Month: July 2015

The Real Bartimaeus

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

“And they came to Jericho: and as he [Jesus] went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging” (Mark 10:46 KJV).

Who is “Bartimaeus” really?

We continue reading after today’s Scripture: “[47] And when he [Bartimaeus] heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. [48] And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. [49] And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. [50] And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. [51] And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. [52] And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.”

The etymologies of the Bible’s proper nouns (people, places, et cetera) are great teaching tools. For example, in today’s Scripture, “Bartimaeus” means “son of the unclean/defiled.” He is a son of Adam, the first sinner, and he illustrates Israel’s defiled nature as descendants of Adam.

Bartimaeus recognizes his physical blindness, symbolic of his (and his nation Israel’s) spiritual blindness. He cries out to the Saviour for help, but people want him to be quiet. The Lord Jesus has compassion, and asks Bartimaeus what he desires of Him. Representative of believing Israel, Bartimaeus shouts, “Lord, that I might receive my sight!” Jesus Christ acquiesces. He wants Israel to give Israel spiritual sight, that she see His truth. To demonstrate it, He grants physical sight to Bartimaeus! Bartimaeus depicts Israel’s believing remnant. They come to Jesus Christ to be healed of their sin problem, and through the endless ages to come, they follow Him in their identity as His people. Israel has a grand hope in store for her! 🙂

Ancient False Witnesses and Modern-Day Doubters

Monday, July 20, 2015

“Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses,…” (Matthew 26:59,60 KJV).

As two false witnesses challenged the living Word of God, so two false manuscript witnesses attack the written Word of God!

The following question was asked on “Christian” television: “I’m afraid to believe what the Bible says because of all the changes that people have made to it over the years. Is it really God’s Word? The Bible says, ‘Blessed are those who believe and don’t see,’ but what if that’s not even true? … How can I strengthen my faith to believe in God’s Word?” [How to strengthen your faith in God’s Word? Doubt the “Bible scholars” and believe your King James Bible!]

Unlike most church leaders, the preacher answering the question admitted that there are differences in Bible translations because there are varying readings in Bible manuscripts. Yet, like most church leaders, he encouraged the questioner to use various Bible study tools, to track those translation changes, and then “make her own judgment.” Imagine! He said she could decide what words and verses were inspired of God and which were not. Reminiscent of cults, she could be her own authority. If she did not believe a certain part of the Bible was “really Scripture,” she had the preacher’s permission to omit it!

When lost people—those who lack the indwelling Holy Spirit—dictate to us Christians how to handle Bible manuscripts, and to embrace two error-filled Roman Catholic manuscripts (Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus) as having closer readings to the original autographs, we adopt a lost person’s mindset about the Bible. This poor lady doubted her Bible because people who doubted the Bible taught her. Her questioning the Bible as God’s Word demonstrates that Satan has extensively damaged her soul. The on-air preacher who provided little helpful insight into the matter, many like him lead our churches, Bible colleges, and seminaries the world over. No wonder no one believes the Bible! They are encouraged not to! Beware, dear friends, of “unbelieving Bible scholarship!”

The Christ of God

Sunday, July 19, 2015

“He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Peter answering said, The Christ of God” (Luke 9:20 KJV).

The King James Bible’s “New Testament” contains expressions such as, “The Christ of God,” “The Lord’s Christ,” and “His Christ.” Why is qualification needed? Why not simply read “Christ?”

Peter the Apostle declared in today’s Scripture, “[Thou art] The Christ of God.” The Holy Ghost told elderly Simeon that he would not physically die until “he had seen [Baby Jesus] the Lord’s Christ” (Luke 2:26). Israel and Rome conspired against the LORD (Father God) and “His Christ” (Acts 4:26)—that described Jesus’ crucifixion on Calvary. One day, this world’s kingdoms will become “the kingdoms of our Lord [Heavenly Father], and of his Christ [Jesus]” (Revelation 11:15). A voice in heaven will one day utter, “Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ” (Revelation 12:10).

To better understand the language of “God’s Christ” and “the Lord’s Christ,” we need Ezekiel chapter 28, the passage that describes Lucifer (Satan) before his fall into sin/pride. Lucifer was the “anointed cherub that covereth” (verse 14). “Anointed” in Hebrew is Mishiach (Messiah) and in Greek it is Christos (Christ). Now, please note the following. Psalm 2, verse 2, foretold in Hebrew: “The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed [Jesus], saying….” Acts 4:26, written in Greek, quotes it as, “The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.”

Every Berean Bible student knows Satan is the master counterfeiter. The Devil uses false prophets, false apostles, false teachers, and false brethren to counter God’s prophets, God’s apostles, God’s teachers, and God’s brethren. Satan causes us to concentrate on him (the false Messiah) and his policy of evil so we ignore Jesus Christ (the true Messiah) and God’s plan of glory! When our program concludes and Israel’s program resumes, Satan will come in the person of Antichrist, the epitome of prideful imitation (to be destroyed, thankfully). In the end, what Satan failed to do (lead creation in worship of the one true God), Jesus Christ, the Christ of God, will do!

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Why did Jesus forbid others from preaching that He was Christ?”

Feast on Meat!

Saturday, July 18, 2015

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21 KJV).

Which is “good”—the bones or the meat?

A few days ago, I read a theology book that I had been interested in reading for sometime. Bearing in mind today’s Scripture, I always approach such a book with extreme caution. The vast majority of the book was a delightful read. It was very informative in its discussion of the history of a certain false religion. However, the last two or three chapters highlighted the author’s downfall. He himself praised (thereby admitting to agreeing with) two other false religious systems… two more deceptive than the one he was critiquing! What a disappointment, but I expected it because there were certain “hints” in his previous chapters. My suspicions were confirmed by book’s end!

It is important to remember not to get bogged down with the “bones” of any book authored by man. Pick the “meat” from the “bones” and benefit from the “meat.” Rather than choking on the “bones,” toss them out and feast on the “meat!” Be a discerning believer. Use the Word of God rightly divided to evaluate what information is good and what information is bad. (Dispensational Bible study would have salvaged that said author’s warped theology!) Use the sound information that the author taught you and then build on it.

Until the glorious day comes when Almighty God confines Satan’s policy of evil to the eternal lake of fire, and until Jesus Christ comes to take us home to heaven, we must live in this “present evil world” (Galatians 1:4), this current evil world system. The Bible talks about “the course of this world” and “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). These are sure references to Satan, “the spirit which now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Satan uses various avenues to corrupt the Church the Body of Christ, so we are thus exhorted to “prove all things.” Most beliefs, most systems, and many activities can do great damage to your soul. Christian friend, you would do well to arm yourself with the armor of God, your provisions He gave you in Christ. Learn and believe Paul’s epistles to wear that armor!

Esteem Them Highly in Love

Friday, July 17, 2015

“And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace with among yourselves” (1 Thessalonians 5:12,13 KJV).

Having attended a “virtual” (online) grace Bible conference for the last five days, let me share some wonderful divine insight!

When 26 Christian brothers value God’s Word rightly divided, they are thrilled to teach and preach it. When faithful men teach and preach God’s Word rightly divided, God’s people are edified, encouraged, and enlightened. No, we do not praise men, but we do praise the Lord Jesus Christ who worked in and through them to provide us refreshing insight into the world’s most marvelous Book! Today’s Scripture is the Holy Spirit’s insight. Those who labor among us and are over us—they are members of the Body of Christ like us but they are also leaders within that Body. We should “know” (recognize) them and “esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake.”

A Holy Spirit-led man will recognize that the ascended Lord Jesus Christ gave the Apostle Paul a special ministry. He will preach a clear Gospel of Grace—Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for our sins—instead of “social,” “hazy,” “feel good” messages. He will teach from the pure Bible text, the King James Bible—not arguing with its readings, not “re-translating” Greek and Hebrew, not parroting denominational teachings and lauding scholarship.

No, he will not be like most church leaders today. He will not correct the Bible and then say, “I am a ‘Bible believer.’” He will not deny Jesus Christ as recorded in mystery and then tell us, “I am a ‘Bible believer.’” He will not say he is a “Bible believer” and then claim Israel’s passages for himself. He will not say he is a “Bible believer” and then force us under the Mosaic Law. He will not say he is a “Bible believer” and then mix prophecy and mystery. He will simply believe the Bible and encourage us to do the same. We thank God for such faithful men and we love them in Christ! 🙂

Knowing Your Christian Life

Thursday, July 16, 2015

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him” (Colossians 2:6 KJV).

Yea, “Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving” (verse 7).

Dear Christian brother or Christian sister, have you ever found it difficult to live the Christian life? You undoubtedly answered, “Yes”—just like all of us! How are you doing with keeping the Ten Commandments? Like all of us, you are not doing so well, right? You do your “best” during the day, but at night you reflect on the previous hours and you feel so rotten. Deep down, you know you are failing miserably. Is this the kind of life Father God wanted to give us in Christ? Were we not miserable enough in our sins before we came to Jesus Christ? Despair no longer!

Frankly, you are not walking in Jesus Christ as you received Him. You came to Him by faith in the Gospel, in His finished crosswork as sufficient payment for your sins, but you have not appropriated that crosswork on a daily basis. Yes, you still live like you are in Adam. You are not thinking clearly. You are walking in your own abilities to manage sin, and we know that we cannot get rid of sin. It requires God’s power to put away sin—He did it at Calvary and you can do it at Calvary too!

Our life and sustenance is found in Jesus Christ and His perfect sacrifice, not in ourselves, religion, intellectualism, et cetera. We must be stabilized in the grace doctrines of Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, lest Satan deceive us and defeat us. We must be taught the King James Bible rightly divided. Once we learn and trust God’s Word, God’s way, it will burst forth from us in song and thanksgiving. The misery from religious futility will vanish! The confusion from false teaching will disappear! Dear saint, do not let Satan rob you of your joy in Christ. Do not let him steal your knowledge of who you are in Jesus. Take your stand by faith in these simple verses and let the indwelling Spirit do the rest! 🙂

Our latest Bible Q&A: “What is the Lord’s will for my Christian life?”

NOTE: Having expanded upon the “Original 7 studies” for the third time, our fourth foundation (studies #1501-#1507) is now installed. Onward we press in maturity… and to #2000! 🙂

Knowing Your Apostle Paul

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

“For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office” (Romans 11:13 KJV).

Yea, “…Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity” (1 Timothy 2:5-7).

I once asked a Roman Catholic priest about the “Petrine papacy.” While readily admitting that Jesus Christ sent Paul to us Gentiles (today’s Scripture), he preferred to follow Peter— “I do not care what the Bible says!” He wanted to follow Israel’s Apostle Peter. Never would anyone take “sacred tradition” from him. To abandon the centuries-old fallacy of “Pope Peter” was out of the question!

Christendom’s greatest error is the failure to learn where to go in the Bible to get our “mail” for today. Matthew through John is robbed of the Beatitudes, the so-called “Lord’s Prayer,” and the miracles (the “What-Would-Jesus-Do?” crowd). The Psalms and Proverbs are carelessly isolated. Almost all gravitate to the Book of Acts, especially chapter 2, Pentecost, and the other “Holy Ghost encounters.”

Prophecy said God would bless Gentiles through redeemed Israel (Genesis 12:1-3; Isaiah 60:1-3; Isaiah 61:6; Zechariah 8:20-23). With Israel refusing to convert in early Acts, God could not reach Gentiles. So, with Saul of Tarsus’ (Paul’s) conversion in Acts chapter 9, God instituted a program that He had kept secret since the world began. Salvation would come to us Gentiles through Christ’s shed blood without Israel!

Romans 11:11,12: “[11] I say then, Have they [Israel] stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. [12] Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?”

Through Paul’s Gospel—Jesus Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He was raised again (1 Corinthians 15:3,4)—we have access to God by faith. May we study Romans through Philemon to learn through Paul’s ministry what God expects of us as members of the Church the Body of Christ!

Knowing Dispensational Bible Study

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15 KJV).

Yea, “But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness” (verse 16).

When you look at the professing church, so-called Christianity, do you wonder why there are so many varying ideas? Why the major and starkly different views about salvation from sins, water baptism, confession of sins, end-times, tithing, spiritual gifts, prayer, Sabbath-day keeping, and living as a believer on a daily basis? Amazingly, the Bible teaches assorted views about all of these topics!

In heaven, there will be no such confusion, denominationalism, lost people pretending to be Christians, and false teachers. In heaven, how will God settle all the confusion? Simply put, He will use today’s Scripture, applying it to every issue and belief. He will thus rid the Body of Christ of “profane and vain babblings,” its doctrinal ungodliness!

Throughout human history, God has spoken different things to different people: these various sets of divine instructions are “dispensations.” The doctrine that God wants us to believe and follow today is “the Dispensation of the Grace of God” (Ephesians 3:2). Our dispensation was given to the Apostle Paul, God’s spokesman to us (Romans 11:13). We must “rightly divide the word of truth,” taking special care to separate Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, from the rest of the Bible. In Paul’s 13 books alone, we find our doctrine, identity, duty, walk, and destiny as members of the Church the Body of Christ. Via the mystery program (Romans 16:25,26), God will use us in the heavenly places for His glory (Ephesians 1:20-23). The remaining 63 Bible books are the prophetic program (Acts 3:21), God’s plans to form and use Israel for His glory on the Earth (Exodus 19:5,6). We study all of the Bible, but we do not confuse ourselves with Israel. We do not grab her verses and force them into our dispensation.

God will end the confusion one day, but His Word rightly divided allows us to end the confusion right here and right now! Will we be brave enough to toss out our denominationalism, fickle opinions, and traditions of men, and embrace God’s pure Word?

For more information about dispensational Bible study, you may see: https://333wordsofgrace.wordpress.com/whats-dispensational-bible-study/.

Knowing the Holy Bible

Monday, July 13, 2015

“For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” (2 Peter 1:21 KJV).

Yea, “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction” (2:1).

A “grace” Bible teacher once told me that the Holy Spirit had taught him through 26 different Bible versions! (Just like the Holy Spirit uses 4,200 world religions and 43,000 denominations to teach people, no?!) It is insanity, dear friend, utter insanity! Such is the place to which “Bible scholarship” leads! (Matthew 15:14)

Most people spend their whole lives searching for God’s will. They look in their circumstances, they follow scholarship and teaching bodies in religion, they pray, asking for or seeking any divine enlightenment. Yes, they may and often do mean well, but they are looking in all the wrong places. That includes false Bible versions, false Bible teachers, false prophets, et cetera.

Everything that God ever wants us to know, He wrote it down in a Book and preserved it through history so that we could have it today in our language. What was once written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, is now available to much of the world in English. It is the Authorized Version, or the King James Bible. Just as Jesus Christ, the living Word of God, had enemies, so the written Word of God has counterfeits. Many people actively seek to pervert God’s precious Word: “many corrupt the word of God” (2 Corinthians 2:17). Paul mentioned a counterfeit Bible manuscript with his signature forged on it in 2 Thessalonians 2:2. How much more counterfeits 2,000 years later!

Thankfully, God has preserved His written Word through a multiplicity of copies. Most Bible manuscripts support the readings in the King James Bible and do not support modern English versions. It is not about archaic English or contemporary English. What matters are the manuscripts translated—Roman Catholic text (modern versions) or the Protestant text (King James Bible)? In eternity, we shall find out just how serious the Bible versions issue is!

You may click here for more information about Bible versions: https://333wordsofgrace.wordpress.com/bible-timeline-other-study-aids/.

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Were there five crosses on Calvary’s hill?”

Knowing Jesus Christ

Sunday, July 12, 2015

“…God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved…. For there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:3-5 KJV).

Yea, “Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (verse 6).

Sooner or later, we will all have to answer the question, “Who is Jesus Christ?” It is the most critical question ever. To answer it wrongly is to one day wake up in a lake of fire that burns forever. To answer it correctly is to spend eternity in heavenly bliss. My friend, it is a serious matter indeed.

My nine-year-old niece, to whom I frequently minister, recently approached me to show me something in her new Bible. She turned to 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 and pointed. The dear little heart, without being instructed, had highlighted what she thought was important—the Gospel of the Grace of God. Turning to the right page, she recited those two verses from memory. How many professing Christians—even priests and preachers—could find—let alone quote—the passage that she had highlighted?

Once, even lost people could quote John 3:16, but most Christians cannot do that anymore. Very few Gospel tracts cite 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, the clearest Gospel message for today: “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” As 1 Timothy 2:6 says (above), “Christ Jesus gave himself a ransom for all.” “[He] washed us from our sins in his own blood” (Revelation 1:5). “God our Saviour” and “the man Christ Jesus”—His deity and His humanity. He is “Jesus Christ,” which means, “Anointed Saviour.” Thus, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Jesus Christ was more than a “good man,” a “prophet,” or a “teacher.” He was “the Lord from heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:47). He came to Earth that you might trust Him and Him alone to avoid hell and go to heaven with Him to know Him better and better forever! “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).