Ephesians (Program #37) – The Gifts Perfecting the Saints

There is a wonderful passage in the 68th Psalms that says : when Christ ascended to the Father after His resurrection, He took with Him an offering of all the redeemed sinners, those that had previously been held captives to sins, Satan even death. These redeemed ones were His offering to the Father

Listen to Psalms 68:18 “You have ascended on high; You have led captive those taken captive; You have received gifts among men, Even the rebellious ones also, That Jehovah God may dwell among them.”

The apostle Paul quoted from this verse in Ephesians 4, but he adds to it, making clear that the Son has now given these ones back to the Body, the Church, even to mankind as gifts.  The gifts that Christ had given to His Body that is our topic today.

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Ephesians (Program #10) – To Head Up All Things in Christ (2)

The notion or idea of an eternal struggle in the universe is certainly not new or novel.  Most societies, even most religion makes reference to the struggle of good versus evil that is larger than our world.  But what the Bible actually reveals is that the struggle is not directly good versus evil; rather it is God versus His enemy, Satan – the source of all evil and the source of death.  Actually, if our eyes are open, we realize that God in His wisdom allowed this archangel to rebel.  With one possible reason being the  tremendous opportunity that afforded God to manifest His wisdom through the church by heading up all things in Christ.  This is the view in Ephesians.

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Galatians (Program #33) – Born of the Spirit to Receive the Spirit (2)

At Christ’s death on the cross, we were redeemed. We might think that the purpose of redemption is so that we could be saved and go to heaven. But, Galatians 4:5 says that God has redeemed us so that we might receive the Sonship. To receive Sonship means that we’re born of God and thereby receive the divine life and nature. Stay with us today as we focus not on our future in heaven, but on how to live and walk in Spirit as the very sons of God.

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Galatians (Program #31) – The Brands of Jesus and the Grace of Christ

The marvelous book of Galatians contains some of the most encouraging and positive utterances in the New Testament. “When it pleased God to reveal His Son in me. “And, if we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Yet, there’s an unmistakable imprint of the cross of Christ running through Galatians as well. It’s a book of grace and faith, and the Spirit of life, all the while not to be missed is the putting to death of the flesh and bearing the brands of Christ. Does this reveal a contradiction or a secret to experiencing Christ in the Christian life? Stay with us for today’s life study of the Bible.

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2 Corinthians (Program #49) – Paul’s Vindication of His Apostolic Authority (4)

Remember back to the very first problem that affected mankind in the Bible.  It was the serpent tempting the woman to eat of the tree of knowledge instead of the tree of life.  Now consider Paul’s word to the Corinthians addressing the impact that those claimed to be apostles upon them as they minister different Jesus to the believers in Corinth.  Chapter 11 of 2 Corinthians verse 3, “But I fear lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your thoughts would be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity toward Christ.” Paul’s fear was that the teachings of the so called apostles would have the same result as the serpent’s deception in Genesis 3, to distract the believers away from the enjoyment of Christ’s life and bring them to another tree, a tree that leads to death.

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2 Corinthians (Program #7) – The Ministry of the New Covenant (3)

You probably remember the story of Moses coming down from Mt.Sinai after having been in God’s presence when he received the ten commandments. His face was shining so brightly that he had to put a veil over it before he can encounter the rest of the children of Israel. That shining was the outward reflection of God’s glory. A shining reflected off of Moses face. But as marvelous as that shining was in 2 Corinthians Paul calls it a fading glory. And rightly so, because in a very short time it was gone from Moses face. Actually this shining represents the glory of the Old Testament ministry. A ministry of as Paul called it “death and condemnation”. No wonder this glory fades.

But the New Testament ministry that Paul declares to us in 2 Corinthians is more in glory, an unfading, eternal, surpassing glory, that shines not just upon us but even out from within us, as the New Testament ministers.

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Romans (Program #51) – The Flesh and the Spirit

The Bible reveals to us three big enemies to our Christian life: sin, Satan and death. All of these three take advantage of our fallen flesh to frustrate us, but God’s approach to our flesh may surprise you. That’s the focus on today’s Life-Study of the Bible.

In these chapters in Romans, we’re seeing the three enemies and how they are seen as enemies that reign over us. In Romans 5:21, it mentions that sin reigned in death. In 5:14, it says “death reigned”. We learned from the book of Acts that Satan has some kind of authority like the power of darkness. These are the three big enemies. Now, in 5:17, we are promised that those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through Jesus Christ. more…

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Romans (Program #50) – Reigning in Life Over Satan

If you want to hear a striking, encouraging and practical word on reigning in life over Satan, please listen to this message and follow it carefully.  We can in our regenerated spirit, by the Christ who is our life and the life of the Body, be victorious over and reign over Satan.

The Bible shows us three big enemies to our Christian life and no doubt we all desire to overcome them. But of these three: sin, death and Satan, surely Satan himself is our most formidable adversary. How to overcome him is our focus on today’s Life-Study of the Bible.

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Romans (Program #49) – Reigning in Life Over Death

Today we look at a death, a kind of death that plagues every believer and we by grace of God can rule or reign in life over that death.

Death is a very real and powerful adversary against mankind.  But there is not only the physical aspect of death to be concerned about.  The Bibles shows that death is operating in us every day.  How can we overcome it?

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Romans (Program #37) – Being Freed from Death (2)

We need to call it by its right name – it’s death.  God in His organic salvation has a way of deliverance from it, a way to overcome it – in Christ as our resurrection life.

Today in chapter 8, we’re going to find out about being freed from sin and death.  What is the death that we are being freed from?

Romans 8 is a chapter of experience and the death here is not the physical death to which we are subjected in the old creation.  When we are talking about being free from death, we are not talking about some kind of miraculous cure for our mortality or some premature deliverance from the power of death in a physical way.  Death in Romans 8 is a terrifying and powerful spiritual source and force that has its source in Satan, the origin of death. more…

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