What is the purpose of the Bible? Some say that it is a rulebook; a set of “do's” and “don'ts” on how to live; others see it as a guideline for self-improvement. Some see it as a mysterious book filled with codes and deep hidden secrets of the world; others say that it is purely a work of fiction with no significance at all. I see the Bible as something entirely different than all of these ideas… I see the Bible as a love letter – a love letter to you – from the Creator of the Universe. A love letter designed to not only show you the Creator of the Universe and everything in it, but to unveil to you His heart and His passion for you, and His desire to reconcile you to Himself and share in a personal relationship.
Some people have a hard time accepting this idea. They see God as a distant being up in the sky, who is either not interested in the world at all, or so busy dealing with the events and troubles of the world that He could not possibly have time for us on an individual basis; however nothing could be further from the truth. The word “Bible” simply means books, but what's so special about this particular collection of books? What's so different about the Holy Scriptures?
I have already mentioned that I see the Bible differently from most people… I see it as a love letter. Now ultimately the greatest expression of love is to lay down your life for the one you love. To save someone, even at the expense of yourself; and this is exactly what God has done, through Jesus. Throughout the Old Testament writings (what the Jewish people call the Tanakh) there are prophecies – prophecies of the Anointed One of God, the Messiah (Mashiah) who will come to redeem and save His people. This is an action done purely from love, from a desire not to destroy, but to save.
It's safe to say that most believers want to bless God. We sing songs about “blessing His name.”, speaking well of Him (which is technically all that blessing means). But there is a commonly held idea that in order to truly bless God, we must give to Him; an idea that has led many into bondage by trying desperately to give to God something of worth and value in order to somehow demonstrate gratitude.
However is this idea of “giving back to God” really the best way to demonstrate gratitude or bless Him? Is this really what the Bible says? Today we will be answering these questions from scripture to see what really gladdens the heart of God.
You may have heard it said before that Christianity is different than all the religions of the world. It is a true statement, but do you know why it is true? One of the ways that Christianity is fundamentally different is that in all the religions of the world, man is reaching for God; either through good works, or other forms of self-effort in an attempt to attain an elevated status.
This is not so with Christianity. Now unfortunately, Christianity (and the message of Jesus Christ) has been vastly misrepresented by pastors and leaders who have twisted the message into one of self-effort and works, but this is not the message that God originally gave. So today we will be exploring how in reality, it is not man that reaches for God, but how He actually reaches for us, and as we see this, it will not only strengthen our faith, but draw us closer to Him as well.
When people say “Jesus is Risen.” they are making a statement. They are proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus Christ. They are testifying to His completed work for their atonement and justification which His resurrection brings. We often proclaim that He is risen with joy as we sing about the truth of this fact. However sometimes, this statement can become so cliché that the details of the events of His resurrection become lost.
That's why in this study today, we are going to examine the events of His resurrection, and in doing so, we will see a wonderful picture of His heart for us. Even His raising from the dead was done for us, and His love for us never fails.
You probably have heard it shouted from pulpit's before “The grass withers, the flower fades, but God's word is forever” – and while that proclamation is absolutely true, the manner in which it is typically spoken, is not. It is usually uttered in a negative way and with the implication of God's judgment. It may surprise you to learn then that the context in which these words were spoken in the Bible was not the judgment of God, but His promises of redemption and blessing. The enduring word of God is not one of condemnation, but words of restoration and salvation.
In this study today, we will see that what is truly center focus in the Bible is actually a desire of God to redeem and restore that which sin has so utterly corrupted. It is sin that God must judge, not necessarily man. God's true desire is to punish the sin but spare the sinner… just as our desire is to destroy a cancerous tumor, but spare the one that the cancer is destroying. So if you have been struggling with a wrong idea or belief about the nature and the character of God, then this study will give you a fresh revelation of His grace today.
There's an old saying which says “Home is where the heart is”, and it is actually founded in scripture, Matthew 6:21 says that wherever your treasure is, there your heart will be also. So, do you know where your treasure is today? The world offers us many choices, many roads for us to follow, many rainbows to chase after, but what will we find at the end of the rainbow? Will it be a pot of Gold, or a pot-hole for us to fall into?
The Bible tells us exactly where both our home and treasure can be found in no uncertain terms. This is what we will be studying today, and as we see the truth of scripture, our blessing will always be sure.
The idea of bearing fruit can be seen all throughout the New Testament. Jesus spake of it, and we can all agree as believers that we have a genuine desire to bear good fruit to God as mentioned in the scriptures. That being said, what exactly is good fruit? And how exactly do we bear it?
As it turns out, believers have many differing ideas about what good fruit is and how to go about producing it in their lives. However, we are not interested in the ideas and opinions of man, but only what the Bible says on the subject. And it may surprise you to learn that the Bible describes how to produce effortless good fruit in our lives. If you have been stressing, struggling or striving to produce good fruit, then this study will set you free from that burden today.
Man is a complicated creature. With all the tools and technology that we have today which is supposed to simplify our lives, we end up making it all even more complicated. This natural propensity of ours to complicate things even filters over into spiritual things, mostly in the form of pride.
Today we will be studying the simple, uncomplicated Gospel of Jesus – just as it is, untouched by human complications. Is it basic? Is it profound? Is it life-changing? Yes to all three. It is so simple that even a child can understand, and yet powerful enough to move mountains and break chains.
We live in a world that is constantly tearing us down and attacking us from every angle. News broadcasts tend to attack our hope by displaying the very worst of the day, while songs on the radio tend to sing about depression, loneliness and hatred. Movies and television shows usually sensationalize godlessness and sex... and we accept it in the name of “entertainment”.
So after all of this tearing down and attacking every day, it's no surprise that people are looking for satisfaction, for love, and usually turning to less than perfect sources that can be found in the world; settling for whatever they can get. Yet it may surprise you to learn that the Bible has a simple and effective, method for receiving more of the love of God into our lives, and strengthening us against the attacks of the world and the enemy (yes the love of God connected with strengthening). This is what we will be studying today.