Faith or Works, or Both? The title of this lesson is ” Justification By Faith, Perfected By works”. But let me explain exactly what is meant by that.. The justification that God gives to a person, is because of their faith, which has been “perfected”, or “made complete”, through their works. The word “works” simply refers to deeds that are done. But I’m not talking about doing…
What’s Your Spiritual Condition ? I just want to give you some “food for thought” today. Here’s a lesson on what the bible teaches, about what I call, “spiritual conditions”. When I say “spiritual conditions”, I am contrasting, being in a spiritual “condition”, with being in spiritual “place”. I believe that when our bibles use the word “place” in regard to our spiritual destiny, such as it…
Are You in as Good a Condition, as You Used to be ? Suppose you needed to buy a car, but you didn’t have much money, you’d probably have to look for an older car, that didn’t cost so much. But then you’d have to worry about what condition it would be in. So you find someone advertising an old car, and you ask him; How does…
Blushing Have you ever felt embarrassed, and blushed because of it? Listen to what an encyclopedia says about blushing; “If we blush about doing something we shouldn’t have done, it shows that we are ashamed or embarrassed, that we recognize that something is out of place. It shows that we are sorry about this. It shows that we want to put things right. To blush at…
A Study of The Book of Acts; The Acts of the Apostles Welcome to our study of the book of Acts. The proper title should probably be, “The Acts of the Apostles”, because that’s really what the book tells of. It tells of the various things which the apostles of Jesus Christ did, from the time that Jesus ascended back to heaven, until the end of the apostle Paul’s…
Who Raised Jesus From the Dead? Who raised Jesus from the dead? The SPIRIT did! The Holy Spirit of God raised Jesus from the dead! God raised Jesus, through the power of His Holy Spirit, who specifically accomplishes the will of God. And that very same Spirit will also raise us, from being dead in sin, IF we allow that Spirit to dwell in us. So then,…
“In The Spirit” The apostle John wrote in Revelation 1, verse 10; “I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day.” What did John mean by that? What did he mean when he said, “I was in the spirit..” ? Did John’s spirit leave his body on that day? The apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12, verse 2, that he was “caught up…
Take Time to Smell the Roses Have you ever heard this saying; “Nature doesn’t hurry, but everything gets accomplished”. Isn’t it nice how that works? No hurry, but yet everything gets accomplished. The bible says; “There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every delight under heaven.” Eccl 3, verse 1 We’re a part of nature; Why…
Abiding In Christ In our previous lesson, we considered the worship act of partaking of the Lord’s supper on the first day of the week. The first day of the week is the only day mentioned in scripture, as the day when Christians engaged in this worship act. Since we’re told in 2 John, verse 9, to “abide in the teaching of Christ”, and to…
I want to talk about at least five aspects of giving. And those five aspects are; Bountifully, (or generously) Cheerfully, Purposefully, Proportionately, and Sacrificially. Giving Generously The Lord tells us in 2 Corinthians 9, verse 6, to give generously. That verse says; “Now this I say, he who sows sparingly, shall also reap sparingly; And he who sows bountifully, shall also reap bountifully.” It’s…
Other Days Of The Week Let’s deal with the question of whether or not it’s acceptable to God, to partake of the Lord’s supper, on a day other than the first day of the week? In our previous lesson, we saw clearly from the bible, that God has instructed us, through command and example, to come together on the first day of the week, for the purpose…
Would You Wish To See Jesus ? It’s recorded in John 12, verse 21, that some people said to the apostle Philip; “Sir, we would see Jesus.” How many of you would like to see Jesus? I hope you’d like to, because the bible says, your gonna. The bible says everyone’s gonna see Him. Revelation 1, verse 7 tells us; “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and…
The Forgiveness of Sins There is only one purpose for seeking to have your sins forgiven, and that one purpose is so that you can receive the promise from God, of spending eternity in heaven, and avoid spending eternity in hell. If you don’t believe in heaven and hell, then there is no reason to seek to have your sins forgiven. As a matter of fact, a person who…
The Gift of Tongues The new testament records instances, of various people speaking in tongues. “Tongues” means “languages”. And when people spoke in these languages which they had never been taught, it was a sign from God, that the person speaking in these languages, was speaking God’s word. In other words, they were speaking the truth! And their ability to speak in tongues, was proof,…
Now That You’re A Christian, Now what? The apostle Paul wrote, in Galatians 2, verse 20; “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life that I live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me.” When you become a Christian, there needs…
“Breaking Bread”, The Lord’s Supper, and a Common Meal Now, concerning Acts 20, verse 11; We’ve already talked about how the phrase “breaking bread” is used in this verse, as well as in verse 7. And we talked about how, in verse 7, that phrase refers to partaking of the Lord’s supper, in a worship assembly, but how in verse 11, it simply refers to sharing…
John 8, verses 2 thru 11 I’d like to read to you a short bible story about Jesus, and the scribes and the Pharisees, and an adulterous woman. The reading is from John chapter 8, verses 2 thru 11. Follow along in your own bible if you’d like. “Then early in the morning, again He came into the temple (The outer courtyard of the temple, is no doubt is…
Karma.. I hear a lot of people talking about Karma these days. They say, what goes around, comes around; In other words, someday you’re going to get treated the same way you treat other. People say; I don’t worry about getting revenge, I just let Karma take it’s course. But that’s really not what the notion of Karma originally refers to. Karma has it’s origin in Hinduism. …
Are Christians Expected to Gather Together for Worship? It is common for Christians to assemble together on the first day of the week to worship God. We’re instructed to come together for worship, and in the bible, we’re given the example of first century Christians coming together for worship. The entire fourteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians deals with the subject of coming together for worship. Verse 19 says; …
But You Can’t Take The Country Out Of The Boy You’ve heard that saying haven’t you? “You can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy.” You can change that around, and you could say; You can take the boy out of the city, or you can take the girl out of the city, or you can take…