Today we pick up our study in Galatians 4:7 which says, “Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.” We are no more a servant because we have matured. We are no longer infants under the Law. Paul said in Romans 8:17, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ…” In other words, we are going to share in Christ’s inheritance.
Notice vv.8-9, “Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?” The point is, “What are you doing?” You want to go backwards? Legalists are trying to put you back into pampers!
Notice vv.10-12, “Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.” He is calling their salvation into question. “Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.” In other words, let’s think alike on this subject.
Also, vv.13-15, “Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first. And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me.” They had a wonderful relationship and he didn’t want his infirmity to come between them. This reference to the Galatians giving them their eyes speaks to the fact that Paul did indeed have an infirmity in his flesh with his eyes. As a matter of fact, Paul most likely spoke of this in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 when he said, “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.”
Building Lives International
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
New Recording
I have posted my Bible Study from last night at First Baptist Brownsville on Revelation 11.
Radio Station
I just put a link to the radio station of my home church and Bible College: WTBI. It has good old time preaching and singing. Try it out. It takes me home every time!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
We are Now Sons
Let’s look at Galatians 4:1-2, “Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.” Here Paul compares an heir to someone who is under the Law in that the heir is no different than the slave. He has no rights to speak of as a child because he is not over the estate yet. Thus, he may be “lord of all” one day, but not until he has come of age.
Notice v.3, “Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:” The point is that under the Law, the Jew (we) were in infancy. They were not yet mature.
Notice v.4-5, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Now we see that in God’s timing, He sent Jesus to redeem us from the Law. The phrase, “made under the law”, means that Jesus was raised under the Mosaic Law.
Notice v.6, “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” The proof that Jesus has done this is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit within us is proof of our salvation. Ephesians 1:13-14 says, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession…” The bottom line is that we do not have to live under the Law any longer. God has made a way through His Son for us to live free from the Law if we accept it. What a deal!
It is also proof that we are no longer servants, but sons. We have come of age. Jesus said in John 15:15, “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.”
Notice v.3, “Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:” The point is that under the Law, the Jew (we) were in infancy. They were not yet mature.
Notice v.4-5, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Now we see that in God’s timing, He sent Jesus to redeem us from the Law. The phrase, “made under the law”, means that Jesus was raised under the Mosaic Law.
Notice v.6, “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” The proof that Jesus has done this is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit within us is proof of our salvation. Ephesians 1:13-14 says, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession…” The bottom line is that we do not have to live under the Law any longer. God has made a way through His Son for us to live free from the Law if we accept it. What a deal!
It is also proof that we are no longer servants, but sons. We have come of age. Jesus said in John 15:15, “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.”
Sunday, January 11, 2009
We Needed a Savior
Today, we pick up our study in Galatians 3:23-25 where it says, “But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” This verse is saying that the Law simply tutored us until Christ came and justified us by faith. The Law merely showed us that we needed a Savior!
I see in this that many times God does not give us things until we have learned to appreciate them. A little boy once came to his father and asked to borrow the car. The father replied that the boy could borrow the car only after he cut his long hair. The boy responded by saying that Jesus had long hair. The father responded by letting his son know that Jesus walked everywhere He went too! Things have changed. We are no longer bound by the law. Praise God!
Notice vv.26-27, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” This is not referring to, as many have erroneously concluded, referring to water baptism. Instead it is referring to Spirit baptism. The act of baptism denotes dedication to the service of him whose name we are baptized. An example of this in the Old Testament is found with Moses. It says in 1 Corinthians 10:2, “…all were baptized to Moses in the cloud and in the sea…” That means that they became bound to him as their leader. We see the same thing here. It says in 1 Corinthians 12:13, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body…and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”
Notice v.28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” We are all simply followers of Christ and are all one in Him. It says in Romans 10:12 “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.” Fortunately, God is not bias like we can be.
I see in this that many times God does not give us things until we have learned to appreciate them. A little boy once came to his father and asked to borrow the car. The father replied that the boy could borrow the car only after he cut his long hair. The boy responded by saying that Jesus had long hair. The father responded by letting his son know that Jesus walked everywhere He went too! Things have changed. We are no longer bound by the law. Praise God!
Notice vv.26-27, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” This is not referring to, as many have erroneously concluded, referring to water baptism. Instead it is referring to Spirit baptism. The act of baptism denotes dedication to the service of him whose name we are baptized. An example of this in the Old Testament is found with Moses. It says in 1 Corinthians 10:2, “…all were baptized to Moses in the cloud and in the sea…” That means that they became bound to him as their leader. We see the same thing here. It says in 1 Corinthians 12:13, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body…and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”
Notice v.28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” We are all simply followers of Christ and are all one in Him. It says in Romans 10:12 “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.” Fortunately, God is not bias like we can be.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Public Schools
I think that every parent in America ought to listen to what these men are saying about our public schools. They are destroying your children. I've been in the ministry for almost eighteen years and watched Christian family after Christiam family lose their children to the world. The amazing thing is that they don't know why. The ship is sinking folks! Get your kids out. Unfortunately, talking about public-school reform is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
A Mediator
Today, we jump back into our study in Galatians 3:20 where it says, “Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.” The very idea of a mediator implies that there are two parties involved. In the given of the Law, it was God and the People with Moses playing the mediator. However, when God made the covenant with Abraham, there was only one party; Himself. We see this in Genesis 15 in that God actually placed Abraham asleep and made the covenant with Himself and Abraham had nothing to do with it. In other words, God would not rely on Abraham keeping his end of the deal for Him to fulfill the covenant. It is what we call an unconditional covenant in the Bible. A conditional covenant requires both parties to comply while an unconditional only requires one.
The same can be said of the promise that Christ has given to us in salvation. It was between Christ and God who are one and the same. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:18-19, “And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ…To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself…” It is not conditional upon us keeping the Law but in Christ already doing it for us. What a deal!
Notice v.21, “Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.” The Law could not give life in that it only pointed out the sinfulness of mankind.
Notice v.22, “But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.” Again, the Law could not save, only the promise that was given to Abraham that looked forward to the Seed (Jesus) could save and our faith in that promise.
On that note, I sometimes hear people say that the folks in the Old Testament were saved by keeping the Law. A thousand times, NO! They could not keep the Law. If they could have, Jesus’ death on the cross was in vain. On the contrary, those in the Old Testament were saved by their faith in looking forward to Jesus and we are saved by our faith in looking back at Jesus!
The same can be said of the promise that Christ has given to us in salvation. It was between Christ and God who are one and the same. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:18-19, “And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ…To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself…” It is not conditional upon us keeping the Law but in Christ already doing it for us. What a deal!
Notice v.21, “Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.” The Law could not give life in that it only pointed out the sinfulness of mankind.
Notice v.22, “But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.” Again, the Law could not save, only the promise that was given to Abraham that looked forward to the Seed (Jesus) could save and our faith in that promise.
On that note, I sometimes hear people say that the folks in the Old Testament were saved by keeping the Law. A thousand times, NO! They could not keep the Law. If they could have, Jesus’ death on the cross was in vain. On the contrary, those in the Old Testament were saved by their faith in looking forward to Jesus and we are saved by our faith in looking back at Jesus!
Friday, December 26, 2008
Overcoming Anger, Part 4
Today, we are still discussing the issue of anger. Something else that I want us to remember about anger is that it can be fueled by our own imaginations. I heard one time that life is one percent reality and ninety-nine percent perception. Oh, how true that is. Any of us can look at the same situation and walk away with completely different interpretations. Why? – perception. It kind of depends upon what kind of “luggage” we bring to the party. We all have predetermined dispositions that are based upon our own life experiences.
I once read, “Of the 7 deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back--in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you.”
We must be careful that we do not allow anger to destroy us. It does no good to replay scenarios in our heads. Scenarios of what should’ve, could’ve and would’ve been said or done. Instead, we must learn to yield our thoughts to the obedience of Jesus Christ and let him bring them into captivity. That’s what Paul meant when he said in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” That word “arguments” in the old King James Version means “imaginations”.
We must always remember that anger is a choice. Yes, you don’t have to get upset when somebody crosses you or when something bad happens to you. You can choose to be controlled and manipulated by other people who make you upset or you can choose to disregard them. It’s always our choice in how we respond to anything. Paul said in Galatians 4:12 “Brethren, I urge you to become like me, for I became like you. You have not injured me at all.”
I once read, “Of the 7 deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back--in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you.”
We must be careful that we do not allow anger to destroy us. It does no good to replay scenarios in our heads. Scenarios of what should’ve, could’ve and would’ve been said or done. Instead, we must learn to yield our thoughts to the obedience of Jesus Christ and let him bring them into captivity. That’s what Paul meant when he said in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” That word “arguments” in the old King James Version means “imaginations”.
We must always remember that anger is a choice. Yes, you don’t have to get upset when somebody crosses you or when something bad happens to you. You can choose to be controlled and manipulated by other people who make you upset or you can choose to disregard them. It’s always our choice in how we respond to anything. Paul said in Galatians 4:12 “Brethren, I urge you to become like me, for I became like you. You have not injured me at all.”
Friday, December 19, 2008
Overcoming Anger, Part 3
Last week we were still looking at how to overcome anger. As we mentioned, anger in and of itself is not sin. However, uncontrolled anger is and it can result in other sins as well. We have already looked at the resulting sins of retaliation, cursing, slander and gossip. Today I want to encourage those of you who are struggling with these sins that you must learn to let your anger go.
The Bible says in Ephesians 4:26-27 “Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.” The encouragement here given by the Apostle Paul is that you must never allow the sun to go down on your anger. In other words, don’t take it to bed no matter how upset you are with each other. My wife and I don’t always agree on everything. I’m sure that many of you can identify with that. However, when it’s time to turn in for the evening, we always express our love for each other. It may be through gritted teeth, but it does happen. Why? First of all, it shows that our love is bigger than any argument that we could ever have. Second, the Bible tells us to do so. Otherwise, we would be giving place to the Devil in that area of our lives. If we are not careful, we will allow that anger to turn into bitterness. Bitterness is destructive to you and everyone around you. I believe that’s why the writer of Hebrews warns and encourages us when he says, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.” Yes, allowing anger to seethe into our spirits causes defilement. Defilement is “to make foul, dirty, or unclean; pollute; taint or debase. None of those are good by the way!
Some will say, “I have a short fuse and I can’t help myself.” That is an excuse for a lack of self-control. The writer of Proverbs 14:16-17 says, “A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, But a fool is arrogant and careless. A quick-tempered (short fused) man acts foolishly, And a man of evil devices is hated.”
The Bible says in Ephesians 4:26-27 “Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.” The encouragement here given by the Apostle Paul is that you must never allow the sun to go down on your anger. In other words, don’t take it to bed no matter how upset you are with each other. My wife and I don’t always agree on everything. I’m sure that many of you can identify with that. However, when it’s time to turn in for the evening, we always express our love for each other. It may be through gritted teeth, but it does happen. Why? First of all, it shows that our love is bigger than any argument that we could ever have. Second, the Bible tells us to do so. Otherwise, we would be giving place to the Devil in that area of our lives. If we are not careful, we will allow that anger to turn into bitterness. Bitterness is destructive to you and everyone around you. I believe that’s why the writer of Hebrews warns and encourages us when he says, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.” Yes, allowing anger to seethe into our spirits causes defilement. Defilement is “to make foul, dirty, or unclean; pollute; taint or debase. None of those are good by the way!
Some will say, “I have a short fuse and I can’t help myself.” That is an excuse for a lack of self-control. The writer of Proverbs 14:16-17 says, “A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, But a fool is arrogant and careless. A quick-tempered (short fused) man acts foolishly, And a man of evil devices is hated.”
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