Women of Firm Faith

This chapter continues the idea of submission to those God has put in authority over us. Verses 1-2, "Wives, likewise, be  submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear." Our submission is not something they have to earn. We must respect the position God has given them as the leader of the home, regardless of how obedient/disobedient to the word they are being. The chain of command, so to speak, is spelled out in 1 Corinthians 11:3, "But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." You may not like it, but take it up with God. To those who think this concept is outdated and women's roles have changed in modern history, check out what God said to Eve after she was deceived and sinned. Genesis 3:16, "To the woman He said: 'I will greatly m...

Newborn babies have such a strong desire to be fed milk. We should have this same desire for the word, if we have tasted the grace of God. Verses 1-3, "Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." If you have no desire for the word, you should pray for God to reveal Himself to you and change your heart. The word, when received in faith, will cause us to grow, the same as milk will cause a baby to grow. Evidence that you are growing in knowledge and grace is that you've left behind your old ways and no longer walk as you once did, in deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and speaking evil of others. Those who continue to do these things are not growing by the word and show evidence that they do not have a personal, daily walk with the Lord. Jesus is our foundation that we build our lives upon so that we will not...

Verses 1-2, "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied." Peter opens his letter to the Christians who are dispersed throughout several regions, who recognize themselves as being from away, knowing that this is not their home. Election is a much debated topic among Christians, but here's what we know from the scriptures. First, election is according to God's foreknowledge, but it is not a one way street. God does choose us, but we need to choose Him too and He's given us free will to either accept or reject Him. Joshua 24:14-15, “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And...

Verses 1-3, "Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days." Those who desire to have posessions on this earth, and store up for here and now, are ignoring what's truly important...eternity. We should be more concerned about storing up treasure in Heaven. Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Where you store up treasure shows where your heart is, and we must understand that nothing stored on earth is certain. It can be here one day an...

It is unfortunate that the church is full of warring and fighting among people who profess to be Christians. Verse 1, "Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?" All this fighting stems from carnal desires. If people were submitted to God's will, this would not be the case. Verses 2-3, "You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures." Lusting and coveting lead to bitterness, jealousies, and murdering (in the heart). If these people would just seek God about what they want and give Him an opportunity to set their hearts right on the matter, they could be content in His will if the answer is "no", and might actually receive if the answer is "yes." Sometimes we ask for things with wrong motivations...

Being a pastor or teacher is not a glamorous position where you have the admiration and respect of everyone underneath your teaching; or at least it shouldn't be. Some people may desire the position, thinking it comes with power and influence, but it is not a matter of voting for the best candidate. It is a God appointment and calling. The person fulfilling the calling will serve others and will most likely offend if he defends the word accurately. When they sell out to what the world has to offer, they will be judged harder because of their position and leading others astray. Verse 1, "My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment." Often we see the Spirit of God moving through a pastor which makes it look so easy. It actually requires hard work and discipline, and daily dying to what your flesh wants. It's a sacrifice of your will and your time (when done properly), which people often don't see our understan...

Once we are saved, we are a new creation in Christ. There is no separation between earthly classes and races, because Jesus took down that wall and unites us in peace through His death on the cross. Colossians 3:10-11, "...and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all." Ephesians 2:14-15, "For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have ...

James introduces himself as a bondservant of God and Jesus, which means he is committed to doing the will of his Master and has died to his own will. He could've introduced himself as the brother of Jesus, but he obviously recognizes that Jesus is not a mere man, and has put himself under His authority, something he may have previously struggled with. John 7:5 tells us of a time when his brothers did not believe He was God and able to perform miracles. James writes this letter to the "12 tribes" which represent the Jews who are now scattered in different regions. Verses 2-4, "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." No one likes trials, but if you refrain from resisting against and allow the work that God wants to do in you through the trial, you will be perfected in the faith and devel...

In this chapter, Christians are being exhorted to demonstrate brotherly love toward each other and hospitality, even toward strangers. It is easy to be nice toward the people you like and are in your little circle of friends, but we need to be willing to show hospitality toward others as well. How do we respond to new people in the church, especially if they don't have the same appearance or speech as you? God shows no partiality, and neither should we. I Samuel 16:7, "...For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” James 2:2-5, "For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, 'You sit here in a good place,' and say to the poor man, 'You stand there,' or, 'Sit here at my footstool,' have you not shown partiality a...

As Christians, we aren't going where no one has gone before, but rather following in the footsteps of some great witnesses and can be encouraged by their examples. Verses 1-2, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." In order to run this race effectively, we need to lay aside the ensnaring sins that trap us and bring us back into captivity, making us slaves again to sin. But not only do we need to lay sins aside, but also things that may not necessarily be sin, but will hinder your walk and ability to finish the race. 1 Corinthians 6:12, "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All th...

Faith is so important to our Christian walk and involves trusting God even when we can't see things working a certain way. Verse 1-2, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony." If you say you have faith, there needs to be evidence of your confession where you act upon your faith. James 2:20-26, "But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them ...

Animal sacrifices could never take away sins make one perfect and needed to be done every year. Verse 1-2, "For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins."  Even Abraham spoke of this future event when he said to Isaac in Genesis 22:8, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” Also when John the Baptist sees Jesus, he said of him in John 1:29  “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! Although animal sacrifices were insufficient, Christ can sanctify, through His offering, those who believe in Him. Verse 11-14, "And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away ...

The earthly tabernacle was divided into two rooms. The first place, the larger room, was called the Holy Place which was the sancuary. Separating the rooms was a thick curtain or veil and behind that veil was the second room called the Holiest of All. Only the high priest could enter this room. Verses 2-5, "For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary; and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail." The tabernacle and all of the contents were built according to God's instructions that were laid out in the book of Exodus. Verses 6-8,...

The office of priest and the tabernacle were just an earthly representation of heavenly things to come. Jesus IS our High Priest and the mediator of the new covenant of grace He has made with His people. Verses1-2, "Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man." Verses 5-6, "...who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, 'See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.' But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises." When Jesus left to go be with the Father, He tells His disciples about the Holy Spirit that He will send as a He...

This chapter introduces us to Melchizedek, the Most High Priest, who most likely was Jesus preincarnate. We know from Chapter 5:5-6 that God bestowed the position of High Priest upon Jesus: "So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.' As He also says in another place: 'You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek'." Also when reading the description of Melchizedek in this chapter, it sounds exactly like Jesus. Verses 2-3, "to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually." Jesus, the Son of God is our Priest eternally. We can see that Melchizedek was far above any earthly man or posit...

Not progressing in our walks is NOT an option. We absolutely must move beyond the elementary principles of Christ and bear fruits worthy of His name. John 15:16, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you." After a foundation is laid, there is an expectation to build a structure upon it. Many today are satisfied with a capped off foundation, which is faulty at that, and needs constant reinforcing. We need to move forward because getting resaved over and over is not possible. Do not think that you can live in sin for now and repent later and be all set. Verses 4-6, "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, si...

Verses 1-4, "For every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. He can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness. Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for himself, to offer sacrifices for sins. And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was." Priests were appointed by God to take care of the things of God. They were not elected by popular vote. Their duties included offering sacrifices for peoples' sin, but they also had to offer sacrifices for their own sin first. Being reminded that they too are sinners allows them to have compassion on those who are going astray. Men who tried to take this honor upon themselves learned quickly that God was the decider...remember what happened to Korah? Jesus also did not glorify Himself in order to become High Priest, ...

Hebrews 4:1, "Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it." Since eternity is on the line, we need to conduct ourselves with fear and reverence toward God so that we don't fall short of it. We can't spend our time fearing man who has no power over us. Luke 12:4-5, “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.  But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!"  Hebrews 13:6, "So we may boldly say: 'The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?' " Out of this fear should come an obedience to God. If He speaks...we listen and obey! Do not think that just because you know the word and can tell others about the word that you are all set. The word must be received in belief, or faith, in order for it to b...

Moses was a faithful man and used mightily by God, but Jesus far surpasses Moses in all ways. We need to consider that God loves us so much that He was willing to send His Son to us, who was perfectly faithful and obedient to the will of the Father. Verse 3, "For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house." Moses may have been a member of God's household, but Jesus was a Creator of the house. We have access to this same household,  IF we endure until the end. Verse 6, "but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end." It is not good enough that we just start strong, we need to also finish strong. It is possible to have run the race and fall short. Philippians 2:16, "holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain."...