Colossians 2: Do You Have the Discernment to Recognize Counterfeits to Christianity?Our mind and soul are the treasure.
If you’re in the resident congregation turn off your electronic devices and put them away. Let this be a place where you aren’t distracted by the world.
Welcome To BARAH MINISTRIES
Rory Clark Pastor-Teacher
Good Morning!
Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with a worldwide impact. My name is Pastor Rory Clark. Thanks for listening to this Bible lesson!
Who Is Jesus Christ?
At Barah Ministries we know this truth…JESUS CHRIST IS GOD. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 9 makes it clear…
COLOSSIANS 2:9 For in Jesus Christ…all the fullness of Deity lives in bodily form…
Jesus is the Christ…the Jewish Messiah…He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…He is the spiritual King of Israel…He is the Alpha and the Omega…He is the GREAT I AM…He has always existed…He is the Sovereign God of the Universe…He is the Light of men, and in Him, there is no darkness at all. He is omnipotent…He has all the power…enough power to come to the earth as 100% God taking on the form of man to become 100% human as well. It’s both a pleasure and a blessing to worship the ONE AND ONLY TRUE GOD.
Why Does Barah Ministries Exist?
At Barah Ministries you’ll learn the Word from God’s perspective and not from man’s perspective. God provides this ministry as a mental sanctuary…a refuge where you can learn supernatural truth directly from God, who is happy to provide divine solutions for your human problems. The Lord wants a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with you. Second Peter, Chapter 3, Verses 14 to 16…
SECOND PETER 3:14 Therefore…divinely loved believers in Christ…while you look for a new heaven and a new earth to come from God…keep on being diligent…to be found by Him in a state of peace (when He comes back at the exit resurrection of the Church and at the second coming)…being found spotless…and being found blameless…
SECOND PETER 3:15 …and regard the patience of our Lord as His desire for you to come to salvation… just as our beloved brother Paul…according to the wisdom given him by God wrote to you (in letters that became Biblical) …
SECOND PETER 3:16 …as in all his letters…in which some things are hard to understand…which the untaught (false teachers)…who are unstable…distort…just as they pervert the rest of the Scriptures…to their own destruction.
Barah Ministries exists to provide you with un-perverted truth.
Why Do Christians Study the Word of God?
We get to know the Lord Jesus Christ by studying the Bible because it is His EXACT thinking revealed. Since the Bible is the truth, it’s something you can count on! In Matthew, Chapter 24, Verse 35, Jesus Himself says…
MATTHEW 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away…but My words will not pass away.
However, beware of false teachers teaching false things. ALWAYS compare what you learn at Barah Ministries and in the world with what the Bible says. Acts, Chapter 17, Verse 11 says…
ACTS 17:11 Now the Jewish believers at Berea were more noble-minded than those believers in Thessalonica…for they received the Word of God with great eagerness…and they examined the Scriptures daily to see whether the things Paul and Silas were teaching were true.
Who Is God’s Enemy?
God has an enemy, Satan, whom God made ‘the ruler of this world.’ Satan exists even though about sixty percent of believers in Christ don’t think he does. He is a creature. He is not a "symbol of evil." He is not a concept. He isn't a cartoon character with a red epidermis and a pitchfork. He is a perfect, gorgeous, well-dressed, former officer angel, and a brilliant genius. Satan’s strategy against the human race is religion. He deceives people into following false teachers and gets them to believe false things and to worship false gods. As believers in Christ, we follow the Lord’s suggestion in Matthew, Chapter 4, Verse 10…
MATTHEW 4:10 Jesus said to Satan, “Get out of here Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”
Satan and his thoughts are not to be listened to…they are to be rejected!
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON Do You Have the Discernment to Recognize Counterfeits to Christianity?
LESSON INTRODUCTION
Who are the false teachers in your life? What false teaching have you adopted that is shipwrecking your spiritual journey? Paul’s letter to the Colossians is written to a group of believers in Christ who are doing very well in their newly forming spiritual lives. As we transition to chapter two of the letter, Paul issues warnings to the believers in first-century Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis…warnings just as relevant today as back then. In today’s lesson, ask yourself…how good you are at spotting counterfeits to Christianity?
OPENING SONG INTRODUCTION
Truth is 100% true. Lies are 100% false. Truth and lies help us look at life in black and white. People don’t want to look at life in black and white so they choose to think in gray. They say, “It’s all relative!” No…it isn’t. Truth and lies are “all absolute!” Grey is black with a deceptive, pretty dress on. Let’s listen to the group Casting Crowns who tell us what comes from God…He is the VOICE OF TRUTH.
MUSIC OPENING SONG Let’s Sing the Lord’s Praises
VOICE OF TRUTH Casting Crowns
OPENING PRAYER
Let us pray...
We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…
Father…thank you for the adversity and the tribulation you allow in our lives… You do it to develop toughness that allows us to persevere…toughness that demonstrates character to weather the storms of life without fainting in our souls…we thank you for the answers the truth provides to counteract the lies we experience in Satan’s kingdom from false teachers and their false teaching…we thank you for the spiritual wisdom You’re providing today courtesy of God the Holy Spirit’s guidance…wisdom that gives us a deeper understanding of Your magnificence…Your plan for mankind…and Your personal plan for each of us…
…open our spiritual eyes and our spiritual ears so that we can receive the Word implanted…help us to hear what God the Holy Spirit is saying to the churches…let Your Word sink…let it save our souls…
We ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name...Amen.
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON Do You Have the Discernment to Recognize Counterfeits to Christianity?
LESSON PART ONE
The first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Colossians is similar to a passage Paul wrote to the churches at Galatia… modern-day Turkey. The Galatian churches were well-established, and they were doing well in their spiritual lives, until false teachers with their false teaching crept in to pervert the churches, infecting them with legalism. What is LEGALISM?
LEGALISM Adding to the perfection that is Christianity with an overfocus on the rules… turning Christianity into a perversion of self-righteous superiority and into a series of steps we could never follow successfully.
So what’s the difference between the Colossian believers and the Galatian believers? The Galatian believers EMBRACED the false teaching, and Paul got really upset about it. In Galatians, Chapter 3, Verse 1 he screamed at them…
GALATIANS 3:1a You foolish Galatians…who has bewitched you…?
Later in the letter, Paul regained his composure… Galatians, Chapter 5, Verses 7 to 9…
GALATIANS 5:7 You Galatian believers were running (your spiritual life race very) well…who hindered you from obeying the truth?
It was false teachers and their false teaching as a hinderance! The Galatians willingly listened to false teachers and adopted false teaching. Not so for the Colossians.
GALATIANS 5:8 This PERSUASION (from false teachers) did not come from the Lord Jesus Christ who calls you (to a “so great” salvation).
The persuasion came from false teachers with false teaching. Paul introduces a great analogy…false teaching is like leaven when we are baking…
GALATIANS 5:9 A little leaven (just a little false teaching) leavens (perverts) the whole lump of dough (your spiritual life).
How much falsehood is okay for your life? It’s funny how people expect complete truth in their relationships yet they don’t expect complete truth in their spiritual lives. They are willing to put up with the lies of religion…willing to adopt these lies as a counterfeit spiritual life…doing little work to investigate real spiritual truth. As a result, most people…and I do mean MOST people…settle for counterfeit spiritual lives.
GALATIANS 5:10 I (Paul) have confidence in you Galatian believers who are in union with the Lord that you will adopt no other view but the truth…but the ones who are disturbing you (the false teachers with false teaching) will bear judgment…whoever they are.
Paul has more confidence than I do about people who go off the rails. He must believe the things the Lord teaches about unconditional love. 😊 As we begin the second chapter of Paul’s letter to the Colossians…a group of believers in three home-based churches that are off to a great start…Paul issues two warnings in verses four and eight…because he doesn’t want them to get off track. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verses 1 to 8 is the passage we’ll study today…
COLOSSIANS 2:1 For I (Paul) want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea…and for all those who have not personally seen my face…
COLOSSIANS 2:2 …that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself…
COLOSSIANS 2:3 …in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Here’s the first warning…Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 4…
COLOSSIANS 2:4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument.
COLOSSIANS 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.
COLOSSIANS 2:6 Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him…
COLOSSIANS 2:7 …having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.
Here’s the second warning…Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 8…
COLOSSIANS 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.
Let’s see what God is telling us about false teachers and their false teaching in this passage. The warnings aren't just for the believers in first-century Colossae…the warnings are for you as well. Excuse me? You don't need warnings? Have you ever read a horoscope? Have you ever visited a psychic? Have you ever thought that going to a psychic would be a little “harmless” fun? Have you ever attended a Bible lesson and received the message God is sending you personally with the message? Do you know what it takes to be saved? Do you care? Have you ever been part of a religion? Did you believe anything you were being taught by the religion? Yes. You did. The warnings are for you. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 4…
COLOSSIANS 2:4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument.
False teachers are VERY persuasive. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 8…
COLOSSIANS 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.
Here’s what the passage looks like when it is translated accurately from the Koine Greek…the language of the New Testament…
COLOSSIANS 2:1 For I want you believers in Christ at Colossae to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those believers in Christ who are at Laodicea, and for as many believers in Christ who have not personally seen me face-to-face (including the believers at Hierapolis)…
COLOSSIANS 2:2a …I’m struggling and striving so that your new-self hearts may be encouraged by God…as they are knit together in unconditional love by God…
COLOSSIANS 2:2b …so that you may have all the spiritual riches that come from the full assurance of a complete understanding that results from a true knowledge of God’s mystery (Christ indwelling you)…the true knowledge of the Christ Himself (He is the Jewish Messiah)…
COLOSSIANS 2:3 …the Christ…in whom are hidden (on deposit) ALL the treasures of spiritual wisdom and all knowledge worth having.
COLOSSIANS 2:4 I (Paul) say this (the things in the previous series of verses) so that no one will delude you with persuasive (fine-sounding) arguments.
COLOSSIANS 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit…and I am rejoicing because I am seeing your good discipline from faith in Christ and your stability from your faith in Christ.
COLOSSIANS 2:6 Therefore, as you have received the Christ (the Jewish Messiah) … who is both Jesus and the Lord (100% human and 100% God the Son)…keep on walking in union with Him in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called
COLOSSIANS 2:7 …already having been firmly rooted by Him (agriculture analogy)…and now being built up by Him (as a spiritual house…construction analogy) through our union with Him…and now being firmly strengthened by Him in your faith as you were being taught by Him…and overflowing right this moment with gratitude.
COLOSSIANS 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.
When we return from the break we’ll see what Paul is communicating in this passage to this new group of believers.
FIVE-MINUTE BREAK NOBODY Casting Crowns
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON Do You Have the Discernment to Recognize Counterfeits to Christianity?
OFFERING INTRODUCTION
God the Father loves all of His creatures unconditionally…and He loves us so much…that He gave His Son to save us. God the Father is not conflicted about giving. Are you? First John, Chapter 3, Verses 17 and 18 say this…
FIRST JOHN 3:17 …whoever has the world’s goods…and sees his brother in need…and closes his heart against him…how does the unconditional love of God abide in this person?
FIRST JOHN 3:18 Little children (believers in Christ) … let us not love unconditionally with word or with tongue (love is not talk)…but let us love unconditionally with deeds and in truth.
Let this be a time in your life when you realize what God the Father is able to do with what we give. Realize how important giving is as it makes life an amazing experience for those in need. Be generous with the gifts your God has given you… as Deacon Denny would say…our time gifts…our talent gifts…AND our treasure gifts. Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with one of his always inspiring offering messages.
THE OFFERING Deacon Denny Goodall
OFFERING VERSE
ROMANS 8:31 What then shall we believers in Christ say face-to-face with all these things? If God the Father is FOR us believers in Christ…and He is…who is ever going to be successful in opposition against us?
OFFERING SONG THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU Instrumental Version
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON Do You Have the Discernment to Recognize Counterfeits to Christianity?
LESSON PART TWO
What is discernment?
DISCERNMENT The possession and use pf wisdom…good judgment…seeing things often overlooked by others.
Without truth in your soul, there is no discernment. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 1…
COLOSSIANS 2:1 For I (Paul) want you believers in Christ at Colossae to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those believers in Christ who are at Laodicea, and for as many believers in Christ who have not personally seen me face-to-face (including the believers at Hierapolis) …
What is Paul’s struggle for these new believers? The Greek words for struggle are stronger…Paul is agonizing…travailing…hurting for them…the struggle we feel for people we care about. What do we want for the people we love? Here’s Paul telling his protégé Timothy…in First Timothy, Chapter 1, Verses 18 and 19…
FIRST TIMOTHY 1:18 With this assignment I am entrusting to you, Timothy…my son…in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you…that by these prophesies you are to fight the good fight of faith in Christ…
Timothy was given the gift of Pastor-Teacher by God…and he was given the apostle Paul by God to help him develop the gift…
FIRST TIMOTHY 1:19 …and you are to keep on being in the faith and to keep on being of good conscience…which some believers in Christ have rejected…and as a result, have suffered shipwreck regarding their faith.
Loving parents don't want their children to suffer shipwrecks OF ANY KIND. Unfortunately, ALL parents know we are raising people who can't wait to screw up their lives. As parents, we are the rudders of our children…and they can't wait to tear the rudders off and run around without guidance. And when our kids shipwreck their lives, what do the people around us say? "Oh don’t worry…they’ll come around.” Sure. Everyone comes around (he said with tongue in cheek). That’s Paul’s struggle. He and Epaphras have prepared these believers well, then false teachers with their false teaching destroy all the work he and Epaphras have started. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verses 2 and 3…
COLOSSIANS 2:2 …I’m struggling and striving so that your new-self hearts may be encouraged by God…as they are knit together in unconditional love by God…so that you may have all the spiritual riches that come from the full assurance of a complete understanding that results from a true knowledge of God’s mystery (Christ indwelling you)…the true knowledge of the Christ Himself…
COLOSSIANS 2:3 …the Christ (the Jewish Messiah)…in whom are hidden (by God the Father on deposit) ALL the treasures of spiritual wisdom and all the knowledge worth having.
Our parents don’t want us to hang around with people who lead us astray. They want us to know the truth that will set us free. Unfortunately, we have human parents. Our human parents have flaws. Kids see their parent’s flaws and decide they can’t learn from people with flaws. So who do they turn to? People their age with more flaws…inexperienced people who don’t care about them. Worse? They turn to themselves. If we can’t learn from people with flaws, why would we study Paul’s letters? He was the most flawed person in human history. Galatians, Chapter 1, Verse 13…
GALATIANS 1:13 For you Galatian believers have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism… how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it…
Paul wanted to wipe out the Christian church. God stepped in and directed the worst person in human history to a new life for your benefit. He does the same with flawed parents and with flawed YOU! Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 4…
COLOSSIANS 2:4 I (Paul) say this…(the things in the previous series of verses)…so that no one will delude you with persuasive (fine sounding) arguments.
What are the persuasive arguments Paul is warning the Colossian believers about? The smooth-talking Gnostics are moving in on the three small home-based churches with seductive messages. “We’ve got a new mystery religion…we know more about Christ than you do…we know more about Christ than Paul (isn’t he in jail?)…there is more you have to add to salvation to TRULY be saved…you gotta…you gotta…you gotta. We’ve got new books to help you understand the Bible better…The Book of Mormon…The Pearls of Great Price…The Doctrines and Covenants…the Catechism of the Catholic Church…The New World Translation of the Bible. More is better.” NO! More is Satanic!
False teachers bring you “new” things to consider…and when they do, people listen to their erroneous thoughts…turn them into beliefs…defend the erroneous beliefs…and reject the truth. For example…
THE TRUTH
Jesus Christ is God
THE LIES
Jesus Christ is just a rabbi Jesus Christ is a teacher Jesus Christ is a holy prophet Jesus Christ is a mighty messenger Jesus Christ is just one of the many enlightened ones
No one comes to earth thinking these things. We learn them from someone. Who? False teachers. Do we bother to compare these false teachings to what the Bible has to say? Only if we are smart. What does the Bible have to say? Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 9…
COLOSSIANS 2:9 For in Jesus Christ…all the fullness of Deity lives in bodily form…
First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3b …it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Old Testament Scriptures…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4 …and He was buried…and He was RAISED FROM THE DEAD on the third day…according to the Old Testament Scriptures…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:5 …and that (after His resurrection from the dead) He appeared to Cephas (Simon Peter…the apostle who betrayed Him)…and then to the twelve.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred believers in Christ at one time, most of whom remain alive until now…but some have fallen asleep (physical death)…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:7 …then He appeared to James (His half-brother who didn’t believe in Him until then)…then to all the apostles…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:8 …and last of all, as if to one who was untimely born…He appeared to me also.
THE TRUTH
The Bible is the exact thinking of the Lord Jesus Christ
THE LIES
The Bible is not the Word of God The Bible is out of date The Bible has a lot of contradictions The Bible is just the opinion of a bunch of guys The Bible is just one of many holy texts The Bible teaches things that are immoral and intolerant
What does the Bible say about itself? Second Timothy, Chapter 3, Verses 16 and 17 say…
SECOND TIMOTHY 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed (into the writers of Scripture) … and it is profitable for teaching…for reproof…for correction…and for training in righteousness…
SECOND TIMOTHY 3:17 …so that the man of God may be mature…totally equipped for every good work.
Second Peter, Chapter 1, Verses 20 and 21 say…
SECOND PETER 1:20 …no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of any person’s own private interpretation…
SECOND PETER 1:21 …for no prophecy of Scripture was ever made by an act of human will…but men directed from the Source…God the Holy Spirit (the One who leads us into all the truth) … spoke directly from the exact thinking of THE God...the Lord Jesus Christ.
You decide. Is what the Bible is saying about itself consistent with your erroneous beliefs? Forget what unbelievers think. You would be astounded at what supposed believers in Christ say about the Bible. If Paul knew what they were saying today he would scream, “You foolish believers…who has bewitched you?
Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 5…
COLOSSIANS 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless, I am with you in spirit…and I am rejoicing because I am seeing your good discipline from your faith in Christ and your stability from your faith in Christ.
Paul is telling the Colossian believers…your faith encourages me…I am happy about your freedom from delusion…I’m happy to hear how grounded you are with the truth. Now encouragement from Paul to live a special life…The Christian Way of Living…Colossians, Chapter 2, Verses 6 and 7…
COLOSSIANS 2:6 Therefore, as you have received the Christ (the Jewish Messiah)…who is both Jesus and the Lord (100% human and 100% God the Son)…keep on walking in union with Him in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…
COLOSSIANS 2:7 …already having been firmly rooted by Him (agriculture analogy)…and now being built up by Him (as a spiritual house…construction analogy) through our union with Him…and now being firmly strengthened by Him in your faith as you were being taught by Him…and overflowing right this moment with gratitude.
There is nothing better in this life than crafting a lifestyle powered by the Lord. And gratitude is a weapon! When we realize what the Lord has sacrificed for us, and we bring it constantly to mind, it is almost impossible to dislodge us from our faith in Him. The final warning of the passage…Colossians, Chapter 2, Verse 8…
COLOSSIANS 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive…(through kidnapping with evil seduction to plunder you)…through philosophy…and empty deceit…according to the tradition of men…according to the elementary principles of the world…rather than according to the thinking and the principles of Christ.
What does it mean to plunder someone?
PLUNDER The dishonest acquisition of property
I can hear June Murphy singing right now…We Are God’s Property! First Corinthians, Chapter 6, Verses 19 and 20…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 6:19 Or DO YOU NOT KNOW (believers in Christ) that your body is a temple of God the Holy Spirit who is indwelling you…the Spirit whom you have from God the Father? You are not your own!
FIRST CORINTHIANS 6:20 For you believers in Christ have been bought with a price (Jesus’ blood at the Cross)! Therefore…glorify God in your body!
False teachers want to steal YOU and steal YOUR MIND and use you for their dishonest purposes. Don’t let them. We are surrounded by an enemy who wants to destroy us. The Lord is having none of it. Paul is encouraging the Colossian believers to have none of it as well. Romans, Chapter 12, Verse 1 is the perfect exhortation to close this passage of study…
ROMANS 12:1 Therefore...I (Paul) beg you believers in Christ…as you keep on being persuaded because of the many mercies of God...to present your bodies by choice, not by command...as a living and holy sacrifice...acceptable to God the Father...which is your spiritual service...worship.
There’s no better way to foil Satan and his plans than by worshipping the Lord in a way that Satan was unwilling to do.
THE GOSPEL MESSAGE The Good News of Jesus Christ’s Salvation Offer to the Human Race
The closing moments of today’s lesson are dedicated to anyone, anywhere, who is undecided or confused about what it takes to have a relationship with the Sovereign God of the Universe, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We want you to know that…
GOD WANTS YOU! Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life
There is a Person at the center of Christianity…Jesus Christ. He is the most important Being in the universe…He is the Sovereign God...He is the preeminent God…He is the ONE and ONLY God. He created you…He loves you unconditionally…and He wants a relationship with you. That’s good news for you!
The bad news is that you were born with a problem. From the moment of your physical birth, God considered you a sinner. Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 10…
ROMANS 3:10 …it is written, “There is no creature who is righteous, not even one…”
Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 23…
ROMANS 3:23 …all creatures have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
These verses are a formal accusation from God about YOU…an indictment.
It’s not your fault that you’re a sinner from physical birth, but it is your circumstance.
Unfortunately, being a sinner has a penalty. Romans, Chapter 6, Verse 23…
ROMANS 6:23 For the payment earned for being a sinner is both spiritual death and physical death…
As a sinner, you commit personal sins. God requires perfection for you to get into heaven. Those who sin don’t meet God’s perfect standards. Trying to make up for your sins by “being a good person,” or trying to work your way into heaven with imperfect deeds, doesn’t impress God at all.
This gospel message is the good news concerning what the Lord did to fix the bad news for sinners. Jesus Christ paid a price with His blood on a Cross so that sinners can be saved. Responding to His gospel message is the chance to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Here’s what the Lord said to a self-righteous Pharisee, Nicodemus, in John, Chapter 3, Verse 3…
JOHN 3:3 “Truly, truly, I say to you, Nicodemus…unless you are BORN AGAIN (the spiritual birth)…you cannot see the kingdom of God the Father in heaven.”
Fortunately for you, God the Father wants you in heaven. Romans, Chapter 5, Verse 8 says…
ROMANS 5:8 God the Father demonstrates His own unconditional love toward all mankind…in that while we were yet sinners (while we were unrighteous, ungodly, unbelievers) …Christ died (a sacrificial death) for us.
Who is this God who saves you? The apostle Paul describes the Lord Jesus Christ…in First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3 For I (Paul) delivered to you as of primary importance the gospel message I also received from God…that it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Old Testament Scriptures…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4 …and that He was buried…and that He was raised from the dead on the third day…according to the Old Testament Scriptures…
Absolute righteousness is the admission ticket to heaven. It is the key to eternal life…the resurrection life…and it is yours FREE OF CHARGE…RIGHT NOW…if you want it. Romans, Chapter 10, Verses 9 to 11 say this…
ROMANS 10:9 …if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord (that He is God)…and if you believe in your heart that God the Father raised Him from the dead…you will be saved…
ROMANS 10:10 …for with the heart a person believes…resulting in the imputation of absolute righteousness (your admission ticket to heaven) … and with the mouth a person confesses (choosing faith in Christ alone) … resulting in salvation.
ROMANS 10:11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in the Lord Jesus Christ will not be disappointed.”
So, accept the invitation and heed the warning of John, Chapter 3, Verse 36…
JOHN 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life right at that moment…but he who does not obey the command to believe in the Son will not see the resurrection life…instead the wrath of God (the Lake of Fire) abides on him.”
There is a hell…a very real place…and it is described this way in the Bible… Matthew, Chapter 13, Verses 41 to 43…
MATTHEW 13:41 The Son of Man (the Lord Jesus Christ) will send forth His elect angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks (unbelievers)…and those who commit lawlessness (unbelievers)…
MATTHEW 13:42 …and the elect angels will throw unbelievers into the furnace of fire (the Lake of Fire)…in that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
MATTHEW 13:43 Then the righteous (believers in Christ) will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father…
For those without a relationship with Christ, He’ll just ask them to step to the left and to take the “HELLIVATOR” … just press down.
Getting to heaven is easy… Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…
ACTS 16:31 “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”
Sinners need a Savior. That Savior is the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe in Him and you will be saved!
CLOSING SONG INTRODUCTION
When you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation, false teachers will introduce false teaching to lure you into theological error. It’s the tribulation we sign up for when we become Christians. The Lord would say to us, “I never promised you a rose garden!” Here’s June Murphy with a song of encouragement when we are attacked by the kingdom of death and darkness…a song based on James’ admonitions…COUNT IT ALL JOY.
CLOSING SONG COUNT IT ALL JOY June Murphy
DOXOLOGY Words of Praise to Our Lord
Let us offer words of praise to our Lord…
ROMANS 11:33 Oh, the depth of His glorious riches…both of the wisdom of God and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how unfathomable are His ways!
SECOND CORINTHIANS 13:11 Rejoice, brothers and sisters…keep on being made complete, keep on being comforted by God, keep on being like-minded, keep on living in peace…and the God and Father of unconditional love and peace will be with you.
SECOND CORINTHIANS 13:15 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ…and the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
CLOSING PRAYER Let us pray...
Almighty God and Father, Your Word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path…when we study Your Word, it gives us life…it gives us hope…it gives us a reason to live…Your Word encourages us because as we learn more about You we know that we are worshipping someone with character…someone we can count on…someone with our best interests in mind…
…as we go forth into the world for another week into the spiritual battle…as we enter into Satan’s kingdom to be pelted with his propaganda and his lies…let the things we learned today illuminate the lies…keep us on the straight path to the glory You have planned for us…and help us to gravitate to the truth in such a way that it invites others to embrace the truth as well…
We ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name...Amen.
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KEEP ON STUDYING THE WORD OF GOD!
Thanks for coming! Thanks for watching! Thanks for listening!
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