Bible Study

1 John 4:1-3

Test the Spirits

[1] Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. [2] By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, [3] and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.

2 Peter 2:1-2

False Prophets and Teachers

[1] But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. [2] And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed.

John 10:12-13

[12] He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. [13] He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

Matthew 24:24

[24] For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

No Cost Too High

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

MATTHEW 7:13-14

 

PONDER THIS

It costs to serve Jesus. It costs every day. It costs every step of the way, and there is no fine print in the contract. Many of us have settled for cheap grace, an “easy believism.” There is, necessarily, a discipline to the Christian life.

Take a river and just let it meander, and it has no power. But dam it up, and it makes power that can light up a city. A few years ago, a young African was martyred for the cause of Christ. But before he died, he wrote a poem of commitment and resolution to serve God no matter the cost. Compare that with the Christianity we see today. We are often looking for a cheap way, an easy way, a lazy way to serve Jesus. There is no such thing. We are called to follow Him, be changed by Him, and surrender daily to Him because the cost will be worth it in the end.

What comes to mind when you think of the cost of the Christian life?

What does it look like to be disciplined in your faith daily?

PRACTICE THIS

Talk to a trusted Christian brother or sister about the ways you are seeking growth in the discipline of following Christ.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

How to Repent

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

A vague, bad feeling that you are a crummy person is not the same as conviction for sin. Feeling rotten is not the same as repentance.

This morning I began to pray, and felt unworthy to be talking to the Creator of the universe. It was a vague sense of unworthiness. So I told him so. Now what?

Nothing changed until I began to get specific about my sins. Crummy feelings can be useful if they lead to conviction for specific sins. But vague feelings of being a bad person are not usually very helpful.

The fog of unworthiness needs to take shape into clear dark pillars of disobedience. Then you can point to them and repent and ask for forgiveness and take aim with your gospel bazooka to blow them up.

So I began to call to mind the commands I frequently break. These are the ones that came to mind.

Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Not 95%, but 100%. (Matthew 22:37)

Love your neighbor as you love yourself. Be as eager for things to go well for him as you are for things to go well for you. (Matthew 22:39)

Do all things without grumbling. No grumbling — inside or outside. (Philippians 2:14)

Cast all your anxieties on him — so you are not being weighed down by them anymore. (1 Peter 5:7)

Only say things that give grace to others — especially those closest to you. (Ephesians 4:29)

Redeem the time. Don’t fritter away the minutes, or dawdle. (Ephesians 5:16)

So much for any pretensions to great holiness! I’m undone.

This is much worse than vague, crummy feelings. Ah, but now the enemy is visible. The sins are specific. They’ve come out of hiding. I look them in the eye. I’m not whining about feeling crummy. I’m apologizing to Christ for not doing specific things that he commanded.

I’m broken, and I’m angry at my sin. I want to kill it, not me. I’m not suicidal. I’m a sin-hater and a sin-murderer. (“Put to death what is earthly in you,” Colossians 3:5; “Put to death the deeds of the body,” Romans 8:13.) I want to live. That’s why I’m a killer — of my sin!

In this conflict, I hear the promise, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Peace rises.

Now, prayer feels possible and right and powerful again.

John Piper 

Bible Study

Romans 3:25-26

[25] whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. [26] It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Psalm 32:5

    [5] I acknowledged my sin to you,

        and I did not cover my iniquity;

    I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”

        and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

Psalm 51:2-4

    [2] Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

        and cleanse me from my sin!

    [3] For I know my transgressions,

        and my sin is ever before me. 

    [4] Against you, you only, have I sinned

        and done what is evil in your sight,

    so that you may be justified in your words

        and blameless in your judgment.

Proverbs 28:13

    [13] 

    Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,

        but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

Is Anything Too Small for God?

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!”

MATTHEW 7:7-11

 

PONDER THIS

Often, we are so full of care and worry because we’ve not truly learned how to pray. By prayer and supplication, we are to ask God for everything we need.

Pray about anything. Don’t divide your life up into the secular and the sacred. Don’t believe there are certain things you can pray about and certain things you can’t pray about because God’s not interested in those things. Can you imagine Jesus living that way? To a Christian, all things are sacred. Every day is a holy day.

You may respond, “What about the little things? I just pray about the big things.” Can you imagine anything that’s big to God? Or can you imagine anything too small for God to be interested in? Yes, pray about the big things. Yes, pray when your child is sick, but pray for the small things too. God is a God who is over all. God knows your needs. Even in wrong and shameful things, God already knows you want a wrong thing. Tell Him you want a wrong thing and ask Him to change your heart. Pray about all things.

What things are hardest for you to talk about with God?

What are some things you neglect to bring to God in prayer?

PRACTICE THIS

Talk to God and bring Him all the things that are on your mind.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

He Knows Your Need

“Do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (Matthew 6:31–32)

Jesus wants his followers to be free from worry. In Matthew 6:25–34, he gives at least seven arguments designed to take away our anxiety. One of them lists food and drink and clothing, and then says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matthew 6:32).

Jesus must mean that God’s knowing is accompanied by his desiring to meet our need. He is emphasizing we have a Father. And this Father is better than any earthly father.

I have five children. I love to meet their needs. But my knowing falls short of God’s knowing in at least three ways.

First, right now I don’t know where any of my children are. I could guess. They’re in their homes or at work or school, healthy and safe. But they might be lying on a sidewalk with a heart attack.

Second, I don’t know what is in their heart at any given moment. I can guess from time to time. But they may be feeling some fear or hurt or anger or lust or greed or joy or hope. I can’t see their hearts. They don’t even know their own hearts perfectly.

Third, I don’t know their future. Right now they may seem well and steady. But tomorrow some great sorrow may befall them.

This means I can’t be for them a very strong reason not to worry. There are things that may be happening to them now, or may happen tomorrow, that I do not even know about. But it is totally different with their Father in heaven. Our Father in heaven! He knows everything about us, where we are, now and tomorrow, inside and out. He sees every need.

Add to that, his huge eagerness to meet our needs. Remember the “much more” of Matthew 6:30, “If God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you?”

Add to that his complete ability to do what he is eager to do (he feeds billions of birds hourly, around the world, Matthew 6:26).

So join me in trusting the promise of Jesus to meet our needs. That’s what Jesus is calling for when he says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

John Piper 

Bible Study

Revelation 3:20

[20] Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

Isaiah 55:6

    [6] “Seek the LORD while he may be found;

        call upon him while he is near;

John 15:7

[7] If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

James 1:5-6

[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.