Category: Articles Page 10 of 13

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.” (John 1:6-8)

John the Baptist was a very interesting character in the scriptures, to say the least. His ministry was prophesied of in the Old Testament (Isaiah 40:3-5, Mal. 3:1,4:4-6). He was to be filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother’s womb and was born again even before his natural birth (Luke 1:15,41-44). He would be God’s messenger to convert God’s children among the Jews back to a proper relationship with their heavenly Father (Luke 1:16-17). John the Baptist was also the forerunner of Christ who was to prepare the way for the ministry of Jesus Christ (Mal. 3:1, Isaiah 40:2-5).  He was the “bulldozer” before Jesus Christ that filled in the valleys, tore down the hills, straightened the crooked paths, and smoothed out the rough places (Luke 3:4-5) to where the ministry of Jesus would be on a level and straight pathway. He was the last of the Old Testament prophets and came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luke 16:16, 1:17). Even with such an impressive resume, that was not the central theme of his life and ministry – that was to “bear witness of the Light”.

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“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:4)

The term “liberal” should not always be rendered as a bad or negative word.  On the contrary, the term is often used in a very positive light in scripture as evidenced by the term being associated with the generous giving nature of God. The definition of “liberal” at the time the KJV was translated (when the translators chose “liberally” to describe the nature of God’s giving) was “free in giving, generous, or open-hearted” (Shorter Oxford English Dictionary).  To commend the translators, using that definition, I cannot think of a more precise and accurate term to describe to free, generous, and open-hearted giving of blessings that God grants upon His children, especially when we ask of Him in prayer.

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“The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore, with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” (Jeremiah 31:3)

Jehovah God gives a personal admonition to the nation of Israel (that primarily applies to the elect family of spiritual Israel) of God’s everlasting love for His elect.  This verse affirms that God looked out over all of eternity and saw all the persons that would be created in the world, and He chose to love a set and distinct group of people.  However, not just did God love a vague and nebulous group, but His love was “individual and personal” – I have loved “thee” with an everlasting love!

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“Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” (John 15:15)

Jesus Christ, here in the middle of His final sermon to the eleven disciples, declares that they were not just under bondage to be the servants of Christ, but that they were truly the friends of Christ. It’s amazing to think that Jesus Christ would call His disciples – but in a much broader sense all of His lowly, unworthy elect that we trust to be included among– as His “friends”!

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“But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places;” (Philippians 1:12-13)

The Apostle Paul pens this epistle to the church at Philippi during his first Roman imprisonment which occurred probably near 61-63 AD. The Philippian church had sent a messenger, Epaphroditus, to Paul to provide aid to him in prison, who Paul commended for his service towards him (Phil. 2:25-30).  It appears that the messenger had relayed to Paul the church’s concern and attitude of despair for Paul’s current condition in prison. Paul, in these verses, rather redirects the Philippian church to have his own positive perspective of how God in His providence used Paul’s imprisonment in Rome for “the furtherance of the gospel” to allow certain of God’s children in that city to come to the knowledge of the gospel.

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“And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” (Genesis 47:9)

Jacob, as he stands before Pharaoh upon entering Egypt, characterizes his 130 year life on earth as a “pilgrimage”. Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines a “pilgrimage” as: “a long journey, particularly a journey to some place deemed sacred and venerable, in order to pay devotion to the relics of some deceased saint.” We need to understand that our life on earth is a brief part of our journey to our true homeland, our journey to our Father’s house.  We are just passing through this life during our pilgrimage so we need not become too attached to this world or set our roots too deep in the affections of our present, temporary situation.

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“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thess. 5:23)

Here we find Paul’s confidence in the promise that God shall preserve the entire spirit, soul, and body of His elect. The spirit and soul of man go into the presence of God immediately when the saints’ die here in this world. The body will then be glorified and conformed to the image of Jesus Christ at His second coming. Notice another aspect of the final state of our spirit, soul, and body – we shall be “blameless”.

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