Category: God’s truth

The Bible’s Season of New Life

Saturday, April 12, 2014

“God that made the world and all things therein… he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;” (Acts 17:24,25 KJV).

May we never forget the true meaning of Eastertime!

Satan is the master counterfeiter: from Genesis to Revelation, the Scriptures reveal how the devil schemes to “be like the most High” (Isaiah 14:14). Whatever God does, Satan defiles that work by introducing false doctrine, distracts mankind from God’s truth by mimicking His actions, discourages God’s people from His ministry by using incorrect thinking patterns, and so on. Why? Satan wants the worship that God alone deserves (Matthew 4:8-10; Luke 4:5-8).

Consider Christmastime. Centuries before Christ, Satan had pagans worshipping the birth of the sun god in early winter—near the date that Jesus Christ (God the Son) took upon human flesh in the virgin Mary’s womb! Now, consider Eastertime. Centuries before Christ, Satan had pagans worshipping fertility deities and new life in early spring, near the date that Jesus Christ (God the Son) died for our sins and resurrected victoriously over sin, death, hell, and Satan to give us new life! (To Satan’s delight, today’s average church member is not mindful of relevant sound Bible doctrine during Christmastime and Eastertime—the devil’s distractions have never lost their efficacy!)

The God of the Bible instituted in Israel a festival, Passover (the killing of a spotless lamb and its bloodshed in early spring), while they were still in Egypt (Exodus chapter 12)—Passover’s annual observance reminded them of JEHOVAH delivering them from Egyptian slavery unto new life. Israel did not understand its meaning until 1,500 years later. The true Passover lamb, Jesus Christ, died and shed His sinless blood during that annual Passover feast (early spring), and He resurrected in new life to give them spiritual life and liberty.

Yes, the pagans may have “hijacked” this time of year for the devil’s glory, but we can disregard their ignorance: spring is God’s season for new life. We can still use this season to bring the God of the Bible glory by remembering that He has given us physical life (today’s Scripture), and He offers us new life (that is, spiritual life) through Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection! 🙂

Counseled by the Only Wise Counselor

Friday, March 21, 2014

“The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations” (Psalm 33:11 KJV).

His advice will literally last forever, but do you prefer the “experts?”

After convicted by one of our Bible studies, an atheist emailed me to complain. Following his few words (not even one full sentence) and a large quote from me, he concluded his email with a link to an article about King James Bible “errors.” While the atheist did not write that article—no, a “Bible-believing, Bible-defending, Jesus-Christ-honoring” seminary professor did that!—I read it with an open mind anyway. Once the seminary professor reassured his readers that he believed in Biblical inspiration, inerrancy (?!), and authority, he proceeded to explain six reasons why he rejected the King James Bible as the best translation. (Even lost people have more respect for God’s Word!) Superficially, he seemed to present a “death-blow” to the King James—I smiled, for, in reality, he actually defeated himself!

Without any reservation, the general Christian public believes every word from Bible “experts:” it is trained not to question this seminary professor’s claims and “facts.” It is trained not to discover that the “pompous Ph.D.” neither knew his history nor his Bible (or, was willfully withholding facts and fabricating “evidence!”). Moreover, while the professor “advised” his readers to disbelieve King James Bible inerrancy, he never bothered to “counsel” as to which Bible translation he thought was inerrant! (This is particularly interesting, since he chaired a modern Bible translation—never making a single reference to its “inerrancy” either!).

After I thought about what I read, today’s Scripture and its context came to mind. Man’s “wisdom” is but foolishness at best. In the context of today’s Scripture, we read, “The LORD bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: he maketh the devices [schemes] of the people of none effect” (verse 10). No matter what sinful man does, in the end, it will come to nothing. However, our Lord Jesus Christ’s counsel will stand forever (today’s Scripture), and without question, that will, perfectly preserved for us in the King James Bible, shall outlast each and every critic, including the professing “counselors.” 🙂

Bible Study 102 #13

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

Beginning in Acts chapter 9 with our Apostle Paul’s salvation unto eternal life, but also throughout his ministry, the risen and ascended Lord Jesus Christ directly revealed Himself to him (Acts 26:12-18; 2 Corinthians 12:1; Galatians 1:11,12; Ephesians 3:1-3; 2 Timothy 1:10,11)—Christ’s heavenly ministry. The Holy Spirit, through our reading and studying of Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, reveals those Pauline (grace) doctrines to us, enabling us to understand them (Ephesians 1:17,18; Ephesians 3:4,5).

According to God the Holy Ghost, the test for true spirituality today is Pauline doctrine: “If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I [Paul] write unto you are the commandments of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 14:37). If someone is speaking on God’s behalf (called a “prophet” in Bible days) and/or if someone is “spiritual” (led by the Holy Spirit), then he or she will magnify the Lord Jesus Christ’s heavenly ministry, Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon. Those who emphasize Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry (Matthew through John), Hebrews through Revelation, Genesis through Malachi, or even early Acts, as doctrine that we should follow and apply today, the Bible says they are not led by God’s Holy Spirit and they are not speaking on God’s behalf! (Just as Jews who rejected Moses’ writings were not led by God’s Spirit or speaking for God.)

Beloved, any church, any minister, any seminary, or any literature or media that does not instruct you to follow God’s grace doctrines as found in Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, the Bible says “avoid them” (Romans 16:17,18) and “from such withdraw thyself” (1 Timothy 6:3-5)—God says avoid 99.9999 percent of so-called “Christianity!!!” Regardless of their sincerity or appeal, God the Holy Spirit insisted through Paul and Peter that we are not to hinder or destroy our spiritual growth with non-dispensational Bible doctrine (2 Corinthians 11:3,4; Colossians 2:4,8; 2 Timothy 2:14-26; 2 Peter 3:15,16). We need not do Satan’s work for him….

Bible Study 102 #12

Monday, March 17, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

From Genesis through Revelation, God the Holy Ghost reveals, inspires, preserves, translates, and teaches God’s Word. Genesis 1:2,3 say, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.” Jesus declared, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26). The Apostle Peter penned: “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 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 1:20,21).

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16) really means that the Spirit of God spoke those words. First, notice the root –spir (as in “spirit”) in “inspiration.” Now, consider that “spirit” and “air” (as in “breathe” or “Spirit”) are actually the same word—pneuma—in Greek (the original language of the New Testament Scriptures). Interestingly, theopneustos is the word translated “inspiration of God”—notice the prefix pneu– (as in the Holy Spirit). Finally, recall Jesus Christ’s declaration, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). In summation, the words of Scripture are the words that God the Holy Ghost breathed out/spoke (“given by inspiration of God”).

The Holy Bible is “given by inspiration of God,” meaning His Holy Spirit initially gave it to mankind. If we are to understand the words that God the Holy Spirit has revealed, inspired, preserved, and translated, we must allow the Holy Spirit to teach us to “rightly divide the word of truth” (today’s Scripture), to recognize Paul as God’s spokesman to us (1 Corinthians 14:37; Ephesians 3:1-11)….

Bible Study 102 #11

Sunday, March 16, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

Scripture clearly states, “God is not the author of confusion” (1 Corinthians 14:33), yet look at the professing Body of Christ. It is just as confused and misinformed about the Bible’s teachings as the people who do not even use the Bible! This Bible confusion is not God’s fault—Christendom has utterly failed to appreciate the dispensational layout of Scripture as God instructed.

One of my Christian friends and ministry co-workers was born and raised in a false religious system. For the first 30-plus years of his earthly life, he was never told the truth, that his religious performance could never merit God’s favor. Once he came to trust Jesus Christ alone as his personal Saviour, he spent the first 40 years of his Christian life never fully understanding his Bible. As a deacon and a Bible teacher in a local Bible church, religious tradition was still robbing him of God’s truth as it had when he was lost! (This is true of many Christians today!)

Years ago, I was privileged to teach him dispensational Bible study. Today, he still reminds me, “All those years I did not understand the Bible, all those passages that puzzled me and yet I had no answers to all those questions! The Bible makes so much sense now!” This dear brother in Christ is no longer “taken captive by [the devil] at his will” (2 Timothy 2:26): God had given him “repentance [change of mind] to the acknowledging of the truth,” and he “recovered [himself] out of the snare of the devil” (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4b). Now, he knows what God is doing (described in Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon), he knows and enjoys his Bible like never before, and he can enjoy the eternal life that God gave him over 40 years ago, the life religion never told him about!

Indeed, dispensational Bible study is crucial, for it can salvage the lives of Christians….

Bible Study 102 #8

Thursday, March 13, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

When Scripture says we Christians are “workmen” (today’s Scripture), Ephesians 2:10 (“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them”) and 1 Corinthians 3:9 (“For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building”) explain that God has saved us unto eternal life so we could join Him in accomplishing His will (which we could not do when we were lost, headed for eternal hellfire, participants in Satan’s policy of evil).

Recall that God has a two-fold will: save all people from their sins and Satan, and then save all Christians from all false doctrine (1 Timothy 2:4). Satan has a two-fold will that counters God’s: hide the Gospel of Grace from all people, and hide sound Pauline (grace) doctrine from all Christians. Religious tradition—a non-dispensational approach the Scripture—furthers Satan’s policy of evil, for it keeps lost people lost, and it keeps Christians ignorant of God’s will, His Word to them.

Satan, “the god of this world,” “hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,” by causing lost people to ignore Paul’s Gospel and trust in their own religious performance to gain a right standing before God (2 Corinthians 4:3,4). Moreover, Satan misleads Christians to introduce into their lives everything but God’s grace to them in Christ—the wrong “Jesus” (His earthly ministry in Matthew through John, rather than His heavenly ministry as revealed through Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon), the wrong “spirit” (law rather than grace, Romans 6:14 cf. Romans 8:15), and the wrong “gospel” (Israel’s kingdom gospel rather the Gospel of Grace of 1 Corinthians 15:3,4) (2 Corinthians 11:3,4).

We Christians are “workmen” when we “study… rightly dividing the word of truth,” and our faith in those verses causes the Holy Spirit to bring them to life in our lives, thus aligning us with God’s will for us….

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Should Christians observe Lent?“

Bible Study 102 #3

Saturday, March 8, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

Many professing Christians spend their whole earthly lives struggling to discern God’s will. They observe their circumstances and attempt to “read between the lines and discern road signs,” they listen for instruction from “still, small voices” in their heads, they ask preachers and teachers (who rarely understand God’s will themselves), they purchase “Christian” literature and “easy-to-read” modern “bible” versions, they attend retreats and Bible conferences, they pray, and it is truly unfortunate that, despite all the effort, they often leave this life without ever getting a solid grasp of God’s Word to them. Most tragically, many not only die without understanding the Bible, but they even die in their trespasses and sins, having never realized they could have had those sins forgiven in and through Jesus Christ!

God’s will for each and every person is clearly delineated in 1 Timothy 2:4: “[God our Saviour; verse 3] Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” There are two specific phrases to note: “Who will have all men to be saved” and “Who will have all men… to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” (Remember, “men” is a generic term that includes all people—man, woman, boy, and girl.)

Firstly, God wants all people to be saved from their sins and eternal hellfire. The Apostle Peter elaborated on the Apostle Paul’s words: “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

Secondly, God wants all Christians to be saved from false teaching. “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1 Timothy 4:16).

Let us now briefly examine the first aspect of God’s two-fold plan for man….

Bible Study 102 #1

Thursday, March 6, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to understand the Bible!

You can only enjoy what you understand. If you do not understand something, then it becomes burdensome and you tend to avoid it. This describes the attitude many have toward the Bible, lost and saved alike. While most professing Christians usually know that the Bible is an important Book, they often really do not know what to do with it, so they usually do not expose themselves to its contents unless at church when a preacher or priest “explains” (read that, complicates) it for them. Even then, familiar Bible passages are read over and over and over, and then the Bible becomes boring and even despised.

The goal of dispensational Bible study is to make the Bible understandable—it is the way to understand and enjoy the Bible. When considered dispensationally, the Bible literally becomes an open Book. Its “contradictory” verses are no longer bothersome because it is understood that these opposing verses are written to different peoples living in different time periods under different circumstances. However, if somebody discourages you from dispensational Bible study (and many denominations and churches do in order to keep you coming, giving, and supporting their program!), then they are taking from you the key God gave you to understand His Word! It is that serious, dear friend.

While many theologians and preachers never even partially grasp its meaning, today’s Scripture is very simple. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Of course, you have to have a King James Bible for it to read in this manner, for modern English “bible” translators demonstrate they have no regard for the dispensational layout of Scripture, and by retranslating the verse (which you will then read and believe), they encourage you to join them in their unbelieving scholarship.

Let us proceed to advanced right division….

Bible Study 101 #14

Saturday, January 18, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to study the Bible!

Scripture says little about the Christians who lived in Berea (a town neighboring Thessalonica, in present-day Greece), but its brief description of them is quite noteworthy: “These [in Berea, verse 10] were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11). Jesus Christ told the religious leaders of His day, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39). Some of Israel’s religious leaders encouraged Nicodemus to “search” the Old Testament scrolls (John 7:52). The Old Testament prophets “searched [the Scriptures] diligently” (1 Peter 1:10).

Similar concepts to “search” are “examine” (Luke 23:14; Acts 24:8), “discern” (1 Corinthians 2:14), and “judge” (1 Corinthians 2:15; 1 Corinthians 4:3). God “searches” our hearts (Romans 8:27; Revelation 2:23), the Spirit of God “searches” the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10).

The Bible exhorts us to search it: we should study it in-depth, “consider” what we read in it (2 Timothy 2:7), and “meditate” on it (1 Timothy 4:16), make a mental effort and think about what it says. People—even many Christians—are not thinking clearly when they go to church, and the Bible doctrine they know is so shallow; they are not grounded in the Bible. Thus, they participate in the widespread nonsense (deception) that occurs within the average church building today (Ephesians 4:14). We need to study the Bible, and most importantly, need to study it “rightly divided,” understanding that Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, describe what God is doing today. This is the only way we can walk by faith in God’s Word to us, and work with God (1 Corinthians 3:9) to do what He is doing in this the Dispensation of Grace.

Let us now summarize and conclude this devotionals arc….

Bible Study 101 #8

Sunday, January 12, 2014

“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).

The only verse that tells you to study the Bible also tells you how to study the Bible!

Ephesians 2:11,12 explain that the “Old Testament” Scriptures (Genesis through Malachi), Matthew through John (the Four Gospels), and Acts chapters 1-8 are “time past,” and thus have no direct application to us. Verse 13 says we are in the “but now,” and that distinction between Jew and Gentile is currently rescinded (Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon). Ephesians 2:7 speaks of the “ages to come,” the future (discussed primarily in Hebrews through Revelation [for the nation Israel], but also throughout Paul’s epistles [for us, the Church the Body of Christ]).

Thus, we cannot steal Israel’s Old Testament passages and promises and pretend they belong to us. We cannot go into Christ’s earthly ministry and follow His teachings as though He was speaking to us Gentiles (when He said He was speaking to Israel only; Matthew 10:5-7; Matthew 15:24; cf. Romans 15:8). We cannot grab passages in Hebrews through Revelation and conclude they are talking to or about us, when their contexts indicate they are not. And yet, the professing Church has done just this for the last 2,000 years, and created over 38,000 rival denominations in the process!

In the context of today’s Scripture, Paul writes that false teachers, Hymenaeus and Philetus (verse 17), “concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some” (verse 18). These men were mixing our mystery program with Israel’s prophetic program. They had misled Christians to believe that they had missed the rapture (“the resurrection”) and caused them to believe that they were now living in Israel’s seven-year Tribulation (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-14). Even today, many do not “rightly divide the word of truth” (today’s Scripture)—that is, they fail to recognize the distinction between prophecy and mystery—so, they confuse doctrines (here, confusing the timing of the rapture).

Again, we must stop mixing the dispensations in God’s Word if we are to understand God’s Word….