Grace In The Aftermath 6-1-25 AM

I.            Inspiration speaks about divorce (Matt. 19:3-9).

a.      The Pharisees often tested Jesus and this text contains one of those situations.

b.      The teaching of that time was divided when it came to divorce, just like today.

                                                              i.      There were those that believed in divorce for any reason.

                                                            ii.      There were those that believed in divorce only for fornication.

c.       What Jesus did was point them back to God’s creation of marriage in the beginning.

d.      What Jesus did was uphold God’s original design for marriage: lifelong, a covenant, and sacred.

e.      Jesus also recognized that sexual immorality can so damage a relationship that it can break the marital covenant.

f.        Notice that Jesus did not command divorce in this situation.

                                                              i.      A couple who experiences adultery on the part of one of the parties in the covenant does not have to divorce.

                                                            ii.      If both parties can reconcile, that is wonderful and the marriage is saved.

g.      However, some cannot reconcile, so the Lord allows for divorce in that instance.

h.      In a perfect world, this would be the only cause for divorce, but we know this is not a perfect world.

i.        Paul spoke about marriage in 1 Corinthians 7.

                                                              i.      A wife should not depart from her husband (1 Cor. 7:10).

                                                            ii.      The husband should not put away or divorce his wife (1 Cor. 7:11).

                                                          iii.      If either does for some reason other than fornication, he or she is to remain unmarried or seek reconciliation (1 Cor. 7:11).

j.        Paul then taught that a Christian married to a non-Christian is not so tied to the non-Christian that he or she can leave the Lord to keep the marriage together (1 Cor. 7:15).

                                                              i.      Not under bondage means that the marriage vow is not stronger than one’s vow to Christ to live for Him.

                                                            ii.      But nowhere does Paul say that this allows the Christian to remarry.

                                                          iii.      Jesus gave the one exception that allows for remarriage and that is fornication (Matt. 19:9)

k.      This shows us that there will be divorce for other reasons besides fornication.

II.            Embrace restoration (John 8:1-11).

a.      This is another account where Jesus was tested.

b.      The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman before Jesus who had been taken in the very act of adultery.

                                                              i.      It takes two to commit adultery.

                                                            ii.      It is telling that the man involved was not brought before Jesus.

                                                          iii.      This was strictly a plan to entrap Jesus.

c.       How did our Lord respond?

                                                              i.      A response based purely on justice would have been to condemn the woman to death.

                                                            ii.      Instead, Jesus showed grace to the woman.

d.      Jesus said that for the one among them who was without sin to cast the first stone.

e.      Their response was to slowly walk away beginning with the oldest to the youngest.

f.        Notice that Jesus did not deny a sin had taken place.

                                                              i.      Jesus told her to go and sin no more.

                                                            ii.      This implies that she had sinned.

g.      The church, us who belong to Christ, need to react in the same way when divorce occurs.

h.      Unless we have been through a divorce, we don’t understand the weight that is on one who has.

                                                              i.      There is the weight of the different emotions we mentioned in the introduction.

                                                            ii.      There is the spiritual weight of questioning if you are still right with God or not.

i.        The response of a Christian should be compassion.

j.        However, if you talk with those who have experienced divorce the response some will say what they have seen is suspicion or silence.

                                                              i.      Suspicion that they had committed some sin that caused the other spouse to turn to fornication or end the marriage.

                                                            ii.      Silence in that they are ignored as people because we don’t know what to say to them.

k.      We can’t treat divorced individuals as second-class Christians.

l.        How would we want to be treated if it was us who experienced such an unwanted experience (Matt. 7:12)?

m.    We have to avoid gossip or making assumptions (Matt. 7:1).

n.      We must continue to be friendly and make sure to include people who have experienced divorce as much as we can, keeping their feelings in mind.

III.            Practical ways the church can help (Rom. 12:9-13).

a.      This text in Romans is not specifically about those who have experienced divorce.

b.      It is specifically about how we are to treat one another in the church in any situation.

c.       We need to listen without judging, while understanding there are two sides to every story.

d.      We need to offer counseling if wanted or needed.

                                                              i.      This is not something everyone can do.

                                                            ii.      This needs to be done by those who are qualified.

e.      Don’t exclude from positions God allows – we should never make anything harder on someone than God does.

f.        We can help with the adjustment period.

                                                              i.      There may be a need for help with childcare.

                                                            ii.      There may be a need for help with moving.

g.      We need to show love while standing firm on the truths of scripture.

The Great High Priest 5-25-25 PM

 I.            The role of the Jewish high priest (Hebrews 5:1-14).

a.      The writer begins introducing Jesus as the high priest by talking about the role the high priest was supposed to have fulfilled under the Mosaic Law.

                                                              i.      As we study the life of Christ and read about Annas and Caiphas, it is not hard to see that those two at least, did not fit the description given us of the high priest by our writer.

                                                            ii.      Instead, those men were concerned about power and how to keep what they had and get more if possible.

                                                          iii.      God never wanted the high priest to think that way.

b.      I came across one article that said the high priest had to be the richest of his brothers and if he was not, his brothers were to give him some of their money until he had more than them.

c.       All of these ideas came from perversions of the Mosaic Law.

d.      The high priest was a man, taken from among men, and was set before the people to go to God on their behalf.

                                                              i.      He offered the various gifts that could be given, such as the thank offerings.

                                                            ii.      He also offered sacrifices for the people.

e.       His role was to be one who showed compassion on the people who were ignorant of God’s law or had committed sins.

                                                              i.      This was definitely not the case during the time this was written.

                                                            ii.      It had become a political appointment instead of a role to bring people to God.

f.        The reason he could do that was because he himself was beset by sin and weakness.

                                                              i.      In chapter 9, the writer will touch on this more, but he wanted the people to see God’s intent for the role of high priest.

                                                            ii.      He was a man, just like every other person, who would show compassion on those who needed it because of ignorance and sin.

g.      Because of his own sinfulness, he would offer sacrifices for himself as well as for the people.

                                                              i.      On the Day of Atonement, the high priest would offer for himself first.

                                                            ii.      He would then offer for the people before he went into the most holy place.

h.      The role of the high priest was to come to God on behalf of the people and for himself.

II.            The calling of Jesus as High Priest (Hebrews 5:4-6).

a.      The office of high priest was never intended to be an office or role that was taken up on one’s own.

                                                              i.      It had gotten to the point where it was almost a man running for office.

                                                            ii.      He would do favors for the one’s in control or show himself loyal in some way so as to get the position.

b.      It was one appointed by God just the way Aaron had been appointed.

c.       It was in this fashion that Jesus was appointed High Priest.

                                                              i.      Our Lord did not take on this title Himself.

                                                            ii.      It was bestowed upon Him by God.

d.      God called Jesus His Son and called Him a priest after the order of Melchisedec.

                                                              i.      The first quote is from Psalm 2:7.

                                                            ii.      The second is from Psalm 110:4.

e.       Melchisedec is mentioned again later, but we meet him in Genesis 14:18.

                                                              i.      He was the king of Salem as well as a priest of God.

                                                            ii.      Abraham honored him by paying tribute to him after returning from freeing Lot who had been kidnapped.

f.        We won’t go any deeper into this aspect other than to say that Jesus was made a King and a Priest, which is what Melchisedec had been and those are the only two about whom we read in scripture that held those two offices simultaneously.

g.      Our God called His Son Jesus to be our High Priest.

                                                              i.      A high priest was to show compassion for those ignorant of God’s word and who were in sin.

                                                            ii.      From the life of Jesus, we know that is exactly what He did.

h.      He is the High Priest who knows what we are going through, because we need that and it was a requirement of a high priest (Hebrews 4:15).

III.            The perfecting of Jesus to be High Priest (Hebrews 5:7-10).

a.      I hope that no one believes that this passage teaches that Jesus was not perfect.

                                                              i.      We just read the verse that tells us that Jesus was without sin.

                                                            ii.      This word perfect in verse 9 is a word that simply means complete.

                                                          iii.      This section tells us that Jesus had to endure what He did to complete Him for the role of our Savior and High Priest.

b.      The night of His betrayal, Jesus went into the garden to pray.

                                                              i.      We know that He prayed for God to release Him from the anguish He was going to have to endure but that He knew God’s will must be done.

                                                            ii.      Notice the words, “strong crying and tears”.

                                                          iii.      Luke tells us that it was so severe that Jesus began to have blood mingled in with His sweat.

                                                          iv.      He used the word agony to describe the condition of Jesus while praying.

                                                            v.      He was in such a state that God sent an angel to minister to Him.

c.       The last phrase of verse 7 is very interesting and has caused a lot of disagreement among Bible scholars.

d.      I’m no scholar so I won’t disagree with anyone.

e.       The last phrase says that Jesus’s prayer was heard because He feared God.

                                                              i.      There is no doubt that Jesus feared, or had reverence for, God the Father the entire time that He was on earth.

                                                            ii.      Some say that the writer was inspired to simply write this truth, that Jesus was heard because He revered God.

f.        Another line of thought is that this carries the idea that because Jesus feared God, God heard His prayer for comfort.

                                                              i.      Remember our Lord was human just like us.

                                                            ii.      It had to be extremely tempting for the human side of Jesus to want to get out of the extreme pain and anguish He was about to face.

                                                          iii.      Those prayers that Jesus prayed in the garden were prayers for strength in the hour of temptation.

                                                          iv.      He was praying for the human side of Himself to go along with the will of God.

                                                            v.      His prayer was heard and answered in the form of the angel coming to minister to Him in His deeply emotional state.

g.      Either of these views does nothing to hurt the text or disagrees with any other passage of scripture.

h.      It does seem odd that the writer would be inspired to simply tell us that Jesus was heard because He feared when we realize that He always had feared God the Father, but that does not mean it is not the case.

i.        Despite the fact that He was a Son and not just a servant, He still learned obedience.

                                                              i.      This does not mean He didn’t know it before.

                                                            ii.      What it does seem to mean is that Jesus learned of the true consequences of obedience.

                                                          iii.      One of the temptations facing those to whom this book was written was to forsake God because of the cost.

                                                          iv.      It was going to possibly cost them their lives.

                                                            v.      Our Lord understands the cost because that was the price He had to pay to obey the Father.

                                                          vi.      He can see us through that temptation because He faced it and conquered it Himself.

j.        His following through with being obedient completed Him and allowed Him to be the author, or source, of salvation for all those that obey Him.

                                                              i.      By His suffering for us because of obedience, He was made the perfect Savior and High Priest.

                                                            ii.      Those that obey Jesus, not just believe on Him, can obtain salvation because of what Jesus did for us.

k.      This all allowed Jesus to be called by God to be our High Priest after the order of Melchisedec.

A G.R.E.A.T. Marriage AM 5-25-25

 I.            God must be in your marriage.

a.      God is the Designer and Institutor of marriage (Genesis 2:18).

b.      As such, He has the right to say who can and can’t be married (Matthew 19:1-9).

c.       But the fact is, unless we honor God by allowing Him to be present in our marriages, they will fail.

d.      Since God instituted marriage, He has given us the manual for how to have the type marriage He has always had in mind for mankind.

                                                              i.      He has allowed it to be modeled by the relationship of Christ and the church.

                                                            ii.      He has given the parameters of marriage for our benefit.

e.       He must be allowed into our marriages and that is our part.

f.        Ecclesiastes 4:12 - God is to be that third cord.

g.      The couple who allows the Lord to be a vital part of their marriage has a tremendous advantage over those who don’t.

                                                              i.      He must be present in prayer.

                                                            ii.      He must be present in study.

                                                          iii.      He must be present in worship.

                                                          iv.      He must be present in the type love shown to one another.

II.            Remember your vows.

a.      Will you have this man to be your husband, to live together in the covenant of marriage? Will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to him as long as you both shall live?

b.      Will you have this woman to be your wife; to live together in the covenant of marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health and, forsaking all others, be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?

c.       For those of you who are not married, these are type vows you will one day make if you decide to get married to someone.

                                                              i.      Notice the seriousness of each of these promises you are going to make the one you have decided to marry.

                                                            ii.      Notice also that these are for life.

                                                          iii.      That is the way God intended for marriage to be (Romans 7:2).

d.      For those of us who are married, do you remember these vows you made to the one who was standing before you?

                                                              i.      Your voice may have been quivering as you said them.

                                                            ii.      Hopefully, each of us realized the seriousness of the words to which we were saying I do.

e.       But what happens is that over time, we tend to forget these words that are of such great import.

                                                              i.      We fail to bring the love to the ones we made the vow that they deserve.

                                                            ii.      We say biting words that bring no honor or comfort to them.

                                                          iii.      Sadly, sometimes we fail to forsake all others and become unfaithful.

f.        It may be we would never consider committing adultery, but our marriages can still be failing because, while keeping ourselves only for our spouse, we are failing in the other vows we made.

g.      Love, honor, comfort, companionship, are all things we promised and we must make sure that we are living up to those vows we made.

h.      A preacher, in a sermon about marriage made this statement about our vows: “Winston Churchill kept England stable during the World War 2 bombing raids by emphasizing that “Wars are not won by evacuations.” Likewise, marriages are not kept together by bailing out. Your wedding vows are not multiple choice questions!”

i.        Every aspect of each vow is vital to keeping our marriages great!

III.            Enjoy life together.

a.      Ecclesiastes 9:9.

b.      Remember what God said recorded in Genesis 2:18?

c.       When marriage is entered into by a man and woman, which is the biblical standard for marriage, God says it is good.

d.      Those two are to be together till death parts them.

                                                              i.      We don’t know when death will come for either party in the marriage.

                                                            ii.      Therefore, they are committing to being together for many years.

e.       A lot happens during those married years doesn’t it?

                                                              i.      Some very good things happen.

                                                            ii.      Some very bad things can happen.

f.        A husband and wife must be able to enjoy life together because many of the years are going to be with one another only.

g.      Many couples run into problems when their children leave home because they wrapped their lives up in the activities of their children and didn’t take the time to continue growing their relationship with their spouses.

h.      A husband and wife are blessed greatly if they are given children by the Lord, but those children are not to be the center of their marriage to one another.

                                                              i.      A husband is to love His wife as He loves himself.

                                                            ii.      A wife is to honor her husband.

                                                          iii.      Those are to be ongoing while the children are in the home.

                                                          iv.      The spouse is to be loved above all else except the Lord.

                                                            v.      Our spouses are to be our closest friends and included in all things.

                                                          vi.      They should never feel left out or alienated by us.

 IV.            Appreciate one another.

a.      Proverbs 18:22.

b.      Do you thank your spouse for the things he or she does?

                                                              i.      We might think, “Hey, she’s supposed to do this or, he’s supposed to do that”.

                                                            ii.      While it may be true that he or she is supposed to do that, you and I are still to appreciate their doing it.

c.       All of us like to be shown appreciation for things we do for the ones we love.

d.      If we like it, we should believe our spouses like it as well.

e.       Too many times, after the newness of marriage wears off, we begin to take one another for granted.

                                                              i.      One psychologist wrote, “We become deadened to our spouse’s special qualities and instead focus on things that annoy us about them. These doldrums leave couples confused and discouraged”.

                                                            ii.      This same psychologist blamed lack of appreciation in marriage for the downfall of many marriages.

f.        One writer said that appreciation in marriage is an antidote to divorce.

g.      Our God has done great things for us and we show Him our appreciation by the life we live for Him, as well as the prayers we offer Him.

                                                              i.      While we don’t pray to our spouses, we must make sure we are showing them our appreciation for the love and sacrifice they show us.

                                                            ii.      They need to hear and see it.

V.            Treat your spouse as the most important person on earth.

a.      Who is more important to you on earth than your spouse?

b.      If you can answer someone else, you have deep problems in your marriage.

c.       There should be no relationship on this earth that is more important than the one with your spouse.

                                                              i.      Too many allow parental relationships to hinder their marriages.

                                                            ii.      Too many allow work relationships to hinder their marriages.

                                                          iii.      Too many allow relationships with children to hinder their marriages.

d.      Jesus gave Himself for the church according to Ephesians 5:25 tells us.

e.       That is how important His relationship with the church was to Him and that is the model we are given for marriage.

f.        As a Christian, I know there is nothing more important to Jesus than the church of which I am a part.

g.      My wife needs to know there is no one more important on earth, just like your spouse needs to know there is no one more important on earth to you.

What Is My Role? 5-18-25 AM

I.       Practice Christianity.

a.      The most important role that we can fill is that of a role model.

b.      As parents of older children, we have to set the example of a Christian.

c.       They have been watching us for years and continue to watch us.

d.      The things that are important to us as adults will be important to them.

                                                              i.      If sports are important to us, more than likely they will be important to them.

                                                            ii.      If work is important to us, more than likely it will be important to them.

                                                          iii.      If the Lord is important to us, more than likely He will be important to them.

e.      I came across a great question: Are you the adult you want your children to grow up to be?

f.        When our children get into the young adult stage, it is too late for that question isn’t it?

g.      However, it can still be used as a model.

h.      Paul told Timothy to be an example of the believers (1 Tim. 4:12).

i.        This is what parents are to be for their older children.

j.        In essence, this is a role that never changes.

                                                              i.      We are to be role models to our children at all ages.

                                                            ii.      We are to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).

                                                          iii.      We are to model Christ for them at all times.

k.      This role never changes for us from the time we bring our firstborn into the world until the moment we take our last breath.

II.      Promote communication.

a.      We have to maintain open lines of communication with our older children.

b.      By this I mean we cannot force our thoughts or opinions on them when situations arise.

                                                              i.      We might handle something differently than they are thinking about.

                                                            ii.      We can’t force our opinions on them by saying, You should do it this way.

c.       This is difficult because we normally think the way we handle situations is the best way.

                                                              i.      If they are not doing it how we would, we want to intervene.

                                                            ii.      This is only going to cause hard feelings or shut down the lines of communication.

d.      There are several ways we can promote good, open communication:

                                                              i.      Don’t jump to conclusions (Jam. 1:19).

                                                            ii.      Be available to our children.

                                                          iii.      Be honest about our own problems – we aren’t perfect and we’ve had to learn from our own mistakes.

                                                          iv.      Don’t get upset or angry with them during a conversation (Pr. 15:1).

                                                            v.      Realize that sometimes they need to vent and don’t want us to fix it for them.

                                                          vi.      Pray for them and let them know you are praying for them (Jam. 5:16).

III.     Patiently confront.

a.      Our children are going to sin and make mistakes and how we deal with them at those times will have a big effect on how that relationship will continue.

b.      Our Father is full of forgiveness and grace.

                                                              i.      Our Lord taught us to ask for forgiveness in prayer (Matt. 6:12).

                                                            ii.      Romans 5:20 – the abundance of grace.

                                                          iii.      Ephesians 1:7 – we have forgiveness because of the riches of His grace.

c.       I point those verses to ask this: If our Father in heaven shows us so much grace and forgiveness, should we not show that same level of grace and forgiveness to our children?

d.      God confronts us in our sins and mistakes, so I am not saying we ignore our children’s mistakes or sin.

e.      I am saying we should not jump on them feet first when those mistakes are made or sins are committed.

f.        Our older children are going to mess up, just like we did when we got into the same stage of life.

g.      How we react when they do will go a long way towards us having a good or bad relationship with them as we both age.

IV.     Prioritize consent.

a.      What this simply means is: we have to respect boundaries.

b.      Their house is their house not ours.

c.       If they are married, we have to understand the biblical teaching of Gen. 2:23-24.

d.      What are some practical ways we can do this?

                                                              i.      Listen without interrupting or correcting them – let them know we value their thoughts.

                                                            ii.      Realize they are able to handle their own problems – ask before giving advice.

                                                          iii.      Avoid emotional manipulation – don’t say things like “After all I’ve done for you…”

                                                          iv.      Talk to them like you would talk to any other adult.

                                                            v.      Don’t get mad if they say no to something.

vi. Be willing to apologize if we are wrong on something.

Encouraging News 5-11-25 PM

I.            The position of Jesus now (Hebrews 4:14).

a.      As we mentioned in the introduction, the writer goes back to showing us that Jesus is better: in this case, a better high priest.

                                                              i.      Beginning in here and going through a greater part of the book, this is the focus.

                                                            ii.      The Jews revered the position of the high priest and it was important to show that Jesus is greater than any high priest on earth has ever been.

b.      To show that Jesus is greater, the writer was first inspired to show the position Jesus now occupies.

c.       Jesus is a High Priest in heaven.

d.      Aaron and other high priests on earth would pass through a curtain once a year into the most holy place.

                                                              i.      The most holy place was a foreshadowing of heaven.

                                                            ii.      You remember that the veil between the holy and most holy place was torn from top to bottom when Jesus died on the cross (Mark 15:38).

                                                          iii.      Only one time per year, in the 7th month, on the 10th day of the month, could the high priest enter the tabernacle.

                                                          iv.      All of this is found in Leviticus 16.

                                                            v.      He would have already offered a bull for himself and one for the people as well as a goat for all their sins.

                                                          vi.      One goat, the scapegoat would be touched by all the people and then let out into the wilderness.

e.      Jesus, who is better, has passed on into heaven itself.

                                                              i.      Jesus is now reigning there, on the right hand of God.

                                                            ii.      He is sitting on the throne overseeing His kingdom.

f.        The greatness of Jesus above all others is what is being stressed here.

                                                              i.      Others only went into that which looked to heaven.

                                                            ii.      They could only go once per year.

                                                          iii.      Jesus, after having offered Himself for the people, went into the true heaven and has stayed there ever since.

g.      Because He is so great, we ought to hold onto our confession of Him for dear life.

                                                              i.      The phrase hold fast means to cling to tenaciously.

                                                            ii.      We ought to have a death grip on it and not let it go.

h.      Remember, the writer’s original audience was a group of Jewish converts who were being tempted to give up Christ.

                                                              i.      Why give up the greatest High Priest for a far inferior high priest?

                                                            ii.      Cling to your confession of Christ made at baptism.

i.        The same holds true for us when the world calls or the trials of life hit.

                                                              i.      To leave Jesus is to leave our only hope.

                                                            ii.      He is the only one who has passed into the heavens.

                                                          iii.      He is the only one ruling over His spiritual body of people and turn from Him is committing spiritual suicide.

II.            The perfection of Jesus while on earth (Hebrews 4:15).

a.      The high priest in those days had become an officially appointed position.

                                                              i.      When you read about the high priests that ruled in the days of Jesus, Annas and Caiphas, you don’t read about people who were concerned about the common folk.

                                                            ii.      All those men, and all the leaders of the Jews, cared about was their power and prestige.

                                                          iii.      If someone had to get killed to keep it, so be it.

                                                          iv.      If someone lost what they had to keep it, so be it.

b.      Yes, Jesus has ascended on high, but while He was on earth, He went through the same things each of us do.

                                                              i.      1 John 2:15-16 lets us know the avenues of temptation: lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, the pride of life.

                                                            ii.      At His temptation after His baptism, our Lord faced each of these avenues when Satan came to Him.

c.       Jesus, the human side of Him, could have sinned.

d.      Despite the possibility He could have sinned, He never did.

e.      But because He was tempted, Jesus can be sympathetic to us as we go through temptations.

                                                              i.      We all know the old saying, don’t judge a man till you walk in his shoes.

                                                            ii.      Jesus has been in our shoes.

                                                          iii.      The word translated sympathize means to suffer with another person.

                                                          iv.      It carries the idea of having entered into the experience and feeling the heartache yourself.

f.        Jesus was and is perfect in overcoming temptation, yet He knows exactly how we feel because He has been there and done that.

g.      Jesus is not some far off individual who cares nothing for those He is supposed to be assisting.

h.      Rather, our High Priest hurts when we hurt.

III.            The purpose of Jesus on the throne (Hebrews 4:16).

a.      The purpose of Jesus on the cross was to save man.

b.      The purpose of Jesus on the throne is to aid those that allow His work on the cross to accomplish its purpose in their lives.

c.       Because He is where is and He is what He is, you and I can confidently come to Jesus for help in time of need.

                                                              i.      The time of need is that time temptation comes.

                                                            ii.      You and I can’t handle those things on our own so we must be people of prayer, seeking the help of our High Priest.

d.      There is no way we can physically approach the throne.

                                                              i.      This has to be a reference to prayer.

                                                            ii.      We are to ask for what we need (1 John 5:14-15).

e.      The purpose of Jesus is to give us what we need when we come to God through Christ in prayer.

f.        His is a throne of grace.

                                                              i.      This looks back to the mercy seat found on top of the ark of the covenant in the most holy place.

                                                            ii.      The blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled on that mercy seat and it brought the propitiation of the sins of the people.

                                                          iii.      Now that Jesus has become the propitiation for our sins, (1 John 2:2), we approach Him for the grace we need in time of temptation.

g.      We can and will receive the mercy and grace each of us needs because of what Jesus has done for us to become our High Priest.

What A Mother Is 5-11-25 AM

I.            Manager.

a.      One of the hats that a mother wears is that of manager.

b.      Solomon spent a great deal of time speaking about this concerning the virtuous woman (Pr. 31:15-16, 19, 21).

c.       She manages the household.

                                                              i.      Paul gave some instructions to women that Timothy was to preach (1 Tim. 5:14).

                                                            ii.      Notice the phrase, “guide the house.”

                                                          iii.      It means “manage the family affairs.”

                                                          iv.      If your home is like ours, it functions well because mom is in control of it.

d.      A mother manages money.

                                                              i.      She keeps the family on track with finances.

                                                            ii.      Of course, the father is to provide for the family and help manage money as well.

                                                          iii.      But, more often than not, mom is buying clothes for the kids, things for the house, doing the grocery shopping and all those type things.

                                                          iv.      She must do these well for the family to survive financially.

e.      A mother manages time.

                                                              i.      Think of all the places your family members have to be.

                                                            ii.      More often than not, the mom is the one in charge of getting everyone to recitals, practices or wherever.

                                                          iii.      It may not be her doing the actual taking but she is keeping everyone going to the right place.

f.        A mother manages egos.

                                                              i.      She knows her children and what they need.

                                                            ii.      Romans 12:3.

                                                          iii.      Moms know which children needs their ego massaged and which ones need knocked down a few pegs.

II.            Observer.

a.      Another hat that a mother wears is that of observer.

b.      Notice what Solomon said about the virtuous woman (Pr. 31:27).

c.       Mothers observe their children.

                                                              i.      In our day and age, they have to watch many things for their children.

1.      They watch what is on their computers.

2.      They watch what is on their iPads and Ipods.

3.      They watch what they are looking at in entertainment.

                                                            ii.      They also watch the lives of their children.

                                                          iii.      Mary did this with Jesus (Luke 2:19, 51).

                                                          iv.      Moms remember all the milestones of their children.

d.      Mothers observe their marriage relationship.

                                                              i.      They know best when things aren’t right in their marriages.

                                                            ii.      Dads tend to go along and let things slide, while moms observe what the problems are and address them.

III.            Teacher.

a.      Moms teach their children many things.

b.      The virtuous woman was a teacher (Pr. 31:26).

c.       We know all the things in life that moms have to teach that their children need growing up.

d.      Moms teach many other things as well.

                                                              i.      They teach love.

1.      There is nothing like the love of a mother.

2.      They would and will do anything for their children.

                                                            ii.      They teach honesty.

                                                          iii.      They teach responsibility.

                                                          iv.      They teach discipline.

IV.            Hinderer.

a.      Moms are hinderers.

b.      You might think this is something awful but it’s not.

c.       She hinders her children from sin.

                                                              i.      How many times have you been tempted to do something but thought about what your mom would say?

                                                            ii.      Those lessons she taught us have kept us out sin and trouble more times than we would like to count.

d.      She hinders dad from doing things he shouldn’t.

                                                              i.      Think of how many times a look from mom kept us dads from going overboard in discipline or some other area.

                                                            ii.      Where dads react, moms are more thoughtful and that hinders dad from doing some dumb things.

e.      Notice what the children and husband of the virtuous woman said about her (Pr. 31:28).

V.            Enabler.

a.      Moms wear the hat of being an enabler.

b.      In know this has become a bad word in our society.

c.       However, it can be used in a good way.

d.      Moms enable their children to grow.

                                                              i.      Kids have to experience some tough times in order to grow and moms enable them to do that.

                                                            ii.      Because of the equipping she does through her teaching, it enables the children to endure those hard times.

                                                          iii.      Because of the biblical example she has set and the biblical teaching she had done, her children are enabled to deal with temptation.

e.      Moms enable dads to perform their roles.

                                                              i.      Knowing the home front is taken care of, fathers can provide for the family the way God intended.

                                                            ii.      They can go to work and feel good about leaving the house because it is in good hands.

                                                          iii.      He knows he has a help meet that understands what the Bible says about the role she is to fulfill and does it because she wants to be pleasing to God.

                                                          iv.      This is seen in the virtuous woman (Pr. 31:11-12, 23).

VI.            Restorer.

a.      Moms are restorers.

b.      Such was the case with the virtuous woman (Pr. 31:25-26).

c.       They restore calm in fearful times.

                                                              i.      How many times were you scared as a child and being held or hugged by your mom restored calm in your life?

                                                            ii.      When you were sick, wasn’t mom there to hold you against her or to lay down with you?

                                                          iii.      She does these things to help bring calm into our lives.

d.      Moms restore hearts that are hurting.

                                                              i.      When you were little and a friend moved away or couldn’t come over or didn’t treat you the way that you thought you should be treated, who fixed that?

                                                            ii.      As you grew and someone broke your heart, who was there to talk you off that ledge?

e.      Moms restore peace in the family.

                                                              i.      She is a mediator.

                                                            ii.      She is a labor negotiator.

                                                          iii.      She is judge, jury and executioner at times.

Let’s Preach Jesus 5-4-25 AM

I.                    Manner of His life (Acts 2:22).

A.                 The 12 were facing a group of people that contributed to the death of Jesus.

B.                  It was the Holy Spirit’s intent to show the people through this sermon who that Jesus was.

C.                  The 12 first show that the manner of Jesus’ life showed Him to be the Son of God.

D.                 Approved means: “to expose to view, to declare, to prove by arguments, demonstrate.

E.                  God had shown Jesus to be exactly what He claimed to be by miracles, signs and wonders.

1.                  Isaiah 61:1 fulfilled in Lu 4:18.

2.                  Each miracle was a testament to the fact that He was the Son of God.

F.                  Miracle means power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature.

1.                  Jesus is shown to be deity by that which resided in Him.

2.                  Ability to do these miracles was enough proof.

G.                 Wonders simply means miracles.

H.                 Sign means an occurrence transcending common course of nature.

I.                    Walking on water, healing people, raising the dead or any thing like this was a proof of who Jesus was.

J.                   These things were not done behind closed doors.

1.                  Brought in man through the roof - house was crowded.

2.                  Woman healed of blood issue in crowd.

K.                  These people knew it all to be true.

L.                   To preach Jesus involves His manner of life.

II.                  Meaning of His death (Acts 2:23).

A.                 The death of Jesus was not a sign of lack of approval from God.

B.                  No doubt some believed this to be the case.

C.                  Rather, His death meant that God approved of His ability to be man’s final and atoning sacrifice.

1.                  God did the delivering of Jesus.

2.                  Determinate counsel means appointed purpose.

3.                  Foreknowledge means pre-arrangement.

D.                 This was always God’s plan (Rev. 13:8; 1 Pet. 1:19-20).

E.                  Our Premillenial friends don’t know what it means to truly preach Jesus b/c they don’t understand why He died.

1.                  He did not die as an afterthought.

2.                  He died according the appointed purpose God devised before the world began.

F.                  The Jews had not bungled God’s plans but fulfilled them.

G.                 What they meant for evil God had planned for good.

H.                 To preach Jesus involves the meaning of His death.

III.                Marvels of His resurrection (Acts 2:24-32).

A.                 Immediately following preaching about His death, the inspired apostles point to His resurrection.

B.                  No doubt there were rumors around of His resurrection.

1.                  The council did the best they could to keep it to a minimum.

2.                  Most would not speak of these rumors publicly.

3.                  If they would have been cast out when alive, surely they would have been cast out if said was risen.

C.                  These men, before a large audience, openly state as fact the resurrection of Jesus.

D.                 As a proof of His resurrection they point to prophecy.

1.                  David was beloved by the people.

2.                  The 12 quote David from Ps 16:8-11.

E.                  They proceeded to point out that this passage could not refer to David (Acts 2:29-32).

1.                  They all knew where David’s tomb was.

2.                  They could see his bones of they so chose.

F.                  David spoke of the fact that he knew Jesus would be raised up from the dead and this gave David hope for the same.

G.                 The 12 then say that they had seen Jesus so this was no joke being pulled on the audience.

1.                  Later, Paul would point to the fact that Jesus had been seen as proof of His resurrection (1 Co 15).

2.                  Over 500 people had seen Jesus, many of whom still were alive when Paul wrote the letter.

H.                 To preach Jesus involves marvels of His resurrection.

IV.               Majesty of His reign (Acts 2:33-36).

A.                 The purpose of His resurrection was to allow Jesus to ascend back to heaven and begin reigning as King.

1.                  This was the promise to David.

2.                  They already mentioned this (Acts 2:30).

B.                  Jesus had promised the Sanhedrin He would arise and sit on the right hand of the power of God (Lu 22:69).

C.                  The beginning of His reign allowed the fulfillment of Joel 2 according to the 12 (Acts 2:33b).

D.                 The 12 then point out another prophetic proof of the reign of Jesus and quote from Ps 110:1.

1.                  David hadn’t ascended into the heavens, his body was still in the grave.

2.                  Not only that but David called this person Lord.

3.                  Only Jesus fulfilled this prophecy.

E.                  He then brings it home to the Jews by telling them that they were the murderers of the Messiah, but God had used them to place Jesus on the throne.

F.                  Notice that for one to reign, there must be something over which he reigns.

1.                  Eph. 1:22-23.

2.                  Church and kingdom used interchangeably by Jesus (Matt. 16:18-19)

G.                 Philip would preach Jesus in Samaria and taught them about the kingdom (Acts 8:5 + 12).

H.                 To preach Jesus involves the majesty of His reign.

V.                 Method of entry into His kingdom (Acts 2:37-38).

A.                 The apostles did not stop with telling their audience that Jesus was now reigning over His kingdom.

B.                  When asked, Peter gave the audience the method of entry into that kingdom - repent and be baptized for the remission of sins.

C.                  Paul gave a list of sins to the Corinthians and told them those that lived in those sins would not inherit the kingdom of God.

1.                  He then said, and such were some of you.

2.                  He then told they had been changed b/c they were washed, sanctified and justified in Christ.

D.                 Washing, sanctification, and justification all take place when someone is baptized into Christ.

E.                  To preach Jesus involves the method of entry into His kingdom.

(Main points from a sermon by James Rogers)

You Can’t Fool God 4-13-25 PM

 I.      The nature of God’s word (Hebrews 4:12).

a.      Have you ever read a verse and wondered why it is where it is?

                                                              i.      Just reading through this passage, I wondered why this particular verse is here.

                                                            ii.      Because of this, I have often used this verse to show the power of God’s written word.

1.      It does do that, no doubt.

2.      However, in the context of this passage, that is not what is under consideration, because the word of God here was not written but spoken, when speaking about the rest.

b.      So, all the times I have used this verse, I have used it correctly but not in its proper context.

c.       This verse, in this context, while proclaiming the power of God’s word, is pointing to what He told the Israelites long ago.

                                                              i.      God told those Israelites that, because of their unbelief, they were not going to enter into God’s land of rest.

                                                            ii.      He just warned his readers, in verse 11, that they better take care to enter the land of rest and not fall like those Israelites of old had done.

d.      This words starts with “for”, which can be translated “because”.

                                                              i.      Because of the fact that God means what He says, don’t think you can fool God.

                                                            ii.      God’s word is a sword that penetrates deep into who and what we are spiritually and reveals all things about us.

e.      Because of its power, the writer was inspired to tell us the nature of God’s word.

f.        It is quick or alive.

                                                              i.      It is such because it is from the living God.

                                                            ii.      It accomplishes that for which God sent it out (Isaiah 55:11).

                                                          iii.      It is active at all times on our hearts when it is taken in.

                                                          iv.      It is a God-breathed force (2 Timothy 3:16-17) that can’t be destroyed (Mark 13:31).

g.      It is powerful.

                                                              i.      The Greek word here translated powerful is the word from we get the English word “energy”.

                                                            ii.      It literally means engaged in work, capable of doing.

                                                          iii.      It was a medical term referring to medical treatment and the influence of medicine.

                                                          iv.      Think of the power God’s word has to change lives.

                                                            v.      It is a transforming power, which is seeking to be unleashed in our lives.

h.      It is sharper than any dagger on the face of the earth.

                                                              i.      The word “sword” is literally dagger, being the Greek word for the small dagger that is highly accurate in its cutting and not used to hack like the larger sword of the Roman soldier.

                                                            ii.      God’s word is capable of piercing into our inner being.

                                                          iii.      It reveals who we really are and there is no way to fool God because of its power.

i.        For us, God’s word tells us how to live and why we need to live that way.

II.      What God’s word notices (Hebrews 4:12).

a.      Oftentimes, I believe, though we won’t verbalize it, Christians think they can fool God.

                                                              i.      There is no doubt we believe we can fool the people around us.

                                                            ii.      It happens all the time.

                                                          iii.      We do fool those around us if we so desire.

b.      But, we think we can get away with claiming to be something we are not.

                                                              i.      It’s almost as if we believe that if we can convince ourselves we are okay in what we are doing, it will be okay.

                                                            ii.      We can sin that way and it is justified in our minds.

c.       One day, God’s word is going to be opened at our judgment.

                                                              i.      The word translated “discerner” in this vers is used only here in the New Testament.

                                                            ii.      It literally means “one whose business and special gift is to judge”.

d.      We do know that the Bible, God’s revealed, inspired word, is going to be opened at the judgment day (Revelation 20:12).

e.      It is God’s word that is going to judge us in the end (John 12:48).

f.        Friends, it notices all.

                                                              i.      Every action we undertake is known by it.

                                                            ii.      But in this verse, it lets us know that it is going to judge even our thoughts and our intents.

                                                          iii.      Why we did what we did is open to the light of God’s word.

g.      Think of the joints, that connect bones together.

                                                              i.      Where everything meets and works is the idea there.

                                                            ii.      God’s word gets into where everything in our hearts is working and shows why we do what we do.

h.      Think of the marrow, on the inside of the bone.

                                                              i.      It is a picture of the intent of our action.

                                                            ii.      It deals with what motivates us and causes us to take the actions we take.

i.        God’s word notices all.

                                                              i.      When we stand before the Lord in judgment, think of what is going to be judged.

                                                            ii.      Our deeds (2 Corinthians 5:10).

                                                          iii.      Our words (Matthew 12:26).

                                                          iv.      This verse before us tells us our thoughts and intents are going to be laid out as evidence in judgment.

j.        Daniel Webster, the great statesman, once said, “My greatest thought is my accountability to God”.

k.      We need to be very aware of the fact that we are all going to stand before the Lord in judgment and we will not be able to fool God.

 III.    Man’s nakedness before God (Hebrews 4:13).

a.      This verse is really simple isn’t it?

b.      There is no creature who is not known to God and all is laid bare to God.

c.       There is an interesting picture here though, of which we need to be aware.

                                                              i.      As we will notice in the next sermon from Hebrews, Jesus is called a High Priest.

                                                            ii.      The word “opened” is defined as “ to bend back the neck of a victim to be slain, to lay bare or expose by bending back”.

d.      What is pictured here is a sacrifice.

                                                              i.      Think of what happened when an offering was made under the Old Testament law.

1.      It was killed.

2.      It was flayed, so it was naked.

3.      It was cut open so that all the insides could be seen.

4.      It was inspected by the priest, to make sure all of it was sound and there was no disease in it.

5.      It was divided into two equal parts by being split open from the exposed throat all the way to the hindquarters.

                                                            ii.      That whole animal was laid bare before all that saw it and it was known whether or not it was fit to offer to God.

e.      Brethren, you and I are to offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1).

f.        God’s word opens us up for Him to see whether or not we are fit to offer to God.

g.      We are completely open to Him and we can’t fool Him.

Which Church Did Jesus Build? 4-13-25 AM

 I.       The church Jesus built is divine in origin.

a.      One of the easiest and best ways to begin determining which church Jesus built is to look at its origin.

b.      The Bible is clear that every house is built by someone (Hebrews 3:4).

                                                              i.      The church is compared to a house (1 Timothy 3:15).

                                                            ii.      Therefore, someone had to build the church.

c.       If you do a google search on the internet for the history of various denominations, you can find who started, or built, them.

                                                              i.      For instance, the United Methodist Church began, according to umc.org, on April 23, 1968.

1.      The Methodist religion is based on the teaching of John Wesley.

2.      According to christianity.about.com, Methodism was established in 1739.

                                                            ii.      You can find out about the history of the Presbyterian Church at pcusa.com and there it is written that they trace their origins back to Scotland and mention John Knox specifically who was a student of Calvin.

d.      These are just two examples of the man-made origins of denominations.

e.      We are told by the prophets that there was going to be a kingdom established by God.

                                                              i.      Isaiah 9:7.

                                                            ii.      Daniel 2:44; 7:13-14 and many others.

f.        This nearness of this coming kingdom was preached by John the Baptizer as well as Jesus.

                                                              i.      Matthew 3:2.

                                                            ii.      Matthew 4:17.

g.      Jesus told Peter that He would give him the keys to the kingdom immediately after saying that He would build a church (Matthew 16:18-19).

                                                              i.      Jesus told His disciples that some of them would not die until they had seen the kingdom come (Mark 9:1).

                                                            ii.      This tells us that there is a kingdom now or else there are some very old men running around.

h.      After the establishment of the church on the Day of Pentecost found in Acts 2, we never read of a future kingdom, but that it was in place then.

                                                              i.      Colossians 1:13.

                                                            ii.      Hebrews 12:28.

                                                          iii.      Revelation 1:9.

i.        There are certain marks which identify this church that is divine in origin:

                                                              i.      The time of its origination (Daniel 2:44 - Roman empire).

                                                            ii.      The place of its origination (Isaiah 2:2-4 - Jereusalem).

                                                          iii.      The events surrounding its origination (Joel 2:28ff - the giving of the Holy Spirit).

j.        If a church does not have the right Originator, the right time, place or events of origination, it is not the church Jesus built.

II.      The church Jesus built is directed by scripture.

a.      When you look at the denominational world, you see that these religions have creed books, manuals, catechisms and conferences.

                                                              i.      You can go to creeds.net and see the various creeds and catechisms that govern the lives of members of various denominations.

                                                            ii.      I have in my office an older copy of the Methodist Book of Discipline.

b.      You can go to sbc.net and view what has been voted on and decided at various Southern Baptist Conventions.

c.       All of these things have been added by man to the religious world.

                                                              i.      They are used to decide what is going to be taught and believed by a specific group of people.

                                                            ii.      They decide what doctrinal stands are going to be taken for that group of people.

d.      All of this is in addition to God’s Word.

e.      You and I are going to be judged by God’s Word (John 12:48).

                                                              i.      We are not going to stand before God on the judgment day and be judged by some convention or creed.

                                                            ii.      Our faithfulness to the Lord will not be determined by our following or rejecting a papal bull.

f.        On that great day, there is going to be the book of life and the books of the Bible opened and our fate will rest on our abiding in the grace of God by our following His word (Revelation 20:12).

g.      The church of which we read in the New Testament followed the apostles doctrine (Acts 2:42).

                                                              i.      They had received this doctrine from Jesus (John 17:14).

                                                            ii.      Jesus had received it from the Father (John 17:8).

h.      If a church is not directed by the Bible only, it is not the church Jesus built.

III.     The church Jesus built is distinctive in doctrine.

a.      Being directed by scripture, the church Jesus built follows the doctrines that are found only in the New Testament.

b.      No one is claiming that the church Jesus built is the only body that teaches some of the things we will mention, however, it is the only one that teaches all of them.

c.       The church Jesus built teaches that one must be baptized for the remission of sins in order to have sins washed away (Acts 2:38).

                                                              i.      There are a very few denominations that teach this.

                                                            ii.      However, the vast majority teach some other doctrine concerning salvation.

d.      The church Jesus built teaches that singing without instruments is required in worship (Ephesians 5:19).

                                                              i.      The Greek Orthodox church and a handful of other groups teach this as well.

                                                            ii.      However the vast majority teach instrumental accompaniment is okay.

e.      The church Jesus built teaches that every Lord’s day Christians should partake of the Lord’s Supper (Acts 20:7).

                                                              i.      Virtually every religious body observes the Lord’s Supper at some point in the year.

                                                            ii.      However, none of which I am aware partake every first day of the week.

f.        These three doctrines are very basic and only the hem of the garment when it comes to distinctiveness.

g.      If a church is not following the distinctive doctrines of the New Testament, it is not the church Jesus built.

IV.     The church Jesus built is destined for heaven.

a.      All spiritual blessings are found in Christ (Ephesians 1:3).

                                                              i.      The only way to be in Christ is to be baptized into Christ (Romans 6:3-4).

                                                            ii.      When one is baptized, one is added to the church that Jesus built (Acts 2:47).

b.      That church, or kingdom, has Jesus as its head (Ephesians 1:22-23).

c.       One day, the King of the kingdom is going to deliver that kingdom to the Father (1 Corinthians 15:24).

d.      Unless one is in the church that Jesus built, he is not destined for heaven.

How Many Are There? 4-6-25 AM

I.            Jesus said He would build a church (Matt. 16:18).

a.      This verse is the ending point of a much longer discussion.

                                                              i.      It began back in verse 13.

                                                            ii.      Jesus asked the disciples who men were saying He was.

                                                          iii.      They told Him the various people they had heard people saying He was.

b.      Jesus then got personal by asking them who they thought He was.

c.       Peter gave the great and inspired answer in verse 16 (Matt. 16:16).

d.      Jesus told Peter he was exactly right and based on the fact that He was the Son of God, Jesus says He was going to build His church.

                                                              i.      Notice that “church” is singular.

                                                            ii.      He did not say He was going to build a multiplicity of churches.

e.      Another important point to notice is that Jesus used the words “church” and “kingdom” interchangeably.

                                                              i.      This is important!

                                                            ii.      The reason it is important is because the word “kingdom” is what we see used in the Old Testament.

                                                          iii.      Jesus was uniting the concepts of kingdom and church into one unit.

f.        It was revealed to Daniel that there would be a kingdom established in the future.

                                                              i.      Daniel 2:44.

                                                            ii.      Daniel 7:13-14.

g.      Each of these mention just one kingdom – Jesus said He would build one church.

h.      Another concept seen in the Old Testament that would be combined with the church is that of a house.

                                                              i.      Isa. 2:2-3.

                                                            ii.      These concepts are tied together by inspiration in 1 Tim. 3:15.

                                                          iii.      Isaiah was inspired to write about one house of God.

                                                          iv.      Paul was inspired to write that the house of God is the church of God, by which is meant the church belonging to God.

i.        When John began paving the way for Jesus, John spoke of the kingdom (Matt. 3:2).

j.        When Jesus began preaching, Jesus used the same wording (Matt. 4:17).

k.      All that the prophets and Jesus mentioned was one kingdom or church.

II.            Jesus purchased one church (Acts 20:28).

a.      Paul met with the elders of the church that met in Ephesus one last time.

b.      The conversation he had with them is recorded towards the end of Acts 20.

c.       Paul told them to take heed or pay attention to themselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit had placed them.

d.      The reason they needed to pay attention to themselves and the flock was to make sure they were feeding the flock, which Paul called the church of God.

                                                              i.      The main job of an eldership is to make sure the church is fed properly.

                                                            ii.      The proper feeding of the church is God’s word (1 Pe. 2:2).

e.      For our purposes, notice the last phrase of the verse: which He has purchased with His own blood.

                                                              i.      This shows us Jesus is God because Jesus is the one who shed His blood.

                                                            ii.      This also shows us the church is singular.

                                                          iii.      This also shows us the importance of the church.

f.        If one is as good as another, then you are saying that the blood of Jesus is not that important.

                                                              i.      Each of us that is of age has purchased a car.

                                                            ii.      If you take that car to be serviced and they brought out another vehicle how would you feel?

                                                          iii.      If you expressed your disapproval and they responded by saying one is as good as another, how would you feel?

g.      How do we think Jesus feels when we say that about the church that cost His own blood to purchase?

h.      If something cost such a precious thing as the blood of our sinless Savior, we should never denigrate by saying one is as good as another.

III.            Jesus has one body.

a.      Romans 12:4-5.

                                                              i.      A body is made up of a lot of parts.

                                                            ii.      The church is made of a lot of members.

                                                          iii.      As with the parts of a body, each member is very important.

                                                          iv.      But, we make up one body in Christ.

b.      1 Corinthians 12:12-20.

                                                              i.      Christ has one body.

                                                            ii.      We get into that body by being baptized into it according to verse 13, which corresponds with Php. 3:26-27.

                                                          iii.      Each part of the body is important and God has given us the abilities we have for a reason.

                                                          iv.      But the important part for us to notice is that there is one body, not many.

                                                            v.      Another important point is found in verse 25 – that there be no schism, or division.

                                                          vi.      A body doesn’t do different things and it suffers when there is a problem or division in it.

                                                        vii.      We need to understand this when it comes to differing doctrines among religious groups.

                                                      viii.      A body of people can’t all teach and believe different things as we see in the religious world today.

                                                          ix.      It didn’t work for an individual congregation in Corinth (1 Cor. 1:10-13).

                                                            x.      It doesn’t work for the church as a whole universally either.

c.       Ephesians 2:16.

                                                              i.      This chapter shows how our Lord brought Jews and Gentiles together for the purpose of salvation.

                                                            ii.      According to verse 14, Jesus made both Jew and Gentile one.

                                                          iii.      He did this by doing away with the Old Law.

                                                          iv.      He united the two into one body.

                                                            v.      Eph. 4:4, in listing several things of which there are just one, Paul was inspired to write there is one body.

d.      Colossians 3:15.

                                                              i.      We are called to be in one body.

                                                            ii.      We are called by the gospel (2 Th. 2:14).

                                                          iii.      Therefore, the gospel calls men to be in body.

e.      You might be asking, “What is this body?”

f.        You are asking a great question and one which is answered in the scriptures.

g.      Ephesians 1:22-23.

                                                              i.      Jesus is the Head of one body, which is the church.

                                                            ii.      Ephesians 2:16 mentions one body just a few verses after Ephesians 1:22-23 says that the body is the church.

                                                          iii.      Therefore, Jesus united Jew and Gentile into one church.

h.      Colossians 1:18.

                                                              i.      Jesus is the head of the body, which is the church.

                                                            ii.      As a body only has one head, a head only has one body.

i.        The New Testament, by means of the illustration of a head and a body, show there is only one church.

IV.            Jesus has one bride.

a.      Ephesians 5:22-33 compare the relationship of Jesus and the church to a husband and a wife.

b.      A husband is to love his wife just like Christ loved the church (vs. 25).

                                                              i.      Jesus showed that love by giving Himself for the church.

                                                            ii.      This goes back to the earlier idea of Jesus purchasing the church with His own blood.

c.       Notice the singular phrases.

                                                              i.      Christ loved the church.

                                                            ii.      Gave Himself for it.

                                                          iii.      That He might sanctify and cleanse it.

                                                          iv.      That He might present it.

                                                            v.      It should be holy and without blemish.

d.      A man should only have one wife.

e.      This illustration loses all its power if Christ has more than one church.

f.        Paul makes sure that we understand that he is talking about Jesus and the church (vs. 32).

Characteristics Of Prayer 3-30-25 AM

I.                    Properly motivated.

A.                 Someone once wrote, It is strange that, while praying, we seldom ask for change of character, but always a change in circumstance.

B.                  When praying, we need to make sure motives are pure.

C.                  Every request needs to have God’s will in mind.

D.                 Notice in this model prayer that Jesus said, Thy will be done...

1.                  Jesus prayed this in the garden (Matt. 26:39, 42).

2.                  Paul asked the Roman brethren to pray for him to come to Rome if it was God’s will (Rom. 15:32).

E.                  Our every concern ought to be with doing the will of God.

1.                  This was Jesus’ main concern (John 4:34).

2.                  The psalmist, prophesying of coming Messiah, wrote, “I delight to do thy will” (Ps. 40:8).

3.                  Peter tells us that we are not to live to the flesh but to the will of God (1 Pe. 4:2).

F.                  The only ones who will make to heaven are those who do the will of God (1 Jo. 2:17).

G.                 Someone once wrote: “Prayer is surrender‑‑surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will. If I throw out a boathook from the boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore? Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God.”

H.                 As we pray we must make sure we are seeking God’s will and not our own.

II.                  Purposefully aimed.

A.                 Prayers don’t need to be generic.

B.                  I appreciated br. Huffman asking us to pray for him.

C.                  Paul asked for the prayers of others (1 Th. 5:25).

D.                 Paul was specific in prayer:

1.                  He prayed for the Colossians (Col. 1:3).

2.                  For the Philippians (Php. 1:4).

3.                  For the Thessalonians (2 Th. 1:11).

E.                There are things for which we need to pray:

1.                  Pray for preachers to preach gospel (Luke 10:2).

2.                 Government (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

3.                 Pray for the sick.

4.                 For each other (Jam. 5:16).

5.                 Pray not to enter into temptation (Luke 22:40).

6.                 Pray for our enemies (Luke 6:28).

F.                 There are situations that arise about which we must pray.

1.                  Job opportunities, family situations, illness.

2.                 We should take all these before God’s throne.

G.               Some may ask why we need to even ask God.

1.                  God wants us to rely on Him in prayer.

3.                 Paul would say ...(Php. 4:6).

H.                There are other things that could be mentioned for which we need to pray but these show that there needs to be purpose in our prayers.

III.                Patiently offered.

A.                 The New Testament is very clear that there is to be endurance in offering up requests to God.

B.                  Notice Luke 18:1-8.

1.                  The parable is to get us to not give up in prayer.

2.                  If an unrighteous person will eventually heed the continued request of an individual, what about the righteous God we serve.

C.                 Notice Luke 11:5-8 - the friend kept knocking.

D.                 Luke 11:9-10 - vs 10 spec means keep on doing these.

E.                 Notice Romans 12:12.

1.                  In the midst of a list of qualities a Christian needs, Paul says continuing instant n prayer.

2.                 Continuing instant is one word in the Greek.

3.                 One of the meanings of the Greek word is to persevere and not faint.

F.                 Paul told the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing.

G.                We don’t need to give up on something after praying one time about it.

IV.               Promptly enacted.

A.                 If we are going to pray for something, we need to work for it.

B.                God is not going to miraculously save people for whom we pray or give money to missionaries miraculously.

C.                If we want someone to be saved we need to pray for them and then go and teach them.

D.                If we want someone to come back to the Lord, we need to pray for them and then let them know they are lost.

E.                If we want the borders of the kingdom to be spread we must give the money for that to happen.

F.                 If we want the grieving to be comforted, lets do what we can to bring them comfort.

G.               There is no point in praying for something and then not doing our part to make it happen.

You Can Miss Out On A Good Thing 3-23-25 PM

I.                    The availability of rest (Hebrews 4:1).

A.                 The New King James starts the verse this way: “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest...”

B.                  What we should take away from this is that there is a place of rest that is available to us.

C.                  We need to be very cautious that we don’t miss out on it.

D.                 The Hebrews writer was inspired to use the word translated fear.

1.                  You might be thinking that the fearful are going to be cast into hell (Revelation 21:8), and that the love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).

a.                  Both of these are true of course.

b.                  Then why would we be told to fear?

2.                  Remember, these people were in danger of falling away from God and some may already have.

3.                  They had left their love behind and love can’t cast out fear if there is no love present.

4.                  Jesus told the Ephesians they had left their first love (Revelation 2:4).

5.                  Love will cast out fear but love leads to obedience (John 14:15).

6.                  The problem of the audience of our writer was that they were lacking in faith, leading them to leave God which is disobedience and a lack of love.

7.                  Our obedience to the Lord prevents a missing out on the rest of God (John 15:10).

E.                  We can come short of the rest of God; we can miss out on a good thing.

F.                  We see it all around us.

1.                  There are Christians we know who have left the Lord and others who are barely hanging on to the Lord.

2.                  These can and will miss out on the rest of God if they don’t have a fear of missing out, which will cause them to again be obedient to the Lord.

G.                 To be honest, there should always be a sense of dread of missing out on heaven.

H.                 It is available to all, but will be missed out on by those who fail to fear missing it, which leads to disobedience.

II.                  The basis of rest (Hebrews 4:2-7).

A.                 The writer again uses the example of the Israelites in the wilderness to warn us.

B.                  He first reminds us that faith is necessary to accept the rest.

1.                  The good news of Jesus was being preached and had been preached to those who received this letter, just has it has been preached to us.

2.                  The good news of rest had been preached to the Israelites as well.

a.                  He is not saying the same gospel was preached to those in the wilderness.

b.                  Gospel means good news and the good news of rest had been preached to them.

3.                  Sadly, those aged 20 and older, except for Caleb and Joshua, did not have faith in the message preached to them.

4.                  If we want to reach the land of rest promised to us, there must be faith in the message preached and faith, as love, leads to obedience to the message.

C.                  He then mentions the decree of God.

1.                  If God had not given a promise, then there would be nothing in which to place our faith.

a.                  The same for the Israelites.

b.                  If God had not told them about the Promised Land, there would be no reason for them to have faith.

c.                   However, He did, and many of them did not have faith in the message from God.

2.                  God had promised them and then took away the promise because of their unbelief.

3.                  God had spoken the promise to them but they could not enter, not because it wasn’t prepared for them, as he mentions at the end of verse 3, but because they did not have faith.

4.                  The rest promised was tied to the seventh day of creation.

a.                  God had created a wonderful place for man and wanted man to enjoy it with Him.

b.                  However, man sinned, and from that point forward, God’s aim has been to get His people into a place of rest with Him.

c.                   Those unfaithful Israelites could not enter into the land of rest because of their sin.

d.                  We can’t enjoy the presence of God and His blissful rest with sin in our lives.

e.                  They could not enjoy a physical land and we will not enjoy a spiritual land.

f.                    Verse 6 tells us the promise remains but they did not receive it because of disobedience.

g.                  We won’t either, by God’s decree.

D.                 If we want the rest of God, there must be immediate action on our part (Hebrews 4:7).

1.                  Five times in chapters 3-4, the word today is used.

2.                  The KJV says, “limiteth” and the NKJV says, “designates”.

3.                  There is a specific time we need to accept this rest and remain faithful and that is today, immediately.

E.                  We have way to many people who are acting haphazardly with this promise of rest.

1.                  We feel like we can pick and choose our times of faithfulness to God.

2.                  We feel like God is going to give us time and we have all of it we want.

3.                  We need a desperate sense of urgency in the Lord’s church and at West Walker.

4.                  Why are people falling away?

5.                  They don’t have a sense of urgency about them.

6.                  Tomorrow is not promised.

7.                  Do we think the people who died Thursday in that wreck on 20-59 thought that would be their last drive home?

8.                  Do we think the 29 yr old mother I mentioned a couple of weeks ago thought she would not return home from the hospital?

9.                  What makes us think we are any different than them?

10.              We must get a sense of immediacy for the doing of God’s will or we will miss out on the rest of God as did those Israelites so long ago.

 III.                The nature of God’s rest (Hebrews 4:8-11).

A.                 We need to understand what this rest is.

1.                  We know it is not the rest of the Promised Land.

a.                  He has used this as an illustration for people that came after the giving of the Promised Land.

b.                  That promise has already been fulfilled (Joshua 21:43-45).

c.                   As verse 8 will show, this is God’s rest about which our writer is speaking.

2.                  It is not the sabbath day’s rest either.

a.                  This was given to the people under the Mosaic Law.

b.                  This law has been done away with in Christ (Ephesians 2:14-15).

3.                  This rest is heaven, God’s rest.

a.                  This is compared to the rest of God on the completion of creation (Hebrews 4:4).

b.                  It is described for us in Revelation 14:13.

B.                  It is not the rest into which Joshua took those second generation Israelites.

1.                  They still fought in that land.

2.                  They still battled sin in that land.

3.                  They still fell away from God in that land and eventually went into captivity.

C.                  He then tells us that there still remains a rest for God’s people.

1.                  Heaven is out there waiting for us.

2.                  We can’t give up because the danger is there of missing out on a good thing.

D.                 There is a spiritual place of rest awaiting us that is beyond our imaginations.

E.                  Because of that, we need to be diligent to enter it.

1.                  We need to be proactive.

2.                  We need to nip problems in the bud before they fully develop.

3.                  We need to see the problems areas in our lives and deal with them now.

4.                  We need to help others see the problems in their lives and help them deal with them now if they will.

F.                  The reason to do it now is that we can fall just like the first generation of Israelites coming out of Egypt fell.

Our Prayers 3-23-25 AM

I. Characteristics of our prayers.

a. How do we approach God in our prayers?

i. Do we do it with haughtiness or humbleness?

ii. Do we do it with confidence or arrogance?

iii. What should be the characteristics of a prayer to God?

b. There should be extreme humility when we come before God.

i. We need to remember that is an inferior approaching a superior - the lesser going to the greater.

ii. We should have the attitude of the publican (Luke 18:9-14).

iii. We are going before the Creator and Sustainer of life.

iv. If we were to go before the president or some king, would we not do so with humility?

v. How much more so to God?

c. We are to have confidence in God when we approach Him.

i. James says we are to ask God with nothing wavering (James 1:5-8).

ii. We are to approach Him with confidence (Hebrews 4:16).

iii. This does nor mean arrogantly with demands for God.

iv. Rather, we are to humbly approach Him with confidence that He will give us what we need (Matthew 7:11).

d. We are to pray in accordance with the will of God (1 John 5:14).

i. Prayer is not a period of selfish requests.

ii. It is a time to ask God for things that are in accordance with His will.

iii. If we have a request, which we all do, we need to make sure we understand that in order to receive it must be in line with the will of God.

iv. Barnes said of 1 John 5:14 - “No man could hope for good who should esteem his own wishes to be a better guide than the will of God.”

e. These should all be characteristics of our prayers.

II. The content of our prayers.

a. A few years ago there was a poll that asked Americans about what they believe and how they practice their faith.

i. One question was: What do you think is the most important purpose of prayer?

ii. 27% said to seek God’s guidance, 23% said to thank God, 19% to be close to God, 13% said to help others, 4% said other reasons and 5% did not know.

b. What should be the content of our prayers?

c. The letters of the word “acts” will give us an easy way to remember what our prayers should contain.

d. “A” stands for adoration.

i. Adoration is defined as “The act of paying homage, to a divine being.”

ii. God is worthy of adoration for His creative work, His redemptive work and all the blessings that He gives us.

iii. Paul prayed in adoration in Ephesians 3:14-21.

e. “C” stands for confession.

i. We are to confess our sins to God (1 John 1:7-10).

ii. The way we do that is through prayer.

iii. Psalm 32 is a prayer of confession.

iv. The publican confessed himself to be a sinner in Luke 18:13.

f. “T” stands for thanksgiving.

i. We are to be thankful to God for all the blessings of life (Philippians 4:6).

ii. We are to continue in prayer with thanksgiving (Colossians 4:2).

iii. Jesus set this example for us (John 6:11; 11:41).

g. “S” stands for supplication.

i. This is defined as “To ask for humbly or earnestly as by praying.”

ii. The things we ask God for are our supplications.

iii. In the prayer taught to the disciples of Jesus in Luke 11, there are requests made.

1. We all need things and we are to ask for them from God.

2. After asking we are to do our part.

3. For instance, we ask God for our daily bread and then we go to work to earn money for that bread.

4. Our job and the pay are blessings from God.

h. If we will remember the word “acts” when we pray the content of our prayers will be right with God.

III. The closing of our prayers.

a. How do we end our prayers?

i. I have heard people simply say amen.

ii. I have heard people end in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, amen.

iii. There are other endings that people use as well.

b. This is how Paul taught the Ephesians to pray (Eph. 5:20).

c. This shows that Jesus is the only avenue of approaching God (John 14:6).

d. He is our High Priest that intercedes for us (Heb. 7:24-25).

e. We should close our prayers in some way that acknowledges we are praying through Jesus to God.

IV. The consistency of our prayers.

a. Jesus gave a parable about a widow asking an unjust judge to avenge her, which is recorded in Luke 18.

i. The reason for the parable is in verse 1.

ii. We should pray and not give up, or faint.

iii. We need to continue in prayer.

b. We need to be people who pray at any time (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

c. There is no excuse for being haphazard in our prayer life.

d. Too many wait to pray until they are in the middle of a storm.

i. While it is never too late to pray, we need to be praying about dealing with storms before they appear.

ii. We must always be seeking, asking and knocking.

e. Our Lord taught persistence just as soon as He taught the disciples to pray (Luke 11:5-8).

f. Paul taught us to be persistent in prayer (Romans 12:12).

g. The early Christians were persistent in prayer (Acts 2:42).

h. We need to realize that this does not guarantee that we receive that for which we ask.

i. Jesus asked three times for the cup of suffering to pass.

ii. Paul asked multiple times for his thorn to be removed.

i. But without prayer, and that persistently, we won’t get that which we need: grace and strength to help in need.

When The Dead Was Raised 3-16-25 AM

        I.            The account.

a.      The discussion (John 11:1-16).

                                                              i.      Verse 2 in interesting because this event is recorded in the next chapter.

1.      Remember that John wrote forty years after the other gospel writers.

2.      Mary is mentioned here because the readers would have been familiar with that account.

                                                            ii.      Notice in verse three how Lazarus is described.

1.      They didn’t say who loves you.

2.      They worded it in a way to tug on the emotion of Jesus: he whom you love is sick.

                                                          iii.      The sickness did lead to death, but Jesus is referencing spiritual death.

1.      God would be glorified in this moment.

2.      God would glorify the Son in this moment.

                                                          iv.      Verse 5 shows the love Jesus had for these siblings.

1.      The word for love in verse 3 is from phileo.

2.      The word for love here is from agape.

3.      There is not a lot of difference in these two words.

                                                            v.      After those two days Jesus was ready to go back to Judea, the area in which the Jewish leadership was the strongest.

                                                          vi.      Verse 8 references the event that took place at the close of chapter 10 (John 10:25-31).

                                                        vii.      Sleep is often used as a metaphor for the ones who die in a right relationship with God.

1.      The apostles believed all would be well.

2.      Jesus finally and plainly tells them that Lazarus had died.

                                                      viii.      Verse 15 is powerful.

1.      Jesus tells them that it was good that He had not been there.

2.      Jesus would have healed Lazarus.

3.      They had all seen Jesus heal people.

4.      What Jesus was going to do was going to help cement in their minds that He truly was the Christ.

                                                          ix.      Thomas doesn’t show much doubt in verse 16 does he?

b.      The declarations (John 11:17-32).

                                                              i.      I called this section declarations because there are three amazing statements that we will notice in these verses.

                                                            ii.      We find out that Lazarus has been in the grave four days.

1.      In that time, people were buried the day of their death.

2.      They didn’t have means of keeping the body from decaying is the reason.

                                                          iii.      The town of Bethany was about 2 miles from Jerusalem and many people from Jerusalem had come to console the sisters.

                                                          iv.      Somehow Martha was informed that Jesus was on His way and she went to meet Jesus.

                                                            v.      I’m sure her statement in verse 21 hurt Jesus some.

1.      I don’t believe she meant to hurt Jesus with it.

2.      She was just stating a fact.

                                                          vi.      The first declaration is now made by Martha (vs. 22).

1.      It can’t mean that she believed that Jesus would raise Lazarus from the dead because of what she says in verse 39.

2.      It seems to have meant that she knew the closeness of Jesus with the Father.

3.      She is letting Jesus know that her faith in Him had not waivered.

                                                        vii.      Jesus says something that is a masterful statement.

1.      DA Carson said that it is a masterpiece of planned ambiguity.

2.      Martha took it to mean that at the last day Lazarus would be resurrected as is seen in verse 24.

3.      Jesus meant it another way also: that Lazarus would rise that day.

                                                      viii.      The second grand declaration is found in verses 25 and 26.

1.      This is one of the I am statements made by Jesus recorded in John.

2.      Jesus is the source of our resurrection and our spiritual life.

3.      If we believe in Jesus, though we die physically, we shall be resurrected.

4.      If we live and believe in Jesus we shall never die spiritually.

                                                          ix.      Notice then how Martha answered Jesus (verse 27).

1.      This is the third declaration of note in this section.

2.      She made the great confession.

3.      Jesus was the Messiah.

4.      Jesus was the Son of God.

5.      The last phrase is rendered “He who comes into the world” in the NAS, and the footnote mentions “the Coming One” was a messianic title to the Jews.

                                                            x.      Mention verses 28-31.

                                                          xi.      Mary says the same thing to Jesus that Martha did (vs. 32).

c.       The demonstrations (John 11:33-46).

                                                              i.      Jesus was deeply moved by the tears of Mary and those that came with her.

1.      The word translated “groaned” is found five times in the NT and two of those times is in this chapter.

2.      It literally means to express violent displeasure.

3.      Jesus was not violent at all.

4.      It says He was troubled which carries the idea of shaking.

                                                            ii.      If you noticed, I entitled this section in the plural as well.

1.      I don’t believe there is another account in the NT that demonstrates the humanity of Jesus as much as this one.

2.      After Jesus asked where Lazarus is buried we read simply, Jesus wept.

3.      Here we read that Jesus was so overcome with emotion that He trembled and wept.

4.      The why of Jesus trembling and weeping is debated.

5.      Some say it was because of the weeping of His beloved friends.

6.      It seems more so that Jesus was emotional because of anger towards death and sin for the pain it caused His friends.

                                                          iii.      Some believed that Jesus wept because of love but some were saying hurtful things about Jesus (vs. 36-37).

                                                          iv.      Jesus was brought to the tomb and told them to roll away the stone.

                                                            v.      Here we see the lack of belief in Martha that Jesus would raise up Lazarus.

1.      She knew what happened to bodies after that time.

2.      Something else interesting about the four days is that Jews had a superstition that the soul of the deceased lingered over the body for 2-3 days after death.

3.      By Jesus waiting until the fourth day, there would not be any way to deny this miracle.

                                                          vi.      Jesus reminds her that He told her she would see the glory of God.

1.      They really echo what He earlier said to the apostles in verse 4.

2.      But they were the sentiment of His words to her as well.

                                                        vii.      When the stone was rolled away, Jesus began to pray to the Father (vs. 41-42).

1.      Martha had stated she knew the Father heard Jesus.

2.      The tense in the Greek of the end of vs 41 indicates that this request had already been made and that it was time for thanksgiving for granting it.

3.      Jesus mentions that the Father always heard Him, which indicates their unique closeness and relationship.

4.      Jesus wanted the people around Him to see the power of God.

5.      He wanted them to see it so that it would create belief in them.

                                                      viii.      Jesus then demonstrated His deity by crying out Lazarus come forth and Lazarus doing so.

1.      This is the second demonstration of this text.

2.      Earlier, Jesus demonstrated His humanity, now His deity.

3.      John MacArthur said, “In no other account of His miraculous work do we see more magnificently the coming together of His humanity and deity. We see Him in His full majesty, in His full person.”

                                                          ix.      This action truly proved that Jesus is the resurrection and the life.

                                                            x.      Jesus shouted this out for all to know that this was nothing but the divine act of God.

                                                          xi.      Lazarus came forth whole in the wrapping that had been placed around him in preparation for burial.

                                                         xii.      This caused belief in many of those that were present (vs. 45).

1.      This was the purpose of miracles.

2.      This is why John wrote what he did (John 20:30-31).

                                                       xiii.      Sadly, it caused others to run to the Pharisees (vs. 46).

1.      This miracle seems to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

2.      It caused the leadership of the Jews to commit to having Jesus killed as the rest of the chapter will bear out.

      II.            The application.

a.      While this event took place 2,000 years ago, there is much for us to take from it today.

b.      We have to wait on God’s timing.

                                                              i.      The sisters wanted Jesus to do something immediately to help their brother.

                                                            ii.      Jesus knew that immediately would not provide the proper glory to God being given.

                                                          iii.      There are times we want things right now.

                                                          iv.      We have to learn to wait (Ps. 27:14; Lam. 3:25; Jam. 5:7-8).

c.       What we believe is more important than what we feel.

                                                              i.      Mary and Martha felt grief.

                                                            ii.      Jesus felt it as well.

                                                          iii.      But, Jesus knew people needed to believe the right thing.

                                                          iv.      Because of that, Jesus waited and showed the power of God.

                                                            v.      Our faith has to be grounded in truth, not our own feelings.

d.      Jesus hurts with us.

                                                              i.      Mary and Martha were hurting terribly and that hurt Jesus.

                                                            ii.      Jesus sees us and hurts with us.

                                                          iii.      Hebrews 4:15-16.

                                                          iv.      He is touched by our feelings of weakness and hurting.

e.      Jesus is the resurrection and the life.

                                                              i.      If you have any hope, it has to be in Christ.

                                                            ii.      We aren’t hoping for some relief, but for eternal life.

                                                          iii.      Only in Christ is that found. 

Don’t Be Like Them 3-9-25 PM

I.                    A reminder of a reminder (Hebrews 3:7-11).

A.                 As is often the case in Hebrews, the word therefore is found.

B.                  The last section ended with an “if” statement.

1.                  We are the house of Christ “if” we hold fast to Christ.

2.                  We can’t let go of what we have professed to believe if we want to remain in the house of, or the church of Christ.

C.                  Interestingly, the writer points to the inspiration of the Psalms by saying that the Holy Spirit said these things.

1.                  We know they were written by a man, possibly David, but not necessarily.

2.                  However, the One who truly spoke these words was the Holy Spirit who gave the words to the human penman.

D.                 He now gives a reminder of those that refused to remain in the house of God in their time and he does so by going to Psalm 95:7-11.

1.                  This psalm is an interesting one that was to encourage the Israelites to praise God by giving three reasons to do so.

2.                  Verses 1-5 teach that God is worthy of praise because of His power.

3.                  Verses 6-7a teach that God is worthy of praise because of His mercy and grace.

4.                  Verses 7b-11, what our writer quoted, encourages the people to remember these traits of God because He is also a God of wrath.

E.                  Our writer was inspired to use this reminder to God’s people of the Old Testament to remind God’s people of the New Testament what will happen when there is rebellion against God and His authority.

1.                  The people of old rebelled against God in different ways.

2.                  All through the wilderness wandering they rebelled against God by questioning Him and even turning to other gods.

3.                  The word translated rebellion in Psalm 95:8 is the word Meribah in Hebrew and the word translated trial is the Hebrew word Massah.

a.                  These should remind us of the events recorded in Exodus 17:1-7.

b.                  There, the people cried out for water and were ready to stone Moses.

c.                   God told Moses to strike the rock and water would come out.

d.                  Moses called the place there Massah and Meribah, because the people tried the patience of God there.

4.                  These people, because of their rebellion recorded in Numbers 13, had to wander in the wilderness 40 years.

a.                  The older generation, those 20 and over, were a rebellious people and refused to know God’s ways.

b.                  Because of that, God was greatly angered and promised that they would not enter the promised land of rest (Numbers 14:22-23).

c.                   The only ones who were able were Caleb and Joshua because of their faithfulness.

5.                  Over 600,000 died in the wilderness because of their rebellion against God.

F.                  The Hebrews writer used a passage with which these Jewish converts would have been familiar.

1.                  He reminded them of the failures of their forefathers.

2.                  They needed to get this message today, right then, and that is why he started out quoting that verse of the psalm.

3.                  Lack of faith is something that needed to be addressed quickly.

 II.                  A warning for now (Hebrews 3:12-14).

A.                 Christians constantly have to be on the lookout in their lives for weaknesses in our faith.

1.                  Unbelief here is a reference to a lack of faith.

2.                  Not necessarily an unbelief in God, but a lack of doing what God wants done.

3.                  All unbelief is a departing from God because it sin, which separates us from God.

B.                  This departure is because of being hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

1.                  We need to remember that these people had been in a right relationship with God at one time.

2.                  They were partakers of the heavenly calling and holy brethren (Hebrews 3:1).

3.                  They were being warned to not become hardened and leave God.

4.                  This shows the very real possibility of apostasy from God.

5.                  I talked with a friend the other day who is in denominationalism and said that those who believe that one cannot fall away have a very difficult time explaining away Hebrews 3.

a.                  We know those Jews in the wilderness were, at one time, in a right relationship with God.

b.                  They were descendants of Abraham and God’s chosen people.

c.                   However, they rebelled and were lost.

d.                  If one cannot fall away, the illustration here loses all its power.

C.                  Sin is deceitful as we all know.

1.                  It is packaged to look beautiful or helpful or advantageous in some way.

2.                  Because it looks so good and packaged so well, sin will harden us or cause us to be stubborn against the will of God.

D.                 We need to get hold of any feelings of unbelief today, right now.

1.                  We can’t let it linger in any way.

2.                  We don’t let harmful things linger around us.

3.                  Sadly, many allow sinful things to remain and take hold.

E.                  When this is the case, we begin to depart from the living God.

F.                  We must constantly encourage one another in the faith so that we don’t lose anyone.

1.                  Think of those who have left here.

2.                  Why did they leave?

a.                  They began to be hardened first of all.

(1)               They allowed sin to enter their lives.

(2)               They failed to separate themselves from it.

b.                  We failed to exhort them when we had the opportunity.

(1)               No doubt some reached out.

(2)               But, in general, we failed them.

3.                  They most definitely have the ultimate responsibility to be right with God.

4.                  But we also have a responsibility to go after them and exhort them and we don’t do a very good job of that here, me included.

5.                  We are to exhort one another.

G.                 We should want to do so because we are partakers of Christ.

1.                  We have experienced the benefits of being in Christ.

2.                  All the spiritual blessings that flow from Him are ours.

3.                  We know how great it is in Christ.

H.                 But there is another “if” statement here in verse 14.

1.                  We will be partakers of Christ only if we hold fast that confidence we had in the beginning.

2.                  We can’t allow ourselves to become hardened and we need to start today preventing that hardening.

3.                  It is completely up to us.

4.                  God has given us the details of the rewards of faithfulness.

5.                  God has given us the details of the results of unfaithfulness.

6.                  We have to make the choice.

III.                A reminder again (Hebrews 3:15-19).

A.                 The Holy Spirit understands that we learn through repetition.

B.                  Because of that, our writer was inspired to go back to the initial reminder based on the sins of the Hebrews in the wilderness.

C.                  He does so by asking three obvious questions and giving the answers to each.

1.                  He reminds them in the first question that their forefathers had heard God’s word but rebelled against it, giving them no excuse.

2.                  The then reminds them of God’s wrath because of their unbelief which led to the death of so many over the course of those forty years.

3.                  A final reminder is given that those forefathers failed to enter God’s rest because of their unbelief.

D.                 He then sums it up by saying they failed to receive God’s blessing because of their unbelief.

E.                  Think of all that this generation missed by their lack of faith.

1.                  They missed out on the close relationship with God.

2.                  They missed out on an earthly home that flowed with milk and honey.

3.                  Ultimately, they missed out on heaven.

F.                  And, again, this section is started with the word “today”.

G.                 We need to get on with it today.

1.                  We can’t let disbelief, or lack of faith, linger.

2.                  We must get in God’s word and let it work in our lives.

When The Blind Received Sight 3-9-25 AM

I.            The question of the disciples (John 9:1-2).

a.      Jesus and the apostles were walking near the temple and came across a man who had been born blind.

                                                              i.      We don’t know how they knew he was born blind, although we know how Jesus would have known.

                                                            ii.      It is believed that this man was well known in Jerusalem because he would have been at this place nearly every day.

b.      The disciples asked Jesus an interesting question: who had sinned to cause this man to be born blind.

                                                              i.      This was the thinking of the time.

                                                            ii.      If there was some type of physical problem in a person, it was because of sin.

                                                          iii.      This was the attitude of Job’s friends long ago.

                                                          iv.      This was the teaching of those who professed to be Old Testament scholars of that day.

c.       For his condition to be his own sin is ridiculous because he would have had to have sinned inside his mother’s womb for it to be his fault.

                                                              i.      I have no idea why the disciples even offered that up as a possibility.

                                                            ii.      The only way it would even make sense is if they thought God punished that man from the womb for something that God knew he would do at a future point.

d.      We discussed the miracle of John 5 where the man was by the pool but couldn’t get in it.

                                                              i.      Jesus healed that man.

                                                            ii.      Later, Jesus told him Do not sin anymore lest something worse happen to you.

                                                          iii.      It seems, by the way that Jesus spoke to the man at least, that sin had caused him to become lame.

e.      Sometimes physical problems are the result of sin.

f.        Sometimes physical problems from birth are the result of the sins of a parent.

g.      They are never the result of the sin of an unborn baby.

h.      However, the disciples limited this man’s condition to either him having sinned in the womb or his parents having sinned.

i.        They never thought about a third option.

II.            The observation of Jesus (John 9:3-5).

a.      Jesus looked at the situation in a completely different way than the disciples.

b.      Jesus saw a man who needed help while the disciples saw a question to be answered.

c.       Jesus let them know that both options they had presented were wrong in this case.

d.      Some believe that Jesus is saying the man was born blind in order for this exact moment to come to pass.

                                                              i.      Think about what that would say about God.

                                                             ii.      Causing a man to suffer for so many years would be terrible.

                                                           iii.      I like what F.F. Bruce said: “This does not mean that God deliberately caused the child to be born blind in order that, after many years, his glory should be displayed in the removal of the blindness; to think so would again be aspersion on the character of God. It does mean that God overruled the disaster of the child’s blindness so that, when the child grew to manhood, he might, by the recovering of his sight, see the glory of God in the face of Christ, and others, seeing the work of God, might turn to the true Light of the World.”

e.       This man’s condition in now going to bring glory to God through the effort of Jesus.

f.        Jesus knew He was not going to be around long and had to work while He had the opportunity.

                                                              i.      The word “must” indicates the urgency Jesus had in His life.

                                                            ii.      He had a limited amount of time to work for God on earth and He was going to take advantage of His opportunities.

g.      Jesus repeats one of His great I am statements that are found in the book of John.

                                                              i.      It is not in the exact Greek form found in John 8:12.

                                                            ii.      It seems to be limited to this moment here, enabling a blind man to see.

                                                          iii.      The overall meaning is: If I can allow a blind man see physically, I can allow blind men to see spiritually.

h.      When you read this chapter, you see a constant battle between darkness and light, sight and blindness.

i.        Sometimes the phrases are used literally with the blind man, but often they are used to talk about the spiritual blindness or sight of those in this chapter.

III.            The demonstration of power (John 9:6-7).

a.      Jesus does something interesting in performing this miracle.

b.      Jesus spit on the ground, used His saliva to make mud, and placed the mud on the eyes of the man.

c.       This is not the only time that Jesus used saliva in some manner while performing a miracle.

                                                              i.      Mark 7:32-33.

                                                            ii.      Mark 8:22-23.

d.      We don’t know why Jesus did this, though several ideas have been floated as to why Jesus did it this way on this occasion.

                                                              i.      A Physical Demonstration of His Power – Jesus often healed with just a word or touch, but here, He uses a tangible, physical action. This could emphasize that healing comes from Him and is not merely symbolic or coincidental.

                                                            ii.      A Test of Faith – The blind man had to obey Jesus’ command to go and wash in the Pool of Siloam. This act required faith and obedience, much like other biblical healings where action was required (e.g., Naaman washing in the Jordan in 2 Kings 5).

                                                          iii.      A Connection to Creation – Some scholars see this as an allusion to Genesis 2:7, where God formed Adam from the dust of the ground. Jesus, as the Creator (John 1:3), is symbolically "re-creating" the man’s sight using the same elements.

                                                          iv.      Challenging Legalistic Traditions – Making mud (kneading) was considered "work" under the Pharisaic Sabbath laws, and by doing this on the Sabbath, Jesus intentionally challenged their rigid interpretation of the law (John 9:14-16).

                                                            v.      A Symbol of Humility and Simplicity – Using saliva and dirt, rather than elaborate rituals or objects, demonstrates that God's power does not require grand displays. The simplicity of the act contrasts with the religious leaders' expectations of how healing should occur.

e.      When Jesus had anointed the man’s eyes, He then told the man to go and wash in the pool of Siloam.

                                                              i.      As is usual with John, he provided the translation for the Aramaic word.

                                                            ii.      Siloam means “sent.”

f.        The man did exactly what Jesus told him to do.

g.      We are left with some questions about this.

                                                              i.      How did the man know the name of who healed him (John 9:11)?

                                                            ii.      What all did Jesus say to the man besides to go and wash in the pool?

                                                          iii.      What caused this man to do exactly what Jesus told him to do?

h.      There has to be some things said that we are not told during this encounter.

i.        What we do know is that this man did exactly what Jesus told him to do and his sight was restored.

                                                              i.      This man had faith.

                                                            ii.      He had to walk to the pool.

                                                          iii.      He had to get the water from the pool to wash his eyes.

                                                          iv.      I wonder the thoughts that went through his mind as he made his way to the pool.

j.        Whatever those thoughts were, they led to his believing Jesus and his sight being restored.

IV.            The reaction of various groups.

a.      The neighbors were astonished and some couldn’t believe it was him.

                                                              i.      John 9:8-12.

                                                            ii.      Some said this is him, some said he is like him.

                                                          iii.      Finally the man had to say it’s me.

                                                          iv.      They wanted to know how it was done and who did it.

                                                            v.      He told them but said all he knew was the name of the man who did it, Jesus.

                                                          vi.      One sermon I read in preparation for this said this group was blinded by distraction.

                                                        vii.      They were more concerned about the how of the miracle than the one who performed the miracle.

b.      The Pharisees are the next group that we see.

                                                              i.      The neighbors brought the man to the Pharisees.

                                                            ii.      What we read in John 9:14 is important – Jesus did what they would consider work on the Sabbath.

                                                          iii.      There was division among them though because of the fact the man had his sight given to him (John 9:15).

                                                          iv.      Some, if not most of them, refused to believe he had been born blind, so they called in the parents.

                                                            v.      We will notice the parents next so continue with the Pharisees.

                                                          vi.      They tried to get the man to say Jesus was a sinner.

                                                        vii.      To his credit, he told them that he did not know if Jesus was a sinner but he did know that Jesus had given him sight.

                                                      viii.      They asked him again how his sight was given him and he had enough of them.

                                                          ix.      The man stuck to his guns and did not back down until they cast him out of the synagogue.

                                                            x.      The sermon I mentioned earlier said the Pharisees were blinded by religion.

c.       The next group is one we mentioned and that is the parents.

                                                              i.      The Pharisees called for the parents to prove the man was their son indeed and had indeed been blind from birth.

                                                            ii.      Listen to their part of this (John 9:19-23).

                                                          iii.      He is our son, he was born blind but you’ve got to ask him how he got his sight, he is of age.

                                                          iv.      The sermon said the parents were blinded by fear.

d.      The last group is the man himself.

                                                              i.      When first asked, he just knew the name of Jesus.

                                                            ii.      A little later he says that Jesus is a prophet (John 9:17).

                                                          iii.      He stood up for Jesus and said He came from God (John 9:30-33).

                                                          iv.      This is when they kicked him out of the synagogue.

                                                            v.      When he meets Jesus the man acknowledges Jesus as Lord and worshiped Jesus (John 9:35-38).

e. This man gained both his physical and spiritual sight.

When The Disciples Needed Reassurance 3-2-25 AM

I.            The rejection by Jesus (John 6:16; Mark 6:45-46)

a.      The people that Jesus fed wanted to make Jesus their king (John 6:15).

b.      This was not the purpose for which Jesus came to this earth.

                                                              i.      John 18:36.

                                                            ii.      If Jesus wanted to be an earthly king, the opportunity was there for the taking.

c.       His purpose was to bring about salvation (Luke 19:10).

d.      For this reason, Jesus rejected the people and their desire for Him.

e.      He got the disciples out of the area.

                                                              i.      Mark says He constrained them to get in the ship and leave.

                                                            ii.      There is forcefulness in that word.

                                                          iii.      He literally made them get into the boat.

f.        The text does not say why Jesus did this.

g.      This is conjecture, but it is likely that the disciples would have been swept up in this thought as well.

h.      Remember what they asked Him right before He ascended into heaven (Acts 1:6)?

i.        These men had been taught this same idea.

                                                              i.      They had grown up hearing about the coming Messiah.

                                                            ii.      How that Messiah would lead Israel back to relevance and prominence.

                                                          iii.      How that Messiah would bring in a golden age for Israel and the Jews.

j.        Jesus had to reject this thinking.

                                                              i.      It was a temptation for His human side.

                                                            ii.      Worse than that, it was a lie capable of pulling away His disciples.

k.      Jesus made sure to reject this desire of the people and to get His disciples away from it as well.

l.        Once Jesus got them on the boat and headed out, He went alone to pray.

m.    I believe Jesus did this because of the temptation that had been laid on Him and for the hearts and minds of His disciples.

II.            The reassurance of the disciples (John 6:17-20; Mark 6:47-50).

a.      The disciples started rowing towards their destination.

b.      Have you ever wondered what they were talking about while they were rowing?

                                                              i.      Do you not think they were asking why Jesus rejected the people?

                                                            ii.      Do you not think they were asking if Jesus really was the Messiah?

c.       While they were rowing, a storm blew onto the lake.

d.      The Sea of Galilee is surrounded by mountains and is over 600 feet below sea level.

                                                              i.      Cold air comes rushing down the between two sets of mountains.

                                                            ii.      The cold air will hit the warm air over the lake and cause large storms on it.

e.      This is what happened on this occasion.

f.        The disciples had rowed about 3-4 miles out on the lake.

                                                              i.      At its widest point, it is a little over seven miles wide.

                                                            ii.      So they were about halfway across the lake.

g.      Mark tells us that it was during the fourth watch of the night, which is around 3 AM to us.

h.      They could not move forward, even with their rowing because they were rowing into the wind.

i.        While this storm was raging and they were rowing and battling, they saw a figure on the water.

                                                              i.      Mark says they saw a spirit.

                                                            ii.      Newer versions have the word ghost.

j.        They freaked out.

k.      Verse 49 says they cried out.

                                                              i.      They screamed.

                                                            ii.      Thayer’s says the word means “from the depth of the throat.”

l.        Jesus simply says, “It is I, be not afraid.”

m.    Jesus reassured them that they had nothing to fear.

n.      Again, we might wonder why John tells of this miracle after Matthew and Mark had already told about it.

                                                              i.      He does not even go into as much detail as them.

                                                            ii.      Mark, usually known for his brevity, gives the most detail.

o.      This miracle was not for us specifically.

p.      Remember that miracles were performed for non-believers.

q.      The only ones present were His disciples.

                                                              i.      You see, they were the non-believers.

                                                            ii.      They had just seen Jesus reject the attempt to enthrone Him.

                                                          iii.      How could Jesus be the Messiah if He would not be a king?

r.       Jesus used this opportunity to show them that He was exactly who He claimed to be.

s.       There is no reason to be afraid because I am is what Jesus was saying.

t.       The disciples needed this reassurance because they had been doubting Jesus because Jesus was not fulfilling their preconceived ideas about the Messiah.

III.            The reward of faith (John 6:21; Mark 6:51).

a.      We read that they willingly received Jesus into the boat.

b.      They showed their faith.

c.       Jesus had shown Himself to be what He claimed to be and they reacted by faith.

d.      They were rewarded with a calm sea and a port – in other words, safety.

e.      I do believe verse 21 teaches that the ship went from the middle of the lake to their destination immediately, just as it says.

f.        Mark tells us that the storm immediately stilled.

g.      When we take Jesus into our lives, and we get into Him, we have safety.

                                                              i.      Not safety from the problems of life or things like that.

                                                            ii.      We have spiritual safety, having access to His blood.

                                                          iii.      We have peace with Christ (John 16:33).

h. These men were rewarded with safety, as are all that truly believe Jesus is the Messiah, which means they follow Him.

Consider Jesus 2-23-25 PM

I.                    Consider the position of Jesus (Hebrews 3:1).

A.                 The writer starts with the word “wherefore”.

1.                  This points back to what is discussed in the 2nd chapter.

2.                  We noticed several reasons why Jesus put on flesh.

3.                  Ultimately, it was to be our Savior and give us the aid we need to make it to heaven.

B.                  Because of that we need to fix our eyes on, consider, Jesus.

C.                  He begins by addressing the audience as holy brethren.

1.                  Being a Jew did not make them holy, Jesus did.

2.                  They were not brethren because they were Jews, at least in the spiritual sense, but because they were in Christ.

D.                 They were holy brethren because they were partakers of the heavenly calling.

1.                  The calling is that of the gospel about which we read in 2 Thessalonians 2:14.

2.                  They were fellow sharers in that great blessing of having answered the gospel call.

E.                  Both of these designations were important reminders of why the target audience had left Judaism.

1.                  Only in Christ can one be holy and only in Christ can there be true spiritual brotherhood.

2.                  Only when one is in Christ can one say he has properly partook of the heavenly calling.

3.                  Judaism could not do it and, for us, denominationalism or anything else can’t do it.

4.                  When we are tempted to fall away, we need to remember that only in Christ are these privileges and blessings found.

F.                  Our writer now points us to two titles that Jesus wears.

1.                  The first is Apostle.

a.                  This is the only passage in the Bible that calls Jesus an Apostle.

b.                  The meaning is the same as in other places, one who is sent.

c.                   Jesus was most definitely sent by the Father.

(1)               John 17:3;

(2)               John 12:44;

(3)               1 John 4:10.

d.                  Jesus is the only One sent from heaven by God for the saving of man.

e.                  No one else has ever been sent to save us or them, so how foolish would it be to turn from the only One sent to save us!

2.                  The second is High Priest.

a.                  This is another topic that the writer will develop later in the book.

b.                  This would have stood out to the Hebrew Christians.

c.                   They were being called back into Judaism to high priest that was no longer able to reach God.

d.                  Not only that, Moses, their beloved leader, was never a high priest.

(1)               His brother Aaron was and the line descended from him.

(2)               As great as Moses was, he could not do the things Aaron had done as priest and now Jesus was reigning as High Priest.

G.                 Moses had been an apostle for God since he was sent by Him to Egypt, however he did not come down from heaven as Jesus had.

H.                 Moses never was a high priest as Jesus is

I.                    We should consider Jesus because of His position.

II.                  Consider the passion of Jesus (Hebrews 3:2).

A.                 Jesus had a passion for doing the will of the Father.

1.                  He was faithful to God in all that was asked of Him.

2.                  God gave Jesus certain things to do and Jesus was faithful in all of them.

B.                  Notice that the writer is careful to not down Moses in any way.

1.                  He lets them know that Moses was faithful as well.

2.                  The truth is, though, even Moses sinned.

C.                  Jesus lived to do the will of the Father.

1.                  John 8:29 - notice the word always.

2.                  John 6:38 - Jesus did not come down to do what He wanted to do, but to do God’s will.

D.                 As these people were being tempted to fall, what a great reminder of the passion they should have for Jesus.

1.                  Jesus was faithful in all things, even dying on the cross.

2.                  He set an example for them to follow in being passionate about God even in the face of adversity.

E.                  He set an example for us as well.

1.                  The society in which we live is getting increasingly hostile towards people of faith.

2.                  Are we going to cave in and give up, or, like Jesus, stand firm in doing the will of the Father even in the face of persecution?

F.                  We need to consider the passion of Jesus for doing the God’s will in all things and allow that to motivate us!

III.                Consider the prominence of Jesus (Hebrews 3:3-6).

A.                 The writer now gets to the main point he was inspired to make in this section: Jesus is greater or better than Moses!

B.                  Jesus is worthy of more honor, or more prominence, than Moses because Jesus built the house in which Moses served!.

1.                  The writer has already pointed out that angels had a hand in the delivering of the Old Law (Hebrews 2:2).

2.                  He now points out that Jesus built the house of the Old Testament.

C.                  The writer has already pointed out that all things owe their origin to Jesus (Hebrews 1:2, 8, 10).

1.                  Jesus was most definitely involved in the Old Testament (1 Corinthians 10:1-4).

2.                  Jesus is the Creator, or Builder, of all things (John 1:1-3).

D.                 Since Jesus built the house, He is worthy of more honor than the one who served in the house.

E.                  Verse 4 is an amazing verse.

1.                  It seems that it doesn’t even really belong here, because if you read verse 3 and go right into verse 5, skipping verse 4, it flows perfectly.

2.                  However, verse 4 gives us some tremendous material.

3.                  This is a shout to the divinity of Jesus, first of all.

a.                  He had just called Jesus the builder of the house of the Old Covenant in which Moses served.

b.                  Now the writer says that that the Builder of all things is God, thus making Jesus God.

c.                   This could never be said of Moses, another fact of the prominence of Jesus over Moses.

4.                  Second of all, this gives us the power to use the teleological argument for the existence of God.

a.                  This is the argument that since the world and universe show design, there must be a Grand Designer.

b.                  There is no way an atheist can truly deal with this argument for the existence of God!

c.                   This is one of those “ungetoverable” arguments.

F.                  The writer turns his attention to Moses in verse 5, again showing great care to not down Moses in any way.

1.                  Moses was a servant of God and this is a reference to Numbers 12:7.

2.                  He brought the Old Law to the people that spoke of great things to come.

G.                 However, Jesus is more prominent because He is a Son in God’s house and not a servant!

H. Again, as great as Moses was, there was no way this could be said of him.

When The Multitudes Were Fed 2-23-25 AM

 I.            The setting (John 6:1-4).

a.      John says that Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which would have been the western side.

b.      There is a note that says “which is the Sea of Tiberias.”

                                                              i.      Remember that John was written 35-40 years after the other gospel accounts.

                                                            ii.      Tiberias was a city built by Herod Antipas to honor Tiberius Caesar.

                                                          iii.      The Sea of Galilee came to be known as the Sea of Tiberias after the other accounts had been written but before John was inspired to write.

c.       Jesus was seeking an escape from the crowds it seems, which is why we read He went up into a mountain.

                                                              i.      This doesn’t mean a mountain like we think.

                                                            ii.      It means an elevated place, probably in what we know of as the Golan Heights.

d.      David Lipe, based on a look at all four accounts, gives some reasons why Jesus was doing this:

                                                              i.      He needed time to mourn John the Immerser’s death (Matt. 14:12-13).

                                                            ii.      He wanted rest for Himself and the disciples (Mk. 6:31).

                                                          iii.      He wanted to avoid Herod (Lu. 9:9).

e.      The people followed Jesus to this place because of the miracles Jesus had been performing.

                                                              i.       Remember that John only tells us of seven miracles.

                                                            ii.      There are multitudes more of them and these people had been seeing Jesus perform them, so they kept following Jesus to see more.

f.        We read in verse 4 why there were so many at the time.

                                                              i.      The time of the Passover feast was near.

                                                            ii.      There would have been Jews from all over the world coming to Jerusalem for the feast.

                                                          iii.      Some had seen Jesus and began to follow Him, while others heard of it and came to see for themselves.

II.            The test (John 6:5-9).

a.      Thousands of people have followed Jesus.

b.      They are on their way to Jerusalem, but took a detour to follow Jesus.

                                                              i.      They had planned for this to go straight to Jerusalem.

                                                            ii.      They didn’t have Yeti coolers to keep food fresh back then.

                                                          iii.      Their food supply would have been dwindling.

c.       The other accounts tell us that Jesus was concerned with their lack of food.

d.      The other accounts don’t tell us about the interaction with Philip.

                                                              i.      Jesus asked Philip where could bread be bought so the multitude could eat.

                                                            ii.      Philip was from that area and it made sense to ask him.

e.      John tells us that Jesus already knew what He was going to do, but asked Philip to test him.

f.        Philip goes into math mode.

                                                              i.      Much like the guy I mentioned in the introduction did trying to figure out how much manna God provided Israel.

                                                            ii.      It got to be too big a number for Philip so he said that half a year’s wages wouldn’t buy enough for each to have just a little taste.

g.      Philip failed the test.

h.      Andrew is now on the spot and brings to Jesus five loaves and two fishes that a young man was willing to share.

                                                              i.      The word for lad can mean a little child.

                                                            ii.      In the Septuagint, it was used to describe Joseph when he was seventeen.

                                                          iii.      So we don’t know exactly how old this young man was.

                                                          iv.      We do know that he was willing to share what He had.

i.        If Andrew had stopped right there with the presenting of the food to Jesus, it would have been a great show of faith.

j.        Instead, he went on to say, “…but what are they among so many?”

                                                              i.      It’s as if he was saying that this boy has something but there’s not much we can do with it.

                                                            ii.      One writer stated, “Andrew’s point in drawing attention to the loaves and fish was that such a small amount was incredibly inadequate for the needs of so many people.”

                                                          iii.      So, we wonder why Andrew bothered to bring it to Jesus in the first place.

k.      In a way, both men failed the test.

                                                              i.      One said it would be impossible to feed them.

                                                            ii.      The other at least brought something to Jesus but still felt it couldn’t be done.

III.            The miracle (John 6:10-13).

a.      Jesus tells the disciples to get the men to sit down.

                                                              i.      Newer translations have the people to sit down.

                                                            ii.      Mark tells us they sat in groups of hundreds and fifties (Mk. 6:39-40).

b.      Jesus then prayed over each item of food, the bread and then the fish.

                                                              i.      The bread would have been made of barley, which was the poor person’s food.

                                                            ii.      The fish would have been small fish, like the size of a sardine.

c.       F.F. Bruce gives a common prayer said by the Jews of that time: Blessed art thou, o Lord our God, King of the universe, who bringest forth bread from the earth.

d.      The prayer of Jesus may have been something similar to that.

e.      Matthew, Mark, and Luke all state that the disciples distributed the food to the multitudes.

f.        I’ve always wondered how this miracle was done.

                                                              i.      Did Jesus pray and then put the food in baskets and the baskets got passed around and never emptied?

                                                            ii.      Did the disciples keep coming back to Jesus to make trip after trip?

g.      However it was done, all the people had plenty to eat – the NAS has “as much as they wanted.”

h.      Jesus told the disciples to gather all the leftovers up so there would be no waste.

i.        We read that they gathered twelve baskets full.

                                                              i.      We don’t really know how big these baskets were.

                                                            ii.      But if you guesstimate that they would hold two gallons, you have 24 gallons of food gathered.

j.        We aren’t told, but it would be a safe guess that Jesus made sure the poorest of the people got this food.

k.      Also, it is not hard to imagine that Jesus made sure the boy who provided the food benefitted from the leftovers.

l.        Think about what Jesus did here.

                                                              i.      5,000 men were there.

                                                            ii.      Matthew’s account mentions there were also women and children.

                                                          iii.      (CLICK) We don’t know a total but we do know there were well more than the 5,000 men.

                                                          iv.      Jesus provided all of these people more food than they could eat.

                                                            v.      Jesus again shows His power over His creation.

IV.            The result (John 6:14).

a.      The people realized that a great miracle had been performed.

b.      Remember the purpose for John writing down these miracles (John 20:30-31).

c.       These people saw this miracle and believed.

d.      They said that Jesus was the prophet that was to come into the world.

                                                              i.      Which prophet is that?

                                                            ii.      The Jews knew the words of Moses long ago (De. 18:15).

e.      They had been looking for this prophet and realized that He had now come in the form of Jesus.

f.        They believed that Jesus was the Messiah.

                                                              i.      Sadly, the next verse tells us what they wanted to do.

                                                            ii.      They wanted to make their Messiah an earthly king.

                                                          iii.      Because of that, Jesus had to leave.

g.      This miracle of Jesus created faith in those that saw it.

V.            Application for us.

a.      As I mentioned in the beginning, there are a number of lessons for us today.

b.      God can take what little we have to offer and make something great.

                                                              i.      It does not matter what we have, if we give it to God, it can be made great.

                                                            ii.      It may be our time, our money, or our physical effort; God can do big things with it.

                                                          iii.      We probably don’t think we have much to offer, but like God did with Gideon’s 300, He can win victories with very little.

c.       Faith requires action.

                                                              i.      The disciples thought it was impossible to feed that many.

                                                            ii.      Jesus showed them that God would provide if some action was made.

                                                          iii.      The little meal of a young man was all that God needed.

                                                          iv.      If we believe God, we need to step out in faith, in whatever area it is.

d.      Compassion leads to great things.

                                                              i.      Mark’s account says that Jesus was moved with compassion for the people.

                                                            ii.      Jesus was a need and His compassion moved Him to meet that need.

                                                          iii.      We need to have compassion on those around us and then doors may open up for us to share the gospel.

e.      God provides more than enough.

                                                              i.      Those five loaves and two fish led to twelve baskets of leftovers.

                                                            ii.      We need to trust in the generosity of God.

                                                          iii.      As givers, we need to believe that God will take care of us when we give as we should.

f.        Jesus is the true provider.

                                                              i.      We mentioned earlier that this event led to Jesus calling Himself the Bread of Life.

                                                            ii.      Jesus provides all we spiritually need in this life.

iii. He truly is the way, the truth, and the life.

It Became Him To Suffer 1-26-25 PM

I.            Suffering completed Jesus (Hebrews 2:10).

a.      The word “became” carries the idea of being right or fitting.

                                                              i.      It was fitting that God, for whom and by whom are all things, to allow Jesus to suffer in order to complete Him.

                                                            ii.      It was proper for God to do this.

b.      The sole reason for allowing it was for me and you to be brought to glory.

                                                              i.      We are the sons there.

                                                            ii.      In order for us to have the hope of heaven, Jesus had to suffer.

                                                          iii.      Our hearts ought to rejoice and cause us to shout thanks to the Lord for His willingness to do what He did.

                                                          iv.      Without that, there would be no way for you and I to come to glory.

c.       Jesus is here called the Captain of our salvation.

                                                              i.      In the book of Acts, this word is translated Prince.

                                                            ii.      Later, in Hebrews 12, this word is translated Author.

                                                          iii.      He is the Leader of the saved.

d.      He was able to become the Leader of the saved through suffering.

e.      Suffering perfected, or completed Jesus.

                                                              i.      Not in the sense that Jesus was incomplete or in any way unfit to be our Leader.

                                                            ii.      Thayer gives the meaning of the word, to bring to an end proposed.

                                                          iii.      This simply means that the suffering qualified Jesus to be the Captain of our salvation.

                                                          iv.      The suffering He endured allowed Him to complete the goal, or work, that God had intended for Him to complete.

f.        All the pain and agony through which Jesus went on the day of His physical death, all the nights with no home in which to lay His head, and all the verbal attacks and threats He endured, allowed Him to be our Savior.

II.            Suffering allowed Him to call us brethren (Hebrews 2:11-13).

a.      The coming of Jesus to this earth allowed us to be together.

                                                              i.      We are of one in the sense that He put on flesh and became like us.

                                                            ii.      He sancitifies us through His offering of Himself and we are sanctified, set apart, by Him from the world.

b.      Isn’t it amazing that Jesus is not ashamed to call you and I His brethren?

                                                              i.      As weak and sinful as we are, Jesus is not ashamed of us.

                                                            ii.      He loves us so much He was willing to come and suffer.

c.       The Hebrews writer then points out three different passages in the Psalms and Isaiah that show God always intended for the Messiah to be like us in the flesh.

                                                              i.      Psalm 22:22.

1.      There is something we really need to note here.

2.      We know the word translated church in the original language is “ekklesia”.

3.      The Septuagint Version, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, translated the word ekklesia as congregation or assembly.

4.      The word brethren is used to describe those in the church.

5.      Notice what F.F. Bruce wrote, “The employment of this word is a synonymous parallelism with "brethren" in a Christian context indicates that those whom the Son of God is pleased to call his brethren are the members of his church.”

6.      If one is a brother to Christ, that one has to be a member of His church.

                                                            ii.      Psalm 18:2.

                                                          iii.      Isaiah 8:18

d.      Without Jesus suffering for us, there is no way we could call Him our brother and we could not be brethren in the church.

III.            Suffering allowed Jesus to destroy Satan (Hebrews 2:14).

a.      Humanity is clothed in with flesh and blood and Jesus was well.

b.      Jesus had to share in that in order to die.

c.       The purpose of the death of Jesus was to defeat Satan.

                                                              i.      Satan used death as a weapon to cause man to fear as is pointed out in the next verse.

                                                            ii.      Jesus took Satan’s weapon and used it to conquer Satan.

                                                          iii.      Jesus subdued Satan by His death and resurrection.

d.      This verse tells us something about the goal of Satan.

                                                              i.      His goal is to destroy mankind.

                                                            ii.      He wants us to be eternally separated from God.

                                                          iii.      Until Jesus died on that cross, Satan was winning.

                                                          iv.      There was nothing mankind could do to overcome Satan.

                                                            v.      Now, through the death of Christ and His resurrection, you and I can overcome Satan because Jesus overcame Satan.

e.      An angel could not have done this for us and the Hebrews writer is pointing out that fact that Jesus became a man to die for men because only He could do that.

 IV.            Suffering allowed Jesus to remove our greatest fear (Hebrews 2:15-16).

a.      Death has long been one of man’s greatest fears.

b.      We fear the unknown, we fear punishment, we fear the separation of death.

e.      Jesus took all of those things away for His brethren.

                                                              i.      His death allowed us to look with joy at death because it brings us to God.

                                                            ii.      We can say “come Lord Jesus” because we don’t have anything to fear in Christ.

f.        Jesus took on our nature to aid us.

                                                              i.      This is the meaning of verse 16.

                                                            ii.      He did not become like an angel because they didn’t need Him.

                                                          iii.      We needed Him and He became like us because we needed His aid to avoid the pain and fear of death.

V.            Suffering allowed Jesus to reconcile us to God (Hebrews 2:17).

a.      The word “behooved” carries the idea of owing something, a moral obligation.

                                                              i.      Since Jesus bowed to the will of the Father to help mankind, He became obligated to all that needed to be done for man.

                                                            ii.      This, of course, included all the suffering He faced.

b.      It allowed Jesus to be merciful, or compassionate, towards us as the Hebrews writer will point out in chapter 4.

c.       He is faithful to God in carrying out the duties of the High Priest.

                                                              i.      He made the sacrifice for us.

                                                            ii.      He did the will of the Father.

d.      By doing all this, Jesus reconciled us back to God.

                                                              i.      Sin separated us from God as we have mentioned many times.

                                                            ii.      The suffering Jesus endured allowed for us to be brought back to God.

                                                          iii.      If He hadn’t become our sacrifice, we couldn’t be right with God.

e.      The writer will go into much greater detail later in the book about just how Jesus did this for us.

VI.            Suffering allowed Jesus to aid us (Hebrews 2:18).

a.      Jesus was tempted and knows that through which we are going.

b.      Because of His being tempted, He can aid us, the meaning of succor, us who are tempted.

                                                              i.      He suffered more than we will ever suffer.

                                                            ii.      He was also tempted by Satan to sin.

c. We can look to Him to aid us in time of need as is also mentioned in chapter 4.