Category: Subject Index
Study Material Categorized by Subject
Mining the Scripture: Jude 20-23
Jude finishes his dissertation on the false teachers troubling disciples in the first 19 verses of his letter.
In verse 20 Jude begins to establish what Christians are to do to avoid the fate of those caught in error. To combat error it is necessary to build oneself up via faith. Since faith derives from the word of God (cf. Romans 10:17), this entails study and application. It also requires prayer, and the obedience which is a prerequisite to any sustained relationship with God.
A proper application of our obedience is seen in our treatment of those in sin. It requires knowledge and discernment, allowing one to make a “distinction.” Is an expression of compassion required to save a soul? Or, is it more appropriate to act boldly, lest ungodly influences gain a hold, and lead to the fall of others. The key is “making a distinction” (22). Faithful Christians are to be sympathetic to all men, however, they can’t all be treated the same. Like the false teachers discussed, arrogance and destruction must be dealt with firmly.
By Faith
The eleventh chapter of Hebrews has been called the roll call of faith. It lists a great number of luminaries who obeyed God, motivated by their faith toward Him.
We are told in Romans 10:17, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Each of these individuals heard God’s word and believed it. This led to their actions and their acceptance by God. Continue reading “By Faith”
Imitate Me
Paul wrote, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). It has been said that imitation is the highest form of flattery. We imitate others because they are like what we would like to be! So, do you want to be like Paul?
Paul gave up his previous life because he desired to “gain Christ” and have “the righteousness which is from God by faith” (Philippians 3:8-9).
Paul suffered greatly. He was beaten by the Romans on 3 different occasions, and by the Jews a total of 5 times. He suffered shipwreck 3 times. He was stoned. His journeys, with robbers, Jews and Gentiles, constituted great peril both on land and by sea. He lived a life of want, weariness, and sleeplessness, all to please his Lord. (2 Corinthians 11).
Perhaps above all, his rejection by “false brethren” (2 Corinthians 11:26,28) and those he had taught were the greatest disappointments of Paul. And yet, he still called upon others to “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1).
All that Paul gave up, and all that he suffered, he said was to “attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:11). So, it was worth it to him. Is it worth it to you as well? Are you willing to suffer hardship and rejection? Are your efforts designed to secure for you a spiritual reward rather than a physical one? Will you, “Imitate [Paul] just as [he] also [imitates] Christ”?
Sermon: Not All Change is Progress
What is true progressivism and conservativism, as it relates to morality, spirituality, and religion
Sermon Powerpoint View and Download:
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Spring Meeting 2023
A gospel meeting held May 6-11, 2023 with brother Jimmy Stevens from Seminole, TX. The following Lessons were taught. Available is the audio, PPTX files, and the Video of Each Lesson
God’s Promise to Satan (May 6, 2023)
Growing Weary (May 7, 2023)
Created for a Purpose (May 7, 2023)
The Power of True Faith (May 7, 2023)
Will Only Those Who are Baptized be Saved? (May 8, 2023)
What Did They Know Before Baptism? (May 9, 2023)
Moral Living in an Immoral World (May 10, 2023)
The Scriptures Don’t Lie (May 11, 2023)
Paul’s Praise
“A lying tongue hates those who are crushed by it, and a flattering mouth works ruin” (Proverbs 26:28).
“Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful” (Proverbs 27:6).
Flattery, as seen by the texts above, is not a positive attribute. The idea is that flattering words are used to gain an advantage. They are not sincere. They can’t be trusted. Flattery comes from a “lying tongue.” When one who is your “enemy” seeks to curry your favor or flatter, they do not have your best interests at heart. Continue reading “Paul’s Praise”
Meeting Week
The week of a gospel meeting can be challenging as we set aside time throughout the week to come hear the Bible taught by qualified men.
The week reminds me of Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4. He made the point that our physical existence prepares us for our eternal reward with God. “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels” (7). As such Paul characterized his teaching in this way, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
This is true both for the teacher and the student. Paul was very aware of his mortality, and yet endured even through suffering to prepare himself and his hearers for eternity. Our treasure in heaven is most important, and we have an opportunity this week to allow the “inward man” to gain great advantage through our worship and the teaching we will receive.
It is a question of importance and priority. Other things press upon us each day, but occasionally we set things aside to attend and luxuriate in a spiritual feast. “Blessed are You, O Lord! Teach me Your statutes. 13 With my lips I have declared all the judgments of Your mouth. 14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. 15 I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways. 16 I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word” (Psalm 119:12-16).
Sermon: The Inclination to Sin
A discussion of man’s inclination to sin and how it can be mitigated.
Sermon Powerpoint View and Download:
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Moses and Jesus – Servant and Son
“Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, 2 who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. 3 For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. 5 And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, 6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end” (Hebrews 3:1-6).
The book of Hebrews seeks to contrast all that surrounds Christ and His covenant with what came before. In every comparison made, Christ, and all that surrounds His life, ministry, death, covenant and body is better. It is fuller, more powerful, more important, more effective, more sublime.
The reason for this comparison was that Jews who had accepted Jesus as their Christ and Lord were reluctant to move on from the Law of Moses. This was unfortunate, and something that put their standing with God in jeopardy. This the writer made clear: “For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, 19 for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bring in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God” (Hebrews 7:18-19).
One of the obvious comparisons would be between Moses and Jesus. Moses was the lawgiver. He would be considered by the Jews as the most important messenger from God. He was given the responsibility of shepherding Israel out of Egyptian bondage, leading them through the wilderness for a generation, and ushering them to the borders of Canaan. In all ways Moses was “faithful in His house” (Hebrews 3:2). Whose house? Not his own. Moses was a servant in the house of God.
The distinction is easy to see. “He who built the house has more honor than the house” (3). There is a great deal of difference between the Master of the house, its owner — and the servant. Jesus Christ is “a Son over His own house” (6) in contrast to the position of faithful servant attributed to Moses.
- Moses was a prophet, Jesus is the Son. “God, who at various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son” (1:1-2).
- Moses’ covenant was ushered in on the blood of animals, Jesus’ on His own blood. “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (10:4). “Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate” (13:12).
- No justification was to be found under Moses’ law, it comes through faith in Christ. “Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe…” (Romans 3:20-22).
- The intent of Moses’ law was to precede “those things which would be spoken afterward” (3:5), but Christ’s law is that which was spoken last (1:2). “But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor” (Galatians 3:23-25).
- The Law of Moses ushered in an inferior priesthood to Christ, who is our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. 12 Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, 14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:11-14).
It is disheartening that even in our time religious people do not understand the significance of this contrast. There is a desire to make the appeal to the Law of Moses for authority and standing, not knowing that it abrogates our justification by faith in Christ Jesus. “You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” (Galatians 5:4). There is a difference between Moses and Jesus—The servant and the SON!
Mining the Scriptures: 1 John 2:7-8
The idea of walking in Christ is the fundamental premise of the disciple. What is clearly evident is that love is the foundation of that walk. Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another” (John 13:34). This is how the would be “known” as His disciples.
John’s statement that his commandment is not a new commandment indicates that Jesus’ required it from His disciples from the very beginning. John speaks in great detail about the importance of loving one another. He is known as the “apostle of love.” Perhaps this emphasis was because it was so revelatory to him. He and James were at one time called by Jesus the “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17). But John became associated most with the call to love. The command was “old”, or well established.
It was, however, “new” in the sense that Jesus’ call was revolutionary to a world in sin. Never before had “the true light” shined as it was in the hearts and lives of Jesus’ disciples.
The Hour Has Come
In John 17 we have recorded the prayer Jesus prayed to His Father in heaven, just before He was accosted and arrested in the Garden of Eden. Best estimates put His time of death between 12 and 15 hours later. As Jesus began His prayer to God, He said, “Father, the hour has come.” (17:1).
Consider that the events which culminated in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, securing the possibility of redemption to all sinners, had been in God’s mind since before the beginning of the universe.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:3-7). Continue reading “The Hour Has Come”
Sermon: How Can Christians Stand Out from the World?
Christians should stand out, and be considered peculiar to the world. How can we obtain such a reputation? Speaker: Ian Tilley
