Good morning and welcome in today. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from Heb 13 but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.

Many years ago andrew and I went down an old logging trail to retrieve some scrap vehicles. It was the middle of winter and extremely cold. We had to use tire chains to get down into the site. There was approximately 12 inches of snow but we went anyway to see if the vehicles were worth scrapping out so that we could buy some staples for our family.

After looking at the vehicles we decided to go home and think about it. On our way home I didn’t realize how far down we had gone. We had descended approximately 1000 feet to the site. The heavy snow really did a number on my transmission.

The way out was all uphill and my poor scrap truck could not handle it. By the time we got to the top of the hill, all of the fluid had boiled out of the tranny.

No matter how much I asked her, no matter how much I pleaded with her, she would not move. Andrew and I were about 2 miles from the main highway, and we started to walk.

I did have a cellphone and called a friend for help. In 30mins or so he showed up with a trailer, picked up my scrap truck and brought us into town.

For many years I drove without second gear because I burned it up and couldn’t afford to fix it, but I will never forget the help of a neighbor so readily given to me and my son.

Do you like to help other people? There are numerous ways that you can help others. When you help somebody else it means to do something that makes it easier for someone to do a job, to deal with a problem, etc. or to aid or assist.

Heb 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Many of you out there today have dealt with the same things when a friend comes and helps you, but today we’re going to talk about a wife and how she is supposed to be your greatest helper.

The dictionary defines a helpmeet as a helpful companion or partner, especially one’s husband or wife.

Gen 2:18-25

¹⁸ And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

¹⁹ 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.

²⁰ 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.

²¹ 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;

²² And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

²³ 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.

²⁴ Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

²⁵ And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Why was a woman created?

1 cor 11:16 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head.

But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.

For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered.

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.

For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.

Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.

For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.

Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?

Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?

But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.

.Ephesians 5:22-24 – Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

Wives need to obey their husband. They were created to help him.

Col 3:18 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.

1 Timothy 2:11-12 – Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.

1 Peter 3:1 – Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;   (Verses like 1 Peter 3:1)

1 Peter 3:5-6 – For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.

Help your husbands, especially when they are stuck in second gear.

Think about those things for today. Lord willing we will talk some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everyone.♥️♥️

tlkjbc wordpress.com

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at some scripture from Ephesians 4 but before we do that I wanted to tell you a story.

Many years ago I was doing some rock climbing out in New Mexico. We had a 50-foot rope with us that we used to descend down the mountainside. We had to hold onto that rope tightly as we went down. If you simply let go of the rope, it was going to hurt because you would fall to the bottom.

God wants us to learn to forgive each other. It requires that we learn to let go of the sins that others have committed against us. It may hurt, but we must remember the suffering that Jesus went through for our salvation at the cross. God could hold our sins against us, but instead chooses to let it go.

When somebody sins against you, do you have the right to be upset?Absolutely. When somebody sins against you, might you hold something against them in your heart because of it? Absolutely.

But when they say I repent and apologize and desire reconciliation with you, this is when you need to leave the resentment go. You need to forgive them from the heart and let It go.

Bitterness is the result of not forgiving somebody else for the wrongs that they committed. They apologize but you refuse to let it go. Think about the Lord Jesus who teaches that if we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. God doesn’t hold bitterness against us when we simply confess our faults to him and neither should we do that to each other in the church. It only results in a bitter unforgiving heart.

Scripture teaches us that God’s forgiveness is conditional. If you cannot apologize or forgive when somebody apologizes to you, you yourself will not be forgiven by God. It results in a bitter and unforgiving heart.

There’s a false gospel in the world today saying that everybody is forgiven with God whether you admit fault or not. They claim that you don’t have to apologize to others, or admit your faults to those whom you have wronged. If you truly love other people according to God’s command, you will apologize when you wrong them. True forgiveness results in reconciliation. It is the proof that you forgave the other person.

Unforgiveness is a state of emotional and mental distress that results from a delayed response in forgiving an offender. It is characterized by indignation, bitterness, and a demand for punishment or restitution.

Bitterness results when someone apologizes and you refuse to forgive them and reconcile with them. It’s a refusal to forgive because of a hard heart.

Unforgiveness is a sin that causes bitterness. The Bible warns about bitterness:

Heb 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.

The Bible is clear in the church that when someone asks forgiveness you’re supposed to forgive them from your heart and reconcile with them. God doesn’t even want an offering until you reconcile with a brother that you have wronged. Chances are they might be very upset with you and you need to go and apologize to them.

The issue with bitterness and holding a grudge is when somebody apologizes and you will not forgive and reconcile with them. Can you imagine the prodigal son going home and apologizing to his dad and his dad would not reconcile with him or forgive him? In that situation the dad would be filled with bitterness and holding a grudge because of what his son had done to him.

Before forgiveness comes confession with God and with others. God is not going to be bitter with us and is ready to forgive us completely.

Ephesians 4:31-32 – Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

As I have taught numerous times, if you cannot forgive others and reconcile with them, the end result is bitterness.

If you took a baseball and threw it directly at your neighbors window, what is the end result? A broken window. If you refuse to forgive others and reconcile with them, the result will be a broken and defiled heart.

Bitterness is so bad that can destroy a marriage and relationships with relatives or with friends. Just as God forgives us when we confess our sins we are supposed to forgive others when they confess and admit fault. I will say it again, bitterness is the result of somebody who will not forgive another when they apologize.

Ephesians 4:31 – Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

When somebody approaches you and apologizes but you do not forgive them it can result in a defiled heart

Hebrews 12:15 – Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

When the heart is defiled, it is no longer filled with grace and charity. It is void of forgiveness and mercy. As I’ve already said, forgiveness is conditional with God. It depends on if you truly forgive others in your heart

Matthew 6:14-15 – For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

Can you imagine going up to a parent as a child and saying I’m sorry but they will not forgive you?

Mark 11:25 – And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Without genuine forgiveness it only results in a bitter heart.

Ephesians 4:32 – And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

Matthew 6:15 – But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

The next time somebody sins against you and apologizes for it, remember what Jesus did for you at the cross. He took the nails and suffered for our misdeeds. Just like Lord Jesus Christ we need to let things go and forgive and forget.

Let’s think about those things for today and Lord willing we’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then but by everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at some scripture from Jerimiah but before we do that I wanted to ask you a question.

Have you ever had a group of friends at school completely ditch you? Have you ever had a special pet abandon you and fail to come back home? Have you ever planned to go to prom with someone but they never showed up? It hurts doesn’t it. The same things happened to the Apostle Paul when his close companions in the faith abandoned him. Just like Lots wife, they loved the world more.

2 Tim 4:10 For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

In a marriage a wife is not supposed to leave her husband’s side for any reason, just as a Christian is not to turn away from Christ. She decided to spend the rest of her life with him, and she is supposed to honor her commitment to her husband through thick and thin.

A woman was created as a helper for man, but how can she possibly help him when she leaves him? Can you imagine hiring a helper at a store, but after a while, they simply walk off the job? As an employer, how would that make you feel?

Jeremiah 3:20 – Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the LORD.

This verse teaches that departing from your husband is treachery. Treachery is behavior that deceives or is not loyal to someone who trusts you. It is a betrayal of trust or treason. 

In the church we are supposed to remain in a faithful relationship with Christ Jesus because it is just like a marriage. Wives are supposed to be faithful to their husbands in their marriage and respect them as you would Jesus.

Eph 5 22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.

²³ For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

²⁴ Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

If she departs a husband, she is in a state of rebellion, not only against her husband but the command of Jesus Christ.

1 Cor 7:10 And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband:

¹¹ But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.

Take notice that this is a command of Christ Jesus. Those who love Jesus will keep His commands. Remember that the Bible teaches us God is love. For a wife to leave her husband is to reject everything that Christianity stands for.

God wants us to love one another, because this is the end of the Commandment. Love is more than just a hug or a kiss, it’s about committment. God wants us to be forgiving with each other in a marriage because He forgives us. Sometimes it can be a very bumpy ride but we just dont jump out of the car when the rough times come.

There are no perfect marriages no matter what some may say. Lasting marriages are kept together through apologies and forgiveness from time to time. In the church we are not perfect Christians from day one either. This is why we have Holy Communion, so that we can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need.

When a wife departs from her husband she is turning away from Christs command to love one another. We are suppose to love others in our community, to love our neighbors as ourselves but most of all, we are to love the one who has become a part of our body and flesh, our spouse. That is a closer relationship then you will ever share with anybody on the face of the Earth.

To make a marriage work you’re going to have to be that forgiving with each other, as we are in the church. A lasting marriage requires work and committment rather than abandonment. It’s learning to overlook the faults of your spouse and focus on the good.

When you depart it means to completely turn your back on something or to turn away.

Even though each of us have our own faults and mistakes, the scriptures teach us that God will not leave us nor forsake us. For a wife to leave and forsake her husband is to go exactly the opposite direction of what God does for each of us every day.

That’s why I’ve always said that if you are planning to get married, you really need to think about what you’re doing before you do it. You’re making a commitment to the other person to stay by their side till death do us part. It’s just like becoming a Christian. There’s no turning back, no turning back.

Is there a perfect marriage, no. Are there going to be mistakes made during a marriage, certainly, but we learn in the church through the teachings of Jesus Christ to be forgiving one with each other so that we can move on and grow into lasting relationships.

After you get married you begin spending a lot of time with each other and learn things in the first year of marriage that you probably never even knew about the other person when you were dating, plus the fact that living with someone in such close proximity can present numerous issues as well. As husband and wife you become roommates for life.

A wife is supposed to stay by a husband’s side through sickness or health better or worse for richer or poorer. Whatever you go through in life or the issues that may come up between yourselves, the wife is supposed to stand by her husbands side and never to leave. It shows her commitment to both Jesus and her husband.

Leaving a spouse especially when children are involved shows a lack of love and committment. Granted, this happens all the time out in the world, but it’s not supposed to happen if people are a part of the Christian church and profess Jesus Christ as their Lord. There are millions of other Christians who believe the exact same things that I do.

When a woman departs from her husband she turns away from the commands of Christ and steps onto the wide road of sin. Just as we are reconciled to God through forgiveness when we come home to the Lord Jesus Christ, the wife needs to come back home to her husband and be reconciled unto him. Ultimately divorce negates this entire process, and leaves a wife stranded in a world of perpetual sin.

When a woman departs from her husband she abandons her duties to Him and to the The Lord. She must turn back to the one that she has left, just as people need to return to Jesus.

Salvation and grace awaits them.

Let’s think about those things for today and Lord willing I’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 

For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” Luke 9:23-25

To deny means to not allow, or to not give or grant something to someone. It also means to decline the gratification of appetites or desires.

An example for this is like when I was very little, probably 4 or 5, and I was at an event with a bunch of free food. They had all sorts of good things to eat, but being a child, I went directly for the sweets, and in this instance, brownies. I loved brownies, and when I saw trays and trays of brownies on a table, they drew me to them like a magnet. One, two, three, I lost count of how many I had that night, but by the time that me and my parents had left and gone home, I had had so many of them that I became very sick with all that I had eaten. 

Years later, I still love to eat brownies, but I have learned to stop after two or three. I have learned to deny myself certain things so I don’t overdo it. 

And this could apply to just about anything. Someone could be married and have a family, but they love making money working at their job so much that it pulls them away from spending time with their family, and they don’t get to see them very much. For someone to deny themself, they would need to realize that money isn’t worth as much as spending time with your loved ones. 

So, we are taught by Jesus that if we are going to follow after Him, we need to deny ourselves the things that we want to do, and instead turn to Him, doing His will. 

What is the natural reaction for a person if someone else slapped them in the face? Usually it is to try to retaliate back in some way.  But what does Jesus teach us to do? Turn again the other cheek. Render not evil for evil. Instead of avenging ourselves, we need to let God do the avenging. 

To deny yourself requires a person to do something that they might not want to do as a person without Christ. But Jesus left us an example how to live, and as Christians we need to follow that example. We need to “take up our cross” and follow Him. 

That is what the Apostle Paul did. When Paul was beaten and stoned, and thrown into prison because of his faith in Christ, do you think that those were things that he was excited for? Do you think that he couldn’t wait for the next time to be beaten or flogged? But his faith in Jesus was so great that he continued on preaching. He could have stopped preaching altogether, and go back to his life as a Pharisee, but he didn’t. He took up his cross and followed Jesus.

Paul knew that any sufferings that he would endure would not matter compared to the riches that would await him when he entered into God’s kingdom. He knew that the gift of eternal life was worth more than anything else that he could aquire on Earth. Like the parable that Jesus told in Matthew 13:

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 

Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” Matthew 13:45-46

Eternal life is the greatest acquisition that anyone could receive, and if someone wants to receive it, they need to let go of their sins, and come to Christ, because in Jesus IS life.

1 John 5:11-12, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”

The gift of eternal life is something that cannot have a price put on. To spend an eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven is the most incredible and awesome thing that anyone could ever attain. It is worth so much, yet it is free. It doesn’t cost a penny. The only requirement is to come to Jesus.

Are you ready to do that? Are you ready to deny yourself, and take up your cross for Christ?

In Christ,

Andrew

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

Many years ago I grew up on a lake about 20 miles away from town. I can remember one summer when me and my friends got extremely bored so one afternoon in the woods behind the house we decided to take a bunch of old Lumber and construct a treehouse. There was no lack of trees in the backyard, we just had to find the right ones for our new secret clubhouse.

We looked around for the right trees and eventually found three poplars that were fairly close together and would serve our purpose.

We raided a bunch of leftover nails that were in the shed, grabbed some hammers from the garage and ran into the woods to begin our new building project.

We were the kinds of kids who liked to have secret meetings, secret activities and passed secret notes in school. It was like all of us were undercover and everything was kept in the strictest of confidence just between us.

We worked hard on our clubhouse and after a few days it was fully functional. The only way to get inside was to go through a trap door in the floor to which you needed a special knock. During our meetings I don’t remember the things we talked about, but we kept the information to ourselves within our tight knit group.

Discretion is about being able to keep a secret, the same way as we did in our club. It’s being judicious in one’s conduct or speech, especially with regard to respecting privacy or maintaining silence about something of a delicate nature.

The Christian wife has a secret clubhouse, it’s her husband’s home. This is the calling for the Christian wife.

Titus 2:5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

What goes on in a mans household needs to be kept private and discreet. Many things go on in a home each day, but discretion is not sharing personal private matters or conversations with a third party. To do so results in gossip, whether it’s true or not.

When you were in high school did you ever confide in a friend, sharing with them some personal information only to find out later that they betrayed you and told everybody what you had said to them in secret?

In the church there are numerous sins that are confessed each day, but they are covered up by the blood of Christ and not spoken of again. They are hidden from view.

As I’ve said before, John the Baptist listened to a lot of confessions, but he didn’t go out and advertise to others the private issues that people were dealing with. He was very discreet.

On the other hand, Noah’s had a son wgo upset him greatly, because of his indiscretion.

Gen 9:20-27

²⁰ And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:

²¹ And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.

²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.

²³ And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.

²⁴ And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.

²⁵ And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

²⁶ And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.

27 God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.

Indiscreet means having, showing, or proceeding from too great a readiness to reveal things that should remain secret or private.

An indiscreet person will say things publically that they should only do or say secretly or in private.

Think about a child who is starting to learn how to go without diapers. When they go to bed one night they happen to wet the bed. The next morning his brothers and sisters laugh at him and tell everybody at home and in town that their brother wet the bed. How do you think you would feel if the roles were reversed? All that is is being a gossip and a tattletale.

Imagine your wife telling you private and personal details about her life during your marriage and then you go outside the home and tell everybody about it. How would you feel if the roles were reversed?

Joseph was very discreet.

Gen 41:39 “And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:”

Gossip hurts and harms the reputation of others in the community especially if it’s your husband. A Christian wife is supposed to be a discreet woman in her home, because when she got married……she got to join the secret Clubhouse.

I think that’s where I’m going to stop for right now but Lord willing we’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then bye-bye everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.” Job 34:21

I heard a story a while ago that when someone is in the city of London, there is almost no where that they can go that they aren’t on camera, or CCTV as it’s known. With near a half million CCTV cameras throughout London, it is one of the most surveiled cities in the world. From the moment that a person steps out of their house, there is a high probability that they are on camera at that moment. Every move that a person makes can be recorded. A person may not see the cameras recording them, but they are there, recording their every action. 

I also saw a video one time where someone who was studying Canadian geese had attached a tiny camera onto the goose to record their every movement to obtain information on how they migrate. How many stops they make, what they eat, etc. Everywhere the goose went, it went onto a recording and could be re-watched later once they recovered the camera. 

Which brings us to what our verse is about today. We cannot see God, but He can see everyone, and everything that everyone does. There is nothing that can be hid from His eyes. Whether a person does what is good and right, or whether they do what is evil and sinful, God sees everything that everyone does. 

“O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. 

Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. 

Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. 

For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.” Psalm 139:1-4

Have you noticed what someone does when there are about to do something that they shouldn’t? Once they are alone, what do they do? They look around, searching to see if anyone is around, because they don’t want to be seen. They want to appear righteous on the outside to others, but the truth is that they are the complete opposite.

An example I will use here are the Pharisees in the time of Christ. Jesus rebuked them because they were appearing on the outside that they were good and righteous people, but inside they were filled with sin.

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 

Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. 

Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.” Matthew 23:25-28

To the people around them, the Pharisees appeared like they were doing what was right, but they couldn’t hide the truth from the eyes of God.

A person might seem true and genuine to others around them, while they are truly filled with lies and deceit. On the outside, they could seem beautiful and wonderful, but inside they are actually filled with wickedness. 

When some people tried to catch Him in His speech to have something to accuse Him for, Jesus knew their thoughts, because He is God. 

A person can dress up on a Sunday, go to church, sing a few hymns, and appear to everyone else like they are doing God’s word, but then live a life of sin when no one is watching. Don’t be this kind of person. Being a Christian is a daily way of life, whether people can see you or not.

Even if someone is all alone in the privacy of their home, there will always be Someone watching their every move. You could be all by yourself out in the wilderness, with nothing but trees and grass, and God will see you. Every move they make, every breath they take, God sees. 

 “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” Proverbs 15:3

“For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad.” Luke 8:17

Don’t be like the Pharisees, who looked righteous outwardly, but inside they were filled with iniquity. The Lord will judge every man according to his works. Do the will of God all the time, whether you are seen by others or not. Because God will see.

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at some scripture from Romans chapter 3.

There is something that each of us on the face of this Earth share in common. It is something that truly makes us all equal with each other in the eyes of God. It’s the fact that we are all sinners who cannot obtain eternal life without Gods forgiveness that is found in Jesus Christ.

No matter how good we think we may be, or how many good deeds we attempt to do, we all come up short because each of us have sinned at one time or another. We have all made mistakes, and all of us need God’s forgiveness.

It only takes one sin in your life to keep you out of heaven, and the bible is perfectly clear that all have sinned.

Rom 3:9-12 What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin;

¹⁰ As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

¹¹ There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

¹² They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Why was the Judaic Law written? It was to convict us of our sinfulness. It has a purpose, to make us realize that we could not get to heaven without help from God.

Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Gal 3:24. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

It was meant to lead us to Jesus, the lamb of God; The heavenly Fathers only begotten Son who He sent into this world as an offering for our sinful condition.

The Apostle Paul was a Judaic pharisee at one time who converted to Christianity. He new the law very well but recognized that he hadn’t kept it. No one had.

Gal 6:13 for neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.

Paul later referred to himself as a wretched man. Wetched means desperately wicked.

The law was referred to as the ministry of condemnation. When someone did something wrong, it only resulted in a punishment or a penalty.

It’s clear that some of us have sinned more than others, and some less but we are all equal in the fact that we all need God’s mercy. The Apostle Paul referred to himself as the chief of sinners, but He truly understood how forgiving God is.

The tendency of the human nature is to lift oneself over others because you feel that you are better than them, or to look down on them as if they are beneath you. The truth is that no matter if you have sinned just one time, you are just as guilty as the rest of us.

James 2:10-13. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

¹¹ For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

¹² So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.

¹³ For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.

If you sinned just one time in your entire life, you were guilty of everything. A liar was just the same as a thief. An adulterer was just the same as a murderer. In the church we get forgiven for our sins and become equals through his grace, we are equally forgiven sinners.

Christ Jesus, who is God, abolished the law of the Old Testament and gives us a new commandment. He wants us to love one another. He forgives us of our sins in the new testament, which is referred to the law of liberty. We want to be forgiving and merciful with others, instead of standing in judgement over them.

James 4:11 – Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

You can either be judged by the law which leads to punishment, or by the law of forgiveness. Which do you choose? Which would you rather have forgiveness or judgment?

Matt 7:1-5 Judge not, that ye be not judged.

² For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

³ And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

⁴ Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

⁵ Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

Some people just want to stand in judgment over others while the truth is they should go take a look in the mirror and realize that they are just the same as the rest of us, a sinner.

Many of the religious leaders were judging Jesus, simply because they hated him and we’re trying to find something out about Him to accuse Him.

Instead of judgement, God wants us to be merciful to each other, not be stumbling blocks to each other but loving each another. God is love.

Matthew 5:7 – Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Love one another and be forgiving and merciful with each other. Those are the biggest things that we should share in common!

Think about those things for today and Lord willing we will talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 

For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 

For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:22-25

The most simple way of explaining this topic today is as simple as when someone goes to college to get a degree for a job. For a person who wants to enter the field of architecture, one needs to go to college to learn advanced math. They need to spend hours of time listening to a professor teach them so that they can learn.

But what if a person spent years of their time in a classroom, but at the end, they decided that they didn’t want to pursue that career choice anymore, and decided to do something else with their life. They sat for hours listening to all that information, but they did nothing with it. 

A “doer” is someone who does, performs, or executes some kind of action.

The same way, a person can spend a couple hours every weekend at church, they can spend hours a week reading their Bible, but unless they take that information and apply it to their life, it won’t benefit them at all. 

A prime example is Judas. Look at the opportunity he was given: he got to be with Jesus Christ Himself, the source of all the knowlege that anyone would need. Just imagine being able to speak with the Lord of all things. And look at what Judas did with what he had heard. Nothing. 

Unlike Judas, who betrayed the Lord, Peter and Paul and the other apostles did many, many great things. They went out starting churches, healing the sick, and preached the gospel everywhere. They didn’t “sit on their hands” and do nothing. They didn’t just hear the word of God and then go and do nothing with it the rest of their lives. They had action, they were “doers” of the word.

God sees when we do the things that we have learned and keep His commandments, and He will reward and bless us.

“But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.” Luke 11:28

“For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” Hebrews 6:10

A horn or a whistle on a train is sounded to alert people that the train is coming through. If a person walking on the train tracks hears that sound, they have the choice of whether they are going to do anything or not. Are they going to stay clear of the train tracks, or are they going to ignore it, and walk right in front of the train? It really is their choice, to choose to live, or choose to die.

When we hear God’s word preached and spoken to us, hearing is only the first part. We need to have an action in our life that goes along with what we have heard and learned. We need to be doers, and not hearers only.

Unless we take heed to what we have learned in God’s word, and do it, we too will perish. 

Don’t sit around and do nothing with what you have learned from the Scriptures. Be a doer!

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in everybody. 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.

We live next to a really small Lake at the end of an Old Logging Road. It’s only about Forty Acres in size and approximately 50 feet deep, but for many years it has provided food for my family. It’s filled with a lot of sunfish and bass which to me is some of the best tasting food God created. Many years ago I heard a story from an older gentleman about the little lake that we live by. Apparently our lake has more than just fish in it. He explained that years ago, someone had to dispose of some casino machines that were no longer functional. Sometime during the middle of the winter, when the ice was thick, they hauled them out to the center of our lake, and put them in a pile. Well, eventually that ice started to thaw and get soft. When that ice became so weak, it finally gave way so that all of those heavy machines could sink into our lake, never to be seen again.

This reminds me of the Christian Life.

When we become soft in our hearts, and allow them to finally break like that ice, God can cast all of our sins to the bottom of the sea, forgotten and never to be seen again.

Micah 7:18-20 – Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.

God wants to pardon us of our sins. A pardon is the action of forgiving or being forgiven for an error or an offense. All of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God and that is why it is so important to come to Christ. Without Him, we don’t have forgiveness with God on the day of judgment. None of us are righteous and none of us are good but God can change that and turn it all around by casting all of those heavy sins into the bottom of the abyss.

Sin angers our righteous God. It upset Him so much that He made a scourge and threw over tables in the temple, but later, He died on the cross for our sins. He rebuked some of the religious leaders, but then mercifully healed the sick. God will not retain His anger forever. When we break the ice of our hearts, and confess our faults, He is quick to forgive because He delights in mercy. Isn’t that incredible! Delight means to affect with great pleasure; to please highly; to give or afford high satisfaction or joy. Jesus wants to forgive us because it brings Him great joy to help us, but first we must accept our faults and come boldly to Him in time of need, so He can bury those sins in the depths of the ocean. Our God is gracious, which means benevolent; merciful; disposed to forgive offenses and impart unmerited blessings..(unmerited meaning that we can’t earn God forgiveness.) It’s something that we must receive. It’s a free unmerited gift that He wants to give us.

Over the years many people have felt that if they did enough good works or kind deeds that they could somehow redeem themselves before God. We can’t no matter how hard we try.

God makes it easy. He wants us to simply come forward and break before Him with a contrite and penitent heart which He will not despise. He will forgive us and cast our sins far away.

Luke 18 ⁹ And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: ¹⁰ Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. ¹² I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. ¹³ And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. 

When you sin, there is a break in our relationship with God. Our sin upsets Him so much because He desires us to be with Him. It’s because He loves us. This is why He sent Jesus into the world so that all who come to Him and call upon Him in faith can have complete forgiveness for their sins.

Micah understood that he was a sinner but that God would turn again to us because God loves to show mercy. It’s not by works that we are saved, but by the works of Christ Jesus. We just need to break the ice of our hearts before Him so that we can feel the weight of our sins plunge into the lake.

Psalms 145 ⁸ The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. ⁹ The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.

God is waiting for us to humbly reach out to Him, so He can forgive us.

Psalms 86:5 – For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. 

Daniel 9:9 – To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;

Psalms 116:5 – Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful.

Contrition is the key to finding forgiveness with God. Our hearts will need to break, confessing our heavy burdens unto God. When we do, God can cast all of our sins into the depths of the sea, just like…..

….The Slot Machines

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, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️

tlkjbc.com

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from Romans chapter 5 but I do that, I wanted first to ask you a question.

Can you imagine laying down your own life for a wretched man? Someone who is despised and lost in his sinful condition. People don’t like to hang out with him, but that is what Jesus came to do, and preaches forgiveness and mercy to this lost world. Jesus died on the cross to trade His life for ours.

Rom 5:6-8

⁶ For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

⁷ For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

⁸ But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

What an awesome passage isn’t it. It’s the gospel of Jesus. God sending His only begotten Son to die for sinners so we could be forgiven. It is the power of grace and eternal life.

Matt 9:1-8

And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.

And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. 

And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. And he arose, and departed to his house. But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.

Jesus laid down His own life to rescue and forgive sinners. And the truth is, that of us all come short of the glory of God, but he still loves us and sends His son to save us. Praise God for His mercy.

Ephesians 2:1-5 – And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

There is so much hope in that amazing deed He did at Calvary.

Titus 3:3-5 – For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

So God traded his life so that we could have eternal life. It’s found in His blood of Holy Communion.

1 Pet 3:18

For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

Praise God every day for Blessed Mercies.

I think that’s where I’m going to stop for right now but Lord willing I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Till then bye-bye everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com.