Bible Study

8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith-

10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,

11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. - Philippians 3:8-11

2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.

3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. - John 17:2-3

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. - 2 Peter 1:3-4

3 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,

4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. - 2 Timothy 4:3-5

Are you going to Heaven alone?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy”

1 Thessalonians 2:19-20

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Paul tells the church in Thessalonica: “When Jesus comes, my crown will be those I’ve led to Him.” Now that’s a crown that doesn’t rust or tarnish.

When you die and go to Heaven, are you taking precious souls with you, or are you going to Heaven alone? I don’t want to hurt your feelings, but I’m concerned, because most people aren’t active soul winners. That’s tragic.

You say, “But, Pastor, I give my money.” I don’t care how much money you give. If you’re not endeavoring to bring souls to Christ, you’re not right with God. You say, “Well, I teach.” I don’t care how eloquently you teach. If you’re not trying to bring souls to Jesus, you’re not right with God. You say, “Well, I attend faithfully.” I don’t care how much you attend. If you’re not trying to bring souls to Jesus Christ, you’re not right with God.

Andrew Murray said, “There are two classes of Christians: soul winners and backsliders.” You are one or the other. If you don’t have a passion to see people come to the Lord Jesus Christ, I wonder if you know the Jesus I know.

ACTION POINT

There is a crown to run for. Run for the soul winner’s crown

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

What It Means to Love Money

The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. (1 Timothy 6:10)

What did Paul mean when he wrote this? He couldn’t have meant that money is always on your mind when you sin. A lot of sin happens when we are not thinking about money.

My suggestion is this: He meant that all the evils in the world come from a certain kind of heart, namely, the kind of heart that loves money.

So what does it mean to love money? It doesn’t mean to admire the green paper or the copper coins or the silver shekels. To know what it means to love money, you have to ask, What is money? I would answer that question like this: Money is simply a symbol that stands for human resources. Money stands for what you can get from man — other human beings — instead of God.

God deals in the currency of grace, not money: “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!” (Isaiah 55:1). Money is the currency of human resources. So, the heart that loves money is a heart that pins its hopes, and pursues its pleasures, and puts its trust in what human resources can offer.

So, the love of money is virtually the same as faith in money — belief (trust, confidence, assurance) that money will meet your needs and make you happy.

Love of money is the alternative to faith in God’s future grace. It is faith in future human resources — the kind of thing you can obtain or secure with money. Therefore the love of money, or trust in money, is the underside of unbelief in the promises of God. Jesus said in Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters. . . . You cannot serve God and money.”

You can’t trust in God and in money at the same time. Belief in one is unbelief in the other. A heart that loves money — that banks on money for happiness — is not banking on all that God is for us in Jesus as the satisfaction of our souls.

John Piper 

Bring The Dead Man Into The Light

Darkness kills!

What is it?

It is sin!

Repent!

7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power.

8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,

9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things,

10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord,

12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. - Ephesians 3:7-12

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,

5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved-

6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. - Ephesians 2:4-10

18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 

19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."  - Luke 4:18-19

1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;  - Isaiah 61:1-2

for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light - Ephesians 5:8

13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. - Colossians 1:13-14

9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. - 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him.

17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,

22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,

23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. - Colossians 1:15-23

For Not All Have Faith

Have we faith?

What is faith?

1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

2 For by it the people of old received their commendation.

3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. - Hebrews 11:1-3

In faith we believe that Christ is the Son of God.

We follow Him in obedience, we repent and we trust in Him that God gave Him power to save the lost.

Biblical faith in God through Christ is the realization that God is in control, God gave Christ as a mercy to the lost, He is for us, He has know us before we came to be, He has a plan for each one of us if we obey and the reality that Christ is coming again to settle the rebellion of Satan and those who follow him.

and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. - 2 Thessalonians 3:2

that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, - Romans 15:31

20 And he said, 'I will hide my face from them; I will see what their end will be, for they are a perverse generation, children in whom is no faithfulness. 

21 They have made me jealous with what is no god; they have provoked me to anger with their idols. So I will make them jealous with those who are no people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.  - Deuteronomy 32:20-21

17 Then my anger will be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them and hide my face from them, and they will be devoured. And many evils and troubles will come upon them, so that they will say in that day, 'Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?'

18 And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because they have turned to other gods. - Deuteronomy 31:17-18

1 Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 

2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.  - Isaiah 59:1-2

Bible Study

7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.

8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. - James 5:7-8

just as you did partially understand us-that on the day of our Lord Jesus you will boast of us as we will boast of you. - 2 Corinthians 1:14

11 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you,

12 and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you,

13 so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. - 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13

2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers,

3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you,

5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit,

7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.

8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything.

9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. - 1 Thessalonians 1:2-10

How Are You Running?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“…who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” Hebrews 12:2b

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Jesus is our example. He is a champion who, at the end of His race, received a crown of joy. When an athlete runs, he runs to win a trophy. In our verse today, what is “the joy set before Him”? It’s winning the race. He “endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

The crown gave Him the ability to endure. If you keep the crown in mind, you can bear the cross. But you cannot have the crown if you despise the cross. We are crucified with the Lord Jesus Christ.

I have a few trophies I won back in high school on a championship football team: a gold football, a letterman’s sweater and a silver cup. Do you know what happened to all those trophies? Someone broke into the house and got the gold football. The moths had a camp meeting in the sweater, and it’s gone—no more letters on the letter sweater. What happened to the silver cup? I haven’t the foggiest.

ACTION POINT

Athletes run “to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown” (1 Corinthians 9:25). There is a prize for you to possess. Follow your Lord and walk as Jesus walked.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers