With support from the Christadelphian Refugee Assistance Council, English classes, and a new sponsorship program, the couple eventually resettled in Australia. Their story highlights the costs of faith, the power of community aid, and the ongoing need to support persecuted believers.

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Key Verse:

“Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.” (2 Cor. 5:8-9)

Outline:

Introduction

#3 - Away from the body (2 Cor. 5:8)

• Paul expects this change to take place after the judgment seat of Christ (v. 10)
• What is meant by “body” and “home” reading the context from v. 1
  • Groaning in this body (Rom. 8:23 cp. 2 Cor. 4:14) because of sin
  • Redemption of the body at the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:44, 51-55)

#4 - Souls under the altar (Rev. 6:9-11)

• Let’s be careful with Revelation and its symbology.
• The souls are “under the altar” crying out. Is this a picture of reality in heaven?
• The symbolism and personification of blood crying out (Gen. 4:10 cp. Heb. 12:24)

#5 - Mansions in heaven (John 14:2-3)

• God’s house is always spoken of as being on earth (Isa. 2:2-3). Heaven is not a place that has to be prepared.
• The immediate context: come again (v. 18;) and dwelling (v. 23; 15:4-5)
• This is speaking of a spiritual house (cp. v. 23 w/ 2:16,21 also 1 Pet. 2:5; Eph. 2:19-22)

What about near-death experiences?

• The Bible is clear no one has gone to heaven (John 3:13; Acts 2:34)
• This is either hallucinations or liars (2 Tim. 4:3-4)

Conclusion

• All have died, even Elijah
• No consistent teaching on heaven going or solid examples of people in heaven
• Our hope it to be resurrected to eternal life in the Kingdom of God on earth

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Key Verse:

"[the thief] said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he [Jesus] said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”” (Luke 23:42-43)

Outline:

Introduction

• Popular ideas about life after death vs. what we’ve been finding in our Bible studies from past podcasts about death, the resurrection and eternal life
• Soul sleep is not correct
• Greek ideas of the immortality of the soul

#1 - The Thief on the Cross (Luke 23:43)

• The passage does not mention souls or heaven
• The thief is asking to be in the Kingdom of Christ which will be at his return (2 Tim. 4:1). Judgement is at his coming.
• Where to put the comma? That day Jesus was in the heart of the earth (Matt. 12:40 cp. John 20:17)
• Paradise is a place on earth, the garden of Eden restored (Rev. 2:7)

#2 - A desire to depart and be with Christ (Phil. 1:23)

• The assumption here is that to “depart” means he would immediately be with Christ. Paul talked about death as sleep in which his next waking moment would be with Christ on “that Day” (2 Tim. 4:6-9).
• This is Paul’s hope in other places of this epistle (Phil. 1:6,10; 2:16; 3:11, 20-21)

Conclusion

Prerequisite Listening:

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“For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.” (Isa 51:3)

Outline:

Intro - Peace on earth

• Isa. 2:2-4 – Nations coming to worship in Jerusalem – Ezekiel’s temple (43:5,7,10,12)
• Isa. 51:2-3 - Eden restored (also Ezek. 36:28-36; Isa. 35:1-2; Psa. 72:16), the curse reversed
• Isa. 11:6-8 - The animals tamed (cp. 65:17-25)
• Isa. 11:9 w/ Num 14:21 – his glory fills the earth

Conclusion (1 Cor. 15:24-28 the end – God all in all)

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Key Verse:

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5)

Outline:

Inheritance of the earth

• Matt. 5:5 - what does it mean the meek shall inherit the earth. Compare with Psalm 37:9-11 meek, v22 blessed, v29 righteous forever, (v. 34)
• Psalm 115:15-18 – The heavens are the Lord’s, the earth he has given to man. Notice the “blessing” in other verses.

The immortal rulers

• Matt. 25:31-34 – The blessed are given the inheritance of the kingdom at the judgment seat
• Rev. 20:4-6 - Reigning with Christ for a thousand years. How do we know this is literal? (Rev. 5:10; 2 Tim. 2:12; Luke 22:29-30)

The mortal subjects

• Zech. 14:16-19 – Mortals are those left

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Key Verse:

“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.” (1 Peter 2:11)

Video Presentation:

https://bookroadchristadelphians.ca/media/video/1079204007

Outline:

Introduction

• The current political climate and the mix of Christianity and politics
• Got Questions web site

God’s Will and Sovereignty

• Got Questions web site first point about God’s will
• What is God’s will (Matt. 6:10)? The context of the Daniel passages ( 2:20-21; 4:17,25,32,34-35; 5:21) concerning God’s Kingdom to come.
• What is God’s will for leaders? God sets up evil men – Pharaoh (Ex. 9:16), Nebuchadnezzar (Jer. 27:4-6), Cyrus (Isa. 45:1), Alexander (Dan. 5:5-8,21), Pilate (John 19:10-11). So what about Constantine, Napoleon, and Hitler (Prov. 16:4)?

The Teaching of Jesus

• Got Questions second point about the absence of Bible teaching on voting
• Jesus and the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:38-42; Matt. 5:43-45 cp. Rom. 12:19-20)

The teaching of the Apostles

• Got Questions third point about being a good citizen
• A royal priesthood, a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9-10)
• Strangers (foreigners) and pilgrims (resident aliens) (1 Peter 2:11-12)
• Our duty to magistrates now (1 Peter 2:13-17; Rom. 13:1-7)

Citizen vs non-citizen status

• What is missing from the Got Questions video? What about God’s kingdom to come? We are citizens of our nation by natural birth but citizens of God’s kingdom by choice and spiritual rebirth.
• Non-Citizen Restrictions. You have to be a citizen to vote (or hold political office), serve in the military (including police) or on a jury (or be a judge or certain types of lawyer). This is the wisdom of the world!
• Non-Citizen Obligation. Obey the laws of the land and pay your taxes (Rom. 13:6-7; Matt. 22:21). Also, pray for and respect the leaders (1 Tim. 2:1-3; Tit. 3:1-2)

Conclusion – Seeking first the kingdom of God (Matt. 6:33)

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Listen to The Bible in the News Podcast or the Bible Magazine YouTube channel.

Key Verse:

“…there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days.” (Daniel 2:28)

Study Guide:

Like our cover art? Download the study guide it came from at Words in Season Etsy Shop.

Outline:

Introduction

• Where to start when it comes to prophecy? Daniel 2 is foundational.
• Overview of Daniel and his times

The King’s Dream

• King Nebuchadnezzar dreams something troubling and he challenges wise men to reveal the dream and the interpretation under penalty of death
• God reveals the dream and its interpretation to Daniel (v. 19-22)
• The dream is about the latter days (v. 26-28)
• The dream revealed (v. 31-35)

The Interpretation of the Dream

• The head of Gold = Babylon (v. 36-38) - The importance of Babylon in prophecy (Gen. 10:9-10; Rev. 18:21)
• Breast and arms of Silver = Medo Persians (v. 39)
• Belly and thighs of Brass = Greece (v. 39)
• The Legs of Iron = Rome (v. 40)
• The feet mixed with iron and clay (v. 41-43) - Each metal is successively inferior (v. 39) until mixed with clay = democracy

The Kingdom of God

• God’s kingdom to overcome all these kingdoms of men (v. 44, 35)
• What is the stone cut without hands? (v. 45; Matt. 21:42-44)
• Kingdom to fill the earth (v. 35)

Conclusion

• God is at work among the nations
• The fulfilled portion of this prophecy proves what is still to come is trustworthy
• We are living in the latter days
• God’s kingdom will be on the earth

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Key Verse:

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (James 1:5)

Outline:

1. Introduction
2. Background to AI technology
   1. History of AI technology
      1. Attempts to get a computer to think like a human have been going on since the 1950s (Turing test)
      2. Neural Networks, Machine Learning, Large Language Models
      3. Good at matching patterns – images, music, speech… even podcasts
      4. Examples of AI chatbots (OpenAI ChatGPT, Microsoft CoPilot, Google Gemini)
   2. At the time of the end knowledge shall increase – Dan 12:4
3. Is it good or bad?
   1. Driving force: An increase of knowledge CP the tower of babel (make a name Gen 11:4, people one, nothing restrained they have imagined v6)
   2. Real Intelligence was created by God for his glory. Artificial intelligence was created by man for his glory - Frank Abel
   3. Wisdom of this world is foolishness with God - 1 Cor 3:18-20
4. The Purpose of Bible Study
   1. To develop a true knowledge and understanding of God’s word
   2. Glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honour of kings to search out a matter - Prov 25:2
   3. To develop ones own mind and character
   4. Test everything, hold fast what is good – 1 Thess 5:21 
5. Limitations and Pitfalls
   1. Shouldn’t let our thinking become automated, we still got to think and put in the work
   2. Lack of Discernment: AI doesn’t believe, it doesn’t distinguish truth from error. Example: Do you believe in God?
      1. “AI can possess vast knowledge, but not wisdom. True wisdom, according to Scripture, begins with the fear of the LORD (Proverbs 9:10) — it is moral, spiritual, and relational, not merely intellectual. Wisdom involves discernment between good and evil, guided by conscience and character, qualities that come from God’s Spirit working in human hearts (Job 32:8; James 3:17).
      2. Artificial intelligence lacks spirit, moral awareness, and reverence for God; it can only process information and imitate understanding. It may be clever, but cleverness is not wisdom. As Paul wrote, “the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God” (1 Corinthians 3:19). AI can analyze Scripture, but it cannot live it — for only a heart taught by God can truly be wise.” ChatGPT
   3. Theological bias – It reflects human bias culled from the Internet. “Many false prophets shall rise and deceive many” Treat it like you would any study reference or human being (1 John 4:1). Example: Personification of the Spirit in Bible translation
   4. Misinterpretation of Scripture: Can make confident-sounding statements but incorrect claims. “AI synthesizes, sorts, and summarizes vast quantities of knowledge in a highly efficient, mind-blowingly fast way in response to a question, problem, or prompt given to it. That’s what it does well. But AI does not create new knowledge” Brett McCracken - Logos (Searches Example: Searching for all Roman surnames
6. The Positives
   1. Key to creating good prompts and what to expect
   2. Information Retrieval: Quick access to background info, historical context, cross-references, other versions. Example: Was it common for Jews in the 1st century to have Roman surnames?, literal meanings, etymology and possible identity of gemstones in Rev 21:19-20
   3. Searching: Ability to search for ideas rather than just key words Example: “No man knows day nor hour” Matt 24:36, “Jews being hated” “God being thankful” What are some good examples of friends in the Bible?
   4. Summarization & Clarification: Help in understanding complex passages or doctrines. Compare against other denominations. Example: What denominations reject that modern Israel is a fulfilment of Bible prophecy? What passages would they use to support the idea of…”
   5. Language Tools: Parsing original Greek/Hebrew words or analyzing Bible translations. Example: Studying Greek verb tenses for the word “salvation”
   6. Visual demonstrations: Example: New Jerusalem 1500miles cubed
7. Conclusion

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You’ll explore the five essential elements of a kingdom—its king, people, land, capital city, and law—and see how each one anchors Israel’s story and points forward to Christ’s return. Along the way, we highlight the signs Scripture gives for the restoration of God’s reign and why this hope shapes the way we live today.

Key Verse:

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Matthew 6:9-10

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. What is the Kingdom of God?
      1. Heaven, where God is
      2. The Church ruling spiritually on earth
      3. The Church ruling in men’s hearts
      4. Jesus Christ ruling on the earth
   2. b. Jesus Bible class on the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3)
      1. Restoring the Kingdom to Israel (Acts 1:6-7 cp. Acts 3:20-21)
      2. Jesus to come back in like manner (Acts 1:11)
2. Israel the kingdom of God
   1. The king (1 Chron. 28:4-5)
   2. The subjects (Deut. 7:6)
   3. The land (Lev. 25:23)
   4. The capital (Psa. 132:13-14)
   5. The law (Deut. 5:5)
3. The future Kingdom
   1. The King (Luke 1:32-33)
   2. The subjects (Ezek. 37:21-24; Psa. 72:11)
   3. The land (Ezek. 37:25; Zech. 14:9; Psa. 72:8)
   4. The capital (Jer. 3:17)
   5. The law (Isa. 2:3)
4. When will the Kingdom be established?
   1. When Israel is restored (Luke 21:24)
   2. When the world is in trouble (Luke 21:25-26)
   3. When Jesus returns (Luke 21:27,31)
5. Conclusion

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Key verse:

“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:32-33)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Christ confirmed the promises that God gave the patriarchs – Romans 15:8
   2. Christians share these covenants of promise in Christ – Ephesians 2:12
   3. It is essential to know what these covenants of promise to the patriarchs are.  They were essential teachings OT prophets and NT apostles.
2. Brief Review of Covenants of Promise to the fathers (patriarchs)
   1. God always had the special offspring (seed) in mind: Christ – Galatians 3:16
   2. Who are the fathers? – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, his children
   3. David was also a patriarch – Acts 2:29
3. David’s Covenant of Promise
   1. David promised an offspring who would rule the land of Israel – 1 Chronicles 17:11-14
   2. Psalm about David’s covenant – Psalm 89:3-4, 34-37
   3. Reflections at the end of his life – 2 Samuel 23:5
   4. Solomon on God’s throne over God’s kingdom in God’s land, ruling over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – 1 Chronicles 28:5, 29:23
4. War against David’s dynasty
   1. Athaliah’s massacre; Joash survives – 2 Chronicles 22:1-12
   2. Israel-Syrian confederacy; Ahaz survives – Isaiah 7:1-6
   3. King Herod the Great’s massacre; Jesus escapes – Matt. 2:16
   4. Even though it appeared as though the promise had failed, God was still actively working to establish it.  It’s as sure as the sun and the moon.
   5. After so much ruin and overturning of the kingdom, that promised seed will come – Ezekiel 21:27
5. David’s Covenant of Promise in the NT
   1. Not only are we not surprised to find it there; it had to be there! – Matthew 1:1, 6, 20
   2. It’s there in Zacharias’ song – Luke 1:69-70
   3. It’s there in Gabriel’s gracious words to Mary – Luke 1:32-33
   4. It’s there in Peter’s preaching on Pentecost – Acts 2:30 (13:23)
6. Until…
   1. He will come back – Acts 3:21
   2. He is the one to whom the throne, the kingdom, and the land all belong

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The first part of the Promises to Abraham can be found here.

A document with every New Testament passage concerning Abraham can be found here. 

Key Verse:

“And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” (Galatians 3:8-9)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Quick review of the last podcast
   2. Overview of all the NT commentary on Abraham grouped into four categories
2. The Land
   1. Given no inheritance (Acts 7:2-5)
   2. Sitting in the future kingdom (Matt. 8:11)
   3. The need for resurrection (Matt. 22:32)
   4. They all died in faith (Heb. 11:8-9,13)
3. The Seed = Jesus
   1. The Genealogy of Jesus (Matt. 1:1-2; Luke 1:33,55,73)
   2. The Spiritual Seed (Matt. 3:9; John 8:33-58; Rom. 9:6-8)
4. The Blessing of Forgiveness
   1. Peter’s preaching (Acts 3:25-26)
   2. Justified by faith (Gal. 3:6-9)
   3. Baptism into Christ to inherit the promises (Gal. 3:26-29)
5. The Inheritance by Faith
   1. Heir of the world (Rom. 4:13) by faith (v. 16) and resurrection (v. 17)
   2. Faith and works (James 2:21-23)
6. Conclusion

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Highlights include how Abraham’s faith is counted as righteousness, how the promises are reiterated and expanded, and how these events foreshadow the Lord Jesus Christ. Part two will explore New Testament commentary and the fuller fulfillment of these promises.

Key Verse:

“Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.” (Gen. 17:4-5)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. The importance of Abraham in the NT
   2. Background story of calling from Ur and being childless
2. The Initial Promises
   1. The blessing of a seed (Gen. 12:1-3)
   2. The promise of the land (Gen. 12:7)
3. The Promise Expanded
   1. What he could see (Gen. 13:14-15)
   2. It would be forever (Gen. 13:15)
   3. It would be given to Abram (Gen. 13:17)
4. The Covenant
   1. Abram’s belief (Gen. 15:5-6)
   2. Covenant by sacrifice (Gen. 15:7-17)
   3. The extent of the land (Gen. 15:18-21)
5. Circumcision
   1. Name change (Gen. 17:4-6) and promise in past tense
   2. The token of circumcision (Gen. 17:9-14)
   3. The promised son to be through Sarah (Gen. 17:19)
6. The Sacrifice of Isaac
   1. Abraham obeyed the call to sacrifice his only son (Gen. 22:1-2)
   2. Isaac as a type of Christ
   3. The promises confirmed (Gen. 22:15-18)
7. Conclusion
   1. The same promises given to Isaac and Jacob
   2. Next podcast on Abraham in the New Testament

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Key Verse:

“Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began.” (Titus 1:1-2)

Links to Past Episodes:

 The Memorial Name Yahweh

In the Image and Likeness of God Part1 and Part 2

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. The promise of eternal life from the beginning (before the ages began, Titus 1:2). Must come from the Old Testament.
   2. Critical part of the gospel (Acts 26:6-8)
   3. The idea and importance of promises, oaths, testaments and covenants
      1. Covenant
      2. Oath / Swear / “as truly as I live”
      3. Promise / “I will”
2. Eden
   1. Gen. 1:26-28 God’s original purpose for mankind to have dominion over the earth (cp. Isa. 45:18)
   2. Gen. 3:15 The promise (“I will…”) of a saviour to defeat sin
3. Noah and the Flood
   1. The corruption of the earth and God’s judgement (Gen. 6:5-8,17-18)
   2. Repeat of creation (Gen. 9:1-3) and echo back to Gen. 1:26-28
   3. The everlasting covenant not to destroy the earth (Gen. 9:9-17). Covenant mentioned seven times.
4. God’s Eternal Promise
   1. Unconditional (everlasting) vs conditional covenants (the law of Moses Ex. 19:5-6)
   2. God’s ultimate promise to fill the earth with his glory (Num. 14:21)
5. Conclusion
   1. The importance of understanding the covenants (Eph. 2:12) and what was promised
   2. Episodes to follow on Abraham and David

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Key Verse:

“Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”” (Luke 18:26-27)

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The first part of our demon study is here https://essentialbiblestudies.podbean.com/e/demons-idols-and-superstition/

Key Verse:

“And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid.” (Mark 5:15)

Outline:

Introduction

• Review of last podcast: the idol-demon connection
• But why the sudden demonology of the Synoptic Gospels?

A short history of the time between the testaments

Demon miracles as parables

• Jesus’ ministry of parables (Matt. 13:34-35; Mark 3:22-23)
• The parable of the seven evil spirits (Matt. 12:43-45) is about that “evil generation”
• The Gadarene demoniac as a parable of Israel (Mark 5)
  • Among the tombs eating swine’s flesh (Isa. 65:2-5)
  • Always in the mountains crying and cutting himself (1 Kings 18:28)
  • Bound with fetters and chains like Israel’s captivity (e.g. 2 Kings 25:7)
  • Pigs (unclean animal) drowned in the depths (Micah 7:19) and then sitting in his right mind (the final healing of Israel Zech 13:2)
• The language of casting out demons the same used of natural illness (Luke 4:35,38)

Conclusion - God is more powerful than demons

Cover Art:

Old Babylonian plaque showing seven demons and Lamashtu, a feared female demon.

https://collections.louvre.fr/en/ark:/53355/cl010120468

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Key Verse:

“They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods; with abominations they provoked him to anger. They sacrificed to demons that were no gods, to gods they had never known, to new gods that had come recently, whom your fathers had never dreaded.” (Deu 32:16-17)

Outline:

Introduction

• Online debate (1997) with Anthony Buzzard / COGAF
• Claims of modern-day demon experiences but what does the Bible teach?
• Words for demons (Gk. diamonia – Heb. shed meaning destroyer and satyr meaning goat idol)

Demons in the Old Testament

• Psalms106:34-38 there is a connection between demons and idols
• Idols are nothing (Psa. 135:15-18; 96:4-5; Isa. 65:3 LXX)
• Deut. 32:16-17, 39 (Lev. 17:7). God is in charge of everything which they associated with demons (Deut. 28:27-28, 58-61).
• Because of this we are not to be afraid, they cannot do evil (Jer. 10:2-6, 14-15)

The Demon Idol Connection in the New Testament

• 1 Cor. 10:18-22 (cp. 8:4-6) Paul’s association of idols with demons and their being nothing
• Acts 17 – Paul’s tour of Athens
  • V. 18 foreign divinities = daimonion
  • V. 22 very religious = Deisidaimoni = fear of demons
  • V. 24-26 God is sovereign

Conclusion on Superstition

Cover Art:

Statue of the demon Pazuzu (about 934-610 B.C.) at the Louvre Museum.

https://collections.louvre.fr/en/ark:/53355/cl010120489

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Key Verse:

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1)

Outline:

Introduction

• Popular view and review of some key principles we’ve learned from previous episodes
• Overview of the baptism of Jesus and the three temptations (Matt. 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13)
  • After a period of forty days and nights without food or water Jesus is tempted to turn stones into bread.
  • Taken to the “holy city” Jerusalem at the pinnacle of the temple tempted to throw himself down and be saved by the angels.
  • Taken to an “exceeding high mountain” where he sees the kingdoms of men “in a moment of time” (Luke 4:5) and tempted to become king immediately.

Why is he led or driving of the Spirit into the wilderness?

• Where else is this terminology used? (Ezek. 8:3; 37:1; 40:2; Rev. 17:3; 21:10)
• Is the temptation in the wilderness a vision? What is a vision?

The Satan of Zechariah

• The visions of Zechariah (Zech. 3:1-5)
• The historical background (Ezra 4:1-6; 5:1)

The Purpose of the Jesus’ Wilderness Vision

• When and how was Jesus tempted throughout his life?
  • Matt. 16:1 – Seeking a sign
  • John 6:15 – make bread and become king
  • Luke 4:29 – attempt to throw him off a cliff
  • Luke 11:53-54 – catch him in his words to accuse him
• The wilderness temptation was foreshadowing the temptations to come (Luke 22:28).
• Who then does the Satan represent in the vision?

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Listen to part 1 on The Ancient Serpent.

Key Verse:

“How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!” (Isaiah 14:12)

Outline:

Introduction

• Review of last podcast on the Ancient Serpent
• What about this fall from heaven?

Isaiah 14 and its context

• The king of Babylon (v. 3-4)
• Symbolic language
• Lucifer means the day star
• The language used to describe Lucifer as a man (v. 11, 13, 16, 20)

Other falls from Heaven

• Lamentations 2:1
• Ezekiel 28:1,8-9
• Matthew 11:23

Back to Rev. 12

• When does this take place?
• What is literal and what is symbolic?
• Conclusion this cannot be about a literal fallen angel in rebellion against God. Language taken form OT about kingdoms of men.

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For more background, listen to episode 43 on The Curse of the Serpent.

Key Verse:

"And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him." Revelation 12:9

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Reading Rev. 12 and symbology
   2. Did the Satan become or serpent or did the serpent become a Satan?
2. Incidents involving serpents
   1. The crafty serpent (Gen. 3:1) that the Lord God made
   2. Key words in the curse on the serpent (Gen. 3:13-15) – Lies, eat the dust, crush the head, treading under foot
   3. Moses’ rod turning into a serpent (Exodus 4:1-9) represents Pharoah and Egypt (Ezek. 29:3)
   4. Fiery serpents in the wilderness (Num. 21:5-9)
      1. How were people saved?
      2. Why a serpent on a pole? Brass a symbol of sin.
      3. Jesus relates it to the cross (John 3:14)
3. The Serpent Symbol
   1. The serpent symbol in relation to men (Deut. 32:32-33; Job 20:12-16; 58:3-5; Psa. 140:1-3; Isa. 59:4-5; Rom. 3:10-13; James 3:7-8)
   2. The seed of the serpent (Matt. 3:7; 12:34; 23:33)
4. The Serpent Subdued
   1. Kingdom pictures (Isa. 11:8; 65:25)
   2. Bible echoes (Psa. 72:9; Isa. 49:23; Micah 7:16-20)
5. Conclusion

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Key Verse:

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.” (Heb. 2:14)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. The word “devil” defined
   2. Where the word is translated (1 Tim. 3:11,6-7; 2 Tim. 3:3; Titus 2:3) or not (John 6:70)
2. Key verse Heb. 2:14
   1. Reading Heb. 2:14 in context and bringing out the details
   2. What did Jesus accomplish in his death (Heb. 9:28)
   3. Comparing with 1 John 3:5,8 where “take away our sins” = “destroy the works of the devil”
   4. Is sin personified as the devil in Heb. 2:14?
3. Personification in Romans 5-8
   1. Destroyed the body of sin (Rom. 6:6) so that we might be free from bondage (Rom. 6:8 cp. Heb. 2:15)
   2. Personification of sin reigning in Rom. 6:12-22
   3. Sin has the power of death (Rom. 6:23)
4. Personification in 1 Cor. 15
   1. Death by man (1 Cor. 15:21-22)
   2. Death destroyed (1 Cor. 15:24-28)
   3. The power of sin (1 Cor. 15:55-57)
5. Conclusion

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Key Verse:

“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.” (Job 1:6)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Review of last podcast on Satan
   2. Background of Job
2. Who are the sons of God?
   1. Humans in 1 John 3:1; John 1:12; Deut. 14:1
   2. What about angels in Job 38:7?
   3. Who are the sons of God in Genesis 6:4
3. Is this in heaven or on earth?
   1. The word “heaven” is not used
   2. “Present themselves before the Lord” (Josh 24:1; 1 Sam. 10:19; Judges 20:2; Deut. 31:14)
4. Who is the Satan?
   1. Is Satan a name?
   2. The discourse of God and Satan and what he’s allowed to do (1:12-19; 2:3)
   3. Job attributed the evil to God (1:21; 2:10; 19:21; 42:11)
5. Conclusion

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Reference Material:

The Englishman's Concordance listing mentioned in the podcast providing every occurrence of the word satan and diabolos can be download from these links for Hebrew and Greek.

Key Verse:

“And Peter took [Jesus] aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But [Jesus] turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matt. 16:22-23)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Review of concordances
   2. The word “satan” and its definition
   3. The need to study this word systematically and carefully
2. Satan in the OT
   1. Num. 22:22,32 – The first occurrence that of the angel of Yahweh
   2. The next six occurrences are all human (1 Sam. 29:4; 2 Sam. 19:22; 1 Kings 5:4; 11:14,23,25).
   3. Psalms examples (Psa. 109:6 individual; Psa. 38:20 group)
   4. The curious case of comparing 1 Chr. 21:1 with 2 Sam. 24:1
   5. Deferring for another episode Job and Zech 3:1-2
3. Satan in the NT (Examples of the same)
   1. Individuals who set their minds on the things of men in opposition to God
      1. Matt. 16:21-23 – Peter “set his mind” (ESV)
      2. Acts 5:1-5 – Annanias and Sapphira contrived in their hearts
   2. Collectively those opposed to the truth
      1. 1 Thess. 2:14-18, the satan of v. 18 defined in v. 14-16
      2. Rev. 2:9-10,13 (cp. 3:9) – The opposition of Jewish and Roman authorities
      3. Rev. 20:2,7 Understanding the Satan as the kingdoms of men in opposition to God’s kingdom (Rev. 11:15)
4. Conclusion

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Key Verse:

“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.”  (Isaiah 45:7)

Previous Podcasts:

Sin Entered the World

The Work of the Angels

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Definition and Types of Evil – Moral and Natural (Jer. 26:3)
   2. What is the cause? An angel, men or God?
2. God
   1. God a source of natural evil (Isa. 45:5-7; Deut. 32:39; Job 2:10; 42:11). The false notion of God is good, Satan is evil.
   2. God the only source of power (Psa. 62:11; Lam. 3:37-38; John 19:10-11; Rom. 13:1)
   3. Only one God (John 17:3; Isa. 43:10-11; 44:8; 1 Thess. 1:9)
3. Mankind
   1. The source of moral evil. Where does temptation come from (James 1:13-16; Mark 7:20-23; Rom. 7:18-21; Ecc. 9:3)
   2. Man’s freewill, the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:16-17)
   3. The natural state of the hearts of men (Gen. 6:5; Jer. 17:9-10)
4. Angels
   1. God is in control of the angels (Dan. 4:35; Psa. 103:20-21; Heb. 1:13-14).
   2. They do his will whether it be good or natural evil (Psa. 78:49; 1 Sam. 24:15-17; 1 Kings 22:19-23; Judges 9:23; 1 Sam. 16:14)
   3. Reading a quote that raises deeper questions. Can angels be a source of moral evil? Do angels have free will? Are they tempted like men?
5. Conclusion – Future episodes covering this topic

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Key Verse:

"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." 2 Timothy 4:2-4

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Review of “perfect” (1 Cor. 13:8-10; Eph. 4:13-14) in the Ages of the Spirit episode and the question
   2. The body of Christ vs the Apostasy
      1. Define Apostasy
      2. The Lord knows who are his (2 Tim. 2:19)
2. Apostasy Foretold
   1. Acts 20:28-32 (ref. Matt. 7:15-20)
      1. From without and within
      2. The warning to be alert (Rom. 16:17-19)
   2. Signs of the Apostasy
      1. 1 Tim. 4:1-3 – Doctrines of demons, forbidding to marry, abstinence from foods
      2. 2 Tim. 4:2-4 – Wander into myths
      3. 2 Pet. 2:1-3 – Emphasis on greed and sensuality
3. Apostasy Started
   1. Jude 1:3-4 – Fulfillment of 2 Peter passage
   2. 1 John 2:18-19 – The beginning of the antichrist
   3. 1 John 4:1-6 – Testing the spirits of truth and error
   4. 2 Thess. 2:1-12
      1. The rebellion comes first and was already at work
      2. Would last to the coming of Christ
4. Conclusion

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Key Verse:

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” (2 Tim. 2:15)

Outline:

1. Introduction
2. Determining Intent
   1. The challenges of interpreting the Bible
   2. The importance of context and the author’s intent (2 Peter 3:15-16 cp. 2 Tim. 2:15) and God’s intent
   3. Recognizing bias and the importance of learning in a community
3. Historical Content
   1. Cultural, contemporary, geographical
   2. Example of Psa. 121:1
   3. Determining historical context
4. Literary Content
   1. The immediate verses (Example of Lucifer Isa. 14:12)
   2. Context of a book
5. The Biblical Content and Divine Intent
   1. Example of demons
   2. Meaning beyond the author (1 Peter1:11)
6. Principles and Applications
   1. Study and application
   2. Principles defined
   3. Example of Satan vs God’s Sovereignty
7. Conclusion

Jason Hensley links

Webpage: https://www.jasonhensley.net/

Get the book on Amazon: The Bible in Context

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Key Verse:

"Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." (Ephesians 2:11-13)

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Key Verse:

Hebrews 6:1-2  “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.”

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Why would we consider this as an essential study? From our first podcast “Defining Essential Bible Studies” and Hebrews 6:2
   2. Letting the Bible leads us in our studies
2. Four aspects to laying on of hands
   1. Blessing
      1. the first instance with Jacob and his grandsons (Gen. 48:14)
      2. Jesus on the children (Matt. 19:13-15)
   2. Sacrifice and association
      1. The day of atonement (Lev. 16:21)
      2. The people and the Levites (Num. 8:10,12)
   3. Commissioning
      1. Moses to Joshua (Num. 27:18,23; Deut. 34:9)
      2. The Apostles on Stephen (Acts 6:6)
      3. The Antioch Ecclesia on Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:3)
   4. Healing and miraculous Holy Spirit gifts
      1. Healing by Jesus (Luke 4:40) and the Apostles (Acts 28:8)
      2. Transfer of the Holy Spirit gifts by Apostles (Acts 8:17-19; 19:6)
      3. Timothy (1 Tim. 4:14; 2 Tim. 1:6)
3. Which one is Heb. 6:2 referring to?
4. The purpose of the Holy Spirit gifts
5. Conclusion

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Key verse:

"Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?" Matthew 6:25

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Key verse:

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” John 14:26

Outline:

1. Introduction
2. The Gender of the Holy Spirit
   1. Neuter in Greek, feminine in Hebrew, male in Latin – Does it matter? We have to be careful with grammar in other languages.
   2. The spirit is used in many ways – but why in some passages is it personified like it can be lied to (Acts 5:3), resisted (Acts 7:51) or grieved (Eph. 4:30)?
   3. There is a Spirit of God the Father and a Spirit of the Son but there is one passage in particular where the Spirit is personified in the masculine gender separately from the Father and Son.
3. The Helper of John 14-16
   1. The Parakletos (par-ak'-lay-tos) in John 14-16, The Helper (ESV, NKJV, NASB), Comforter (KJV), Advocate (NIV, NET, NLT) (14:16-18, 26; 15:26; 16:7, 13)
   2. The angels = ministering spirits (Heb. 1:13-14)
   3. Old Testament comparisons (Ex. 23:20-22; Isa. 63:9-11)
   4. Jesus and the angels (1 Pet. 3:22; Rev. 1:1-2)
   5. Angels and Spirit in the Acts (Acts 8:26, 29)
4. Conclusion

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Key verse:

“There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:4-6)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Jewish belief – One God - Monotheism
   2. The popular belief of Christianity - The Trinity
2. The Trinity defined by the Creeds
   1. Apostle’s Creed (Old Roman)
   2. Nicene Creed
   3. The Trinity would be a radical new teaching for Jews. Where is it taught in the Bible? (Acts 2:22)
3. The Spirit in relation to the Father and Son
   1. One Spirit… One Lord… One God and Father (Eph. 4:4-6 cp. 1 Cor. 8:6-7).
   2. The Spirit sanctifies (1 Peter 1:2; 2 Thess. 2:13-14; 1 Cor. 6:11) = The word of truth sanctifies (John 17:17; Eph. 5:26)
   3. Thus, the Spirit is important in baptism (Matt. 28:19)
   4. The Spirit of God and Christ in us (Rom. 8:9-11; Gal. 4:6)
4. Cliff hanger - But what about the passages where the Spirit is personified as the Helper?

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Key verse: "For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace." (Romans 8:6)

Ben's full classes on Romans are on the Good Christadelphian Talks Podcast

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Key verse: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

Outline:

1. Introduction
2. The Seventh Day Adventists
   1. Ellen White
   2. Their regulations for Sabbath observance
3. Five reasons we do not keep the Sabbath day
   1. No command by Christ or Apostles to keep it
   2. We are told not to judge in these matters (Colossians 2:16-17). The Sabbath is a shadow.
   3. The New Testament is now by grace and faith not Law (Galatians 3, 4 & 5)
   4. The Sabbath principle is now our whole life (Galatians 2:19-21, Col. 3:17,22-24)
   5. Every day is for worship / Example of first day of the week (Acts 2:46-47, Matt. 28:1 cp. Acts 20:7)
4. Summary

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Key verse:

“For whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.” (Hebrews 4:10)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. What is the Sabbath? Should we be keeping it now?
   2. How do we determine the answer to such a question?
   3. Epochs of time – what changes over time and what remains the same?
2. First Epoch – The Beginning
   1. The Sabbath at Creation (Genesis 2:2-3, 15)
   2. After the fall of man (Genesis 3:17-19)
   3. The Rest of Genesis
3. Second Epoch – Law of Moses
   1. The Law a shadow of things to come (Heb 8:5; 10:11)
   2. Details of the Sabbath Laws (Exodus 31:13-18)
   3. The Principle of the Sabbath (Isaiah 58:13)
4. Third Epoch – Law of Christ
   1. The rest that Jesus give (Matthew 11:28-30)
   2. Jesus’ contention over the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1-12)
5. Fourth Epoch – The Kingdom of God
   1. Observance in the Kingdom (Ezekiel 44:24; 46:1-3)
   2. The future Sabbath rest of God (Hebrews 4:8-11 )
6. Summary

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Key Verse:

“Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.” (1 Corinthians 13:8-10)

Outline:

1. Introduction
   1. Hebrews 6:4-6 What does it mean by powers of the world to come?
   2. Why does Peter in Acts 2:16-21 quote Joel 2:28-31 on the day of Pentecost?
2. Ages of Miracles
   1. Moses and the Exodus
   2. Elijah and Elisha
   3. Jesus and the Apostles
   4. Periods of drought (Mic. 3:5-8)
   5. What sort of period are we in now?
3. The Cessation of First Century Gifts
   1. 1 Cor. 12-14
      1. The types of gifts (ch. 12) contrast with love (ch. 13)
      2. Defining “that which is perfect” (13:10 cp. 14:20)
   2. Ephesians 4
      1. The gifts (v. 11)
      2. Their purpose (v. 12)
   3. When they would cease (v. 13), the perfect man
4. Conclusion – The Holy Spirit is still active but the gifts of miracles have ceased.

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The hosts examine relevant biblical verses to articulate a broader understanding of salvation as having a past, present and future aspect. They initially study passages depicting salvation as a past event in 2 Timothy 1:9 and Titus 3:4-5, which emphasizes Jesus Christ's role in saving us. The talk then delves into verses that present salvation as an ongoing process, including 1 Corinthians 1:18 and Corinthians 15:2. Finally, there is discussion on salvation as a future event through Matthew 10:22 and 1 Timothy 4:16, where the concepts of endurance and ultimate salvation for faithful followers are revealed.

So what do you need for salvation? First, Bible passages are reviewed stressing that salvation is God's loving gift, independent of our actions (Eph. 2:8-10; Rom. 10:9,13). Next, The hosts explore the critical role of faith and the need to believe in Jesus Christ's resurrection for salvation, shining a spotlight on Romans 10:9-13. The hosts also touch upon the importance of active listening to the word of God and acting upon it, showcasing the integral bond between obedience and eternal salvation, referencing Hebrews 5:8-9. The episode concludes, emphasizing both God's and our roles in salvation through a compelling discussion baptism and works (1 Peter 3:21; Philippians 2:12-13). The hosts urge listeners to wholly appreciate the intricate yet rewarding means of God's salvation.

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Key verse “I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts.  For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity.” Ecclesiastes 3:18-19

1. Introduction
   1. Definition from previous podcast on the spirit of God
   2. Ruach & Pneuma -> wind, breath, life, word, mind, attitudes
2. The Breath of Life
   1. 2:7 – the power that gives life
   2. 7:21-23 - All creatures have the spirit or breath of life
   3. 3:18-21 - All die and go to the same place
3. Mind/Attitude
   1. The spirit can be broken, grieved, fervent, etc.
   2. 4:12 expresses the heart, emotions or attitude
   3. Eph 4:22-23 spirit based in mind
   4. 51:17 a broken spirit (heart) is what God requires
4. What happens to the spirit when we die?
   1. The spirit goes back to God (Ecc. 12:7; Job 34:14-15)
   2. The example of Jesus (Luke 23:46 cp. Psa. 31:5)
   3. Psalm 146:3-5 - No more thoughts
5. Conclusion

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Key Verse:

Genesis 1:1-2  “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” 

Outline:

1. Introduction
2. Definitions
   1. Genesis 1:2 – First occurrence
   2. Ruach & Pneuma -> wind, breath, life, word, mind, attitudes
   3. John 3:8 - The Spirit as wind
3. Power with a Moral Emphasis
   1. Psalm 33:6 - The word of the Lord
   2. Luke 1:35; 3:22 - The Spirit at Christ's birth and baptism
   3. Genesis 1:2 -> Deut. 32:11-12 The hovering spirit
4. The Presence of God
   1. God dwells in heaven (1 Tim. 6:16), but he fills heaven and earth (Jer. 23:24).
   2. Psalm 139:7 – God is everywhere present by his Spirit
   3. We live and move in him (Acts 17:28; 1 Cor. 8:6; Rom. 11:36)
   4. Practicing the presence of God
5. Conclusion

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Why Forgive?

• Part of who God is – Ex 34:6-7; Num 14:18 “God is forgiveness”
• Part of the example of Jesus – 1 Pet 2:23
• Ultimate Example – Forgive them, for they know not what they do – Lk 23:33-34
• Condition of God’s forgiveness to us – Mt 6:14-15
• Eph 4:30-32 – forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you
• We all sin – Jn 8:7
• So others will forgive us – golden rule James 2:8
• Only response to God’s forgiveness – Col 3:12-15

Principles of Forgiveness:

1. Faith – Gal 3:6 (believe God forgives us) – Heb 11:6
   • Helps lift the burden of guilt/shame
2. Repent – Acts 2:38 (change)
   • Recognize sin, confess sin, change
   • Repent is changing…but not our ways, our thinking. That’s the definition of the word ‘the think differently or afterwards’ – from ‘meta’ – to transfer (metamorphosis) + ‘noieo’ – the mind
   • Conviction & Conduct (Islip Collyer) – ‘every deliberate act is the outcome of deliberate thought, and it therefore follows that control of thought must lie at the root of all reform’
   • Back to the garden – forgiveness didn’t mean there was no consequences for sin (Gen 3:16-19); Forgiveness is based on repentance (3:21)
3. Forgiving Attitude – Mk 11:26 (forgive others)

Why is Forgiveness so Difficult:

• We’re hurt – solution: time, suffer ourselves to be defrauded (emotionally)
• What we struggle with is harder to forgive in others – solution: God forgave our fault/struggle
• Makes us vulnerable – solution…exactly. This is the solution!
• “To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and discover the prisoner was you.” Colin Attridge (Fruit of the Spirit)
• Mt 12:34 – forgiveness we think is outward, we say it, we show it…but out of the heart, the mouth speaks – forgiveness if really inward focused. We can say things and not mean them…then not truly forgiving someone.

How do we Forgive?

1. No discussion – unintentional offence, little consequence, minor
2. Two-Way communication – danger of repeating offence, affects our faith, sin through ignorance (Mt 18:15)
3. With witnesses – Mt 18:16 – if not responding to v15

Forgiveness is…

1. Being aware of what was wrong, and choosing to forgive
   • Not keeping a record of it (story of Moms little black book)
   • Not punishing, but being merciful (Lk 6:36)
2. Unlimited and immediate – Lk 17:3-4. Don’t demand anything back, don’t expect anything back, don’t hope for anything back (Lk 6:35) -- Keep forgiving…forever. Pray for them.

Additional Verses:

• Col 3:12-13 – so you also must forgive
• Matt 6:9-15 – as we also have forgiven our debtors – Christ spoke often of forgiveness
• Rom 12:17-19 – vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord
• Psa 103:11-12 – as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us
• 2 Cor 5:18-19 – Message of reconciliation…
• 1 Cor 13:4-5 – Love is not resentful…keeps no record of wrongs

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Key verse: "It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

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Theme Verse – Psalm 103:20

“Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.”

Re-cap from “Equal unto the Angels”

• Why study angels? (Luke 20:35-36)
• They represent and reveal God – “God manifestation”. They bear his name (Exodus 23:20-21)
• We are made in the image of God/Elohim/angels (Genesis 1:26 cp. Heb. 2:7)

What they are called

• Angels, ministers, eyes, watchers (2Ch. 16:9; Da. 4:17)
• Destroyers (1Co. 10:10), flaming fire (Heb. 1:7)… burning bush (Ex. 4)

How they do it

• Visibly – Abraham, Jacob, Exodus, Canaan, Daniel, birth and resurrection of Christ, book of Revelation
• Invisibly – through most of history, even our day (Hebrews 13:2; Dan. 5)

What they are doing

• Ministering to the heirs of salvation (Heb. 1:14)
  • Guardian angels (Matt. 18:10; Gen. 28:12; 48:15-16; Psa. 34:7)
  • Rejoice when men and women repent from their sins (Luke 15:10)
• Obediently carry out the will of God (Psalm 103:20)
  • Strength is a notable characteristic: Elohim, inexhaustible energy, read thoughts, blind or destroy armies, reveal certain future events, help the faithful (ESV Psalm 103:20)
  • They are limited in knowledge (Mark 13:32, 1 Peter 1:11)
  • Evil angels are not morally evil, but bring about the judgments of God – ex. wilderness wanderings, Assyrian army (2 Kings 19:35; Psa. 78:49 “destroying angel”; Ex. 12:23)
• Directing the affairs of the nations
  • Through their work, God exercises His dominion over the kingdoms of the earth (Psalm 103:19, Da. 4:17->Dan. 10)
  • Jesus Christ now has the authority to command all these beings (Mat. 28:18; 2 Thess. 1:7-8)

Lessons for Us Today

• Today, the immortal heavenly angels follow the commands of Jesus Christ, working faithfully behind the scenes, invisibly preparing the earth for his return. They are involved in setting up and taking down governments, just as they were in the book of Daniel.
• They also minister in more personal ways, working invisibly, but powerfully, to help the heirs of salvation.
• We believe that great salvation is coming soon.

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Key Verse: "For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite." Isaiah 57:15

Introduction

• Words and terms – arrogance, presumptuous, haughty, lifted up, puffed up, conceited, boasting
• Opposite – humility, modesty, abase, make low, lowliness, contrite, broken heart

God’s assessment of pride

• He hates it (Prov. 6:16-17) therefore so should we (Prov. 8:13)
• Judgment because of pride (Prov. 16:18; Mal. 4:1; Isa. 2:12,17)
• Key aspect of the flesh (Mark 7:20-22; 1 John 2:16; 2 Tim. 3:1-2)

The problem with pride

• Pride is prevalent when God is not (Psa. 10:4).
• Blocks our relationship with God by making us forgetful (Hos. 13:4-6)
• Considers self more than God or others (Ezek. 16:49; Psa. 10:2)
• Creates contention (Prov. 13:10)
• Opposite of faith (Hab. 2:4)

Recognizing pride in ourselves and our lives

• Individually - The love of praise (John 12:43), self-righteousness (Luke 18:9,14), lofty self-sufficiency (James 4:16)
• Collectively - Nationalism, patriotism, racism, human rights, sports

The antidotes – the frame of mind needed, humility

• God is big, we are small (Gen. 18:27; Psa. 8:4; Ecc. 5:2)
• The servant mind set (Luke 17:10), being thankful
• Being Kingdom seekers, not of this world (1 Chr. 29:11-14ff)

God is the one who exalts

• If we try to do it ourselves God will oppose us (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5-6)
• The greatest example in Jesus (Phil. 2:5-9)

Final conclusion

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Study aids

Bread & Wine Parallel Records Handout

Bread & Wine Summary Handout

Key verse

"In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”" 1 Corinthians 11:25

Cup of Wine

Cup symbolizes ones portion or lot in life (Psalm 16:5; Psalm 11:6)

The word “wine” is never used… cup or fruit of the vine.

New Covenant

Christ said, this cup is the new covenant in my blood.

The book of the law was the book of the covenant (Ex 24)

But there was a problem, with the old covenant it could not save.  Gal 3:11,21

The new covenant was then established in Faith and could offer salvation. Heb 8:7-13

This cup of wine therefore spoke of this new covenant that could save and provide forgiveness of sins.

How was it possible?

Christ said, new covenant “in my blood”

Blood in scripture represents life Lev. 17:11-14. Could not eat blood under the law.

Christ lived a perfect life of obedience 1 Peter 2:21-24 cp. 1 Peter 1:19 “precious blood of Jesus Christ.”

Thereby we have forgiveness of sins 1 John 1:7 for it cleanses or purifies the conscience.

However not available to all

Must be in Christ Gal. 3:14 How? By baptism Gal. 3:27

Share in fellowship

1 Cor. 10:16

Fellowship with God Eph. 2:13

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Study aids

Bread & Wine Parallel Records Handout

Bread & Wine Summary Handout

Key verse

"And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”" Luke 22:19

How did it begin?

Night before Jesus died, upper room Matt 26:26-30 (also recorded in Mark 14, and Luke 22) Why the bread and wine?

Luke 22:19, 1 Cor 11:24,25 “Do this in remembrance of me” and 1 Cor. 11:26 “to proclaim the Lord’s death.”

Jesus was known for this (Luke 24:35)

The believers continued in this Acts 2:42, when and how often? Acts 20:7

What does it mean?

Bread in scripture is a symbol of food, and is seen as the fundamentals for life. As such it became a symbol of man’s labour to produce food.  Gen 3:19; John 6:26-27         

Christ took this bread, he broke it and said this my body which is given for you, this do in remembrance of me. He wanted the disciples to remember how he lived his life in giving himself for others. Christ just demonstrated this literally as he washed their feet (still stuck in their minds John 13:15-17)

Symbol of body

Christ said “this is my body”

Represents a body of believers 1 Cor 10:16-17;  1 Cor 12 (beautiful analogy of a group of believers working together as one body) ends with v27

Taking of the bread we therefore examine ourselves (1 Cor. 11:28), how we are helping the body of Christ (1 Cor. 11:29)

Fellowship

Conclusion of self examination (1 Cor. 11:28) - we are all sinners

Thereby have fellowship as realizing the need to work together 1 Cor 10:16-17

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Key Verse: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28 ESV)

Part 1 - Not Abandoned to Hades

1. Introduction
   1. Popular ideas of hell fire
   2. Overview of the words for “hell” – Sheol, Hades and Gehenna
2. Definition and Location
   1. Gehenna = Valley of Hinnom
   2. Bible Dictionary entries
3. History in Old Testament
   1. Valley SW of Jerusalem (Josh. 15:8)
   2. Place where idolaters made their children pass through the fire (Ahaz 2 Chr. 28:3; Manasseh 2 Chron. 33:6). Defiled by King Josiah (2 Kings 23:10).
   3. Becomes symbolic of place of judgment (Jer. 7:31-32; Isa. 30:30,33)
4. New Testament
   1. Mark 9:47 - Place of final judgement.
      1. Jesus quoting from Isa. 66:24, 15-16.
      2. Is this literal? Cutting off the hands/feet, worms living forever.
   2. Jude 7 - The unquenchable fire means nobody can put it out until it has completely destroyed (cp. Jer. 17:27; Mal. 4:1)
   3. Matt. 18:8 – The everlasting fire means the effects will be forever (cp. 2 Thess. 1:9; Mal. 4:1)
   4. Matt. 10:28 – Complete destruction
   5. Rev. 20:14 – The lake of fire
5. Final conclusion

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Key Verse: “Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.” Act 2:26-27 

Study Help: Every passage with Hell as Sheol or Hades

1. Introduction
   1. Confusion over the word “hell”
   2. Reminder of past episodes that serve as a basis for this study
      1. We Shall Not All Sleep
      2. The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
      3. The Creation of Man … First Natural, Then Spiritual
   3. Overview of the words for “hell” – Sheol, Hades and Gehenna
   4. To translate or transliterate?
2. The OT Sheol
   1. A place for all the dead
      1. Gen. 37:35 – 1st occurrence. Jacob’s expectation to be there.
      2. Psa. 89:47-48 (NET) – Everybody dies, the power of Sheol
      3. 1 Sam. 2:6 – Hannah’s hope in the resurrection
   2. Descriptions of Sheol
      1. Psa. 6:5 (Isa. 38:18) – No praise of God
      2. Job 17:13-16 – place of darkness, corruption, worms and dust
      3. Ecc. 9:10 – No work or thought
      4. Isa. 14 / Ezek. 32 – Not to be taken literally
3. Transition to the NT
   1. Acts 2:27,31 / Psa. 16:10 – The connection with Jesus
   2. Rev. 1:18 (cp. Zech. 9:11) – How Jesus overcame and has the keys to overcome the power of the grave
4. Final conclusion

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Key verse: "Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you. So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?"" Hebrews 13:5-6

1. Introduction
   1. The 10th commandment – Thou shalt not covet (Ex. 20:17). All other commandments seem to be external, but the 10th is obviously a commandment about how we think.
   2. The battle against sin in the mind (Rom. 7:7,22-23)
2. The importance of recognizing and dealing with the sin of covetousness
   1. Exclusion from the kingdom of God (Eph. 5:3-5; 1 Cor. 6:9-10)
   2. The root of all evil (1 Tim. 6:9-11)
3. Defining Covetousness
   1. English meaning
   2. Hebrew meaning
   3. Greek meaning
4. Five Snares of Covetousness
   1. The snare of the credit card (Rom. 13:7-8)
      1. Buying things we want but do not really need, on a credit account, because we do not have sufficient money to pay for it.
      2. When we only pay the minimum balance instead of the whole balance on a credit account.
   2. The lure of advertising and buying on impulse
      1. Some stores are set up to encourage buying on impulse.
      2. This includes buying more of a product than we really need.
      3. Sometimes the store price is below their cost.
      4. One needs to make a list and stick to it.
   3. The deception of get rich quick schemes (lotteries, stock market)
      1. Huge payouts sound good and we can justify it to ourselves
      2. Actually winning would create more difficulties
      3. Investing wisely is good but must be careful not to get caught up in it all
   4. The enticement of entertainment and social media
      1. Most entertainment is the idolization of man. Everybody wants to be like the star.
      2. Social media is filled with people trying to be influencers
   5. The pitfalls of keeping up with the Jones
      1. We spend a lot of money just to keep up.
      2. Sometimes it is purely a matter of pride.
      3. Sometimes expectations are too high and we need to lower them. We don’t really need the latest and greatest.
      4. We live in a very wasteful society.
5. The positives
   1. The flesh can never be satisfied (Ecc. 5:10). We always live to our means.
   2. Putting trust in God (Heb. 13:5-6)
   3. Godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Tim. 6:6)
6. Final conclusion

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1. Introduction
2. Enemies with God
   1. Romans 5:8-10
      1. What does it mean to be an enemy?
      2. What causes the hostility – our sins.
   2. James 4:4 – being a friend of the world causes enmity with God
   3. Where is the separation?
      1. Col. 1:21 – This takes place in our minds (cp. Gen. 6:5 vs. Isa. 26:3)
      2. Romans 8:5-7 the carnal mind is enmity with God
3. Reconciliation with God brings peace
   1. Col. 1:20
   2. Eph. 2:13-17
   3. Rom. 5:1, 10-11
   4. Defining true peace with God
4. Final conclusion

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1. Introduction
   • The conundrum of how a just God can save sinners
   • Why did Jesus have to die?
   • A core teaching on this in Romans 3:9-28
2. Chapter 3:9-24
   • The terrible sinfulness of all men (v.9-20, 23). Our knowledge of sin brings a recognition of guilt (v. 19).
   • The righteousness of God (v. 21-22) and the meaning of justification.
   • “By his grace” (v. 24). This is his gift. It is a balance of grace & truth.
3. Chapter 3:25
   • The meaning of propitiation
   • Faith in his blood – How does Jesus fit in? A man of spotless character who condemned sin.
4. Chapter 3:26-28
   • God is just and the justifier of all who believe
   • Justified by faith
5. Final conclusion

Previous episodes that provide background to this subject:

• Sin in Five Verses
• Sin Entered the World
• The Curse on the Serpent
• The Virgin Birth
• The Word was made Flesh

Quote by Robert Roberts:

“God’s method for the return of sinful man to favour required and appointed the putting to death of man’s condemned and evil nature in a representative man of spotless character, whom He should provide, to declare and uphold the righteousness of God, as the first condition of restoration, that He might be just while justifying the unjust, who should believingly approach through him in humility, confession and reformation” Robert Roberts, Diary of a Voyage, pg. 68

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Part of being a good Bible student is being a good Bible reader. Wayne Coutu joins Tim Young for a conversation about the importance of consistent daily Bible reading and how to go about it.

Resources:

Website with the daily readings and commentary - The Daily Bible Readings

YouVersion app with daily reading planner

Apple app - Daily: Bible Reading

Outline:

Key verse: Rev. 1:3

Introduction

• God speaks to us through his Word (like a missed call or voicemail)
• We speak to God through prayer (like wanting to share good/bad news with a friend)
• Matt. 7:21-23 - God wants a relationship with us but he has to know us (Gal. 4:9)

The Importance of Reading God’s Word daily

• Rev. 1:3 – Read, hear and keep
• Deut. 6:6-9 - Heart, teach children, talk of them, sign upon hands, upon posts and gates of the house

Reading with a Plan

• The Bible Companion (dailyreadings.org.uk)
• The benefits of reading with others / reading aloud
• Sometimes we wonder why we are reading. The answer may be there immediately or later.
• Read with an objective – ask questions, look for themes

Final conclusion – Attention vs Intention

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The foundation of it all is the word of God, using the Bible as their guide. With that in mind they wanted to start off by establishing what is behind every episode for them and that is the promise of God’s coming kingdom. God’s plan and purpose for everyone. Jesus Christ told us to seek first the Kingdom of God. If Jesus says its first, then what else could be more important?

I encourage you to check out the Come to Life podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.

https://cometolifepodcast.podbean.com/

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-come-to-life-podcast/id1583424714

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Episode's of the TV show Great News for the World with footage of preaching at Allan Gardens in Toronto are on the Christadelphian TV channel on YouTube.

Ron Abel's book Wrested Scripture can be purchased as a book in the UK or the US and found on a website.

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Visit the Bible Basics Webinar  

Key Verse:

“The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.” Daniel 4:17 

Show Notes:

God is in control of world events

• God, Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar (three times Daniel 4:17, 25, 32 cp v. 35; 2 Chronicles 20:6)
• Proverbs 21:1 - God turns the heart of kings like a stream of water

God’s use of Kings

• Cyrus, God’s anointed (Isaiah 45:1-3; Ezra 1:1)
• Nebuchadnezzar revisited (Ezekiel 30:21-25)
• They are unaware (Daniel 4:29-31)
• They are still responsible for their actions (Jeremiah 25:8-9,12-13)

One of the reasons that Christadelphians are not involved in politics

• Our awareness that God is in control
• A great comfort to know that all things will work out according to God’s will
• Daniel’s advice to Nebuchadnezzar (4:27)
• We shouldn’t get caught up in the criticism of government but pray for them (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

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Key Verse:

“But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God. Whether it is love or hate, man does not know; both are before him.” Ecclesiastes 9:1

Show Notes:

What is Providence?

• the invisible hand of God working in our lives
• Example of Elisha (2 Kings 6:15-17)
• The angels (Psalm 34:7)
• The book The Ways of Providence by Robert Roberts (hardcopy here or here)
• Awareness of God in our lives

Providence vs. Miracles 

• Providence is more applicable to today
• Example of the healing of the man blind from birth in John 9
• His healing = a miracle 
• His circumstances = providence “that the works of God might be manifest in him”

Providence vs. Time and Chance

• Ecc. 9:1 “the righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God” vs. Ecc. 9:11 “time and chance happens to them all”
• “God has control of chance, but not all chance is controlled by God” (The Ways of Providence, Robert Roberts., pg. 5)
• Proverbs 3:5-6 - God will direct our paths, if… 1) we acknowledge Him. 2) trust in Him. 3) lean not on our own understanding
• God’s direction over our lives can be lost (e.g. Saul 1 Samuel 18:12; 28:15)

Life Won’t Always Be Easy Because of Providence

• Example of Job - “shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive evil?” (Job 2:9-10)
• God promised to keep Jacob in all his ways (Genesis 28:15; 41:9; 48:16)
• “All things work together for them that love God…” (Romans 8:28-32)

The Importance of Knowing God’s Will

• Danger of assuming that circumstances in life are clearly a result of God pointing us in a certain direction (e.g. of David with Saul in 1 Samuel 26:7-11,18-19)
• We must make life decisions based on Biblical discernment, not on what appears to be a direction God is sending us

We Might Be the Instrument of Providence for Others

• God uses various means to accomplish his will
• Control of nature
• The angels
• Us! Examples of Abigail (1 Samuel 25:26,32-34 and Esther 4:14)

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Key Verse:

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

Show Notes:

 The Importance of Jesus Being Flesh

• Flesh and blood  the same as our nature (Hebrews 2:14) the key to the sacrifice of Christ.
• Had to be tempted like us (Hebrews 4:14-15). God cannot be tempted (James 1:13).
• Flesh is sinful! This is why his obedience is such a wonder. He had to overcome the temptations of flesh like no other man.

Made Flesh: What it Doesn’t Mean

• Revisiting the definition of the Trinity and the nature of Jesus and God
• Was Jesus the God-man? Is he just a man? Neither is true.
• Jesus was a special creation made strong by his Father (John 3:34; 2 Cor. 5:19)

We Have Seen His Glory

• What is glory? Both moral and physical.
• The moral glory (Exodus 34:6 cp. John 1:14). The wider purpose of God to fill the earth with this glory (Numbers 14:21; Isaiah 11:9; Habakkuk 2:14).
• His physical glory – the example and meaning of the transfiguration (2 Peter 1:16-18). Jesus the first to be transformed (Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Peter 1:4).
• The Apostle saw both of these glories (1 John 1:1-3)

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Key Verse:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1

Show Notes:

The Trinity in a Nutshell (https://credohouse.org/blog/the-doctrineof-the-trinity-in-a-nutshell)

The Word was God

• The Word is the expression of the thoughts and wisdom of God
• The Word is Who He is, Love is Who He is, Light is Who He is
• God is light (1 John 1:5) – intelligence, understanding, purity, truth, righteousness, life
• God is love (1 John 4:8,16) – reconciling, slow to anger, tender care, rebuke and correction
• It all starts with God. We come to know Him – His love, His light – through the Word.
• Everything that Word is – love and light, grace and truth – was revealed in flesh and blood – when the Word was made flesh.

The Word in the Beginning of Creation

• The Greek word for “Word” is Logos
• The Word is the expression of the thoughts and wisdom of God (Psa. 33:6)
• An appeal to consider Genesis
• “Light” is the first spoken word that the Bible attributes to God! (Genesis 1:1-3)

The Word was with God in the Beginning

• Personification of the word (Isaiah 55:10-11)
• More personification (Psalm 107:20; 147:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:1)
• Personification of the wisdom of God (a woman!), that was WITH God (Proverbs 8:1-2; 22-31)

Christ and the New Creation

• The new creation (Colossians 1:13-20; 2 Corinthians 4:5-7)
• The new beginning (Mark 1:1; Luke 1:2; John 1:12-13)

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Key Verse:

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14   

Show Notes:

• Revisiting Genesis 3:15 and the prophecy of Jesus that sets the compass for the dual aspect of Christ being both the Son of God and Son of Man.
• Isaiah’s Prophecies of the Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:13-15; 9:6-7; 49:1-2)
• The Prophecies Fulfilled in the New Testament (Matthew 1:20-23; Luke 1:26-33)
• Why the Virgin Birth is important and why Jesus is both Son of God and Son of Man (John 5:24-29)

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Key Verse:

“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” James 1:13-14

Show Notes:

Temptation Defined

• Temptation a major topic of the Bible from Genesis
• James 1:12-14 defines temptation and our need for God
• Desires are not bad in themselves (Luke 22:15)
• The worlds overwhelming temptations. Lusts that war against our souls (1 Peter 2:11)

Recognize Temptation

• Where temptation originates (James 1:13)
• The example of Samson (Judges 13&14)
• The categories of lusts in the world (1 John 2:15-16)

Overcoming Temptation and Sin

• Jesus’ instruction in the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6:13)
• Taking God’s escape route, fleeing temptation (1 Corinthians 10:12-14)
• Practical points: David (Proverbs 28:13), Paul (Romans 7:18-23)
• Do not make provision for the flesh (Romans 13:14)

Practical Points for Discipleship

• The need for prayer (Philippians 4:6-7)
• Guards - why you have them, how to implement
• Jesus’ example in the wilderness temptation using the word of God (Matthew 4)

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Key Verse: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Gen 3:15

Show Notes:

Introduction

• The Edenic covenant in Genesis 3:15 is the first prophecy and promise of the Bible. It is an allegory using events to represent another spiritual meaning.
• Quick overview of what is represented by the serpent, woman and the two seeds.

The Serpent

• More subtle than any beast of the field that God had made (3:1)
• Spoke based on animal instincts to speak a lie therefore represents the mind of the flesh at enmity with God (Rom. 8:7)

The Woman

• She proclaimed the truth of God’s revelation even though she was beguiled.
• The woman represents the mind of the Spirit (Rom. 8:5)

The Seed of the Serpent

• The wicked are described as a generation of vipers (Psalm 58:4; 140:3; Matt 23:33; John 8:44)
• The seed of the Serpent are therefore those ruled by the mind of the flesh.

The Seed of the Woman

• Represents those who have the mind of the Spirit.
• First of all, this is Jesus (Gal. 3:16; 4:4)
• Second, it is all those who seek to be like Jesus, transforming their minds (Rom 6:11-13; Gal 3:26-29; Eph 4:22-24)

The Defeat of Sin

• “Bruise” = crush. The difference between a wound to the heel and head.
• How that relates to Christ’s death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14)

Conclusion

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Key Verse: “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned" Romans 5:12

Show Notes:

Introduction

• Sin is the cause of death (Rom. 6:23)
• Sin and therefore death came by one man (Rom. 5:12)

The First Sin – Reading through Genesis 2 and 3

• Genesis 2:16-17 – God’s law and its consequence
• Genesis 3:1,4 – The serpent and the lie
• Genesis 3:6-7 – Temptation (1 John 2:16; James 1:14) and the fall of man

Final conclusion

• The seriousness of sin and its effects on the whole world
• Hope and forgiveness in Jesus (1 John 3:5)

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Key Verse:

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Rom 6:23 

The Five Verses:

#1 – Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4)

#2 – All unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17)

#3 – What is not of faith is sin (Rom. 14:23)

#4 – Failing to do right is sin (James 4:17)

#5 - Coming short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23)

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Key Verse:

“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

Handouts:

1 Corinthians 13 Version Comparison Spreadsheet

1 Corinthians 13 Comparison with Exodus 34

1 Corinthians 13 Comparison with Galatians 5

Show Notes:

Definitions of the Greek words for love

• Agape (Strong G25, G25 and G27) - to love (in a social or moral sense)
• Phileo (Strongs G5368) to be a friend to (fond of (an individual or an object)), i.e. have affection for (denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling; while agape is wider, embracing especially the judgment and the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety: the two thus stand related very much as G2309 and G1014, or as G2372 and G3563 respectively; the former being chiefly of the heart and the latter of the head)
  • Root G5384 philos - properly dear, ie. a friend
  • Used as a root of several other words. G5386 philosophos - philosopher, fond of wise things

Quotes about love

• Agape is “the love that flows from a person’s association with God’s purpose in Christ, a principled love that is not free from passion, but is not driven by passion.” - Michael Ashton, The Christadelphian Magazine, 2002.
• “the Greek agape takes on a special meaning: it is used to designate a volitional (or relating to one’s will) love as opposed to the purely emotional kind. It is a self-sacrificial love, a kind naturally expressed by God.” – Stephen Whitehouse, The Christadelphian Magazine, 2009.

Special verse that define agape love as self sacrificing (John 15:13; Rom. 5:8; John 3:16).

The beautiful definition of love in 1 Corinthians 13

• Appreciating the context and comparing different versions.
• Similarities between 1 Cor. 13 and the character of God in Ex. 34:6-7 and the fruits of the spirit in Gal. 5:22-23.

Breaking down 1 Corinthians 13

• “Love is patient and kind” compare Eph. 4:1-3. “Kindness is love communicating” Dennis Gillet, Genius of Discipleship
• “love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant”. KJV “not puffed up”. This was a problem with the Corinthians (4:6, 18, 19; 5:2; 8:1)
• “love is not rude”
• “It does not insist on its own way”, not self-centered
• “it is not irritable”, that is, not easily provoked to anger.
• “or resentful” literally mean to not keep a record of wrongs. Doesn’t hold grudges.
• “it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.”
• Two ways of interpreting this – love does not gloat over the wickedness of others (Ezek. 33:11) and love does not overlook error but speaks the truth (2 Tim. 2:17; Eph. 4:15)
• “Love bears all things”. Literally means to cover over like a roof. Compare Prov. 10:12; 17:9
• “believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
• Love includes faith (belief) and hope

In the Kingdom there will be no need for faith (Heb. 11:1) or hope (Rom. 8:24) but love will endure.

J.B. Phillips translation of 1 Cor. 13:7-8 “Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything. It is, in fact, the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen.”

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Key verse:

2 Cor. 3:18  "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."

Show notes:

• Intro and Recap
• Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15; Heb. 1:3 NLT). The image is about having the characteristics of God.
• When Paul quotes Gen. 1:26 he says “image and glory” (1 Cor. 11:7). How is glory related to likeness?
• We are living a process of being made into the image of Christ (2 Cor. 3:18; 4:4-6; Col. 3:9-10; Rom. 8:29)
• We were born with the image and likeness of Adam (Gen. 5:1-3) the image of the earthly (1 Cor. 15:49) but being born again into Christ hope to in the image of the heavenly (1 Cor. 15:49)
• Final conclusion

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Key Verse:

Genesis 1:26 “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’”

Show Notes:

• Introduction
• Gen. 1:26 - Why does the grammar change to “us” at this point? Our hope is to be make like the angels (Luke 20:36) therefore the angels are involved at this point rather than begin directed as the case with the animals.
• The image and likeness of God
  1. What makes us like God compared to the beasts? “after his kind” (1:24-25) -> “after our likeness” (1:26-27), Psa. 49:20
  2. Is there a difference between image and likeness?
  3. God commands nothing to be made in his image (Deut. 4:12,15-19; Rom. 1:23 “corruptible man”)
• The future aspect of being made into the God’s image (Psa. 17:15; 1 John 3:2; Phil. 3:21)

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Tim and Aaron explore the importance of love as an essential of essential Bible studies. They go back to the Old Testament reference that Jesus draws upon as well as the context. Discover what love is really all about and how to know and show forth the love of God in your life.

For more shows or to get in contact with us go to www.essentialbiblestudies.org

Cover art from Unsplash

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The chart of God's 7000 Year Plan that changed Stan's life can be found here.

The cover photo is from the Texas Christadelphian Camp and Conference Center, a place dear to Stan, but that's another story.  Photo courtesy of @hannah.young104.

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Episode Outline

1. Introduction
   • Previous podcast, setting the scene (John 10:22-24)
   • Jesus’ answer is quoting from Psalm 82:6
2. Understanding Psalm 82 and God Manifestation
   • Elohim = judges (Ex. 22:8-9; Deut. 1:16-17; 2 Chr. 19:5-7)
   • Using this to better understand Psa. 82:1,6. The judges were supposed to manifest God.
   • Relating this back to Jesus’ argument in John 10:34-36
3. Conclusion
   • This is how Jesus and the Father are one (John 10:38)
   • We too must strive to manifest God (John 17:20-22)

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Episode Outline

1. Introduction
   • Previous podcasts on God manifestation… and now we study how it relates to Jesus using John 10:22-38
   • Setting the scene (John 10:22-24)
2. Jesus manifesting the name
   • The works I do in my Father’s name (John 10:25) cp. “I am come in my Father’s name (John 5:43-44)
   • Given a name above all names (Phil. 2:9-11)
3. What does it mean God and Jesus are one?
   • Not the Trinity. My Father is greater than all (v. 29) seems contradictory to “I and my Father are one” (v. 30). How do we explain this?
   • Comparing to Jesus’ prayer in chapter 17
     • Jesus’ manifested the name (17:6)
     • The oneness of the Father, Jesus and all believers (17:11, 21-26)
4. Conclusion
   • The reaction of the Jews
   • The answer of Jesus saved for the next podcast

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Theme Verse – 2 Timothy 2:15

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”

Show Outline:

The Gospel of Judas

• A copy was found that is 1700 years old
• Released in 2006 (National Geographic published an article)
• Reverses the role of Judas, vindicates him as the one who understood Jesus
• There were lots of ‘false gospels’ circulated in the early days of Christianity
• How did first century Christians know what was really the word of God?

The Role of Prophets

• Both foretelling and forthtelling the word of God – lexicons and context
• True vs. False prophets (18:20-22)
• Jeremiah vs. Hananiah (28:2-4, 10-11)
• Agabus (Acts 11:27-30)

Prophecy: One of the Spirit Gifts

• Prophets were one of the most important gifts (3:5)
• The whole point of the gifts was to build up the whole ecclesia (4:11-16)
• All members had to work together to help each other
• Specifically, prophets had to work together with ‘provers’

Authenticating the Word – An Ecclesial Work

• Context #1 – Spirit, prophecy, discerning, spiritual good for all (1 Cor. 12:4,10,7)
• Context #2 – Spirit, prophecy, weighing, spiritual learning and encouragement for all (1 Cor. 14:12,29,31)
• Context #3 – Spirit, prophecy, testing, holding fast to good (1 Thes. 5:19-21)
• Counterfeit messages! (2 Thes. 2:2; 1 John 4:1; Rev. 2:2)
• The church, ecclesia, need to work together to develop the unity of the faith
• They did attain it, because the gifts were withdrawn! (4:13-14)

Lessons for Us Today

• The prophets’ words were confirmed in part through the accuracy of their predictions, and also by those who had the gift to discern, weigh the spirits.
• The gifts of the Holy Spirit were withdrawn after the ecclesias attained unity in the faith.
• ‘False’ gospels do not undermine our NT.
• Now that we have received the word of God from the prophets, we must test any teaching with that word. In short, we must: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”  (2 Tim. 2:15)

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The cover photo is from the summit of Mt. Sinai. Photo credit: Mohammed Moussa - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

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The cover photo is from the summit of Mt. Sinai. Photo credit: Mohammed Moussa - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

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You may be surprised to know that over 600 prayers are recorded in the Bible with over 450 revealed answers associated with those prayers.

So the Bible has a lot to say about prayer and the principles of prayer which can really help us in very practical ways as we offer prayer. What we learn as we look at prayer is that prayer has a purpose.

Seems like an odd thing to say, of course they do, otherwise why am I praying.  Actually, what we see is that prayers are made with an expectant result in mind.

First, what is PRAYER? A person who did a lot of study on this subject once gave this definition and I think it is a good one, “prayer is the raising of the heart and mind to God … in short communication with God on high.” Prayer is an incredible gift God has given us in that we are able to talk to him and in turn as we read His word the Bible, He talks to us…communication takes place.  

How do we learn to pray? … that ultimately comes by doing it, by practice.

Some view prayer like a 911 call only to be used in the case of emergencies. If they get what they ask for they may or may not express thankfulness and let that lead them into a better understanding of prayer.

But if they do not get what they asked for, they question whether prayer works or worse whether religion is worthwhile or not.

If we view prayer as something only to be used in times of trouble or we doubt whether prayers are heard because we did not get the answer we asked, if we are not sure what to pray for or even how to go to about praying altogether … we hope our thoughts together will help either change our view of prayer or provide us with a more focused direction on what to pray for and how to go about it. 

The Lord tells us we have only 2 real choices on this subject …

Prayer Principle 1 - We Pray or we Faint!

So one of the first Key Principles of Prayer we learn is: that prayer needs to be consistent and constant …

Luke 18:1 “And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;”

We either pray rightly or lose heart …faint. (Gk ekkakeo “to be utterly spiritless, wearied out, exhausted”) … that is how critical prayer really is.

If we do not pray we faint. Notice the Lord says “ought” to pray… it is our duty to pray, an obligation, absolutely necessary for our spiritual health.

WE NEED GOD’S HELP - our attitude to that fact, affects how we pray and if we pray … need to see how important prayer really is to us

As we look at Principles regarding prayer, we need to be aware of one of the major challenges we face today (this challenge has a major effect on us as well as our children, young people in general) … that being in society today we are so far removed from absolute dependence on God. This then results in an adverse affect on our prayers.

Let me illustrate what I mean by this by looking at what I call the Lettuce effect. Where does a head of lettuce come from? If you were to ask a child (and I did) they will tell you it comes from the store! Some adults might think the same way as well!! We live in an age that is less dependent on the land. Very few if any of us are farmers. So easily for us to overlook our need for God and overlook our material blessings & dependence on Him.

Man has created his own light system and water systems all driving us further from God dependence. We have created an infrastructure that is comprised of seed warehouses, sorting areas, refrigerated warehouses, transportation to move things vast distances so we can bring our lettuce from Mexico or even further away.

Reality is that God is at the source of everything.  No seedling, no food. We need to rekindle that absolute dependence on GOD, a recognition that we depend on Him for everything THIS is a vital part of prayer.  God dependence.

We have a Father in heaven that supplies our needs … Here then is the absolute starting point for prayer … prayer requires a faithful belief in God’s existence and that He is the provider of all we require

Prayer Principle 2 – Believe that GOD Hears

Another key  Principle of Prayer some might say is actually the most important one is outlined for us in the Epistle to the Hebrews - Hebrews 11:6 “ But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to GOD must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”

Need faith, (Faith in GOD) this must exist before prayer is really prayer at all.

Prayer Principle 3 – There is a Way to Pray (Pray the right way)

Another principle of prayer is the way in which we address our prayers and the purpose behind them.  We learn about this from the instruction Paul gives in the epistle to the Ephesians 5:20 “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”

Need the right spirit (humble - thankful) … recognize that God is the great Creator and that he is our Father …and that our prayers are offered in the name of LJC

It is also critical since we are praying in our Lord’s name that our prayers need to be in accord with God’s purpose. Our prayers then need to be aligned with our Heavenly Father’s will (One of the most vital of all the Prayer Principles)… we need to understand what that is.

If they are aligned … we can have full assurance they will be answered. “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us” 1 John 5:14

Creates in us confidence that prayers are heard and that they are powerful. Our petitions need to be in harmony with the purpose of God. In this way prayers are conditional … “Thy will be done” as our LJC says.  To be fair, sometimes we may not even be aware of what the LORDS will is … at least acknowledge that we want His will to be done versus our own.

This leads us into considering what is the will of God vs what is our own will? We can illustrate this with a simple example we all can relate to in dealing with our NEEDS vs WANTS. What do we really need vs what do we want?

This is a topic we many times get wrong. Our basic NEEDS, God looks after them all for us. Roof over our head (place to live) - Food and water - Sufficient Health & Hygiene - Clothing to keep us warm or protected.

WANTS - are anything beyond that - we want a Mansion don’t need it! designer clothes, fancy car etc. We need to pray that God will provide us with what we need since he as a Loving Father knows best. If God gave us everything we wanted we would be in deep trouble. Sometimes we can pray for what God doesn't want. We are not teaching God in our prayers but beseeching Him.

Some things to avoid. 

• Need not be long although some occasions may require it (personal prayer perhaps).
• Not repetitive - spontaneous with meaning - as the Lord says “for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask” (Matt 6:8) - fact of divine foreknowledge does not make those prayers any less necessary for us or any less real to God.
• Need not be showy in prayers as the Pharisees did on the street

In fact, praying in the right way is critical to developing a personal prayer life. Think of a children's prayer - they are very honest (they thank God for everything and pray for everyone - not encumbered by doubts & obstacles we as adults see) Childlike - humility, trust, dependence

The greatest obstacle to sincere praise is our pride and adult "wisdom" which is often little more than conceited ignorance. When we are humbled, we are in the position to offer the greatest praise.

Prayer with the right attitude:  Make our words brief Matthew 6:7 / Humility Luke 18:13 / Be specific Philippians 4:6 / Reverential Ecclesiastes 5:2 / Habitually 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Prayer Principle 4 – Listen or God Won’t

There is also then a negative principle that is also true of Prayer… Sometimes this is caused by mixing up needs and wants. In other words we pray for the wrong reasons or we have an impediment making our prayers ineffective towards GOD.

In James’ epistle we are told of such a conditional principle of prayer “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” (James 4:3)

The believers in the 1st century were asking for the wrong reasons. They wanted something that they could use for their own selfish ends. They were not getting an answer to their prayers as a result

Our treatment of others we can be challenge our receiving answers to our prayers:  

Want mercy, must be merciful. Prayer is difficult when we have a grudge against God or what he wants us to do. Need to get wrong things out of our lives…otherwise prayers will be difficult. (ex. unconfessed sin)

This is an area of prayer we don’t often talk that much about. But God’s word is clear that there are times when prayers are not heard:

• When pride is prevalent Job 35: 12
• When iniquity is in our heart Psalms 66:18
• If we forsake God Judges 10: 11-13
• REFUSE to listen to God’s word Proverbs 28:9 “ He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination”
• Wilfully disobedient Isaiah 1:15
• Pray for selfish reasons James 4:3

What are some practical ways to help us pray for the right reasons:

- ask ourselves, what is the Higher Principle I need to think about in this prayer - is it forgiveness? is it love? is it health … for what reason?

- how can what I ask for or say, Give God glory, or ensure that He is glorified in what I’m requesting.

- is what I ask for Aligned with His will and if I’m unsure at least acknowledge in sincerity we want it to be according to His will and therefore we will be accepting of His answer because He knows better than we do.

- How does what we ask for advance His purpose?

how can I make my prayers more for others and less about myself?                                                                                                

Prayer Principle 5 – Prayer Works (God Answers Prayers)

Ephesians 3:20,21 "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."

- even more can be achieved than what we can even ask or think! - need for prayer comes by recognition we need God’s grace (all He has done for us) … we cannot do things on our own (recognition of our weakness & dependency) - that is why Ephesians 3:20, 21 is so powerful, we have limits, God does not …in times of joy, sadness and depression He is the only one who understands us and can help us … it is the method that God has given us to talk (communicate) with HIM

GOD answers our prayers … but His answers may come in different ways: TIME is the challenge, different for us versus GOD (need to see things from God’s eyes/ perspective where time is not limited - see time & opportunity are in God’s hand)

• we tend to view time as a clock that goes around and around. Life is more like the old fashioned hour glass. For us it runs out.
• For God time is infinite … no beginning or end, forever. Need to keep this in mind when it comes to answers to our prayers.

A couple of ways we get answers to our prayers:

• Yes (sometimes so fast we may wonder if it is the answer) Acts 12: 5 “Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And when she (Rhoda) knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel.”
• No - our petitions are not granted - No is an answer … it could also be not yet (…wait - not yet) Hebrews 11 - all died without receiving their prayers yet. (in time they will receive it)
• Wait - could be silence (because it is best for us to wait at that time)/ Delay for the same reason - doesn't mean it wasn't heard at the moment we made it. Daniel 10:12 - Daniel prayed and did not receive an answer until 3 weeks later but the pray was heard on the first day he made it. “Fear not Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand …thy words were heard” (Don’t mistake silence for inactivity) - results may come in time.
• Another Way - something quite often we did not expect or see - God had another way!

 Note: all of these are answers! Never confuse not getting what we want as no answer!

We have the most powerful communication tool in the world let’s use it!!

 1 John 3: 22 (KJV) “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”

1 John 3:22 (ESV) “and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.”

Prayer Principle 1 – We Pray or we Faint!

Prayer Principle 2 – Believe that GOD Hears 

Prayer Principle 3 – There is a way to Pray (Pray the right way)

Prayer Principle 4 – Listen or God won’t

Prayer Principle 5 – Prayer Works (God Answers Prayer)

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Reference: The Usage and Translation of the Hebrew "ehyeh"

Episode Outline

1. Introduction
   1. Exodus 3:3-4 - standing on holy ground – the importance of this topic
   2. Moses asking questions Ex. 3:3,11,13 “What is your name?”
2. Exodus 3:14-15 The declaration of the name
   1. The name is Yahweh v. 15 (in all caps)
   2. Present or future tense? I AM as to existence or I WILL BE as to intent
   3. Considering the context Ex. 3:12
   4. Other examples are usually future unless context indicates it to be present tense
3. Exodus 6:23 "by Yahweh I was not known"
   1. El Shaddai as a title for blessing
   2. The fathers did not know or experience the covenant name even though they heard it from God and used it… “calling on the name of Yahweh” (e.g. Gen. 12:8 cp. Gen. 15:7-8)
4. Exodus 6:6-8 The name and what God says he will do
   1. Emphasis “I am Yahweh” verses 2, 6, 8
   2. Seven “I will” statements in v. 6-8
5. The meaning for us - God’s name is a memorial forever as he is “taking out of the Gentiles a people for his name” Acts 15:14

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Key Verse:

“… those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.” (Luke 20:35-36)

Show Outline

1. Introduction
2. Why study angels? (Matt. 22:29-30; Luke 20:35-36)
3. Basics
   1. Meaning of angel – messengers, can be either human or heavenly
   2. We are made in the image of angels a.k.a. Elohim (Gen. 1:26 cp. Psa. 8:4-6; Heb. 2:7-9)
   3. Angels appear as men (Gen. 18:2; Judges 13:16)
   4. Angels also appear in glory (Matt. 28 – at Jesus’ tomb) but also can be invisible (Num. 22:31 – Balaam; 2 Kings 6:14-18 – Elisha and chariots of fire)
4. God manifestation
   1. The curious case of Jacob wrestling an angel (Gen. 32:24,30)
      1. Described as a man but an angel (v. 24; Hosea 12:4)
      2. Jacob says he has seen God, face to face (v. 30; 1 Tim. 6:16)
   2. Angels represent God (Ex. 3:2,4,6)
   3. They take on his name (Ex. 23:20-21)
5. Final conclusion

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For further reading get a copy of Our Sure Foundation by the Christadelphian Magazine.

Show Notes

Key Verse “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword piercing even to the division of the soul and spirit  and of joints and marrow and is discerning of the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12)

Intro

It is a pleasure having the chance to talk about what I would suggest is a powerful and predominant characterization of Gods word …it’s a characterization, which...I would suggest, is incredibly pertinent to anyone who decides to read the word of God and that’s this description of Gods word as living.

And you know this is a description echoed throughout the bible…Peter in fact uses the same description. In 1st Peter 1 vs 22-25 he writes, “born again through the word of God which lives and abides forever“. It’s a powerful adjective….That we wouldn’t often attribute to most literature (when we think of living we think of something relevant and pertinent/ex. A book written in 1850 may not age well/ its message becomes old… perhaps stagnant).

But before we get into what exactly this characterization of a living word means, I think its important to preface why this is so important…because how we understand God’s word to be written, in many ways directly effects how we understand the Bible, and how we choose to read it as a document! Some Christians believe parts of scripture are irrelevant and outdated etc. So its really a fundamental thing to take the time to understand, how God’s word is intended to be received by us?

And I think what we will find as we take some time looking at this, is that the bible is actually fairly clear on how it was written and fairly transparent in how its word was intended to be received by the reader

Laying the foundation of scripture relevant for us and written for our benefit

Start by looking at how the Bible elaborates on this idea of a living word, and we can start by keeping ourselves in this same chapter 1st Peter 1 (is one of those overarching verses that I would suggest encompasses the way scripture was intended to be received).

With Peter, who seemingly has a lot to say on how the Bible was written, in vs 10- 12 “the prophets have inquired and searched carefully …but to them it was revealed that not unto them but to us they were ministering” (powerful statement for Peter to make here…100’s upon 100’s of years after these things were written, the ministrations of the prophets were written for his time!).

We see an example of what Peter is referencing in Daniel 12 vs 9 don’t we? (it wasn’t for Daniel to understand all the things he wrote/ the word of God was for those who were to come/ wrote things often incomprehensible to themselves because they wrote to a future generation).

We have David in Psalm 102 vs 19 “This will be written for a generation to come, that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord” (the words and meditations of the psalms were written for generations to come!)

And to appreciate the significance of these statements is to appreciate how far off it would be to suggest the writings of these inspired writer’s to be irrelevant, or outdated, or that they’re writing with the misconceptions of their day…(that’s an accusation often leveled at the Old Testament).

(Paul elaborates on this) Romans 15: 4 “for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures may have hope”.

Continue in 1st Cor. 10 vs 6- 11 “now all these things happened to them as examples but were written for our admonition”.

But if anything is evident from these verses, it’s primarily that they were not concerned with their day…they were communicating messages that would have a greater relevance to future days!... often writing things incomprehensible to themselves.

All of these examples work to paint a picture of God’s word that reflects that description of a living word/ timeless principles and stories (in other words it’s messages and principles are unmarred by the cultural influences of it’s day as many authors of scripture had little understanding of what they wrote) that we can take lessons and exhortation from.

Now all of this reinforces the idea of an inspired word, but I would really suggest there are two ways you could define a divinely inspired word.

We could suppose it to be …a verbatim account of what God caused to be written by special men centuries ago, leaving us a word which is profitable for instruction when we read it….or, while admitting this…we could take this understanding a step further… and when we do we come to a powerful conclusion….

Directly addressed to us (take the understanding of what a living word means to a more personalized level)

• Matthew 22 vs 31 we think of Christ, who when speaking with the Sadducees references the account of the burning bush and God’s dialogue with Moses. instead of saying “that which was spoken unto Moses by God” he says “spoken unto YOU by God”…leaving us with the powerful reflection, that God’s intention was that those who read them should also be addressed by them!
• We have Hosea 12 vs 3 where Hosea recounting the events of Jacob in Bethel wrote “in Bethel God spake with US!...( 100’s of years later, Hosea is telling his reader they are being directly addressed by God!!)…(That is the nature and the full reality of the living word of God!)
• Hebrews 12 vs 5-7 referencing Solomon’s counsel to his son, Paul says “have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons!” words first spoken by Solomon to his son, but here we see God speaks to us as sons! The intention being that the reader should regard these words as a personal message to us.
• 1 Cor. 9:8-10 – Even the law of Moses was written for all believers!

Word of God speaks to us! We use the present tense deliberately because these words spoken and recorded thousands of years ago are purposed for us the reader…The Bible is God’s dialogue with us…We often think of prayer in this way don’t we but how often do we perceive scripture to be the same?

• Romans 4 vs 23 “The words, ‘it was account to him’ were not written for his sake alone but for us”. The message being that just as the word of God is characterized as living well so is the hope within this word characterized (the hope offered to Abraham and so many other faithful offered to us).

Conclusion

We have talked about a lot tonight, we have considered the character and the nature of Gods word…It’s a word whose principles and stories are as applicable now as they were thousands of years ago, it’s a word that has the power to prick the heart and conscience of the reader, but above all we are left with a picture of a word that is addressed and personalized to us. God’s word is like a personalized letter to us.

Hebrews 3:7-8 “Today if you hear his voice, Harden not your hearts”. Today was still today, and present when the letter to Hebrews written, and so to does those words speak to us! Now is the day of opportunity, Gods word is a living word, and we must be alive to its message.

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Outline

Introduction

• What is Bible marking? Why do it?
• Wide margin Bibles
• Getting into a routine

Why Personalize Your Bible?

• Duty of a King to write out the law (Deuteronomy 17:18)
• It is about getting it into your heart (Proverbs 7:1-3)

Types of Bible Marking

• Identifying words
  • Love – Agape / Phileo (1 Peter 1:22)
  • God – El / Elohim
  • Church – Ecclesia
  • World – Kosmos / Aion
  • Character traits of God (Exodus 34:6)
• Contextual repetition
  • Seeing the context (Genesis 11:1-9; Luke 12:16-21; Mark 12:30,33 cp. v.44; Matthew 4:1-10)
  • Understanding organization and structure (Revelation 1-3; Matthew 5; Zechariah 1-6)
• Topical notes / Theme studies
  • Using the back of your Bible
  • Chain reference marking

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Key verse from John 4:23, "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him."

Martin mentions Wrested Scripture which can be found in book form and a website.

Cover image from Wikipedia “La Paz Skyline” which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 4.0.

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Scripture mentions:

• 1 Corinthians 11:18
• Romans 16:5,23
• 1 Corinthians 1:1-2 (key verse)

Lexicon resources mentioned:

Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words https://www.amazon.com/dp/078526020X

Louw & Nida Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains https://www.amazon.com/dp/1683072219

BDAG (Bauer, Danker, Arndt, Gingrich) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0226039331

The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (English, Hebrew, Aramaic and Aramaic Edition) https://www.amazon.com/dp/9004100768

New Testament Words by William Barclay (Author) https://www.amazon.com/dp/066424761X

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"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”  (John 7:24)

Outline

Intro

1. Many passages about the future judgment relate to how we are judging now (e.g. Rom. 14:10-13)
2. Essential Bible studies are so we might exercise our discernment between good and evil (Heb. 5:14)
3. We have to be wise about how we judge. Contrast between 1 Cor. 4:3-5 and 5:3; 6:5 (1 Cor. 11:28-32)

When Not to Judge

1. When you are judging motives (1 Cor. 4:3-5)
2. When you are a hypocrite (Matt. 7:1-3, see also James 3:1)
3. When you are judging outward appearances (John 7:24; James 2:1-4; Isa. 53:2-3)
4. When you have only heard one side of the story (Prov. 18:17; Deut. 19:18)

True Judgments

1. God loves judgment
   • To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the LORD (Prov. 21:3, see also Psa. 51:16-17)
   • In judgment he delights (Jer. 9:24; Micah 6:8; bonus Zech. 7:9; 8:16)
   • One of the weightier matters of the law (Luke 11:42)
2. The need to balance love and judgment
   • What is a true friend? (Prov. 27:5-6)
   • How to love your neighbor (Lev. 19:17-18)
   • Loving like Jesus (Rev. 3:19)

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Passage discussed:

• Romans 14:10-12 – Key verse: Everyone to give an account at the judgment seat of Christ
• Mark 16:15-16 – The gospel preaching to all the world is the basis of responsibility
• Acts 10:40-48 – Jesus will be the judge
• 2 Timothy 4:1 – The judgment will be at Christ’s appearing and kingdom
• 2 Corinthians 5:10-11 – The basis of judgment to come
• 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 – The dead rise first, then the living
• Acts 24:14-15 – A resurrection of the just and unjust that causes Felix to tremble
• Romans 2:3-11,16 – A whole chapter on the judgment day
• Matthew 22:11-14 – Final thoughts on many called, but few chosen

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1. Mark 16:15-16 – Belief and baptism for salvation
2. Acts 8:12 – Men and women (not children) who believed the gospel were baptised
3. Acts 8:36-39 – Baptism is an immersion in water (see also John 3:22-23)
4. John 3:5 – Cannot enter the kingdom if not born of water and spirit
5. Acts 22:16 – Past: Baptism is for the forgiveness of past sins (see also 1 Cor. 15:31)
6. Romans 6:3-6 – Present: Baptism is for walking in a new life (see also Matt. 3:17)
7. Galatians 3:26-29 – Future: Baptism makes us heirs of the promises
8. 1 Peter 3:20-21 - Conclusion

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The music at the end is "Crown of Rejoicing" from the "Even So, Come" CD. Used by permission.

Overheads with "the royal triplet" can be found here.

You can listen to the full set of classes on Thessalonians by podcast or online

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Overheads with "the royal triplet" can be found here.

You can listen to the full set of classes on Thessalonians by podcast or online

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/essentialbiblestudies

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X: https://x.com/bible_podcast

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Get an invite to our Tuesday night Bible Studies at essentialbiblestudies.org

Request a free Essential Bible Studies media kit