Examining our lives in their light – Part 2

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This week we are reviewing the church of Pergamum. This letter and the next are very similar and a little unexpected. In both, it was not those who were sinning who Jesus was addressing with the need to repent, but those who were faithful. Jesus was addressing the fact that they had failed to curtail the advancement of false teaching in the hearts of some in the church. There is no indicator that these were actually spreading their false notions, but they were FOLLOWING false teachings which was very much like that of the Nicolaitans.

We generated a simple list of 5 things every church could do in order to walk out their love for their brother and sister in Christ as well as their honor of Jesus in ways which would sidestep the pitfalls the faithful of Pergamum had fallen into.

1. Stay connected
2. Participate in “the Fellowship” and the “breaking of bread”
3. Pray for and with one another
4. Seek God’s face regarding your siblings in Christ – regarding areas of concern and for grace to impart
5. Don’t be silent and be receptive

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Old Testament Review – Deuteronomy Part 2

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Last week in our overview of Deuteronomy we covered Deut. 1, 3, 7 & 20 – Who the 7 nations were Israel was to kill all of and what 2 kings they conquered during their wanderings.

This week we are covering the rest of the book save the last 2 chapters.

Main points covered were:

• The nations God would NOT give Israel that He had already given to others.
• The reason why God gives land to nations and takes it from others
• That the time periods each nations has is predetermined by the foreknowledge and justice & mercy of God.
• The Shema
• The various idiomatic meanings for the word “destroy” in relations to the nations God called Israel to conquer.
• Moses explaining the why, when and who regarding his replacement by Joshua.
• Joshua’s inauguration and commission by God before the tent of meeting.
• The Blessings and Cursings
• The updated and amended covenant with Israel’s 2nd generation.
• The terms of Israel keeping the land which differ slightly from other nations.
• The consequences for disobedience.
• Where Solomon got the prayer he prayed at the dedication of the temple in 2 Chronicles 7-8.
• The predicted future unfaithfulness of Israel.
• The song of Moses and its prophetic scope leading all the way to the Millennial kingdom.

Next week we will cover chapters 33-34.

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Church Letters

Examining our lives in their light – Part 1

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In review and IN VIEW of examining our lives in the light of it, we are taking the last 4 months of teaching on all Jesus wrote to the 7 churches of Asia Minor. This is part of living a life ‘From Faith to Faith’, because it call upon us to examine our lives in light of scripture and look to God in trust to form Christ within.

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Old Testament Review – Deuteronomy Part 1

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Deuteronomy is Moses’ address to the 2nd generation of Israelites coming out of their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness due to the rebellion of their parents.

It contains Moses’ retelling of the laws and judgments given by God, the rebellions of the 1st generation of Israelites, the lands conquered, the lands already allotted to others which were therefore off limits to Israel, the spying out of the land and its results including the 40 years of wandering, the blessings and curses evoked upon this 2nd generation at Mount Ebal and Gerizim, the reading of the law to this 2nd generation, Moses’ prayer, intercession, inauguration of Joshua as his successor and his death before Joshua led the 2nd generation of Israelites into the Land promised to them.

In this installment, we are looking primarily at three things of great importance:
1. The Judgment and Mercy of God
2. The Who and an additional “why” regarding those God called Israel to completely destroy
3. The superiority of the Law given to the Jews

Other topics are brushed up against, but these three took the greatest part of our time together due to their importance and the impact they have on the understanding of many other things throughout the Bible.

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To My children in Laodicea, I stand at the door

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As we are wrapping up our study of Jesus letters to the churches in Revelation 3, we are reading His 7th and final letter which was addressed to the believers in Laodicea.

He addressed this church as the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness & as the Originator of God’s creation.

The Laodicean believers had fallen into the trap of complacency due to the deceptiveness of wealth and possessions. Their view was that they were in need of nothing, which included deeper intimacy with Christ. They were content, assuming heaven was their home & satisfied with life since they possessed every natural thing the heart could wish. In short, they were in terrible & imminent danger, leading to complete spiritual bankruptcy.

They were the 3rd heart in Jesus’ parable of the heart soils which shares heart real estate with the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches & the desire for things other than Christ entering in & choking out the voice of His word.

Jesus, as the true & faithful witness, Who understands the value of all things created counseled them to focus on the acquisition of approved character (gold) & righteous acts (clothing) to cover the shame of their spiritual condition.

He told them that He was currently outside of their hearts, knocking on the door to be let in. Jesus will NOT share our hearts with the world! If they would open up, He would come in and dine with them. This was significant, especially in the middle east. Such was a commitment – and one otherwise counseled in scripture NOT to be done even with a brother if they are living in known sin.

If these saints overcame, they would sit with Him on His throne EVEN AS He had overcome and was sitting with His Father on His throne.

Jesus ended His letter with His typical statement of, “Whoever has ears to hear, had better listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”

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