1 Thessalonians (Program #13) – The Hope of the Christian Life

In the apostle Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians he vividly describes how desperate mankind is apart from God. Listen to Chapter 2:12
“That you were at that time apart from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”

But in his letter to the new believers in Thessalonica he repeatedly points them to the great hope of all the believers and that is the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and the promise of our rapture at the end of the age.

Rapture is a big topic in the New Testament but in the few selected verses in 1 Thessalonians we have a marvelous overview that will fill all believers with the genuine hope. Promised in God’s word and secured in the shed blood of Christ. He is coming again and all those who believe will join Him at that coming.

“But we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who are sleeping, that you would not grieve even as also the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and arose, so also those who have fallen asleep through Jesus, God will bring with Him. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are living, who are left remaining unto the coming of the Lord, shall by no means precede those who have fallen asleep; Because the Lord Himself, with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are living, who are left remaining, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we will be always with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

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1 Thessalonians (Program #5) – The Church in the Triune God

In all of his epistles, the apostle Paul under scores that our God is Triune. That is He is God the Father, God the Son and God the Spirit. And as such He becomes available to us not only as our Father and Savior without but also as the very source of our Christian life within.

Paul concludes 2 Corinthians, a marvelous book with an unmistakable reference to the Trinity, 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”  But in both 1 & 2 Thessalonians he begins the books by drawing our attention not just to God in a general way but to the Triune God as he says, “to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.“

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1 Thessalonians (Program #4) – The Triune God Embodied in the Word to Produce a Holy Life for the Church Life (2)

First Thessalonians, a letter written to a very young Church composed of newly saved believers reveals the Triune God in the first chapter. But this unveiling of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit goes on to reveal not just that God is Triune but that in our dynamic salvation all three of the Godhead are ministered to us becoming the very substance and elements of our faith and the beginning of our Christian life. A life relationship with God Himself.

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1 Thessalonians (Program #2) – Characteristics of a Holy Life for the Church Life

The more you read the book of 1 Thessalonians, the more you can realize that this letter was written to very new believers. The apostle Paul passing through Macedonia close to one year before spent three weeks preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in, to use his word, power, in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance to the people of this dark and sinful city.

In God’s mercy a good number of these worldly people got saved in a marvelous way. And from that short time of labor the Church in Thessalonica was born. Their testimony became an encouragement to the entire region. And now several months later the apostle writes the first of his two epistles to them with the goal not just of encouraging them but of strengthening them in three important characteristics of the Christian life.

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Colossians (Program #31) – Identified with Christ by Being Grafted into Him

We all realize that the air we breathe is all around us. So, is it fair to say that we are in the air? Of course it is. But, there’s another aspect of the air that’s also obvious, and that is that as we breath it, it fills our lungs. So, it’s also true to say that the air is in us. Without us first being in the air, there’s no way that the air could be in us. Well, what does this all have to do with the Christian life you say? Well, the Bible says that we are in Christ. But equally worth our attention, it tells us that Christ is in us as well. Identified with Christ by being grafted into Him. That’s our topic today on this life study of the Bible from Colossians.

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Colossians (Program #29) – To Live Christ

When we look at the kind of human life the Lord Jesus lived on the earth and if we take His teachings as an ethical standard for us to imitate, we will set our Christian life on a direct path that will lead us to utter frustration and failure. And worst yet, it will leave God’s heart’s desire unsatisfied because the real example of the Lord Jesus was not just that He lived the perfect life, but that He all the time practiced to live another life. This might sound strange and contrary to what you’ve known and practiced concerning the Christian life, but it, nonetheless, is the clear teaching of the Bible. We need not live a good life. We need to live Christ.

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Psalms (Program #29) – The Way of Restoration—Exalting Christ

For most believers the Christian life is one of peaks and valleys.  At times we may be carried in a marvelous and victorious condition with little or no self effort.  At other times we are dried, weary and easily overcome.  In the historical record of the Bible, we can see that God’s people corporately go through similar ups and downs.  But from their experience, we may be able to learn some wonderful keys to help us deal with our own period of spiritual desolation and even we might be brought into a full restoration.

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Philippians (Program #28) – Excellent Characteristics of the Christian Life (2)

As believers in Christ we are all motivated at least to some degree to try to live the Christian life. Well this is noble and worthy desire but the Bible presents to us even a higher aspiration and that’s is not just to live a Christian life but to live a life that is the expression of Christ Himself. If you think that these two things are the same, you’ve better think again and you better stay with us for this life study program from the book of Philippians.

We need to live a life that is the expression of Christ Himself. It seems like a tall order.  It’s impossible by a human effort.  So we want to get into this.   Paul unfolded a numbers of things for us that are going to bring to light how it can be possible, because it is impossible on one hand, so we have a divine paradox.  more…

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Philippians (Program #27) – Excellent Characteristics of the Christian Life (1)

Enjoying Christ or been an enjoyer of Christ these are not terms we commonly used. But we will see today in the life study of Philippians that enjoying Christ issues in a life full of forbearance and without anxiety. Philippians 4:5-6 ” Let your forbearance be known to all men. The Lord is near. In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

There is an outward issue from this enjoyment of Christ. In these verse in chapter 4 we see the description of a glorious outward expression of the inward reality of a person who’s living and experiencing Christ. We can’t experience these excellent characteristics refer to apart from really enjoying and experiencing Christ, can we?

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Philippians (Program #23) – Gaining Christ by Pursuing Him

“I pursue, if even I may lay hold of that for which I also have been laid hold of by Christ Jesus”, Philippians 3:12 and in it the apostle Paul tells us that Christ Jesus has lay hold of us for a purpose, a specific purpose and that purpose is that we may lay hold of or gain Him.

Focus on Philippians 3:12-14 and this conveys a picture of the apostle Paul pursuing after Christ to gain Him. But this happened only after Paul had been gained by Christ. This is a wonderful picture of the Christian life, Christ gaining us beginning with our salvation for a purpose and then our life becomes fills with meaning as that purpose become for us to gain Him. This is marvelous. These three verses just crystallized the whole feeling of the apostle’s Paul’s life…

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