Good morning and welcome in. Today we’re going to take a look at a passage of scripture but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.

In WW2, the allies needed to traverse huge areas of countryside, but there was something that always seemed to stand in their way, preventing them from progressing forward.  Water.  A lot of bridges we’re bombed out and destroyed, bringing the army to a grinding halt.  They needed to find some way to cross over to the other side.  To overcome this problem, they came up with a solution and created something known as the Bailey bridge. This bridge was made of modular panels that were sent to the troops for them to quickly assemble on site.  It was very strong and capable of carrying very heavy loads upon it, because of which it was very successful.  This bridge helped them overcome great obstacles so that they could cross over and eventually reach their final destination.

This reminds me of the Christian Faith

Because of the sinfulness of man, we are separated from God.  We cannot reach Him as He is on one side of the river and we are on the other.  It’s the river of sin that divides us, which we cannot get around.  Our Lord Jesus Christ is the solution.  He is a bridge who is strong enough to carry the weight of our sins.  He stretches out His arms from shore to shore to reconnect a sinful humanity with a merciful and loving God.  We must put our full trust and faith in the bridge that God has provided to us, His precious Son Jesus who can save us, and safely get us to the other side.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

God sent His Son Jesus Christ as a bridge that we must walk across in order to inherit eternal life someday.  We must place our faith in Him and come to Him, trusting in Him as our Savior to bring us God. Like a muddy river, our hearts are muddied by our own sins.  God wants to cleanse our consciences but it begins with a humble admission of fault so that we can release that sin to be carried by Jesus.  Confession is the very first step across that bridge of grace. Without confession, forgiveness can’t take place, with God or with others.

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

How many times have you done something wrong at school but you didn’t want to come home and have to tell your parents about it?  How many times have you broken something that belonged to your dad but you decided not to say a word to him about it? Confess means to tell or make known something, such as something wrong or damaging to oneself.  If you can’t apologize, how can you find grace?  If you can’t admit sin, how can you be freed from it?  If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed!

Psalms 32:5. I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

Many people carry a heavy load of unconfessed sin deep within their heart.  Sin is what causes estrangement from God. God doesn’t desire us to perish in our iniquities, but forgive us.

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Instead of hardening the heart and hiding sin, we must open our hearts to the door of Christ to find mercy.

Hebrews 4:7,16  Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

We need to confess faults not only to God, but also to each other.

James 5:16 – Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

When we admit fault we can be forgiven, but the heart must soften and open up to the truth.

James 4:8-10  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

God wants us to come forward and receive forgiveness.  He wants us to confess fault so He can blot out our iniquities, but we must believe in His Son Jesus, the one whom He has sent to redeem us.  The Apostle preached Christ for this very reason.

Acts 26:18. To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

God has provided us with a path back home, and it’s found in His Son.

Ephesians 1:7. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Colossians 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Remember that the Bailey bridge was a way for many soldiers to to overcome an impassable earthly expanse, while Jesus is an eternal bridge that stretches into heaven itself.  It is only through what He did for us on the cross, that any of us could ever traverse the muddy river of sin.  All you have to do is begin by taking some humble steps of faith toward Christ because God is waiting for us, on the other side of….

…….The Bailey Bridge

Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.

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Note: Any copies may be printed and freely distributed among those who have no internet service. There is no AI creative involvement in my writings, and must be left intact because they are very personal to me. These are not to be sold, and are made public only for the free benefit of Spiritual knowledge to those who are genuinely seeking the will of God.

Matthew 5:33-37  “Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:

But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne:

Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.

Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.

But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”

“Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?”

How many times has this sentence been spoken in a courtroom? Thousands, tens of thousands of times every day I’m sure. 

To “swear” something means to make a solemn statement or promise undertaking to do something or affirming that something is the case. To make an oath. 

There is a saying that a man is as good as his word, meaning, if someone says that they are going to do something, they will do it. They are honest and trustworthy and don’t need to add a bunch of oaths and declarations to try to instill confidence that they will carry out what they have said they will do.

Jesus, in John 14, told His disciples that He was going to do something.

John 14:1-4  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

Here Jesus was speaking to His disciples and He told them that He was going to do something. He was preparing a place for them, and when He came back He would bring them there to be with Him. Jesus didn’t add an oath to the end of His promise by saying, I swear by God in heaven that I will do this. He didn’t need to, and do you know why? Because Jesus does not lie. He tells the truth and does what He says He will do. He IS preparing a place for us, and He WILL come again.

Really, if someone needs to swear an oath about something then it means that they are not always truthful. They are not always honest 100% of the time, so it requires them swearing an oath to make others believe them. 

As Christians, we have been taught to let our yes be yes and our no be no. Honest speech all the time. The Apostle James reiterated what Jesus taught in James 5:12 – “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.”

Yes, or no. That is all a person needs to say.

In Christ, 

Andrew

Yes you can

What is a moment in your life where you felt that you absolutely could not do something, no matter how hard or how many times you tried?

How many times did you fail when you began learning how to tie your shoes? It took me several times before I finally got it right. Do you know how many times Thomas Edison tried and failed to create a lightbulb? While the exact number is unknown, itnis believed that he tried and failed at least 1,000 times before he finally got a lightbulb to work. 

He may have failed one experiment, but he kept trying different ways, and upon failing again he tried another, until he finally got it right. He continued trying because he had faith that someday he could figure it out.

Faith. It is the knowing, without direct observation, based on indirect evidence and experience, that something is true, real, or will happen. It is belief, confidence, trust, or conviction.

In Matthew 17, the disciples had gone through a moment of unbelief and Jesus explained to them their lack of faith. 

Matthew 17:14-20  “And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,

Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.

And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.

Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.

Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

They couldn’t cast out the devil because they didn’t believe that they could. They didn’t have faith. 

To overcome temptation, it first takes faith. Never say, I can’t overcome the temptation. Yes you can, you just need the Lord’s help. Never say, I can’t, because when you do you leave yourself no room to succeed. You completely shut out the opportunity to do better and improve and to conquer. 

We can do all things through Christ as it is written in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

Christ died to forgive us of our sins. To give us another chance if and when we fail and make a mistake. Knowing this, we need to continue to have faith that we can become overcomers. If after the first time you sinned you told yourself, I’m never going to be able to overcome this, where’s your faith? Where’s your faith in the grace and forgiveness of Christ?

Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

No more struggling under the weight of your sins, because through faith in Jesus, you can overcome.

Matthew 19:26  “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

In Christ,

Andrew

Good Morning and welcome in.  Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from Romans but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.

When I was very young, I liked to work on certain projects out in the garage.  I would tighten and oil my bike chain or readjust my handlebars to the right position.  Sometimes the screwdriver was missing because someone else hadn’t put it back in the right place, so I would walk into the house and try to find something else that would serve the purpose.  

I shuffled through the things in the junk drawer but found nothing usable until I walked into the kitchen and came across one of our best kitchen knives in our cutlery drawer. ” This should work ” I thought to myself as I ran out to the garage to remove that pesky little screw.  

Twisting with all my arm could muster, that old rusted-in screw would not budge an inch.  When I eventually decided to throw in the towel, I realized that the only thing that I had achieved was ruining the tip of that beautiful kitchen knife.

This is very similar to the Christian life.  

God created each of us with a specific function, but like a tool, we must walk according to the purpose God had in mind for us, and things will work out for good.

Romans 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Purpose is the reason for which something is done or created, or for which something exists.

If we truly love God with our whole heart we’re going to have a desire to do his will so that we can please him.  This is going to require a change in direction and the way that you live your life.  In the carnal state we serve our own purpose, but choosing to become a Christian is to accept the purpose that God has for each of us in the church.  For example men and women were created for different purposes.  

1 Corinthians 11:7-9  For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.  For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.  Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.

First of all it is man who is made in the image and Glory of God.  The Lord Jesus Christ became human flesh and was made like unto a man.  Men are made in the similitude of God.

 James 3:9  Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.

Man is not from woman but was created directly by God out of the dust of the Earth.  A woman  however, was created out of the man.  A woman was not involved in any part of man’s creation but man was involved in hers.   The close association to man in how she was originally created, denotes her purpose from God, to be his helper as he leads.

Genesis 2:18-23  And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.  And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.  And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.  

And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;  And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.  And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

God has a certain purpose for each of us and it’s found in the teachings of holy scripture.  Instead of looking at people in the world as an example of what to become, the Christian looks to Jesus Christ.  Many times the purpose that you had when you lived in the world changes quite drastically when you become a Christian.

The apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ were called to a certain purpose. Jesus called some fisherman to follow him and to preach the gospel.  This involved a completely different occupation and profession for them.  To fulfill that divine purpose, they walked away from their jobs and took a new direction so they could walk in the calling that God had ordained for them since time began.

Noah was also called to a specific purpose, to rescue all of the animals and his own family from the destruction of the earth.  His purpose involved a lot of carpentry work, as he slowly built a huge ship.  He knew in his heart what was going to come to pass and prepared for it beforehand.  Because he followed God’s purpose, the animals and his own family were saved from the flood, and things worked out for good.

Moses could have been Pharaoh in Egypt, but turned away from it all in order to serve God.  God had plans for Him all along, and because he walked according to that purpose, the Israelites were delivered out of slavery and things worked out for good.

God has a purpose for each of us, and it is found in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 3:11 – According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

God gives us forgiveness so that we can serve Him and live according to that purpose.

2 Timothy 3:10

But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,

2 Timothy 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Certain tools are created for a specific job, just like God has a purpose and calling for each of us, but we must allow ourselves to be used for His purpose rather than the worlds.   People can go and do things their own way in this life or they can choose to be used the way that God originally intended.  We don’t use a good kitchen knife as a screwdriver because it already has its own purpose.  If you want to be used by God and you want good things to happen, submit to His will and desire for you and then wait patiently for the next time he reaches inside…

…..the Cutlery Drawer

Let’s think about these things for right now and Lord willing, we can talk some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody ❤️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Good morning and welcome in.  Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from 1st Peter chapter 2 but before we do that, I wanted to ask you a question.

How many of you like to watch what you eat? In recent years dieting has become all the rage and it really seems to be on the rise. People will count calories and focus on eating things that they feel are healthy for them. In the Christian Life we are supposed to desire Spiritual food found in Gods Holy Word. Instead of focusing so much on what goes into the stomach, we focus on what goes into our hearts.

Dieting consists of making choices about what you are going to consume during you day.  What does your diet consist of?  As a born-again believer we are supposed to be fed regularly with scripture.

1 Peter 2:1-3  Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

Do you desire Spiritual milk?  Each day people have a desire for some type of knowledge in a topic that interests them.  If someone really wants to learn how to be a good cook, they educate themselves by reading cooking magazines and learning how to follow recipes.  Others may want to fly an airplane someday so they eagerly enroll in some college courses that teach the principles of aviation.  To learn requires a desire for knowledge in the subject.  I like fixing and rigging sailboats as a hobby so I like to read articles on the topic.

These things remind me of the Christian Life because to mature in our faith, we have to strongly desire scripture so we can grow into what God wants us to become.

A desire is a strong wish to have something.  When you get hungry your desire leads you to a refrigerator to grab something to eat.  We need to have a hunger for God’s Word searching earnestly each day to be fed.  Our desire for the word of God has to be as strong as a newborn baby looking for milk.  When we begin the Christian Life we start a new life and are Spiritually re-born, but now we need to be fed with spiritual food.

As newborn babes……

A newborn is somebody who has been recently born, immature, young, or having just or recently arrived or come into existence.

I’ve always thought of the church as being a spiritual college, where we are educated and brought up in spiritual truth.  The Apostle pointed and exhorted Timothy to study and to think deeply about scripture.

1 Timothy 4:13,15  Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.  Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.

While others seek after Earthly riches, people in the church are supposed to desire spiritual treasures of wisdom from God.

Colossians 3:16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Growth is a stage or condition in increasing, developing, or maturing.  In order to grow, we must be fed a steady diet of scriptural teaching.  We must seek after God’s Word like a kitten looks for milk from its mother.  

John 3:3 – Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

1 Peter 1:23 – Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

Being born again is a process of conversion that happens through belief of the truth.  It’s the belief of scripture that causes us to change our worldly way of thinking to the divine way in Christ.

James 1:18 – Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Our lives are purified from sinful living by turning away from lies and believing biblical truth.

2 Thessalonians 2:13  But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:

When you believe in the things of God, change can happen in your life, especially sanctification.

John 17:17 – Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

John 8:31-32  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The scriptures are filled with exceedingly great and precious promises but in order to obtain them you have to become a doer of the Word.  How can you mature at anything without knowledge and application? 

2 Peter 3:18 – But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

Like a son with a father, Timothy was being groomed by Paul in the Word of God so that He could eventually grow up in his faith and disciple others in the truth.

Ephesians 4:15 – But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.

God’s word is sincere.  Sincere means  free from pretense or deceit; proceeding from genuine feelings, free of falseness and genuine and real.  It is very powerful, and converts the inward parts.

Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

To grow and mature in the new life found in Christ,  it will require a hunger for God’s Word.

2 Timothy 3:16-17. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

We need a steady diet of scriptural teaching combined with our faith to undergo the process of conversion and sanctification.  

In this day and age, many people are very concerned with what they eat physically, when the best and most important meal they could consume is Spiritual.  Today I ask you all….. 

What’s in your Diet?

Let’s think about these things for today and Lord willing, we can talk some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody💟

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Each spring in the United States brings with it the start of a brand new baseball season. Months have passed since the last game of the World Series the previous season, and now baseball fans can finally go back into the stadiums to watch their favorite teams compete in a brand new season.

The very first game of this new season is usually a very special event as the stadium welcomes people back into the stands. Air Force jets often fly over the stadium right before the first pitch, and many times the ball that is used for the first pitch will be delivered to the pitcher in a very special way. Instead of the manager handing his pitcher the ball like any other game, the ball on this first day will be brought in by someone parachuting down from the sky.

This example made me think of our verse passage that we will read in a moment. Watching someone free fall out of the sky is a rather shocking sight, because unless they pull on their cord to release the chute, a certain death will await them.

A parachute is a saftey device that is only good if you do one thing: pull the cord. You can jump out of a plane as many times as you want while wearing a parachute, but the only thing that is going to save you is if you pull that cord and release the chute. It takes a special quality to place your trust in that cord: faith.

Matthew 9:18-22  “While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.

And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.

And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:

For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.

But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.”

This woman had a disease plague her for many years. In fact, in a different book of the Bible it tells us that she had tried to be cured from it by many different physicians but instead of becoming better she had only gotten worse. She must have seen or heard of the wonderful works that Jesus had done, because when she saw Him it caused her to do something. She touched His garment.

She told herself that if she could only touch His garment that she would be healed. She knew that Jesus had the ability to heal, and this faith in Him caused her to act on that faith by reaching out her hand.

Sin is a disease, just as much as cancer or palsy, and to be freed from it requires a cure. The cure for sin is readily available to everyone. It comes from the forgiveness found in Jesus.

But this cure only profits you if you make the decision to come and get it. When Jesus died on the cross, He took the sins of the world upon Himself and offered forgiveness. He has already come halfway and done His part. Now it’s your turn. 

It takes faith and humility for a person to acknowlege that they are a sinner and need help. We cannot save ourselves. We have become diseased with the plague of sin, and we need an antidote. Jesus has that antidote, and all we need to do is come to Him. He is always ready and waiting to cure you. He has met you halfway already. You just need to meet Him there.

Jesus has given you the parachute. All you need to do is pull that cord, release those sins and meet Him halfway.

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from Romans 6.

Through Christ we have innumerable amounts of grace and forgiveness available to us. When we become a Christian, all of our past sins are washed away through Holy baptism.  If we make a mistake in our Christian walk, we can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need so that we can get it right. Our God is a God of mercy and He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins, but just because we have access to God’s forgiveness and grace, does that mean we should continue to sin? Well, absolutely not.

Romans 6:1-6 

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

The Christian life is about overcoming the desires of the carnal nature, whatever they may be.  God gives a gift of his grace but you certainly don’t want to misuse it.  Grace from God is the greatest treasure one could ever possess, but you want to take care of that gift.  Can you imagine your dad giving you a brand new car as a gift?  How would you treat it, would you take care of it, or would you beat it down the back roads only to get all scratched up and full of mud.  God’s mercy is an incredible gift, one than needs to be respected.  God gives us grace to grow into maturity, not to continue to live in sin as we did in the past.

Hebrews 6:1  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works,….

When Paul preached forgiveness through Christ, certain people were twisting his message around.  The Apostles taught the church to turn from sin, not to live in flesh.  Grace is not given to sin, but to change.

Romans 3:8  And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just.

Grace is given to wash away dead works, so we can serve Him through a loving obedient heart.

Hebrews 9:14   How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

When you continue doing something it means it never stops, it repeats itself over and over again.  Think about someone who makes a quilt by using a repetitive pattern over and over again.  In the church we are to display a continuing pattern of good works, not evil ones.  Shall we continue in sin and keep doing it over and over and over again because we can get forgiven for it and then do it again? He says, God forbid. God gives us grace to produce results.  Paul warned over and over about fruitless living.

2 Corinthians 6:1  We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

Imagine giving a beautiful new bike to someone as a gift so they could get around town when they needed to, but it just sat in the garage unused.  It never served the purpose for which it was originally given.  Receiving God’s grace in vain is to get forgiven, but it never results in the attempt to do what is right, and to amend sinful living.  We are taught to go and sin no more.

1 John 2:1  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not…..

When you sin, it hurts.  We have a wood cook stove and sometimes if you load firewood into it too quickly, you can accidentally touch your hand to the loading area and burn yourself.  After a few times you eventually learn your lesson and begin to learn to wear a glove or keep your hand away.  The quicker you learn, the less painful experiences can arise out of foolishness.

John 8:11   ….Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

When we realize the error and pain of the past, why would you want to repeat it over again.  Why would you choose to live any longer like that anymore?  When you do something wrong, a parent sometimes will ask you if you learned your lesson.  Can you think of something in your life that you’ve done that was wrong that you hope you would never repeat again in the future?

Romans 6:11. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

As a believer, when we understand that we’re dead to our sins, and we look back at our past and realize from what we’ve come out from, why would you want to live anymore like that? Knowing the suffering, pain and the agony it causes in one’s heart.  Why would you want to return to that life all over again? We have a new life in Christ. Why go back to living the way you did before?

Christians are baptized into the death of Christ. He died to put sin away through the sacrifice of himself. Just knowing what he did, why would you want to continue down the wide road?

2 Corinthians 5:15. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

Out of love for God we must come out of that carnal lifestyle, yielding ourselves to His purpose and calling for us.

Romans 6:13. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

The Apostles wanted the church to serve Christ, becoming faithful obedient children.

Romans 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Henceforth means for now on, you shouldn’t serve sin. To serve means to do the wish or will of another.  Through Holy Baptism we die and are buried under the water through submersion, forgiven for our past misdeeds and risen up from the grave to begin a new life in service to Christ Jesus.

1 John 2:1  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

God is doing a transformation and a change in our hearts and our minds but it happens through faith and the acceptance of biblical truth. 

Romans 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

God wants to show us a better way and it comes by following Jesus. It’s a better path to take. It’s a narrow path. Not many people are on it, but it is a better road. There’s nothing good that can come from following your sinful nature because it is a path that only leads to pain and suffering.

God gives us grace, but its for a purpose, to go and sin no more. Today I ask you, did you,

….learn your lesson?

Let’s think about these things for today and Lord willing, we can talk some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody.,💟

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Good morning and welcome in.  Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from the book of Hebrews but before we do that I wanted to ask you a question.

Have you ever thought about how many stages that a child goes through as they grow and develop into maturity?  They begin by crawling at a very young age so that they can eventually stand on two feet and walk upright. They will utter their first words, and slowly begin to learn their native language so that someday they can speak it fluently.  In order to become good at anything it requires practice. God wants us to progress in our faith and become perfect children in His sight.  He gives us the grace that we need so that we can eventually grow into what He wants us to become. 

To become a good pianist you need to progress from elementary books into more seasoned material.  In the very beginning you began as a novice, but it requires years of practice, study and application in order to eventually transform into a great pianist.  This always reminds me of the Christian Life.  Perfection is the action or process of improving something until it is faultless or as faultless as possible.  God wants us to grow and make progress in our faith, striving towards perfection.

Heb 6:1-3 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,  Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.  And this will we do, if God permit.

When you “go on” it means to move to the next thing or stage.  It means to progress forward.  Did you ever get a progress report from a teacher at school to bring home to your parents?  A report card shows if you have been learning and moving forward in a certain subject.  Christians should have a desire in their heart to get straight “a” in their walk with God, proving their love and commitment to Him through faith and an obedient heart.  To do so requires moving onward each day with the goal of becoming Spiritually mature through the grace that He has granted us in Christ Jesus.  God wants perfection in our lives.

Matthew 5:48  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

In order for us to go on unto perfection at anything, we must keep moving forward.  Like a seedling, we must continue to keep growing each day.  When we first go to school we learn the alphabet so that we can read and write but after we learn how to do that, we must use that knowledge that we have been given to propel forward in other subjects.

As a Christian, we know the first principles of the doctrine of Christ, that He died on the cross, rose from the grave and that we have forgiveness for our sins through Him but these things are the very beginning of our new walk with God.  They are the starting line, but we must jump out of the starting blocks and begin to run the race that lies ahead of us.  These are only the first steps in a lifetime walk of faith and perfection towards God.  It doesn’t stop there. Each day we want to become better, to gain ground and eventually through faithful stamina, enter into eternal life.  We want to show God by our actions how much we love Him by doing His will.

Romans 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

The Apostle desired perfection from the church.

2 Corinthians 13:9  For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.

The Christian life is referred to numerous times as a walk, which indicates action.  You walk to the driveway to get into your car.  You walk into the store to get your groceries.  A walk denotes doing an activity to achieve a final goal.  We are supposed to walk forward to obtain the goal, perfecting things in our lives that need to change, and discarding the things that need to go.

2 Corinthians 13:11  Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect,…..

We have grace available in time of need but we must understand the reason why it is given to us, to go on unto perfection.  We want to become converted and perfected to the point that we need no longer need repentance, like a diamond in the rough that is being worked on until it shines brilliantly, God gave certain men abilities in the church to perfect the new saints in their faith.

Ephesians 4:11-13  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;. For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

1 Thessalonians 3:10  Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith?

Just like learning how to learn how to play an instrument, it requires edification and correction to become good at it.

Colossians 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

Prayers were offered for the perfection of the church.

Colossians 4:12  Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

Hebrews 13:21  Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

It’s the high calling of God.

2 Timothy 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect,….

Ever since I was a young child it was ingrained in my mind by certain adults that I could never be perfect, and it was a complete waste of time even trying. With that kind of attitude how can anyone better themselves at anything in life?  We must strive for the best, for Christ’s sake, who laid down His own life so we could achieve great things.  Perfection happens one day at a time, keeping focused on becoming everything God wants us to be.

In the church we want to progress forward, going on unto perfection rather than taking one step forward and….

….two steps back.

Let’s think about those things for right now and Lord willing, we can talk some more tomorrow.  Till then, bye bye everyone.❤️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

On a pizza, you can have many different toppings. You have the normal cheese and tomato sauce, and then you have the other toppings: pepperoni, sausage, olives, peppers etc. And you also have different specialty pizzas like breakfast pizza with eggs or hamburger. All of these toppings are different from each other, but together they are all a part of and make up a whole pizza.

There are many different gifts of the Holy Spirit. Tongues, prophecy, healing, faith, each one of them different from the other. The gift of healing is not the same as prophecy, but it is still a great gift. Each gift is important, because they are each a gift from the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:4-11  “Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.

And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.

And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.

But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.

For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;

To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:

But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.”

The Apostles of the Lord had many spiritual gifts, some different than the others. The Apostle Paul didn’t baptize many people. He felt that he was called to preach to others, and he left the baptizing to others. The Apostle John had the gift of prophecy, and wrote the book of Revelation. He may have had a gift that someone else didn’t, but he used the gift that he had to further the gospel of Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:29-31  “Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?

Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?

But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.”

In most instances in the Bible, covetousness is a sin that we need to keep ourselves from, but when used in this passage it means to greatly desire something that is good. Instead of coveting something that is not yours, we are taught to covet the best gifts. God wants to give us spiritual gifts, and is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Spiritual gifts are a special talents, or abilities, that Jesus awards to His followers. Just like the gift of God’s forgiveness and mercy, we need to use those gifts worthily. We need to use them instead of letting them lie untouched like a dusty book on a shelf.

What are your gifts?

In Christ,

Andrew

Sometimes a person will receive a gift for their birthday, or other special occasion, but they really don’t want it. They might get a painting, for example, but it is not really their “style.” They might say “thank you” as they take that gift, but inside they don’t really like it, and instead of hanging it up on their wall, that painting gets stored in the basement out of sight, or gets put out for sale the next time they have a rummage sale for someone else to come and buy. Maybe someone else will want it, but they didn’t.

Sometimes when some food falls onto the floor, we will scrape it up and put it into the animal’s food bowl for our cat and dog. Often, our cat is far more picky about what he wants to eat, and will turn up his nose at it, refusing to eat it. Our dog, on the other hand, will eat just about everything that gets put into her bowl. It may even have been offered to our cat first, but if he doesn’t eat it, the dog will. 

And this is similar to what happened between Jacob and Esau, how Esau wasn’t very concerned with his birthright and he sold it to Jacob for some food. It available to him automatically because he was the firstborn, but it wasn’t very important to him. But Jacob wanted it, and even though he did deceive his own dad to get the blessing, it showed truly how much he wanted it, and how important it was to him.

Another example: a person may win a ticket to a seat for a concert or sports event, but it is up to them to claim that ticket. Unless they claim the ticket, it will be given to someone else, and it is up to them: do they really want it or not? 

When Jesus came to the earth, He came to save the Jews as their promised Messiah, but many of them didn’t believe in Him or His teachings. Instead of accepting and keeping their Free Gift, they rejected Jesus, and this opened the opportunity for the Gentiles to be saved.

Matthew 21:42  “Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?”

The Jews today still have the opportunity to get this gift, as well as the Gentiles. We are all able to have eternal life, we just need to accept it. We all need to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, and give ourselves wholly to Him. His love for us is so great, Jews and Gentiles alike, that He died for our sins so that we could be saved.

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

“Whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Everlasting life is available now to anyone who believes in Jesus. It just comes down to whether a person really wants it or not.

Will you keep that gift that is available to you, or will you give it away? Will you use this opportunity to claim your free seat?

In Christ,

Andrew