Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen.
What many people call “getting saved” is actually accepting a marriage proposal from God. We state a willingness to be in covenant with God (the one between the Father and Jesus). At the point we accept that proposal we are engaged, betrothed. The “promissory ring” of the engagement is the gift of the Holy Spirit who teaches us about Jesus. But we aren’t married until the Wedding. The wedding is not in this body, and it’s not on this earth. It’s in Heaven in Revelation 19.
In this body on this earth we’re still in the broken covenant we were born into from Adam. We have to exit that old covenant. That means dying. “Till death do we part.”
Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,…
Death and the afterlife is something we will all face. So it’s a good idea to prepare for it by rehearsing your mindset before it happens.
What then is baptism? Is it just a rinse in water to remove some dirt from your body? No, it’s much more than that.
𝐁𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐥 to prepare you for your death, which is the exit from the covenant that Adam broke, and then to resurrection, being “born again” into eternal life in Christ Jesus. It consists of a few simple elements:
* Your declaration of faith
* Your simulated death and burial
* Your simulated resurrection
Depending on your circumstances, declaring your faith moments before you die might not be possible. It may occur suddenly or while you’re unconscious. So it’s a good idea to “bank” your statement of faith. Make it known to yourself so you’re confident. And make it known to others so they can have peace when you’re gone.
The Apostle Peter explains that baptism is so you may be at peace, having a good conscience toward God before you die.
1 Peter 3:21 “…baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,”
Jesus Himself referred to His death as a “baptism”.
Luke 12:50 “But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!
Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”
Jesus wasn’t talking about us wearing a piece of jewelry, He was talking about following Him to our baptism through death and resurrection into eternal life. Not the rehearsal, the real thing. This is why the rehearsal is so important. Because when death comes it will be the ultimate test.
The question of whether or not “the thief on the cross” next to Jesus had to be baptized is simply answered by recognizing that he wasn’t rehearsing.
Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
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.
Romans 6:3-5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,
It’s not just dying and resurrecting that we rehearse with baptism, from that point on it is a rehearsal of our “walk in the newness of life” for eternity. So that when we cross over into eternity we will be familiar with it because we have rehearsed the walk. Our previous sinful lifestyle simply isn’t appropriate there. We should start getting rid of it now.
Our physical death is the exit from this covenant of sin and death that we are born into from Adam. Our bodies have already been corrupted by sin. We have to shed this mortal existence to be free of it. We wouldn’t want eternal life in a body that continually sins and decays!
1 Corinthians 15:53-54 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
Through our true baptism of death and resurrection we are “born again” into eternal life.
John 14:1-4 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.”
The Bible, ALL of it, is the Word of God. ALL of it is for our benefit. God’s Word finishes us as humans and makes us whole. God is the source of knowledge and revelation.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.
2 Peter 1:20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture comes from one’s own interpretation.
God exists in three eternal, individual personalities: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. Each is equally God. They are one essence, perfect harmony.
Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One.
2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
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Jesus Christ is the central figure and person in human history.
Jesus is God in human form. His Hebrew name, Yeshua, means “He saves.”
Titus 2:13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ…
John 1:1-2 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
Jesus is eternal.
1 Peter 1:20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you.
John 17:24 Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
Jesus, born of a virgin
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (God with us).
Fulfilled in Matthew 1:22-23
Jesus is the “Good News”, the Gospel message.
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures…
Jesus is currently alive and at the right hand of God the Father.
Psalm 110:1 A Psalm of David. The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
1 Peter 3:22 Who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to Him.
Hebrews 1:3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
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The church is not a physical building. The church is a body of believers in Jesus Christ.
Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. -Jesus
Romans 12:4-6a For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them:
Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.
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All of humanity who has physically died, all of the bodies will ultimately be resurrected. The question is the destination.
Daniel 12:2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
1 Corinthians 15:13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.
Revelation 20:15 And if anyone was found whose name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
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Pre Tribulation Rapture: At a designated point in time before the beginning of the seven year Tribulation or the Day of the Lord, the entire body of the church of Jesus Christ will be caught up into the clouds to meet Him in the air.
1 Thessalonians 5:1-5
1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Psalm 27:5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
The church will physically return to earth to rule and reign with Jesus Christ during the Millennial Kingdom.
Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
2 Timothy 2:12If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He will also deny us…
1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
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Believers can respectfully proclaim God’s truth and love people who disagree with or live outside of God’s laws and precepts.
Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
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Human life is sacred from conception to its natural end. God is the Creator of life from before time.
Psalm 139:13-16 For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be.
Job 31:15 Did not He who made me in the womb also make them? Did not the same One form us in the womb?
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God sovereignly and purposefully creates each person biologically male or biologically female.
Genesis 1:27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Matthew 19:4 Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
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Marriage is between a biological man and a biological woman.
Mark 10:6-9 But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate. -Jesus
Hebrews 13:4 Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.
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Humanity has inherited a sin nature from the fall of Adam. We are all in need of forgiveness and redemption from our individual sins.
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned…
1 John 4:9-10 This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
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Salvation is by Faith alone apart from works. One cannot work, earn, or buy their way into eternity with God. He will not accept the fallen individual’s effort or payment.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.
Romans 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the Law.
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Satan is a real personality and angelic being.
Jesus personally encountered Satan in Matthew 4:1-11.
1 John 3:8 The one who practices sin is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the very start. This is why the Son of God was revealed, to destroy the works of the devil.
Zechariah 3:1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him.
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Hell is a real physical place. No one in the Bible teaches more about Hell than Jesus.
Revelation 20:14-15 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone was found whose name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Matthew 25:41 Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
Exodus 23:16b …And keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather your produce from the field.
Thanksgiving is a theme embedded throughout the Bible and across time. The ultimate expression of Thanksgiving is Communion and what Christ did for us. Communion is a memorial of thanks. Even Jesus is giving thanks to God the Father as He is about to become the expression of sacrifice.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
Prior to Communion was the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. Specifically, we are going to look at the Fall Feast of Tabernacles or the Feast of Ingathering.
This festival is a week-long festival from Tishri 15 to 21. When working in the fields during harvest, people lived in tents. The tents served as a reminder of the forty years of wandering in the desert after the Exodus from Egypt. The holiday is a reminder of the provision and safety God showed Israel during their travels in the desert as noted in Deuteronomy 8. It is to be a joyous festival (Deuteronomy 16:14). Sabbatical rest without work is part of the holiday. (New Manners and Customs of Bible Times).
Three times a year, the men were required to come to Jerusalem and come before the Lord with a sacrifice. They were to bring their best.
All that said, many scholars believe the Pilgrims of the Mayflower patterned their first Thanksgiving after the Feast of Tabernacles in the fall. Legend has it the Pilgrims celebrated their successful harvest in the fall and gave thanks to God.
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Zechariah 14:16-19 And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
Per Zechariah 14, the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles is the only God appointed holiday gentile nations will be required to attend. The nations will be required to go before the Lord Jesus Christ during the Feast of Booths. For those nations who do not attend, no rain for your crops.
The Bible also promises an incredible feast and other gifts of Thanksgiving to all people at some point in the future.
Isaiah 25:6-8 On this mountain the LORD of Hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all the peoples, a feast of aged wine, of choice meat, of finely aged wine. On this mountain He will swallow up the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; He will swallow up death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from every face and remove the disgrace of His people from the whole earth.
God has a plan and we have so much to be thankful for with incredible gratitude.
There are 4 proofs that support God rejecting Israel’s Yom Kippur or Day of Atonement sacrifice. Humanity’s sacrifice was rejected by God because the ultimate sacrifice had been made by Jesus Christ.
The lot of the Lord was in the left hand.
The crimson strap remained crimson.
The western light was not lit.
The doors of the Temple were open in the morning.
Today’s focus is the opened doors of the Temple.
Babylonian Talmud: “Our Rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple,…and the doors of the Hekal (Temple) would open by themselves.”
Jerusalem Talmud: “Forty years before the destruction of the Temple,… They would close the gates of the Temple by night and get up in the morning and find them wide open.”
Specific sizes of the Temple gates are unknown. But we do have some scope and scale with the Temple veil as a guide.
Matthew 27:51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
Luke 23:45 The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn down the middle.
The inner veil hung between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The veil was hung on a crossbeam stone over 30 feet long and weighed more than 30 tons. Estimates have the veil weighing at least 18,000 pounds.
The Veils before the Most Holy Place were 40 cubits (60 feet) long, and 20 (30 feet) wide, of the thickness of the palm of the hand, and wrought in 72 squares, which were joined together. The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim
The Temple had…golden doors of fifty-five cubits (82.5 feet) altitude and sixteen (24 feet) in breadth; but before these doors there was a veil of equal largeness with the doors. -Josephus, 1st Century Jewish Historian
Keep in mind, Herod’s Temple had larger dimensions than Solomon’s. So the veil in Herod’s Temple was bigger.
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With the work of Christ on the cross, the cost of sin was paid. Because of His action, there is now access to God the Father. The barrier has been taken down and humanity who believes in Christ can be in the presence of God.
The door to the Temple is open. The veil has been torn down. Barriers to God have been removed in Jesus Christ. God has made way for sinful humanity.
Hebrews 10:19-22 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
There are 4 proofs that support God rejecting Israel’s Yom Kippur sacrifice.
The lot of the Lord was in the left hand.
The crimson strap remained crimson.
The western light was not lit.
The doors of the Temple were open in the morning.
As a reminder, the first time the concept of “Casting Lots” is noted in the Bible is in Leviticus. This is where directions are provided for the High Priest during the Yom Kippur sacrifices.
So the lot of the Lord was in the left hand for 40 consecutive years…
According to tradition as documented by Frank, when the lot was cast in the right hand, it was a favorable sign for the nation Israel. For 40 years, the lot was cast in the left hand, not favorable.
History would confirm unfavorable conditions were on the horizon in Israel’s very near future. In 70 AD, Jerusalem was destroyed. The Temple was flattened. The Jewish people were dispersed from the land.
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Biblically speaking, the right hand is a place of honor, a position of power, presence and authority.
Hebrews 1:3 Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…
In the verse below, God the Father is talking to the Son.
Psalm 110:1 The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
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Ultimately, God the Father is telling Israel, my right side is taken. His name is Jesus Christ and He is the High Priest of Israel.
Hebrews 8:1 Now the main point in what has been said: we have such a High Priest, Who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens…
Mark 14:62 “I am,” said Jesus, “and you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
The term is “ab” or “Father”. Ab is often used in reference to God in Jewish prayers.
Ἀββᾶ/abba is the Greek word for Father. HELPS word studies defines the term accordingly: “Father,” also used as the term of tender endearment by a beloved child, i.e. in an affectionate, dependent relationship with their father; “daddy,” “papa.” The Greek word has its origins in the Aramaic language of Jesus.
1 John 2:12-14 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven through His name. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
Relationship is the key. Earthly fathers are to be aligned with our Heavenly Father, who is the Creator.
The Heavenly relationship is the model. Jesus was in constant communication (prayer) with the Father during His time on earth. It is the Father’s Son who has defeated sin and Satan. Together, they will conquer.
Psalm 110:1 The LORD said to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
John is telling us we need constant reminding. John is writing this message in the present and he has informed readers in the past. Repetition, repetition, repetition…
To all the Fathers, remind your family today and every day. God’s word is strength and power. Satan is no match.
Happy Father’s Day to all the men out there today!!!
Colossians 1:15-17 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
Straight up question. Did Jesus create “all things” or not? We, at least I do, tend to be a bit Earth centric when it comes to the topic of creation. Planet Earth is in a solar system that is contained in the Milky Way Galaxy which is part of the Universe. It is a big Universe out there. So, did God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit do it or not?
BREAKING: Police bodycam records UFO crash landing in Las Vegas
Residents call police saying a couple “not human” 8-10ft beings with big eyes in their backyard
Black SUVs reported in area that possibly took aircraft away & all video of backyard blacked out
🇺🇸🛸👽The Alien footage from the Las Vegas UFO landing is either fake or is from another UFO incident. The original story reported that police were called late the night of 4-30-23, and the police camera shows a date and time of early 5-01-23 pic.twitter.com/v5NzM7hBSp
Here is a video from a family witness of the events. The most intriguing part of the statement comes towards the end. When the family began to pray, they heard screaming and yelling coming from the back yard. For what it is worth…
Romans 8:38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
At some point in the future, there are some very difficult times on the horizon. Look at the context of these verses. Why does the Apostle Paul mention all of these different beings? The topics include many things of which we really have no concept. In general, we cannot relate to an encounter with an angel or super natural being. The totality of creation is mentioned. And nothing in all creation will separate believers from the love of God. Keep focused on Jesus Christ.
A good friend of mine and I have discussed the comments from Jesus for many years. The ultimate concern was the confrontation of “alien” life.
Conventional wisdom will possibly be… “Aliens”, of course, are good and they are here to save us from ourselves. I have prayed we would not see these things in our time. Looks like we are here.
Matthew 24:37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. -Jesus
For more content on UFO’s and UAP’s from this website, click on the link below.
Everything God did in regards to creation was already done before He created the heavens and the earth in Genesis 1:1. The Lamb was slain before the foundation of the world. If the Lamb had already been slain before Jesus ever had a chance to be born through the womb of a woman, then so too was He also already raised from the dead, and so too was He also already glorified. All of that happened in eternity, outside of time and space. Same goes for us. It’s all already done.
Romans 8:29,30For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called he also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.
We are just playing out the movie. We can edit the film too and chop out the parts we don’t like and retake scenes that aren’t good. This is exactly what Jesus did on earth. He went about doing good and healed all who were oppressed by the devil.
Acts 10:38 …how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
Jesus also walked on water and changed weather patterns.
Mark 4:39 Then He (Jesus) arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. See also Matthew 8:26, Luke 8:24.
He operated in the glory of the Father, took authority over threatening situations and showed us how to do it. He wasn’t just showing off. He was teaching us how to operate in the glory He gave us from John 17:5,22,23 the same glory the Father gave Him, for the purpose of making us all one and so that we can know the Father loves us in the same way He loved Jesus.
John 17:5,22,23 And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.
Without Christ we can do nothing.
John 5:5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
With Christ nothing is impossible.
Matthew 19:26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
How many hairs do you think are on your head? Well, if you have red hair, you have about 90,000. If you have black hair, there are about 103,000. On the other hand, if you have brown hair, there are more than 109,000 hairs on your head. If you are a blond, you probably have 140,000 hairs.
Each of you has many, many hairs on your head, and I am sure that if you started to count them you would tire very quickly. But do you know that God knows how many hairs are on your head? Listen to this verse:
Matthew 10:30“But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.”
This verse shows us the loving care of God, who numbered all the hairs of our heads. If God knows how many hairs are on your head, don’t you think He also knows every detail in your life? There’s no problem in your life that He cannot solve, and there’s no need that He cannot meet. He certainly knows when you need strength to overcome temptation, or when you need help in telling someone else about the Lord Jesus.
Remember this little lesson, boys and girls. Every time you comb your hair, for instance, remember just how much your heavenly Father cares for you. But also remember that this is true only if you have believed in the Lord Jesus.
Object Lesson provided by Charles Ryrie, Easy Object Lessons, p.64.
Key Theme: God protects His people.
God’s provision and protection are indicated from the outset of time. God chose the family line of Abram to demonstrate His protection. These are the people of promise.
Genesis 12:2-3“And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great, And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse you. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
God states that Israel is “the apple of His eye.” The “apple” of the eye is the pupil. It is the part of the eye that regulates light and the part we instinctively protect. God protects His people like we instinctively protect our eyes. God means business when He states that He will protect Israel.
Zechariah 2:8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, “After glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.”
There are multiple occasions throughout history where God protects His people. The two stories being studied are examples. Paul is protected in his travels on the sea.
Judgment was brought against Egypt with the plague of hail. Israel was in exile in Egypt during this hail storm yet they were spared.
Exodus 9:26 “Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.”
Although God is never directly mentioned in the Book of Esther, His hand of protection is noted throughout the book. The Jewish people are protected from the plots of Haman’s evil intentions. It was Haman’s intent to exterminate the Jews. As the story goes, Persian King Ahasuerus chooses a Jewish girl, Esther, to be his queen. Mordecai, Esther’s uncle, works behind the scenes to protect his people. In the final analysis, Haman’s plot is foiled and he ends up dead. The Jewish people are spared from extinction.
In the future, Jesus will “snatch” His bride the church from a troubled world. That event is the rapture of the church.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The church will be spared from the coming judgment against the world in the seven year tribulation. Again, God will protect His people.
Memory Verse: Mark 2:10-11But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” He said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”
Scripture: Matthew 9:2-8, Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:18-26
Object Lesson: Imagine a world where if you break any traffic law that you have to pay a ten million dollar ($10,000,000) fine. If you are unable to pay the fine, you are sentenced to death. Regardless of the infraction, this is the just punishment.
Even if you run a stop sign, drive under the influence, or go two miles per hour over the speed limit, enforcement and punishment are consistent and there are no exceptions. The system is absolutely just.
If this were really the case, the roads would be empty. So you run a stop sign and the camera takes a picture of your infraction. The police come and haul you away to jail. You are waiting for trial and pending sentence. You know you did it. As you are cuffed and transferred to the judge in the court, a complete stranger comes in on your behalf and pays your fine. He plops down $10,000,000 on your behalf. Your debt has been paid.
Justice has been served in that the fine has been paid. You could not afford the fine, but the judge accepts the payment of the fine by this gentleman on your behalf. You are spared death and your life has been pardoned.
Doctrinal Emphasis: Forgiveness
Key Theme: Sin is forgiven once and for all.
The primary word for forgiveness in the New Testament is aphiemi/ἀφίημι. It means to remit or forgive debts or sins. It involves the complete removal of the cause or offence. This remission is based upon the vicarious and propitiatory sacrifice of Christ. Jesus took our place. Definition provided by Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words.
Only God can forgive sins. The Pharisees and scribes of the day knew this all too well in Mark 2:1-12, Luke 5:18-26, Matthew 9:2-8. This is the reason they took such offence when Jesus forgave the sins of the paralytic. As far as they were concerned, this was a blasphemous act and speech by Jesus. In their eyes, He was an ordinary man and not God. He was not even a member of the religious structures of the day. No mere man can forgive sins.
Jesus is not just an ordinary man. Jesus is God and He has the ability to forgive sins.
On an individual level, the forgiveness of sins is complete and distant. Psalm 103:12 states “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
Nations and individuals are forgiven of their sins. Israel’s sins corporately are forgiven in Psalm 85:2, “Thou didst forgive the iniquity of Thy people; thou didst cover all their sin.” This is also stated in Jeremiah 36:3b in reference to the house of Judah, “…then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
Personally, we have to be forgiven because we are all born sinners. Ephesians 2:1 tells us that we are all spiritually dead. This is part of our family tree passed down by Adam.
Fortunately, we have redemption through the blood of Christ, the forgiveness of trespasses and sins, for His name’s sake (Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:14, 1 John 2:12).
The same concept is articulated in the Old Testament on personal level in…
Isaiah 43:25, “I, even I, am the One who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.”
The forgiveness of sins does not mean that we are free to do whatever we want without consequence. We should not choose to abuse the work of the cross. Paul shuts down this argument in Romans 6:1b-2. “…Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?”
Jesus’ work on the cross is clearly an act of grace and mercy towards sinful man. Honestly, is this any way to respond to a Man who suffered and died a horrible death on our behalf because of all of our sins?
What if the roles were reversed in the sense that you had bailed someone out of deep trouble? What if that person (the one you bailed out of trouble) chose to continue the behavior that landed them in trouble? What would you think if the person you spared continued to live in a sinful manner? After all, you were willing to pay the fine with your life for the sinner.
Have some empathy, put yourself in Jesus’ sandals. Try to look at this issue from His view…
There are consequences for our bodily actions. Physically, we die. The wage of sin is death. If God did not punish sin, He would fail to be just.
