The Gospel Saves

January 17, 2012 / Richard Garbi / Salvation

Do you despise your birthright?

The concept of a birthright is important throughout the scriptures. In the old testament birthright determined everything from the portion of your inheritance (Deuteronomy 21:15-17) to judicial and familial position. (II Chronicles 21:3) In Genesis 25:19-34 we are given the account of Jacob and Esau. The passage that is of particular interest to us is found in verses 27 – 34.

And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob. And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright. Genesis 25:27-34

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January 9, 2012 / Louis Garbi / Jesus Christ

A Body You Have Prepared

The offerings of animal sacrifice were preparatory for the coming of Christ. They at once demonstrated the need of blood to atone for sin, and the insufficiency of animal sacrifice to bring about the desired change in man’s condition.

For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins.
But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. (Heb.10:1-3)

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January 3, 2012 / Wade Stanley / Society

Is There Sin?

In Jesus’ trial before Pilate, the apostle John quotes the Roman governor, “What is truth?” Though uttered nearly two thousand years ago Pilate’s question resonates in contemporary Western culture. Previous generations considered truth absolute: “true for all people in all places for all times.”[1] Absolute truth is objective which means it stands apart from individual opinion or experience. However, contemporary culture believes truth is relative or subjective. The individual is empowered to define right and wrong as they see fit without any external influences such as the Bible. A culture that embraces relative truth leaves its participants asking, “What is truth?”

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December 27, 2011 / John Morris / Christian Character

The Killer

Jeffrey Dahmer drugged and killed 17 men and boys. Before his imprisonment, he came to a point where he was murdering once a week. Driven by a desire to control individuals for his own gratification, Dahmer committed horrifying crimes. Their details need not be related here, as Paul’s words may have bearing on such a discussion: “For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret” (Ephesians 5:14). But what helped drive Dahmer’s desires bears retelling. When asked what motivated him to commit such heinous acts, Dahmer confessed to the FBI in 1992 that (among other things: “heavy drinking,” etc.) pornography had played a part.

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December 19, 2011 / Zach Crane / Jesus Christ

Jesus is Lord

It’s no secret we live in a time where the name, person and authority of Jesus Christ is often defamed, dishonored and disrespected. In the world, He is the punch line of jokes. His name is frequently muttered in vain. The thought of his very existence is scoffed at and mocked. He’s commonly portrayed in mainstream media as weak, unassuming, unintelligent, and even effeminate – all in the name of “comedy” and “entertainment”. If His existence is genuinely acknowledged, it’s often confined to the life of a good man or prophet that lived and died 2,000 years ago – but not the Son of God. Sadly, this is the only picture and perception many people have of Jesus Christ. But this stands in stark contrast to the unique glimpse John gets of Christ on the island of Patmos in the opening chapter of Revelation.

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December 13, 2011 / Blake Stanley / Christian Character

Put on the New Man

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 There is a lot of comfort in this statement spoken by Jesus. It is an all-inclusive statement. ALL who labor and are heavy laden can go to Jesus and find rest – no matter what our past and no matter how many sins we have committed Jesus will accept us. Jesus makes this point again in John 6:37 when He said, “…and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.” There is no need for pre-qualification to accept Jesus as our savior. There is not a background check or an interview process. We can truly come to Jesus “as we are” and find rest.

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December 6, 2011 / Kyle Stephens / Christian Character

Disciples of Christ

In Christ’s time the Greek word mathetes described apprentices, one adhering to one of the many Greek schools of philosophy, one who kept the company of a particular teacher or simply subscribed to that teacher’s doctrine even if far removed in space and time. There were groups of students who continued their teacher’s traditions after he died (such as was the case with Socrates). This type of commitment usually entailed passing on his wisdom and sayings. As today, one need not be a religious figure to gain and accept disciples. In the rabbinic spheres, the talmid devoted himself to the study of Scripture and the precepts of his particular tradition–one that had been passed to him from his instructor. Disciples were highly esteemed among the Jews of Christ’s time, especially if his rabbi was highly regarded. Most rabbis were, some more than others, and this regard was extended to his followers to a lesser degree until his period of listening and learning was over and he, in turn, began to teach as well.

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November 29, 2011 / Tad Morris / Church

Christian Liberty

Of all the gifts of God, the Lord’s promise of liberty must be among the greatest. In Christ’s Kingdom there is liberty, a special kind of freedom not enjoyed by those outside of his body. What is this liberty? The Bible explains.

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November 22, 2011 / Thomas Kuhn / God, the Father

Lessons in perspective from Job

Often in life its easy to lose to perspective, to become distracted by the things and cares of this world. At times we may think we know a better way than what God has given us, sometimes we question God’s Word. One of my favorite passages to turn to when I need a perspective adjustment is Job 38-40.

Job 38:1-2 “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? “Now gird up your loins like a man, and I will ask you, and you instruct Me!”

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November 15, 2011 / Joshua Riggins / Christian Character

The Tongue

In Matthew 12 we see three different instances where the Pharisees tried to find fault in Jesus and in his disciples. The last instance they accused him of casting out demons by the authority and power of Beelzebub. In other words, they were saying, “Satan is behind the words and power of Jesus.” Jesus then begins (v25f) to prove why it is that he cannot be casting out demons by the power of a demon. Starting in verse 33 we read, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.” We should not expect good things to come from someone who does not practice good. For example, we would not want to encourage a habitual traffic offender to become a driving instructor. A tree is known by its fruit.

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