Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Dec 30, 2013

Spiritual mechanics must be parlayed into spiritual dynamics. Part 3. The doctrine of the Joints and ligaments. Part 2.

PLEASE READ FIRST

Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: If available on the website you're viewing this on, a few links (i.e., those without an already written scripture quote or brief explanation) are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), they work best using the Firefox browser – pop-ups in Internet Explorer, Chrome & other browsers only appear for a few seconds at best. If you don’t have Firefox (or hover pop-ups aren’t available on the website you’re viewing this on), that’s OK, move your cursor off and on the link until it is read; or left click the link which will open the verse at the online bible; or you can always use your Bible to look up the verses.

Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings

STUDY TITLE:

Spiritual mechanics must be parlayed into spiritual dynamics. Part 3.
The doctrine of the Joints and ligaments. Part 2.


OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”

Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

Spiritual mechanics must be parlayed into spiritual dynamics. Part 3.
The doctrine of the Joints and ligaments. Part 2.

We are studying The Doctrine of the Joints and Ligaments.

We have seen Points 1-3 in detail, here is a quick review.

Point 1. The Joint Analogy to the Pastor-teacher.

In the physical realm, joints provide motion, coordination, strength, and body action. In the spiritual realm, the pastor-teacher is to provide the spiritual information or the ligaments that the body of Christ needs for provide motion, coordination, strength, and body action. The purpose of the pastor-teacher is covered from two viewpoints in the N.T. First, the objective mandate related to the three-fold purpose of the pastor-teacher which is given in EPH 4:12. That threefold purpose is 1) To equip and train the royal family for combat. 2) For the vocation of the ministry, that is the training of future pastors and evangelists. 3) For the edification of the body, that is to teach, study, discipline (public), reprimand (private), and encourage by steadfastness and doctrine. Secondly, the subjective mandate related to the communication of the mystery doctrine for the Church-age. The subjective mandate for the spiritual joints in the body (the pastor-teacher) related to the communication of the mystery doctrine for the Church-age. "Be diligent [study] to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the Word of God" (2TI 2:15). The pastor must be prepared and ready to analyze the Scriptures from the original languages. Pastors without this training in the original languages are dependent upon other pastors who are so trained. The pastor must also avoid being involved in Christian activism, or being distracted by involving himself in Theological controversy.

Point 2. Joints Are the Basis for Exercise and Building Strength in the Body.

Without joints the human body would degenerate and deteriorate. Likewise, without the faithful function of pastor-teachers, the body of Christ, or royal family of God, would lack spiritual growth, and retrogress from lack of spiritual food and power. Also, muscle is constructed from consistent exercise, which involves the use of the joints. In the physical realm, repetitious and beneficial exercise involves the consistent and constant function of the joints. The constant use of the joints in exercise is analogous to faithful and consistent teaching of Bible doctrine by your right pastor-teacher to give you the doctrine to build spiritual muscle or strength.

But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness or living the spiritual life; for bodily discipline or exercise is only of little profit (for a short time), but living the spiritual life is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. (2TI 4:7-8)

The most important thing in your life is your consistency in the spiritual realm. All of your blessings from God depend upon living the spiritual life, and having the spiritual mechanics parlayed into spiritual dynamics. The one thing that you have in this life as a believer which will be profitable for you forever is spiritual living. The principle of exercising and training in the spiritual realm definitely has its place in the function of the joints. If you want to have a capacity for life and enjoy life, it is good discipline or spiritual exercise which makes you great. God will promote the spiritual believer in His timing, and therefore it will be a divine promotion and not man’s promotion. This is because you have learned to wait on the timing of God (PSA 27:14; PSA 37:7-9; PSA 37:34; PRO 24:13-15).

The key word in 1TI 4:7 is the Greek word gumnazo translated discipline which means to exercise. Gumnazo is used because it requires great self-discipline and training to be consistent, and no believer will ever be protected from apostasy and backsliding without self-discipline. The word also means to exercise naked which the Greeks would do. This implies that when the believer disciplines himself for the purpose of living the spiritual life, he realizes that he is naked before God. Therefore, he does not try to cover his sin or his guilt (PRO 28:13). Also when a Greek exercised in the gym, he exercised naked, but before he went back on the street he put his robe on and people did not see the development in his body. Instead they saw the results, his life, health, and ability to handle problems. The analogy is that in the local assembly you are trained by the joints and the ligaments, out of the local assembly you reveal the results or the fruit of that training. The point is that you can have no capacity to enjoy life without doctrine and you can’t have doctrine without discipline. So no one is ever going to reach the ultimate spiritual life without a system of discipline. We are all to be under a spiritual trainer, the joints and the ligaments (pastor-teacher) who teaches doctrine.

Point 3.Joints Provide Body Action.

By analogy, every function and action in life must be motivated by thought, the divine viewpoint printed on the neurons of the brain in the form of metabolized doctrine. Joints provide body action, which refers to the believers who grow spiritually, produce, function, glorify God, and become winners. Winners are believers who live in the PPOG, learn doctrine, pass momentum tests, advance to maturity, fulfill the plan of God, and glorify Jesus Christ through the spiritual mechanics being parlayed into spiritual dynamics. On the other hand, carnal believers who live in the cosmic system, are servants of Satan, are constantly under the control of their old sin nature. They are involved in religion, rituals, program spirituality, obsession with knowledge of doctrine, and cannot be distinguished from unbelievers. Winners are described in Rev 2-3.

Point 4. Joints Provide Body Coordination.

Without the function of the joints, there would be neither body action nor body coordination. If the joints are stiff, you have rigid body action (analogous to the legalistic joints in the spiritual realm). If the joints are free and loose, you have freedom and liberty (analogous to the pastor-teachers who teach you about the grace of God). Without the faithful teaching of the pastor, there would be no fulfillment of the PPOG, and no spiritual mechanics parlayed into spiritual dynamics, and therefore no invisible heroes. Invisible heroes have maximum invisible impact. a). Personal impact. b) Historical impact. c). International impact.

d) Angelic impact. e) Heritage impact.

Karl von Clausewitz wrote the book “On War.” He wrote Every specific calling in life requires special qualities of intellect and temperament. Our special calling is the fact that we were elected into the royal family of God at the moment of our salvation. Now our life has meaning, purpose, and definition.

When these are of a high order and manifest themselves by extraordinary achievements, the mind to which they belong is termed genius. Genius is a superior mental capacity for certain activities. By having the spiritual mechanics parlayed into spiritual dynamics and attaining spiritual maturity, you should become a spiritual genius.

The essence of military genius is to bring under consideration all of the tendencies of mind and soul in combination toward the business of war. This refers to our concentration on the message under the filling of the Spirit.

We say in combination, for military genius is not just one single quality bearing on war, as for instance courage, but it is a harmonious combination of powers in which one or the other may predominate, but none must be in opposition. When we have different parts of the body of Christ in opposition and causing division, we are seeing believers living the fragmented spiritual life in the cosmic system. They will be double-minded, unstable in all ways, and so the book of James tells them to Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, (1JO 1:9); and purify your hearts (PMA), you double-minded (JAM 1:8).

This means:

- Acknowledgment of personal, post salvation sins (2SA 12:13; PSA 51:4; 15:18,21; PRO 28:13; 1JO 1:9; JER 3:13)

- Appeal to the finished work of Christ as Basis for rebound (instantaneous recovery), HEB 9:14; 1JO 2:1-2.

- Isolation of the sin (forgetting it) PHI 3:13; HEB 12:15-17.

- Moving on (PHI 3:14; HEB 6:1; HEB 12:12-13).

For us to be in unity, (I’m talking about all of you who consider me to be your joint or pastor-teacher) you must be rightly related to the joint of the body that God has assigned you to (1PE 5:3). You must learn, and use the spiritual mechanics to strengthen your spiritual skills and have them parlayed into spiritual dynamics. Four

Spiritual Mechanics that you need to learn:

1. Filling of the Holy Spirit,

2. Metabolized Bible doctrine circulating in the soul,

3. Ten problem solving devices,

4. The execution of the PPOG.

Then, the Three Spiritual Skills. You must master these three spiritual skills.

1. The filling of the Holy Spirit is the first spiritual skill in the spiritual life. Without the filling of the Spirit you do not have the power to live the Christian way of life. The filling of the Spirit converts human I.Q. into spiritual I.Q., so that we have equality to learn spiritual phenomena.

2. The second spiritual skill is the word of God circulating in your soul.

3. The third spiritual skill is the problem solving devices deployed on the FLOT line of the soul.

1TI 4:8 has the phrase it holds promise for this life, the word life is the Greek word zoe which refers to a life which is energetic and enthusiastic. Here is the expanded translation of PHI 3:1-15 taken from the original language.

But whatever quality of things were gains to me, those things [gains] I have concluded as an expert as loss for the sake of Christ. Not only this but more than this, I conclude as an expert all things [Paul's pre-salvation human celebrityship and achievement] to be loss [singular] because of the surpassing greatness of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have forfeited all things, also, I keep on concluding as an expert them to be piles of dung in order that I may win for Christ, and that I may be found in Him, not having my own righteousness derived from the source of the Law, but that [righteousness] which is acquired by means of faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from the source of the God at the point of faith, that I may come to know Him [and that has been the purpose of this entire study of having the spiritual mechanics parlayed into spiritual dynamics], and the power of [behind] His resurrection and the participation of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; (PHI 3:7-10)

The ultimate goal is found in PHI 3:10 that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; This is your life, this is the true meaning of life on this earth, “knowing Him.” Once we begin to know Him, we can begin to know ourselves. Once we begin to know Him, we can begin to know Our Father, and our Mentor.

"If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him." Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him." Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us and not to the world?" Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me. These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. 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 said to you. (JOH 14:7-26)

Nowhere do the spiritual mechanics parlayed into spiritual dynamics mean more than here. We cannot trust anyone further than we know them. So, we must not only learn the doctrines involved but even more importantly we must come to know Him more intimately as the One who presents and upholds those doctrines, for Bible doctrine is His mind. No one can experience eternal life without knowing God the Father and God the Son. You can have eternal life without knowing God the Father and God the Son but you will not experience that eternal life until you come to know them. Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the [epignosis] knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to our natural life and godliness our spiritual life, through the true knowledge [full epignosis knowledge] of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, (2PE 1:1-4)

The partakers of the divine nature are those who partake of their new position in Christ experientially and they can only do so through the spiritual mechanics being parlayed into spiritual dynamics. As soon as God touches a believer who has been seeking for Him, He gives that believer an instinct to continue to so and to return to Him more perfectly and be united with Him. Something within the seeking believer aspires him to keep on seeking to a place deep within, to a place of rest. Some receive it in a larger portion, according to God's design, others to a smaller degree, by God's design. Knowing Him all begins with one very simplistic but valuable word. It is something that is very precious to all of us: Time. Time is something that we cherish especially if we love life. Time is very interesting when you think about the fact that the future can influence the present just like the past can influence the present. We learn from the past, and we have hopes regarding the future. Most believers don't know what to do with their time, in this short life, and yet they want a life which is eternal.

Sanctified time is time set apart to learn of Him, and then the ability to wait on the timing of God as He works within us. Most of God's people have difficulty in realizing and facing up to the fact that God is not on a timetable, and He is not in a hurry in His development of their Christian life (PHI 1:6). Many feel they are not making any spiritual progress unless they are swiftly and constantly forging ahead. It is true that the new believer often begins, and continues growing for some time at a very fast rate. But this will not continue if there is to be a healthy spiritual growth and ultimate spiritual maturity. God Himself will modify and control the pace. Don't worry God is in control.

The writer of the book of Hebrews put it like this: Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, which means to strengthen, complete and perfect you and make you what you ought to be and equip you with everything good that you may carry out His will; [while He Himself] works in us and accomplishes that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to Whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen (HEB 13:20-21).

No one can experience eternal life without knowing God the Father and God the Son. You can have eternal life without knowing God the Father and God the Son, but you will not experience that eternal life until you come to know Them. Knowing Him, however, all begins with that one very simplistic word: Time. We have a tendency not to enjoy when He is working within us accomplishing that which is pleasing in His sight. We would rather have that which is pleasing in our sight. It is a matter of God at work in us in His timing and His ways.

Peter warns us about this in 2PE 3:14 when he says, Therefore, beloved, since you are expecting these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, Since you are expecting what things? In 2PE 3:10 the day of the Lord coming like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Then in 2PE 3:12, looking forward to the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! Therefore beginning in 2PE 3:14 beloved, since you are expecting these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord to be salvation or in some cases deliverance for the believer; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom or the spiritual insight given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard lest, being carried away by the error of unprincipled men, you fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. (2PE 3:14-18).
The spiritual life matures and becomes productive by the principle of growth. There are no shortcuts to living the spiritual life, no shortcuts to spiritual reality.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Internet Church Service, Sunday, Dec 29, 2013

This week’s sermon title:
The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 8

Today’s Sermon Message:
The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 8

Video & Audio

Please join us as we fellowship in the Word of God, listen to
Christian Music, Pray in Christ’s Name and Praise the Lord
in our Hearts and Minds.

ALL ARE WELCOME!!

# # # # # # # #

from - Romans 8:38-39

Thank you for joining us for today’s worship service. Please enjoy the music before you watch and|or listen to today’s message.

TIP to enlarge the print hold down the “Ctrl” key on your key board, while it is being held down, move your mouse forward until the desired print size is just right for you. To return to normal screen size, reverse the process (some will see a % in the lower right corner of your screen, normal is 100%)

The lyrics have been provided so you can sing along with the artist in your mind and soul; imagine that the artist’s voice is your voice. I’m not a very good singer myself so I often get the lyrics for some of my favorites and sing along in my mind and soul, this way it’s as if I’m doing the singing to the Lord; try it.

Hymn #1

He Leadeth Me – Lyrics in video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

Hymn #2

In The Garden (He Walks With Me) – Lyrics in video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

Preparing yourself for the study of God’s Word

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is— you have trusted in Him for eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to take-in God’s Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge your sins privately to God the Father.

1 John 1:9 says—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NKJV (New King James Version)

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is faith alone in Jesus Christ alone:

John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” NKJV

Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have”; it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it (it’s really just that simple), and it can never be lost or taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God’s Word, if there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Lectionary

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart. (Heb. 4:12) GNB-UK

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) GNB-UK

Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth. (2 Tim. 2:15) GNB-UK

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Opening Prayer
(Do your best to make it your own – below is a sample prayer)

Heavenly Father, we pray that we will all be richly edified by Your Word today and that You will make what we study today clear to us. We pray that all participants in this service as well as those who review it at a later date will be edified and blessed by today’s message. We pray this in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Our guest Pastor-Teacher is:

Robert McLaughlin - Grace Bible Church
and Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries

Doctrinal Statement

This ministry is non-denominational and is dedicated to teaching the Word of God from the original languages and making it available at no charge throughout the world.

Today's Sermon

The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 8

TO VIEW THE SERMON: Right click the link above, a small window will open then left click either “Open in New Window” or “Open in New Tab” and the church service notes page will open, it has three options in the upper right side of the page, right click the link titled “download mp3” and just like before, select either Open New Window or Open New Tab to open the MP3 player, this will leave the notes page open so you can move back to it, so go back to the notes page to follow along in the notes, the streaming audio should begin automatically in your default audio/video player (like, Windows Media Player).

If you need to leave the service, when you come back, to move the MP3 player forward, press and hold the left click down on the player progress bar where you see the little arrow under the time on progress bar and move your mouse forward

OPTIONAL: On-line Bible – NASB95

If you wish to use it, right click the link and in the drop-down box, left click the "Open Link in New Window"; when the new window opens, reduce the window size of both the on-line bible and the slideshow and configure them to be side-by-side. Also, the window opens to John 3:16, click the word “more” below the verse, you will then see two online bible columns, Use the column on the left as it is set for the NASB95, at the top of the column where you see John 3:16 in the search box, type the book and verse the Pastor asks you to go to a particular Bible verse, e.g., 1tim 5:21, or eph 3:10, etc., then click “Enter” on your key board. You can use the “right column” if you wish for a different bible version but you’ll need to type in the verse you want each time as I directed you for the column on the left side.

Hymn #3

Here I Am To Worship – Lyrics in Video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

CLOSING PRAYER:
(Again, below is a sample prayer, do your best to make it your own)

Heavenly Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit will make what I’ve learned today clear to me, for I pray this in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’s name. Amen

If you have any questions that are pertinent about today’s message, please don’t hesitate to ask, you are welcome to ask them via a private message or by a reply in today’s post. However, sometimes questions can be real short but require a much longer answer in order to give an adequate answer. If I don’t think that the question is able to be answered quickly I’ll reply back telling you that I’ll research it and get to you with the answer (it may even be a few days as I’m a little slower than I used to be). Please don’t let what I’ve just said make you hesitate to ask questions.

I want to thank all of you who have attended this Sunday service as well as those who will view it at a later time or date.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can instantly receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Dec 23, 2013

Christmas Message: The forgotten man of Christmas.

PLEASE READ FIRST

Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: If available on the website you're viewing this on, a few links (i.e., those without an already written scripture quote or brief explanation) are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), they work best using the Firefox browser – pop-ups in Internet Explorer, Chrome & other browsers only appear for a few seconds at best. If you don’t have Firefox (or hover pop-ups aren’t available on the website you’re viewing this on), that’s OK, move your cursor off and on the link until it is read; or left click the link which will open the verse at the online bible; or you can always use your Bible to look up the verses.

Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings

STUDY TITLE:

Christmas Message: The forgotten man of Christmas.


OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”

Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

Christmas Message: The forgotten man of Christmas.

For those of us who know and love the Lord Jesus Christ, Christmas is a time to focus on His birth called theologically the incarnation. The great reality of the incarnation is the doctrine that the Son of God was conceived in the womb of Mary and that Jesus is true God and true man - undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever.

1TI 3:16, And by common confession great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Beheld by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

God became a man, which is that tremendous incomprehensible miracle of divine energy that brought God into human history. But because of the complexity of all that is happening around us and because Satan has cluttered up Christmas with so much needless paraphernalia, most people have missed Christmas. All you have to do is look around you. People are busy doing all kinds of things, but they missed the reality of Christmas. It's not just happening today, it happened back on that very first

Joseph’s actions and decisions in the months leading up to the birth of Jesus define for us what true faith and Christian Character looks like. I have often said that the unsung hero in the Nativity scene is Joseph. Being a husband I can only imagine the pain he went through. The questions and doubts. Yet, out of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, Joseph emerges victoriously. As such, he can teach us a lot about Character.

Joseph had a faith and righteousness that rises above circumstances. The circumstance that Joseph found himself in was probably among the worst a Hebrew young man could find himself in. He was humiliated, devastated, disgraced, and every other negative emotion one can muster. His trust in his fiancée had been questioned and perhaps even destroyed. Adultery is one in which people respond solely based on the rage of emotions that overwhelm them.

LEV 20:10 tells us that the punishment for adultery was death. Joseph had every right to leave Mary, according to the law, yet in the end he chose to quietly send her away. Saving her humiliation and making the right choice. It’s Important to note that the angel doesn’t come until after Joseph had made the decision.

MAT 1:18-25, Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. When His mother Mary had been betrothed (promised in marriage) to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her, desired to put her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took {her} as his wife, and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Truly, this whole plan hinged on Joseph for a moment in time. We learn that Joseph was a man of character. A man of righteousness despite the circumstance he was in. As Christians we are called to be righteous despite what circumstances we find ourselves in. Luke writes in Luke 6:32, If you love those who love you what good is that? The same principle applies, if you are righteous only when your circumstance is favorable, what good is that? It’s when the chips are down and you still choose to be faithful and operate in the righteousness of God that really matters.

Here is something amazing about Joseph. He is the first to receive the gospel message of Jesus Christ. Mary had been visited by the angel and told to name the boy Jesus, and that what was conceived in her was the Son of God. You cannot assume that a 15-year-old girl would understand the complexities of Jewish tradition. The Messiah probably was confusing to her. She then goes to visit Elizabeth, and Elizabeth realized that something is different about this child. But it is not until we get to the message from the angel to Joseph do we read, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Joseph is not just shone the power of the baby, he is shown the whole mission of the baby. Joseph would have been more familiar with God’s plan and provision for the people. No doubt Joseph wondered how on earth the Messiah could come to a humble couple such as him and Mary, rather than from nobility, born into a palace. He never questions: He gets up and immediately acts upon what he hears.

MAT 1:24-25, And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took {her} as his wife, and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.




What an illustration we have of obedience to God. Do we hesitate? Do we disobey? What is God asking us to do? What is He asking you to do that you question? A very prominent part of a Hebrew marriage was the consummation. It didn’t matter what the priests said. It didn’t matter what price the father of the bride asked for. It was not until the consummation of the marriage that they considered the marriage final - sexual intercourse. That happened on the marriage night. But the night that Mary and Joseph were married there was no consummation. Look at what Joseph does. He puts up a hedge of protection around Mary, physically to the world he had proclaimed he would marry her despite the shame.

MAT 1:19, And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her, desired to put her away secretly.

He put up a hedge of protection for her emotional state. He was righteous and always put her first. Now he is hedging her with protection from even their own consummation. He put his desires and needs on hold so that God could fulfill what He would fulfill through Mary and the baby Jesus. Joseph showed amazing integrity beyond himself. How are we showing integrity in our relationship with God? Are we allowing the world to dictate what we say and do, and how we act? Are we allowing our own wants and desires to control us? When you are a Christian of integrity, this cannot be part of your life.

Conclusion

The forgotten man of Christmas is Joseph. He never speaks in the Bible. He is usually relegated to the role of an extra in the Christmas story. That should not be. Even though Joseph was remarkably simple, he was simply remarkable. Joseph demonstrates to us all the consequences and influence of obedience to the word of God. The Forgotten Man of Christmas Demonstrates Obedience to God, Regardless of what sight says.

JOH 7:24, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

ISA 11:3, And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;

PRO 14:12, There is a way {which seems} right to a man, But its end is the way of death.

The point is, things are not always what they seem. Zacharias denied the command of God. Mary doubted the command of God. Joseph simply obeyed. He woke up from his dream and married Mary. Nothing pleases God like obedience. We can obey God in painful circumstances. The rabbis demanded that such a woman be put away. Yet Joseph obeyed when it hurt. We can obey God in spite of fear. Joseph felt terror at the holy thing God was doing. God told him “Do not be afraid”.

MAT 1:20, But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.”

We can obey God even while going forward in fear. We can obey God by staking everything on His word alone. Even though Joseph had no New Testament, he staked his future on the word of God. The Forgotten Man of Christmas Demonstrates the Consequences of Obedience. Obedience to God always has immediate personal consequences.

Joseph took Mary home as his wife. But he had no sex with her until she gave birth to a son.

MAT 1:25, and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Joseph was probably a young man. The immediate consequence of his obedience was to live with Mary in chastity until she gave birth. He watched her, protected her, but did not touch her (sexually). Obedience to God sets the course for a lifetime of consequences.

The trip to Bethlehem, the flight (the act of fleeing) to Egypt, the running from Herod’s family, looking for Jesus at the temple, and many other consequences came from the initial decision of obedience. There is no obedience to the word and will of God without consequences.

The Forgotten Man of Christmas Demonstrates the Influence of Obedience.

Your obedience always influences how others think about God. Who Cares about Joseph? Grooms are always background to the bride. Fathers are always faint memories in light of mothers and babies. And Joseph…well who cares about Joseph?

God does.

What Would You Have Done If You Were Joseph? It often gets lost, but Joseph was the hero of the Christmas narrative. He was loyal, faithful, humble, and courageous.

If you had been in Joseph’s sandals, what would you have done? Where are you in Joseph’s story? What do you do when facing a tough, life-altering decision? When bearing the brunt of wagging tongues for doing what is right. When standing alone and forgotten. When being called upon to shield someone, or even when following the Lord through a radical plan? Would you be like Joseph and go there?

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Internet Church Service, Sunday, Dec 22, 2013

This week’s sermon title:
The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 7

Today’s Sermon Message:
The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 7

Video & Audio

Please join us as we fellowship in the Word of God, listen to
Christian Music, Pray in Christ’s Name and Praise the Lord
in our Hearts and Minds.

ALL ARE WELCOME!!

# # # # # # # #

from - Romans 8:38-39

Thank you for joining us for today’s worship service. Please enjoy the music before you watch and|or listen to today’s message.

TIP to enlarge the print hold down the “Ctrl” key on your key board, while it is being held down, move your mouse forward until the desired print size is just right for you. To return to normal screen size, reverse the process (some will see a % in the lower right corner of your screen, normal is 100%)

The lyrics have been provided so you can sing along with the artist in your mind and soul; imagine that the artist’s voice is your voice. I’m not a very good singer myself so I often get the lyrics for some of my favorites and sing along in my mind and soul, this way it’s as if I’m doing the singing to the Lord; try it.

Hymn #1

Mary Did You Know – Lyrics in video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

Hymn #2

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – Lyrics in video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

Preparing yourself for the study of God’s Word

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is— you have trusted in Him for eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to take-in God’s Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge your sins privately to God the Father.

1 John 1:9 says—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NKJV (New King James Version)

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is faith alone in Jesus Christ alone:

John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” NKJV

Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have”; it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it (it’s really just that simple), and it can never be lost or taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God’s Word, if there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Lectionary

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart. (Heb. 4:12) GNB-UK

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) GNB-UK

Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth. (2 Tim. 2:15) GNB-UK

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Opening Prayer
(Do your best to make it your own – below is a sample prayer)

Heavenly Father, we pray that we will all be richly edified by Your Word today and that You will make what we study today clear to us. We pray that all participants in this service as well as those who review it at a later date will be edified and blessed by today’s message. We pray this in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Our guest Pastor-Teacher is:

Robert McLaughlin - Grace Bible Church
and Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries

Doctrinal Statement

This ministry is non-denominational and is dedicated to teaching the Word of God from the original languages and making it available at no charge throughout the world.

Today's Sermon

The Doctrine of the Second Advent as
it relates to the Christian Soldier. Part 7

TO VIEW THE SERMON: Right click the link above, a small window will open then left click either “Open in New Window” or “Open in New Tab” and the church service notes page will open, it has three options in the upper right side of the page, right click the link titled “download mp3” and just like before, select either Open New Window or Open New Tab to open the MP3 player, this will leave the notes page open so you can move back to it, so go back to the notes page to follow along in the notes, the streaming audio should begin automatically in your default audio/video player (e.g., Windows Media Player).

(If you need to leave the service, when you come back, to move the MP3 player forward, press and hold the left click down on the player progress bar where you see the little arrow under the time on progress bar and move your mouse forward)

OPTIONAL: On-line Bible – NASB95

If you wish to use it, right click the link and in the drop-down box, left click the "Open Link in New Window"; when the new window opens, reduce the window size of both the on-line bible and the slideshow and configure them to be side-by-side. Also, the window opens to John 3:16, click the word “more” below the verse, you will then see two online bible columns, Use the column on the left as it is set for the NASB95, at the top of the column where you see John 3:16 in the search box, type the book and verse the Pastor asks you to go to a particular Bible verse, e.g., 1tim 5:21, or eph 3:10, etc., then click “Enter” on your key board. You can use the “right column” if you wish for a different bible version but you’ll need to type in the verse you want each time as I directed you for the column on the left side.

Hymn #3

Little Drummer Boy – No Lyrics Just Enjoy
or
View 2nd Video with Lyrics in Video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)

CLOSING PRAYER:
(Again, below is a sample prayer, do your best to make it your own)

Heavenly Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit will make what I’ve learned today clear to me, for I pray this in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’s name. Amen

If you have any questions that are pertinent about today’s message, please don’t hesitate to ask, you are welcome to ask them via a private message or by a reply in today’s post. However, sometimes questions can be real short but require a much longer answer in order to give an adequate answer. If I don’t think that the question is able to be answered quickly I’ll reply back telling you that I’ll research it and get to you with the answer (it may even be a few days as I’m a little slower than I used to be). Please don’t let what I’ve just said make you hesitate to ask questions.

I want to thank all of you who have attended this Sunday service as well as those who will view it at a later time or date.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can instantly receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Dec 16, 2013

Spiritual mechanics must be parlayed into Spiritual dynamics. Part 2
The Doctrine of the Joints and Ligaments.

PLEASE READ FIRST

Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: If available on the website you're viewing this on, a few links (i.e., those without an already written scripture quote or brief explanation) are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), they work best using the Firefox browser – pop-ups in Internet Explorer, Chrome & other browsers only appear for a few seconds at best. If you don’t have Firefox (or hover pop-ups aren’t available on the website you’re viewing this on), that’s OK, move your cursor off and on the link until it is read; or left click the link which will open the verse at the online bible; or you can always use your Bible to look up the verses.

Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings

STUDY TITLE:

Spiritual mechanics must be parlayed into Spiritual dynamics. Part 2
The Doctrine of the Joints and Ligaments.


OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”

Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

Let no one keep on declaring you ineligible [of your prize is implied by the Greek verb katabrabeuo] by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, (COL 2:18)

This passage says that you become ineligible for your reward for glorifying God by succumbing to the attack of religion. In our day this is done through rituals like program spirituality, and obsession with doctrinal information. The term self-abasement refers to false humility, and the fact that most people are impressed by outward appearance, tone of voice, language, or what they, or someone else, may give up, especially if it causes them pain or inconvenience. False humility is not a Christian virtue, it is an attack of religion.

There is a second system of religion besides rituals, program spirituality, or statistical obsession in COL 2:18 that we need to beware of: That is the worship of angels. "Worshipping of angels" actually means religious worship, and it involves the worship of the teachings, or the doctrines of demons (fallen angels).

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons. (1TI 4:1)

It is possible for born again believers to get involved with the worship, or the doctrines of the fallen angels without even knowing it. Notice the phrase in COL 2:18, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, this refers to dreams, visions, hallucinations. This attack of religion is based upon two principles: First, Satan attacks the authority of the Bible, he says that what you dream, see in a trance, see when you get ecstatic, or experience, is just as real, or more real than what the Bible says. This is an attack upon the authority of the Word of God. Second, it emphasizes feeling and ecstatic experiences as having merit, and that how you feel as being more important than what the Bible says. This results in “being inflated without cause by his fleshly mind,”

The phrase “inflation without cause” is a present passive participle of the Greek word "phusioo" which means to be inflated with pride or arrogance. Literally it means being inflated or puffed up with arrogance. The passive voice indicates the subject, and the reversionistic believer receives the action of the verb through one of these attacks of religion.

Notice in the next verse the problem this type of believer has, and why they are not having a personal relationship with the Living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, through the written word, Bible doctrine. I want you to really pay attention to this because Satan is a genius at taking truth and distorting it. That's why the solution to these attacks are given in verse 19 which mentions two individuals: One is the Lord Jesus Christ, and occupation with Him, the other is a divinely appointed officer in the local assembly called the “joints and ligaments.” And not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God (COL 2:19). The present active participle of "krateo" is the word used for "holding" and it means to seize, apprehend, to be occupied with someone, or something. The term "the Head" is the accusative singular noun "kephale" which refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, and His absolute sovereignty over His body, the Church. It is not only used for the head, but it is used for superiority, for the chief, or the principle one to whom all are subordinate. When a believer is occupied with the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ, that believer will reveal it by living a life manifested by fruit from the daily function of perception, metabolization, and application toward doctrine. The concept of Christ as the head of the Church is found in such passages as EPH 1:22-23; EPH 5:23; EPH 2:16; EPH 4:4-5; COL 1:18; COL 1:24.

It is only through Bible doctrine that we have capacity to love Jesus Christ. Thus says the Lord, "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises loving-kindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things, declares the Lord" (JER 9:23-24). With doctrine as the working object of faith, the believer has maximum response causing him to be designated "philos Theos," a "lover of God." Not just a lover of God's word, Bible doctrine, but God Himself.

Let's note some principles.

1. When a believer is occupied with the Head, his life is based upon the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ. If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. (COL 3:1-2)

2. Occupation with the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the standard operating procedure for the Christian life, and it demands that we take in doctrine and become occupied with the person of Christ. "Be concentrating on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our doctrine, who because of the exhibited happiness, He endured the Cross and disregarded [by the use of the problem solving devices] the shame [imputation of our sins], and He sat down at the right hand of God" (HEB 12:2).

3. Occupation with Christ is illustrated by the doctrine of right-man, right-woman (EPH 5:25-32; 1CO 11:7).

4. Occupation with the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ, is manifested by the function of perception, metabolization, and application toward doctrine, and the believer responding to the love of Jesus Christ. Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves (JAM 1:21-22).

5. Occupation with the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ, includes total dependence on grace provision leading especially to this function in the supergrace life. "Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday (PSA 37:4-5),

6. Occupation with Christ is related to both stability and inner happiness. "I have set the Lord continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely PSA 16:8-9).

7. Occupation with Christ is the basis for blessing in suffering. While reversionism intensifies suffering, occupation with Christ minimizes suffering. And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong (2CO 12:9-10).

8. Occupation with Christ is based on the believer's entrance into the supergrace life (HEB 3:1-6).

The second half of this verse deals with God means of protecting you from religion, rituals, program spirituality, or even obsession with knowledge, and not holding fast to the head or occupied with Christ, from whom the entire body [the church], being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God (COL 2:19).

We live in a world that is deceived, and that deception is revealed by men who are told that have to lay down their life, and study until they are exhausted. For this reason, we [pastors] work hard to the point of exhaustion, and we hang in there tough [keep on contending], because we have confidence in the living God, Who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers (1TI 4:10). These men are responsible to reveal the deception of this world system which is designed to take you away from the real reason you have been created and why you are here.

The phrase the “joints and ligaments” is an interesting phrase, remember that the Lord Jesus Christ is the head of the body, He is not the joints or the ligaments. We will see that the joints refers to the pastor-teacher, and the ligaments refers to the unity which results from doctrinal communication. What supplies and holds together the body of Christ? We have the phrase "by the joints" which is the preposition "dia" plus the definite article "toon" plus the noun "hafoon" translated joints. Next we have a conjunction "kai" translated "and" then “ligaments” which is the noun "sundesmoon." The joints refer to the ministry of the pastor-teacher who is used to communicate to the body. The word for ligaments is used in the N.T. as a bond which holds things together. Therefore the unity that must exist in the body of Christ as the Lord Jesus Christ communicates to certain parts of the body through the pastor-teacher, is based upon the communication of doctrine. The communication of Bible doctrine from whoever is your right pastor-teacher will pull together all kinds of personalities, nationalities, both male and female.

Let me explain why the “joints and ligaments” has to refer to a particular gift in the body of Christ, and why it is the pastor-teacher. The phrase "the body of Christ" is used to designate all Church-age believers in their relationship with Jesus Christ. It speaks of literal members of the royal family using the physical body as the analogy. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another (ROM 12:4-5).

The joints and the ligaments has to refer to certain members of the body who provide nourishment and unity. Therefore, joints and ligaments refer to the pastor-teacher who communicates the doctrine which provides nourishment, proper function and unity in the body of Christ. If the apostles and prophets were still around then it would also refer to them, but it cannot refer to the evangelist because he provides gospel information for those outside of the body.

So, the joints and the ligaments refer to certain members of the body of Christ who have the specific function of supplying motion, coordination, strength, and body action. Again, the joints refers to the point of contact that the Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the body, uses to communicate with His own body and therefore the teaching ministry of the pastor-teacher. Ligaments is used in the N.T. as a bond which holds things together, and therefore the unity that must exist in the body of Christ as the Lord Jesus Christ communicates to parts of the body through the communication of doctrine.

The Doctrine of the Joints and Ligaments.

Point 1. The joint analogy to the pastor-teacher.

In the physical body, all members (parts) of the body are linked by joints or ligaments. Joints are those parts of the body where bones or elements of a skeleton join. Joints permit motion and coordination of the human body. Ligaments are tissue used to connect joint extremities and can also be tough tissue used to support an organ of the body. In 1Co 12 different parts of the body represent different spiritual gifts in the royal family of God. When the body of Christ is mentioned as His Church spiritual gifts are often mentioned in the same passages.

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. (1CO 12:4-7)

Notice that there are different effects in the body, but it's the same God who works all things in all persons. For even as the [physical] body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. (1CO 12:12)

But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as he desired. (1CO 12:18)

Joints and ligaments provide motion, coordination, strength, and body action. At the moment of salvation, one of the forty things we receive is a spiritual gift. Different parts of the body represent the variety of differences among believers from the standpoint of spiritual gifts, growth, progress, function, and personality. Just as there are differences in joints of the body, so there are differences among pastor-teachers. The spiritual gift is given to many different types of personalities. Men with the gift of evangelism have personalities designed to attract, and hold the attention of unbelievers so they might understand the issue of the gospel. However, the word "joint" does not apply to the evangelist, but only to the pastor-teacher, the one who communicates doctrine for the body's spiritual growth. Just like the joints in your physical body have to function every day, the pastor-teacher has to communicate doctrine every day. His responsibility is to inculcate his congregation with Bible doctrine, which is an entirely different type of ministry than evangelism.

Pastors have different types of personalities. However, the casting director is God the Holy Spirit. But one and the same spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills (1CO 12:11). The spiritual gift is given, however every pastor must have preparation and persistence. He must teach line upon line, precept upon precept. Pastors who teach doctrine have a variety of personalities, vocations, attitudes, activities, and functions in life. All the members of the royal family of God are analogous to the "Body of Christ," all linked together by the doctrinal teaching of the pastor. The emphasis of this doctrinal teaching must focus on the mystery doctrine of the Church-age, found in the epistles. The pastor's function must not be related to his personality, but to the content of his message. The less the message content, the more the emotional preaching and nonsense. You can receive limited blessing from reading the Bible for yourself, but you can never learn how to execute the PPOG from that method.

Point 2. Joints Are the Basis for Exercise and Building Strength in the Body.

First, without joints, the human body would degenerate and deteriorate. Likewise, without the faithful function of pastor-teachers, the body of Christ or royal family of God would lack spiritual growth and retrogress from lack of spiritual food, vitality, and power. This is the reason why believers get involved with asceticism, religion, legalism, and emotionalism. They do not stay occupied with the Head of the body, and they reject the joints and ligaments that the Lord supplies for spiritual growth.

Secondly, muscle is constructed from consistent exercise, which involves the use of the joints. Repetitious beneficial exercise involves the consistent function of the joints which is analogous to the faithful and consistent teaching of Bible doctrine by your right pastor-teacher.

But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; (1TI 4:7)

The organization of your time, the setting up of your priorities is very important. Godliness is simply a lifestyle for the "spiritual" believer. It requires self-discipline and organization to execute the PPOG even if you have Bible doctrine as your number 1 priority. There are many times when you do not want to come to Bible class. Many legitimate and even illegitimate reasons are given. However, it takes a lot of self-discipline to get here. Then once you get here it takes more self-discipline to listen, especially if it's not your favorite subject. For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, it holds promise for this life and the life to come (1TI 4:8). There is profit in physical exercise but it's only for a short time. You have to be consistent for exercise to be profitable. Godliness, or living the spiritual life, is the result of consistency in the perception of doctrine. Your consistency is very important because the doctrine you learn today is going to carry you for a short time. That's another reason why doctrines have to be repeated and are repeated in certain books of the Bible.

The word discipline means to drive on or something performed or practiced in order to develop skill. Anyone can exercise even in the spiritual realm, but for a person to stick with it consistently takes character. Exercise for the Royal family in the congregation of the local church means:

1) self-discipline

2) assembling together

3) concentrating on the teaching

4) good-manners

5) silence.

6) not commenting

7) not disturbing

8) not moving-around

9) objectivity

10) persistence in spite of distraction.

So, exercise in the spiritual realm is used in the Bible to reveal how we grow spiritually!

For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the righteous word, for he is a babe. But solid food [solid doctrine] is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. (HEB 5:13-14)

Point 3. Joints provide body action.

By analogy, every function and action in life must be motivated by thought energy, the divine viewpoint printed on the neurons of the brain in the form of metabolized doctrine. Two categories of doctrine cause you to grow spiritually: 1) Epignosis is the metabolized doctrine that goes into your right lobe. 2) Sophia is the metabolized doctrine on the launching pad of your right lobe being applied to experience in life. You can only receive those two categories of doctrine through the function of perception and metabolization of doctrine from the pastor-teacher who communicates the Word of God accurately.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.