Sunday, February 24, 2013

Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Feb 25, 2013

The Doctrine of Motivation & Introduction to the Divine Decrees.

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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!

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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:


The Doctrine of Motivation & Introduction to the Divine Decrees.



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



Motivation is a great principle in the Christian way of life. During the depression years, there were many people who had at least one college degree who found themselves without a job, and in dire circumstances. These people would therefore have to get a job dishwashing, or being a busboy or pumping gas, and often these people were told they were over-qualified for the job. This is an erroneous concept, of course, and has certainly destroyed a great deal of capacity for life for many. If you are starving you are never overqualified for any job. You are motivated to make enough money to stay alive during some financial crisis. So the term over-qualification has become a common term, but what it really means is lack of motivation. No one is over-qualified for anything if their motivation is correct. None of us are over-qualified in the Plan of God, because none of us can ever learn enough Bible doctrine. After all we are left here in order to advance to maturity, in order to receive the imputation of divine blessing from the justice of God, to the imputed righteousness of God.

This has led us to take a look at the Doctrine of Motivation. Motivation is not only what makes people tick, but it will be the basis for the evaluation of your life at the judgment seat of Christ. 2CO 5:10 “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or worthless.” In 1CO 3:13 “Each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.”

Point 1. Definition.

A) Motivation is what is located inside the individual's soul impelling or inciting action. Everything you do in life has some type of motivation behind it even if it's from the subconscious. B) Motivation is the mental and/or the emotional incentive or impulse. Mental attitude is not emotional. You can do things that you don't feel like doing, but you do it because your mental attitude says it is the right thing to do, and that is proper motivation. You do not have to feel like doing something in order for it to be genuine or to produce divine good. JAM 4:17 “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin.” Mental attitude is the key to motivation, not feelings or emotions. C) A motive is any thought which determines a choice or induces action. Proper motivation can encourage, influence, or convince an individual to do what is right. However, doing what is right is not the ultimate purpose; it is the motivation which is most significant. PRO 16:2 “All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, But the Lord weighs the motives.” D) As a part of motivation we have inducement which is an attractive consideration held out to persuade. It is something within that helps bring about an action or the desired result. E) There is also impulse which is an involuntary feeling prompting to act. Many people do things based upon an impulse which is a sudden wish or urge that promotes a certain act or feeling. That's not necessarily good, but it is still a part of motivation. That's why if you have an urge or a feeling to do something, you should check into the word of God and receive divine guidance from Bible doctrine. Peter had an impulse to try to stop the Lord from going to Jerusalem where he would suffer MAT 16:21-23). Peter had a sincere impulse, but he was sincerely wrong. F) Therefore, motivation is a mental state or emotional force which induces an act of volition. The Lord will test your motivation even if it's from the emotions, PSA 7:9 “For the righteous God tests the right lobes and the emotions [reins].” G) Motivation is the design or object one has in any action; it is one's intention or purpose. This is important because in 1CO 4:5 we read, “Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, {but wait} until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of {men's} hearts; and then each man's praise will come to him from God.”

So, our motivation or reasons for why we do what we do, give what we give, serve how we serve, learn what we learn, will be evaluated. In the Christian life, the believer is either motivated by Bible doctrine in the soul, and the filling of the Holy Spirit, which produces personal love for God, or by the lust pattern of the old sin nature and Satan's cosmic system which produces good and evil. This is why JAM 4:3 says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your lusts.” Your attitude toward doctrine and spiritual growth determines proper motivation.

Point 2. The Word of God is the critic of motivation (HEB 4:12).

Doctrine judges your motivation. As you sit and listen to doctrine, there are certain areas of your life where doctrine hits you right between the eyes. This is because the Bible is a book that is alive and active, it is said to be sharper than any two-edged sword. HEB 4:12 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge,” Our Lord said it another way in JOH 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” Now, as a result of the Word of God being living and active, it does two things, and it works for two reasons. If you look closely at verse 12 you will see the things that it does and at verse 13, the reason why it works! First, what does it do? In verse 12, it pierces; this is the Greek word diikneomai, and it means to cut through. The Word of God cuts through the garbage, confusion, excuses, rationalization, and it cuts through the tradition. Notice how far it pierces, as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow. This means to the innermost intimacies of man's being, the human soul and the human spirit. The second thing that God's word does: It judges! We get the word critic from the Greek word kritikos which here is translated judge. The word means to critique, judge, discern, or to evaluate. The word of God will critique, judge, discern and evaluate your intentions and motivations in life. In fact, our Lord said this in JOH 12:47-48, “And if anyone hears My doctrines, and does not guard them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My doctrines, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.”

What is it about God's word that regardless of culture, age, sex, or circumstance, when it is learned and believed, it works? HEB 4:13 “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” It works because it is universal in scope; no one is hidden from God's sight. He knows everything about us including our innermost secrets, all the skeletons in our closet, and all the mistakes we are going to make for the rest of our life. When God deals with a subject all things are exposed. Secondly, it is limitless in exposure. God's two-edged sword reveals the thoughts of the heart and the motivation behind our actions. It is able to go beyond the action to the very motive. God is able to expose and reveal to us the true meaning behind our thoughts, our words, and our actions, that is, if we would simply listen to His truths.

Point 3. Evil is the source of anti-Christian motivation.

PSA 21:11 “Though they were motivated to do evil against Thee, and devised a plot, They will not succeed.” Speaking of the Exodus generation 1CO 10:5-6 says, “Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low [the sin unto death] in the desert. Now these things happened as examples for us, that we should not crave evil things, as they also craved.” There is false motivation. Our Lord brought out evil motivation in MAR 7:14-23
as well.

Point 4. False motivation hinders spiritual growth.

There are a lot of people who do the right thing, but they do it in the wrong way, with false motivation. They give, serve, pray, learn, they even apply what they learn, but they do it with false motivation. PHI 2:14 “Keep on doing all things without sullen discontent [without pouting] or argumentations [which undermine authority].” If you're going to reach the different stages of spiritual growth, advance in the Christian way of life, you must do it under the authority of your right pastor, without argumentations which undermine that authority. JOB 17:11 which describes Job in reversionism says, “My days are past, my motivations are torn apart, Even the desires of my right lobe.” False motivation hinders spiritual growth; this means a good deed may be promoted by a bad motive.

Point 5. Divine motivation is the grace of God as seen in the Predesigned Plan of God (ROM 8:28; ROM 9:11; EPH 1:11; EPH 3:11; 2TI 1:9).

It is described by the Greek word prothesis. Grace and impersonal love are the motivators of the essence of God, while justice is the action of the essence of God. All correct motivation is related to prothesis and God's Predesigned Plan of grace. All divine motivation is epitomized by the one word, grace.

Point 6. The great issue in spiritual giving is motivation.

2CO 9:7 “Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart [been motivated in his right lobe]; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful or a joyful giver.”

Point 7. For the mature believer, God turns evil motivation into grace blessing (GEN 50:20, DEU 23:5).

DEU 23:5b “but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the LORD your God loves you.”

GEN 50:20 “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.”

Point 8. The motivation of the mature believer is often maligned (EXO 17:3). No one has been more maligned than Moses who was a mature believer with great humility and great motivation. EXO 17:3 “But the people thirsted there for water; and they complained against Moses and said, ‘Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?”’ There was nothing wrong with Moses' motivation, but everything wrong with those who criticized Moses' motivation. They did so because Moses was a constant challenge to their pride until finally their pride blew up and triggered the mechanism of jealousy, vindictiveness, implacability. All of this was filed into the soul where they combined with evil, and this explains all of the maligning that came in the direction of Moses.


Having looked at motivation, we are now begin our study of Romans chapter 9. ROM 9:1-6, “I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel;” Then in ROM 9:11-26, “for though the twins were not yet born, and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God's purpose according to His choice might stand, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.” Just as it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.” So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use, and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. As He says also in Hosea, “I will call those who were not My people, 'My people,' And her who was not beloved, 'beloved.’” And it shall be that in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not My people,’ There they shall be called sons of the living God.”

We have come to that section of the Word of God where we must learn certain doctrines which are pertinent to our application to life on a daily basis. We are here to glorify God. We are also to have capacity and an enjoyment for life. We are here to find the true meaning and purpose and definition of life, as it relates to being a member of the Royal Family of God, and therefore a stranger in cosmos diabolicous. We are left here for many reasons, which demand that we learn, understand, and apply Bible doctrine. We will approach this from the standpoint of the doctrine of the Divine Decrees, for this is the secret to the interpretation of Romans chapter 9. We will see how the omniscience of God is one of several attributes that must be understood. It is also a part of God’s knowledge. God’s eternal knowledge of Himself is the first category, omniscience is the second, and foreknowledge is the third. Billions of years ago in eternity past, the omniscience of God knew every thought, every freewill decision, and every action of every person who would ever live. All of this was fed into a giant computer if you will, which is actually categorized theologically by two things. The first is Divine Decrees, and the second is foreordination. Only facts, which we call actualities, were fed into this computer. That means the actual decisions. Now, there were many probabilities which were not included. These are the things, events, etc. that could have happened, but did not. While the omniscience of God knows the result of all of the probabilities that could ever be, nevertheless, they were not entered into the computer. Only true facts were entered, then these facts, of course, must be categorized. For example, we have believers and unbelievers in history. The omniscience of God therefore has facts about the believer in the computer. So we get a printout that we call election. We get another printout called foreknowledge; this is a part of the perfect Plan of God. Then we have, of course, another printout, which comes from foreordination, which we simply call predestination. There is also the printout called justification. We have many printouts regarding the believer. None of these printouts have anything to do with the unbeliever. The unbeliever is never said to be elected or foreknown. The unbeliever is not predestined to heaven, nor is he predestined to hell, he’s not said to be justified or sanctified, for those printouts are for the believer only, and they are stored in this computer of Divine Decrees. There are many printouts concerning the unbeliever: Condemnation, reprobation, judgment and so on. These are for the unbeliever only. This is only one of many categories of this printout of information from the Divine Decrees, and therefore this computer of Divine Decrees contains all of the facts and all of the information of history.

So, let's begin the subject of the doctrine of divine decrees.

Point 1. Definition and description.
The decree of God refers to His eternal (always existed), Holy (perfect integrity), wise (the application of omniscience to creation), and sovereign purpose, comprehending simultaneously all things that ever were or will be in their causes, conditions (status), successions (interaction with others that leads to certain
decisions), relations, and determining the certainty of their future.

This definition begins by expressing the source of the decrees which is found in the word "comprehending" referring to the omniscience of God. The definition emphasizes that the omniscience of God knew simultaneously in eternity past everything that would happen in human history (the thought, action, and decision of every person in his life). Furthermore, the omniscience of God knew everything in relation to all of the things pertaining to it. So that the several contents of this one eternal purpose are, because of the limitations of our faculties, necessarily perceived by us in partial aspects and logical relations (from Scripture). Therefore, we classify the decrees as being plural, but in reality it is all one decree.

While all of this will be technical, it is very important for you to understand this because, while it is technical, it is a reminder to you that billions and billions of years ago before man existed God had you personally in mind. EPH 1:3-6, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. Or EPH 1:11 “also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,” EPH 3:11 says, “This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord,”

So, the decrees of God are His eternal and immutable will regarding the future existence of all events which will happen in time and the precise manner and order of their occurrence. The term decrees means the eternal plan by which God has rendered certain all of the events of the universe (angelic history, human history) past, present, and future. So the decrees of God are the chosen and adopted plan of God for all of His works. The decrees of God are His eternal purpose according to the counsels of His own will whereby for His own glory He has foreordained whatever comes to pass.

2TI 1:8-9, “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me His prisoner; but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity,”

The decrees are the all-inclusive will and purpose of God concerning all that ever was or ever will be, which originates wholly within Himself. The fact that our life hangs by a fine thread for His glory, and His satisfaction, ought to cause all believers to take their calling and election seriously.

* * * * * * * * * *

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.

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Internet Church Service, Sunday, Feb 24, 2012

This week’s sermon title:
Goodness. The Lord Jesus Christ went about doing good. - Thomas Cotroneo.

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Today’s Sermon Message:

Goodness. The Lord Jesus Christ went about doing good. - Thomas Cotroneo.

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!!

# # # # # # # #

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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

The Lord’s Prayer – Lyrics in video
(You can skip the commercial if there is one)



Hymn #2

Thy Word – 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!

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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:



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


(To view the sermon right click the above link then click on open in “new window” or “new tab” and 3 windows will open – 1) audio or video player which should start automatically, 2) slide show, 3) note pad. When finished return to previous window or tab to finish the service with Hymn and Prayer.)


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

Wayfaring Stranger – Spiritual Warfare – 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.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Feb 18, 2013

The Faithfulness of God.

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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!

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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:


The Faithfulness of God.



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



The Doctrine of the Faithfulness of God.

Point 1. Definition.

If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, there is only one person who is totally faithful to you and that is God. He can only be faithful to you because of His perfect character. Divine faithfulness is God's grace expression to the believer using His perfect character as the basis for expression. Faithfulness hinges on the essence of God. God is perfect, fair, and stable to Himself, and He will be all these things to you as well.

LAM 3:21-25, This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Thy faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him." The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him. God can be faithful to you because of propitiation. Propitiation is the work of Christ on the cross which deals with the integrity of God. Propitiation means that our Lord satisfied the justice and righteousness of God the Father. Hence, in propitiation the justice of God judges our sins, and the integrity of God is satisfied with that judgment. Propitiation frees the justice of God to immediately give anyone who believes in Christ one-half of divine integrity, the righteousness of God. This is the down payment on our salvation. God's faithfulness does not depend upon your spiritual status. Propitiation removes any compromise to the essence of God. Divine faithfulness manifests itself in divine discipline to the apostate believer and in blessing to the mature believer. All faithfulness in the human realm resides, first of all, in the soul. Faithfulness is an attitude to something in life which you love, respect, admire, or recognize its authority. The fact that you are alive, plus everything you have, is a matter of God's faithfulness to you. He is faithful and loves you every moment.

Point 2. God Is Faithful to Us in Rebound and Recovery.

1JO 1:9 “If we acknowledge [name and cite] our sins, He is faithful and righteous, with the result that He forgives us our sins [known sins] and purifies us from all unrighteousness [unknown sins].” When we name or cite the sins we know that we have committed, God is faithful to forgive us of our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness which refers to the unknown sins. The same principle is taught in the following passages: 1CO 11:31; JER 3:13; PSA 32:5; PSA 38:18.

God knew our sins in eternity past. He imputed them to the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross and judged them. Jesus Christ took our place, He was our substitute, and God is justified to forgive us because He has been propitiated by the sacrifice of His perfect Son. Therefore, there is no compromise to His integrity when He faithfully forgives us as we name and cite our sins. An important principle emerges here which is that there is no merit in naming a sin. Legalism says you must feel sorry to be forgiven, but grace says that how you feel is not the issue. When we name and cite our sins, God faithfully forgives us regardless of how we feel. Therefore, you can forget the sin and move on immediately. There are four mechanics involved in rebound: 1) Name it (1JO 1:9). 2) Isolate it (HEB 12:15). 3) Forget it (PHI 3:13). 4) Keep moving (PHI 3:13). This is a big problem with the legalist and those who are influenced by self-righteous arrogance. Only arrogant people say you can commit a sin which will cause God to abandon you and not forgive you. However, God treats us in grace, and grace forgiveness is never a license to sin, but is the motivation to press on to spiritual maturity. The basis of God's faithfulness is His grace, JAM 1:17 “Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow.”

Point 3. God's Faithfulness is Manifest in His Perfect Plan.

1CO 1:9“God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

We were called in eternity past when God was aware of all our failures. God found a way to take us through all His grace plan without any compromise of His essence. Knowing every sin, human good deed, and evil thing we would ever do, God still selected us to have human life at birth, and elected us to equal privilege and equal opportunity at salvation. As a part of His faithfulness, God has provided for every believer His very own plan in which to function as the basis for equal opportunity to reach spiritual maturity.

Point 4. God's Faithfulness is Manifest in Logistical Grace Provision and Supergrace Blessing.

1TH 5:24 “Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.”

JOB 23:14“For He performs what is appointed for me, and many such decrees are with Him.”

You should never worry about the basic necessities to sustain your life. God will provide everything you will ever need. It was harder for God to find a way to save us than it is for God to bless us in time. If He could do the most for us at salvation, it follows, the principle of “a fortiori”, that He can provide the lesser blessing of logistical grace support in time. This Latin phrase “a fortiori” means “from a stronger argument.” It is a system of logic using comparison. It is used in drawing a conclusion that is inferred to be even more certain than the conclusions and facts it combines. A simple example, as we have seen, would be that if a person can lift one hundred pounds, he can lift 10 pounds. Here, a fortiori means that since God was faithful to you in eternity past, He can only be faithful to you in time, and eternity future as well.

Point 5. God's Faithfulness in Testing.

God will not allow us to be tested or tempted beyond our capacity and capability to pass the test or say no to the temptation. 1CO 10:13“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.” 2CO 4:17“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,” ROM 8:18“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” We are constantly tested in the area of logistical grace support from God. Logistical grace is defined as divine planning, support, provision, and blessing for the execution of the Pre-designed Plan of God by the Royal Family for the fulfillment of God's will, purpose, and plan for your life. LUK 12:27-31, “Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these. But if God so arrays the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you, O men of little faith! And do not seek what you shall eat, and what you shall drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek for His kingdom, and these things shall be added to you.”

Not only are we tested with regard to logistical grace support from God, but we are also tested concerning our love for Bible doctrine as well as our social life, loved ones, our failures, other distractions, and our families. Prior to the different stages of spiritual growth, we must all pass through different forms of suffering for blessing that the Lord brings in our life. Even in spiritual maturity, we face testing, as did Abraham when he was commanded to offer his only son, Isaac, as a sacrifice. So you are tested in all stages of spiritual growth, but never beyond your capacity. As a part of God's faithfulness, He always provides the doctrine or the opportunity to get the doctrine necessary to pass each test before it comes. Therefore, Bible doctrine is your way of escape from each test, and that doctrine is provided by the faithfulness of God. God will never give you something for which you do not have the capacity, be it blessing or testing.

Point 6. God is Faithful to the Royal Family of God.

HEB 10:23“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;”

You have the most fantastic escrow blessings on deposit for you protected by the faithfulness of God. The more doctrine you have in your soul, the more you see God's perfect character, and the more you advance to spiritual maturity. This results in the things around you, which were formerly distracting to your spiritual growth, becoming less and less important.

Point 7. God is Faithful to the Apostate Believer.

2TI 2:13“If we are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself.”

Since God has perfect character, how can He not be faithful to us even if we reject and deny Him? God cannot be anything less than He is. In fact, God is faithful in keeping the degenerate believer alive for discipline. That same believer still goes to heaven after an entire life of rejection of Bible doctrine just as surely as the apostle Paul went to heaven.

Point 8. God is Faithful to the Believer in the Realm of the Angelic Conflict.

God is faithful to protect and guard you in the midst of the unseen angelic battle which is fought daily all around you, 2TH 3:3“But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”

Point 9. God's Faithfulness Becomes a Reality as You Advance to and Reach Spiritual Maturity.

HEB 11:11“By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised;”

HEB 13:5“Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, ‘I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.’”

Point 10. Conclusion.

Faithfulness is the consistency and stability of God. Faithfulness is the perfection of God's essence and the fact that He cannot be inconsistent or compromise His essence. Faithfulness is the fact that God cannot change His essence and be unfair to anyone. God is consistent with Himself; therefore, He is faithful and consistent with us. God keeps His word, He has never made a promise that He has not kept, there never was a time when God was unfaithful. It is blasphemy to think so. Therefore, unfaithfulness is totally incompatible with the very nature and essence of God, MAL 3:6 “For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.” The very existence, function, and provision of blessing for the Royal Family of God, both now and forever, depends on the faithfulness and character of God. God is always prepared; He is never caught off guard. God's nature is to be faithful. How refreshing it is to know that in spite of all this there is One who is faithful. He is faithful in all things, at all times, even unto the end.

DEU 7:9“Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;” This quality is essential to His being; without it He would not be God.

Now, it is one thing to accept the faithfulness of God as truth; it is another thing to act upon it. God is faithful to us and He is not only faithful to tell us the good things but He is also faithful to tell us the bad things. He has faithfully described the ruin that negative volition toward doctrine leads to. He has faithfully diagnosed the terrible results and effects of sin. So God is faithful in all things. The Bible states many ways in which God is faithful. For instance, God is faithful in keeping His promises;

2CO 1:20“For as many as may be the promises of God, in Him they are yes; wherefore also by Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us.”

NUM 23:19“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” Think of all the rebellion that the children of Israel fell into and yet God was faithful. Many times they were faithless, but He was always faithful! Why? Because in Titus 1:2, it is impossible for Him to lie. In HJEB 10:23, He who promised is faithful. The permanence of God's character guarantees the fulfillment of his promises. ISA 54:4-10 has an application to us and though it was said to the Jews, think how more applicable it is to the Church. ISA 54:4-10, “Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; Neither feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the Lord of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth. For the Lord has called you, Like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, Even like a wife of {one's} youth when she is rejected,” Says your God. “For a brief moment I forsook you, But with great compassion I will gather you. In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment; But with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you," Says the Lord your Redeemer. For this is like the days of Noah to Me; When I swore that the waters of Noah Should not flood the earth again, So I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, Nor will I rebuke you. For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not be shaken," Says the Lord who has compassion on you.”

In 1PE 4:19, to those who were going through some measure of suffering, Peter says to entrust your soul to the faithful creator who will do what is right! God is also faithful in disciplining His people. He is faithful in what He withholds just like in what He gives. He is faithful in sending sorrow as well as in giving joy. Therefore, the faithfulness of God is a truth to be acknowledged by us, not only when we are at ease, but when we are in trouble. To agree with this means that we humble ourselves before Him and owe up to the fact that we fully deserve His correction and instead of any murmuring or complaining, we thank Him for it.

PSA 119:75 “I know, O Lord, that Thy judgments are righteous, And that in faithfulness Thou hast afflicted me.”

God is not only faithful in stopping affliction but in sending it as well.

PSA 89:33 “But I will not break off My lovingkindness from him, Nor deal falsely in My faithfulness.”

HOS 5:15 “I will go away {and} return to My place Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”

God the Father is faithful (JAM 1:17). The Lord Jesus Christ is faithful and is the same yesterday, and today, and forever (1CO 13:8). The Holy Spirit is faithful to indwell us (John 14:16), and to teach Bible doctrine to the believer (1CO 12:13). Understanding these principles will keep us from worry. To be worried and concerned is to reject this divine attribute. He doesn't change and therefore He who has cared for His child through all the years, will not forsake him in old age. He who has heard your prayers in the past will not refuse to supply your need in the present. Therefore a very important principle, God is greatly honored when under testing for blessing or chastening we have proper thoughts toward Him and recognize His divine attributes in action. The sooner we trust Him in all of our affairs being fully persuaded and convinced of His love toward us, the sooner we will find true satisfaction in life.

Throughout the Bible, there is case after case of the faithfulness of God. For example, Abraham, the father of our faith in GEN 12:13-19. Abraham willfully lies to deceive the Pharaoh and protect his own life. Sarah was very beautiful and Abraham was afraid that the king would kill him to take Sarah as his wife. So Abraham said to Sarah, “Please say that you are my sister so that it may go well with me because of you, and that I may live on account of you.” However, when he came into Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. Therefore, Pharaoh's officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. Pharaoh treated Abraham well for her sake and gave him sheep and oxen and donkeys and male and female servants and female donkeys and camels. However, the Lord struck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarah, Abraham's wife. Pharaoh called for Abraham and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife, take her and go.” The point is that Abraham willfully lied, and yet God was faithful to him.

Then there was Isaac; would he learn from his father Abraham's mistakes? Would he be faithful to God? Well, in GEN 26:7, he committed the same sin as his father Abraham, he lived in fear of losing his life and therefore he willfully lied and told the men of Gerah that Rebekah was not his wife but his sister. There was a famine in the land besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines. And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you. Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham. And I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.” So Isaac lived in Gerar. However, when the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, “the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is beautiful.” However, it came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, certainly she is your wife! How then did you say, 'She is my sister'?” And Isaac said to him, "Because I said, 'Lest I die on account of her.'" Abimelech said, "What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us." So Abimelech charged all the people, saying, "He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death." However, Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold, and the Lord blessed him and he became rich and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy. Once again the Lord was faithful to him!

* * * * * * * * * *

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.

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Internet Church Service, Sunday, Feb 17, 2012

This week’s sermon title:
Goodness. The Lord Jesus Christ went about doing good. - Thomas Cotroneo.

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Today’s Sermon Message:

Goodness. The Lord Jesus Christ went about doing good. - Thomas Cotroneo.

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!!

# # # # # # # #

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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



Lord, I need Your grace and mercy.
I need to pray like never before.
I need the power of your holy spirit
To open Heaven's door.

Chorus
Spirit touch Your church, stir the hearts of men.
Revive my soul with your passion once again.
I want to care for others
Like Jesus cares for me.
Let your reign fall on me, Oh Lord.
Let your reign fall on me.

Lord we humbly come before You.
We don't deserve of You what we ask.
But we long to see Your glory.
Restore this dying land.

Hymn #2

When Ten Thousand Angels Cried – 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!

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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:



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


(To view the sermon right click the above link then click on open in “new window” or “new tab” and 3 windows will open – 1) audio or video player which should start automatically, 2) slide show, 3) note pad. When finished return to previous window or tab to finish the service with Hymn and Prayer.)


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




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.

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Wkly Bible Study for Dial-Up/Broadband, Feb 11, 2013

God’s Laws of Prosperity are founded upon the
fact that He owns everything, and we own nothing.

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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!

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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:


God’s Laws of Prosperity are founded upon the
fact that He owns everything, and we own nothing.



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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



Our corrected translation of PHI 4:14-15, “However, you have functioned honorably when you shared money with and entered into partnership with me, in my adversity. Now you yourselves also recognize, Philippians, that in the beginning with reference to the Gospel, after I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me with reference to the doctrine of giving and receiving but you alone;”

In verse 16 we have the causal use of the Greek conjunction hoti translated for which is a legitimate translation. However, the word hoti has many other meanings, and here it is best translated because. So PHI 4:16Because even in Thessalonica you sent a gift more than once for my needs.” On departing Philippi, Paul went immediately to Thessolonica (Acts 17:1-9) and even after he departed, they (the Philippians) were sending offerings. This indicates that the Philippian congregation immediately undertook the support of Paul simply because they had responded quickly and positively to doctrinal teaching.

The phrase you sent, in the Greek, is pempo, meaning to send. This is a culminative aorist which views several financial gifts in their entirety. It means that the Philippian church took up regular offerings. Those regular offerings were the result of spiritual growth which motivated true giving. It is also in the active voice, meaning the spiritually growing believers of Philippi produced the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative for a historical reality.

The word for needs in the Greek is the noun chrelan, and it means that even though Paul was in Thessalonica, the Philippians were still sending offerings to Paul for his needs. Paul didn’t have to dramatize his needs as so many missionaries and pastors often do.

So, again PHI 4:16Because even in Thessalonica you sent a gift more than once for my needs.” We see some important principles regarding this verse:

1. To send an offering once might indicate emotional giving, but to send an offering more than once denotes correct motivation. Especially in this context where the motivation has already been documented as correct.

2. It is not the impulsive one shot emotional gift that counts, but the consistent and faithful application of doctrine and giving under grace orientation.

3. Grace orientation in giving is based on maximum doctrine resident in the soul, and/or spiritual growth.

4. Giving in the Christian life must never be associated with bribing God for blessing. Under the principle of grace, God cannot be bribed, and that knocks out and removes any form of tithing.

5. Grace giving reflects grace motivation.

6. Grace giving denotes grace growth.

7. Grace giving is that spiritual function of the royal priesthood expressing worship commemorating God's grace, and with the Philippians denoting occupation with the person of Jesus Christ.

So far in our brief study of prosperity, we have seen the first law of prosperity: Always keep God first.
The second law we have just looked at is: God's way for prosperity is different than the world's way.

There is a third law for prosperity we need to look at before we go in our passage, and that is the fact that He owns everything and that we own nothing. God's Word clearly tells us that we don't own anything. It is very important for believers to grasp the concept that we don't own anything, and that God really just lets us use things. Once you really understand this, God's laws of prosperity will start to fall into place. We came into this world empty-handed and we will leave this world the same way, 1TI 6:7 “For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.”

1CO 4:7 “For who regards you as superior? And what do you have that you did not receive? But if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?”

Look at 1CH 29:1-16, Then King David said to the entire assembly, ‘My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is still young and inexperienced and the work is great; for the temple is not for man, but for the Lord God. Now with all my ability I have provided for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, onyx stones and inlaid stones, stones of antimony, and stones of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones, and alabaster in abundance. And moreover, in my delight in the house of my God, the treasure I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have already provided for the holy temple, namely, 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the buildings; of gold for the things of gold, and of silver for the things of silver, that is, for all the work done by the craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the Lord?’ Then the rulers of the fathers' households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with the overseers over the king's work, offered willingly; and for the service for the house of God they gave 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, and 10,000 talents of silver, and 18,000 talents of brass, and 100,000 talents of iron. And whoever possessed precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the Lord, in care of Jehiel the Gershonite. Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the Lord with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly. So David blessed the Lord in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, ‘Blessed art Thou, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Thine, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Thine is the dominion, O Lord, and Thou dost exalt Thyself as head over all. Both riches and honor come from Thee, and Thou dost rule over all, and in Thy hand is power and might; and it lies in Thy hand to make great, and to strengthen everyone. Now therefore, our God, we thank Thee, and praise Thy glorious name. But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from Thee, and from Thy hand we have given Thee. For we are sojourners before Thee, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope. O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided to build Thee a house for Thy holy name, it is from Thy hand, and all is Thine.’”

While we are on this earth, God allows us to make use of possessions that actually belong to Him. DEU 10:14 “Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it.”

1CO 10:26 “for the earth is the Lord's, and all it contains.”

HAG 2:8 “The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,” declares the Lord of hosts. God owns everything in heaven, everything on earth and everything in between including the sun, the moon, the stars, and all the planets of the universe. Every bit of our money belongs to God; we belong to God.

PSA 24:1 “The earth is the Lord's, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.”

God's Word says in DEU 8:17 “Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth,”

Most people who have become wealthy following the world's system of prosperity don't understand this concept. This is why God's Word says that it is so difficult for wealthy people to enter into God's kingdom; MAR 10:23 says, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” God's laws of prosperity require us to trust in Him instead of trusting in riches. The world's way is to trust in material assets, and to continually try to accumulate more of them. The more of these assets people accumulate, the harder it is for them to enter into God's kingdom. The world's system of prosperity is totally opposite of God's laws for prosperity. Many people think everything would be great if they could only have unlimited funds. However, close observation of people who have more money than they can spend shows they often do not find any lasting satisfaction from their wealth without appreciating the fact that it all comes from and belongs to God. It is foolish to think that the world's prosperity satisfies. The more we get the more we want. ECC 5:10 “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance {with its} income. This too is vanity.” Worldly possessions never satisfy because God didn't make us that way. True satisfaction can only be found deep within ourselves, not in any external worldly possessions. Remember what Job said in JOB 1:21 after he suffered a tremendous loss, And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Solomon said in ECC 5:13-16, “There is a grievous evil {which} I have seen under the sun: riches being hoarded by their owner to his hurt. When those riches were lost through a bad investment and he had fathered a son, then there was nothing to support him. As he had come naked from his mother's womb, so will he return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand. And this also is a grievous evil, exactly as a man is born, thus will he die. So, what is the advantage to him who toils for the wind?”

Most people who become rich without following God's laws of prosperity sooner or later realize there is no satisfaction in that wealth. We see many people who have prospered by the world's system of prosperity who have nothing but constant problems. They experience severe problems as they approach death, and realize that their worldly estates and riches which will soon be given up to be fought over by selfish heirs and heiresses. PRO 21:6 says “The getting of treasures by a lying tongue Is a fleeting vapor, the pursuit of death.” Often, wealthy people find that the years of pursuing wealth have given them nothing but high blood pressure, ulcers, heart disease, mental illnesses and other illnesses. Everyone who prospers by methods other than God's laws of prosperity sooner or later will find that this prosperity will become a curse. PRO 1:32 says, “The prosperity of fools shall destroy them.” God's Word gives this definition of a fool in PSA 53:1 “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God,’” Many people who are financially successful acknowledge God with their words, but not with their hearts. Their hearts are caught up with making money and with the things it can buy, so in reality money becomes their god. This is why man's methods of prosperity eventually destroy the people who follow them. Prosperity apart from God brings nothing but trouble. PRO 15:6Much wealth is {in} the house of the righteous, But trouble is in the income of the wicked.”

The world's system of prosperity has its price. Financial prosperity achieved by the world's methods will bring sorrow, but God's Word clearly teaches us that God's laws will enable us to prosper in every area of our lives without any sorrow. PRO 10:22 “It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich, And He adds no sorrow to it.” God's Word tells us that sorrow comes from loving money, from putting money ahead of God. 1TI 6:10 says, “For you see the love of money keeps on being a root of all sorts of evil, through which [love for money] certain ones by intensively desiring it [money] have gone astray from doctrine, and pierced themselves with many types of pain.” When we covet money and the things that it will buy, we will go astray from doctrine.

The love of money isn't limited to the rich; many people who don't have much money still love it. They still want it more than anything else in their lives and would do almost anything to obtain large amounts of it. These people are often tempted by get rich quick schemes. By the way, God's Word says these schemes are evil. PRO 28:22 “A man with an evil eye hastens after wealth, And does not know that want will come upon him.” God's Word warns us over and over against coveting, against being greedy, always wanting more.

PSA 10:3 “For the wicked boasts of his heart's desire, And the greedy man curses and spurns the Lord.” His Word says that the right thinking with regard to riches will cause us to prolong our days. PRO 28:16 “A leader who is a great oppressor lacks understanding, {But} he who hates unjust gain will prolong {his} days.” God doesn't want our lives to center around money and the things that money will buy. His Word tells us that the accumulation of money and possessions is wrong and that this will hurt us.

ECC 5:13 “There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: riches being hoarded by their owner to his hurt.”

Millions of Christians have never really had to trust God for their finances, especially Christians in the middle and upper income classes. Too many believers have lived a lifetime based upon worldly job security backed up by such things as bank accounts, investments, equity in property, pension and profit-sharing plans, insurance, etc.

These things are not wrong, but they can tend to turn people against learning and applying God's laws of prosperity. God's people have to stop placing their trust in their various financial cushions and start trusting in God. He'll always do His part, but we must do our part. God's laws of prosperity will show us exactly how to profit even during a coming economic crisis. ISA 48:17 “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way you should go.”

No matter how bad our economy might get, God's laws of prosperity, if followed exactly, will provide us with the financial substance that we need. If and when difficult times do come upon us, we will not solve our problems by storing up money and possessions. If we store up riches, we violate one of God's most important laws. The more we hoard and store up, the more we show our trust in what we have stored up instead of trusting in God. PRO 11:24-26, There is one who scatters, yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, but {it results} only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, And he who waters will himself be watered. He who withholds grain, the people will curse him, But blessing will be on the head of him who sells {it.}

Instead of trusting in worldly riches, our Father clearly wants us to trust in Him and to share what we have with others. 1TI 6:17-18, “To those who are rich in this present age or dispensation, instruct or command them not to be arrogant or proud and not to have confidence in the uncertainty of riches, but to depend upon the God, who richly supplies us abundantly with all things for our pleasure and enjoyment. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,”

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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.