Bible Study February 19, 2025

James 2:14 – 17 (TLB)
“My Faith Says I Will Serve”

“Dear brothers, what’s the use of saying that you have faith and are Christians if you aren’t proving it by helping others? Will that kind of faith save anyone? 15 If you have a friend who is in need of food and clothing, 16 and you say to him, “Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat hearty,” and then don’t give him clothes or food, what good does that do? 17 So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. You must also do good to prove that you have it. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good works is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.”

James speaks of faith being put into action and helping others in need. Doing what the scriptures teach is absolutely essential to our faith walk. He even speaks to this in the previous two verses. “You will be judged on whether or not you are doing what Christ wants you to. So watch what you do and what you think; 13 for there will be no mercy to those who have shown no mercy. But if you have been merciful, then God’s mercy toward you will win out over his judgment against you.”

How do we see this in light of the teaching about faith throughout the New Testament? Is James replacing faith with works in these words? These verses say definitely “No.”

He answers that question saying Christian faith is necessary and of its nature requires our works to be pleasing to God. I have often wondered why churches are inwardly focused when they should be outwardly focused and striving to help one another.

Have we become “to big” in ourselves to serve others maybe in some cases we are waiting to be served. I remember when attending Cornerstone Church in West Chester, Ohio we took a Sunday and rather than worship we did things in the community. Some delivered flowers, some washed windows, it was a time to serve. I thought at the time it seemed different but rewarding it was.

As believers we must put our faith into action by serving. Matthew 20:28 “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (NIV. Can we find a better  example?

God Bless.

Bible Study February 18, 2025

“False Teachers, False Doctrine”

This is rather long comment but I copied an excerpt from an article I read earlier today. It begins with the words “Lesbian pastor…” Some reading this may disagree with me opinions are fine but they should be based on scripture.”

2 Timothy 3:1 -7

“But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

“Lesbian pastor blasphemes Jesus as ‘drag queen,’ trans activists issue threats at city council meeting.

A female pastor blasphemed Jesus as a “drag queen,” and a trans activist appeared to make threats of violence during a city council meeting in Massachusetts following federal changes that limit legal recognition of transgender identities.

The apparent threat came during a Worcester City Council meeting before the board voted 9-2 on Feb. 12 to designate the city as a sanctuary for trans and “gender-diverse” people.

Worcester, located about 35 miles west of Boston, is the second-biggest city by population in the state, with just over 200,000 residents.

The resolution, titled “Sanctuary City for Transgender and Gender Diverse People,” prevents the city from cooperating with federal or state policies deemed harmful to trans-identified individuals and ensures access to healthcare, housing, education and employment without discrimination.

While critics have argued the resolution defies federal law and fails to protect youth, approximately 200 people, activists and residents, showed up for the council meeting to support the resolution, many of them speaking out — some even singing — during the five-hour public meeting.

Among those who spoke out in favor of the resolution was Julie Payne-Britton, a pastor at the Hadwen Park Congregational Church, which is affiliated with the progressive United Church of Christ. Payne-Britton, who identifies as a disabled, cisgender lesbian, sported a clerical collar as she told council members that if Jesus were at the meeting, He would be “dressed in full drag.”

“The Jesus I know would be dressed in full drag and serving face, or handsome as a trans man, or wrapped in the garb of a non-binary person who knows one gender is way too small to capture their gloriousness,” Payne-Britton claimed. “The Jesus I know would be at this mic with a trembling voice and a shaking body and tears that will not be held back crying, ‘make this city safe for my child.’”

This “pastor” sincerely believes the false teaching she is promoting. No where in the scriptures would Jesus do what she is proclaiming. Some will say tat love is the key and I agree but keep in mind Jesus loves the person but does not condone sin. I do not believe the Jesus I know would show up to a meeting as she has outlined. The Jesus I know would speak the truth in love.

Just as the woman who spoke at the Prayer Breakfast was wrong for what she said (although she has right to be wrong) this woman is no different. Scripture teaches there will be a great falling away in the last days and it appears it will begin in the church.

God Bless.

Bible Study February 17, 2025

“Do We Limit a Limitless God””

Philippians 4:19 ESV

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

I said yesterday we need to take the limits off God. What limits have you (we) placed on God? Do we really believe He will supply our every need?  Many people could get confused by wants verses needs.

What financial limits do we place on God? Psalm 50:10 says, “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” So many people live below their means, by that I mean they are satisfied God is a God of little things and we miss out on the magnificent blessings of God because of our faith.

I am not advocating that God will bless you with winning the lottery but I am saying that He will do more for us if ask. As an example in Mark 11:24 “”Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours”. Maybe our first prayer should be “Lord, help my unbelief.” You are not the only one who feels this way.

He is waiting for us to seek Him on help, wisdom, direction in our lives, forgiveness, mercy, favor as you can see the list is limitless.

Back to the cattle on a thousand hills. Are we satisfied with the blessing of one calf or do we believe He has more for us? God listens to our prayers, “The angel of the Lord said to Zechariah, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard” (Luke 1:13). The only prayer He doesn’t hear is the one not prayed.

Here are some scriptures to lift our faith.

• Mark 11:24 (Believe that you have received what you ask for in prayer),
• John 15:7 (Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you if you remain in Him),
• Philippians 4:6-7 (Bring your requests to God with thanksgiving), Hebrews 4:16 (Draw near to the throne of grace with confidence),
• Jeremiah 29:12 (Call upon me and I will hear you), and
• 1 John 5:14-15 (If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us).

Take the limits of our Limitless God.

God Bless.

Bible Study February 14, 2025

“Rightly Dividing the Word”

Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 16 But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, 17 and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. 19 But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”

Yesterday I was helping Cindy go through some things at her mom’s house, she passed away last May. Her dad will be moving into a care facility so the dreaded job of going through stuff has begun, it fact it has been going on.

We made our way to one of the bedrooms where they had a hutch. Her mom loved to send cards to people and I bet we easily found seventy-five cards of various messages in these drawers. In fact she asked her dad if her mom was on some kind of “pack of cards a month club?”

What fascinated me most was her Bible that was on the shelf since she always kept one on the hutch in the dining room. She also has one in a bookshelf in the living room. I could tell from looking at it that it had been read the pages were crumpled, some had wrinkles, but nothing was underlined or highlighted. She was most likely from the generation that thought you desecrated the scriptures if you wrote in your Bible or made any marks in it.

I’m a believer that God is pleased when He shows us something from His Word and we make note of it. In fact. there are now journaling Bibles available that encourage you to write in them. I also found this “Basic Bible References” card in her Bible. It came form the church she attended when she was able to go.

I did her graveside service (she wanted no formal viewing or anything like that) and I said during her service we may have agreed doctrinally we did serve the same Jesus. That is the key. We had some interesting discussions about beliefs and mine come from what I believe the scriptures are saying to us today.

God Bless as you “rightly divide the Word.”

Bible Study February 13, 2025

“From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” 2 Corinthians 5:16 – 19 (ESV).

Having celebrated a birthday yesterday I began thinking about a comment I received from a good friend who now lives in Texas. They camped with Cindy and I and we became very good friends. His comment was “It must be tough to be an old man.”

My response was “As they say its only a number but the number always goes up.” Then I thought the idea of “all things being made new.” We are in a message series at Asbury Chapel on Heaven. This week the message is titled “Paradise.”

Just stop and pause your day for a few moments and think what the “new heaven and the new earth” will look like, what it will it be like to live in it. There are many people who have never lived in a new home, in fact many people do not even have a home but one day theirs will be brand new. Not remade or redone but brand new.

Revelation 21:1 from the New Living Translation gives us a look. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone.”

Time to prepare for the future is today. Your retirement planning should involve plans being made to live an eternal life in the “new heaven and the new earth.”

God Bless.

Bible Study February 12, 2025

Titus 3:1 – 3 (ESV)
“Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”

How often do we look at someone who is doing something we think wrong and immediately judge them? Paul writing to Titus reminds is that we were once “foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”

It is easy to see it others and forget that we were there at one time. We must make confession of our personal sin and then seek to lift others out of theirs.

There are numerous references in scripture that refer to confession of personal sin. Baalam in Numbers 22:34 is an interesting story. The deceitfulness of the prophet Baalam led to a curious yet humorous scene between an animal with a sharp mind and a human being dumber than a box of rocks. Baalam’s “donkey saw the angel … standing on the path with sword drawn in his hand” and was correctly scared off the road. Baalam eager to get to his payday, “hit her to return to the path.” After the situation repeated itself twice – unexpectedly and supernaturally  – opened the donkey’s mouth. She asked,” What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” (22:28).

What happens next is that God opens the eyes of Baalam to see the angel of the Lord standing in the path. Baalam has been hired by Balak to curse the people of God but Balaam seeing the masses of people the Spirit of the Lord came upon him and turned the tables on Balak.

There are other references to personal forgiveness found in the scriptures:

1. Achan – Joshua 7:20
2. Saul – 1 Samuel 15:24
3. David – 2 Samuel – 12:13
4. Peter – Luke 5:8
5. Prodigal Son – Luke 15:18

The point here is a simple one we all have sinned (done wrong in God’s eyes) we all need his grade in our lives.

God Bless.