Last Home Bible Study for a while

Because we have been so busy in other ministries, we have decided as a family to hold off on our home Bible study for a while.  Because I work Thurs-Mon from 2:30-11:00, my only days off in the evenings are going to be Tuesday and Wednesday for several months if not more.  

Tuesday is jam-packed with the booming ESL ministry at Northchase, so I have become consumed with that to say the least, not to mention having resumed ICR (Institute for Creation Research) Online Graduate School classes.  Between my new job, more school, and the Northchase Apartment ministry (visitations soon to begin), I have decided to make Wednesday my Sabbath for now to rest and focus on family matters.  

However, we will still be doing the Romans Bible study regularly as a family (mostly when our small children are asleep), and I will continue posting my notes for each section as we study Romans.

ESL/Bible Study Northchase Apartments 4-21-09

The Lord blessed tremendously tonight as we had 43 people show up for the ESL and 12 for the Bible Study.  This was the 6th week, and we continue to become more organized each week.  We offered refreshments for the first time today, which went great.  Hopefully, that helped to give them something to eat, so they could be more focused on the class rather than being consumed with hunger and thirst.  The same people are consistently coming, and we continue to add new folks as well, yet I am still praying about when to start the intermediate ESL class. The mock market continues to go well each week, and we introduced clothing this week, of which Sally brought in a whole slew of items for that.  We always break the large group into seven or eight smaller groups for more focused study, so that went well also.  Lutfi was back, so we decided to give him a pass for being out :)  Chris came out tonight as well, and we are always appreciative of any help we can get.

We had both a strong Latino and Nepali turnout, and we were thrilled that a good number of folks stayed for the Bible Study, which I decided to teach in English.  They want to know English, and doing the Bible Study in English seems to help attendance.  I am still working on my ability to communicate the gospel to them in a clear yet simple manner as we go through the book of Romans, so I appreciate prayers for that especially; it was evident tonight that I have a long way to go on that.  We did pass out several more New Testaments in English & Spanish, and we even passed out several copies of Romans in Nepali (hats of to Roberto for that).

When was Biblical Authority first Questioned?

In Genesis 3, Satan blatantly questioned the authority of God's Word by asking whether or not God said that death would come through eating the forbidden fruit.  He then raised the bar by deliberately denying the consequence of death for eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Satan not only denied the Word of God, but He also made the assertion that God was intentionally withholding knowledge from them to keep them from threatening His Sovereignty. The Devil flat out lied!

Satan knew that questioning the Word of God would be central in his effort to convince man to rebel against God.  If he could get man to question the Word of God as authoritative, then he knew man would be one step away from compromise and ultimate rebellion.  Truly, if God's Word is not authoritative, then it is certainly not sufficient either.  Why would anyone submit to the commandments of something that they do not believe is authoritative? They wouldn't; it's just that simple. 

Nevertheless, even in the midst of tremendous pressure and temptation, Adam and Eve still had the free choice of either obedience or rebellion, and God had already made it clear that disobedience would result in death.  What would they do: worship the creation or the Creator, who is blessed forever, Amen? (Rom 1:25)

What is Biblical Authority & Why is it Important?

What is Biblical Authority?

• Biblical Authority is when we use the Bible as our foundational source by which to understand all of reality.  Though the Bible may not go in detail in various areas of study, it does give us a framework or 'lens' by which to interpret the world around us.  The Bible was written to reveal knowledge of God and of man (John Calvin), so its emphasis is on matters of worship, salvation, etc.  For this reason, it does not go into great detail in the hard sciences like geology. However, where it does speak of geologic events, like the Genesis Flood, it is absolutely accurate and therefore gives us a basic lens by which to understand aspects of earth's geologic history.

Why is Biblical Authority so important?

• Psalm 11:3 (ESV) states, "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" If we fail to assert Biblical Authority, then we fail in our ability to communicate the truth of the gospel because the gospel is based on real historical events.  Essentially, if the Bible is not authoritative in its historical accuracy, then it inevitably falls apart.  For example, in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul argues at length for the criticality of the Resurrection because Christianity hinges on the historical fact of Christ's bodily resurrection.  To deny the historical event of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ would therefore also deny Christ's victory over death. The enemies of the faith know this, which is why they attack the historicity of the Bible so much.

Perseverance of the Saints

"13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation--having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory." (Eph 2:13-14). Those who are in Christ cannot lose their salvation as this text is very clear to point out. Another well known passage is in John 10:28-29 where Christ declares that none can snatch us out of His hand nor the Father's hand. This is not because of our work but because of what God has done through Christ, for we did not choose Him but He chose us, that is His sheep.

In light of these marvelous passages, some have hijacked and distorted this great doctrine. This does not mean that someone can make a flippant confession of faith and then totally dismiss the commands of Christ. Truly, a changed born-again heart will be made evident by a transformed life. Those who have the Spirit of God indwelling them will bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). Some will bear more fruit than others (Matt 13:23), but all believers will bear fruit. Not only will His sheep bear fruit, but they also despise their sin. Christ came to set men free from the power of sin and death (Rom 6), and He is not merely Hell insurance. He came to empower men to do what they were created to do, and that is to worship God in spirit and in truth (Jn 4:24). When that is understood rightly, then any notions of flippant confessions without true heart change are thrown out the window! Amen!

To know that we are sealed by the Spirit and empowered by Him to live a godly life is without doubt one of the greatest assurances a believer can ever have. Oh what grace God has shown to His Elect! "Unworthy! Unworthy!" we cry out. God was not obligated to bestow such blessings upon anyone, yet by His grace He has poured out such unending grace to mere men. We are so vile compared to Him, yet we who believe in Christ, "He who was delivered over because of our transgressions and was raised because of our justification," (Rom 4:25) are set free from this bondage to sin and death! Amen!