In many ways the life of Abraham is a picture of the life of faith of a believer in Jesus Christ. The Lord called Abraham to follow Him. And as long as He kept his eyes on the Lord, he prospered in his walk. But in those times he took his eyes off the Lord, the Lord called out to Abraham to draw him back.
It has been 13 years since the birth of Ishmael. Abram is now 99 years old; Sarai 89. And the Lord comes to Abram to confirm His covenant. He changes the name of Abram to Abraham, 'Father of a multitude,' and Sarai to Sarah, a constant reminder of the Lord's promise for an heir and a land. In addition to a new name, he promises a son, to be born within the year; a son to be named Isaac, meaning 'Laughter,' a reminder that both Abraham and Sarah laughed at impossible promise, along with the joy this child brought to such an old couple.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May the Lord bless you through the teaching of God's Word.
Following explosive growth, the early church very quickly experienced persecution. This would have come as no surprise to the Apostles, as the Lord Himself warned them that the world would hate them because it hated Him first. This same resistance to the early church continues today, as the people of God will always face some type of opposition and persecution.
In Acts 4, following the miraculous healing of the lame man in the temple thousands were added to the church. Jealous of such response, the Jewish leaders arrested, not only Peter and John, but the man that was healed. Given that persecution is inevitable for the people of God, Peter's response becomes a model for how to respond to persecution.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May the Lord bless you through the teaching of God's Word.
As Peter and John went to the temple to pray, they had an encounter with a man lame from birth. Looking for alms, Peter instead gave him something of infinitely greater value; healing his infirmity and offering to him eternal life; all through the power of Christ.
Seeing this miracle, the people marveled at what happened. Peter immediately drew the attention of the crowd to the person of Jesus Christ; the Messiah promised to them through Moses and the prophets. But rather than accept Him, they instead handed Him over to be crucified. They had rejected the Son of God. This was the bad news.
But Peter also delivered to them the Good News. Although they had acted in ignorance, they were responsible for their deeds. The good news for the sinner is that God's grace is not closed off to you. Therefore, repent and return to the Lord.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May you be blessed through the teaching of God's Word.
People prepare a will in order to identify how to handle possessions at the time of passing. A testament is a statement of beliefs; a credo; a statement of what is of utmost importance.
In his epistle to the church in Asia Minor, Peter spells out what is most important. He reminds the church what they have in Jesus Christ.
As you listen to today's lesson, may the Lord bless you at the teaching of His Word.
Thank you for listening.
Throughout Scripture we see God using ordinary people, the relatively unknown characters of history, to work for His purposes. Exodus tells of Hur, the husband of Miriam, Moses' brother-in-law. He only appears in two places in Exodus, with little known about his life. But these little known characters, like Hur, provide us with lessons in our own faith walk.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May God richly bless you through His Word.
Throughout Scripture, God has used miraculous signs and wonders to confirm His Word. In Egypt, God confirmed His promises to the children of Israel. In the wilderness, He continued to confirm His Word through signs and wonders. Jesus said of His own works that they confirm who He is.
When Peter and John went to the temple to pray, they met a man lame from birth at the Beautiful Gate. The miracle that gave this man his legs amazed the onlookers in the temple. Peter, seizing upon their amazement, points to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who glorified His Servant, Jesus Christ. It was this same Servant whom the Jewish leaders disavowed and asked for a murderer to be released instead (Acts 3:14). But more amazing than giving a lame man working legs, Jesus gives those who believe in Him eternal life.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May God bless you through His Word.
In this session, we continue our look at the Apostolic Fathers, a collection of writings dating from the late first and early second centuries. Some of the authors had ties to the Lord's Apostles; Polycarp was a disciple of the Apostle John. The letters of Ignatius were written by Ignatius, the bishop of Antioch, who was an acquaintance of Polycarp.
Today's session is an overview of Second Clement and the Letters of Ignatius of Antioch.
Thank you for listening.
In many ways, the life of Abraham becomes an allegory of sorts for the Christian life. We see times of tremendous faith, such as when Abraham rose early to offer up Isaac to the Lord as seen in Genesis 22. We see times of questioning, as when Abraham asked the Lord in Genesis 15, “O Lord God, what will You give me since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” We see times of great courage, as when Abraham pursued the kings who took his nephew, Lot, captive; pursuing them hundreds of miles to rescue his relative. And we see times of great cowardice, as when he claimed Sarah was his sister instead of his wife, not once but twice.
And, as we see in Genesis 16, we see times of stumbling. Assured of the Lord's promise to raise a child from his own flesh, Abram still stumbled, following his wife's counsel to bear a child through her maid, Hagar; perhaps this would be how the promise was to be fulfilled.
But through it all, we see the constancy of God. He never changes, nor does He waiver in His commitment to His promises, despite Abraham's, and our own, failings.
Thank you for listening to today's lesson. May the Lord bless you through the teaching of His Word.
We go through our lives day in and day out, encountering the same people; often times not paying them any attention. But what if we stopped and truly saw the needs of those around us? What if we truly saw their greatest need was to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Today, we look at Peter and John, Apostles together sent out by the Lord Himself to preach the Gospel. After Peter's sermon on Pentecost, and the explosive growth of the church, we see Peter and John returning to their day-to-day routines, but now with a new focus. Entering the temple at the ninth hour to pray, as they did regularly, they now see those whom, perhaps, they hadn't noticed before. This includes a lame man, begging for alms of all the faithful Jews carrying out their ritual. But this time, this lame beggar received far more than the silver and gold he asked; he has an encounter with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which radically transforms him, and all who accept it.
Thank you to listening to today's lesson. May the Word of God richly bless you.
In this session, we continue our look at the Apostolic Fathers, the earliest writings of the early church outside scripture. Some of these authors likely knew at least some of the Lord's Apostles. As we see in our continued review of 1 Clement, this letter from the church in Rome to the church in Corinth makes mention of the travels and writings of Paul as well as of Peter. Ignatius was an acquaintance of Polycarp, who himself was a disciple of the Apostle John.
Thank you for listening. May the Lord bless you as you study early church history with us.
