Biblical Teachings

WAS ISRAEL’S MONARCHY OF GOD OR OF MAN? By Thomas S.McCall,Th.D.  Jesus asked the Jewish leaders if the baptism of John was of human or divine origin.  Matthew 21:25   “The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ (NASB) As our Lord Jesus indicated, it is important to know whether any event or institution is of God or of man.  Many believe that the Israeli monarchy was of human origin and …

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For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them. (Eph. 2:8-10) The relationship between grace, faith, and our works, is given in this passage. In short, we are saved BY grace, THROUGH faith, UNTO good works. If we alter this relationship we are in danger of creating a false gospel; a false Christianity. It is a fact that faith …

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A Bible Study by Jack Kelley “In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:26).” This is the verse the Lord impressed upon my heart as I was asking for a topic for this article. It’s familiar to anyone who has ever experienced any Christian counseling, and like many Bible verses it bears closer examination. Translations differ slightly in rendering this passage and the Greek contains some interesting insights, but Paul was quoting from Psalm 4 where the intent of the …

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Dr, Mike Murphy As I have battled with cancer, finding myself coming home from the local hospital has become familiar to me.  But as I found myself again heading home, it was not my cancer that had brought me to the hospital that day.  It was a friend of several years, and the desire to spend a few moments with his family.  A couple of days before, he had suffered a massive stroke, and was now taking his last breaths in the hospital’s ICU. It had been a few years since I had seen my friend.  Like so many, we …

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Reflections Jesus Christ has already won every victory there is to win. Consequently, when the Bible speaks of the necessity for a saint to overcome, it is not talking about overcoming that which Christ has already defeated. Christ defeated Satan, and bore every sin ever committed by every human being. But if this is the case, then what must a believer overcome? It should be obvious to any believer that despite the finished and full victory of Jesus Christ that we do not initially seem to be able to live in much of that victory. If Christ has won all …

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Reflections From the Psalms The Lord is known by the judgment which he executes: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah. (Ps. 9:16) Despite the tendency for human beings to think of the judgment of God in negative terms, God’s judgment is always intended by Him to be REDEMPTIVE in nature. In other words, as it says in this Psalm, God makes Himself known by His judgments – God makes Himself known for the purpose of giving the one judged the opportunity to turn back to God in faith. Human beings are not only …

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John 11:1-44 Lazarus was sick. And Mary and Martha sent for Jesus so that He could come and heal him. But when Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick, He did not go to him. Instead, He stayed where He was another two days. He also said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” (John 11:4) Clearly, Jesus wasn’t the least bit concerned about this situation. He fully intended to take His time getting to Lazarus. Have you ever felt as if God just HAD to act …

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How different will be the state of the believer in heaven from what it is here! Here he is born to toil and suffer weariness, but in the land of the immortal, fatigue is never known. Anxious to serve his Master, he finds his strength unequal to his zeal: his constant cry is, “Help me to serve thee, O my God.” If he be thoroughly active, he will have much labour; not too much for his will, but more than enough for his power, so that he will cry out, “I am not wearied of the labour, but I am …

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Living a long life is a good goal, but nothing is more important than eternity in God’s presence. 1 John 5:5-12(KJV) 5 Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? 6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. 7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And …

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Ezekiel 1:28 “Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD.” _____________________________________________________________ Once while in Saint Petersburg, Russia, I had the blessing of seeing the most beautiful rainbow that I ever witnessed in my life. I can still see it now when I close my eyes. It appeared after a brief rain. From my right-hand side it looked as though it was rising up out of the city as it reached across the …

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Reflections From the Psalms And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. (Ps. 9:10) Paul the apostle wrote, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Rom. 10:17) Note that faith must COME – faith must come to be IN ME. This means that faith is not in me as a dimension of my natural life. It must come to be in me. And the only way in which faith can come to be in me is by, “hearing,” the Word of God. …

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  At that hour David saw Bathsheba. We are never out of the reach of temptation. Both at home and abroad we are liable to meet with allurements to evil; the morning opens with peril, and the shades of evening find us still in jeopardy. They are well kept whom God keeps, but woe unto those who go forth into the world, or even dare to walk their own house unarmed. Those who think themselves secure are more exposed to danger than any others. The armour-bearer of Sin is Self-confidence.   David should have been engaged in fighting the Lord’s …

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The apostle John was privileged to look within the gates of heaven, and in describing what he saw, he begins by saying, “I looked, and, lo, a Lamb!” This teaches us that the chief object of contemplation in the heavenly state is “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world.” Nothing else attracted the apostle’s attention so much as the person of that Divine Being, who hath redeemed us by his blood. He is the theme of the songs of all glorified spirits and holy angels. Christian, here is joy for thee; thou hast looked, and …

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Reflections From the Psalms What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visit him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou made him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet. (Ps. 8:4-6) According to the writer of Hebrews, this Psalm is a prophecy concerning Jesus Christ. (see Heb. 2:6-8) Jesus Christ – the Last Adam – is THE man, which is why He continually referred to Himself as The …

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