Bible Study

Matthew 11:6

[6] And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

Galatians 5:7-9

[7] You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? [8] This persuasion is not from him who calls you. [9] A little leaven leavens the whole lump.

Galatians 1:6-9

No Other Gospel

[6] I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—[7] not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. [8] But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. [9] As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

1 Corinthians 9:24-25

[24] Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. [25] Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.

God's Plan for Marriage is to be Super Glued Together

PRAY OVER THIS

“Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Mark 10:9

 

PONDER THIS

The word cleave means to weld, to glue, to fasten together in an unbreakable bond. Marriage is to be God’s super glue. Divorce is a transgression of the will, the law, and the purpose of God. Parents need to teach children that divorce is never an option. Show me two people who begin their marriage with the idea that, if it doesn’t work out, they’ll get a divorce, and I’ll show you two people who are highly likely to get a divorce. Show me two people who begin a marriage with a total commitment of “no matter what,” and I’ll show you two kids who are likely to make it. When you get on the airplane of marriage, you throw away your parachute. If somebody mentions divorce, you give a blank look and say, “What does that word mean? I don’t understand that word. What language is that? We don’t even discuss that. That is not even an option. We don’t even talk about it. It is not God’s will. It is not God’s way. No to divorce.” For this cause shall a man leave his father and his mother, and he shall cleave unto his wife.

Who do you know that has the type of marriage described in today’s passage?

Though divorce is not God’s desire, many in the Church have experienced this painful reality. How can you encourage those who have gone through the pain of divorce?

PRACTICE THIS

If you are married and have a printed dictionary, cross through the entry on divorce and show that to your spouse. Married or not, take one practical step today to bless someone who has experienced the pain of divorce.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Suffering That Strengthens Faith

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. (James 1:2–3)

Strange as it may seem, one of the primary purposes of being shaken by suffering is to make our faith more unshakable.

Faith is like muscle tissue: if you stress it to the limit, it gets stronger, not weaker. That’s what James means here. When your faith is threatened and tested and stretched to the breaking point, the result is greater capacity to endure. He calls it steadfastness.

God loves faith so much that he will test it to the breaking point so as to keep it pure and strong. For example, he did this to Paul according to 2 Corinthians 1:8–9,

We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.

The words “but that was to” show that there was a purpose in this extreme suffering: it was in order that — for the purpose that — Paul would not rely on himself and his resources, but on God — specifically the promised grace of God in raising the dead.

God so values our wholehearted faith that he will, graciously, if necessary, take away everything else in the world that we might be tempted to rely on — even life itself. His aim is that we grow deeper and stronger in our confidence that he himself will be all we need.

He wants us to be able to say with the psalmist, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:25–26).

John Piper 

Bible Study

Matthew 5:12

[12] Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

1 Peter 1:6-9

[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. [8] Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, [9] obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Isaiah 48:10-11

    [10] Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;

        I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. 

    [11] For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,

        for how should my name be profaned?

        My glory I will not give to another.

    Psalm 66:10

    [10] For you, O God, have tested us;

        you have tried us as silver is tried.

Do You See Marriage as God Intended?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” 

Genesis 2:24

 

PONDER THIS

There are three verbs here that I want to underscore—leave, cleave (or be joined), and become one flesh. There you have an outline for preparing any child for marriage. This is the marriage relationship summed up in a verse and one of the key verses in all the Bible. I’ve been a pastor for many years, and I’ve done a lot of marriage counseling. But I have not done any marriage counseling, nor shall I ever do any, in which the problem was not caused by people not understanding the meaning of this one verse. Not understanding what it means to leave. Not understanding what it means to cleave. Not understanding what it means to be one flesh. In those three verbs, you have the priority of marriage, the permanence of marriage, and the purpose of marriage.

How is your understanding of marriage tied to the three verbs in today’s verse?

How does this understanding of marriage lead us to the deep commitment God intends?

PRACTICE THIS

Take some time to study this verse today. If you don’t know much about the meaning of these words, look at some commentaries to learn more about the intention of these words.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

God’s Plan for Martyrs

They were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. (Revelation 6:11)

For almost three hundred years, Christianity grew in soil that was wet with the blood of the martyrs.

Until the Emperor Trajan (about AD 98), persecution was permitted but not legal. From Trajan to Decius (about AD 250), persecution was legal. From Decius, who hated the Christians and feared their impact on his reforms, until the first edict of toleration in 311, the persecution was not only legal but widespread and general.

One writer described the situation in this third period:

Horror spread everywhere through the congregations; and the number of lapsi [the ones who renounced their faith when threatened] . . . was enormous. There was no lack, however, of such as remained firm, and suffered martyrdom rather than yielding; and, as the persecution grew wider and more intense, the enthusiasm of the Christians and their power of resistance grew stronger and stronger.

So, for three hundred years, to be a Christian was an act of immense risk to your life and possessions and family. It was a test of what you loved more. And at the extremity of that test was martyrdom.

And above that martyrdom was a sovereign God who said there is an appointed number of martyrs. They have a special role to play in planting and empowering the church. They have a special role to play in shutting the mouth of Satan, who constantly says that the people of God serve him only because life goes better. That’s the point of Job 1:9–11.

Martyrdom is not something accidental. It is not taking God off guard. It is not unexpected. And it is emphatically not a strategic defeat for the cause of Christ.

It may look like defeat. But it is part of a plan in heaven that no human strategist would ever conceive or could ever design. And this plan will triumph for all those who endure to the end by faith in God’s all-sufficient grace.

John Piper 

Bible Study

John 8:12

I Am the Light of the World

[12] Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Psalm 36:9

    [9] For with you is the fountain of life;

        in your light do we see light.

Isaiah 42:6-7

    [6] “I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness;

        I will take you by the hand and keep you;

    I will give you as a covenant for the people,

        a light for the nations, 

    [7]     to open the eyes that are blind,

    to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,

        from the prison those who sit in darkness.

Matthew 5:13-20

Salt and Light

[13] “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

[14] “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. [15] Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. [16] In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Christ Came to Fulfill the Law

[17] “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. [18] For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. [19] Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. [20] For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.