to be set free from the Law through faith in Jesus Christ.

Faith in Jesus Christ is The Faith because Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no man comes to the Father except through faith in Christ. When we come to the point of believing that Jesus Christ died for our sins, then we can say with the Apostle Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”

But faith in Jesus Christ not only allows us the opportunity to put the old man of the flesh to death, but it allows us to live in and through the power of Jesus Christ for Paul went on to say, “The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

The one faith of the Bible is the faith which carries us through the crucifixion of Christ and into the resurrection power of Christ. Romans 6 puts it this way:

Romans 6:3-5 (NKJ)
3 . . . do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,

These believers in Rome had been baptized in water, and Paul wanted them to know that their water baptism was just a symbol of a spiritual reality which was far more significant than the water to which they had submitted.

They had been baptized in water when they put their faith in Christ, and Paul was saying that it was their faith in Christ which had brought about a greater baptism than that of water. By faith they were spiritually baptized into the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

When James and John came with their mother, seeking a position of honor in the kingdom, the Lord Jesus asked, “Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” When they said, “we are”, Jesus said, “You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with.” (Matt 20:22-23)

Of coarse, the Lord Jesus was speaking of His death, burial and resurrection for He had just finished telling them that when they got to Jerusalem, the chief priests and scribes would mock Him, scourge Him, spit upon Him, and kill Him, but that He would rise again the third day.

To receive a position of honor in the kingdom, they would have to be willing to be baptized with the baptism of the Lord. They would have to be willing to be crucified with Christ. In that same way, believers today must be willing to be spiritually baptized with the baptism of the Lord. We must be willing to be crucified with Christ so that we can be raised with Him to new life by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The book of Romans was written during the Acts period while water baptism was being practiced. It was a ritual which was associated with God’s offer of the New Covenant Kingdom. Paul knew that the believers in Rome had been baptized in water, but he wanted to make sure they knew the spiritual significance of that outward symbol.

By the time the book of Ephesians was written, God’s offer of the New Covenant Kingdom had been temporarily set aside, and God was using the Apostle Paul to reveal the details of the Church which is the Body of Christ.

As you may recall, the Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 3 that God had given him the revelation concerning the one body of our present age to which Jews and Gentiles alike are added. He said that this revelation was a mystery which had never been revealed to the sons of men in previous ages.

Now, here in Ephesians 4, Paul reveals that there is only one baptism for the Church of the one body. This stands in contrast to the book of Romans where the believers had been baptized in water but had to be reminded that there is another spiritual baptism into the death, burial and resurrection of Christ which is far more significant.

Colossians is another book which Paul wrote after the setting aside of Israel’s kingdom program. In Colossians, Paul confirms that for believers today there is only one baptism. In Chapter 2, he said:

Colossians 2:8-12 (NKJ)
8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
10 and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,
12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

In this passage, Paul goes straight from his warning about detrimental and even deceitful traditions of men into a discussion of rituals. When he says that we are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, Paul was clearly warning us that submission to physical circumcision would rob us of certain spiritual blessings. Submitting to such rituals would deny the exalted position of Christ as the head of all principality and power. This is confirmed later in Colossians 2 where Paul says:

Colossians 2:18-20 (NKJ)
18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.
20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations--

Circumcision was a symbol of death, while baptism was a symbol of death, burial and resurrection. Circumcision was appropriate for the Law for it was a covenant of death. Baptism was appropriate for the New Covenant for it was a covenant of new life through faith in Christ.

Today, we have been rescued from the lower or more basic principles of the world, and we have been raised into the glory of the heavenlies. Let us guard against any philosophy or doctrine which would rob us of that glory. Even without physical circumcision, we have been circumcised by the circumcision of Christ. Even without physical baptism, we have been baptized into the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

Paul goes on to say:
Colossians 2:13 (NKJ)
13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses,

Members of the Church which is the Body of Christ are complete in Christ, and the physical rituals can actually serve to hinder our fellowship in the fullness of Christ. Therefore, Paul said in Colossians 3:

Colossians 3:1 (NKJ)
1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God.

For members of the Church which is the Body of Christ, there is one faith which results in the one baptism into the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. The one faith is the faith which believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died on the cross for our sins.

As Paul neared the end of his ministry, he said with eager anticipation:

2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NKJ)
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

I see our time is gone for this morning. Thank you for listening, and I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:

http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/

http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/

http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 6 (10-23-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 6
Bible Study Time 10-23-05

The Spirit of God works in a fully integrated environment in that every aspect of the Spirit is fully compatible and fully functional with every other aspect of the Spirit. The Apostle Paul puts it beautifully when he speaks of the unity of the Spirit. When we as believers walk in the Spirit, we begin to sense a personal spiritual unity, and we realize that we are indeed complete in Christ.

As Paul describes the unity of the Spirit in Ephesians 4 he says that there is one Lord and one God and Father of all. This stands in contrast to the pagan religions of Greece and Rome. They had many gods who represented the worst of human characteristics.

It’s little wonder that many of the Gentiles converted to Judaism when they came into contact with the true and the living God. They must have been filled with a sense of wonder and relief to hear that there is really only one God, who is Lord over all of creation and who is the Father of all people.

How satisfying it must have been to learn that the one true God does not spend His time trying to help people accomplish their own diabolical schemes, but that His goal for mankind is personal fellowship with Him.

In Luke, Chapter 7, we read about the Roman centurion whose servant was ill. He asked his friends of the Jewish synagogue to go and talk with the Lord Jesus. He thought that maybe they could convince Jesus to come and heal his servant. Obviously, this Gentile had come to know the God of the Jews.

When he was ordered to his post in this remote region of the Empire, he may well have wondered what he had done to offend the gods. But little did he know that the true and the living God was calling him to Himself. When his Jewish friends came to Jesus, they said that he was deserving of the Lord’s attention because “he loves our nation and has built us a synagogue.”

In Acts, Chapter 8, we read about the Ethiopian who traveled to Jerusalem to worship the God of the Jews. The Bible says that this was a man of great authority in Ethiopia, but in spite of his power and authority in his homeland, it was the God of the Jews who had captured his heart. He was willing to travel through the desert to Jerusalem to worship the one God who is sovereign over all the earth.

Did these men perceive some sort of personal political or social advantage for themselves by joining the religion of the Jews. That could hardly have been the case for God had made it clear that the Jews were His chosen people. The only people who could hold a position of authority within the Jewish system were those of Jewish descent.

Many people would find such a system offensive, but these men were attracted not to the religious system of the Jews but to the God of the Jews. They must have found the joy that comes with laying one’s personal ambition aside to love and serve the God creation.

The Bible starts at the beginning and tells us why we are here. The first verse says:

Genesis 1:1 (NKJ)
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

For thousands of years, the devil has very effectively sold the idea that man evolved from the elements of nature. The pagans all worshiped the elements of nature and believed that the gods behind the forces of nature determined the course of human events.

The purpose of this doctrine of evolution was and is to deny the authority of God as the creator. If God did create all things then He has the right to determine what is right and what is wrong for His creation. He has the right to determine the standard by which all men and all things are judged.

The Bible reveals the truth about God and about man’s relationship to God. Genesis, Chapter 2, says:

Genesis 2:4-8 (NKJ)
4 This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground;
6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.
7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
8 The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.

In passages like this the pagans found at last a logical explanation for why we are here. It makes much more sense to believe that there is one God who is the Father us of us all than to believe that somehow man just appeared as an accident of nature.

The devil is very persistent with his corrupt doctrines, however. In the mid 1800’s Charles Darwin brought the doctrine of evolution over into the realm of science, explaining man’s evolution on the basis of natural selection through genetic mutation. The devil has used this doctrine through the years to corrupt not only theology but science as well.

Jeremiah tells us that the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, and certainly this can easily be seen in the fact that mankind in general has accepted the doctrine of evolution. Just as many pagans converted to Judaism because they longed for the truth, even so many a calloused heart has turned to the theory of evolution in an effort to escape the God of creation. The Apostle Paul gave a stern warning to Timothy when he said:

1 Timothy 4:1-2 (NKJ)
1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
2 speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,

The fact that scientists continue to believe and adamantly fight for a doctrine which has no critical evidence to support its assumptions is evidence in itself that the doctrine of evolution is a doctrine of demons.

King David was a man who rejoiced in the fact that there is one Lord and one God who is the Father of us all. He said in Psalms 33:

Psalms 33:6-11 (NKJ)
6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
9 For He spoke, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.
11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.

David also saw the implication of the fact that God created all things. In Psalms, Chapter 7, he said, “The LORD shall judge the peoples” and then he said, “Judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness, and according to my integrity within me.” He understood that God has the right to judge because He is the creator.

Isaiah says in Chapter 42, “Thus says God the LORD” but before he quotes the LORD he describes the LORD by saying, “He is the one:

Isaiah 42:5-8 (NKJ)
5 . . . who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it, and spirit to those who walk on it:

Then, Isaiah quotes the Lord as He speaks to the nation of Israel saying:

Isaiah 42:6-8 (NKJ)
6 "I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles,
8 I am the LORD, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to graven images.

God is the creator and as such He has the right to judge, and He will not give His glory to another. When I read this passage, I can understand why the pagans were drawn to such a powerful and almighty God who is at the same time kind and compassionate and faithful.

Isaiah actually had the opportunity to see the glory of the Lord at the time of his commissioning. He said (Isaiah 6:1) that he saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Then, he said that the Lord told him to preach this message to Israel:

Isaiah 6:9-10 (NKJ)
9 . . . Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.'
10 "Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed."

The Lord told Isaiah the he would preach to the nation of Israel until they covered their eyes and plugged their ears but that he should not expect the people to heed his message.

This passage was quoted many times by the Lord Jesus during His earthly ministry and by the apostles during the Acts period. On one such occasion the Apostle John quoted this verse and then said, “These things Isaiah said when he saw the glory of Jesus and spoke of Him.” (John 12:41) John’s message is clear. The one God of the Old Testament is the one Lord of the New Testament. The Lord Jesus is the creator God of the Old Testament.

When the centurion saw the miracles of Jesus in his hometown of Capernaum, he believed in Jesus and called Him Lord. When the Ethiopian was told about Jesus, He said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” These men had hearts that were open to the truth of God’s word. Unfortunately, the Jewish people did not.

The Lord Jesus left the Pharisees speechless when He questioned them about the identity of the Messiah. He asked:

Matthew 22:42-46 (NKJ)
42 . . . "What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?" They said to Him, "The Son of David."
43 He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:
44 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool" '?
45 "If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"
46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.

The Pharisees believed in the coming Messiah, but they wanted Him on their terms. They wanted to dictate to God who the Messiah would be. As a result, they missed their opportunity to believe in the Messiah and receive the salvation of the Lord. The Pharisees accused Jesus of making Himself equal with God, but the Messiah had to be equal with God in order to be the Messiah.

Paul said in Philippians 2:

Philippians 2:5-11 (NKJ)
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

There is one Lord, even Jesus Christ, and there is one God who is the Father of us all. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me.”

I see our time is gone. Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:

http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/

http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/

http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 5 (10-16-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 5
Bible Study Time 10-16-05

In one of the Peanuts cartoons Lucy demanded that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn’t. “What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?” asks Linus. “These five fingers,” says Lucy. “Individually they’re nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold.” “Which channel do you want?” asks Linus. Then, turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, “Why can’t you guys get organized like that?”

In Ephesians, Chapter 4, the Apostle Paul tells us that we should endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, and certainly one of the many splendors of God is the unity of the Spirit.

The concept of unity is very similar to the concept of integrity because integrity literally means completeness, and it refers to an integrated oneness. Because every aspect of the Spirit is fully integrated, the love of the Spirit is complete love, the joy of the Spirit is total joy, the peace of the Spirit is absolute peace. When we as individual believers walk in the Spirit, we attain a singleness of purpose and direction which results in personal integrity.

In Ephesians, Chapter 4, the unity of the Spirit is seen under a magnifying glass as Paul reveals that:

Ephesians 4:4-6 (NKJ)
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;
5 (There is) one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Nowhere is the unity of the Spirit more clearly seen than in our present age. It is no coincidence that Paul begins his description of the unity of the Spirit by declaring that there is one body. In the first chapter of Ephesians, Paul revealed that today Jesus Christ serves as the head over all things to the church which is His body. In Ephesians 2 he announced that today God is creating in Himself one new man from believing Jews and Gentiles.

This unity within the ranks of believers has not always been the case. About 2000 years before Christ, God called a man named Abraham and set him apart from the rest of the human race. God gave the land of Palestine to Abraham and promised that all the world would be blessed through one of his descendants. Later God narrowed the focus of that prophecy when He promised David that it would be one of his descendants who would establish an everlasting kingdom upon the earth.

Therefore, during the 2000 year period from Abraham to Christ, God’s program for man centered upon Abraham and his descendants. Even when Israel was carried away into captivity because of her sin, God did not forsake His promises to Abraham and David. There in a strange land the prophets all confirmed that God would someday fulfill all of the promises.

However, when the Lord Jesus came to fulfill those promises, He was rejected and killed. When He was raised from the dead, He was again rejected in spite of the many miracles, wonders and signs which were done by the apostles.

At the end of the Acts period, God temporarily set aside the promises contained in the covenants of Israel and revealed through the Apostle Paul the Church which is the Body of Christ. This did not at all frustrate the plan and purpose of God, for God had planned it all along. In fact, the calling out of the Church revealed the magnitude of the manifold wisdom of God.

Someday God will call the Church of our present age home to be with Christ in the glory, and then He will resume His dealings with Israel. After a time of great tribulation, the nation of Israel will be purified and then glorified as they inherit the kingdom which was promised to Abraham and David so many years ago.

But today, there is one body in which there is neither Jew nor Gentile. Today, there is no covenant which separates or differentiates between the nations of the world. God’s offer of salvation is open to all people everywhere regardless of one’s ethnic heritage. In spite of the fact that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, it is God’s will for all men to be saved and to come into the knowledge of the truth that Jesus Christ is the one mediator between God and man, and whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but shall have everlasting life.

It is vital that we recognize the one body of our present age and that this body is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. If we allow ourselves to think of the Church of God as a fragmented group of earthly organizations, we will have very little chance of keeping the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

After announcing the one body of our present age, Paul announced with jubilation that there is but one Spirit. This was not to deny the fact that there are other spirit beings in the universe. Paul would later say in Ephesians 6 that:

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJ)
12 . . . we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

The spiritual power of demons is very real, but Paul knew that the Gentiles had come out of the spiritual quagmire of paganism. They knew all too well the horrors of demonic oppression. They knew what it was like to be held captive by a twisted, demonic religion which was based on a superstitious lust for power, pleasure and prestige. God had miraculously opened their eyes to the fact that their pagan religion was a religion of destruction and death.

Paul was rejoicing with them in the fact that there is only one Spirit who has the ultimate authority over all of the spirit world and that is the Holy Spirit of God. What a thrill it must have been for them to realize that the Spirit of God is decent and kind and pure and holy, and hopefully that is something that thrills our hearts as well.

The Lord Jesus spoke often with great enthusiasm about the coming of the one Spirit. He said that Spirit would work with singleness of purpose to draw all people to Jesus Christ. He referred to the Spirit as the Helper and said:

John 15:26 (NKJ)
26 " . . . when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.

John 16:13-14 (NKJ)
13 "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
14 "He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.

It was the Spirit of God who taught us about Christ, convicted us of our need for Christ, and then brought us to a personal faith in Christ. Then He sealed us in the Body of Christ and taught us of the one hope of our calling in Christ.

When the Lord Jesus catches up the Church of the one body at the time of the rapture, He is not going to take only some of the believers and leave the rest on the earth to go through the tribulation period. No, all believers of our present age have the same hope. Whether living or dead at the time of the rapture, we will all be caught up to be with the Lord in heaven before the tribulation period. Our hope for the ages is to enjoy the exceeding riches of God’s grace in the heavenly places.

The nation of Israel, on the other hand, has the hope of the earthly kingdom. During the tribulation period, God will purify Israel and make her ready for the kingdom. Peter said that God called the nation of Israel with a special, or peculiar, calling. In I Peter 2, he said to Israel:

1 Peter 2:9-12 (NKJ)
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles . . .

Peter speaks of the time when Israel will serve as a nation of priests during the earthly kingdom. Hosea predicted the captivity of Israel and said that Israel would go through a period of time when God would no longer claim them as his own. But Hosea also said that there would come a day when Israel would return to the promised land, and at that time they would be called the Sons of God.

Peter was reminding his Jewish readers that they were a chosen generation, called to experience the fulfillment of that prophesy. He said, “You once were not a people, but you are now the people of God.”

When Peter said, “I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims” he was reminding them of the fact that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were all sojourners in a strange land, even though that land had been promised to them as an everlasting inheritance. Peter was confirming to the Jews of the Dispersion that they had the same hope as that of Abraham even though they too were still sojourners in the land.

Paul, on the other hand, wrote to the believers of our present age, to the members of the Church which is the Body of Christ, and he said that we too are a special or peculiar people but not in the same sense as the Jews of the Dispersion. He wrote to Titus:

Titus 2:11-14 (NKJ)
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,

(In our present age, the salvation of God has been revealed to all men.)

Titus 2:11-14 (NKJ)
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,
12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,
13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

Paul’s focus was upon the present age, and he said that the blessed hope of the Church is the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Colossians 3:4 (NKJ)
4 When Christ who is our life appears, then (we) also will appear with Him in glory.

The Church which is the Body of Christ has a special calling separate and apart from Israel just like Israel has a special calling which is separate and apart from the Church which is the Body of Christ. Israel has an earthly calling, while the members of the Church are a heavenly people with a heavenly calling.

Philippians 3:20-21 (NKJ)
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Colossians 3:1-2 (NKJ)
1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

The unity of the Spirit that we experience in our present age is truly a marvelous thing, for today all believers have this unique, heavenly calling as a member of the Church which is the Body of Christ. Today,

Ephesians 4:4 (NKJ)
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;

Well, I’ve enjoyed studying with you this morning. I trust that today you will enjoy to the fullest the unity of the Spirit that is ours as members of the Church which is the Body of Christ. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 4 (10-9-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 4
Bible Study Time 10-9-05

The past few weeks we have been looking at Ephesians, Chapter 4, where the Holy Spirit begs us to walk worthy of our calling. This is critical because our conduct is a direct reflection on the Lord Jesus. Everything we do should declare the worth of our calling, and everything we do should declare the worth of Jesus Christ.

Although Paul’s prison epistles are well known for their clear presentation of God’s salvation, which comes by grace through faith, Paul never missed an opportunity in these epistles to emphasize the importance of a worthy walk. Paul said that he prayed for the Colossians that they might walk worthy of the Lord. He told the Philippians that their conduct should be worthy of the gospel of Christ. And then, here in Ephesians 4, he says that we should walk worthy of the calling with which we have been called.

When the President of the United States calls a person to serve on his staff, the one who is called knows immediately the significance of such a high calling. They know that they will constantly be in the public eye and that everything they do will reflect not only upon themselves but also upon the President.

When we put our faith in Jesus Christ and trust Him as our personal Savior, God calls us to be ambassadors for Christ. As such, everything we do is dissected and analyzed by the world, and every deed reflects on the character of Christ.

At this point in the book of Ephesians we know our calling. We were chosen before the foundation of the world and predestined to become the Sons of God by Jesus Christ. We are seated in the heavens as members of the Church which is the Body of Christ, and we have the glorious hope of experiencing the exceeding riches of God’s grace now and throughout all of the ages to come. Therefore, Paul begs us to walk worthy of this high calling.

When Paul says that our conduct should be characterized by humility and longsuffering, we begin to understand that God is more concerned with who we are than He is with what we do. What we do is merely an indicator of who we are. Paul really drives this point home in 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13, where he says:

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (NKJ)
1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.
2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

As we continue in 1 Corinthians 13, we see that real love produces humility and longsuffering. Verse 4 says:

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NKJ)
4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;
5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;
6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

We can be this kind of person only if the old nature is crucified with Christ, and we have become new creations by the power of God’s Spirit. We can be like Christ only as we yield to the Spirit of Christ within us. Therefore, Paul says in Ephesians 4 that we should endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

On each day of the Feast of Tabernacles the priest would draw water from the stream of Siloah which flowed under the temple mountain. As he poured the water upon the alter, the crowd would erupt in loud jubilation and sing the words of Isaiah 12. This ceremony was accompanied by such ecstatic joy that it was seen as the very definition of rejoicing.

On one such occasion the Lord Jesus was there. It was the last day of the feast, and the priest had drawn the water in golden vessels. As he poured the water on the alter, the people sang, “With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of Salvation.” At this point Jesus stood up and cried out, saying,

John 7:37-39
37 . . . "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

The crowd grew silent, spellbound by His proclamation. They sensed that these were the words of God, and many of them believed in Jesus. Of coarse, Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit who brings peace and joy and life even as water gives refreshment to the the land which is parched by the sun. Jesus later told his disciples:

John 14:16-17 (NKJ)
16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever--
17 "the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:26-27 (NKJ)
26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
27 "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

The Lord Jesus promised the Spirit of God and with Him would come the peace that passes understanding. To walk worthy of the calling with which we are called, we must endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

However, if the Spirit of God is like living water, then the world is like oil. The Spirit of God and the world do not mix. Notice that Paul did not say we should strive for unity with all people. The world calls for peace, peace where there is no peace. God calls for peace and unity within the realm of His Spirit.

The things of the Spirit are foolishness to the natural mind. The Lord Jesus commanded His disciples that they should love one another, but then He went on to say:

John 15:18-20 (NKJ)
18 "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.
19 "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
20 "Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you . . .

When the Lord Jesus addressed the disciples at their commissioning, He warned them that they would not receive a warm welcome from the world. In verse 11 of Matthew 10 He said:

Matthew 10:11-15 (NKJ)
11 "Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out . . .
13 "If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.
14 "And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.
15 "Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!

What did they have to do to be worthy? They had to receive the disciples and hear their words. They had to believe the gospel in order to escape the coming judgment.

Now the disciples did not know that Israel’s kingdom program was going to be set aside for 2000 years while God added believers to His Church in the heavens. As far as they knew, they were in the tribulation period which had to come before the setting up of the kingdom.

They knew from the prophets that God was going to miraculously preserve the faithful remnant during the tribulation period. However, this did not mean that they would not suffer at the hands of unbelievers. In Matthew 10, the Lord warned His disciples that they were about to enter a combat zone. Verse 16 says:

Matthew 10:16-17, 34 (NKJ)
16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.
17 "But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues . . .
34 Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.

The Apostle John confirms that the world is at odds with the Spirit of God. I John 4 says:

I John 4:1-3 (NKJ)
1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2 By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,
3 and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.

When we accept Christ, God separates us from the world and makes us His own. Paul told Titus that Christ gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Paul told the Romans that we as believers should not be conformed to this world but transformed by the renewing of our minds.

As God’s chosen people, we have been call out of the world, and we must endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We must do this in an individual sense. If we live in sin, we can not fellowship with the Spirit of God. However, if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace, and He alone can bring peace to the heart that is troubled by sin.

We must also endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in a corporate sense as the Church which is the Body of Christ. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

It is such a blessing to fellowship with believers who share together the experience of walking with Jesus Christ. When we are worn down by the pressures of the world, we have the assurance that we have a haven of peace and rest and healing in the assembly of the saints.

In October of 1993, the survivors of the Black Hawk Down incident in Mogadishu, Somalia, had been pinned down throughout the night in an intense firefight. When morning finally came, a convoy was sent to rescue them, but there was only room on the vehicles for the wounded and the dead. Those with able bodies realized that they would be running along side the convoy in the midst of a barrage of gunfire.

In an incredible show of courage, they worked their way out of the city to the field hospital which had been set up in an empty soccer stadium. One can only imagine their sense of exhilaration and relief as they pulled into an environment that was relatively safe and peaceful. They were met by a well trained team of specialists who were responsive to their every need. How wonderful it must have been to escape the battle and receive the care they needed.

By the same token, we as believers need a designated place to go to escape the battle we face with the world. If we stay too long in the world without support, the results can be devastating for us and for the ones we love. Praise the Lord, God has given us the Body of Christ to lend us support and provide the spiritual therapy we need. Hebrews 10 says:

Hebrews 10:24-25 (NKJ)
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,
25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another . . .

But can you image how demoralizing it would have been for those battle worn soldiers in Mogadishu if upon their arrival at the hospital they had found the team of specialists fighting among themselves and unresponsive to their needs.

I’m sure we would all agree that such a thing would be inexcusable, but I’m afraid that too often our churches are not responsive to the needs of those who have experienced the horrors of doing battle with the world. Internal conflicts often serve to distract us and weaken our position.

We have a common enemy in the world, but the good news is that we can overcome the world if we endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace

Well, I see our time is gone for this morning. Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 3 (10-2-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 3
Bible Study Time 10-2-05

In Ephesians 4, the Holy Spirit used the Apostle Paul to reveal the heart of God in regard to the walk of the believer. God has saved us by His grace because of His great love for us. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us. God has taken us from the depths of sin and depravity and has given us a high and noble calling in Jesus Christ. It gives Him great pleasure to see us live a life that is worthy of such a position. He has given us the power through the Holy Spirit to walk worthy of the calling with which we have been called.

Paul says that to walk worthy of our new position, we should walk with all humility, putting aside our own selfish ambition. We should look not only on our own situation, but we should consider the circumstances of others.

Anyone is a position of authority realizes very quickly that you can’t please everyone. We all want what is best for us, but what is best for us may not be the best for someone else. When people consider only their own interests, the result is a common but very unpleasant social phenomenon known as bickering and fighting.

In Galatians 5, Paul says that hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, and dissensions are all works of the flesh. According to Ephesians 2, we once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, and it came naturally to us to fulfill all of the desires of the flesh.

Ephesians 2:4-5 (NKJ)
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 . . . made us alive together with Christ

Paul says in Ephesians 4 that our worthy walk involves not only walking with all humility, but it also involves walking with longsuffering as we bear with one another in love.

Our great example in longsuffering is God, Himself. In the book of Exodus we see that the children of Israel grew restless as Moses was with the Lord on Mt. Sinai. They suspected that something dreadful had happened to him and that he simply was not going to come down from the mountain.

They had witnessed the lightning and the thunder at the mountaintop. They had felt the seizures of the earth beneath their feet. They, themselves, had trembled with fear as they heard the voice of the Lord and agreed to do all that He commanded them to do.

As Moses climbed up the side of the mountain and disappeared into the cloud, they waited. As they waited, minutes turned into hours, and the hours into days. After forty days they began to wonder if Moses would ever return. Maybe the consuming fire had claimed its first victim. Just how long were they suppose to wait for Moses?

The elders of the people finally came to Aaron and said, “We think that we’ve waited long enough. It appears that something has happened to Moses, and we can’t wait here forever. Let’s make some gods like we had back in Egypt, and then we can tell the people that these are the gods that brought us up out of the land of Egypt.”

Obviously, this was not only human nature at its worst, but it was a scheme which smelled like smoke and came straight from the pit of hell. There is nothing the devil likes more than manipulating people with religion. However, religious leaders should realize that a lie is a lie and nothing good can come from a lie. The devil is a liar and the father of lies.

The children of Israel had witnessed the mighty miracles which the Lord had done through Moses. After all, Moses had done miracles at his first meeting with the elders, and the Bible says that when the elders saw the miracles, they believed that the Lord had visited them and that He had taken notice of their affliction.

The children of Israel had also seen the plaques which God had done through Moses. They had seen the water turn to blood. They had seen the frogs, the gnats, the flies, the dying cattle and the festering boils. They had seen the hail, the locusts, the darkness and the death of Egypt’s firstborn sons, including the death of Pharaoh’s son.

God had protected them through all of these plagues, and He had delivered them from the Egyptian army as they crossed the Red Sea. But still the faith of Israel was weak. After 40 days of waiting for Moses at the foot of Mt. Sinai, they decided they needed a new god. The God who had proven Himself to them time and time again just wasn’t worth waiting for any longer.

When the elders came to Aaron with their concerns, he told them to gather up all of their gold jewelry. He took the gold, melted it down in a blazing furnace, and cast it in the shape of a giant calf.

The elders of Israel must have been very pleased with themselves for they had successfully created a god for the people to worship, and they were confident that this god would never forsake them like the God who had lured Moses up into the fiery mountain peak.

They were so excited that they threw a big party. They ate and drank and sang and danced. But little did they know that the God who they thought had forsaken them was looking down from that mountain and was observing all of their activities. When God saw the golden calf, He was so angry that He wanted to destroy the entire nation of Israel. Moses stepped up and begged for mercy on Israel’s behalf, saying:

Exodus 32:12-14 (NKJ)
12 "Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, 'He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people.
13 "Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, 'I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'"
14 So the LORD relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.

When I think of this event, I can not help but think of the number of people who think that the God of the Bible has gone away and left us here to follow our own devices. They have forgotten all of the things that God has done in the past to prove that He is alive and well. They have forgotten all of the mighty works of God which are recorded in the scriptures, and they have forgotten that God is the source of the freedom and prosperity which we enjoy and so often take for granted.

We live in a time when people scoff at the word of God and openly deride the name of Jesus. They think that the religion of the Bible is a thing of the past and that the God of the Bible is no longer a viable force.

The truth of the matter is, however, that the God of the Bible is very much alive, and He is paying close attention to all of the events that take place upon this earth. Today, we live in an age of grace, but there is coming a time when God will no longer remain silent in the heavens. Someday He will speak and all of the world will become aware of His mighty power.

There are those who think that we are doing a great job of solving the world’s problems without God. There are those who think that we can just replace God with a god of our own choosing. But God will someday set the record straight just like He did when He saw the golden calf.

As angry as God was when He saw the calf, He heeded Moses’ plea and agreed not to destroy the children of Israel. At first He told Moses to go on to the promised land with the children of Israel. He said that He would send His Angel before them, but that He would not be going with them.

When the people heard this bad news, they mourned and stripped themselves of their jewelry. After Moses went before the Lord again to plead their case, God agreed to go with them and lead them to the promised land. Then God revealed Himself to Moses in a way that revealed all of the goodness of the Lord. As the Lord passed before Moses, the Lord said:

Exodus 34:6-8 (NKJ)
6 . . . "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth,
7 "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children to the third and the fourth generation."
8 So Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped.

The Lord God is gracious and longsuffering, and as the sons of God, we should be gracious and longsuffering too. In Luke, Chapter 6, Jesus said:

Luke 6:35-36 (NKJ)
35 " . . . love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.
36 "Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

If this is true, that we should love our enemies, then certainly we should be longsuffering with one another as well. We should bear with one another in love.

Have you ever thought about the fact that we are so much more vulnerable to being hurt by those we love than we are to being hurt by a stranger? Someone we don’t know can hardly hurt us. Oh, a stranger may attack us and leave us with physical wounds, but physical wounds heal so much faster and so much better than the emotional wounds which are caused by the personal betrayal of someone we love.

Emotional wounds take a long time to heal and often leave permanent scars. We become vulnerable to this kind of pain whenever we chose to love. This deep, heartfelt pain is the kind of pain that God suffered when He looked down from Mt. Sinai and saw His chosen people worshipping a god which they had fashioned with their own hands. Not only had they failed to love and honor Him as they had promised to do, but they had rejected Him. They did not want Him as their god.

God knows the pain of rejection, and He can empathize with us when our pain is deep and personal. He knows our pain, and He also knows what is best for us. He does not tell us to strike back or hold a grudge. He does not say that there are some circumstances in which hatred is justified. No, He says just the opposite. He told the Apostle Paul to tell us that we should be longsuffering with one another, and we should bear with one another in love.

Isn’t it good that the children of Israel had a mediator who could plead their case before God when they messed up. When Moses finally did come down from that mountain, can you just imagine the look on their faces. All of a sudden, they knew not only that Moses was alive, but they knew that God too was alive, and that judgment was coming. But Exodus 32 says that Moses went before the Lord again to plead for the children of Israel.

Moses was called to represent God to the children of Israel, but because Moses loved the children of Israel, he ended up representing the children of Israel before God. Jesus Christ was called to represent God to us, and He did that very well. The Apostle John said that no one has seen God at any time, but that Jesus Christ has declared Him.

However, Jesus Christ not only represents the Father to us, but because of His love for us, He represents us to the Father. Again, it was the Apostle John who said that if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, even Jesus Christ the righteous. Today, there is one mediator between God and man, and that mediator is the Man Christ Jesus.

If you do not know the Lord today, you can call upon the Lord Jesus Christ. If you believe that He died for your sins, He will represent you before the Father. He will plead your case, and God will accept you as one of his children. You will become a member of the household of God.

We have this confidence because we know that Jesus Christ will make His plea not on the basis of our good deeds, but on the basis of His shed blood. God’s word declares that God is satisfied with the shed blood of Jesus Christ as the full payment for our sins.

If you already know the Lord, then you share with all believers the obligation and privilege of walking with longsuffering toward others and bearing one another in love. Later in Ephesians 4, Paul says:

Ephesians 4:32 (KJV)
32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

I see our time is gone for this morning. Thank for listening to Bible Study Time. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 2 (9-25-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 2
Bible Study Time 9-25-05

In Ephesians, Chapter 4, Paul says:

Ephesians 4:1-3 (NKJ)
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Where the New King James version of the Bible says that we should walk with lowliness and gentleness, the King James Version says lowliness and meekness. The New American Standard version says with humility and gentleness. The words for lowliness, gentleness, meekness and humility are all translated in an interchangeable fashion. Therefore, it would be difficult to make a clear cut distinction between one or the other.

By using these two similar words one after the other, Paul was able to magnify the point that humility is of utmost importance in a walk that is worthy of the Lord. We often do the same thing in our descriptions. We may say that someone is honest and forthright. Or when we say that someone is faithful and true. Paul was emphasizing the importance of humility when he said that we should walk with all lowliness and gentleness.

Although these Greek words are essentially synonymous, they probably mean something a little different to each one of us. As we read these words, the Holy Spirit is able to communicate with us in a personal way. The Holy Spirit knows our personal history as well as our personality. As a result, He is able to establish a spiritual connection with us and communicate with us in a way that goes beyond words. He is able to make this unique spiritual connection with each and every believer.

This was graphically illustrated for us on the day of Pentecost when the apostles were gathered together in a small house. All of a sudden a deafening sound came out of heaven. It sounded like a mighty rushing wind, and it was so loud that all of the neighborhood scurried to investigate. The apostles then saw tongues of fire which separated and came to rest upon each one of the them. At that point the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in other languages.

Many of the Jews who gathered outside the house had come to Jerusalem from far away to celebrate the Feast of Pentecost. Naturally, they spoke a variety of languages, but that was not a problem on this occasion.

As the Holy Spirit spoke through the apostles, each person could hear the words in his own language, as if each person had his own individual interpreter. In a sense, all of us speak different languages because words mean different things to different people. However, that poses no problem for God. There is no communication barrier that God is not able to overcome. God is able and willing to speak to us in our own language, in our own personal dialect. He knows exactly what words to say to open our hearts with surgical precision.

When Peter declared in Acts, Chapter 2, that Jesus Christ had returned from the dead, the Jews who were present were pierced to the heart for it became apparent to them that they had crucified the Messiah. The one for whom the nation of Israel had waited for so long had been wrongfully accused and murdered with malice.

Prompted by the Holy Spirit, they asked, “What shall we do?”

Acts 2:38-39 (NKJ)
38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39 "For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call."

Of coarse, the promise of which Peter spoke was the promise of the earthly kingdom. All of the prophets had steadfastly maintained that the Messiah would come to establish a glorious earthly kingdom. Isaiah said:

Isaiah 9:6-7 (NKJ)
6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Later Isaiah said:

Isaiah 55:1-3 (NKJ)
1 "Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you-- the sure mercies of David.

The time for the New Covenant had finally arrived, but the New Covenant was dependent upon Israel’s willingness to accept it by faith. The Holy Spirit spoke through Peter and said that Jesus Christ was the promised Messiah, but He was killed by wicked hands and then raised from the dead. All the nation of Israel had to do was repent and be baptized for the remission of sins and the promise of the kingdom would be fulfilled.

The Bible says that 3000 Jews put their faith in Jesus Christ that day, and that largely a result of the fact that each person heard the word of the Lord in his own language.

God continued to offer the kingdom to the nation of Israel throughout the Acts period, but they refused to believe. When God set Israel’s kingdom program aside at the end of the Acts period, He began to reveal the Church which is the Body of Christ which has no expectation of the earthly kingdom.

Even though the Holy Spirit no longer works through sign gifts such as speaking in tongues, the Holy Spirit still acts as the interpreter of the word of God. When we open the word of God and begin to read, the Holy Spirit speaks to us in our own personal dialect.

When I think of someone who walks with all lowliness and gentleness, I think of someone who does not think of himself more highly than he ought to think. The letter I is at the center of the word pride, even as self is at the core of those who are full of pride. Pride is selfish. It’s self centered, self absorbed, and self seeking. The Bible says that we should humble ourselves and give our self to God.

1 Corinthians 6:20 (NKJ)
20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.

Jesus Christ gave Himself so that we could know the joy of giving ourselves to God through faith in Him.

Pride superficially inflates the value of self so that it becomes vainly puffed up. Pride wants to lavishly decorate the external self, and put it on display before the world. On the other hand, if we give our hearts to God, He beautifully decorates the internal self with the joy that comes with true peace and love. God created us with a God-size hole in our hearts, and only God can fill that hole.

When we learn to crucify self and learn the meaning of humility, only then can we truly give to one another. Philippians 2 says:

Philippians 2:3-4 (NKJ)
3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.
4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

This is not a license to become a busy body, minding everybody else’s business. Neither is it a green light to become the town gossip. On the contrary, it means that we should be genuinely concerned about one another.

When someone is sick, we should make it a point to care for them. When someone is suffering, we should make it a point to bring them comfort. When someone is needy, we should do our best to supply that need.

Becoming self absorbed guarantees a seat at the table where misery is the main course, but when we who believe learn to look out for the interests of others and dedicate ourselves to meeting the needs of others, we find the joy of the Lord.

It is such a paradox that we can find joy in giving. The fact that we do find joy in giving is one of the greatest evidences that we are a creation of God and not the product of natural selection. According to natural selection, only the strong survive, and if this were the case there could be no room for the joy of giving. The truth is that we were created by God with a need for giving, first to God and then to one another.

Satan, himself, is the author of pride. Isaiah says that there was a time when Satan was known as Lucifer, and he was in a position of authority over all of the angels of God. But there came a time when he was no longer satisfied with his position. He became envious of God and said:

Isaiah 14:13-14 (NKJ)
13 . . . 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; . . .
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.'

Lucifer became self absorbed, saying, I will, I will, I will. He was filled with selfish ambition, saying, “I will be like the Most High.” As a result Satan was cast out of heaven and would later dedicate himself to man’s destruction.

Revelation, Chapter 12, calls Satan the accuser of the brethren, and as we guard against the sin of pride, it is important that we be aware of the fact that Satan often falsely accuses faithful believers of being full of pride. How ironic. The author of pride accuses the brethren of pride.

Joseph was one of the 12 sons of Jacob. God had great things planned for Joseph, and this became evident when he had a dream indicating that all of this brothers would someday bow before him. Naturally, this did not set well with Joseph’s brothers. They derided him, saying:

Gen 37:8 (NKJ)
8 . . . "Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?"

Obviously, the brothers thought Joseph was full of pride, but they revealed their own pride by rejecting the truth which was revealed through Joseph. Joseph had to learn that when you speak the truth, those who are offended by the truth may accuse you of arrogance and pride.

Truth must stand on its own merit. God’s word is true even if every man is a liar. Joseph learned his lesson well, and he never stopped believing that his brothers would someday bow before him.

On another occasion, David was sent by his father, Jesse, to look after his brothers who were fighting against the Philistines. When David arrived on the battlefield, he saw the giant named Goliath taunting the nation of Israel. David asked why this heathen was allowed to defy the armies of God, and David’s brother, Eliab, asked:

1 Samuel 17:28 (NKJ)
28 "Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, …"

Eliab thought he saw pride, but what he really saw was faith in the true and the living God. It had been so long sense Eliab had seen real faith that he didn’t even recognize it. Praise the Lord, David knew the difference, and he kept right on trusting the Lord and gained a spectacular victory over Goliath.

If we reject the truth of God’s word, we may perceive the messenger of God as being full of pride because our hearts are susceptible to the schemes of the devil. On the other hand, believing the truth is our greatest weapon against the devil because he has no power in the face of truth.

Proverbs 16 says:

Proverbs 16:18-20 (NKJ)
18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.
20 He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the LORD, happy is he.

Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/

Ephesians 4 Part 1 (9-18-05)

Ephesians 4 Part 1
Bible Study Time 9-18-05

In the first three chapters of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul reveals the position of the believer who is a member of the Church which is the Body of Christ. We were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world and called to be the Sons of God.

We are seated in Christ in the heavenly places where we are seen as holy and without blame. As a result, we have continuous access to the Father with confidence.

We were at one time dead in trespasses and sins, but now we have been made alive in Jesus Christ so that in the ages to come God may bestow upon us the exceeding riches of His grace.

When the Lord Jesus ascended into heaven, He placed His blood upon the mercy seat in the temple of heaven. By His sacrifice, the Lord Jesus Christ satisfied all of the righteous requirements of the Law. The rituals of the Law were abolished, and God created one new man from believing Jews and believing Gentiles. This new man is the Church which is the Body of Christ.

In Romans 11, Paul said that God committed Jews and Gentiles alike to disobedience so that He might have mercy on all. Then in Romans 12, Paul said:

Romans 12:1 (NKJ)
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

But how can we live a life that is holy and acceptable in the sight of God? We were born in sin, and God’s ways are not our ways. What seems good to us is often disgusting to God.

First of all, we have been redeemed from the curse by the blood of Christ, and God has given us the Holy Spirit. Jesus told his disciples:

John 16:12-13 (NKJ)
12 "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.
13 "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; . . .

Secondly, God has given us His word. Paul told Timothy:

2 Timothy 3:14-17 (NKJ)
14 . . . you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 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 complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Indeed, all scripture is God-breathed and was given that we might be thoroughly equipped for every good work. It is with this hope that we turn our attention to the last three chapters of Ephesians for these chapters serve as a guide for those who seek to live a life that is worthy of our calling in Jesus Christ. Paul begins Chapter 4 with these words:

Ephesians 4:1-3 (NKJ)
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Paul says that if we want to live a life that is consistent with our position in Christ, we must walk with all lowliness. The word for lowliness simply means with humility. This word is translated humility in several places including Acts, Chapter 20, where the Ephesian elders met with Paul in Miletus. Acts 20 says:

Acts 20:18-19 (NKJ)
18 And when they had come to (Paul), he said to them: "You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you,
19 "serving the Lord with all humility . . .

Later, Paul reminded the Philippians that they should let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind they should each esteem others better than themselves. And then to the Colossians, he said that they should put on tender mercies, kindness and humility.

The Apostle John wrote his account of the life of Jesus some 30 years after the other books of the New Testament had already been written. In his gospel account, he brings to our attention several events and discourses which were not revealed by the other historians. In one such event, John reveals the lowliness, or the humility, of Jesus. In John 13, Jesus proved that He did not come to be served but that He had come to serve.

According to John, Jesus and His disciples had traveled from Bethany to Jerusalem. In Bethany, Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead. The Jewish leaders in Jerusalem were already plotting to kill Jesus, and this display of divine power made them even more determined to do so.

When Jesus and his disciples got to Jerusalem, the disciples were pleasantly surprised to find the crowds rejoicing at the sight of Jesus. As Jesus entered the city the people:

John 12:13 (NKJ)
13 took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: "Hosanna! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' The King of Israel!"

Now Jesus had sent two of His disciples in advance to Jerusalem to make ready a place for them to obverse the Passover. After all of the excited of His triumphal entry into the city, Jesus and His disciples finally settled into the large upper room which had been prepared.

As they entered the room, they probably removed their sandals according to the custom of the day, but there was no servant to wash their feet, and not one of the disciples volunteered to do so. After all, that was a task which was reserved for the lowest of all servants.

With the Passover meal already prepared, Jesus and His disciples offered a prayer of thanksgiving and started the meal with a glass of wine mingled with water. If all went as expected, they would wash their hands and pray. They would give thanks again and eat the Passover salad. Then they would say another prayer, drink another glass of wine, wash their hands again and finish the meal.

They all knew the routine, but at some point during the meal Jesus got up from the table, wrapped a towel around His waist and walked over to the area where they would normally wash their hands.

Jesus took a basin and filled it with water. The disciples exchanged nervous glances for this was not a part of the usual routine. As they watched, Jesus went to the first disciple and to their amazement, He began to wash his feet.

Some of the disciples may have been embarrassed that they did not offer to perform this humiliating task. Others may have been embarrassed for Jesus. After all, the crowd had just recognized Him as the King of Israel. Was this something that the King of Israel should be doing? Doesn’t a king need to maintain a certain presence. Some sort of stately demeanor?

Unlike the politicians of our day, Jesus was not concerned about His public image. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, I have read articles which tout the importance of having political leaders who have a confident public presence. Leaders who give the appearance of being strong, authoritative and decisive.

Jesus knew that He was the anointed King of Israel, and yet here He was, kneeling before His disciples washing their feet. When Jesus came to Peter, Peter questioned Jesus, asking, “Lord, are You going to wash my feet?” But Jesus said, “Unless I wash you, Peter, you will have no part with me.”

We too must remember that there is nothing we can do to clean up our own act. There is nothing we can do to save ourselves. Unless we have been washed by Jesus, we are not clean, and we have no hope of eternal life.

There is nothing we can do for God to gain His favor because He doesn’t need anything that we have to offer. Unless we have been washed by Jesus, we will have no part with Him.

In this regard, we have to rejoice as members of the Church which is the Body of Christ. Ephesians 5 says that:

Ephesians 5:25-27 (NKJ)
25 . . . Christ . . . loved the church and gave Himself for (us),
26 that He might sanctify and cleanse (us) with the washing of water by the word,
27 that He might present (us) to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that (we) should be holy and without blemish.

We have already been washed with a washing which left us without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.

Many of the Jews of Jesus’ day thought they could be saved by the Law, but Jesus came to fulfill the Law. The Law was glorious. So glorious, in fact, that Moses’ face was shining when he came down from the mountain. But the glory of the Law pales in comparison to the glory of Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews said:

Hebrews 9:13-14 (paraphrase)
13 . . . if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer serve to purify the flesh,
14 how much more shall the blood of Christ cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

As Jesus was washing feet that night in the upper room, we can only guess what was really going through the minds of the disciples. It must have been a very moving scene. Such grace. Such humility. Such dedication to the Father.

This was the one who spoke the word and the seas were calmed, the demons were silenced, and Lazarus came forth from the grave. This was, indeed, the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Jesus knew that all of these things were true, but here, the very night before His crucifixion, He was not focusing on who He was. He was focusing on his disciples. There was one thing that He wanted them to know. He wanted them to have no doubt about this. He wanted them to be assured that he loved them.

John certainly got the point. As John introduced this event, he said:

John 13:1 (NIV)
1 . . . Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

Jesus wanted them to know first and foremost that He loved them, and by washing their feet He was showing them the full extent of His love. He didn’t even care how dirty those feet were. It made no difference to Him. He was able and willing to clean the dirtiest of them all. Just like He is today.

Those who have ears to hear can hear Him calling:

Isaiah 1:18 (NKJ)
18 "Come now, and let us reason together," says the LORD, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

As Jesus washed his disciples’ feet, what a moment that must have been when Jesus came to Judas Iscariot. As Judas looked into Jesus’ eyes, I’m sure Judas could see the sorrow in Jesus’ heart. Jesus knew that Judas was lost, but Jesus loved him anyway and washed his feet.

Jesus did not come to provide salvation for only a few. His blood provided the payment for all sin. He died not for our sins only but for the sins of the whole world. By this He revealed the full extent of His love.

Jesus offered Judas the cleansing of the heart that comes through faith, but Judas was willing to settle for clean feet. I’m afraid that too often we are willing to settle for less than what God has for us. If we fully open our hearts to Jesus, He will fill our hearts with every blessing of heaven. I’m afraid that Judas never came close to the blessings of heaven. He refused to believe in Jesus, and when he realized his mistake, he could not even bear to live with himself.

It is sad to think that there are many like Judas who refuse to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. Like Judas, they come face to face with Jesus. They see the love and the sorrow in His eyes, but they turn away. They love the things of this world, and they refuse to accept the salvation of God. But God proves His love for them by providing a means by which they could be saved.

After Jesus washed His disciples feet, He told them that they should follow His example. He said, “You call me Lord and teacher, and so I am. But since no servant is greater than his master, you should humble yourselves to serve one another even as I have served you.”

Philippians 2:5-8 (NKJ)
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

I think this is exactly what Paul was getting at in Ephesians 4 when he said, “Walk worthy of your calling with all lowliness.”

Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning, and I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/

Ephesians 3 Part 6 (9-11-05)

Ephesians 3 Part 6
Bible Study Time 9-11-05

“Oh, how marvelous. Oh, how wonderful. Is my Savior’s love for me.” We have to stand amazed when we come to Jesus and see the great love with which He loves us. Shedding His blood upon the cross of Calvary for your sins and for mine.

In Ephesians, Chapter 3, Paul prays that we,

Ephesians 3:17-19 (NKJ)
17 . . . being rooted and grounded in love,
18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height--
19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge;

In other words, Paul prays that we may be able to know that which passes knowledge. At first, that may sound like nonsense, but doing what can not be done is the essence of our relationship with God. Whenever, God calls someone to Himself, He calls them to do things which they can not do. He calls us to do that which we can not do, and He calls us to understand that which we can not understand. Paul told the Corinthians that:

1 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NKJ)
14 . . . the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.
16 For "who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.

With God, all things are possible.

God told Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens and the sands of the seashore even though Abraham was 100 years old and had no children. With God, all things are possible. Abraham and Sarah had a son named Isaac and from Him came the nation of Israel.

God told Moses to deliver the children of Israel from Egypt. To be sure, it was one man against the strongest nation on the face of the earth. It’s little wonder that Moses was somewhat hesitant. With God, all things are possible. Moses brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and crossed through the middle of the Red Sea on dry land.

God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to rule as King in an everlasting kingdom and die for sin. How could He do both? With God, all things are possible. After 3 days in the grave, the Lord Jesus arose from the dead and is now in heaven ready to rule the earth in an everlasting kingdom.

Well, here in Ephesians, Paul prays that we might know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. More specifically, he prays that we might be able to comprehend the width and length and depth and height of the love of God.

We live in a world that is three dimensional, but here we see that the love of God is 4 dimensional. It’s no wonder that the love of God is beyond human comprehension.

When we want to understand spiritual things, we need to turn to the word of God, and the first thing that we need to see from the word of God is that God loves us. In fact, John says that we love God because God first loved us. Paul says that God demonstrated His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, and Paul goes on to say that even while we were the enemies of God, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son. John put it this way:

I John 4:10 (NKJ)
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

When the preschoolers at Trinity Lutheran in Crown Point, Indiana, got up to give their end-of-the-year program, they were adorable as usual, and everyone was a little amused when they held up their cards which spelled out, “DOG LOVES YOU”.

Well, no matter how you spell it, God does love us, and He loves us with an everlasting love.

The second thing we need to see from the word of God is that God is love. I John 4:16 says, “God is love and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.”

It is impossible to abide in love and not abide in God. If anyone says that they love people, but they don’t believe in Jesus, they are lying. No one can love people unless they know God, and no one can know God unless they believe in Jesus.

Of coarse, John says that the inverse is also true. He says that:

I John 4:20 (NKJ)
20 If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

In other words, if someone says, “I love God,” or “I love Allah,” or “I follow Buddha,” but they hate their fellowman, then they do not love God, for God is love.

The other day the National Geographic Channel had a special called “Inside 9/11.” They told how the man who used a truck bomb to bomb the Word Trade Center in 1993 was actually the man who came up with the idea of using commercial airliners as flying bombs to destroy the targets of 9/11. This man was described as a person who used all of his imagination coming up with plan after plan after plan for killing innocent people. John said that anyone who says he loves God but hates his brother is a liar.

There was a mother who told about her daughter, Rosemary. This mother said that when Rosemary was three, she had a little rag doll, and Rosemary loved that rag doll. As the doll got older and dirtier, it got too old to wash and too dirty to play with. It was ready for the trash, but if you loved Rosemary, you had to love the rag doll too. It was a package deal.

Rosemary’s mother went on to make the point that if we love God, we have to love His rag dolls too. Even if they don’t meet our personal standard of respectability, we still have to love them. If anyone says “I love God” yet hates his brother, he is a liar.

The third thing we need to see is that nothing can separate us from the love of God. We do not have to worry that God’s love will be here today but gone tomorrow. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and His love is just as constant as He is, for He is love. Romans 8 says:

Romans 8:35,37-39 (NKJ)
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
37 . . . in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

One day Charles Spurgeon was walking through the English countryside with a friend. As they were walking, Spurgeon noticed a barn with a weather vane on its roof. At the top of the vane were these words: GOD IS LOVE. Spurgeon remarked that he thought the weather vane was not an appropriate place for such a message because weather vanes are changeable, while God’s love is constant. Spurgeon’s friend disagreed and said that the weather vane made a good point, namely, that regardless of the way the wind blows, GOD IS LOVE.

The fourth point in regard to God’s love relates to the fact that we are called the children of God. Again, we turn to John who said:

I John 3:1-2 (NKJ)
1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

Even now we are the children of God, but it has not yet been revealed what we shall be. When Jesus Christ is revealed in heaven, then we shall be like Him.

Philippians 3:20-21 (NKJ)
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

In Ephesians 3, Paul prays that we might:

Ephesians 3:19-21 (NKJ)
19 . . . know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that (we) may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Then he sums it up by saying:

20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,
21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

I see our time is gone. Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning. I’ll look forward to being with you again next week at this same time.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Church links:
http://www.peacechurch_ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch_fw.com/