What is Religion ? Religion typically involves the belief in a god, doesn’t it? Mono-theism is the belief in ONE god, such as the God of the bible. Poly-theism, is the belief in MANY gods, such as in Hinduism, which is idolatry. And then there is Human-theism (or Humanism for short) which is basically the belief that man is his OWN god, which again is idolatry. …
Tempted by Lust James 1:14-15 says, “But each one is tempted when he is enticed and drawn away by his own lust. Then, when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is accomplished (or completed) it brings forth death.” We’re told in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death.. but the free gift of God, is eternal life in Christ Jesus…
The Spirit of Fear Please listen to 2 Timothy 1:7.. “Indeed, God has not given us the spirit of fearfulness, but of power and love and self-control.” The word translated “fearfulness” in this verse, is only found this one time in the bible. The exact meaning is.. “timidity, fearfulness, and cowardice”. The word seems to imply a lack of confidence in one’s self. There’s another Greek…
What does the bible teach about fear and doubt? Fear and doubt, do tend to go together. Fear produces doubt. When we become fearful, we become doubtful. We can become doubtful about a lot of things, but the worst thing that can happen, is that we become doubtful about God. Most people are aware of the story in the bible about how Jesus walked on the…
Do All in the Name Of the Lord You’ve no doubt heard the phrases, “in the name of the Lord”, and “in Jesus’ name”, and “in Christ’s name”, but what exactly do those words mean? You’ve probably also heard of the practice of some people, to end all prayers with the words.. “In Jesus’ name, Amen”. What does that mean? Is that a required method of…
Meaning of Mathew 24:29-31 I’ve selected these verses to talk about because they have always been subject to different interpretations. I believe these three verses are speaking of two different things, but I believe they should be considered together in our interpretation of them. Let’s listen to the verses.. V-29, “But immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give…
Is There Really any Power in Prayer ? Our lesson today is on the power of prayer. Is there power in prayer? We’re urged by God to pray. As a matter of fact, we’re told in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing”. So in other words, make prayer such an integral part of your life, that your practice of praying, never ceases. It’s the same as saying.. Don’t “forsake”…
Let The Bible Speak It’s always refreshing to me, to explore what the bible actually says about a given subject, without all the little “twists” and “variances” that men want to add to it. When I rely solely on the word of God, I usually find that a lot of the beliefs that people hold, and talk about, are beliefs that are based on conjecture,…
A Study of the Body, Soul and Spirit Genesis 2:7, “Then 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 soul.” God formed the physical body of man (Adam) but that body had no life in it. It was in essence just like a dead body, it was lifeless. James 2:26 …
A Secular Christian ? Is there such a thing as a “secular Christian”? That question was posed in an article that I just read concerning whether or not you can be a Christian, and at the same time have doubts about the virgin birth, or the resurrection. Another question in the article was, “What does it mean to be a Christian in the 21st century?” That question alone, let’s you…
That’s not us, is it ? Or is that you in the white shirt? Or maybe that’s you in the high heels? Are we sometimes guilty of being “Willfully Ignorant”? Are we sometimes unaware of, or unwilling to believe, what the bible plainly states? God says some people ARE willfully ignorant. Did you know that we are living in the “last days”? The writer of the book of Hebrews said,…
This is a question for you, the reader. How do you personally, view the bible? Do you believe the bible is the 100%, inspired and inerrant word of God? Or do you believe the bible was written simply by the efforts of man alone, and that the bible expresses the opinions and beliefs of man alone, and is therefore only as “good” as the men who wrote it? …
When, and What Sign According to Mathew 24:3, some of the disciples asked Jesus; “Tell us when these things will be, (a more accurate translation would be “when will THIS be”) and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?” Jesus had told these disciples that the beautiful Jewish temple in Jerusalem would be utterly destroyed. He said, “Truly…
“The Lord is my Rock” 2 Sam 2:22 The bible uses the word “rock”, many times. The word appears 118 times in the KJV of the bible, and 32 of those times, it refers to our Savior. Sometimes those references were to our God, as our Savior, and the other times it refers to Jesus Christ. You’ve heard the phrase, “The Rock of our salvation”. That phrase was used one time in the bible,…
After The Tribulation This part of our study will actually be focused on what Jesus said would happen AFTER the great tribulation. In our previous study called What is the Tribulation ? – Part 2, we examined the words of Jesus from Mathew 24:4-28, Mark 13:5-23, and Luke 21:6-24. These three passages all refer to the same events that Jesus was describing; Namely, the abomination of desolation, the…
An Abomination and A Tribulation In our previous study titled WHAT IS THE TRIBULATION – Part 1, we looked at what the bible says about the “Abomination of Desolation” and about a “great tribulation”. Both of these phrases are used in Mathew 24:15 & 21, and also in Mark 13:14 & 19. We also looked at Daniel 11:31, which prophesied about the “abomination of desolation” being “set…
The Story Of Jesus and Zacchaeus In Luke 19:1-10, the bible tells us a story about a man named Zacchaeus, who wanted to see Jesus. I wonder how many people would want to see Jesus today, if He were to come to your town? Well, Jesus had entered the town of Jericho, and was passing through it, we’re told in Luke 19:1. “And there was a man there…
Almost all Christian religious groups will speak of “sacraments”. But what are sacraments? What does the word “sacrament” mean? Let’s start with the meaning of the word “sacrament”. The word itself comes from the Latin word, “sacramentum”, and it’s meaning is.. “a solemn oath”. “Sacramentum” comes from another Latin word, “sacrare” meaning.. “to hallow, or to consecrate”. And to “hallow, or consecrate” means.. to make something holy. …
A Spiritual Dwelling of God We as Christians, are a “dwelling of God, in OUR spirit”. The caption underneath the above picture explains precisely HOW the Spirit of God, dwells in our spirits. God’s Spirit dwells in us ONLY as we abide in the teachings of Jesus, and obey His commands. “God is Spirit and those who worship Him, must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24. Our worship…
The Body of Christ, Doing What God Says to Do Individual Christians, members of the body of Christ, each DOING what God has instructed us to do. That’s how God has set up His congregation of the saved. Do you ever get the impression that a lot of members of religious groups believe that the DOING is set aside for only a select few, maybe even just for what they call “clergy”? …