Bible Study

Romans 5:12-13

Death in Adam, Life in Christ

[12] 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—[13] for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law.

James 1:15

[15] Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

1 Corinthians 15:22

[22] For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

Psalm 51:5

    [5] Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

        and in sin did my mother conceive me.

The Joys of The Table of The Lord

By grace through faith in Christ alone.

Not by works.

By the Spirits calling, prompted by God.

By belief that Christ is the only way for salvation.  

Come!

Feast!

Eternally.

Hallelujah and Amen

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

[23] For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, [24] and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” [25] 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.” [26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

1 Corinthians 10:21

[21] You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.

2 Corinthians 3:3-6

[3] And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

[4] Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. [5] Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, [6] who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

John 6:32-40

[32] Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. [33] For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” [34] They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

[35] Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. [36] But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. [37] All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. [38] For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. [39] And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. [40] For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:44-51

[44] No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. [45] It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—[46] not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. [47] Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. [48] I am the bread of life. [49] Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. [50] This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. [51] I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Are You Putting Off Salvation?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.”

Isaiah 55:6

 

PONDER THIS

Somebody told a parable of the devil and his demons in the caverns of darkness, as they were planning how to damn the world. One of the demons who was very clever said, “Let’s just tell the people there’s no God. Then they won’t prepare to meet God.” And the devil said, “No, that won’t work. Only fools don’t believe in God. That’ll only damn a few.” Someone else said, “I have an idea. Let’s tell them the Bible is not the Word of God.” The devil said, “Well, some will believe that. But the Bible has such self-authenticity about it, and the fulfilled prophecy reveals the truth of the Bible. It will be hard to get men not to believe the Bible’s the Word of God. That’ll only get a few. Isn’t there a better plan?” Another said, “Let’s deny the deity of Christ. Let’s fill the pulpits with liberal preachers who pretend to preach the Bible, but never preach the blood atonement, the Virgin Birth, and the full deity of Christ.” The devil said, “That’s a good plan, and I’ll see to it that I have some preachers like that. But I need something more.” Finally, a demon stood who was known for his wicked wisdom and malevolence. All the halls of Hell grew quiet to listen to what he had to say. He said, “Here’s my plan. We will admit there’s a God. We will admit that the Bible is the Word of God. And we will tell people that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And, furthermore, we’ll tell them they need to be saved. But not today.” And a cheer went up in the halls of Hell. And Satan said, “With that tool, I will be able to damn the souls of millions.”

Regarding spiritual things, what are you tempted to believe you can put off until tomorrow?

In what way is God giving you a sense of urgency today?

PRACTICE THIS

Consider the things of the faith you may be putting off. Respond to God without delay.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Something to Boast About

By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)

The New Testament correlates faith and grace to make sure that we do not boast in what grace alone achieves.

One of the most familiar examples is Ephesians 2:8. By grace, through faith. There’s the correlation that guards the freedom of grace. By grace, through faith.

Faith is the act of our soul that turns away from our own insufficiency to the free and all-sufficient resources of God. Faith focuses on the freedom of God to dispense grace to the unworthy. It banks on the bounty of God.

Therefore faith, by its very nature, nullifies boasting and fits with grace. Wherever faith looks, it sees grace behind every praiseworthy act. So it cannot boast, except in the Lord. The author of grace.

So Paul, after saying that salvation is by grace through faith, says, “And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). Faith cannot boast in human goodness or competence or wisdom, because faith focuses on the free, all-supplying grace of God. Whatever goodness faith sees, it sees as the fruit of grace.

When it looks at our “wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,” it says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:30–31).

John Piper 

Bible Study

Hebrews 6:3-6

[3] And this we will do if God permits. [4] For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, [5] and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, [6] and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.

1 Peter 1:3-7

Born Again to a Living Hope

[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, [4] to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, [5] who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [6] In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, [7] so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Romans 4:16

[16] That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all,

2 Corinthians 3:5-6

[5] Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, [6] who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Have You Grown Too Casual?

PRAY OVER THIS

“The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways, but a good man will be satisfied from above.” Proverbs 14:14

 

PONDER THIS

In the beginning of 2 Samuel 11, David had become casual about the things of God. He had been blessed so much—God had been so good to him, and David had enjoyed victory after victory—that he no longer had to fight. He could just sit back, coast, and take it easy. David had put off the armor, but the Bible warns that we are to endure difficulties as good soldiers of the Lord.

Many of us gave our hearts to the Lord Jesus as children. We meant business and our heart belongs to Him. But I wonder if there are not some of us who need to say, “Lord Jesus, I have gotten casual about this thing. I have taken for granted what I did as a child or as a young person. But now today, Lord Jesus, I present the most precious thing I have—my life, my soul, my all—to you anew and afresh like I have never ever done it before.”

In what ways have grown casual about your relationship with the Lord?

How is He calling you to respond?

PRACTICE THIS

Consider your life and relationship with Christ. Respond to Him with renewed commitment today.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

When God Goes Against His Will

But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the Lord to put them to death. (1 Samuel 2:25)

The sons of Eli the priest would not obey their father when he rebuked them for their sin. There are three implications of this text for our lives.

1) It is possible to sin so long and so grievously that the Lord will not grant repentance.

That is why Paul said that after all our pleading and teaching, “God may perhaps grant them repentance” — not, “will grant them repentance” (2 Timothy 2:25). There is a “too late” in the life of sin. As it says of Esau in Hebrews 12:17, “He found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.” He was forsaken; he could not repent.

This does not mean that those who truly repent even after a whole lifetime of sinning cannot be saved. They certainly can be, and will be! God is staggeringly merciful. Remember the thief on the cross. Jesus said to him, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).

2) Sometimes God does not permit a sinning person to do what is right.

“But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the Lord to put them to death.” Listening to the voice of their father was the right thing to do. But they would not. Why? “For it was the will of the Lord to put them to death.”

The reason given for why they did not obey their father was that God had other purposes for them, and had given them up to sinning and death. This shows that there are times when the will of God’s decree is different from the revealed will of God’s command.

3) Sometimes our prayers for God’s revealed will to be done will not be done because God has decreed something different for holy and wise purposes.

I suppose that Eli prayed for his sons to be changed. That is how he should have prayed. But God had decreed that Hophni and Phinehas not obey, but rather be slain.

When something like this happens (which we do not ordinarily know ahead of time) while we are crying out to God for change, the answer of God is not: “I don’t love you.” Rather the answer is: “I have wise and holy purposes in not overcoming this sin and not granting repentance. You do not see these purposes now. Trust me. I know what I am doing. I love you.”

John Piper