October 20 2012 The words in red…the Spirit makes the difference
Lesson 5.
One Wednesday of this past month, I joined an old working buddy to attend the funeral of our former boss. After arriving at the church house we were joined by several others. It was nice to see these guys again it had been several years sinceI we saw one another. We swapped stories about working for “old Tibs”, our nick name for him, All this was after the funeral mass was over , We met at the nearest Tim Horton donut shop. THERE IS ALWAYS ONE NEARBY. As I reflect upon our get together, I’ve taken a hankerin’ for a donut.
I’m back from my local Tim’s shop.
Getting back to the funeral, that ritual they go through is dead formality. Oh the right words fro m the scriptures was spoken, even some of the doctrine was o.k.
But it was just a dead ritual and ceremony. The fact that the recently departed had been sprinkled with some cold water as an infant guaranteed him a place in heaven. The Bible tells us, in fact Jesus Himself said it…unless the Spirit draw him, no man may come. It was the Spirit that drew those two disciples away in John 1:36 from John the Baptist that day and Jesus lays it out for Nicodemus The plan of God began to unfold that night as Nicoddemas stood befop the Lord of glory and heard these words, “ye must be born again. Nicodemas did not understand what the Lord was talking about ,that is shown by his statement found in verse 4 of ch. 3,,,can (a man) enter his mother’s womb the second time and be born? What a stupid question one might say but are we not guilty of the same things many times?
Paul writes to the church at Corinth in his first letter to them and says in verses 18-21of chapter 1 ,’ “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.. The preached word doesn’t make sense to the natural man. I thought I was alright. I was brought up in a Christian home, my parents and my older brother were saved and I was o.k. Until one night in an old Orange hall that served as a Baptist church where an evangelist by the name of Howard H. Chipchase was preaching on the book of Revelation
In a little town just northwest of Toronto, Ontario , I felt the convicting power of the Holy Sprit and after much struggling with my constitutional timidity I accepted Jesus as my Savior. And I know what Jesus meant when He said “unless the Spirit draw him, no man can come” and also,” no man cometh to the Father except by Me. “That was 60 years ago and He is still my Savior today.
Once saved always saved? Probably not….but He is a savior who can keep me
From falling, He has kept me for over sixty years. If you fall, He will pick you up again. The eternal God is our refuge…
This man Nicodemas was like many people are today. He didn’t understand spiritual things, he had never been born again. His statement, in the form of a question said it all…how can a man be born when he is old? That part of the statement was not unreasonable, but when he asked “can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born? It was a serious threat to his credibility. So you see what Jesus meant when He said “If I tell you earthly things and you believe not, how care ye going to believe if I tell you of
Heavenly things? How are you going to believe. Aren’t we all a little like Nicodemas, some times. For instance we ask Gto heal us….then we try to te[[ Him how to do it.. Don’t tell God how to do His business He does not need your advice. God has a great shop manual that He has created for His children. ,When Nicodemas met with Jesus, the firs thing he did was make confession, He said, “Rabbi..teaher. Jesus was also a man of authority. Rabbi or teacher. And he recognized where His authority came from….verse 2 you are sent from God.
Nicodemas was a teacher too,but he knew he was not sent from God and he knew all of his Pharisaical friends were not sent from God either. They couldn’t perform miracles. They did not speak with authority like Jesus did, Nicodemas knew enough to realize that much. If you have a hunger for God, He will find a way to satisfy that hunger,
Jesus went right to the heart of the matter and He said to Nicudemas, “Truly, truly you must be born again. Except a man be born again he cannot (even hope) to see the kingdom of God That is when Nicodemas asked the questions. Concerning the Born agai8n experience. Jesus revealed to Nicodemas that night the plan of salvation. Jesus said to Nicodemas “that which is born of the flesh is flesh; that which is born of the spirit is Spirit. Marvel not that I say unto you , Ye must be born again… in other words Nicodemas to be born again is to receive Jesus into your heart and your spirit. You must be born again by the Spirit of God! THAT WHICH IS BORN OF THE Spirit is spirit
. Nicodemas had said in verse 2 chap. 2 ,”We know You are a teacher sent from God for no man can do the miracles except God be with him.”Well spoken, Nicodemas, very well said! Is the day of miracles past? Jesus said in Luke 18::8, “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith in the earth? No miracles? No faith maybe? So Jesus laid it out to Nicodemas here in verses 5-8 of chapter 3 just what He meant by “born again” and verse 9 he asks “how can these things be?”And Jesus in verses 10-21 reveals to this Jewish ruler the plan of God for the ages for the salvation of mankind and it has not changed, it is still the same today.
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” This is the word of the Lord! The words are in red.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Sunday, September 9, 2012
words in red/who is Jesus?
Words in red chapter 1 john 1:1
Who is Jesus?
John ch. 1 vs 1…these are words about Jesus and they tell us that in the beginning (before anything else existed ) there was God and there was the Word and (they,) for want of a better word are one…the Word was with God and the Word was God. I’ve paraphrased it somewhat. Verse 2 says “the same(that would be the Word) was in the beginning with God.” Verse number 3 says “all
….ALL things were made by Him, All things were made by Him. Every element every atom, every molecule, every kind of tree, every mountain, every drop of water every bird every animal every man, all of mankind every thing and any thing you can think of was made by Him and Hebrews ch. 1 tells us that He keeps everything in order by the Word of His power, the same Word that was in the beginning. He was there when the beginning began Read John 1:1-3 and Hebrews 1:1-3 also. In our first post entitled “the words in red” dated back on April 11,2012 I pointed out the fact that this Word who is the eternal God is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ.
By the way, if you go to the google pages and type in “the words in red, you will find numerous sites, none of which I knew existed before I made my own site. I have not read them as yet….probably won’t,
This will be a brief summary of what we covered in Bible Study before the summer break.We need to understand Who Jesus is before we look at His words, “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God All things were made by Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:1-3. Verse 4 says, “In Him was life and the life was the light of men. Verse 5, “And the light shines in darkness, and the darkness could not comprehend it, This from the New King James Version which reads closely to the authorized version…KJV
Amplified Bible (AMP) puts it thusly:
1 In the beginning [before all time] was the Word ([]Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God [Himself.
I LIKE THIS VERSION BEST IN THIS CONTEXT…..It is very clear
In John’s vision (Rev. 19), he sees Christ returning as Warrior-Messiah-King, and “the title by which He is called is The Word of God... and Lord of lords” (Rev. 19:13, 16).
John 1:2Amplified Bible (AMP)2 He was present originally with God.John 1:3Amplified Bible (AMP)3 All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one thing made that has come into being.John tells us that Jeus was and still is God! Not only that; and by the way this record is from the apostle John, but John the Baptist calls Him the Lamb of God,
The 14th, verse of John 1 gives us even more light on the subject in that we are told that this Word became flesh and dwelt among us, that is to say He became a man. The Bible says that we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father…and that He was full of grace and truth. Full of grace and truth. What a contrast to the leaders we see in our world today. Imagine what it would be like living under such a leadership as this. Well one day we shall know what that will be like if we are washed in His blood at His coming.
I’m not going to deeply into this part because we have already covered it before although it is one of my favorite portions of all scripture but I want to just have you read what the apostle John has to say in his epistle
1 John 1:1-3…”Thar which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the word of life -----------the life was manifested, and we seen and bear witness, and declare that eternal life (.Jesus is eternal life.)
That which we have seen a n d heard we declare to you, that you may have fellowship with us and truly our fellowship is with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ.” What greater testimony could you ask for than this declaration of the apostle John? When we fellowship like this, you can’t do any better. A little bit of heaven to go to heaven in”
Now we have come to the part that this study is all about, the words of Jesus are in red.. In the first chapter that we are looking at, we see in verse 36 an announcement from John the Baptist that Jesus is the Lamb of God! In fact John
Was walking along a road with two of his disciples when he saw Jesus and I believe he was quickened by the Spirit and he cried out…”Behold the Lamb of God” it wasn’t some weak namsy-pamsy utterance, but rather a shout of triumph….”behold!...The Lamb of God! Repeat it with me, “ behold! The Lamb of God!”Remember, John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother’s womb. He was the furst Pentecostal,, And when he said that, immediately the two disciples left off following him and followed Jesus. John said, “He must increase anf I must decrease.” One of the rwo was Andrew, brother of Simon Peter ..He, that is Andrew first ….just as soon as he began to follow Jesus, findeth his own brother, Peter and he brought him to Jesus, you see how this witnessing thing is supposed to work? It begins right at home. Your own family comes first. Do you agree? Whether you agree or not that is how it works. Gerald and I were talking one night and we agreed that our dad made sure that his sons were saved. He made sure we were saved. Before we move on, notice in verse 34 the confession of John Baptist..”And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”
We read the first words in red here in chapter 1 when Jesus said to Andrew and his freind"what do you seek?" He still asks that same question of us today...What do you seek? Are you seeking material things?, gratification of flesh? The Bible says that this world is going to pass away with the lust therof included. My advice to you s to take a look at the two disciples answer..It is a question."Teacher, where are you staying?" Jesus said to them , "Come and see." Why not do that today; come and see. Let me know on the comment page,,,Randall
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
It's been some time since I have contributed any thing to either of these two blogs, moreaboutHis word or Godspattern. So this is the first instalment of a new Bible study that I am giving at the church house and I'm calling it "the words in red"
“The words are in red”
When I was eight years
old, my great aunt Stell gave me and my older brother a new Bible each for
Christmas. That was the year 1948. It had our initials embossed on the cover
therby personalizing it. I learned to love it as a child and I have never lost
that hunger and thirsting that the Lord
has placed in my spirit and soul for it. It is still around, albeit in well
worn condition, the pages are worn and some are torn, some are even missing. It
was the best Christmas present I ever received. Nowadays I have many Bibles in
m possession, but this first one was especially dear to me. It is a Holman
Bible, red letter edition which means the words of Christ are in red. A few
weeks ago Judy and I were preparing for a trip and I have a small pocket bible,
New King James edition that I like to take along and I laid it on our telephone
table so I would see it on our way out and you guessed it, I walked right past
it forgetting it. So as soon as we
arrived in South Florida, I went to the nearest WalMart and purchased a new
one. You can get some good buys in the WalMart on Bibles. Lo and behold it is a
King James, my first Bible was a King James, this new one is a Holman Bible and
like my first Bible, it too has the words of Jesus in red. It was a reminder to
me that the Lord has been prompting in me to do a study entitling it “the words
are in red” meaning of course the words or quotations of Jesus are in red. So
this study will be based on the words of Jesus as recorded by the apostle John,
the Gospel of John. It is important for the purposes of these studies that we
read and understand as best we can, the surrounding verses. So we will begin
this first post by reading from ch. 1 starting at verse # 1. It is all about
the gospel
#1: In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2: The same was in the
beginning with God.
Verse#14 says “and the
Word was made flesh and lived or dwelt or tabernacle with us.” I like the
Amplified Bible in this instance, it leaves no doubt as to whom the writer is
referring. “In the beginning [before all time]
was the Word(Christ)2. He was present originally with God.3. All things
were made and come into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one
thing made that has come into being.“ ,
Here we have an
identity process, Who is this Word? It
is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says that “in Him was life and the
life was the light of men.”( Vs. 4 )
Take your Bible and
read ch. 1 of John. Vs.#5
Tells us that the
light shines in the dark and the darkness could not stop it. Let me quote it from
the AMPLIFIED VERSION. “and the light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness
has
Never overpowered it[put it out or absorbed it, and
is unreceptive to it]. The KJV SAID it comprehended it not....couldn’t prevent
it in any way. When God’s timing for divine intervention is ripe ...the forces
of hell cannot stop it! There are two people named John in this first chapter
and both play a key role so to speak in the propogation of the Gospel. Vs. 6
says “there was a man sent from God whose name was John.” That would be John
the Baptist. The other John is the Apostle John, the disciple of Jesus and it
is he who has recorded these events and the doctrine concerning the Word made
flesh for us. He (John)does not identify himself by name but I do believe it is
he who says in Vs. 34, “And I saw and bear record that this is the Son of God.”
Let us bear record tonight “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of the
living God”. Do you believe it tonight with your whole heart? Then say it with
me one more time... I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God.
He is the Son of the LIVING GOD! He is alive tonight!
He is the LIVING GOD! I’m glad He is alive tonight,
aren’t you? Turn with me to the last book in the New Testament chapter 1 verse
8 and reading from the Amplified again, “I am the Alpha and Omega, the
Beginning and the end, says the Lord God, He who is and who was and who is to
come, the Almighty.” John the Baptist said “behold the Lamb of God!” When he
said that, two of his disciples who were with him, heard him say it, and
immediately, they began to follow Him...the Lamb of God...Jesus, and Jesus
turned and asked them, Why?, why are you following Me?” The words in red say,
“What seek ye?” These three little words are the first recorded words of Jesus
that John tells us about.”What seek ye? They asked Him where He was
staying...”where dwellest thou?” And His response then was the same as it is
today to all who seek Him..”come and see” Come and see....how many times has
the King of Glory extended that invitation? Isn’t that why we study like
this...prayer groups, corporate prayer, individual prayer, seeking His face
being His dwelling place. Verse 10 says “He was in the world, and the world was
made by Him and the world knew Him not. 11. He came unto His own, and they
didn’t receive Him....but this next verse, verse 12...but as many as received
Him...as many as received Him, to them gave He the power to become the sons of
God. Imagine being sons, daughters of the God of heaven. He gave that power to
Andrew and his brother, Peter, and to Philip and Nathanael. And how could a
mortal man receive this power? Even to those who call on His name. The gospel
is not complicated, all we have to do is believe. And receive by faith...read
that verse 12 again. It’s even to them
that believe in His name. You’ve got to believe in His name. It isn’t a creed
or set of rules but it is believing in His name and the finished work on
Calvary. “what seek ye”? “come and see”. What was the result of coming to see
where Jesus dwelling was? Well ANDREW WAS SO ENTHRALLED BY BEING IN His
presence, that he wanted to share the good news with his brother, Simon. And he
brought him to Jesus. Philipp also
went and brought Nathanael to Jesus.
Philip was a great soul winner
as we learn in the book of Acts. Andrew
was one of those guys who was always doing something good behind the scene,
like finding a little boy with five loaves and two fishes to feed a crowd of
five thousand, or going down to the fish sheds to find his brother and tell him
about Jesus. Philip was an evangelist, he found Nathanael but after receiving
the Holy Ghost, he went down into Samaria and started a revival. He used Jesus’
own method to win Nathanael...”Come and see”
It was Philip who said to Jesus, “show us the Father and it will sustain
us’” and remember what Jesus said to him in reply, “you’ve already seen Him
Philip” Actually what He said according to the 14th. Chapter and
verse 9, “Have I been so long time with you and yet hast thou not known Me,
Philip?” “If you have seen Me, you have
seen the Father...you have already seen Him.”
The Word made flesh said to Philip “have I been with all of you for so long a time , and do you not recognize
and know Me yet, Philip? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father, so how can
you say, Show us the Father|?” And He
went on to show them that He and the Father are one....but we will leave this
for another lesson. And I will not give you anything contrary to the Word of
God. In the first chapter you can see the one on one evangelism of Jesus’
disciples. Andrew finds Peter, Jesus calls Philip, Philip invites Nathaneal,
all this because Andrew and an other unnamed disciple started to follow Jesus after John the Baptist said,
“behold the Lamb of God” “Behold the Lamb of God!Is that not still the message
today and is it not only the message but also the method? Turn to 1 Cor. 1:17,18
and 23,24. And to whom do we tell? Ro. 1:14-16. :All men everywhere, amen? That
is who we need to say these words to, “behold, the Lamb of God!” And when men
say “where does He dwell?”, we can tell them that His dwelling place is in our
hearts and He dwells there by faith. We will point them to the cross.
While we were away this winter we visited the
island of Rotan, it is several miles off the coast of Honduras and belongs to
that nation. It was one of our ports of call, and it is a beautiful place. So
we went for a tour and hired a taxi to take us. The taxi was a nine passenger
van and there were eight of us. I SAT UP
with the driver. His name is Trent. He was singing some gospel sons, so
I joined in with him. I asked him if he was a Christian. He said “no”. Then I
asked him if he believed in Jesus. His answer was a clear and a positive “yes”.
As we talked, I learned that he was raised in a Christian home and he had
followed the Lord in his younger years but had drifted away. So the opportunity
was there to point him again to the Lamb of God. He was a tender-hearted young
man, the timing was right. God is so faithful.
The words in red...the
words of Jesus..”what seekest thou?...come and see”
Monday, October 20, 2008
Disparity
Disparity means by definition the condition or fact of being unequal. While Judy and I were travelling in a particular country in North Africa recently, we discovered what that word really means. We saw just how unequal this world can be. We live in Canada, the best country in the world in our opinion and rather than gloat about it as some nations do, we are grateful to be Canadians.....we were born and raised here. Canada is the second largest country in size in the world, second only to Russia. With only 33.5 million people or so, we have a lot of space left. The particular country that we were travelling in has approximately the same population figures as does Canada in fact they are 36 and 37th in the world as far as population goes, but in land mass
Canada is #2 and the country we visited is #57 in size. We have almost 10 million square kilometres; the country in question has only 446,550 square km's which makes our country over 22 times larger. Now that is disparity. Canada is rich in natural resources as well and compared to other countries we are rich beyond measure. But the real disparity between our two countries is not so much a physical thing but it is rather a spiritual situation...you cannot preach the gospel of Jesus Christ in that land. Christians, you had better be thankful and diligent concerning our freedom and we had best take advantage of every opportunity that we have to proclaim the good news...it might not always be this way. In contrast to the laws of that totally Islamic nation however, they are free to practice their religion in my country. They can pray anywhere they want to without fear of arrest or harassment of any kind. Again an example of disparity. An example from the Bible comes to mind and while I will not take time to quote the scripture verses, it is the story or parable if you will concerning the ten virgins...five of them were wise and five were foolish. The five wise had kept themselves prepared for the coming arrival of their heavenly bridegroom but the foolish ones had not. Take notice that they were all virgins which speaks of purity, however the foolish ones were not prepared...they had let their lamps run out of oil. Are we in tune with our heavenly bridegroom? Are we in a constant attitude of prayer? Jesus said "men ought always to pray and noy faint. Perhaps we too need someone to talk to about spiritual things, perhaps we need to increase our time spent with our bridegroom so that when the cry comes "go ye out to meet Him...there will not be any dirparity.
Canada is #2 and the country we visited is #57 in size. We have almost 10 million square kilometres; the country in question has only 446,550 square km's which makes our country over 22 times larger. Now that is disparity. Canada is rich in natural resources as well and compared to other countries we are rich beyond measure. But the real disparity between our two countries is not so much a physical thing but it is rather a spiritual situation...you cannot preach the gospel of Jesus Christ in that land. Christians, you had better be thankful and diligent concerning our freedom and we had best take advantage of every opportunity that we have to proclaim the good news...it might not always be this way. In contrast to the laws of that totally Islamic nation however, they are free to practice their religion in my country. They can pray anywhere they want to without fear of arrest or harassment of any kind. Again an example of disparity. An example from the Bible comes to mind and while I will not take time to quote the scripture verses, it is the story or parable if you will concerning the ten virgins...five of them were wise and five were foolish. The five wise had kept themselves prepared for the coming arrival of their heavenly bridegroom but the foolish ones had not. Take notice that they were all virgins which speaks of purity, however the foolish ones were not prepared...they had let their lamps run out of oil. Are we in tune with our heavenly bridegroom? Are we in a constant attitude of prayer? Jesus said "men ought always to pray and noy faint. Perhaps we too need someone to talk to about spiritual things, perhaps we need to increase our time spent with our bridegroom so that when the cry comes "go ye out to meet Him...there will not be any dirparity.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
The Veil
The Veil…Lo He is the Mighty Conqueror since He rent the veil in Two
Oh behold the Man of Sorrows Oh behold Him in plain view, for He is the Mighty Conqueror, since He rent the veil in two. John 14:6, “Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.” This scripture verse that I have just read is depicted in type to show us that Jesus is the real truth and life and the way and we will see this fulfilled in typology in the construction of the Gate, the Door and the Veil, and tonight(being the last night until next fall) we will confine our study to the Veil and if time permits perhaps a little review might be good as well.…The reason that I am starting with the Veil is the same reason that I started with the Holy of Holies…God came to us, not the other way round. He searched for me. In tenderness He sought me….when I was lost without hope, without God …He came to me. Why did He love me so? Why does He love you so? I’m glad He did. I’m glad He does tonight.
The Veil was a veil of separation between a holy God and unholy man. It hung between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place that was called the Holy of Holies in which was the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat Let’s look at the scriptural setting, the background…tonight’s text if you will and it is found in Ex. Ch. 26 verses 31-33 Exodus 26:31-33 (New King James Version)
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
31 “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy.
Also look at Ex.ch. 36:35-38 Exodus 36:35-38 (New King James Version)
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
35 And he made a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen; it was worked with an artistic design of cherubim. 36 He made for it four pillars of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four sockets of silver for them. 37 He also made a screen for the tabernacle door, of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver, 38 and its five pillars with their hooks. And he overlaid their capitals and their rings with gold, but their five sockets were bronze.
The Veil was supported by four pillars consisting of acacia wood overlaid with gold and grounded in silver foundations. We won’t occupy our time tonight with the pillars but rather with the Veil which they support…that was their function, the meaning for their existence and we will see more as we study the Veil. However everything about this Tabernacle building has significance because every minute detail in one way or another points us to Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross, so it is all significant, amen?
The Tabernacle was built after the pattern of the things in heaven That is why we look to Jesus Who is in heaven and came down from heaven to dwell among us.
There it is, in the book of Hebrews that we look for the interpretation of these truths regarding the Tabernacle. All other explanations have to line up with the one found in Hebrews.
The Veil was a veil of separation between a holy God and sinful man; it kept the O.T. saints of all ages from approaching God except for that once a year the high priest could go in to seek an atonement for the sins of the people and he would go there with the blood of an animal to offer upon the mercy seat in the hopes of having their sins covered up. That is what the word atonement means…it is an old testament word that means to “atone” or “cover up” After the Veil has been rent the word is “expiation” or “reconciliation” or “redemption” The blood of Jesus does not just “cover up” sin but rather takes it away. It fully reconciles a holy God with repentant sinners. David said in Psalm 32 “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.” That is Old Testament, however the truth is still the same because when Jesus came and went to the cross and made an atonement for sin it was not only covered but it was also washed away. Are you glad your sins are not only covered but they are washed away? They are gone!
The Old Testament saints were unable to have their sins removed before Calvary. That’s why Ephesians tells us He led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men, speaking of course about Jesus after His crucifixion descending into the lowest parts of hell and leading them to freedom.
The Veil speaks of the flesh and the body and the life of our Lord Jesus Christ.
O/T. saints looked ahead in faith as we see in Hebrews chapter 11.even as we look back to Calvary. They by faith saw what He was going to do whereas we look to what He has done. However in saying that we know that according to Rev. 13:8 , He was slain from before the foundation of the world, so that in the mind of the Father He was already crucified.
There are four groups or companies of saints in heaven and they are all represented by the four and twenty elders that we find in Rev. ch 4:4
They do not cease to worship God through out eternity. They made it in because
Of the Veil being rent or torn in two. They are people who are redeemed and clothed in gold and grounded in redemption. These four and twenty elders represent the redeemed of all the ages and the scene is the time when asll the redeemed are gathered where the Lamb is the only One found worthy to open the Book…the Blood has been shared and the Veil has been rent.
I said that there were four companmies of believers who will be gathered, and the first company will be the Old Testament Saints. Acts 7:38
The church in the wilderness refers to the Israelites who came out of Egypt. They were under the Mosaic covenant right up until the Veil was rent in two. Their salvation as well as ours was and is totally dependent on the Lamb of God. He shed His blood for all men of all ages. As I said previously the 11th. Chapter of Hebrews is testimony to what He did in their lives. Read Hebrews 12:1,2.
The second group is the New Testament church Sants and that includes you and me, can you shout amen? Martt 16:16-16 -18. Read Col. 1:18-22
The third group would be the 144,000 Jewish church saints who have been martyred for their testimony. Look at Rev. 7:2-4 Also Rev. 14:1-3.
The fourth group is the Great Tribulation Saints. Rev 7:9-14. Rev 15:2-5
All four groups benefit from the Veil that was rent. Hebrews10:19,20We know undoubtedly that the Veil represents our Lord .Hebrews 10:19,20
Oh behold the Man of Sorrows Oh behold Him in plain view, for He is the Mighty Conqueror, since He rent the veil in two. John 14:6, “Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.” This scripture verse that I have just read is depicted in type to show us that Jesus is the real truth and life and the way and we will see this fulfilled in typology in the construction of the Gate, the Door and the Veil, and tonight(being the last night until next fall) we will confine our study to the Veil and if time permits perhaps a little review might be good as well.…The reason that I am starting with the Veil is the same reason that I started with the Holy of Holies…God came to us, not the other way round. He searched for me. In tenderness He sought me….when I was lost without hope, without God …He came to me. Why did He love me so? Why does He love you so? I’m glad He did. I’m glad He does tonight.
The Veil was a veil of separation between a holy God and unholy man. It hung between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place that was called the Holy of Holies in which was the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat Let’s look at the scriptural setting, the background…tonight’s text if you will and it is found in Ex. Ch. 26 verses 31-33 Exodus 26:31-33 (New King James Version)
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
31 “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy.
Also look at Ex.ch. 36:35-38 Exodus 36:35-38 (New King James Version)
New King James Version (NKJV)
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
35 And he made a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen; it was worked with an artistic design of cherubim. 36 He made for it four pillars of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four sockets of silver for them. 37 He also made a screen for the tabernacle door, of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver, 38 and its five pillars with their hooks. And he overlaid their capitals and their rings with gold, but their five sockets were bronze.
The Veil was supported by four pillars consisting of acacia wood overlaid with gold and grounded in silver foundations. We won’t occupy our time tonight with the pillars but rather with the Veil which they support…that was their function, the meaning for their existence and we will see more as we study the Veil. However everything about this Tabernacle building has significance because every minute detail in one way or another points us to Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross, so it is all significant, amen?
The Tabernacle was built after the pattern of the things in heaven That is why we look to Jesus Who is in heaven and came down from heaven to dwell among us.
There it is, in the book of Hebrews that we look for the interpretation of these truths regarding the Tabernacle. All other explanations have to line up with the one found in Hebrews.
The Veil was a veil of separation between a holy God and sinful man; it kept the O.T. saints of all ages from approaching God except for that once a year the high priest could go in to seek an atonement for the sins of the people and he would go there with the blood of an animal to offer upon the mercy seat in the hopes of having their sins covered up. That is what the word atonement means…it is an old testament word that means to “atone” or “cover up” After the Veil has been rent the word is “expiation” or “reconciliation” or “redemption” The blood of Jesus does not just “cover up” sin but rather takes it away. It fully reconciles a holy God with repentant sinners. David said in Psalm 32 “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.” That is Old Testament, however the truth is still the same because when Jesus came and went to the cross and made an atonement for sin it was not only covered but it was also washed away. Are you glad your sins are not only covered but they are washed away? They are gone!
The Old Testament saints were unable to have their sins removed before Calvary. That’s why Ephesians tells us He led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men, speaking of course about Jesus after His crucifixion descending into the lowest parts of hell and leading them to freedom.
The Veil speaks of the flesh and the body and the life of our Lord Jesus Christ.
O/T. saints looked ahead in faith as we see in Hebrews chapter 11.even as we look back to Calvary. They by faith saw what He was going to do whereas we look to what He has done. However in saying that we know that according to Rev. 13:8 , He was slain from before the foundation of the world, so that in the mind of the Father He was already crucified.
There are four groups or companies of saints in heaven and they are all represented by the four and twenty elders that we find in Rev. ch 4:4
They do not cease to worship God through out eternity. They made it in because
Of the Veil being rent or torn in two. They are people who are redeemed and clothed in gold and grounded in redemption. These four and twenty elders represent the redeemed of all the ages and the scene is the time when asll the redeemed are gathered where the Lamb is the only One found worthy to open the Book…the Blood has been shared and the Veil has been rent.
I said that there were four companmies of believers who will be gathered, and the first company will be the Old Testament Saints. Acts 7:38
The church in the wilderness refers to the Israelites who came out of Egypt. They were under the Mosaic covenant right up until the Veil was rent in two. Their salvation as well as ours was and is totally dependent on the Lamb of God. He shed His blood for all men of all ages. As I said previously the 11th. Chapter of Hebrews is testimony to what He did in their lives. Read Hebrews 12:1,2.
The second group is the New Testament church Sants and that includes you and me, can you shout amen? Martt 16:16-16 -18. Read Col. 1:18-22
The third group would be the 144,000 Jewish church saints who have been martyred for their testimony. Look at Rev. 7:2-4 Also Rev. 14:1-3.
The fourth group is the Great Tribulation Saints. Rev 7:9-14. Rev 15:2-5
All four groups benefit from the Veil that was rent. Hebrews10:19,20We know undoubtedly that the Veil represents our Lord .Hebrews 10:19,20
Monday, May 5, 2008
The Tabernacle study for Tuesday night April 29(last week) This is the first part of that session//
How many caught what David Ravenhill said last Tuesday evening during his address to the three who were being ordained ? He said words to the effect that anytime the subject of the tabernacle was to be taught, or was being taught that it was correct to start with the furnishings and from the inside(the Holy of Holies) and to work your way through to the outer court, not the other way around. God always comes to man first, not the other way around. Iv’e been saying all along the same thing and we have done just that, started from the Holy of Holies and worked outward,
So now we have come to another area where I have struggled with in regards to the construction of the Tabernacle itself…this gets a little complex here in Exodus because in ch. 25 it talks about the furnishings and then interspersed with the furnishings as you go into ch. 26 it speaks about the curtains and then the boards and the sockets that the boards fit into and then the veil . As we go further in ch. 27 it goes back to the furnishings, which we have already covered. However the first thing you do when building a new house is to put in a foundation, amen? So tonight we will look at the silver sockets…the foundation.
In preparation then, we will read ch. 27 of Ex. Vs., 15-37 The Tabernacle I’m reading from the NKJV
1 “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. And every one of the curtains shall have the same measurements. 3 Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. 4 And you shall make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set, and likewise you shall do on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. 5 Fifty loops you shall make in the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is on the end of the second set, that the loops may be clasped to one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains together with the clasps, so that it may be one tabernacle.7 15 “And for the tabernacle you shall make the boards of acacia wood, standing upright. 16 Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the width of each board. 17 Two tenons shall be in each board for binding one to another. Thus you shall make for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18 And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. 19 You shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. 20 And for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, there shall be twenty boards 21 and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. 22 For the far side of the tabernacle, westward, you shall make six boards. 23 And you shall also make two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. 24 They shall be coupled together at the bottom and they shall be coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus it shall be for both of them. They shall be for the two corners. 25 So there shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver—sixteen sockets—two sockets under each of the boards. 26 “And you shall make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, 27 five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the far side westward. 28 The middle bar shall pass through the midst of the boards from end to end. 29 You shall overlay the boards with gold, make their rings of gold as holders for the bars, and overlay the bars with gold. 30 And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain. 31 “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy. 34 You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy. 35 You shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand across from the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side. 36 “You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. 37 And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be gold, and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them.
I have struggled all week with this as to where the Lord wants us to go and I want His direction in it all and as you can see God is specific in His instructions to Moses an ultimately to Joshua as well.This is quite complex elaborate planning,,..
Now turn to Ex. 30:11-1611 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them. 13 This is what everyone among those who are numbered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (a shekel is twenty gerahs). The half-shekel shall be an offering to the LORD. 14 Everyone included among those who are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering to the LORD. 15 The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves. 16 And you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of meeting, that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves.”
One more passage; Ex. 38:25-28, 25 And the silver from those who were numbered of the congregation was one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary: 26 a bekah for each man (that is, half a shekel, according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for everyone included in the numbering from twenty years old and above, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men. 27 And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket. 28 Then from the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made bands for them.
The foundation of the Tabernacle consisted of eight large sockets of silver with a cavity made that the gold covered boards fit into. In total there were 100 of them because there were 48 boards with four pillars for the Veil. Each board needed two supports, one for each of the four pillars and someone has determined that would be 100 The weight of these sockets has been calculated at over six tons.
Where did they get the silver? Why did it have to be silver? And why so much? And of course …what does the silver represent? What does it typify?
But first before we loo into these questions we need to realize that this structure, the Tabernacle was being erected in th e desert on sand. Now if you are building a new building, let’s say an office complex which may include several stories, perhaps some shops, etc., first of all you would probably take your ideas to an architect to design such a structure and he in turn would take his plans and design to an engineer to plan a solid and proper foundation. The building is only as good as it’s foundation, amen? cont'd tomorrow
How many caught what David Ravenhill said last Tuesday evening during his address to the three who were being ordained ? He said words to the effect that anytime the subject of the tabernacle was to be taught, or was being taught that it was correct to start with the furnishings and from the inside(the Holy of Holies) and to work your way through to the outer court, not the other way around. God always comes to man first, not the other way around. Iv’e been saying all along the same thing and we have done just that, started from the Holy of Holies and worked outward,
So now we have come to another area where I have struggled with in regards to the construction of the Tabernacle itself…this gets a little complex here in Exodus because in ch. 25 it talks about the furnishings and then interspersed with the furnishings as you go into ch. 26 it speaks about the curtains and then the boards and the sockets that the boards fit into and then the veil . As we go further in ch. 27 it goes back to the furnishings, which we have already covered. However the first thing you do when building a new house is to put in a foundation, amen? So tonight we will look at the silver sockets…the foundation.
In preparation then, we will read ch. 27 of Ex. Vs., 15-37 The Tabernacle I’m reading from the NKJV
1 “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. And every one of the curtains shall have the same measurements. 3 Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. 4 And you shall make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set, and likewise you shall do on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. 5 Fifty loops you shall make in the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is on the end of the second set, that the loops may be clasped to one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains together with the clasps, so that it may be one tabernacle.7 15 “And for the tabernacle you shall make the boards of acacia wood, standing upright. 16 Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the width of each board. 17 Two tenons shall be in each board for binding one to another. Thus you shall make for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18 And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. 19 You shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. 20 And for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, there shall be twenty boards 21 and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. 22 For the far side of the tabernacle, westward, you shall make six boards. 23 And you shall also make two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. 24 They shall be coupled together at the bottom and they shall be coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus it shall be for both of them. They shall be for the two corners. 25 So there shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver—sixteen sockets—two sockets under each of the boards. 26 “And you shall make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, 27 five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the far side westward. 28 The middle bar shall pass through the midst of the boards from end to end. 29 You shall overlay the boards with gold, make their rings of gold as holders for the bars, and overlay the bars with gold. 30 And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain. 31 “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy. 34 You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy. 35 You shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand across from the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side. 36 “You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. 37 And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be gold, and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them.
I have struggled all week with this as to where the Lord wants us to go and I want His direction in it all and as you can see God is specific in His instructions to Moses an ultimately to Joshua as well.This is quite complex elaborate planning,,..
Now turn to Ex. 30:11-1611 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them. 13 This is what everyone among those who are numbered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (a shekel is twenty gerahs). The half-shekel shall be an offering to the LORD. 14 Everyone included among those who are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering to the LORD. 15 The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves. 16 And you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of meeting, that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before the LORD, to make atonement for yourselves.”
One more passage; Ex. 38:25-28, 25 And the silver from those who were numbered of the congregation was one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary: 26 a bekah for each man (that is, half a shekel, according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for everyone included in the numbering from twenty years old and above, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men. 27 And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket. 28 Then from the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made bands for them.
The foundation of the Tabernacle consisted of eight large sockets of silver with a cavity made that the gold covered boards fit into. In total there were 100 of them because there were 48 boards with four pillars for the Veil. Each board needed two supports, one for each of the four pillars and someone has determined that would be 100 The weight of these sockets has been calculated at over six tons.
Where did they get the silver? Why did it have to be silver? And why so much? And of course …what does the silver represent? What does it typify?
But first before we loo into these questions we need to realize that this structure, the Tabernacle was being erected in th e desert on sand. Now if you are building a new building, let’s say an office complex which may include several stories, perhaps some shops, etc., first of all you would probably take your ideas to an architect to design such a structure and he in turn would take his plans and design to an engineer to plan a solid and proper foundation. The building is only as good as it’s foundation, amen? cont'd tomorrow
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
A series: the church
A question that may be on the minds of many people in the day we live is this one...is the church still relevant today? As I mused upon this question; I pondered it in my heart, I decided to first of all look up the word relevant or relavency in a dictionary. (Makes sense?) An online dictionary that I frequently use in cases like this said, " bearing upon or being connected with the matter at hand., pertinent. Another explanation says, "connected with something important, with what is being spoken about or discussed. Then these three #1. Relieving, lending aid or support...(that fits)
#2. Bearing upon or properly applying to the case, pertinent, applicable.
#3. Sufficient to support the case.
After all just what is the case? What is the role (for want of a better term) of the church? Is it to provide a social network of believers? Or is it to provide social welfare for those in need? Or is it both or neither or somewhere in between? Maybe first of all we need to find out what the church is and then what it's purpose is. So where do I find the answers? In the Word of God the Bible of course. 1 Timothy 3:15 where Paul writes to Timothy is where the answer lies. Paul is instructing Timothy how people ought to act in "the house of God, the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." This quote from the King James Version. The NRSV uses the term pillar and bulwark of the truth. The NIV says "the pillar and foundation of the truth. The rest of the versions that I read agree with this statement. One version refers to it as the pillar and bulwark of the truth; another the prop and support. The church of the living God...It is the living God that makes it what it is. Truth is more than a principal here....truth is a person, and that Person is Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. In fact He Himself said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. By taking account of church attendance in some areas it would seem that church is no longer relevant...but it is only irrelevant to those who stay away from services on a regular week by week, service by service basis. The relevancy of the church is not measured by those who regularly or irregularly attend, or by those who don't show up at all or by those who say it is not relevant. The fact of it being relevant and pertinent is not dependant upon the above circumstances but rather upon its Founder and upon the fact that He ordained it to be and that He is the head of the real church...not the Pope(all due respect) not the Archbishop of Cantebury,(again with all due respect) not even the Queen, the head of the church is the Lord Jesus Christ...no matter what Oprah says about Him ...He is our God.
The question comes to mind, "what is the primary function of this body the church here on this earth?" And the answer is found in the words of the Lord Jesus in Matt 28:19, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" Before you can make disciples you must get people saved and the two go hand in hand and the church is still making disciples of those whom the Lord saves.
I quoted from 1 Timothy that the church is the household of God,the pillar and support of the truth...by the preaching of the unchanging gospel of Jesus Christ, even though good men fall and say that Jesus is not God, even though false teachers say absurd things like the Book of Mormon is superior to the Word of God, even though deceivers like Oprah say people are God...the Gospel has not changed and Jesus is still God and the church will triumph and the gates of hell can't stop it! Try to prove the Bible is true? Just proclaim it...let it loose and it will prove itself!
How do you prove a lion is a lion? Let it loose and it will prove itself....
The apostle said what the church needs to proclaim in his letter to Titus in ch. 2 vs. 11, "while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."
Oswald Chambers, one of the greatest missionaries of the early part of the last century said "Jesus is the only God the Christian knows". He came to show us what God is like. The church is relevant because He is its Founder, its Head, its Author and its Finisher...to be cont'd
#2. Bearing upon or properly applying to the case, pertinent, applicable.
#3. Sufficient to support the case.
After all just what is the case? What is the role (for want of a better term) of the church? Is it to provide a social network of believers? Or is it to provide social welfare for those in need? Or is it both or neither or somewhere in between? Maybe first of all we need to find out what the church is and then what it's purpose is. So where do I find the answers? In the Word of God the Bible of course. 1 Timothy 3:15 where Paul writes to Timothy is where the answer lies. Paul is instructing Timothy how people ought to act in "the house of God, the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." This quote from the King James Version. The NRSV uses the term pillar and bulwark of the truth. The NIV says "the pillar and foundation of the truth. The rest of the versions that I read agree with this statement. One version refers to it as the pillar and bulwark of the truth; another the prop and support. The church of the living God...It is the living God that makes it what it is. Truth is more than a principal here....truth is a person, and that Person is Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. In fact He Himself said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. By taking account of church attendance in some areas it would seem that church is no longer relevant...but it is only irrelevant to those who stay away from services on a regular week by week, service by service basis. The relevancy of the church is not measured by those who regularly or irregularly attend, or by those who don't show up at all or by those who say it is not relevant. The fact of it being relevant and pertinent is not dependant upon the above circumstances but rather upon its Founder and upon the fact that He ordained it to be and that He is the head of the real church...not the Pope(all due respect) not the Archbishop of Cantebury,(again with all due respect) not even the Queen, the head of the church is the Lord Jesus Christ...no matter what Oprah says about Him ...He is our God.
The question comes to mind, "what is the primary function of this body the church here on this earth?" And the answer is found in the words of the Lord Jesus in Matt 28:19, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" Before you can make disciples you must get people saved and the two go hand in hand and the church is still making disciples of those whom the Lord saves.
I quoted from 1 Timothy that the church is the household of God,the pillar and support of the truth...by the preaching of the unchanging gospel of Jesus Christ, even though good men fall and say that Jesus is not God, even though false teachers say absurd things like the Book of Mormon is superior to the Word of God, even though deceivers like Oprah say people are God...the Gospel has not changed and Jesus is still God and the church will triumph and the gates of hell can't stop it! Try to prove the Bible is true? Just proclaim it...let it loose and it will prove itself!
How do you prove a lion is a lion? Let it loose and it will prove itself....
The apostle said what the church needs to proclaim in his letter to Titus in ch. 2 vs. 11, "while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."
Oswald Chambers, one of the greatest missionaries of the early part of the last century said "Jesus is the only God the Christian knows". He came to show us what God is like. The church is relevant because He is its Founder, its Head, its Author and its Finisher...to be cont'd
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