Category: spiritual growth and maturity

The Person of the Year

Saturday, December 31, 2022

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…” (Philippians 2:9,10a KJV).

Let us praise the 2022 Person of the Year—our Lord Jesus Christ!

Society’s most stressful time of year, the Christmas Season, is winding down. The year 2022 is nearly over, and a new year, 2023, will dawn soon. At this time every year, various groups and publications feature their particular choice for “Person of the Year.” Whether a chief of state, a philanthropist, a religious leader, a distinguished author or scientist, a television or radio personality, or some other “professional” who impacted society in a negative or positive way the most during the past year, they are all still people with limitations and frailties. One can accomplish all sorts of praiseworthy, generous, and awe-inspiring feats. However, what carries the most weight is the attitude, the heart, underlying the action, not the action. Was it Jesus Christ, or simply the flesh?

The one single event in history that pleased God the Father most was when His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, went by faith in His Word, to an awful Roman cross to suffer the worst possible and most graphic death a human ever experienced, to pay for our sins. “Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11). It is through that finished crosswork of Jesus Christ that He is still doing mighty works, 20 centuries later. How our Lord Jesus Christ has saved countless souls from sins and hell this past year, and how He has saved innumerable Christian souls from false doctrine and spiritual ruin.

Jesus Christ, who in death defeated His greatest enemy (Satan), was raised by God the Father and is now the ascended and glorified Lord Jesus Christ (today’s Scripture). Saints, may we ever thank and praise our Saviour Jesus Christ for what He has done for us, what He has done with us, and what He will do with us next year… and all the countless ages thereafter….

NOTE: Saints, believe it or not, we close yet another year of grace ministry. Thank you for your continued prayer and encouragement these last 12 months. We surely needed it. While we have come so very far, we still have so much more ground to cover, so much more sound Bible doctrine to learn and believe, and we look forward to serving you here for at least another year (provided our Lord Jesus Christ wills it). So, with that, I sign off for 2022. See you in 2023! 🙂

‘Twas the Sunday Night Before Christmas

Sunday, December 18, 2022

“But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15 KJV).

Let us not be so sidetracked by religion and commercialization that we miss the reason for the Christmas Season….

During the Christmas Season, we wonder how many people are visiting church for the second time this year (the other being Easter Sunday). How many will be going to church today—the Sunday before Christmas—just to feel “religious” or “holy?” How many really know Jesus Christ? For many, visiting a church building is just an obligation; they do not have faith in God’s Word and have no interest in God’s Word.

We do not go to church to “feel closer to God,” for if we have trusted in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, we cannot be any closer to God than we already are in Christ! “[Before salvation, we were] without God in the world: but now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh [close to God] by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12,13).

Furthermore, we do not go to church in order to get God’s blessings, for God has already given us “all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). We go to church, not because we are keeping Israel’s Sabbath day, since we are not obligated to observe Israel’s religious days (Colossians 2:16). We go to church to fellowship with like-minded believers and hear sound doctrine… more than twice a year, by the way.

In today’s Scripture, the Apostle Paul encouraged Timothy that whenever he would assemble with fellow Christians, certain behavior was acceptable and other types of behavior were not (described throughout the epistle of 1 Timothy). Recall that when the Bible refers to “the church,” it refers to the body of believers, not the physical building in which they meet.

As we get opportunities, let us make an effort to reach these dear souls misled by all the vain religious tradition and Christmas commercialization, and may we tell them of the wonderful Christ Jesus whose name is found in Christmas!

*Based on the poem “‘Twas the Sunday Night Before Christmas.”

For What Saith the Scriptures?

Thursday, December 15, 2022

“For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3 KJV).

Today, our Bible Q&A website, “For What Saith the Scriptures?,” celebrates its ninth anniversary!

A question rarely asked in Christian circles, “What saith the scripture?” is found twice in the Bible—today’s Scripture, and Galatians 4:30, “Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.”

God’s will for our lives is summed up in 1 Timothy 2:4, “[God our Saviour] Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” There are two issues here—soul salvation from sins and everlasting hellfire, and soul salvation from false teaching unto sound Bible doctrine. Firstly, God wants everyone to become Christians by trusting in and relying exclusively on His Son Jesus Christ and His finished crosswork at Calvary as sufficient payment for their sins. Secondly, God wants Christians to trust in and rely on the grace doctrines found in Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon.

Amazingly, both occurrences of “What saith the scripture?” have a special application to us—each instance correlates to one of the issues in 1 Timothy 2:4! The question “What saith the scripture?” in today’s Scripture uses the Bible to answer the question of soul salvation from sins and everlasting hellfire (faith instead of works, “all men to be saved;” 1 Timothy 2:4). The question “What saith the scripture?” in Galatians 4:30 uses the Bible to answer the question of soul salvation from false teaching unto sound Bible doctrine (grace instead of legalism, “come unto the knowledge of the truth;” 1 Timothy 2:4).

For these past nine years, we desired you to have a clear understanding of how to have forgiveness of sins and justification unto eternal life, and for you to have a clear understanding of what God’s Word has to say about issues in your Christian life. We were honored to serve you in this additional capacity; thank you for the prayer and support this past year. As always, we welcome your Bible questions, and hope to serve you in that way for years to come! 🙂

NOTE: As special-edition Q&A article #1000 is still in development, “For What Saith the Scriptures?” is not being updated at the moment. However, remember, we still have 999 other Bible study articles archived at https://forwhatsaiththescriptures.org.

 

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing #5

Wednesday, December 7, 2022

“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:14-17 KJV).

The final verse of the classic Christmas carol highlights today’s Scripture.

“Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
Glory to the newborn King!”

Religion has done an excellent job (wrongly) teaching us that God likes to rehabilitate humans—that He wants to make us quit doing certain things (“fleshly”) and make us start doing other things (“churchy”). What a very shallow, and actually a false, perception. God wants to do much more than what we could ever do by ourselves.

For good works to reign in our lives, God has to kill us! As sinners, in Adam, we are dead in our trespasses and sins, no life in ourselves (see today’s Scripture). Nothing we can do in our own strength will ever change our (sinful) nature in Adam. However, God offers us death to Adam and a new identity through Christ at Calvary. When we trust that Jesus Christ died for our sins, in God’s mind, we died to sin, too. Christ did not simply die for us but as us. Romans chapters 5 through 8 describe the victory is in Christ, not in Adam or in ourselves. Success is by the power of the Holy Ghost working with the grace doctrines we study and believe, not in our struggles to do right. And so, “Christ [is] formed in [us]” (Galatians 4:19).

Something about which the angels cannot sing, but we can, should, and do! 🙂

In Every Thing Give Thanks

Thursday, November 24, 2022

“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV).

Dear saints, take a moment this Thanksgiving to learn a valuable lesson from the Holy Scriptures!

God wants “all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4). To be “saved” here means you have been rescued from the penalty of sin (hell and the lake of fire), and that you have a home in heaven, because you have trusted the death, shed blood, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as sufficient payment for your sins. To “come unto the knowledge of the truth” is when a person who has trusted Christ, begins to understand why God saved him or her, and how God will use him or her for His glory. Although soul salvation is instantaneous, spiritual maturity is a life-long process (that is especially true regarding handling difficulties, the grace way!).

It is human nature to avoid difficulties and stress, to flee them, rather than confront them. This self-preservation is advantageous, particularly in “life or death” situations. However, running from troubling circumstances is not the way God has designed our life in Christ to function. Today’s Scripture says, “In every thing give thanks,” not “For every thing give thanks.” We do not thank God for our troubles; we thank God while we are enduring those troubles. This is tough, I know, but it takes time for us to learn it. Even the Apostle Paul had to learn this.

“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:11-13).

Be thankful in every thing. God’s grace is sufficient for you, dear saint, in all of life’s circumstances. When you learn this, you are “[coming] unto the knowledge of the truth.”

*Excerpted from our Thanksgiving 2012 Bible study with the same name. That study can be read here or watched here.

You may also see, “What are our spiritual blessings in Christ?”

String Too Short to Use!

Thursday, November 17, 2022

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13,14 KJV).

If we are to move forward in the Christian life, we must not look backward to the old life….

Once, a man needed to sort through his deceased family member’s possessions. The lady was a hoarder, saving and categorizing everything. As he handled the items, he was dumbfounded to sight a container labeled, “Dress snaps that do not match.” Just when he thought it was worst kind of penny-pinching he had ever seen, he noticed an even weirder spectacle. There was a box with the following words: “String too short to use!”

Although the above true story is humorous, it is also tragic. The overaccumulation of material items can cause great stress, poor health, and even injury or death. People trapped under collapsed objects in their home is just one of the risks that hoarding poses. Hanging on to useless stuff in the spiritual realm can inflict even more damage. In today’s Scripture, Paul is providing his testimony (read verses 1-12), how he came by faith to Jesus Christ and left behind his old life as a lost man in works-religion Judaism. His focus was not on who he used to be in Adam (self-righteous sinner), but on who he now was in Christ (truly-righteous saint).

What the Holy Spirit is impressing on us in today’s Scripture is to “get rid of that string too short to use.” There is no benefit in retaining it. It will only weigh us down, distract us, and even destroy us. Dear Christian friend, by the power of God’s grace, let go of the old life—the darkness, confusion, sin, filth, disappointments, impotency, immaturity. “Reach forth unto those things which are before” and “press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Let Christ Jesus live His life in and through you, as you walk by faith in an intelligent understanding of His words to you (Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon)!

True Wisdom

Saturday, November 5, 2022

“And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God” (1 Corinthians 2:4,5 KJV).

Dear brethren, may our faith stand in the power of God!

A few days back, I had a delightful phone conversation with a dear brother in Christ who “just so happened” to find our ministry websites roughly a year ago. He had been seeking someone who used the Bible alone, so how grateful he is to Father God to have landed on our webpages. In the 12 months since he came across our online studies (devotionals, Bible Q&A articles, and videos), he claims he “has not put his Bible down!” How we thank God for him, just as he gives thanks for us.

We counter Bible ignorance by Bible education. Naturally, this goes far beyond mere talking about the Scriptures, reading books about the Scriptures, quoting “authorities” who comment on the Scriptures. Usually, false teaching in Christianity is a verse misunderstood because it has been removed from its dispensational context. The aforementioned brother had struggled with certain difficult Bible passages for years, but, being a “right division” Bible student with us these past 12 months has greatly enhanced his outlook. He now understands and enjoys the Scriptures, skilled enough to identify spiritual error when he sees or hears it. Moreover, he has reached a point where he can teach others (and, like us, he has had his share of “opposition” from denominationally-minded church members!).

The Apostle Paul, though a learned man in both the Hebrew Bible (see Acts 22:3) and heathen literature (Acts 17:28; Titus 1:12), was careful not to use worldly education to persuade the Corinthians to the point of faith. He visited and ministered in Corinth in Acts chapter 18 as God the Holy Spirit enlightened him—that their faith would stand in God’s words, not the speculations or hunches of a religious leader. Brethren, may we endeavor to follow 2 Timothy 2:15 and 2 Timothy 3:16-17 as we reach the masses with the pure, rightly divided Bible… while we still have time.

Saints, please remember this work of the ministry requires monthly financial support to operate (Galatians 6:6; Philippians 4:16-17; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7). Those who prefer electronic giving can donate securely here: https://www.paypal.me/ShawnBrasseaux. Anyone who wishes to donate by regular mail can visit https://333wordsofgrace.org/contact-us-mailing-address-for-donations/ for details. Thanks to all who give to and pray for us! Unfortunately, since our ministry audience is so large and our ministry staff is so small, I can no longer personally respond to everyone. Thanks so much for understanding in this regard. 🙂

Good to Better to Best

Sunday, October 30, 2022

“Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing. Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample” (Philippians 3:16,17 KJV).

As a dear brother in Christ observed, “Never let it rest, until your good is better, and your better is best!”

The Christian life is a process. Indeed, the new believer is still a “babe,” but it is God’s desire that he or she grow up in spiritual knowledge, spiritual wisdom, and spiritual understanding so as to reach “full age” (maturity). The Lord had wanted this for national Israel, yet read Hebrews 5:11-14. He also wishes this for us, the Church the Body of Christ, but read 1 Corinthians 3:1-3, which accurately depicts the professing church at this very hour.

When Paul penned today’s Scripture, he had trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour 35 years before. To what purpose had he been saved unto eternal life? Even after all that time, he was still trying to fully grasp God’s plan for him. However, and note it well, he endeavored to keep growing in the Word rightly divided. This should be our resolve also. We follow Paul as he follows Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1).

“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you” (Philippians 3:12-15).

Daily dispensational Bible study will allow us to better realize what grace living is—and what it is not. With each passing day, saints, our spiritual eyesight, spiritual gait, spiritual dexterity, and spiritual minds should be improving not failing (watch the progression of Romans 12:1,2—“good, acceptable, perfect”).

arC Ministries Is 15!

Sunday, July 31, 2022

“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:20 KJV).

To our Lord Jesus Christ’s glory, arC Ministries celebrates its 15th anniversary today!!!

Fifteen years ago, as a 19-year-old college student, I endeavored to use Facebook to create a Bible study group for teens and college students. Thus, “ambassadors for the risen Christ ministries” was born. As I grew more in God’s Word rightly divided, I grew increasingly aware of the need for additional ministry projects. The more I had been learning drove me to share those precious truths with others. That eventually led me to look for supplementary avenues of ministry.

During these past 15 years, God’s grace has enabled us to continue the original group on Facebook. In addition, we have branched out quite a bit in other areas. This devotionals blog has been operating for over 11 years now. For the last 10 years, we have focused on developing and drafting a grace study Bible (now in its eleventh year). Other ministry projects include a 22-week newspaper ministry column (this devotionals blog’s predecessor), a YouTube channel with home Bible study videos, a Twitter feed, a full-length Bible studies blog, a college campus ministry, a nursing-home ministry, and our Bible-question-and-answer blog. Six years ago, we launched our new main ministry website and now have a line of printed Bible study booklets available for sale there. Three years ago, we recorded and distributed our Old Testament Survey video series. Later that year, we launched our New Testament Survey video series (which will last a few years). We hear from people all over the world!

Our name says it all: we serve the risen Lord Jesus Christ, not some “dead Jew” and not ourselves. The original motto of our ministry was, “To equip ambassadors, and to encourage others to become ambassadors.” Our primary goal is to teach Christians, and our secondary goal is to evangelize the lost world. Fifteen years later, we still endeavor to uphold God’s Word (King James Bible) rightly divided, whether it be in edifying the Christian brethren or preaching the clear Gospel of the Grace of God to this lost and dying world. For those of you who have been with us from day 1, thank you for your prayer and encouragement. We pray for you upon every remembrance! There is still plenty more for the Lord Jesus Christ to do in and through us, so let us give Him all the praise and glory as we enter Year 16! 🙂

Our latest Bible Q&As: “What does ‘circumspect’ mean?” and “What is a ‘sherd?’”

 

333 Turns 11!

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

“For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Philippians 3:20,21 KJV).

Dear brethren in Christ, these 11 years now—where, oh where, has the time gone?!—we have journeyed quite far by God’s grace. Are we willing to go even further?

We are often accused of being “know-it-alls,” but that is simply a misunderstanding of what Bible believers should be. For example, would you not expect your physician to be skilled in specialized medical training? I hope so—especially if you need surgery! Or, would you be surprised if your attorney was quite knowledgeable of the judicial system? No, in fact, you would panic if some know-nothing represented you in court! Accordingly, Bible-believing Christians should be just as acquainted with the Bible as any professional is with his or her discipline.

No, we are not “know-it-alls,” for if we were, then we would no longer be studying the Bible on a daily basis, now would we? Let us put it like this. We know more about Scripture than we did when we appealed to denominationally-minded leaders for “help.” So as to excuse their willful ignorance, “Christian” (?) people will fault we who are more knowledgeable than they. We politely invite them to stop whining and start growing with us!

Friends, we are preparing for life in the heavenly places by storing up sound Bible doctrine in our inner man right now. Whether we realize it or not, over the course of these last 4,000-plus Bible studies, Christ has been formed in us (Galatians 4:19). It will not be until the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9-16; 2 Corinthians 5:9,10) when we learn the eternal value and impact of God’s work in and through us here as we keep “studying… rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). With each passing day, may we continue renewing our mind (Romans 12:1,2) and maturing (Ephesians 4:12-32), ready to accomplish God’s will in the heavenly places when He comes for us.

Remember, all past 11 years of daily devotionals are archived here.

Special-edition Bible Q&A #960: “Does John 7:53–8:11 belong in the Bible?”