JESUS! In Word and Song

WEEK 41

THIS JESUS—

What He Did_1

JESUS was faithful to GOD who appointed Him (Heb 3:2). He became the Mediator who enacted a better covenant (Heb 8:6). Therefore, He was able to save forever all those who draw near to GOD through Him, interceding for them (Heb 7:25).

He became the “firstfruits” (first to rise from the dead) (1 Cor 15:23). He is now seated at GOD’s right hand (Eph 1:20) and head over all things to the Church (Eph 1:22).

JESUS entrusted Himself to GOD (1 Pet 2:23), offering Himself without blemish (Heb 9:14), committing no sin (1 Pet 2:22). He lived for the will of God (1 Pet 4:2).

He learned obedience from the things He suffered (Heb 5:8). “We know that Jesus was always obedient to His Father. What this verse means though is that His obedience was displayed in a new way, when he was faced with suffering.”¹ JESUS was made perfect (Heb 5:9). “This verse does not mean that Jesus was ever at some point not perfect, but that through temptation and suffering his perfection was revealed.”² JESUS displayed perfect obedience and became perfect by temptation and suffering.

He died and rose again (1 Thes 4:14), triumphing over all rulers and authorities (Col 2:15), destroying the one who had the power of death (Heb 2:14). He now is able to give redemption (Rom 3:24).

He put an end to the agony of death for us (Acts 2:24) and healed all oppressed by the devil for GOD was with Him (Acts 10:38).

This JESUS came to earth to reveal the hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3). He came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8)—disarming rulers and authorities putting them to open shame by triumphing over them (Col 2:15).

He came to reconcile all things to Himself making peace by the blood of His cross (Col 1:20).

God the Father, using the principle of imputation, treated Christ as if He were a sinner though He was not and had Him die as a substitute to pay the penalty for the sins of those who believe in Him (Gal 3:13). The wrath of God was exhausted on Him and the just requirement of God’s law met for those for whom He died.³

He bears the sins of many and will come a second time to bring salvation to everyone waiting for Him (Heb 9:28). “This will be our salvation from the presence of sin.”⁴

“[He] is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him” (Rev 1:7 ESV).

ENDNOTES

(41) This JESUS, Committed No Sin

1. Jared Dymond, “Hebrews 5:1-10,” New Hope Church sermon notes, 06 March 2022: 8.

2. Dymond.

3. John MacArthur, One Perfect Life (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2012) 513.

4. MacArthur, 504.

5. “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth” (1 Peter 2:22 ESV).

6. “For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure” (John 3:34 ESV).

7.” . . . Christ did not please himself” (Romans 15:3 ESV).

8. “ . . . Christ suffered . . . in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God” (1 Peter 4:1-2 ESV).

9. “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame . . .” (Colossians 2:15 ESV).

10. “ . . . The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8 ESV).

11. “ . . . Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father . . .” (Romans 6:4 ESV).

12. “ . . . Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2 ESV).

13. “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,” (1 Timothy 2:5 ESV).

14. “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him” (Romans 6:9 ESV).

15. “ . . . he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,” (Ephesians 1:20 ESV).

16. “ . . . Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:2-3 ESV).

17. “so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:28 ESV).

JESUS! In Word and Song

Posted by bonniefaurote

WEEK 40

THE WORD INFALLIBLE

“Holy Scripture should be thought of as God preaching.”¹ “He holds everything together by what he says—powerful words”(Heb 1:1-3 MSG)!

The sufficiency of Scripture means that Scripture contains all the words of God which he intends his people to have at each stage of redemptive history, and that it contains everything we need God to tell us for salvation, for trusting him perfectly, and obeying him perfectly.²

“At each stage in redemptive history, the things that God had revealed were for his people for that time, and they were to study, believe, and obey those things.”³

[A]t the time of the death of Moses, the first five books of our Old Testament were sufficient for God’s people at that time. But God directed later authors to add more, so that Scripture would be sufficient for believers in those subsequent times. For Christians today, the words from God which we have in the Old and New Testaments together are sufficient for us during the church age.⁴

Scripture leads to a Person, not just truths. All Scripture points to Jesus’ death and resurrection, to forgiveness, and to personal knowledge of God through him. [We] should come to Scripture humbly, expecting to learn and be corrected, willing to observe Scripture closely and accept whatever [we] find.⁵

“We find Christ in all the Scriptures. In the Old Testament He is predicted, in the Gospels He is revealed, in Acts He is preached, in the epistles He is explained, and in Revelation He is expected.”⁶

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them”(Matt 5:17 ESV). Here Christ was emphasizing both the inspiration and the enduring authority of all Scripture. He was specifically affirming the utter inerrancy and absolute authority of the OT as the Word of God. [N]othing has passed from the law, but rather every aspect of the law has been fulfilled in him.⁷

“[T]rue knowledge of God includes understanding everything from his perspective. It is to learn what God loves and hates, and to see, hear, think, and act the way he does.”⁸

“To understand God’s Word, we must totally disregard our own wisdom and rest in utter dependence on the Spirit of God to interpret it for us.”⁹

“[Through the mire and through the slough, through the flood and through the flame, follow Jesus and the Word infallible.”¹⁰

ENDNOTES

(40) We’ll Stand on GOD’s Word

1. J. I. Packer, God Has Spoken (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979) 97.

2. Wayne Grudem, The Gift of Prophecy (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1988, 2000) 250.

3. Grudem, 261.

4. Grudem.

5. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2561.

6. Alistair Begg

7. John MacArthur, One Perfect Life (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2012) 139.

8. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2505.

9. R. A. Torrey, God’s Power in Your Life (New Kensington, PA: Whitaker House, 1982) 72-73.

10. Charles Spurgeon, Spiritual warfare in a Believer’s Life (Lynnwood, WA: Emerald Books, 1993) 80.

11. R. Kelso Carter, “Standing on the Promises,” 1886, Hymnary, 2 August 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/standing_on_the_promises_of_christ_my_ki.

12. Charles Spurgeon, Spiritual warfare in a Believer’s Life (Lynnwood, WA: Emerald Books, 1993) 80.

JESUS! In Word and Song

Posted by bonniefaurote

WEEK 39

THE WORD

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matt 5:17-18 ESV).

“God considers what he has told us in the Bible to be enough for us, and that we should rejoice in the great revelation that he has given us and be content with it.”¹ “Scripture today is exactly what God wanted it to be, and it will stay that way until Christ returns.”²

“To read the Bible ‘theologically’ means to read the Bible ‘with a focus on God’: his being, his character, his words and works, his purpose, presence, power, promises, and precepts.”³

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes” (Ps 119:11-12 ESV)!

“He that would be like Christ must study Him. We cannot make ourselves holy by merely trying to be so, any more than we can made ourselves believe and love by simple energy of endeavor.”⁴ We do not know truth on our own. “The truth is something that always enlightens us.”⁵

“He that would be holy must steep himself in the Word. It is through the truth that we are sanctified (John 17:17). Exposing our souls constantly to this light, we become more thoroughly ‘children of the light.’”⁶

“We don’t create our own salvation by our actions but we reflect and express it and so grow in our certainty of it. Because we Christians are liable to deceive ourselves, we should give ourselves to the study of God’s Word to be instructed and encouraged in our salvation.”⁷

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Col 3:16 ESV). “Since Satan’s primary weapon is the lie, your defense against him is the truth. Dealing with Satan is not a power encounter; it’s a truth encounter.”⁸

In our daily lives, it is the words of Scripture alone that must have first place in our hearts and our minds. We must read them, believe them, memorize them, love them, and cherish them as the very words of our Creator speaking to us. All other gifts and teachings today are to be subject to the words of Scripture and are to be judged by them. No other gift or teaching or writing should be allowed to compete with them for absolute priority in our lives.⁹ “The God of the Scriptures has preserved his divine Word. [I]t promises to instruct us in walking humbly before him in reverence and awe.”¹⁰

ENDNOTES

(39) Whether the Word be Preached or Read

1. Wayne Grudem, The Gift of Prophecy (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1988, 2000) 258.

2. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 68-69.

3. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2567.

4. Horatius Bonar, God’s Way of Holiness (Pensacola, FL: Mt. Zion Publications) 88.

5. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Life in Christ, Studies in 1 John (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2002) 112.

6. Horatius Bonar, God’s Way of Holiness (Pensacola, FL: Mt. Zion Publications) 88.

7. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2503.

8. Neil T. Anderson, Victory Over the Darkness (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1990) 170.

9. Wayne Grudem, The Gift of Prophecy (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1988, 2000) 49.

10. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2565.

11. Charles Wesley, “Whether the Word be Preached or Read,” 1783, Hymnary, 25 February 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/whether_the_word_be_preached_or_read.

12. Phillip P. Bliss, “Wonderful Words of Life,” 1874, Hymnary, 27 February 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/sing_them_over_again_to_me_wonderful.

JESUS! In Word and Song

Posted by bonniefaurote

WEEK 38

THE HOLY SPIRIT POURED OUT

“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh” (Joel 2:28 ESV).

Imagine being in Jerusalem during the Passover that Christians now call “Pentecost.” Imagine hearing that “mighty rushing wind” and coming together where Galileans were telling of the “mighty works of GOD” in all languages that surrounded Jerusalem.

Peter’s speech was the first of the “SPIRIT poured out.” Everyone heard Peter’s speech in his or her native language—that was the first miracle. The second was the SPIRIT causing the crowd to be “cut to the heart,” recognizing their sin.

“The sword of the Spirit, newly edged with power and bathed in the lightnings of heaven, cut its way through unbelief. Thousands were converted in a day.”¹

“Strengthened by the endowment of the Holy Spirit, [the Apostles] went forth filled with the zeal to extend the triumphs of the cross.”² “[T]hey were preaching in the power of the amazing gift He had sent to them, a person they called the Holy Spirit.”³

The same signs, wonders and mighty works performed by JESUS were now going to be performed by the Apostles. The supernatural phenomenon given by the HOLY SPIRIT sealed the words of the Apostles as Truth and the Christian Church was born.

“So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied” (Acts 9:31 ESV).

The “walking in fear” is a reaction to realizing GOD’s desire and ability to provide a way to restore us from the sin that entered us when we were born. And the ‘walking in the comfort of the Holy Spirit’ is the realization that the Spirit’s desire and His present workings is to purify and refine our various ‘faculties and passions’ back to making us ‘a proper habitation for God’ like it was before sin entered the world.⁴

The ultimate goal of all of life is to know and love God, make him known, and thereby glorify him. This goal is accomplished primarily through the work of the Holy Spirit. Reading the Bible, going to church, Christian fellowship, spiritual disciplines, service, and worship are merely playing at religion if all of these activities are not empowered, guided, and filled by the Spirit.⁵

ENDNOTES

(38) The SPIRIT Now Poured Out

1. Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911) 38.

2. White, 46.

3. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Life in Christ, Studies in 1 John (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2002) 316.

4. Adam Clarke, “Commentary on Acts 9:31,” 1832 Adam Clarke’s Commentary 22 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/acts/9-31.html#verse-acc.

5. ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001, ESV Text Edition: 2011) 2521.

6. Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911) 46.

7. Samuel Chadwick, The Way to Pentecost (Fort Washington, PA: CLC Publications, 2000, 2014) 56.

8. Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911) 39.

9. “ . . . in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith” (Galatians 3:14 ESV).

10. “For I am sure that . . . no things present nor things to come . . . will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39 ESV).

11. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26 ESV).

12. “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son . . .” (Romans 8:29 ESV).

13. “ . . . I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh . . .” (Joel 2:28 ESV).

14. “ . . . I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Hebrews 8:10 ESV).

15. “So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up . . .” (Acts 9:31 ESV).

16. “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit . . .” (Romans 8:9 ESV).

17. “And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each of them” (Acts 2:3 ESV).

18. Samuel Chadwick, The Way to Pentecost (Fort Washington, PA: CLC Publications, 2000, 2014) 125.

Bonnie's Prayer Affair

Keeping myself in CHRIST

Month: August 2023

JESUS! In Word and Song

JESUS! In Word and Song

JESUS! In Word and Song

JESUS! In Word and Song