The Old Testament Needed

In Sunday’s May 5, 2016 notes

But Scripture has another method of ministering encouragement to our often fainting and faithless hearts. It cuts down through all the complications of human affairs, and lays bare the innermost motive power. It not only shows us in its narratives the working of sorrow, and the power of faith, but it distinctly lays down the source and the purpose, the whence and the whither of all suffering. No man need quail or faint before the most torturing pains or most disastrous strokes of evil, who holds firmly the plain teaching of Scripture on these two points. They all come from my Father, and they all come for my good. It is a short and simple creed, easily apprehended. It pretends to no recondite wisdom. It is a homely philosophy which common intellects can grasp, which children can understand, and hearts half paralysed by sorrow can take in. So much the better. Grief and pain are so common that their cure had need to be easily obtained. Ignorant and stupid people have to writhe in agony as well as wise and clever ones, and until grief is the portion only of the cultivated classes, its healing must come from something more universal than philosophy; or else the nettle would be more plentiful than the dock; and many a poor heart would be stung to death. Blessed be God! the Christian view of sorrow, while it leaves much unexplained, focuses a steady light on these two points; its origin and its end. ‘He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness,’ is enough to calm all agitation, and to make the faintest heart take fresh courage. With that double certitude clear before us, we can face anything. The slings and arrows which strike are no more flung blindly by an ‘outrageous fortune,’ but each bears an inscription, like the fabled bolts, which tells what hand drew the bow, and they come with His love. (Maclaren. Expositions of the Holy Scripture)

Maclaren was twice president of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, and president of the Baptist World Congress, in London, in 1905.^[1] He received honorary degrees of divinity from both Edinburgh and Glasgow Universities.^[1] In 1896 the citizens of Manchester had his portrait painted for their art gallery, and on the presentation of the portrait the Anglican bishop of Manchester gave the address and said:

“

In an age which has been charmed and inspired by the sermons of Newman and Robertson, of Brighton, there were no published discourses which, for profundity of thought, logical arrangement, eloquence of appeal, and power over the human heart, exceeded in merit those of Dr. Maclaren.[1]

”

 

Scriptures On The 1000 Year Reign of Christ

ROMANS 15: 1 A View of the Future of Jews and Gentiles

Let’s open our Bibles tonight to the 15th chapter of Romans. We’re fast coming to a conclusion in our study of this wonderful epistle this is my 255 th sermon from the book of Romans when I started this in 2009 at Rivers of Joy Baptist Church, Minford, Ohio. But even though we are coming near the end, there is still great and rich truth for us. We’re going to be looking tonight at chapter 15:1 7, and this is part five in our series on “The Unity of Strong and Weak Believers.”

Let me just say by way of introduction that it’s obvious to all of us and it really begs the issue to say much about it except by way of reminder that discord strikes a deadly blow at the work of God in the church. Chaos, confusion, strife, envy, jealousy, anger, bitterness, dissension, fighting, hatred, indifference to the needs of others, selfishness, a lack of sacrificial love, all of these things violate the unity of the church and therefore they violate the will of God and they cripple His testimony in the world. The loving harmony and unity of the church is of grave concern to God. And I want to see if I can’t point that out to you as we begin our study.

First of all, let me just say that the unity of the church is the concern of God the Father. The unity of the church is the concern of God the Father. And just by way of background to that, in Psalm 133, a very brief Psalm, I want you to listen to the three verses that make up that Psalm. “Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity; it is like the precious ointment upon the head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard, that went down to the skirts of his garments.” In other words, like a fragrant and beautiful and lovely perfume, like the dew of Hermon, the glistening dew of the morning that settles on that great mountain peak in the north of Israel, “like the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forever more.”

And here the psalmist says that unity, to God, is a sweet and fragrant and beautiful thing. In Jeremiah 32, we find another reference to this in a couple of verses in that 32^{nd chapter, a section dealing with the New Covenantwe read, and God says, concerning those people who someday will become partakers of the New Covenant, “they shall be My people and I will be their God and I will give them one heart and one way that they may fear me forever for the good of them and of their children after them.” I love that. I will give them one heart and one way. That is one internal attitude and one external path of behavior.}

One other Old Testament text — and I’d like you to look carefully at it — is the 37th chapter of Ezekiel’s prophecy, Ezekiel 37. And if you’ve ever studied Ezekiel, you’ll remember chapter 37 begins with the vision of the valley of dry bones, a picture of God’s re-gathering of the nation Israel in final salvation. But I want you to notice that as the Lord looks ahead to the future glory of His redeemed nation Israel, beginning in verse 15, the Word of the Lord comes to the prophet and says this, “Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick and write upon it for Judah and for the children of Israel his companions; then take another stick and write upon it for Joseph the stick of Ephraim and for all the house of Israel, his companions, and join them one to another into one stick and they shall become one in thy hand.”

Now Ezekiel carried out a lot of object lessons in his ministry and this is another very unique one. God says take one stick and identify it as Judah, the southern kingdom; take another stick and identify it as Israel, also called Ephraim, for the son of Joseph, who became the leader of the nations in the northern kingdom, and identify it as Israel. Those two sticks represent the divided kingdom which was divided under Jeroboam. And take them and put them together and make them one stick in your hand because that’s the way it’s going to be some day. Some day God is going to take His divided kingdom and join it back together in final glory.

Now taking such a stick is not foreign to the audience of Ezekiel 17. If you go back to the  Numbers 17:2, you will read there that every tribe had a stick to identify it. And here God simply takes that same idea and joins those two together as if to say the day will come when God will join His people as one again, this to come in the future.

I want you to notice, also, Zephaniah 3:9 the minor prophets, There are only three chapters. It’s right at the end of this little prophecy,  again God looking forward to the salvation of His nation Israel, “For then will I turn to the peoples a pure language.” A pure language, that is a spiritual speech, “That they may all call upon the name of the Lord to serve Him (With what?) with one consent.”

Look at Zachariah 14:9. “And the Lord shall be King over all the earth. In that day shall there be one Lord and His name one.” That is, all the inhabitants of the earth will hold up and exalt the one name of the one who is alone, the Lord.

And if we were to back up in the minor prophets to Hosea 1:11 the first of the minor prophets,  we would read, “Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, appointing themselves one head and they shall come up out of the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.”

Now in these prophecies we see that God has intended through the New Covenant and ultimately through His design with the nation Israel to bring them together as one people. It is the same for the church. Just as in the future of the nation Israel, all the rebels will be purged out and there will be a wonderful oneness among those redeemed people, so it is in the church. And to see that, we look at John 10:14 Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd and know My sheep and am known of Mine.” That is, they know Me as well. Now listen to this, “As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father and I lay down My life for the sheep and other sheep I have that are not of this fold.” That is, they’re not Jews, they’re Gentiles. “Them also I must bring and they shall hear My voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd and for that reason does My Father love Me because I lay down My life.”

In other words, it is God’s purpose that Christ lay down His life to redeem Jew and Gentile and make them one people. That is God’s desire. God’s desire was to make of one the nation of Israel which was fragmented. God’s desire was to take that one redeemed nation and the redeemed church and blend them together as well. In fact, in 1 Corinthians  15:28 we find the consummation  It says, “And when all things shall be subdued unto Him,” that is Christ, “then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him that put all things under Him that God may be all in all.” In other words, everything will ultimately resolve in a great, glorious eternal unity under God.

So what we gain from just looking over those scriptures briefly is the desire of God that His people, whether they be the covenant people Israel or the New Covenant people, whether they be Jew or Gentile, whether they be talking about the past, the present or the future millennial kingdom, it is God’s desire that His people be one people with one heart and one voice and one consent to the way and the will of God, who worship one God who is known by one name. The unity of the redeemed is indeed the purpose of God. And that purpose, of course, ultimately finds its consummation in eternal glory, and we are reminded in Revelation 21 something of that scene. “A new heaven and a new earth, a new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, the tabernacle of God is with men, He will dwell with them, they will be His people, God Himself shall be with them, be their God, wipe away all tears from their eyes, no more death, no sorrow, no crying, no pain. The former things are passed away.” And there in that eternal glory, all people are brought together under the kingship of God forever and ever.

Now we know that at any given point in redemptive history, it is God’s desire that His people be one. And that is their ultimate consummation.

Justification by Faith

Charles e Whisnant, Pastor/Teacher 01 31 2016

“Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ.”—Romans 5:1.

I. A FEW PRELIMINARY DISCOVERIES WHICH A MAN MAKES BEFORE HE GETS PEACE WITH GOD

what it is to be justified by faith.

The first discovery that a man is led by the Spirit of God to make before he is justified is, that it is important to be justified in the sight of God.

The next thing is this. A man, when the Spirit of God is bringing him to Christ, discovers that his past life has been marred badly, by serious offences against the law of God. Before the Spirit of God comes into our soul, Exodus 20:14; Matthew 5;28; Genesis 6:5; Luke 19:10

Then there comes another discovery, namely, that consequently it is utterly impossible for us to hope that we ever can be just before God, on the footing of our own doing. Galatians 3:10;

A man, having found out all this, suddenly discovers that, inasmuch as he is not just before God, and cannot be, he is at the present moment under condemnation.

II. SHOW THE GOSPEL LEARNING WHICH IS TAUGHT TO US BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD.

The GospeI I may give you in a few sentences, namely, these: that, inasmuch as through man’s sin, the way of obedience is for ever closed, so that we—none of us—can ever pass by it to a true righteousness, God has now determined to deal with men in a way of mercy, to forgive them all their offences, to bestow upon them his love, to receive them graciously, and to love them freely.

I trust we have learned that; that there is a plan of salvation by grace, and by grace alone; and it is a great thing to know that where grace is, there are no works.

And this is God’s plan, namely, that, inasmuch as we cannot be saed by our own obedience, we should be saved by Christ’s obedience. Hebrews 10:7; John 14:31; John 12:49; Matthew 21:4;

Jesus, the Son of God, has appeared in the flesh, has lived a life of obedience to God’s law, and in consequence of that obedience, being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross,

and our Saviour’s life and death make up a complete keeping and honoring of that law which we have broken and dishonored,

and God’s plan is this: “I cannot bless you for your own sakes, but I will bless you for his sake; and now, looking at you through him, I can bless you though you deserve it not; I can pass by your undeserving;

I can blot out your sins like a cloud, and cast your iniquities into the depths of the sea through what he has done; you have no merits, but he has boundless merits; you are full of sin and must be punished, but he has been punished instead of you,

and now I can deal with you.” This is the language of God, put into human words,I can deal with you upon terms of mercy through the merits of my dear Son.”

This is the way in which the gospel comes to you, then. If you believe in Jesus, that is to say, if you trust him, all the merits of Jesus are your merits, are imputed to you: all the sufferings of Jesus are your sufferings.

Everyone of his merits is imputed to you. You stand before God as if you were Christ, because Christ stood before God as if he were you—he in your stead, you in his stead.

Substitution! that is the word! Christ the Substitute for sinners: Christ standing for men, and bearing the thunderbolts of the divine opposition to all sin, he “being made sin for us who knew no sin.” Man standing in Christ’s place, and receiving the sunlight of divine favour, instead of Christ.

Grace alone, Jesus alone, Faith alone.

And this, I say, is through trusting, or believing. God’s way of your getting connection with Christ is through your reliance upon him. “Therefore, being justified”—how? Not by works; that is not the link, but—”being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Christ offers to God the substitution: through faith we accept it: and from that moment God accepts us.

Jesus learned obedience experientially so we would have an “older brother” (Jesus is called the “firstborn among many brethren”), a high priest who can fully be sympathetic and empathetic with our situation. “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).

When we come to Christ for help, we know that He will be sympathetic to our needs. “Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

Christ’s Complete Obedience Climaxed in His Death

Going to the cross showed obedience. “And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).

Christ’s Obedience Brings Eternal Benefits

His prayer to the Father and the Father’s response clearly show that Christ’s own death was the only way to save lost men and women. He said, “Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; yet not my will, but thine be done” (Luke 22:42).

Christ’s Obedience Sets the Goal for Us

In the Disciples’ Prayer (Matthew 6:9–13), Jesus tells us to desire to do the Father’s will. “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, . . . thy will be done” (Matthew 6:9–10 %}). It is not enough just to recognize the authority of Scripture as the voice of God. God wants us to honor that authority by our own obedience. In fact, Jesus makes obedience to the Father a condition of our relationship with Him: “For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother” (Matthew 12:50).

So my Lord Jesus Christ illustrates by His own life and walk the path I am to choose. My life is to be completely in line with the Word of God and thus the will of God. If even the stars and elements that He created obey His voice, should not I obey Him as well?

 

Judgment Seat of Christ Part 1

2 Corinthians 5:10  Romans 14

The Judgment Seat of Christ

FOR WE MUST ALL APPEAR BEFORE THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST: tous gar pantas hemas phanerothenai (APN) dei (3SPAI) emprosthen tou bematos tou Christou: (Genesis 18:25; 1Samuel 2:3,10; Psalms 7:6, 7, 8; 9:7,8; 50:3, 4, 5, 6; 96:10, 11, 12, 13; 98:9; Eccl 11:9; 12:14; Ezekiel 18:30; Matthew 25:31-46; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Romans 14:10, 11, 12; 1Peter 4:5; Jude 1:14,15; Revelation 20:11, 12, 14, 15, 15)

The certainty of the Bema Seat of Christ occurring at a specific point in time in eternity in the life of each individual believer, should serve as a strong motivator, causing us to forget what lies behind and like the runner determined to win the race and receive the coveted prize, to press on toward the goal, lunging toward the finish line, laying aside every encumbrance, coming out from the world, not even touching what is unclean, abstaining from even things with the “form” of evil , living in holy conduct and godliness, and all the more as we see the day drawing near.

WHEN DOES THE BEMA JUDGMENT TAKE PLACE?

The question of when the Bema Judgment take place is difficult to answer with any degree of “dogmatism”. The majority of evangelical scholars favor this event taking place after the Rapture but before the return of Jesus to set up His Millennial Kingdom. The highly respected scholar Dwight Pentecost has the following explanation on the timing of of bema…

The time of the bema of Christ. The event herein described takes place immediately following the translation of the church out of this earth’s sphere. There are several considerations that support this.

(1) In the first place, according to Lk 14:14, reward is associated with the resurrection. Since, according to 1Th 4:13-17, the resurrection is an integral part of the translation, reward must be a part of that program.

(2) When the Lord returns to the earth with His bride to reign, the bride is seen to be already rewarded. This is observed in Rev 19:7, where it must be observed that the “righteousness of the saints” is plural and cannot refer to the imparted righteousness of Christ, which is the believer’s portion, but the righteousnesses which have survived examination and have become the basis of reward.

(3) In 1Cor 4:5; 2Ti 4:8; and Rev 22:12 the reward is associated with “that day,” that is, the day in which He comes for His own. Thus it must be observed that the rewarding of the church must take place between the rapture and the revelation of Christ to the earth.’ (From Things to Come, 1958)

One other Scripture that points to the Bema occurring during the Tribulation period is Revelation 11:18where John writes…

And the nations were enraged, and Thy wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged (this is the Great White Throne Judgment – see comments beginning at Rev 20:11. ), and the time to give their reward to Thy bond-servants the prophets and to the saints and to those who fear Thy name, the small and the great (this could refer to the Judgment Seat of Christ), and to destroy those who destroy the earth.

If one reads the Revelation literally (which results in a chronological order for the successive unfolding of the seven sealed scroll, the seven trumpets and the seven bowl judgments), Revelation 11:18 seems to coincide with the events of the middle to the seven year period known as the Tribulation.

To reiterate, most conservative evangelical scholars (especially pre-trib, pre-millennial) believe that this judgment will take place after the church is raptured and before the Second Coming of Christ at which time He inaugurates His 1000 year reign on earth from His throne in Jerusalem. For example Master’s Seminary (John MacArthur) takes this view regarding the timing of the Bema Seat in their “Statement of Faith”…

The Rapture of the Church – We teach the personal, bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ before the seven-year tribulation (1Th 4:16; Titus 2:13) to translate His church from this earth (Jn 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1Th 4:15-5:11) and, between this event and His glorious return with His saints, to reward believers according to their works (1Co 3:11, 12, 13, 14, 15; 2Co 5:10).

The Tribulation Period – We teach that immediately following the removal of the church from the earth (Jn 14:1-3; 1Th 4:13-18) the righteous judgments of God will be poured out upon an unbelieving world (Jeremiah 30:7; Daniel 9:27; 12:1; 2Th 2:7-12; Re 16:1ff), and that these judgments will be climaxed by the return of Christ in glory to the earth (Mt 24:27-31; 25:31 46; 2Th 2:7-12). At that time the Old Testament and tribulation saints will be raised and the living will be judged (Da 12:2-3; Re 20:4-6). This period includes the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy (Daniel 9:24-27; Mt 24:15-31; 25:31-46).

The Judgment of the Lost – We teach that following the release of Satan after the thousand year reign of Christ (Re 20:7), Satan will deceive the nations of the earth and gather them to battle against the saints and the beloved city, at which time Satan and his army will be devoured by fire from heaven (Re 20:9). Following this, Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone (Mt 25:41; Re 20:10) whereupon Christ, who is the Judge of all men (Jn 5:22, 27), will resurrect and judge the great and small at the Great White Throne judgment (Re 20:11ff). We teach that this resurrection of the unsaved dead to judgment will be a physical resurrection, whereupon receiving their judgment (Jn 5:28,29), they will be committed to an eternal conscious punishment in the lake of fire (Mt 25:41; Re 20:11-15_{). (TMS – TMS Statement of Faith – Eschatology)}

THEREFORE WHETHER WE LIVE OR DIE WE ARE THE LORD’S:

THEREFORE WHETHER WE LIVE OR DIE WE ARE THE LORD’S:  Romans 14

Pastor Charles and Richard Lemaster

John MacArthur – The last phrase of Ro 14:8 is one of the greatest injunctions to holy living in all the Bible: “We are the Lord’s.” Every Christian is subject to the unconditional sovereignty of God. We are the Lord’s–we are His possession. First Corinthians 6:19-20 says, “Know ye not that … ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price.” I’m not my own, so I don’t live to myself and I don’t die to myself. I am His, so I live to Him and I’ll die to Him. All believers have the same relationship to the Lord; we all serve the sovereign Lord we have embraced as our Redeemer. If we’re weak and we limit ourselves to living a certain way, we do so because we believe we are pleasing Him. If we enjoy our freedom in Christ, we do so because we believe we are pleasing Him. Since those are matters of preference and not sin, let’s not cause a rift in the church over them…. Some would have us believe that weak believers accept Jesus as their Savior, but not as their Lord. He may not yet understand all that his new life in Christ means, but he understands the basics of the Christian life–and nothing is more basic than the lordship of Christ in the believer’s life. No one can tell me that I can have Jesus as Savior but not as Lord. In all the years I’ve known Christ, there has never been a time when I didn’t sense a tremendous weight of responsibility to obey Him. Jesus is Lord. _{(Receiving One Another with Understanding, Part 2)}

“None of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord: and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live, therefore, or die, we are in the Lord’s.”–Ro 14:7-8.

Spurgeon’s devotional from Morning and Evening (June 10 AM) –

If God had willed it, each of us might have entered heaven at the moment of conversion. It was not absolutely necessary for our preparation for immortality that we should tarry here. It is possible for a man to be taken to heaven, and to be found meet to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light, though he has but just believed in Jesus. It is true that our sanctification is a long and continued process, and we shall not be perfected till we lay aside our bodies and enter within the veil; but nevertheless, had the Lord so willed it, he might have changed us from imperfection to perfection, and have taken us to heaven at once. Why then are we here? Would God keep his children out of paradise a single moment longer than was necessary? Why is the army of the living God still on the battle-field when one charge might give them the victory? Why are his children still wandering hither and thither through a maze, when a solitary word from his lips would bring them into the centre of their hopes in heaven? The answer is—they are here that they may “live unto the Lord,” and may bring others to know his love. We remain on earth as sowers to scatter good seed; as ploughmen to break up the fallow ground; as heralds publishing salvation. We are here as the “salt of the earth,” to be a blessing to the world. We are here to glorify Christ in our daily life. We are here as workers for him, and as “workers together with him.” Let us see that our life answereth its end. Let us live earnest, useful, holy lives, to “the praise of the glory of his grace.” Meanwhile we long to be with him, and daily sing—

Paul is “not talking about funerals, and life and death in that sense. He is talking about those who feel free to enjoy liberty to the fullest. They are living, while others, because of deep convictions of their own, limit themselves, and to that degree they are dying, because death is limitation The important thing is that we belong to the Lord. He understands.” That, therefore, is what we ought to remember in our relationships with one another. We belong to the Lord. We are brothers and sisters. We are not servants of each other. We are servants of the Lord and he has the right to change us.”

 

 

 

The Judgement Seat of Christ: Romans 14:10 and 2 Corinthians 5:10

Romans 14:10 was the text and the reference text was 2 Corinthians 5:10 and thus this toopic of The Judgment Seat of Christ

This was the verse that changed my life for ever.

This is the subject that I will address this first Sunday of 2016

1. 2 Corinthians 5:10   Greek: tous gar pantas hemas phanerothenai (APN) dei (3SPAI) emprosthen tou bematos tou Christou, hina komisetai (3SAMS) hekastos ta dia tou somatos pros a epraxen (3SAAI), eite agathon eite phaulon.
2. Amplified: For we must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive [his pay] according to what he has done in the body, whether good or evil [considering what his purpose and motive have been, and what he has achieved, been busy with, and given himself and his attention to accomplishing]. (Lockman)
3. Barclay: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one of us may receive the consequences of the thing we did while we were in the body, consequences which will correspond to what each one of us has done, be it good or bad.  (Westminster Press)
4. ESV:  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil  (ESV)
5. KJV: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
6. Macent:  for we must all appear before the tribunal of Christ; that every one may receive the retribution, according as his actions in the body were either good or evil.
7. MLB (Berkley): for we must all appear before the tribunal of Christ, so that each may receive as his due what he practiced while in the body, whether good or bad.
8. Moffatt: for we have all to appear without disguise before the tribunal of Christ, each to be requited for what he has done with his body, well or ill.
9. Montgomery: For we must all be made manifest, in our true characters, before the Judgment-seat of Christ; so that each one may receive according to that which he has done in his body, whether good or evil.
10. NET: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be paid back according to what he has done while in the body, whether good or evil.   (NET Bible)
11. NJB: For at the judgment seat of Christ we are all to be seen for what we are, so that each of us may receive what he has deserved in the body, matched to whatever he has done, good or bad.
12. NLT: For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.  (NLT – Tyndale House)
13. Phillips: For every one of us will have to stand without pretence before Christ our judge, and we shall be rewarded for what we did when we lived in our bodies, whether it was good or bad. (Phillips: Touchstone)
14. TLB: For we must all stand before Christ to be judged and have our lives laid bare—before him. Each of us will receive whatever he deserves for the good or bad things he has done in his earthly body
15. Way’s translation: For we have all to stand, stripped of all disguise, before Messiah’s bar, that each may receive the recompense for deeds whereof the body was the instrument, Yea, even according to that which he hath done, Be it good, be it evil. (I don’t agree however with his translating it as “evil” which is what the Textus Receptus has [kakos]. The Nestle Aland has “phaulos” which means useless or of no effect).
16. Weymouth: For we must all of us appear before Christ’s judgment-seat in our true characters, in order that each may then receive an award for his actions in this life, in accordance with what he has done, whether it be good or whether it be worthless.
17. Wuest: for it is necessary in the nature of the case for all of us to be openly shown as to our true character before the judgment seat of Christ, in order that each one may receive the things which were practiced through the agency of our body, whether they were good or bad. (Eerdmans) 
18. Young’s Literal: for all of us it behoveth to be manifested before the tribunal of the Christ, that each one may receive the things done through the body, in reference to the things that he did, whether good or evil;

This verse 2 corinthians 5:10 was first taught to me by Mr. Fred Henson back in 1963 in our church: Roanoke Baptist Temple that was on Airport Road in Roanoke,  Virginia.  My life was changed for ever.

(Genesis 18:25; 1Samuel 2:3,10; Psalms 7:6, 7, 8; 9:7,8; 50:3, 4, 5, 6; 96:10, 11, 12, 13; 98:9; Eccl 11:9; 12:14; Ezekiel 18:30; Matthew 25:31-46; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Romans 14:10, 11, 12; 1Peter 4:5; Jude 1:14,15; Revelation 20:11, 12, 14, 15, 15)

Romans 13 8-11 Outline Exposition Notes

The Debt You Always Owe Romans 13:8-10)
charles e whisnant, teacher/expositor

(1) Love Your Neighbor and know the time (2)your present walk and the coming days (3) love, law and the last days (4) a call to fulfill the law through love 8-10 (5) The Believers Secular Duty, His Christian Duty (7) Fulfilling the Law Through Love

8 Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. ESV

Romans 13:9 For this, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” (NASB: )

Paul proceeds to cite 4 of the 10 commandments to show that if one loves, these commandments will be fulfilled. Paul has just said that loving one’s neighbor fulfills the Law & now he reiterates with 4 laws relating to our neighbor as found in the second half of the 10 commandments, concluding with the “key” (coveting) that is involved in the other three

Adultery (3431) (moicheuo from moichós = an adulterer) is used of one unfaithful to marriage vows. This was a figure of speech in the OT and was synonymous with unfaithfulness to God especially manifest by idolatry.

Murder (5407) (phoneuo) means to kill a man unjustly. Webster (modern version) says that murder is the crime of unlawfully killing a person especially with malice aforethought. (See topic Murder) In the OT passages (Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17) the Hebrew word for “murder” refers to pre-meditated, deliberate, intentional murder not accidental killing.

Steal (2813) (klepto) (our English kleptomaniac) Paul had used this term once before describing the “religious” Jews in (Ro 2:21-). If you love your neighbor you won’t take from him.

Covet (1937) (epithumeo from epi = upon or intensification + thumos = passions) (See also noun epithumia) literally means to fix the desire upon and thus is a graphic word picture. Furthermore, prefix preposition epi- expresses motion toward an object!
AND IF THERE IS ANY OTHER COMMANDMENT IT IS SUMMED UP IN THIS SAYING YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF:

(Leviticus 19:18,34; Matthew 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Galatians 5:13; James 2:8, 9, 10)

LOVE IS THE CONSUMMATION OF THE COMMANDMENTS

Who is our neighbor? Remember that our “neighbor” is anyone “near” (Greek word for neighbor is plesion (4139) which is derived from word meaning “near”!), and thus is anyone we encounter in our life who needs our help. Love is the inevitable response of the heart in which God’s love has been poured by the Holy Spirit

Paul’s quote is from Leviticus 19:18 and is the single most quoted verse in the NT (Nine times – see Mt 5:43, Mt 19:19, Mt 22:39; Mark 12:31, Mark 12:33; Lk 10:27, Ro 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8).

As Christians, we should pay our debts, including the debt of love for others, because love fulfills God’s law.

But before we look at Paul’s instruction on love, we need to consider his brief phrase regarding debt.

1A. As Christians, we should pay our financial obligations.
2A. As Christians, we should work at, but can never fully pay, our debt of love toward others.

Romans 13:8: “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.”

A. WE OWE THE DEBT OF LOVE TO ALL PEOPLE.
B. WE PAY THE DEBT OF LOVE OUT OF THE SURPLUS OF GOD’S INEXHAUSTIBLE LOVE FOR US.
C. THE MEASURE OF OUR LOVE FOR OTHERS IS WHETHER WE LOVE THEM AS WE LOVE OURSELVES.
D. SINCE WE CAN NEVER EXHAUST THE DEBT OF LOVE, WE MUST KEEP WORKING TO PAY IT OFF.
E. THE DEBT OF LOVE INVOLVES NOT ONLY OUR FEELINGS, BUT ALSO OUR ACTIONS, BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE.

3A. As Christians, loving others fulfills God’s law.

Paul says this twice explicitly (Ro 13:8, “he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law”; Ro 13:10, “love is the fulfillment of the law”) and a third time implicitly (“it is summed up,” Ro 13:9).

Why does Paul bring up God’s law here? Earlier in Romans (Ro 6:14) he has made the point that we are not under law, but under grace. We have died to the law in Christ (Ro 7:4). He has said (Ro 10:4) that “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” So, why does he now bring up the law and cite from the Ten Commandments?

So my understanding here (Rom. 13:8-10) is that Paul is countering his critics who accused him of abandoning the law and promoting licentiousness (Rom. 3:8; 6:1). He is showing them that when believers in Christ love others, they are fulfilling the law of Moses. And while we always fall short of perfectly loving others, Christ, who is our righteousness, did perfectly fulfill the law on our behalf. But as we practice true biblical love, which is to seek the highest good of those we love, we will not commit adultery or murder or theft or coveting. We will obey God’s holy commandments. Thus we fulfill the law through love.

Conclusion – So the question that Paul asks us here is, “Are you paying your debts?” Are you working at paying the debt that you will always owe, the debt of love for others? Are you making the effort to sacrifice your comfort and convenience to meet the highest good of others? If you’re married, begin with your mate. If you have children, practice on them. We all have difficult members of our extended families who need God’s love and we may be the only channel for it to flow to them. It may be someone at work. Love’s aim is their highest good, which is to know Christ and be conformed to Him. It will take effort. But we owe such love to them, both in good deeds and in sharing the gospel as opportunities arise.

If you ask, “How can I develop this quality?” Paul’s answer is, “Walk in the Spirit.” Love is the first fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:16, 22). If you ask, “How can I know whether I am acting in love?” Paul gets pretty specific (1 Cor. 13:4-7): Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. That’s our debt to all people! Are you working on paying it off?
Romans 13:10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law (NASB:)

Love (26) (agape] from agapao = love) means unconditional, sacrificial love. Agape is the love that God is and in that sense is divine love. It is the quality of love that is commanded by God, empowered by His Spirit, activated by personal choice of our will, not based on our feelings toward the object of our love and manifested by specific actions .1Cor 13

Does (2038) (ergazomai from érgon = work) means to engage in an activity involving considerable expenditure of effort. Note present tense indicating love continually does no wrong. The NT uses in a literal (to do manual labor) and figurative (especially spiritual – see below) sense. To labor, do work. Speaks of “an action as something that stands in contrast to inactivity or talk.” (Richards)

No (3756) (ou) signifies no, and expresses full, absolute and objective negation.

Wrong (2556) (kakos related word = kakia) is a word which basically denotes a lack of something so that it is “bad” or “not as it ought to be.” Means not meeting accepted standards of behavior, and thus worthless, bad or inferior. Then speaks of lack of goodness, of a bad nature, evil, destructive, damaging, unjust. Describes something as it ought to be. Morally describes a person characterized by godlessness or evil.

Neighbor (4139) (plesion from pélas = near, near to or from plesios = close by) literally means near (literal use only in Jn 4:5), quite near, nearby = position quite close to another position.

LOVE THEREFORE IS THE FULFILLMENT OF THE LAW: (Ro 13:8; Mt 22:40)

Therefore (3767) (oun) introduces a logical result or inference from what precedes. In the present context it introduces a consequence of loving one’s neighbor.

Fulfillment (4138) (pleroma from pleroo = make full, fill, fill up) means fullness, full measure, abundance with an emphasis upon completeness What is fulfilled or is completed without any gap. Was a recognized technical term in theology, denoting the totality of the Divine powers and attributes. (Lightfoot)

Romans 13:11 Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. (NASB:)

Do what? In context Paul is referring to what he has just emphasized. We are called to Love because it fulfills the Law (Lev 19:18, Ro 13:8-note; Gal 5:14, Jas 2:8, Mt 22:37, 38, 39, 40, cp Jn 13:35).

Do this – Literally the Greek reads “and this”. Notice that the verb “Do” is not in the original Greek but has been added by the translators. “

Wuest – Paul urges the importance of the foregoing exhortations in view of the imminency of the Rapture and the Judgment Seat of Christ.

Pulpit Commentary – Christian motives are brought forward to incite to moral duties. We are called upon to do right, not only by the voices of expediency and of authority, but by the voice of revelation. Christians are addressed as those who know the seasons, who discern the signs of the times, who regard the present as a period of probation, of discipline, of education, and whose gaze is ever forwards, whose hope is in their Lord’s return to judge and to save. (The pulpit commentary)

Amplified Version – Besides this you know what [a critical] hour this is, how it is high time now for you to wake up out of your sleep (rouse to reality)…
Loving and living wholeheartedly for Christ should be our primary objectives in view of the brevity of our remaining time on earth (especially when compared to the “length” of eternity to come).

See Scriptures that allude to the shortness of our lives on earth: Job 7:6, 7 9:25, 26 14:1, 2 Ps 37:2 Ps 39:5, 6 Ps 90:4, 5, 6, 9, 10 Ps 102:3, 11, Ps 103:15,16 Ps 144:4 Isa 38:12,13 40:6,7 Jas 1:10, 11 Jas 4:14 1Pe 1:24 2Ki19:26

We are never to stop offering our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice acceptable to God (Ro 12:1). While Paul is calling for a once for all time offering in Romans 12:1, there is also a sense in which this offering should be our daily “sacrifice” to the Lord. Before we put on our clothes, we should offer ourselves to God and put on His clothes (put on Jesus) and then go forth with eyes wide open and ready to recognize the opportunities our Father has prepared for us even before the foundation of the world (see Eph 2:10).

Ro 13:11-14 were written “to bring us back to the bedrock basis for walking in love. Paul’s words turn our attention both to the motivations which inspire love and the means which help it function. Paul’s teaching in these verses is predicated upon that which he has already taught us in chapters 1-11. There are two principle themes dealt with in Romans 13:11-14 whose foundations have been laid in the earlier chapters of Romans. These two themes are salvation and love….What Paul describes in verses 11-14 has happened to me all too often. I go to bed at night. Then in my first waking moments I become increasingly aware of the light. Suddenly it dawns upon me. It is morning! Good grief, what time is it? I grab the clock. Oh no! I have overslept. The day has begun, but I have not. I shed my bed clothes and hastily dress, running from my bedroom to get to the day’s duties. I think this is the picture Paul is painting. We have been oversleeping. We need to wake up. The night has passed. The new day is dawning—the day of our Lord’s return. We must get about doing those things which remain to be done. We must put off our night clothes and put on clothes appropriate for the work our Lord calls us to do. (Love, Law, and the Last Days

Preparation for a Sermon and Notes

Preparation for a Sermon: Romans

The responsibility of the pastor/teacher is this:

To bring the truth to the people of God reveled in the Scripture by explaining it meaning. The meaning of the scripture is the revelation from God. I have no other responsibility in my duty to represent the Lord then to explain to you the meaning of His revelation. God has reveled Himself in one book. We are ministers of this one book. In a sense we are brokers of this one book.  We are to simulated these truths to His people. Both to people who do not know the Lord and those who do know the Lord.

 

I always start out trying to understand the passage that I am in.  Of course I started in Romans 1 and continue chapter by chapter and verse by verses.  And the idea is to explain the text as it is in the text

Well, my favorite word, well.  Since I have preached, taught romans since 2009,  we certainly lose a lot of memory.  And we certainly lose memory of chapter 12 as well. In this paper I thought I would review Romans 12:1-8. Then a more detail study of Romans 12:9-21. Romans 12:9 to 21  Has been on the Christian Behavior. My process of this preparation of this study has been to do a lot of research. What I have done  either by the websites, or books, or papers that I have on Romans and have copied and reworked the material.  When I deliver the lesson, I see the notes and material but most of the time I find myself talking and saying what is not necessary on the paper. This paper has taken a lot of time.  As you see I like to do a lot of different things, like outlines, photos, arrangement of words.  Bold letters, and different fonts are used. 

WHERE DOES PRAYER COME IN IN PREPARATION

So how do I pray in preparation for a sermon? Dwight Haynes Its generally asking the Lord to direct my mind to the right material and resources in preparation for the sermon. Since I know where I am going in my preaching. Romans, Luke and First Peter, I have no problem where to start. Since I know the material that I have been studying, I have no problem there either. I think I pray more for strength, stability, steadfastness, Spirit intervention, soul searching, sanctified mind set going into the study. Seeking to understand the scriptures.

Resources from moving from Exegesis to Exposition

1. Homiletic.

2. Exposition.

3. What the text means.

4. Art.

From

1. Personal preparation.

2. Analyze the Text’s Content.

3. Expose the Text’s Structure.

4. Apprehend the Text’s Intent.

5. Identify the Timeless Truth.

Then a few resources in preparation

1. Bible Versions
2. Interlinear Bible
3. Parallel Bible
4. Commentaries
5. Concordances
6. Dictionaries
7. Encyclopedias
8. Lexicons History
9. Sermon Illustrations
10. Sermon Helps

 

• I used to have over 3000 books while I was in Altoona, Kansas.  When I went to the Shepherd Conference in 1982, 1990 and 1993 I learned that I need to have expositional books.  So I left most of my books in Altoona, at First Baptist Church, and started to get books that I need for study. 

Since the beginning of teaching book by book, I began to buy books that would help me in the process of teaching.  Of course 1982 to 1996 I didn’t have a internet so I was never on the computer.  In those early days, I used tapes that I bought from John MacArthur. and books.

I have sets of books that I have used over the years. I  have not bought any sets since I was at FBC in Altoona KS. 

I started getting the John MacArthur’s commentaries.

Then in 2013-2014 bought one book at a time of D.M. Lloyd-Jones books on Romans

Then when I got my Kindle Fire I started getting books from Amazon.  That has been good to do too. 

Charles Whisnant, Bless Those Who Are Rude To You>

LIVING ON THE HIGH GROUND
Romans 12:14
charles e whisnant, pastor/teacher/student of the word

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
You may be thinking, “Now wait a minute! Do you mean when somebody, even in the body of Christ, treats me like dirt, I am supposed to say something good about them? That is a lie.” Yeah, it sure is. And God is not telling you to lie about them.

What does it mean to bless somebody, to speak well of somebody?

REVIEW FROM ROMANS 12:9-13 Paul first of all, the general look at this matter of practical Christian living from verse 9 through 21
Main Idea: When someone you know is mean to you, for any reason, it is not a normal reaction to pray for blessings over their life. Even adults struggle with being kind to those who are unkind to us. God asks us to live this way because we are called to live differently than those who don’t believe in Christ. By living in such a dramatically kind and loving way, we are showing the world how God loves them!

2} When someone is rude or mean to you, how do you normally react? What would it look like if you reacted the way this verse is suggesting?

3} How can praying for an enemy change the way you feel about them?

4} If a friend hurts your feelings by saying or doing something that is hurtful or thoughtless, what would the correct response look or sound like?

5} If you have a friend or family member who is mean to you all the time, should you keep being their friend? Why or why not? What do you think this verse is encouraging?

6} How would living this way change your friendships and other relationships?

EXPOSITIONAL STUDY

Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. (NASB:
Bless them which persecute you; bless, and curse not. kjv
Greek: eulogeite tous diokontas [humas], eulogeite kai me katarasthe. )
Amplified: Bless those who persecute you [who are cruel in their attitude toward you]; bless and do not curse them (Amplified Bible – Lockman)
NLT: If people persecute you because you are a Christian, don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. (NLT – Tyndale House)
Phillips: … as for those who try to make your life a misery, bless them. Don’t curse, bless. (Phillips: Touchstone)
Wuest: Be constantly blessing those who are constantly persecuting you; be blessing and stop cursing.
Young’s Literal: Bless those persecuting you; bless, and curse not;

BLESS THOSE WHO (continually) PERSECUTE YOU: eulogeitetous diokontas (humas):

1. (Romans 12:21; Job 31:29,30; Matthew 5:44, 48, Luke 6:28; 23:34; Acts 7:60; 1 Corinthians 4:12,13; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; James 3:10; 1 Peter 2:21-23; 3:9) Matthew 5:44, 48; Luke 6:28, 23:34

SURRENDER ENABLES SPIRIT FILLED SUPERNATURAL OBEDIENCE

Bless (2127) means speak good or well. When eulogeo is used by men toward men it means to speak well of with praise and thanksgiving . Can be from men to God, from men to men, and from God to men. When God blesses men He grants them favor and confers happiness upon them.

1. Pursue hospitality toward the brethren as the wicked pursue them.
2. First, love speaks well of its persecutors.
That is getting right down to where the rubber meets the road, isn’t it? That means you don’t go around badmouthing people who are not nice to you. You don’t run them down or speak harshly about them to others, but you speak well of them. You find something that you can approve, and you say so to others. That is a tough one.

I confess that that is not my natural reaction. When somebody persecutes me, I persecute back! At least I want to. But this is what the Word tells us we don’t need to do and we should not do.

3. It means to even invoke God’s blessing upon them. This is not our NATURAL reaction to those who persecute us, but instead calls for a SUPERNATURAL response, a response which imitates our Lord Jesus facing the ultimate “persecution” on Calvary

(1Cor 11:1, Lk 23:34, cp a Spirit filled Stephen’s response even as the rocks were hitting him!

See Acts 7:55, 59, 60 and compare Acts 6:3, 5, 10!). God’s commandments always include his entanglements – beloved of the Father, we can ONLY obey this command as we yield to and are filled by His Spirit and walk by His Spirit, for ONLY THEN will we be enabled to NOT fulfill the desires of the flesh, which are desires for revenge rather than blessing! (Memorize one of the most important verses in the New Testament — and ask God to enable you to live it out in “shoe leather” Christianity! = Gal 5:16

Now you know, if you didn’t understand Romans 1-11, you can’t understand this.

In Romans 8 we know why we can do this. …Because God is causing all things, even those people who bring us grief, to work together for good to those that love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. You see, you have got to have the first 11 chapters of Romans to even begin to understand chapters 12 through 16.

Everything in chapters 12 through 16 hinges on what we have already studied in Romans. God is in charge. He even uses the persecution. To do what? To drive us to the end of ourselves. Why? Because Romans 8:29 says that we might be conformed into the image of Christ Jesus. So the pain and all the things that we go through in this quarry, in this school, in this workshop down here on this earth are all tools that God is using to chip off and to hone and to make us into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. It drives us to the end of ourselves where we learn to decrease and then He is able to increase in our life. That is what life is all about.

So as a believer, when it comes, back off and say,”God, I don’t know what you are doing in this, but thank you that you are in control of it and I am not about to wish evil upon this person. I want them to know the same God I know and trust and walk with day by day.”

Romans 12 Key to Serving the Lord

Last Sunday we began the twelfth chapter of Romans:  We gave the reason why chapter 1 to 1l were necessary and then we gave reasons why chapters 12=16 are necessary

There there is justification there will be sanctification in our lives.  But so often it seems there is so little sanctification been practice in the lives of many Christians.  So many  people seem to be living at the low end of the Christians life, so little victory over sin, the flesh and the world!  Many it seems live in a defeated  state of mind, and life.

Romans 12 is going to help us learn what we need to do to have a victory over sin, the flesh, the world and have a life that is pleasing to the Lord.

After 200 sermons on Romans chapters 1 to 11, a lot has been said, and I hope a lot has been learned about the work of God.  We have covered so much about the doctrine of salvation, justification and adoption and election and many other doctrines, teachings of God, Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Now its time to apply what we have learned.  Its time now to give back what we have learned, we now need to render to God the service that is due to  God and bring Him glory.   “the giving of oneself totally to the Lord.

And  with that said  I will say in my own experience, that is not easy.  But I must say that is absolutely necessary if we are ever to know the fullness of the blessings of God and be able to render to God the service that is due to Him and bring Him glory.

Most Christians never really come to that place fully.

They flirt with the world, they flirt with the flesh. They flirt with their own personal indulgences and desires. They become victims of the philosophy and psychology of the world around them. They buy into the world’s bag. They entertain themselves with the world’s mode of entertainment. They think along the lines the world thinks. And so they never really come to the place of total commitment that is discussed in these two verses and therefore they forfeit the fullness of the blessing that God would have for them.

So we are going to talk this next several months that Paul is telling us how we should give ourselves to the service of the Lord.