What Does The Bible Say?: Recent Episodes
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In This episode we begin looking at the Baptist Church denomination which is one of the largest and most influential protestant denominations. Today there are more than twenty Baptist denominations. We talk about when and where John Smyth or Smith first organized a Baptist Church. We note that there were two types of Baptists in the early days of the church's existence. We discuss those different groups. We next look at the establishment of the Baptist Church in America in 1639 and where that occurred. A number of Baptist writers wrote about where the name Baptist came from as used by Baptists. We look at those writings. We next note how the Baptist Church today view confessions of faith and human creeds. We move on to talk about some doctrines, teachings and views of the Baptist Church such as divine election, predestination and eternal security. We run out of time and will have to complete this episode next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue in this episode by noting that the Methodist Church consists of a complex organization including numerous conferences, powers and duties as set forth in their Discipline. Glenn discusses the simplicity of the Lord's church as outlined in the Bible. We talk about the fact that no member of the Methodist Church may preach without a license, contrary to what the New Testament teaches. We discuss what women do in the Methodist Church that the Bible doesn't say anything about. We note that the term "reverend" is used as a title for Methodist ministers when the Bible applies that term to God exclusively. Like many other denominations, the Methodist Church teaches the doctrine of justification by faith only. We note what James clearly says in James Chapter 2. We discuss the doctrinal position the Methodist church holds on baptism and show by what the Bible says that they are wrong. We close out this episode by comparing what the Methodist Church requires concerning marriage and divorce and what the Bible says. Take about 30-munutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode on the Methodist Church denomination by noting that even though John Wesley founded the Methodist church, he lived and died in the Episcopal Church. According to the Methodist Church, it had its origin within the Church of England. It was in 1729 that John and Charles Wesley began to entertain the beliefs that led to the development of the Methodist Church. John Wesley was a preacher in the Church of England. In this year they joined a group of students called a Holy Club. They were called a number of derisive name including Methodists because of the methods they used. Ultimately they adopted that name for themselves. The first Methodist Society was formed in 1739. Similar organizations were established after that. John Wesley provided rules and regulations for these Methodist Societies in 1784. Also in 1784, the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States had its beginning. We discuss a number of divisions and unions in the Methodist Church in the USA. We next talk about some of the doctrines, teachings and views of the Methodist Church, including its name, sacraments, baptism of infants, and where they changed their view on Total Hereditary Depravity. We run out of time before completing our discussion of the Methodist Church. We will complete it next week, Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what w are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue this episode on the Episcopal Church by noting that for the most part, Episcopal priests, and thus the Episcopal Church itself, are very liberal in their theology. We note what Bishop James A. Pike, who is now deceased, said about the virgin birth and the garden of Eden, in which he disagrees with the Bible account. We next discuss an Anglican clergyman, Ernest Harrison, and what he said of the divinity of Christ in his book, A Church Without God. We discuss another Episcopal Bishop, John Shelby Spong wrote a book titled, Rescuing the Bible From Fundamentalism, which disagrees with what the Bible says. We note some Bible passages that show the errors in his teaching. We discuss the female lesbian who was recently installed as the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina. We close out the episode by noting a number of Bible passages that show where the Episcopal Church is in error. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting the nature of the Episcopal church and its teachings. It broke away from the Roman Catholic Church, but much of it's organization and teachings are very similar and in some cases identical to those of that Church. They have a clergy-laity distinction which is not found in the NT. We discuss what is found there. Baptism in the Episcopal is done by pouring water on the individual. We again look at baptism as commanded in the New Testament by the Lord. Eric looks at the doctrine of transubstantiation, what it is and why it is erroneous. Arnie notes that they engage in confirmation of children, what this consists of and the two points of error included in it. We look at the differing teaching of the Catholic and Episcopal churches on salvation and note that both are contrary to what the Bible says. We begin a discussion about how liberal the Episcopal priests and church are. We will have to complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode we finish our discussion of the Presbyterian Church and begin discussing the Episcopalian Church. Glenn begins by noting that the Presbyterian Church requires its members to make a confession of the Apostles Creed. He notes that there is no such Creed specified in the word of God. The required confession in the New Testament is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and it is His creed that we follow. We next discuss the errors the Presbyterian Church believes and teaches about baptism and the fact that they baptize infants. We again look at bible baptism and note that only believers were immersed. We complete our study of the Presbyterian Church by noting that the name P:resbyterian is not included in the New Testament as a name the Lord has given for His Church.
We next begin our study of the Episcopal Church denomination. We note that it is known in America as the Protestant Episcopal Church. In other countries it is known as the Church of England or the Anglican Church. We look at it's origin in the 1500's and the various developments that resulted in its establishment. We move on talk about the Episcopal Church in America and how it developed here. We begin to talk about the nature of the Episcopal Church and its teachings. First we note that even though they broke away from the Roman Catholic Church, much of the organization and many of the teachings of the Anglican Church and in turn the Episcopal Church are very similar, if not identical to the Roman Catholic Church. We note that there is a clergy- laity distinction in the Episcopal Church that is not found in the New Testament. We talk about what the word of God says about the members of the Lord's Church. We close out this episode by looking at what the Episcopal Church teaches about baptism. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode on the Presbyterian Church by noting that there are actually nine Presbyterian denominations in the United States. We note three of the largest ones. We talk about the origins of the Presbyterian Church and note that it grew out of the teachings of John Calvin, even though he never founded a distinct denomination. Nevertheless, many of his teachings have been embraced by many Protestant groups. We discuss some of his history and note that he started out siding with the Protestant Movement within the Catholic Church. He opposed Catholicism and was forced to flee France and take refuge in Switzerland. It was there that he developed what is called Calvinism. We discuss the 5 tenets of that doctrine and note the acronym of it, which is TULIP. We note those who actually established the Presbyterian denomination and when that was done. We move on to the organization of the Presbyterian Church and discuss some of the ways it does not follow what the Bible says. We next note that the modern Presbyterian Church has changed in a number of ways from what it was when established. We look at some of those changes. We next begin a discussion of some of the classic beliefs and doctrines of this denomination, We will complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of the Lutheran Church denomination in this episode. We review their belief and teaching that justification is by faith alone. We note what James says in chapter two where he says that faith without works is dead, along with the full context. We also note several other passages that show this Lutheran belief to be in error. We next look at the Lutheran teaching that baptism can be done by sprinkling, pouring or immersion. We note the meaning of the Greek word, baptizo, which is to immerse, dip or plunge. We again note that in several passages, the Bible says that baptism is a burial in water. We next examine the Lutheran teaching that little children are to be baptized. We discuss the fact that there is no example in the New Testament where infants were baptized. We note that only believers and those who could confess and repent were baptized in the New Testament. They also teach and believe that children inherit sin. We talk about the passages in the Bible that say this is not so. We find in the Lutheran Catechism that there are a number of errors taught concerning the Lord's Supper. We look at those and note the passages that show their teaching to be in error. Concerning the Ten Commandments, the Lutheran Church teaches that they are still in effect. The Bible says there was a change in the law, and it tells us when that change occurred. We discuss the passages that say that. We complete this episode with a discussion of another error the Lutheran teaches concerning baptism and circumcision. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying, There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our study of denominations by next looking at what the Bible says about the Lutheran Church. Of course, the truth is that the Lutheran Church is not mentioned in the Bible. The Lutheran Church was one of the first of the many Protestant churches formed out of the protests against Catholicism during the Reformation Movement. It dates from All Saints Day, October 31, 1517. We discuss what Luther did on that day and why his actions are so important to know. We need to understand that Luther's intention was to identify where the Roman Catholic Church failed to follow the Bible, not to establish the Lutheran Church. We look at Luther's background and what led to him nailing his 95 theses to the door of the church building in Wittenburg, Germany. We discuss the debate he had and the resulting trials and his excommunication from the Catholic Church. We talk about the greatest error he made when he began teaching that men are justified by faith only and what he said about the epistle of James. We discuss this later in this episode. We note that the Lutheran Church claims to follow the Bible as their only standard of authority. but have nine creeds and confessions that they require their members to be loyal to. We quote a number of their writings that show this to be true. We next begin to look at some doctrines, teachings and views of the Lutheran Church. We begin by looking at their teaching that men are justified by faith alone and two places in their writings that this is stated. We discuss several passages in the Bible that show this to be false. We will continue this discussion next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying, There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of the Roman Catholic Church's various doctrines that are not found in the New Testament. We begin by discussing Extreme Unction which is anointing a person who is about to die. We next discuss the use of instrumental music which was added in 666AD. We note 15 Catholic doctrines and when they were established. We close out this study by noting that the Catholic Church began after the first century as a result of the apostacy the apostles said would occur, and its organizational structure is foreign to the New Testament pattern. Consequently, it cannot be the Church Jesus built. We move on to the next denomination on our list, which is the Lutheran church. We note when it dates from and why this can be said. We talk about why what Martin Luther did is so important to understand. As a result of his studies, he came to the conclusion that the Catholic Church had many errors in what it did. Consequently, he nailed 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517. We close out this episode by mentioning his greatest objections to what the Catholic Church was doing. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of the Roman Catholic Church denomination by looking at it's primary beliefs and doctrines. We begin by noting that the Catholic Church believes and teaches that the Pope, or universal bishop, is infallible and has authority over the entire church. We note that the New Testament doesn't say nor teach this. In the New Testament each local congregation had a plurality of elders or bishops. We noted several passages that said that. The Roman Catholic Church requires that all priests, bishops and other clergy must be unmarried. We note that Peter and Philip were both married. Peter being a Bishop and Philip a deacon. We discuss the Catholic Mass and note that in a Mass, they teach that the literal body of Christ is being sacrificed over and over at each Mass. Again, we find the Hebrew writer stating that Jesus was offered only once. We discuss the College of Cardinals that the Catholic Church established in 1059, clearly long after the New Testament was written in which there is no reference to this organization nor the members of it, Cardinals and Archbishops. The Catholic church requires its members to confess their sins to a Catholic priest which is contrary to the New Testament pattern, which we note by looking at several passages. The Second Council of Nicaea introduced the veneration of images and relics. Again we look at some passages that teach against such a practice. The Roman Catholic Church teaches there is such a place as Purgatory where disobedient individuals are sent temporarily after death where they can have their sins purged and effectively given a second chance after death to go to Heaven. We close this episode out with a discussion of the various erroneous doctrines on baptism the Catholic Church holds. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our study of denominations by looking at the Roman Catholic Church, it's origin, organization, authority and doctrine. We find it impossible to locate a specific date as the beginning of the Roman Catholic Church or a specific founder of it. We do know that the Roman Catholic Church is the result of a general departure from the divine pattern of organization, doctrine, worship, and work given by Jesus Christ through His apostles as contained in the New Testament. This departure began soon after the death of the last apostle. The New Testament revealed that such a departure would occur and we discuss the passages the apostles wrote predicting it. So, the Roman Catholic Church is an apostate church which has some doctrines that are over 1800 years old and some that are not even a century old. We note the first Pope and what the Catholic Catechism says about that. We discuss the organization of the Catholic Church and the members of that organization. We look at it's basic authority according to it's Catechism of Christian Doctrine on page 44 and other locations in that document. We again note that the Bible teaches that the New Testament is the complete and final revelation of God. We discuss those Bible passages that say so. We will begin the next episode by looking at the primary beliefs and doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our conversations. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we begin our study about denominations and what the Bible says about them. In past studies, we have talked about the Church Jesus built, the Church of Christ. We noted that Jesus only built one Church. We discussed local churches of Christ in the Bible and the fact that they followed the New Testament pattern established by the apostles and the importance of following that pattern today. We find that today there are over 40,000 denominations claiming to be following the Lord, who actually teach different doctrine than found in the Bible. We note in this study that the Bible predicted this departure. Jesus noted the narrow way and the broad way that exists and the fact that few would follow the narrow way which leads to life. Jesus warns about false prophets who would come. Paul tells the elders from Ephesus that there would be those among them who would draw away disciples to follow them. Paul warned the Christians in Corinth about the divisions that had developed among them and told them not to allow that. To the churches in Galatia Paul said he was amazed that they had so soon turned away from the Lord. We note that Jesus said He is the only way anyone can come to the Father and He tells us in His word how that can be done. The Bible contains all of the words the Lord intends for us to have and the only guidance we are to follow. In the coming episodes we will look at various denominations, when they were established, who established them when that can be determined and some of the error that they teach. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that Paul told the brethren in Galatia that we are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. This includes all faithful people, those in the first century, and even those who came before Christ. It is His shed blood that cleanses us from sin. This, of course ultimately included the Gentiles who were previously separated from God by the law of Moses. We note what Paul told the Gentile Christians in Ephesus about this. We look at what Jesus said about anyone being able to come to God, how that can be accomplished. We point out that a number of the tenets of pre-millennialism are not found in the Bible. Many are based on highly figurative passages and others that are taken out of context, We also look at what the Bible says about anti-Christs and what that really means. Peter mentions that the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night and what will occur at that time. We discuss that. We next look at what Jesus said about the resurrection and note that He only mentions one resurrection of the just and unjust. We look at passages that connect this with the judgment of all. We note what Paul said to the brethren in Corinth concerning the resurrection and how specific he was in what he wrote to them. Paul also wrote to the Thessalonians who were concerned about their brethren who had died. We look at what he wrote to them. Peter had said that God is not willing that any should be lost, We close out this episode by looking at the passages that tell us what we must do to be saved. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that there are as many theories about what happens in the so called End Times as you could count. Most all of them are false doctrine or false teaching. We note what some of them consist of. We first note some facts about a kingdom and note that the Bible reveals that Jesus has a kingdom. Jesus Himself noted to Peter that He would build His church and give Peter the keys to the the kingdom of heaven. We note passages that refer to Jesus kingdom and show that Jesus church is also called His kingdom. We look at passages that tell us when Jesus kingdom and church were established and when certain people were added to it. We note Paul's discussion of resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15 and how that relates to the Lord's kingdom and His rule over it. We note some of the things Premillennialists teach concerning the kingdom and church that are contrary to what the Bible says. We complete this episode with a discussion of where Christians are called the Israel of God and the household of God and what one must do to be included in this household. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of the gospel by looking at what Paul and Silas taught the jailor in Philippi. We see that he asked them what he must do to be saved and again the answer included baptism. We next talk about the 12 disciples Paul talked to in Ephesus. He found out from them that they had been baptized with John's baptism. Listen to the episode to find out why what Paul told them is important to us today. We go back over each occasion that the apostles taught the gospel to someone. We note the one thing each of them was told to do which was common to all and again, why we need to pay attention to this today. We talk about the connection between baptism and the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Paul wrote to the Thessalonian brethren about the coming judgment and what the gospel had to do with it. We look at that and what Peter said about that judgment as well. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting what Paul says in Romans 1, verse 16 about the gospel. We talk about what Jesus commanded His apostles to do concerning the gospel and where that was to begin. Paul explained to the Corinthians what the gospel was. We look at that explanation. Next we note what Peter said to those who were in Jerusalem on Pentecost in Acts 2. The Holy Spirit sent Philip to Gaza to teach the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch who was on his way back home. We look at that discussion and what the eunuch learned and did from it. We talk about what Jesus told Saul when he was on the road to Damascus intending to persecute Christians there. We note particularly what Paul was told to do by Ananias there. Later on Paul was in Philippi where he met a woman named Lydia. We note what Paul taught her to do. We begin a discussion about Paul and Silas when they were in prison in Philippi where there was an earthquake that opened the doors of the prison. We started to look at what the prison jailor did, but ran out of time before we finished. We will start the next episode at this point. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In the last episode we discussed two kinds of authority, specific and generic as illustrated in the Old Testament. Specific authority is when God specifies what must be done. We must obey exactly what He has specifically commanded. General authority allows us to choose the means to obey what is commanded. In this episode, we look at the consequences in several Old Testament examples where individuals failed to follow God's specific instructions. Next, we look at examples of specific and generic authority in the New Testament. First, we note Jesus' command to go teach the gospel. Next we note what Jesus said about worship. After this we look at what Jesus said about the Lord's Supper and how Paul told the Christians at Corinth of Jesus command to continue observing it in the same way He instituted it. We talk about Paul's instructions on taking up a collection on the first day of the week. We find that authority is established in the same way in the New Testament as it was in the Old Testament. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of authority by noting that Paul used a plea as a direct statement concerning what the Christians at the church in Corinth needed to do. In Acts 20 verse seven we find Paul preaching at the church in Troas on the first day of the week and we are told they had the Lord's Supper on that day. We talk about what this tells us about when to observe the Lord's Supper and why this is important. Glenn begins the next section of our discussion by looking at what the Hebrew writer said about forsaking the assembling of ourselves together and what the assembling requires. Arnie reminds us of what Jesus said about the extent of His authority. We move on to a discussion of the two kinds of authority, general and specific, and why this is so important to understand. We examine several instances in the Old Testament, noting the general and specific authority God used in His instructions. In our next episode, we will note the results when God's specific instructions are not followed. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible Handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We continue this episode on authority by again noting that the Lord authorizes something to be done in three ways. We note those three ways as expressed by Jesus. We talk about how the Lord delegated authority to His apostles and look at passages that teach that as well as passages showing the apostles using those three ways in correcting the false teaching about the circumcision after the manner of Moses in Acts chapter 15. We also look at what the Bible teaches on the silence of the scriptures. We note that the apostles again in Acts 15 use this principle. Paul discusses expediencies and we look at what he wrote about them. We begin looking at illustrations of Bible authority, but run out of time before finishing that discussion. We will begin there next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode on authority by noting what Paul said about our bodies being a living sacrifice and the need for us to yield as servants to righteousness and not iniquity. Our discussion moves on to look at what Peter said about our growth and adding to our faith. We talk about the list of sins that Paul wrote to the Christians in Galatia about and the serious consequence resulting from them. We note that Ezekiel records God saying that all souls are His. Jesus noted the value of a soul and the Hebrew writer warns about doing what Esau did. We discuss this. We look at what Paul said about the judgment and note what Jesus said one must do to be saved which constitutes obeying the gospel. We again note that Jesus said He has all authority in heaven and in earth. We look at what Paul says about doing all in the name of the Lord and what that means. We close this episode out by noting the three ways the Lord authorizes something to be done. Next week we will see those ways illustrated by Jesus as recorded in the New Testament. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode we begin a discussion of authority according to what the Bible says. We note that Jesus was challenged by the religious leaders of the day concerning what authority He had to say what he did, and where He got that authority. We discuss this. We note that Jesus tells us there are two sources of authority, from heaven and of men. We talk about these. We find that Jesus said He has all authority, so we discuss what that means to us. Pilate questioned Jesus about why He didn't speak to him and noted the authority he had over Jesus. We talk about what Jesus said to him. Jesus was also asked about paying taxes. We note what His response was. We move on to a discussion about why it is important to find out what the Bible says about authority. We discuss how this relates to worshipping God and serving Him. Paul makes a statement about the things that he wrote. We look at that and how that relates to authority. Paul also mentions our bodies and our spirit and why we are responsible to care for them. We will continue this episode next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode we continue our discussion of miracles and whether or not they have ceased. We begin by looking at that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth about the spiritual gifts they had and how they were to use them. We find out that the gift of prophecy was more important than the gift of tongues. We note that Paul says the gift of tongues were a sign to unbelievers. Paul reminds them that God is not the author of confusion and what they did with the gifts could not contribute to a confused assembly or worship. All things had to be done decently and in order. We note that Paul tells the wives of the prophets to ask their husbands any questions they may have had at home, so they didn't interfere with the reception of the prophecies in the church. We look at the time Philip was preaching in Samaria where Simon the sorcerer was. Some of he Samaritans obeyed the gospel and were baptized, and Simon did as well. We talk about the fact that even though Philip could perform miracles, he could not cause the Samaritan Christians to receive the Holy Spirit. It took the laying on of the hands of the apostles for them to receive the Holy Spirit. We also look at the example of Paul finding some disciples at Ephesus who he asked if they had received the Holy Spirit. They had not and we discuss the fact that it took the laying on of Paul's hands to accomplish that. We discuss more about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, how they were passed on and if they lasted. We note that Paul said there were gifts that were more important than the extraordinary, supernatural gifts. We talk about them. Listen to this 30-minute study to learn when the gifts ceased and why they did. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
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In this episode we continue our study of miracles by asking if they exist or happen today as they did in New Testament times? We note that just about all of Jesus testimony or preaching was verified by miracles. We talk about what Nicodemus said about that as well as other passages that John wrote. We mention that references to the miracles performed at that time can be found in secular writings of the time. Before discussing the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we are reminded again that the Holy Spirit fell independently upon individuals only three times and look at those times. We begin our study of the gifts of the Holy Spirit by noting that they are discussed by Paul in 1 Corinthians chapters 12, 13 and 14. We talk about the purpose of the gifts by noting they existed while the words were being preached and written down and before all of the New Testament words were delivered. We note that Paul said that while this was being done, the gospel was proclaimed to whole world at that time. We look at 1 Corinthians 12 where Paul writes about the diversities of gifts. We talk about Jesus' prayer for unity among His people and how the gifts of the Holy Spirit ensures the unity of the words received and taught. Paul identifies the gifts and we note them in this episode. We talk about how Paul uses the human body and some of its members to show the purpose of the spiritual gifts to the local church at the time. We look at what Paul says about there being a more excellent way than the Holy Spirit's gifts. Paul writes about the gift of tongues and prophesy and notes why one is better than the other. We run out of time before we can finish this discussion. So, we will start there next week. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In the last episode, we talked about when the apostles were baptized in the Holy Spirit on Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. We then began discussing when Cornelius and his family and friends were baptized in the Holy Spirit as recorded in Acts chapter 10. We read the entire chapter, 48 verses, in sections with short comments regarding what was recorded. We noticed that in verses 1 through 8 Cornelius is described as an Italian military man and consequently a Gentile and a devout man. These verses describe how Cornelius was addressed by an angel and told to go to Joppa and seek Peter the apostle. In the next section, verses 9-16, Peter has a vision to teach him that Gentiles are acceptable to God under the New Testament just as Jews are. In verses 17-33 we note that those Cornelius sent to seek Peter arrived to tell Peter to come to his house. At his house, Peter and Cornelius described what they were told. The record of Peter's sermon is contained in verses 34-43. In verses 44-48 we find that the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. We discuss what Peter said. In particular the fact that God shows no partiality and accepts any who will obey Him. We discuss what Peter said in Acts 2:38 and note that even though the Holy Spirit fell on those in Cornelius' house, they were still commanded to be baptized in water, the name of the Lord. We have seen two examples of the baptism of the Holy Spirit and we believe these are the only ones in the New Testament except the special occasion when the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in Marl 1:10. In the next episode, we will begin looking at the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the miracles related to that. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that on the day of Pentecost, according to Acts 1:1-4 that the Jewish apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit or baptized in the Holy Spirit and spoke in languages or tongues that they never learned. We discuss the fact that this occurred for a special reason which was to be able to speak in the foreign languages of the Jews that were there for Pentecost so they could teach them the gospel. We look at what Peter had to say at that time when he referred to Joel's prophecy about that occasion. We read what Peter said to those gathered and note that there were three thousand individuals who repented and were baptized and that Jesus added them to His Church, the Church of Christ. We note that all of the miracles that Jesus performed had their effect immediately. We look at the next time the baptism of the Holy Spirit occurred which was upon Cornelius, an Italian military officer and his household, who were all Gentiles. The record of this is in Acts 10 verses 1 through 48. This was necessary to convince Peter and the other Jews that the Gentiles were also acceptable to God and were required to obey the gospel just as the Jews were. We begin reading the passages in Acts 10 and run out of time before finishing the reading. We will start the next episode by beginning our reading at Verse 23 and finish through to verse 48. We will then discuss what Cornelius and his household did. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
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We continue to lay the scriptural groundwork to learn if miracles exist today. We noted again that the Hebrew writer tells us that in the Old Testament, God spoke to the patriarchs through the prophets, but now speaks to us through Jesus. We noted in the last lesson that we don't receive God's Word in any other way today than by hearing, reading and studying the bible. We looked at the passages that teach us that in the last lesson and we mention those passages in this episode. We talk about the Christians in Berea who we are told that they searched the scriptures to make sure what the apostles were telling them was true. We discuss what Paul said about the gospel and what it consists of. In that discussion we note that there were a lot of witnesses that were with Jesus after He was resurrected including the apostles. Jesus told the apostles a number of things that would occur in Jerusalem. We note what is said about Pentecost and what happened on that occasion that relates to the subject of miracles. We point out in this episode that Jesus said He didn't teach the apostles everything they needed to know and He would send the Holy Spirit to teach them all truth. We note that John says that Jesus performed more miracles than what are recorded in the Bible. Those that are recorded are designed to prove who Jesus is. We will continue in the next episodes to look at the miracles performed by others in the New Testament and discuss the reason they were performed. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn talk about whether miracles exist today. Remember that as members of the Church of Christ, we believe, teach and trust the Bible as being the revealed Word of God as the scriptures teach us. We discuss two of these scriptures to begin this episode. We note that Paul told the Hebrew Christians how God communicated to those in the Old Testament as well as how He communicates to us today. We talk about this. Next, we look at a passage that tells us that we must use what the Bible says when we are teaching or preaching to others. We note that many people today point to a lot of things that happen as being miracles. We begin by looking at the miracles in the Bible to help us decide if miracles, signs, or wonders occur today. As we look at Bible passages that relate to miracles that were performed by Jesus and His apostles, we learn that all of them are actions that are outside of the laws of nature. It is something done that is supernatural and not explained from natural law such as bringing a person back to life who was dead for 4 days. We find that in the New Testament that we are told that miracles, signs and wonders are done to confirm the speaker as one teaching or preaching the truth and to confirm the truth itself. We look at the Bible passages that teach us that is true. We note that we are given a warning to be very careful with God's Word, to give, "more earnest heed to the things we have heard." We read a number of scriptures that tell us about some of the miracles, signs and wonders that were done. In particular, we look at what Jesus said about the miracles, signs and wonders He performed and why He did them. The miracles confirmed the words recorded in the Bible as being complete in the first century and those words tell us not to add to the words that were confirmed nor take away from them. Once those words were confirmed in the first century, the miracles ceased. Take about 30-minutes to listen to our discussion in this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that Calvinism conflicts with God's character by teaching that God decided who would be saved and who would be lost before He created anything. This unconditional election contradicts God's justice, His love, His impartiality, His goodness, and His mercy. God created mankind as free moral agents who can choose to obey Him or not. We move on to the last portion of Calvinism, which is limited atonement, the L in the TULIP acronym. Limited atonement says that Christ died only for the elect, those God unconditionally elected to be saved. Of course, if God had already decided who would be saved, there would be no need for Christ to die. We note some passages that say that Jesus died for the world, for all, and for everyone which easily contradicts the false doctrine of limited atonement. We look at what Peter says about Jesus dying for the false teachers who would be among the people. We discuss where Paul said that Christ and God don't want any to perish, even the wicked. They want them to repent, turn from their sins and obey the gospel. We continue to look at Bible passages that say Christ died for all people, not a select few as Calvinism teaches. We look at the first gospel sermon Peter preached on Pentecost and note that of the thousands who were there, it was those who gladly received the word who were baptized. They were told to save themselves from the perverse generation of the day. There were three thousand who chose to do so by obeying what Peter told them they must do to save themselves. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
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We continue our discussion of the Calvinist Doctrine identified with the acronym TULIP. In this episode, we talk about unconditional election which is the U in TULIP. This is believed, taught and followed by many in denominational churches Unconditional election claims that before creation God chose certain individuals to be saved and certain individuals to be lost in hell. We will discuss the fact that the Bible consistently teaches that election is conditional based on one's faith and the result of that faith or obedience. We read John 3 verse 16 and include other verses in its context. We talk about the fact that in the context, the individual is doing something in order to come to the light. We look at a number of passages that say that an individual must obey what God and the Lord say in the New Testament. If God had already determined who would be saved and who would be lost, these passages would mean nothing to us. There are a number of passages that say we must obey the Lord's commandments in order to know Him. We look at those and again note that these passages prove unconditional election to be a false doctrine. God also commands all men everywhere to repent. This is another action the men must make the choice to obey and do. So, this leads us to discuss the fact that the Bible says that God desires all men to be saved. We look at what Paul told Timothy about God wanting all men to come to a knowledge of the truth which is the means of leading men to salvation when they obey it. We talk about how this relates to unconditional election. We ran out of time, so we'll have to finish this subject next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode completing our discussion of Total Depravity which is the T in the acronym TULIP which describes Calvinism. This false teaching is found in most denominations and begins when people are taught that we inherit sin from our parents which began with Adam and Eve. We talk about Paul telling the Christians in Ephesus that we are created for good works, the Hebrew writer says that sin is something that one does willfully and finally, Peter says we will all be judged for not obeying the gospel and living faithfully. We move on to the next portion of the TULIP doctrine which is represented by the letter I which stands for the false doctrine of irresistible grace. We discuss how this doctrine says that the Holy Spirit's inward call cannot be resisted. We look at what Stephen told those Jewish leaders as they were getting ready to stone him, how they resisted the Holy Spirit just as their fathers did. We look at what Jesus said concerning Jerusalem's unwillingness to accept His protection. We note that God's grace is offered to all, not just a select few. We discuss a number of passages that show this. We then note that salvation is presented to us as an invitation, not an irresistible force. We see that in the last chapter in the Revelation the invitation to come appears three times and is to all people universally. We talk about the fact that making choices is discussed in a number of passages and is incompatible with the compulsion demanded by irresistible grace. We note passages that discuss people who obeyed the gospel and then decided to leave it, showing us, that people have the free will to choose to do so. We look at what Isaiah wrote concerning the Lord pleading with His people to obey Him and return to Him. The implication is that they could and did refuse. This is inconsistent with the false doctrine of irresistible grace. Our conclusion is that grace is certainly powerful, but not irresistible. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what is being said. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We note from our last session that a Christian can fall away from grace and be lost. We also noted that a fallen Christian can be restored to that state of grace by repenting and confession one's sins to God and He will forgive him. We noted that Paul told the Christians in Ephesus to take up the whole armor of God in order to withstand Satan's fiery darts and we pointed out that if there was no danger of falling away because of Satan's attacks, that passage would not be needed. We move on in this episode to discuss the false doctrine of what is called Total Depravity which is taught and believed by many who call themselves Christians. Total Depravity teaches that humans are sinful from birth having inherited the sins of their parents. This sin originated with Adam and Eve who passed it to their children and ultimately to the entire human race. We discuss those passages in Genesis where Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan to disobey what God had commanded them. We talk about the consequences of sin and in particular what God said to Adam, Eve and Satan. David spoke of his sin in Psalm 51 and we discuss the correct understanding of what he said. Those who teach Total Depravity misapply this passage along with a number of others. We point out that in Genesis Chapter 8, the Lord says our hearts become evil in our youth, not our birth. We continue this session by discussing what causes sin and the fact that each individual must makes choices of right or wrong that result in sin. Infants and young children have no knowledge of right and wrong. They must be taught the difference by their parents. Our last point in this discussion is to look at what Jesus said concerning who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus used a little child to answer that question. We close this session out by talking about the fact that sin always is a choice just as doing right is always a choice. We read and comment on several passages that show this. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by continuing our discussion of whether a Christian can fall from grace and be lost. We discuss Galatians 5 chapter 1 through 4 where Paul tells the Christians to stand fast. We talk about the implication that a Christian may not stand fast. We move on to notice that Peter warns Christians not to get entangled in the pollutions of the world. This is a clear indication that it is possibility of doing so. We take some time to look at a few of the passages that are used by those who erroneously claim that Christians cannot fall from grace. We move on to discuss the eternal life that a Christian possesses and what this entails. Of course, this includes a discussion of the judgment that all will be subject to by the Lord. We talk about the sins Christians commit and what the Bible says the Christian is to do about it. Jesus tells several parables that are important for us to know that illustrate God's love of His people. We look at these. We close out this episode by talking about sin, its effect upon the Christian, where it comes from and how a Christian can protect from it. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue to discuss what Peter said about how important God's word is, noting that within it is contained all things that pertain to life and godliness. We look at Second Peter chapter two verses 2 through 11, noting how many times knowledge is mentioned, and the actions Peter says that if a Christian does, he will never fall. Paul told Timothy that the scriptures are profitable for doctrine and a number of other things that the man of God may be complete. Consequently, we talk about the need for new Christians to study their Bibles and grow in knowledge so they will not stumble and fall, which many denominations teach it is impossible for a Christian to do. We discuss what Paul said to the Christians in Corinth about being vigilant so that they wouldn't fall. We note that Paul used an illustration of one running in a race and the preparation needed and the requirement to follow the rules in order to win the crown. We discuss the race and the crown the Christian seeks and how this relates to Paul's illustration. We find that the Hebrew writer uses the Israelites in the wilderness as examples of those who failed to trust and obey God and the consequences of that. The Hebrew writer then shows that some Christians do the same thing not trusting and obeying God and depart from Him. We talk about how important it is for members of the local church to help one another, encourage one another to live faithfully and how this is lacking in some churches. The Hebrew writer has some very specific words about Christians who fall away and what this means. Later on, the Hebrew writer discusses willful sin and the fact that this leads to one falling away. We have a good discussion about this. Paul writes to the Galatian Christians about them considering returning to the law of Moses and the problem with them doing so. We discuss this and note that numerous denominations today continue some of the practices found in the law of Moses which has been done away. We begin looking at what Peter said about Christians becoming entangled again in the pollutions of the world that they had escaped. However, we ran out of time before finishing it. We will begin that discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue our discussion about faith and works that James relates to us in Chapter 2. In verse 16 James tells us that the demons believe and tremble. We talk about why this is important for us to know and how that relates to faith and works. James then tells us what makes faith dead. He tells us this important fact a number of times in chapter 2. We note the example he uses of Abraham and what he did in offering his son as a sacrifice that James uses to illustrate faith and works. James also uses Rahab's hiding of the spies and why this is also important for us to know about her faith. We note the conclusion that James draws in verse 24. We close out this study of faith and works by noting the problem that most denominations have with this issue. We move on to talk about whether a Christian can fall away or be lost. Is it true that once an individual is saved, becomes a Christian, he is always saved and cannot be lost? We note that this is a false doctrine that comes from the theology of John Calvin. We look at what sin is and how that relates to being lost. Then, we look at the Bible passages that show that a child of God can indeed live in sin and be lost. We spend some time with what we know as the Beatitudes of Jesus and how important they are to us. We close out this episode by reading 2 Peter 1:2-11 and run out of time to discuss it. We will begin our next episode with a discussion of those passages. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on what we have to say. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn begin this episode by looking at what Paul said about his conversion and specifically what Ananias told him about his baptism. We look at a number of other passages that say something about baptism that tell us how important it is. We briefly look at hearing the gospel and believing it and what believing entails. We encourage our listeners to compare what the Bible says with what the church you are a member of teaches, with the purpose ultimately to follow what the Bible says because it is the word of God, our guide and pattern to follow. We move on to notice that the Lord adds the saved to His church. One does not join the Lord's church like so many denominations teach. We talk about the phrase "obey the gospel" and note that it is used in 2 Thessalonians 1:8 showing us it is a scriptural phrase and has meaning. We discuss its meaning and how that is related to salvation. We note how Paul relates salvation to running a race and how he makes that application. The Hebrew writer also mentions this, and we look at that. We talk about how obeying the gospel is more than just a mental belief in God and Jesus. Jesus had mentioned two paths at one point, and we take some time to discuss them. We close this episode out by beginning a discussion of faith and works and what the Bible says as opposed to what many denominations teach. We will begin our next episode with a continuation of this subject. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Glenn, Arnie and Fred continue discussing Acts chapter 8 where Philip was sent by the Holy Spirit to go near the chariot of the Ethiopian eunuch who was returning from worshipping God in Jerusalem. We discussed how Philip did that and was able to preach Jesus to him from Isaiah chapter 53. We note how the eunuch learned about baptism, belief and confession. We then note that there is one more thing that one must do to be saved according to Jesus, and we talk about that. We move on to a discussion of each of the specific things that New Testament says one must do to be saved. We point out the specific passages that the tell us what the Lord requires everyone to obey in order to be saved. We note that denominations teach differently about what one must do to be saved. We ran out of time before we finished this subject and will address the conclusion next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by continuing our discussion of the importance to understand that the Bible is complete and we cannot add anything to it or remove anything from it. It is our guide for everything we do in our lives as well as what the church does, how to be saved and what we are to teach. Consequently, we need nothing else to guide us, particularly any man-made documents to specify what the church does like most denominations have. We note that even if the sign says "church of Christ" one must examine if that church follows the New Testament in all that it does. We next begin our discussion of what the Bible says about being saved. We note that God wants all people to be saved. We note what Jesus says about a narrow and a wide gate and how they relate to one's spiritual life. Jesus discusses a proper foundation as well. We look at that. We include in this episode a short discussion of sin, what it is and what it does, as well as what we, as Christians, can do about it. We move to a discussion of the importance of understanding when the Bible is literal and when it is figurative in what is written. We talk about what Peter by the Holy Spirit said about when we are speaking about God and His word. We look at some plain passages that say what one must do to be saved and what many in the denominational world say about them. We discuss the example of Philip teaching the Ethiopian eunuch about Jesus and what the eunuch learned and did. We ran out of time before we completed this discussion. So, we will begin the next episode with it. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue our discussion about the old law, the law of Moses where the Hebrew writer said it was a shadow of good things to come but not the real thing which is the law of Christ. We talk about a number of things relating to His law and how that pertains to us today. We note that the word of God was preached throughout the whole world and continues to be available to all people today. We discuss the fact that the credibility of the word of God is established by the facts contained in it that cannot be refuted. We look at the New Testament and note that it contains a history of Christ's time on the earth, the history of the early church and the instructions on how Christians should live, worship and serve God. We discuss some of the specific books and what they contain. We talk about how important it is to read, study and do what the New Testament scriptures say to us. The Lord expects us to become teachers of the scriptures as the Hebrew writer specifically directs. We continue discussing the law of Christ and its universal application to all people. We talk about what it says concerning the pattern and truth it contains, and the fact that it is our guide to heaven. We complete this episode by referring to two scriptures that tell us how important God's word is. We will begin the next episode with those two passages. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue or discussion of the division of the old law and the new law of Christ, in particular what Paul wrote in Galatians chapter 3, verses 5 through 29. The promise that God made to faithful Abraham is an important part of our discussion and we look at that in depth. We look at what was said about the purpose of Moses Law, how long it would last and how it was connected to the law of Christ. Two covenants are mentioned in our discussion of these two laws. We note what is said about them, how they relate to Christians today and what denominations have done relating to them. We move on to look at the separations or divisions in the Bible beginning with the Patriarchal period and then the Mosaic period and some of the important things that occurred in them. We return to Galatians chapter 3 for Paul's discussion of the seed promise that he tells us referred to Christ and was part of the covenant God had made with Abraham. We discuss this covenant and how it relates to the old law, the law of Moses. That old law was said to be a shadow of good things to come. In our next episode, we will look at what this means. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue our discussion of rightly dividing the word of truth, God's word, understanding that it is inspired and within it, God has supplied all things that pertain to life and godliness. Consequently, we do not need to come up with our own ideas about the church, how to be saved, how to worship and what the church is and does. We noted that the church Jesus built, the church of Christ is not a denomination. We note Paul's warning to the elders of the local church in Ephesus about false teachers entering among them. We talk about what Jesus said about sincere people who thought they were following Him but were guilty of lawlessness. We also discuss how Jesus says one can come to the Father and what He says about the narrow gate and the wide way. We look at a couple of misconceptions some people have that are caused by taking scriptures out of context. So, we complete this portion of our study by again noting that we must follow God's word and only God's word. The problem that leads to denominations is people teaching what they think is good in their worship and serving God instead of what the Bible says. We move on specifically to discuss what it means to rightly divide the word of truth. We point out in this study that the Bible was written to different groups of people and different times in history. There are some general principles in some books of the Old Testament that are timeless in their applicability, but that is not true of all of the books. We talk about the 4 primary classifications contained in the Old Testament and what each of the 39 books are and not that the separation and classification of these books help us to rightly divide or correctly use them. We next move on to the New Testament, what the different books are and how they are divided. We note that there are three primary dispensations of time covered in the Bible. We discuss these. We close out this episode with Glenn reading Galatians three, verses 5 through 29 and run out of time before we can discuss those passages. We will begin our next episode with those scriptures and what they teach us. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue the discussion of why am I a member of the Church of Christ? We ran out of time before we completed our discussion of the term saint that we find in the New Testament. We complete that in this episode. We move on to talk about denominations and some important facts about them that we should know. We begin by looking at some of the titles that are used in them and what Jesus says about that. We talk about how important teaching the word of God is and what James says about those who would become teachers. Next, we note that special clothing is sometimes worn by leaders in denominational churches and what the New Testament says about this. We talk about where the Christians met for worship in the first century and why that is important for us to know. Next, we discuss why denominations exist, where they come from and what the New Testament says about that. We begin the next phase of this study by looking at the exchange Jesus had with the scribes and Pharisees relating to their traditions and how they replaced God's commandments with them. There are a number of important lessons to be learned from Jesus' discussion with them. We talk about some of those lessons and how they relate to the denominations that exist today. We move on to look at a number of passages that tell us what happens when we do not follow what God says or the pattern, He provided for us to follow. We will continue this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue to discuss the structure or pattern of the church. We noted in the last episode that Paul had told Timothy to hold fast the pattern of sound words. We noted that part of that pattern was to appoint elders in each local church and we also noted that there was always a minimum of two elders appointed. There are specific qualifications that a man must meet in order to be an elder in the church. We discuss those. We then look at what the elders were responsible for doing. Paul had given them a warning in Acts chapter 20 that we talked about. We also noted that members of the congregation are told to be subject to the guidance of their elders for they would give an account to the Lord of their work. The next group of men who serve the local church are referred to as deacons. We look at the first mention of these men in Acts chapter six. As Paul did with selecting elders, he also provided the qualifications that a man had to meet in order to serve as a deacon in a local church. We look at those qualifications and note again that there were always at least two deacons in each local congregation. So up to this point, we have seen that the structure or pattern of the local church consists of Christ as Head, elders as spiritual leaders, and deacons as servants. Of course, we do have evangelists who preach and teach the word, but they don't have any other special role in the leadership or work of the church. The remainder of the local church is made up of disciples or saints. We look at a number of passages that refer to them. We close this episode out by noting the simplicity of the structure or pattern of the local church of Christ compared to that of man-made denominations. We will have more to say about this in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue to look at what the Bible says about why am I a member of the Church of Christ. We have looked at what the local churches of Christ did in their worship of God and were discussing the last item, preaching, when we ran out of time in the last episode. So, we begin by completing our discussion of preaching in the New Testament church. We noted several passages where Paul said that the gospel was preached throughout the whole world in the first century by following the Lord's simple arrangement of the church. In addition to preaching, the other items of worship are the Lord's Supper, Singing, Praying, Giving, and Teaching. We note that there are over 2,000 denominations all teaching different doctrine. But the Lord only built one Church. We discuss a number of passages that say this, that also call the Lord's Church His body and His kingdom. We next move to a discussion of the structure or set-up of the Church as taught in the scriptures. We talk about how the denominational churches are not structured according to the Lord's instructions in His word and why this is a problem. We next talk about the Church and the Body of Christ as the Kingdom of God and the fact that it exists today. Christ is King of the church and has given us His commands in His word that consists of a pattern we are to follow. We talk about this concept and point out the problem of denominations not following that pattern which basically contains the commands of the Lord. In the next episode we will discuss the appointment of elders in every local church of Christ. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that in the church of Christ in the first century, we are told that singing was a part their worship. We noted that there were no passages that told us that any local church of Christ ever used any instrument of music in their worship. Consequently, the silence of the scriptures must be respected. Instruments of music were not introduced into the worship of the church until many centuries later. History tells us that the first instruments of music were introduced in the Catholic Church in the 7th century. Other groups began to follow that errant example many centuries later. Next, we note that prayer was also a part of New Testament worship. It is mentioned first in Acts 2:42. We note several passages that tell us brethren prayed as a part of their spiritual life. We next find Paul giving an order to the church at Corinth to take up a collection for the saints on the first day of the week as a part of their worship. We look at the guidance Paul included concerning one's attitude toward giving of their means. We note that Paul wrote to the saints at Philippi, and he mentioned that their giving was a sacrifice or an act of worship. We also find that teaching was something that was done in the assemblies of the saints through the guidance of the inspired apostles. In order to continue in the apostle's doctrine as we are told in Acts 2:42, that doctrine must be taught. We note numerous passages that tell us teaching is an important part of worship as well as the spiritual life of each Christian. We find in Acts 20 verse 7 that on the first day of the week when the disciples came together to have the Lord's Supper that Paul preached to them. Ultimately, it was through the preaching of the word of God that the gospel was spread throughout the world in the first century. We will finish this discussion in next week's episode. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue to look in the Bible to find out what it says about why I am a member of the Church of Christ. We have discussed who built it and is its foundation, what it should be called, how a person gets into the church, and where and when it was established. We noted the scriptures that are recorded in God's word that answered all of these questions. We noted that Jesus said His words would never pass away and consequently we still have those words that guide us today. We also talked about what Jesus said about those words being the standard of judgment on the last day. One of the first subjects that we look at is what the church did in worship. The Bible tells us about how the Christians in the first century worshipped. We note that it was the inspired apostles that guided them to worship on the first day of the week. One of the specified activities was to remember the Lord's death which is called the Lord's Supper or Communion. We look at several passages that record what was done and what it meant. There was also a collection that Paul gave order to be taken up on the first day of the week for the saints. We find that singing was a part of New Testament worship also and we note several passages that Paul wrote. We discuss the fact that no instruments of music are mentioned in any of the passages. We talk about the warning the Lord provided about adding to His words or taking away from them. We will continue this discussion in the next episode by noting when instruments of music were added to various worship assemblies. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we continue to discuss why am I a member of the Church of Christ by looking at more passages that mention baptism as well as repentance and confession. Glenn noted what Mark said in chapter 16 and pointed out that to understand what he said is as simple as reading the passage. Luke recorded what Jesus said about repentance and Fred noted that. Eric read what Philip said when an angel sent him to talk with the Ethiopian eunuch who was reading what Isaiah wrote in chapter 53. Philip began, as Acts 8 says, at the same scripture and preached Jesus to him. Eric points out the specific actions the eunuch was told to do. Arnie takes us to the record of what Ananias told Paul he must do after he spent 3 days blind in Damascus and reminds us of what the record says baptism does. Glenn takes us to Acts 19 where we have an instance where 12 men who had been baptized by John were instructed by Paul as to why they needed to be rebaptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Fred looks at what Peter said when he compared Noah and his family being saved by water and how that relates to baptism. We continue on to notice that Paul told the Galatians how one gets in Christ. Paul explains how baptism and circumcision are related, and Eric looks at what Paul wrote about that. We discuss how baptism is a reenactment of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus as Paul explains it in Romans chapter 6. Glenn discusses our need to be faithful until we die as Jesus said in Revelation chapter 2. He notes that John gave us the guidance on how we can accomplish this in First John chapter 1. We close this episode out by pointing out that these Bible verses that we have been discussing are God's words and His commandments that He has provided us in written form for us to follow. And by obeying His words, we will be saved and added to His Church by Him. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We have established in previous episodes, that the Bible is God's word, inspired by God and is the standard which we must follow. If we do not follow what it says, we cannot please God. We noted that there are over 2,000 denominations that claim to be Christians yet teach something different from what the bible says. We noted that Jesus prayed that his followers would be united. We noted Paul's criticism of the Christians in Corinth who had divided up into different groups in the church. We learned that the church is a spiritual body of Christians, not a building. We learned when the church was established and where that first occurred. We noted when the prominent denominations were established. In this episode, we look at some other marks that matter concerning the Church. We read the entire chapter of John 17 which is Jesus' prayer to God concerning His apostles, what He taught them, the unity required of them and the way to achieve it. We begin reading various passages about the gospel, what it is and what one must do to obey it and be added to the Church of Christ. We note that these passages also tell us what we must do to be saved. We will need another episode to complete looking at these passages. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of why am I a member of the Church of Christ. We begin this episode by looking at a few passages that help us to determine where and when the Lord's Church would be established or started beginning in the Old Testament. We learn that it would be in what are described as the latter days and in Jerusalem. We move to the New Testament and talk about what both John the Baptizer and Jesus said when they expected the church or kingdom would come. We note that on Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, Peter quoted what Joel had prophesied about what would occur in the last days. We discuss a number of things that Acts chapter 2 reveals concerning Jesus and the Church that tells us exactly when and where the Lord's Church was established. We close out this episode by noting when, where and by whom the most prominent denominations were established. We encourage our listeners to examine the identifying factors of the Lord's Church and make changes if you find you are not associated with the Church that belongs to Jesus Christ. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this second episode of why am I a member of the Church of Christ, Glenn begins by noticing the warning Paul gave to the elders of the local church at Ephesus about how there would be those among them who would seek to draw away disciples to follow them. Jesus gave the same warning, and we discuss that situation as well as the specific name Jesus gave them. Jesus discussed certain ones who thought they were following what God said but were in fact not doing so. We discuss what Jesus said to them and how important it is to keep the Lord's commands. We look at what Jesus told His apostles about Him sending the Holy Spirit after He left them and why He was sending Him. We note our discussion in the last episode about Jesus being the builder of the Church of Christ that is referred to in the New Testament. We point out that Jesus is the foundation of His Church, as well as the King over His Kingdom, which is simply another way His Church is described. We talk about how important it is for us to speak and follow what the words in the Bible say. For instance, we know that He tells us that everything we need to obey God and be pleasing to Him is provided in His words. We discuss what the Hebrew writer said about how God communicated to man in the Old Testament and how he does that today. We note the problem that we see in the world of denominations today, what they have done and why this is so important to understand. We begin our discussion about when the Church of Christ was established, by noting that the division or denominating of the Lord's Church was criticized very early by Paul the apostle, which was contrary to the unity the Lord requires. In the next episode, we will look at when the Church of Christ was established. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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We begin this episode by noting that Peter says that we as Christians should be able, willing and ready to give answers to those who ask us about our belief and faith. So, we begin here. We discuss the use of blueprints and patterns that are used to build buildings and make clothes. If the blueprint or pattern isn't followed, that which is built or made is different from what the blueprint or pattern showed. By the same principle, Jesus provided a pattern in the New Testament for His church. If we vary from His New Testament pattern, we get a church that is different from what He planned. We talk about a specific Bible passage that warns about adding to God's word or taking away from it. We note the estimated number of denominations that claim to be following God, but in fact are not following the Lord's pattern in their name or doctrine. We look at the word church, what it means in the Bible and how it is used, both properly and improperly and why that is important. We look at where Jesus discussed building His church with the apostles, what He said and what they said. We then note a number of passages that describe the Lord's church in a number of different and very important ways. We also look at a number of descriptive terms we find in the New Testament that refer to the Lord's church. We close this episode by noting some of the names that various churches wear today. We will begin next week's episode by looking at the warning Paul gave to the elders from the local church at Ephesus. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Glenn, Eric and Fred continue their discussion about marriage according to what the Bible says about it. Glenn begins by finishing the reference to the wife being the weaker vessel, why she is to be submissive to her husband as well as her and the husbands family responsibilities. There is a reminder that we must respect God's word and His authority when He established marriage. We next look at a couple of passages that tell us how long God intends for marriages to last. We move on to look at what the Bible says about divorce and the only situation where God allows it. In particular, we look at what Jesus said when the Pharisees questioned Him about divorce. We noted that Jesus went all the way back to the beginning to show them the truth of the matter. We talk about a number of the benefits of the marriage relationship and the responsibility husbands and wives have toward their children. We look at how a happily married couple keep one another from straying from the relationship into sin. We look at what Paul and the Hebrew writer had to say about this and how important it is. Jesus had something to say about our thinking and we discuss that. We conclude by noting that God specified what marriage is, the responsibilities of husbands and wives and how important it is to follow His instructions in order to have happy and faithful lives. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn begin discussing what the Bible says about marriage. We start by noticing what Isaiah says about the attitude of a newly married couple, their excitement and how they present one to the other. It is noted what Malachi says to a husband about how he treated the wife of his youth and what God thought about that. We move on to what God said to Adam and Eve in the beginning and how Jesus went back to this time in correcting the Pharisees in what they had done to God's marriage law. We note what Paul said about being joined to a harlot and what that meant. Paul wrote to Timothy telling him that the scriptures provide everything to men for them to be completely furnished to every good work. Consequently, God has supplied all the guidance we need to live in such a way as to be pleasing to God, in particular relating to our marriages. We look at several passages that Solomon wrote concerning finding a wife and how valuable this is to us. Paul provides guidance about a wife's relationship to her husband as well as the husband's responsibilities to her. Peter gives us similar guidance. We discuss both of these references. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Eric, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion about immorality and what the Bible says about it. We begin by looking at what Jude said about the wicked Biblical cities of Sodom and Gomorrah whose people were engaged in immorality. Peter had even more to say about them and we look at what he said. Sodom and Gomorrah stand as the prime example of immoral behavior and how God looks at it. Eric looks at what Paul says about marriage and how that God-given institution avoids sexual immorality. We discuss several sections of scripture where Paul discusses unrighteousness that has not been forgiven by God that includes sexual immorality and how God condemns this activity. Throughout this episode, we note that in our day there continues to be a lot of immorality engaged in, which indicates that not much has changed since the activities recorded in the Bible. Take about 30-minutes to listen to our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Eric, Fred and Glenn begin a discussion about immorality as revealed in the Bible. Glenn begins by noting what morality is and its source. He notes that we will look specifically at sexual immorality. We note what Paul said to the Christians in Galatia and show that in the list of the works of the flesh he includes several sexual immoralities. There are a number of sexually immoral activities listed in the Old Testament and we look at them. Of course, this shows us that immorality has been forbidden by God since the earliest of times long before Moses received the Ten Commandments. We have the record of Lot living in Sodom when he had visitors who the men of the city wanted to have sexual relations with, showing us that same sex activities are forbidden by God. We close out this episode by noting what Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome that shows us that immoral and sexual perversion commonly lead to other ungodly behaviors. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode about being justified by grace, Arnie, Eric, Fred and Glenn look at man's condition before God established His grace. Sin was common to the human race. We note the disastrous consequences of sin and what those are. We discuss Bible passages that explain how God's grace saves. One passage mentions the washing of regeneration. We look at what this is and note that Jesus discussed this with Nicodemus at one point in His ministry. We look at baptism again using several passages that clearly explain what Bible baptism is and note many religious bodies don't follow what the Bible says about it. We look at what Peter, by the Holy Spirit, specifically says about baptism. We note that baptism is a burial as described by Paul to the Christians in Rome. Consequently, we point out what baptism does. We tie all of this together and how it relates to being justified by grace and what that means. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Glenn and Eric continue the discussion of what the Bible says about being justified by grace. Glenn begins by reviewing what we discussed in the last session. We move to looking at some of the doctrinal errors concerning justification by grace. We note that there are some who believe and teach that grace is extended unconditionally to all people contrary to the fact that the Bible teaches that God requires both faith and obedience. We look at a couple of passages that relate to this point. Eric takes a short look at Calvinism, what is involved in this error and several Bible passages that show the problem with this erroneous teaching. We move to look at Judaism and several New Testament passages that show us the problems with that current religion. Being justified by faith only is a popular belief today as well. We discuss several passages that clearly show this to be an erroneous teaching and belief. This episode is closed out as we begin to talk about man's condition before we begin to enjoy God's grace. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we begin our discussion on what the Bible says about how we are justified by grace. Paul writes to Titus noting our sinful behaviors, God's love of us and what He did for us, mentioning our topic for this episode. We discuss what grace is, how it manifests an attitude of friendly disposition from which a gift, kindly act, mercy, charity or lenience proceeds. We look at what Jesus said in Matthew 5 concerning what God does for all and how we ought to follow His example. Again, God's love of mankind is noted by Jesus and Paul in a couple of passages. We note those. We discuss the fact that this gracious attitude of God is undeserved by man, yet Paul notes in a passage in Ephesians that it saves. We talk about grace being a spiritual state or condition that is entered into by faith. We look at a couple of passages that say this. We note that grace is also a gift that God provides through Jesus and ultimately equals salvation. We complete this episode by noting that grace is not a reward for good works, works of merit, as if God owed us for them. Paul tells us that we are God's workmanship for He created us for good works, the works of faith that we do when we obey what He says because we love Him. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn take a look at some of the passages we have discussed in the last 2 episodes. We note that some of them do not contain the word "saved" in them. We talk about why what is said in these passages must be done in order to be saved. Jesus points out the need to hear and be taught in order to come to God. Paul has a lot to say about that to the Christians in Rome. We look at those passages. We also discuss some passages that mention belief and what that means. We talk about the need to repent and how that is needed to be done. A confession before men is also required. We again look at several of those passages. We again note some of the passages that mention baptism and what that does. Glenn closes out the episode by a notice of what is said about grace and works. We will discuss them more next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this second episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue the discussion of what the Bible says about how to be saved. Glenn and Fred review some of the things discussed in the last episode. We continue this episode by looking at what Peter did when the Holy Spirit sent him to a Roman Centurian named Cornelius in Caesarea. We go over what the Bible says about this encounter, what Peter taught and what Cornelius and his family did. Next, we find Paul in Philippi where a businesswoman heard his preaching and responded to it along with her family members. We discuss what was taught and again the response of her and her family. The next situation we look at is when Paul and Silas are imprisoned in Philippi for preaching the gospel and have an opportunity to teach their jailer and his family. We talk about what was said by Paul and Silas and again how the jailer and his family responded. We note the similarity in all of these occasions. Next, we find Paul in Corinth teaching in a synagogue. In this situation the chief ruler of the synagogue, his family and other Jews and Gentiles obey Paul's teaching. We discuss that. We close out this episode by noting that Paul discovered some disciples who had received John's baptism. We look at what Paul told them about baptism in the name of the Lord and how that related to them. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a look at what the Bible says an individual must do to be saved. We start out by noting what Jesus directed the apostles to do upon His departure. We note Mathew and Mark's account of what Jesus said to them right before He ascended to heaven. We begin in Acts chapter 2 when Peter preached the first gospel sermon. We read the record of that occasion and note that the people asked what they needed to do, and Peter gave them specific instructions that were in line with what Jesus told them. The next occasion is when Philip went to Samaria. There he taught the people things concerning the kingdom of God, and both men and women were baptized. There was a sorcerer there as well who eventually obeyed his preaching. Philip was also sent to a desert area in Gaza by the Holy Spirit where he found an Ethiopian eunuch, the treasurer of the Queen of Ethiopia. They had a discussion of Isaiah chapter 53 that he was reading. We read the passages and find out what the Ethiopian eunuch did. We note that it is consistent with what Jesus commanded to be done. Saul, later to be known as Paul the apostle, was contacted by the Lord on the road to Damascus as Saul intended to go there and persecute Christians. We discuss what he was told to do. We begin our discussion of Cornelius the Roman Centurion but run out of time to finish it. We will finish that discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this last episode on this subject, Arnie and Fred finish their discussion of some men who were part of the Protestant Reformation, John Calvin, John Knox and John Smyth. We noted that most Protestant churches resulted from the Reformation Movement and have roots in those major denominations. We discuss five other non-Catholic religious bodies, who established them and the date they were established. We note that all Protestant denominations are less than 700 years old. We go back to the Bible to again, see what it says about Christ's Church and when He built it. We review some of the things that Christ said about His Church as well as His answer to those who thought they were serving Him and were not. We encourage our listeners to study their Bibles and make sure the church they attend is doing what the Lord says. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of the apostacy or falling away from the New Testament pattern that occurred and, in this episode, continue to look at its history. We reviewed some of the departures we noted last week, in baptism and the Lord's Supper. Some began to worship men and women in the Catholic church, and we note that. Priests in the Catholic church also began hearing people confess their sins to them and we look at what this meant. We also discuss what was added to all the Bibles for a time. There were rules set up regulate what was eaten on certain days and, whether an individual ought to fast and even if priests and nuns could be married. We discuss these. Popes took upon themselves new titles and authorities that we note as well. All of these changes ended up causing a split between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern, Greek Orthodox Church. We complete this episode by beginning to discuss some of the individuals, such as John Wycliff, John Hus, Martin Luther, who began to question the changes that were made which resulted in what is called the Protestant Reformation. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. A transcript of this Buzzsprout episode is provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of the apostacy or falling away that Paul said would occur from the original pattern for Christ's Church. We discussed some of the small changes that began in the early 2nd century in the last episode. Beginning with Constatine, pagans were granted church membership which changed a number of church practices. Constatine had himself sprinkled as baptism on May 22nd in 337AD right before he died. We discuss again the pattern of baptism in the New Testament and examine a number of changes that appeared after the first century. There also appeared a number of changes relating to the Lord's Supper, mainly by the Catholic Church. Several other changes were made including the addition of instrumental music. We discuss a good bit about the original pattern and the words supplied to us by the inspired writers of those words and why it is important to follow what those words say. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Fred and Glenn begin this episode noting that Paul predicted that there would be a falling away or apostacy that was a departure from the original gospel soon after the death of the apostles. We note that God has always provided a pattern for His people to follow. Noah was given specific instructions on how to build the ark. We note that Moses was given a pattern for building the tabernacle and those implements in it. We also talk about the pattern for the temple that God gave to David and the fact that David gave that same pattern to Solomon to follow in building the temple in Jerusalem. We then move our discussion to note that the New Testament contains the pattern for Christ's Church as well as the pattern for the Christian's behavior. We then begin to look at the historical record of the apostasy that Paul predicted would begin among the elders or bishops. We talk about the creation of dioceses that occurred in the second century and how this departed from the New Testament pattern. We then look at the changes that were instituted relating to the pattern for the bishops and the resulting hierarchy. We look briefly at Constatine's Edict of Milan that he issued in AD313 and what it did. We next talk about the Council of Nicaea and what it did in AD325. We close out this episode by noting when the first universal Pope or Bishop was named and what the structure of the church of that day resembled. We will begin the next episode talking about Constatine granting pagans church membership. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of what the Bible says about Christ's Church or men's churches. In this episode, we begin our discussion about the membership of Christ's Church. We begin by noting what Peter said about the saved when he preached the first gospel sermon on Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. We next look at what Jesus said that individuals who heard the gospel were required to do. We return to Acts chapter 2 to note that some of those who heard Peters sermon that were convicted of having Jesus crucified, wanted to know what they must do because of what they did. We talk about his answer. There was an Ethiopian eunuch, a proselyte Jew, who was returning to his home country that Philip was sent by the Holy Spirit to teach. He was reading from Isaiah chapter 53 and invited Philip up into his chariot to learn what it meant. We note what Philip told him and what the eunuch said and did. We next move on to talk about the name Christian and when it was applied to Christ's disciples. We close out this episode by looking at how long Christ's Church and words will last. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this third episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of the various characteristics that identify Christ's Church. We begin by looking at the worship His Church engages in. Glenn begins by noting passages that mention singing as a part of that worship. He notes that this singing comes from the heart of the worshipper. Part of the apostle's doctrine mentioned that occurred on Pentecost when the saints first began worshipping was prayers. We briefly look at that. We next note that Paul instructed Timothy to not neglect the reading of scripture and that was included in worship. Gospel preaching was another item of worship on the first day of the week that is recorded in Acts chapter 20. Observance of the Lord's supper is also mentioned there. Paul also gave the same order to the church at Corinth in chapter 16 of first Corinthians about the collection for the saints that he had given to the churches of Galatia. We move on to the mission that Christ gave to His Church. We note that Paul reminded Timothy that Christ's Church is the pillar and ground of the truth and is to teach that truth everywhere, to evangelize. Consequently, this action is designed to also edify or build up the saints. We note that since the collection on the first day of the week is for the saints, benevolence toward needy saints is included in the church's mission. We discuss Paul's specific directions to Timothy concerning this important area. We close out this episode by beginning our discussion of the membership of Christ's Church, the saved. We will have to pick up who constitutes the saved in our next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue to discuss Christ's Church and begin with the fact that Christ ordained or prescribed certain things relating to His Church. First, we note that Christ named His church using a number of terms. Some relate to His ownership, and some relate to certain characteristics of His church. We note that there are some names that relate to the location of local churches or assemblies of the Lord. We take some time to discuss where these names are mentioned in the Bible. We next talk about the organization of these local bodies. We find they are all organized in the same way and are autonomous. Each local church in the New Testament has elders which are also called bishops and pastors. We note that these terms refer to the same individuals and what they do in the local congregation. We also find that Bible tells us about deacons in the local church. We talk about the term deacon and what the Lord gave them to do. We also find the Bible mentioning preachers or evangelists. As with the elders and deacons, we look at the work the evangelists do. We close out this episode with a discussion about the doctrine or teaching we find taught, its completeness and whether anything else is acceptable. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
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In this episode, Arnie, Fred and Glenn begin by briefly tracing the establishment of the Lord's Church. In later episodes we will look at the beginnings of various religious bodies existent today. We begin by noting that Jesus promised to build His Church. We note the meaning of the word "Church" and also point out that it is also called His Kingdom. We move on to discuss the fact that Christ did establish His church as He promised. Our discussion notes that the Bible tells us when it was established and how it was to come into being and we note those passages. The Bible is clear as to the Founder of Christ's Church and we talk about that. Christ's Church has a head that is specified in one passage, and we look at that passage. The basis of the establishment of Christ's Church is also revealed to us in the scriptures. We discuss two of those passages found in Acts. We close out this episode by noting the uniqueness of Christ's Church. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying, There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue their discussion of suicide and how one's faith defeats it. We begin by noting that Paul had reminded the brethren at Corinth how God had delivered him and those who were with him from a certain death they were threatened with in Asia, illustrating God's faithfulness and ability to do so. Paul continued to discuss with them that we are all subject to death and we don't like that because we desire the eternal body promised us in heaven. He also challenges them to examine themselves whether they are in the faith, which is absolutely important. We note that Paul reminded the Ephesian Christians of when God identified the group that would be His chosen ones and why this is a fact every saint should know. We then look at what Paul told the Philippian brethren what Christ was able to do for them. A fact that they needed to remember as they went through the difficulties of a faithful life. The Colossian Christians were Gentiles and Paul reminded them of their spiritual condition before they obeyed the Lord so they would remember the life that they now enjoyed in Him. We move on to what James had to say about the various temptations we are subject to in this life and the kind of attitude we ought to have toward them. We close out this episode by noting that John says that the Lord knows that we, as Christians still sin from time to time and reassures us that if we confess those sins to Him, He will forgive us. There is never a situation so bad that we can't do this. So, one's faith in the Lord will defeat any thoughts of suicide. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie, Fred and Glenn continue the discussion about suicide and what the Bible says about it. We begin by looking at more passages in the Old Testament that relate to one's faith and how that defeats suicide. David is the first faithful individual we look at and he questions why he is cast down and disquieted when he has hope in God. Solomon first discusses the trust he has in God and then asks the question of why would one die before his time? Next Isaiah tells God's people not to be dismayed and they should not be disquieted because He is with them. We look at what Jeremiah recorded that God said to His people while they were in captivity where He reminded them that His thoughts of them were for peace and not evil in order to keep them from being discouraged. God's people need to remember that God always has their best interest at heart. We move to the New Testament and look first at Jesus' emphasis on his disciples being faithful in keeping His words. We note that Jesus reminded His people that they would always experience difficulties in this life, but to maintain their faith in His ability to help them weather the storms of life. We next look at what Paul said about the danger of being conformed to the world, to the way it looks at things, its philosophy. He notes the need for the faithful Christian to transform his thinking and follow more closely the Lord's words. We close this episode out by looking at our relationship with the Lord as the kings He made us and our reign with Him. And finally, a short discussion about our bodies being the temple of the Holy Spirit and what that means to the faithful Christian. Leading a faithful life serving the Lord defeats any possibility of suicide. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin this episode by looking at what the Bible says about suicide. We note that everyone faces some kind of discouragement from time to time. If we consider it to be unfixable, our thinking may lead us to hopelessness and despair and ultimately to harmful behaviors and even to suicide. The Bible records a number of people who resorted to this. We begin by noting 5 individuals. The first is Abimelech who was engaged in battle and became disabled. The Bible record of this is in Judges chapter 9. We talk about that situation. King Saul was battling the Philistines and was wounded by their archers according to 1 Samuel 31. We look at that record. Next, we note that David's son, Absalum engaged in a rebellion against his father who was the king. We talk about what happened to his advisor Ahithophel as well as himself according to the Bible record. The last of the Old Testament individuals we look at are about a hundred years later. Those involved are Baasha, who was king of Israel for a short period, Zimri who was commander of half the kings chariot company and Omri who was appointed commander of the Army. We discuss this at length. The last individual we note is Judas Iscariot who most are familiar with. Nevertheless, we review his suicide. With that background, we begin a discussion of how faith can defeat suicide. This will be the primary focus of the remaining episodes on suicide. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode, Arnie and Glenn discuss that John sent his disciples to Jesus while he was in prison for their benefit. The miracles that Jesus performed and the fact that the poor heard the gospel provided them the evidence that Jesus was the Messiah. A couple of passages were next noted that showed how John closed out the Old Testament period of prophesy. It was also mentioned that there was a lot of violence that occurred whenever the kingdom was discussed. The fact that John saw the kingdom at hand but was never in it was looked at next. John's imprisonment and death close out this episode. John had criticized Herod for taking his brother Phillip's wife who because of it wanted him dead. Arnie and Glenn discuss at length what led to his death at the hands of Herod the Tetrarch. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Glenn begin this episode with a discussion of the preeminence of Christ because John was asked a number of times if he was the Christ, the Messiah. Glenn notes an interesting fact in the context of Colossians 3:18 which tells us of the preeminence of Christ. A discussion of this context ensues. We next note the problem of few receiving Christ even though John pointed to Him as the Messiah and His message was God given. We next talk about the fact that eternal life demands that one believes and obeys the Son. The meaning of the word believe as used in the Bible is explored. John the Baptizer provided testimony of Jesus to the religious elitists but by and large they rejected it. We discuss the other things they rejected concerning Jesus as well. Take about 30 -minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bibe handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this fourth episode, Arnie and Glenn continue their discussion about John the Baptizer. The discussion begins with a look at the prophesy that John's father Zacharias stated about him which first appeared in the Old Testament. Johns' youth was spent in the desert, and he continued this life up until the time he came to the public. We note this. An Old Testament prophecy by Malachi said one like Elijah would return at some point. We look at numerous occasions in the New Testament that people discussed this prophecy and how it relates to John the Baptizer. John and Jesus were related. They were cousins, John being 6 months older than Jesus. But there was a more important relationship which we discuss next. We also look at what the religious leaders were trying to do relating to John's disciples and Jesus. John was aware of this and had much to say about the issue being raised. We note what John had to say. We run out of time for this episode before completing this subject. We'll start here next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what is being said. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this third episode, Arnie and Glenn continue discussing what the Bible says about John the Baptizer. We begin by noting that John, according to Jesus, was come to fulfill all righteousness. Part of that work was to identify Jesus as the Christ or Messiah. There are two sections of scripture that tell us of the duration of John's baptism. We discuss both of those sections which is very important to know. John's background, his birth and early life is what is noted next. John had righteous parents, and it is noted that his father, Zacharias, was a priest who served in the temple and his mother, Elizabeth, was a daughter of Aaron. Zacharias had been praying for his wife to have a child and was visited by the angel Gabriel while he was serving in the temple. Gabriel told him that Elizabeth would have a child, told him the name to call him and a number of other important facts that we discuss. Jesus' mother Mary was Elizabeth's cousin, and she went to visit her. We look at that visit and what occurred. This episode closes with John's birth, his naming and Zacharias's prophesy. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Glenn continue to discuss what the Bible says about John the Baptizer in this second episode. We begin by noting that John always performed his mission faithfully. We look at John the apostles record of the occasion the priests and Levites questioned John the Baptizer and note his answers using Old Testament prophecies concerning him. John had tremendous influence with the inhabitants in Jerusalem, Judea, the Jordan Valley and all Israel. We discuss the scriptures that relate that to us. We note that the record tells us that even the most notorious sinners responded to John's preaching. In the rest of this episode, we look at John's baptism. The religious authorities questioned Jesus' authority for what He said and did. Jesus discussed John's baptism in answering their questions. We note that discussion because it ultimately reveals the authority for John's baptism to us. We closeout this episode by looking at the purpose for John's baptism but run out of time before we could finish. We will pick up here in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Glenn begin this episode on John the Baptizer or Immerser, by first noting that his ministry began just before Jesus' work did and lasted only a year or two. Even though he worked such a short time, John was one of the most important and best-known men influencing 1st Century Palestine. Unfortunately, much of his importance is overlooked by many disciples today. As far as we can tell, John began his work about AD 27. His mission was to prepare the way for the Messiah or Christ. We look at the prophesy that tells us that in the Old Testament. John the apostle tells us in his gospel that John the Baptizer was to prepare men to believe in the Light. We discuss what that means. He had a specific message that he was to preach. We discuss what that message included. John included the common man, religious leaders as well as the politically powerful. A number of those situations are looked at. We talk about the "fruits of repentance" that John mentions. Of course, he preached about the coming of the Messiah and we look at some of what he had to say. John guided his disciples' spiritual growth including teaching them how to pray and fast. We note how this applied to Jesus' disciples. This episode concludes with us noting how faithfully John the Immerser performed his mission. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
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Arnie and Glenn begin this final episode on the Bible being literal or figurative by reviewing some of what they said in the last episode. They note that sometimes people make up their minds prematurely about what a passage says without considering the complete case. It is important to note if the writer identifies which figure of speech is being used. It is also important to see how other writers or speakers treat a particular Bible event. Finally, it is noted that Bible events should be considered literal unless being so forces them to be impossible or nonsense. A common saying that should help to properly understand what is written is noted. Arnie and Glenn talk about the need to use common sense in understanding all written or spoken communications in the Bible. Many of the things that we write or say include some kind of figurative language. It is also noted how important it is to have a genuine desire to know and obey God's word. We complete this episode by noting that both the Old and New Testament Scriptures include both literal and figurative language and we discuss some of the things they provide to us. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on what we are saying. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what is said. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie is joined by Glenn Landrum to continue the discussion of the literal and figurative aspects of the Bible. This episode begins by noting some helpful hints on how to distinguish between literal and figurative expressions in the Bible. We shouldn't make up our minds prematurely on a particular subject without considering the context of it. The time that the Pharisees misrepresented Moses as commanding divorce is discussed at length. Sometimes Jesus or one of the writers tells us which figure of speech is being used, whether it is a parable or an allegory. That is discussed. We ought to note how the inspired writers or speakers treat an event recorded in the Bible. Jesus speaking about Moses at the burning bush and the Hebrew writer noting Noah and the flood is looked at. We discuss Jotham's fable to show some of the figurative language found in the Bible and how to understand it. A good guide to follow is what someone has been quoted as saying, which is, "The sense that makes the most sense is the correct sense." There is a little bit more that needs to be said about this subject, so we will complete it in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of examples of other figures of speech. We begin by talking about similes. We note that similes are words or phrases that compare two things. We look at two examples that have the words like or as in them. Next is a discussion of similitudes. We explain what they are and look at two Bible examples where this figure of speech occurs. Hyperboles are looked at next. They are obvious and intentional exaggerations indicating excitement or used to make a point. Jesus used them as did the apostles. We discuss four examples. Personifications are used in both the Old and New Testaments. We note what they are and look at several passages where they appear. Finally, we begin to talk about how to distinguish figurative from literal language but will have to complete this in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this second episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the literal and figurative aspects of the Bible. We begin here by noting that Jesus and the apostles understood that some of the historical and literal Bible accounts contained figurative language, since they supplied the words. We note the words that Abraham received Isaac from the dead, the passages that appears in, and why it is important to understand it properly. We discuss Parables, noting that they are realistic stories conveying a moral thought as contained in the parable of the Sower. We look at Proverbs that are understood to be old sayings that communicate practical truths. We look at what Jesus said about the Physician in Luke 4. We continue by noting the allegory that Paul identified of the Bondwoman and Freewoman. We talk about that allegory and how Paul applied it. We close out this episode with a discussion of metaphors. We look at three that are found in the New Testament, two that Jesus used, and one Paul wrote about. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of what some people think of the Bible. Some Bible student's regard everything the Scriptures say to be literally true, for instance trees talked and chose a king. Others think the entire Bible is figurative, that everything symbolizes something else, and no one can understand it except a special few. Neither view is correct. We begin by noting that Paul mentioned using a figure of speech in one of his letters to the Christians in Corinth. Arnie discusses what is recorded in Judges chapter 9 of what Jotham said there to illustrate some of the figurative language he used. We note that the Bible is verbally inspired. We discuss what this means, and how specific it is in what is recorded. Jesus discussed a number of events from the Old Testament and treated them as historically accurate and literal. We discuss the implications of what He had to say. We close out this episode by noting that Jesus and the apostles understood some historical and literal Bible accounts to contain figurative language. We look at one of those accounts. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue to discuss what the Bible says about Jesus' birth and the timeline of it. We begin this episode by noting what Luke said about the requirement in the law of Moses that all male children were to be circumcised and when that was to occur. We noted that Luke also recorded Jesus' presentation at the Temple and purification requirements for Mariam recorded in Leviticus. Matthew records the visit of the wisemen, and notes that this occurred when Jesus was a young child. In Matthew's account, much is recorded of the interest that Herod had concerning Jesus' birth and where that occurred. Herod ordered them to report back to him after they saw Jesus. We discuss the warning they received concerning this ruler, Herod the Great. We also talk about the warning Joseph received concerning Herod and why that was important. Matthew records what Herod did to the children in Judea and we have a discussion about this. Matthew also records the return of Joseph and his family and why they ended up in Nazareth. WE discuss the significance of that city's name. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss Jesus' birth and try to establish a timeline of it based on what the Bible says. We begin by noting that of the four gospels, Mark is the only one who says nothing about Jesus' birth. We discuss the phrase, "the fulness of time" that Paul refers to in his letter to the Christians in Galatia. We look at the first reference to Jesus in the scriptures. John only refers to Jesus' birth in one verse. We note that verse. Luke records the angel Gabriel's visit with Mary when he explained to her about her becoming Jesus' mother and what that entailed. We look at what Luke said about that. Matthew records what Joseph initially thought about Mary when he found her to be expecting a child. Matthew records when the angel of the Lord visited Joseph to explain the situation to him. We discuss that visit. Luke records the reason Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem as well as Jesus' birth. We note the significance of Luke's mentioning the Roman officials at that time. We complete this episode by looking at Luke's record of shepherds who were visited by angels and their travel to Bethlehem to see Jesus. Luke provides us with an important fact in developing our timeline. We talk about this. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode on morality, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the fact that immorality is the same as sin. We note that James discusses what happens when an individual knows what is good to do but decides not to do it. John in two passages identifies what sin is. We look at what he says there. Paul has a discussion in Romans 14 relating to one that has doubts about what he is doing and what the result is if he continues to do it. We discuss this situation. Paul also has a long discussion of quite a few different sins in Romans chapter 1. Arnie spends some time looking at what Paul says about those sins. Fred discusses what Paul said to the Christians in Galatia when he listed a similar number of sins in Chapter 5. We move on to talk about what Paul wrote to the brethren in Ephesus about other sources of immorality which are equally serious. We complete this episode by looking at the consequence of unrighteousness and note that Adam and Eve understood that in the very beginning. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, we follow up on our last episode where we concluded with the fact that God is the Author and Determiner of morality. Arnie and Fred begin by noting that moral character is unique to mankind. We discuss the human spirit which was created by God when He created mankind in His image. We look at several passages in Genesis which tell us this. Jesus notes that God is a Spirit which identifies us as spiritual beings as Moses said, made in His image. Both Paul and Peter discuss our conscience which functions as our moral compass if we listen to it properly. We look at what Paul says about the possibility of searing our conscience to the point it is desensitized and doesn't work as God intended. We note that morality is universally applicable. God is no respecter of persons. His moral requirements apply to all countries and people who live in them. We close out this episode by noting that immorality is the same as sin. We will begin our next episode by a fuller discussion of this fact. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin this episode on what the Bible says about morality, by noting that morality is not determined by philosophers and their philosophizing. So-called deep thinkers in every culture possess the same human desires and emotions as other people. So, they tend to approve or condemn moral principles according to their own interests. We move on to discuss the fact that morality is not religiously decreed. Canaanite religion in the Old Testament offered human sacrifices as part of their worship. Abortion today is seen in much the same light as being no problem. The phallic cult included fornication, incest, sodomy, bestiality and other immoral activities. We discuss what is commanded in the Qur'an that are clearly immoral from God's standards. We talk about some of what the Catholic Church did during the Crusades that were a part of that religion at the time. Many denominations today accept certain behavior as a part of their religion that is clearly wrong. We next note that morality is not legislated or enforced by government and look at what the apostles said about that. We discuss several instances that our own government has done in this regard. We also note that morality is not ordered by judicial fiat even though in our society we find it being done. We look at that situation. We close this episode out by discussing the fact that God is the Author and Determiner of morality and moral character is unique to mankind. We discuss why this is the case by examining some Bible passages that teach us this fact. We will have to finish this part of the episode in the next one. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin a new episode by discussing what the Bible says about morality. We begin by looking at what Paul went through while he was in protective custody by a Roman garrison and his discussion with the Roman official in charge of the area where he was imprisoned. We find out that the Roman official was totally unprincipled and rather immoral. This was not unusual for Roman officials. We then note that in large measure, modern day America is not much different as is much of the world. We discuss the fact that morality is not of human origin. Observing human activity, one gets the idea that each individual has their own morality. We note that it is the Lord who provided the standard of morality to the Israelites. We note that this hasn't changed. We also talk about the fact that morality is not legislated by the majority, even though we see this done all the time. We continue by looking at what the Bible says about philosophies and the deep thinkers who produce these in every culture. Unfortunately, we ran out of time and will have to address this item in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen to this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode of why the Bible was written, Arnie and Fred note that it teaches how to live as a Christian. We discuss the fact that all of the New Testament epistles were written to and for Christians. In the second chapter to Titus, Paul said that God's grace teaches us what we must deny and also specifies how we should live. In the second chapter of Peter's first epistle, he describes God's people in verse 9. We discuss that description. We talk about what Paul said about the Christians at Rome in the first verse of that letter. Paul also addressed the disciples in Ephesus in the first verse of chapter one. We look at that. Likewise, we note what Peter said in the first verse of his second epistle. We talk about how Paul told Timothy and Titus that Christians are required to live acceptably unto God. The Bible teaches how a disciple develops and grows or doesn't grow as a child of God. We note what Jesus, Paul and the Hebrew writer say about this. We close out this episode by noting that the Bible reveals the destiny of our souls, telling us that our souls continue to live after the body dies. We talk about what Jesus said about this when He discussed the rich man and Lazarus in Luke chapter 16. Jesus tells us of the judgment scene where He will judge everyone. We talk about what He says about that. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue to discuss why the Bible was written. We pick up where we left off in the last episode by noting that the Bible explains how people become Christians. We look at what Luke says in Acts about when the disciples were first called Christians. We note that there was a prophesy that discussed this in the Old Testament. We move on to look at various passages that tell us how to obey the gospel, that is, how to become a Christian. Jesus and Paul both note why it is important to hear and learn the gospel. Mark records what Jesus said about believing, as did Luke when he wrote Acts 16 verses 30 and 31. Jesus has something to say about repentance and we discuss that. Paul was on Mars Hill and had a lengthy discussion with the intelligentsia of Athens there and talked about the need for repentance. We close out this episode by noting two occasions that Luke recorded in Acts that contained references to baptism. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this fourth episode, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that the Bible produces faith in Jesus Christ. It does this by providing the words and deeds of Jesus Christ. We look at Luke's Gospel account first and note that it was addressed to a high-ranking Roman official with the intended purpose of providing the eye-witness accounts of what they believed. We also point out that Luke wrote Acts and addressed it to the same official. We discuss the fact that the Bible contains and provides the evidence needed for the belief that is required to produce that faith. We discuss at length how the Bible identifies the Lord's church. It contains the promise that Jusus made that He would build His church, singular. He built only one church, and we point out where the Bible states that it is a spiritual body in heaven. We also discuss the local churches that existed in the first century and note that Paul on a number of occasions made sure that we know that he preached the same thing in every local church. This shows us that the Bible records the specific pattern for the Lord's church. We begin our final discussion in this episode about how the Bible teaches an individual to become saved. We run out of time before finishing it. We will begin the next episode on what the Bible teaches us about what we must do to be saved. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin this episode where they left off, that is, the Bible reveals the identity of the Messiah. Jesus criticized the Jewish leaders in John 5 for refusing to accept that He was the Messiah even though the Old Testament scriptures that they studied identified Him as the Messiah. We look at 2 other scriptures in the New Testament that identify Jesus as the Christ. We move on to talk about how the Bible reveals the source of our salvation. We note that man cannot save themselves from their sins. God made salvation possible by providing a way that makes that possible. Again, mankind could not know this unless God revealed it in His written word, the Bible. We close out this episode by beginning our discussion of how the Bible produces faith in Jesus Christ. We look at some of the words and deeds recorded in the Bible that produces this faith. We will finish this particular point in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue their discussion on why the Bible was written by looking again into more of the scriptures that reveal the purpose of man, why we are here. Jesus, Solomon and Micah all provide us with some of that information. We discuss what they say. We move next to how the Bible reveals the nature of sin to us. We note that without God telling us, we would not know we were violating God's laws. We look at what Paul said about that. We finish this point by discussing some of the passages that tell us the consequences of our sins. The last point in this episode is to look at how the Bible revealed the Messiah to mankind. We discuss both Old and New Testament scriptures that do this. We run out of time before finishing this point. But we close out this episode by noting Jesus' criticism of the Jewish religious leaders of the day for their failure to accept the Old Testament scriptures that identified Him as the Messiah. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin this new episode on what does the Bible say by discussing why the Bible was written. We suspect that most people have given little thought to the reasons the Bible was written. They don't seem to realize that it is the total revelation of God's will - that it really is the Word of God. Many it seems regard it as just containing the opinions of religious men - men that they may or may not hold in especially high regard, for one reason or another. Only a few people actually realize or accept the Bible as having been God - breathed as it says. We begin by looking at what Jesus had to say to the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16. We see that some of the purposes the Bible was written are revealed in those passages. The first purpose we see is that the nature of God is revealed there. We talk about the physical creation and the evidence it provides to show the existence of God. We then note that a different method was needed to reveal God's will to man. We look at that method. We begin our next point by noticing that the Bible reveals the purpose of man, why we are here, what God expects of us. We run out of time before we can complete this point. We will begin here in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on what we have to say. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
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Arnie and Fred begin this last episode about New Testament worship by discussing the reading of scripture that we find was done during that time. Paul wrote to Timothy about this practice. Luke records in Acts about scripture that was written to the church at Antioch which they read during their worship. In looking at these six elements of New Testament worship, we have noted that if there are items added to them or if any of these items are excluded, the worship engaged in would not be "in spirit and in truth as Jesus requires. We move on to discuss the church as the New Testament body of Christians. We look at the word "church" noting is meaning from the original Koine Greek word. We look at a number of passages that this word is used in and point out what each passage is saying. We look at passages that teach us that the Lord's church is called a "spiritual house". We take some time to talk about the difference between this spiritual house and the local churches the various letters in the New Testament were addressed to. We close out this episode by noting that all of Christ's local churches believed and taught the same things and worked and worshipped in the same way. Since the New Testament specifies the kind of worship God requires, we pose the question, "Is it the kind of worship that you offer?" Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
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Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of New Testament Worship and begin with the memorial to Christ known primarily as the Lord's Supper. We note at length what Paul said to the Christians in Corinth concerning the proper way to remember the Lord's death as a part of their worship. We look at the day that was specified and the fact that it was confirmed by a miracle. We move on to note that it was on the same day that a collection was taken up. We discuss again, what Paul said to the Christians at Corinth concerning this important worship activity. It is so important that Paul found it necessary to specify the day, the attitudes as well as the preparation for this activity. We complete this episode with a discussion of the preaching that was done by Paul. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue to discuss New Testament worship according to what the Bible says. We begin by noting what Jesus said according to John on why we must worship correctly. This led us to begin to look at the elements of worship that are mentioned in the New Testament. The New Testament mentions music but specifies singing or Acapella music which is without mechanical instruments. We look at a number of passages that discuss that kind of music which the saints in the first century engaged in during their worship. We look at all of the aspects of this portion of New Testament worship. That is, what to sing, how, to whom it is directed, its purpose, and where it is to be done. We next discuss prayer and some of the passages that mention it. Paul tells the Christians in the church at Corinth two specific things required in their prayers. We talk about them. We begin to note the observance of the Lord's Supper during our worship and run out of time before finishing. We will revisit this memorial to Christ in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this new episode, Arnie and Fred look at what the Bible says about the worship we find in the New Testament. We begin by noting a discussion about worship that Jesus had with a Samaritan woman that He met at the Sychar well. Jesus told the woman that there was a time coming that people would not worship in the mountain that she mentioned, nor would they worship in Jerusalem. He told her that The Father seeks true worshippers who would worship Him in spirit and truth as He requires. We talk about four kinds of worship that the New Testament mentions and what they are. We note that these still exist today. The New Testament also mentions a number of objects that are mentioned and why they shouldn't be worshipped. We discuss each of these. We run out of time before getting to the elements of worship mentioned in the New Testament. We'll open the next episode by looking at them. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can listen in on our discussion and verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode on how the Holy Spirit works today, Arnie and Fred begin discussing the source of our understanding of what the Bible says. We look at both Old and New Testament passages to see what some scriptures say about this. We find the New Testament mentioning sanctification in a number of places. We talk about this word, what it means and how this is done. We note that the Holy Spirit even though He is God, He can still be resisted. How this is done is looked at. Some are surprised that the Holy Spirit can be grieved. We talk about how this is possible and what can cause this. In a very short verse, Paul tells the Christians in Thessalonica, "Quench not the Spirit". Again, we look at a number of passages that show how it is possible that an individual can quench the Spirit. Many are familiar with what Jesus said about blaspheming the Holy Spirit. We note what the Bible says about how this is done. We have a short discussion about what Jesus said about the hour that was coming when all that are in the graves would hear His voice and be resurrected and how what Paul wrote to the Roman Christians is connected to this. We close out this episode talking about what the judgment will be based upon; what standard will be used. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss how the Holy Spirit works today and begin with the comfort He provides and how He accomplishes this. We talk about the comfort that Paul mentioned related to what was written in the Old Testament and how that was received. The grace of God is a popular subject we hear a lot about. We look at some passages that tell us what this is and where it is found. We talk about how the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit and use an illustration that we have discussed in previous episodes. We find that the word of God is said to live within the believer. We look at several passages that will help us understand how this occurs. We next talk about spirituality and how that is created in us. Jesus discusses water that He gives that will cause one never to be thirsty again. We look at what this means to us. We close out this episode by noting what happens to us when God's word enters us. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this second episode on how the Holy Spirit works today, Arnie and Fred begin with item eight on our list. We note that the apostles desire that all be filled with spiritual knowledge. Paul discusses this in several passages and mentions how the Holy Spirit accomplishes this. We next talk about the word of God dwelling in the Christian and the Christian being filled with the Spirit. Again, Paul addresses how this is done. We look at a couple of passages in the Old Testament that tell us how God leads us, as well as one passage from Luke about that subject. John tells us that the Holy Spirit bears witness to us, and he then tells us about the record that He uses to do so. We talk about this. We look at what Peter says about the spiritual babe in Christ, how he is born, and how he grows. It is a very enlightening discussion. Paul told the brethren in Thessalonica how the Holy Spirit's work is accomplished within the Christian and we discuss this. There are a couple places that Paul refers to the fruit of the Spirit. We look at the passage where he tells the Colossians how that fruit is produced. John mentions those who were walking in truth. We look at this concept and what that means relating to the Holy Spirit. We complete this episode by talking about the source of our strength. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred begin this new episode by discussing how the Holy Spirit works today. We note that many will tell you that they understand what the Bible says based on something that the Holy Spirit does to reveal the true meaning to them apart from what the words actually say. Since they believe the Holy Spirit leads them directly, they think they cannot be wrong in their understanding, no matter what someone might show them. They will even deny a plain Bible verse. We discuss where this erroneous belief comes from. We will ultimately look at 31 items that show that the Holy Spirit uses His sword, the word of God, to do His work among men today. We start with how we are spiritually begotten. John records what Jesus says about that, and both James and Paul expand upon it. Jesus tells us how we are born again or from above and Peter explains it to us clearly. Our heart is quickened, and it is done so through the sword of the Spirit, the word of God. We look at five passages that explain that to us. We also discuss our spiritual cleansing and how that occurs. Peter and John talk about our souls being purified. We note what they say about that. Next, we discuss what James and Paul say about how our soul is saved. We close out this episode by looking at how we are justified. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the parables that Jesus used to clarify and illustrate points in His lessons. We note that these parables appear over 50 times in the New Testament. The first one we look at has to do with repairing an old garment and Jesus relates this to the Old Testament and the New Testament. He then talks about new wine in old bottles, applying this to His teaching. He talks about a master who took a trip and gave responsibility to his servants to take care of his possessions. The need to be watchful servants in order to be ready when the master returns is emphasized. Jesus uses hidden treasure that is found in a field and what the discoverer did to teach a lesson on the value of the kingdom of heaven and what we should do relating to it. Many of the people Jesus taught were fishermen. Using nets to catch fish and the sorting that the fishermen do was used by Jesus to teach a lesson about the kingdom of heaven. The final parable that we discuss was about two debtors, a Pharisee and a woman who was a sinner. We talk about this parable at length. We complete this episode by noting what Jesus said to Nicodemus about being born again. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue discussing the fact that Jesus had no formal training as a speaker but was successful in moving multitudes with His teaching. His teaching was centered on what the Old Testament scriptures said that He was immersed in as He was growing up. Consequently, his teaching did not include the human traditions that the Scribes and Pharisees demanded to be followed. Jesus' teaching and the miracles He performed convinced a number of people that He was a teacher sent from God. We look at several of those people. We also talk about the fact that Jesus confessed to the people that He was in fact sent by the Father. We note that most of the Jewish religious leaders refused to believe this and were constantly questioning Him and trying to undermine what He said. We find Jesus being referred to as "The Word". We discuss what that meant. We note that Jesus did not mislead anyone. Only those who refused to believe what He said were misled. We close this episode out by noting that their teacher was in fact God, the Son, just as He said He was. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of Jesus being the master teacher and the Bible passages that teach this. In the last episode we ended with what Jesus said about Christians being the light of the world. Our light, our righteous actions, must be seen, not just heard of. We looked at what Peter said about the suffering that we go through sometimes because of our faithful living. John notes how we ought to walk, and we discussed what he meant by that. Paul pointed out to both the brethren in Corinth and Philippi the importance of following the right examples. We look at those passages. These actions are needed in order for us to be effective teachers of the gospel. We move on to look at Jesus' development under the guidance of His parents in the unimpressive village of Nazareth. We note that there is very little information about His educational development. We do point out that it was customary for boys to attend the village synagogue school till the age of 15. We also note that Jesus did not have the benefit of a formal education with a renowned teacher like Paul did. We talk about some of the times the well-educated were offended by the wisdom that Jesus displayed, who could not understand how He possessed such, being a carpenter's son from Nazareth. We look at passages that show Jesus could both read and write. We complete this episode by beginning to discuss Jesus' ability to move multitudes with His teaching, even though He had no formal training as a speaker. We will complete this item in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a series of discussions of Jesus being the master teacher. We begin by noting that Jesus taught as one with power and authority and the common people recognized this. We note that Jesus' life illustrated His teaching. We note that it was the truth that He taught, and we look at what John said about that when Jesus was talking with Thomas. Jesus had a discussion with the religious teachers of His time, and there is a great contrast made with Him. We look at the various deeds that Jesus was involved in and how they related to His identity and authority. There was a situation where a woman was brought before Jesus who the religious leaders had discovered committing adultery. We talk about how Jesus handled this situation and how it teaches us a number of things about Him. Philip had asked Jesus to show them the Father. We discuss how Jesus answered this question. We end this episode by beginning to look at what it means to have our light to shine among men. We ran out of time to complete this subject, so we'll begin the next episode with it. Take about thirty-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this final episode of what the Bible says about the church that Jesus built, Arnie and Fred discuss first the fact that the Lord's church teaches only the doctrine of Christ. There are numerous passages that teach this. We focus in on three passages from what the apostles Peter, John and Paul say about this subject. We note that the "social gospel" is not included in the doctrine of Christ. There are no conventions to decide what will be taught or practiced. We find no manuals, disciplines or creeds included in the Lord's teachings. We note that the purpose of the gospel is to save people from being lost forever. We look at what Paul said to the Romans about being saved. There are a number of requirements included in the doctrine of Christ that must be obeyed. We talk about each one and note that it is the Lord who requires that we obey Him. We close out this episode by noting that the church that Jesus build is composed of those He has saved, and He adds them to it. Take abut 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the worship that God directs the church that Jesus built to offer. We begin by noting that Jesus specified the kind of worship this must be. We note that the scriptures describe this worship in detail. We talk about the worship that the church at Jerusalem engaged in on Pentecost according to Acts chapter 2 which included prayer and when that was. Paul taught the church at Corinth about both singing and praying. We discuss what he said to them. Singing is also mentioned by Paul when he wrote to the church at Ephesus and also in his letter to the Hebrews. We look at what he said there. Giving on the first day of the week is also a part of worship in spirit and in truth. We note what Paul said to the church at Corinth concerning this. Paul also discussed scripture reading that was included in the worship at the church in Colossae. We look at what he said to them. We complete this episode on the worship that the church Jesus built must offer by looking at the preaching and the Lord's Supper that was also done on the first day of the week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this fourth episode about the church that Jesus built, Arnie and Fred discuss the fact that the Bible says the Lord's church has no earthly organization except the local congregation. We note that Jesus says He has all authority in heaven and in earth and thus He is the only central authority. Consequently, there is no such thing as a diocese or similar organization in the Lord's church. We talk about the local congregations which represent the only earthly organization that the Lord set up. We note that each local church is separate from others. We look at passages that show us that each congregation had its own elders which are also called overseers and shepherds. We talk about those words. We also look at the extensive qualifications for these spiritual leaders that the Lord specifies in order for one to be an elder. We note two passages that discuss the work they are responsible for doing. We end this episode by looking at the fact that each congregation also had servants that were also referred to as deacons. Like the elders, the Lord specified certain qualifications that they had to meet in order to serve in that capacity. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
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In this third episode about the church that Jesus built, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the fact that it was revealed in the gospel of Christ. Jesus had told His followers the Parable of the Sower. This parable was about the kingdom and church of the Lord. He told of the seed of the kingdom and the condition of the various hearts of men that it is sowed in. We look at what Peter said about this seed and what it does. We note that the scriptures are the only place that the true nature of the Lord's church/kingdom is correctly revealed. We discuss what Paul said about the church and look at how clear he is in what he wrote and how hard it is to misunderstand what he wrote. This episode is completed by looking at the fact that the Lord's church is not a denomination. Jesus spoke of that fact as did Paul and Jude. We note those passages. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussions. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the church that Jesus built according to what the Bible says. We begin this episode by looking at passages where Jesus discusses the church He was going to build. We learn from one of the Bible passages that He also refers to His church as His kingdom. We also learn when this would occur as well as the place it would happen at. We discuss the passage where Jesus tells us the people who would be involved as well. Jesus is also specific as to the doctrine that would be established and of course He would be the builder. We next move to the place in the Bible that reveals the fulfillment of what Jesus said. We look at all of the passages in Acts chapter 2 where all that Jesus said about His church/kingdom was fulfilled. We discuss how important this information is to us today in understanding the church that Jesus built. Take about 30 -minutes to listen to this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a series of discussions about the church that Jesus built and what the Bible says about that. We begin by looking at the fact that the Old Testament prophets foretold that the Lord would build His church. We talk about what Isaiah said in the second chapter of his book. He tells us what would be established, the time, place, people, doctrine and builder. Jesus and Paul refer to these facts. We next look at what Zechariah had to say and note he mentions some of the same facts that Isaiah included. Daniel also in the second chapter of his book discusses the establishment of the Lord's kingdom/church when he interprets a dream that king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had. We move to Joel's prophecy in chapter 2 and then to Paul's writings to the brethren in Ephesians. Arnie mentions the rule of twos. Listen in to find out what that is. We end this episode by looking at what Jesus said about building His church/kingdom. We note His statement saying He would build His church/kingdom and specifically saying his death would not prevent it. We talk about the time He said this would occur and the doctrine that He specified. We were not able to finish discussing what Jesus said, so, we'll begin the next episode by looking at that. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this last episode of how God's word was authenticated, Arnie and Fred begin by looking at the time Paul raised Eutychus to life after he had died from falling from a third-floor window. We talk about what makes this occasion so important to us today. Paul was at Corinth preaching the gospel and demonstrated it with the Holy Spirit and power. This confirmed a number of truths for us. We note what they were by looking at a number of passages relating to them. There was a time when Peter and John were arrested by the Jewish religious authorities for their preaching. In Luke's account we see how God authenticated what they preached. We talk about that time. Peter healed an individual at Lydda and raised one from the dead. We look at these two situations and how important they are to us. Paul was on the island of Cyprus and had the opportunity to speak to a government official, but an individual tried to prevent him from doing so. We discuss the miracle that occurred that authenticated what Paul was preaching. Take about 30-miuntes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by looking at what Paul said about his apostleship and what the signs were of it. We look at a couple of situations that necessitated providing benevolence to the saints and how these efforts were confirmed. It became necessary to provide daily subsistence to some of the widows in the large congregation in Jerusalem. There was a problem in doing so and the apostles gave guidance on how to alleviate it. We look at that occasion and the means God provided to approve what was done. Luke tells us about Peter being sent to teach a Gentile the gospel. We discuss what occurred there and what happened that authenticated what Peter did and the reaction of the Jews that were there with him. Luke also provides us with the record of a person who lived at Lystra and was born crippled. We look at the extensive written record of that and talk about why it is so important to us and why we can depend on what is written there. We start discussing what occurred at Troas in Acts chapter 20 but run out of time. We will begin there in the next episode which will be the last one in this series. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about how God's word was authenticated. We begin this episode by looking at Philip's teaching of the Ethiopian eunuch about confession and immersion in water. When Paul came to Ephesus, he met some disciples who were baptized by John. A discussion ensued about immersion in the name of the Lord and the authentication method is noted. We look at the time Paul was on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians and what happened to him during that trip. Again, his experience and the teaching he received were certified by a miraculous event that we discuss. We next look at a couple of the other specific actions the Holy Spirit takes and what they teach us about Him. We begin to look at Paul's apostleship but run out of time to complete it. This subject will have to wait for the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
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In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion on how God's word was authenticated in the first century. We begin by discussing the word translated mighty deeds. This is the Koine Greek word we get our word dynamite from. We look at a number of passages where this word is used. These are acts of power that accomplish seemingly impossible outcomes not successfully performed by anyone else. We note that these miracles were accomplished at the prayer or command of the person through whom they were worked. The usual order of events is there is preaching before or after, prayer or command and then the miracle occurs as stated thus confirming what was said. God is always credited as the source. The power to work these miracles served as a disciple's credentials as an authoritative representative of God. We note that once God's words were verified by these signs, wonders and mighty deeds, there was no need to recertify them. The words and the miracles confirming them are in God's written word that we still have today. We close out this episode by beginning to discuss the doctrines and facts that were confirmed by miracles. The first one being God's plan of salvation that was revealed to the Philippian jailer and those on Pentecost. We look at what was taught and what miracle confirmed the words. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode.
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Arnie and Fred begin a series of episodes on how the word of God was authenticated according to the Bible record. We discuss what miracles are and how important they are in the confirmation of the word of God and the purpose they served. We note that they were never used for propaganda, profit, entertainment or convenience. Sometimes there were people who were sick, but the miracles were not used to heal them. We look at a number of instances where miracles were performed to authenticate the spoken word. We note that Jesus addressed the miracles and their purpose. Certainly, the miracles confirmed Jesus' words and those of the apostles but resulted in a number of other actions as well. We note them. There are three terms that are used in the New Testament to describe the miracles we find there. We talk about what those terms mean. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so yu can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this final episode on the empty tomb, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the promises Jesus made concerning His resurrection as He talked with His apostles. We talk about the various plans Jesus' enemies developed, including to be rid of him and making sure the tomb could not be opened. We discuss the consequences of Jesus' resurrection, what it means to those who have obeyed Him. For instance, the declaration it provides concerning Jesus' being the Son of God. We note how we are affected as those who are guilty of sinning against God. The resurrection tells us something about our own death. We delve into that question. Sometimes life in this world seems to be a hopeless situation. Considering this, we talk about how the resurrection keeps us from looking at our life in that way. We look at the coming judgment that all men must face and how the empty tomb relates to that most monumental event. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss some of the theories that have been proposed to explain away Jesus' resurrection. We begin this episode by looking at the last theory called the swoon theory originally proposed by German philosopher Karl Venturini who died in 1849. He proposed that Jesus merely fainted on the cross, either from drug induced stupor or wounds, was revived in the cool, damp tomb and escaped. We discuss what the Roman soldier did to ensure that Jesus was dead according to one of the witnesses. We discuss Jesus' condition on the cross that clearly indicate this theory is unsupported by the facts. We look at the way that the Jewish people prepare bodies to be buried and the time Jesus spent with His disciples after He was resurrected. We close out this episode by beginning our discussion on what the empty tomb actually did. We look at how it substantiated Christ's resurrection. We end this episode by beginning to look at fulfilled prophecy and the promise Jesus made. We will complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on what we are saying. Have your Bible handy so you can see if what we are saying agrees with it. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the empty tomb and some of the theories to explain it away. We begin by looking at the Stolen Body Theory. We discuss who proposed this theory and why it was so preposterous. Some have suggested the False Account Theory. The suggestion is made that the disciples lied about the resurrection. We note several Bible passages that show why this theory is also wrong. There have been those who say the Romans stole Jesus' body. We ask several questions and look at a couple of Bible passages that reveal the problem with this one. We move on the theory that the Jews stole the body. Again, a couple of Bible passages help to reveal that this theory is again, simply not true. We close out this episode by looking at the Imposter Theory that was proposed by Mohammed in the Qur'an. We provide the location in the Qur'an where this theory is located. We note numerous Bible passages that refute this theory. We will take up this same subject again next week. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss two of the theories skeptics have proposed over the years to explain the empty tomb Jesus' body had been in. We begin by looking at a number of passages written by the witnesses that show that Jesus' body had in fact been in Joseph of Arimathea's new sepulcher. The apostles who wrote the accounts and others mentioned therein had witnessed that fact. The first theory we look at was proposed by a Dr. who taught at the Harvard Divinity School in 1907. His theory was that those involved went to the wrong tomb and found it empty. We talk about the individuals who were involved in burying Jesus and the fact that they were acutely aware of the location of the tomb He was put in. We discuss the knowledge the chief priests and the soldiers who guarded had of its location. We note that its location would be a matter of official Roman record as well. We then look at the theory that the body was stolen by the disciples, the Romans or the Jews. We look at obvious reasons this is simply not true. Take about thirty minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this last episode about those who watch after the flock, Arnie and Fred finish up discussing passages where the word elder appears. Some of those passages were not referring to elders in the local church. We note that every church that has qualified men must appoint elders. We discuss the plural form of the word elder which is sometimes translated presbytery, elderhood or eldership, referring to the same plurality of those men in the local church. We talk about the fact that all elders are of equal "rank". Peter shows this when he uses the term "fellow elder" in his first epistle. We note that an elder is the same as an overseer in the local assembly. We complete this episode by looking at the terms pastor and shepherd which refer to the same individual who is an elder. We again talk about the use of these terms in the Bible. The terms overseer, elder, pastor or shepherd all designate men serving with the same responsibility in a local church. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred complete their discussion on overseers in the local church. We note that Christ is the overseer of men's souls, and no human archbishop or chief bishop ever appears in the Scriptures. We begin talking about those who are referred to as elders in the local church. We note that these two terms are referring to the same individual. We look at the term elder and what it indicates and implies of the individual seeking to serve the assembly in that capacity. The term elder appears throughout the New Testament in many different contexts. We examine those examples. We will have to complete our discussion of elders in the next episode. We will include a discussion of pastors and shepherds at that time also. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on what we have to say. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred look at what the Bible says about those who are responsible to watch over the Lord's local flock. We begin by reading where Paul tells Timothy about these people. We discuss the terms used for these men and note that there are some translated words that are not as good in describing them. We talk about several passages that show that there is no hierarchy, clergy, laity or titles of honor used in the Lord's local assembly. We focus in on the term overseer and the other word we find that is a mistranslation of it. We look at the responsibilities of these overseers, noting that there is always a plurality of them in each local church. We close out this episode by noting another word that is used for the overseers. We run out of time before we can complete that discussion. Tune in the next episode to hear the rest of that discussion. Take about 30-minutes to listen to this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin this final episode about the church of Christ at Philippi by noting how they first dedicated themselves to God and consequently were involved in aiding God's saints in Jerusalem. We talk about how they abounded in the knowledge of the truth and how they attained that knowledge. Paul noted that they were genuine and blameless, and we discuss what he said. It is said that they produced the fruit of the Spirit. We talk about what that means and how they attained it. It is said also that they gave themselves to other disciples. We discuss this and note how important this is to the successful functioning of the local church. We return to notice the benevolent spirit that the church at Philippi had and its effect. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of the church of Christ at Philippi. We begin by noting that the church had to combat local prejudices from the start. We look at one of those situations, but also notice that in spite of this they were able to grow rapidly and continually, both spiritually and numerically. They were successful a number of important areas. They were self-supporting, they helped support Paul as well as others that were named as Paul's helpers. Additionally, they participated in helping the needy saints in Jerusalem who were suffering from a famine there. We also talk about their support of Paul while he was incarcerated in Rome in about AD 63. In Paul's letter to them, he noted that they had selected both elders/bishops and servants/deacons to serve the congregation. We discuss how this rapid growth and achievement was possible and what they did to accomplish it. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin their discussion about the local church of Christ that was established at Philippi which was a prominent city in North East Macedonia. It was about nine miles North of the coast of the Aegean Sea. This was the first European city that Paul preached in on his second missionary journey in about AD 52. Paul was at Troas and received a vision in which a man said to "come to Macedonia and help us". When they arrived at Philippi after a few days they met a woman named Lydia and had the opportunity to teach her and her family the gospel and we talk about what occurred at that time. Later as they went to prayer, they met a woman who was possessed with a spirit of divination. We discuss what Paul did and the jailing of Paul and Silas because of it. We note the opportunity that this gave them to teach the jailer the gospel and what occurred because of that. We note the growth of the church at Philippi and its modest beginnings. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this final episode of Who Is This Jesus, Arnie and Fred begin by revisiting Jesus' interaction with His twelve apostles at the Last Supper. Specifically, we look at His lesson to them about serving others. We move on to Pontius Pilate and his extensive discussions while Jesus stood before him in judgment. We note Pilate's doubts concerning the Jews charge against Him. We then talk about John and Mark's record of several women who visited the sepulcher after Jesus was raised from the dead. We end this episode by talking about what Thomas had to say and why the doubts that he expressed are important to us. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss some of other people who through various circumstances had close contact or unusual experiences with Jesus, who recognized the special attributes that were unique to Him. They became witnesses which were led to distinctly different conclusions regarding His identity. In this episode we pick up the record John wrote of the Levitical police officers that were sent to arrest Jesus. We note their impression of Jesus which they related to the religious leaders after they refused to arrest Him. We next look at John's record of the blind man Jesus healed, his conclusions about Jesus and the reaction of the Scribes and Pharisees when they encountered him. John also recorded the time that Jesus resurrected His friend Lazarus. Jesus spoke with Martha, Lazarus' sister at this time and John records that discussion. We key in on what she had to say. There were a number of Jerusalem Jews there also who witnessed what Jesus did. We talk about what John recorded of their reaction. John records the discussion that the Chief Priests and Pharisees at Jerusalem had about Jesus and the miracles He had performed, and we look at that. We close out this episode at the Passover, looking at the reaction of the multitude that was there for that feast when Jesus entered Jerusalem, and at the Last Supper Jesus had with His apostles at that time. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third episode of Who Is This Jesus, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss some of the people who had the closest contact or unusual experiences with Jesus and recognized the special attributes that were unique to Him. Consequently, this led them to distinctly different conclusions regarding His identity. We begin with Philip the apostle who recognized Jesus as the individual Moses spoke of in the Old Testament. We talk about Nathaniel next who Philip sought out to tell him who they had found. We notice what convinced Nathaniel that Jesus was the Son of God and King of Israel. We next look at Nicodemus who was a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews. We discuss what he had concluded about Jesus and some of what Jesus taught him. We next move to the Samaritan woman at the Sychar well and the people of Sychar who she told of her discussion with Jesus. We closeout this episode noticing those who followed Jesus from Galilee to the Golan Heights and what He said to them. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of Who Is This Jesus? in this second episode. We begin by noting that Jesus referred to Himself as the Messiah or the Christ on numerous occasions and once in prayer. He used picturesque terms as well such as the door of the sheep, the bread of life and three more that we looked at. He also referred to Himself as simply I AM. We discuss the significance of this term. We look at a number of times that His enemies in the Jewish religious establishment spoke of Him in different ways and why they did so. We close out this episode by looking at some of those who had the closest contact with Jesus and what they said about Him. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin this episode by discussing the various questions that arose concerning who Jesus was in the first century. We note that these same questions are asked today. Jesus had asked the question of His apostles, "Who do men say that I am?" We look at the occasions that Matthew, Mark and Luke recorded what was said. John didn't record this particular occasion. But he did record a number of the miracles Jesus performed and who men recognized Jesus to be. John also referred to Jesus as the Nazarene and there is a short discussion of the significance of this term. Throughout this episode we talk about what John recorded. We note that Jesus' name was a common one in the first century and we look at a number of men who went by that name that we find in the Bible. Jesus used various expressions to refer to Himself as well. We begin to look at these but run out of time before completing our discussion. We will begin the next episode by looking at the terms Jesus used to refer to Himself. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue in this last episode to discuss more facts about the gospel. We finish up the fact that the gospel is verifiable. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to give the apostles the ability to perform miracles in order to confirm what they taught as coming from God. We can now verify the gospel through the written record that the inspired writers provided us in our Bibles. We next talked about the fact that the gospel is understandable by reading it. We looked at what Peter said about some of what Paul wrote as being hard to understand. We discussed how we can understand these hard writings. We next moved to the credibility of the gospel. Mathew, Mark, Luke and John all noted this. We talk about the places they wrote about this. The gospel is also universal. Jesus had commanded the apostles to go into all the world teaching and preaching the gospel. We discuss the passages that indicate they were successful in obeying the Lord's command in this regard. We close out this episode noting how essential the gospel is to one's salvation. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss more facts about the gospel. We begin this episode by looking at the fact that the gospel is immutable or cannot be changed. We discuss what Paul and John said about this subject and note that there are some warnings in what they said. We next talk about the indestructible or eternal nature of the gospel. Jesus along with four other writers note this fact. We look at all of them. We find that the gospel is also verifiable. Four inspired writers note this and provide us with the evidence to make the verifications. We talk about how important this is for us today. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of various facts about the gospel in the Bible. We begin by noting that the gospel was confirmed by various miracles. We look at a couple of passages that indicate that. We also note that the Bible is complete and says that the writers were provided all truth by the Holy Spirit. We talk about some of the claims that some modern men say about receiving other words from God. We continue with a discussion of the uniqueness of the gospel by noting what Paul and the Hebrew writer had to say about that. We close out this episode by beginning to look at the immutability or unchanging nature of the gospel. Unfortunately, we ran out of time and will have to complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion about various facts about the gospel. We start by noting that in discussing God's word, Jesus referred to it by another term. We discuss that term. We talk about five other terms that New Testament writers also use which are, the New Testament, the doctrine of Christ, revelation, the counsel of God, and the word of truth. The Hebrew writer refers to Jesus as the mediator. We look at those two places and discuss what that means. Paul, John and Peter all discuss inspiration. We talk about what they had to say and why that is important to us today.
Paul notes that the gospel is explicit in what it says. We look at the two places that he notes this. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this final episode on what the Bible says about various kinds of faith, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing active faith and what that entails. We discuss what Jesus said about active faith in the judgment scene recorded by Mathew in chapter 25. We move on to look at the reference to a dead faith that James makes in his extensive discussion of faith in his second chapter. He discusses the need for one's faith to be one that is working and vital. We look at what Jesus said about this in Matthew 25 again, in the judgment scene. Paul mentions an availing faith. We talk about what that means. Jesus had a discussion with Peter about his faith after Peter said he would never leave the Lord. Jesus told Peter that there would be a point very shortly that his faith would fail. We discuss this problem that so many saints have. We also note that Peter's faith later on became very strong. Faith is something that must be kept, even in times of aversity. Paul is the perfect example. Paul enjoins saints in two letters to keep the faith. We look at that guidance. Finally, it is possible to cast off one's faith. We talk about two situations that Paul records of this problem that some had. Our faith is essential to salvation. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our final episode of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of various kinds of faith by talking about a strong faith in this episode. Abraham is the basis of this subject, being a great example of a strong faith. We look at several instances in his life that shows us this quality. We move on to a weak faith and why one may display this kind of faith and how one might avoid this. We next note what a confessed faith is and how important it is to one's salvation. We close out this episode with a look at denied faith and how this is displayed by some disciples. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this episode, we talk about the various kinds of faith referred to in the Bible. We begin by looking at the Hebrew letter where the writer defines what faith is. There are certain facts that one must know in order to develop the proper faith discussed in the Bible. We note that true faith is an essential element of salvation. Again, the Hebrew writer indicates that God is not pleased with unbelievers who ignore and disbelieve His evidence. We look at the passage where Jesus says that one who does not believe the gospel cannot be saved. Consequently, salvation is promised only to those who are obedient believers. We discuss this principle. One time, Jesus spoke to a certain woman who was a Gentile and told her she had great faith. We note what her faith consisted of. We next look at a situation where Jesus told an individual he had little faith. We note what led to this individual's small amount of faith. Unfortunately, many are spiritually like this individual. In looking at what the Bible says about this person, we find out that he developed greater faith later on in his life. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this fourth and final episode, Arnie and Fred continue to ask, Is Jesus Jehovah? We look at what Moses and Malachi say about Jehovah being unchangeable. We then note that both Paul and the Hebrew writer discuss that same characteristic. Next, Isaiah says that Jehovah , the Lord, is a stone of stumbling. Listen to our discussion of what Peter says about that. We move on to discuss the Harbinger and what we find Isaiah and Matthew recording about that same subject. We close out this episode by talking about whose name is to be called upon. Joel mentions this in the Old Testament. Both Paul and Peter mention what Joel had to say. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion about, Is Jesus Jehovah? We begin by looking at the reference to Jehovah as the Rock in the book of Psalms. We find Paul making a similar statement to the brethren in Corinth. We suggest there is a conclusion to be made from these scriptures. We note that Jeremiah says Jehovah is the forgiver of sins. Again, we find similar statements by both Mark and the Hebrew writer discussing Jesus in the same context. What does this tell us? We move on to the reference to angels worshipping Jehovah according to David in his Psalms. But we find Paul telling the brethren in Philippi that angels worship Jesus. From this, are we to conclude that Jesus is Jehovah? Again, we find Isaiah discussing Jehovah and saying that every tongue would swear or confess God as Lord. But we find Paul applying the same passages to Jesus as the one that everyone would confess that Jesus is Lord. We complete this episode by looking at who is to be addressed in prayer. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion to find out if the Bible says that Jesus is Jehovah. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by looking at passages that refer to the Light and include both Jehovah and Jesus. We then look at the references to I Am and who that refers to. We move on to the Shepherd as relating to Jehovah and Jesus. There are many passages that refer to the Glory of God. We discuss several of them that identify Jehovah in them and look at whether or not Jesus is included. We also find passages that refer to the First and the Last. We talk about who this refers to. We close out this episode by noting the references to the term Redeemer. Many are familiar with this word, and we look at several passages that mention it. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
This episode begins a series of discussions on what the Bible says about Jesus being Jehovah. A number of religious organizations deny that Jesus is Jehovah. There are many passages that attribute the same activities of Jehovah to Jesus. We will begin by looking at passages that discuss the Creator. One in the Old Testament and two in the New Testament. We next note four passages that mention the Savior. In this case, two by Isaiah and two by Paul. Samuel says that Jehovah raises the dead. We discuss what John says about Jesus in this regard. We close out this episode by discussing judgment and what the Bible says about Jehovah and Jesus executing it. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we say. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred complete their discussion on what the Bible says about what Christians pray for in this episode. Paul noted that persecuted Christians were in need of the prayers of their brethren. We talk about the fact that this is still necessary today. We move on to what Jesus said about praying for our enemies. Jesus and Stephen both provide us with the example to follow. Paul talked about the danger of some taking personal vengeance. We note why this is not a good thing to do. There are always opportunities to pray for those who are sick and afflicted with various diseases. We look at what Paul and James said about this. James also discusses the need to pray for one another, which we look at. Jesus said that most people would be lost. We discuss the need to pray for them to have an opportunity to be saved. Our children always need our prayers, and we look at how Job handled that. We complete this episode by noting several passages that teach us that we need to pray for ourselves. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about who we should pray for. Paul mentions rulers, officials and all men. We look at why this should be the case. A number of passages mention not only our nation but others also. Those passages are noted in our discussion. Again, Paul discusses prayer, and he focuses on not only churches in general, but also disciples. Various servants of the church have important responsibilities. Consequently, they need our prayers. We look at those servants and the various passages that mention them and the prayers they need from us. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing praying for protection from evil. We look at a couple of passages where Jesus discusses this subject. Associated with that is being delivered from our enemies. We look at what David and Paul had to say on this. A request for peace should always be a part of our prayers to God. John and Paul address this subject. We note what they have to say. A petition for God's mercy is mentioned by both the Hebrew writer and one of the examples Jesus gave for prayer. We looked at both of those instances. One of the things that Jesus promised was eternal life for His faithful disciples. We note the importance of this in our prayers to our Father in heaven. Another aspect of good prayers is to remember the needs of others and to include them in our petitions. Good leaders are a necessity both in the church and in our civil government and prayers for the same are always justified. We close out this episode by looking at the prayer Abraham's servant offered when looking for a wife for Isaac. God's providence was evident in that situation. A lesson to be learned by us from that. Praying for our children is always an important consideration as well. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about various other prayers Christians are to ask. Thankfulness to God for all that He has done for us ought to be expressed to God. We look at what Paul said about this. Again, we look at something that Paul said about praying for the success of the gospel. Boldness in teaching the truth comes up for discussion. Several passages from Paul are looked at. Jesus discusses the need for more workers. We look at what He said about that. Wisdom is something that James discusses, and he says asking for it in prayer is something we ought to do. We talk about that and look at a couple of Old Testament passages that mention it. We close this episode by noting what Paul said about safe travel. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion about what Christians pray. We note what Jesus and John said about prayer. On one occasion, Jesus' disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. We look at the model prayer that He provided to them and note each part of that prayer. Jesus mentioned holding God in reverence and the fact that so many do not do that. Jesus mentions the kingdom and we discuss how that relates to today's Christians. Jesus prayed to God the night before He was crucified. We note what He said at that most difficult time in His life. The necessities of life are mentioned also. We talk about that aspect of our prayers. Forgiveness of sins is next. We look at David's prayer to God after he had sinned in the matter with Bathsheba. Temptation and deliverance from evil is mentioned by Jesus. We discuss what Paul said about this. and what we should do. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred conclude this third discussion on what the Bible says about what repentance involves. We begin by noting that all sin insults God. We point out that we are all made in the image of God and to be with God. When we sin, we deprive God of the glory He should receive by our righteous living. We talk about those sinners who know they sin and need to repent, but they are simply not ready to do so. We note reasons why this is the case. We next look at the fact that all sin grieves God. We discuss why this is the case and look at several passages that show this. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what repentance involves. We begin by noting that every sin involves God. We note what Paul says about that. Of course, sin always involves the individual sinner. We talk about the spiritual damage one incurs when participating in sin. Of course, sometimes the sinner entices someone else to engage in disobeying God. We look at that. Sometimes a particular individual is singled out as in the case of Joseph in Egypt. We note that situation and what Joseph did. We talk about how God is always a victim in any sin. This is illustrated in the occasion with David and Bathsheba. We discuss that situation. Sin also insults God and always involves at least a small portion of unbelief. We note what God said to David when he and Bathsheba sinned. Finally, for this episode, sin always shames God, and we look at how this is possible. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing godly sorrow and repentance as Paul notices them in his second letter to the brethren in Corinth. We note that godly sorrow is not an act of godliness nor the act of the godly. We look at what repentance is and what it does. We note that repentance is something that God requires of everyone who sins. Without repentance there can be no salvation. We then talk about sin, what it is and what it does. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin this episode by looking at the prophecy concerning Jesus' virgin birth which was recorded by Isaiah and the specifics there. Matthew refers to this prophecy and we look at what he says. We then move to the first prophecy about Jesus which is found in Genesis. We note the promise that God gave to both Abraham and David. The time of Jesus birth was originally prophesied by Daniel during the rule of Cyrus. We talk about how specific Daniel was by looking at what he wrote. The place of Jesus birth was revealed originally by Micah. We discuss what he said as well as Luke's notice of it. The sad occasion of Herod killing all the infants in Bethlehem was prophesied by Jeremiah. We look at what he said and Matthew's record of what happened. Isaiah foretold of Jesus' ministry of teaching and preaching throughout Israel. We look at several places where Matthew records the fulfillment of what Isaiah wrote. David wrote of Jesus' crucifixion in specific terms. We read about that. We run out of time for this episode and are only able to give you the scriptures that prophesy of Jesus crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing Jesus' ascension after He had been with His apostles and perhaps others for 40 days. We note that Daniel discussed what occurred after Jesus entered the clouds while ascending. We talk about this. We move on to His reign in heaven by first looking at what Nathan said to David about his throne. The angel Gabriel talked with Mary and also mentioned the throne of David. We discuss this conversation. We close out this episode by looking at Jesus' divinity or being God as John revealed to us in the beginning of his Gospel. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss some of those who witnessed the resurrection of Jesus during the 40 days He spent on the earth and before His ascension. There were soldiers who guarded the tomb who told the religious leaders what was done who were paid by them to lie about it. Peter and the disciple who loved Jesus were mentioned. It is believed that the one who loved Jesus was John. Several women are mentioned by name who saw Him. Two individuals on the road to Emmaus spoke with Jesus after His resurrection and had a meal with Him. Various numbers of the apostles saw Jesus on numerous occasions during those 40 days. The occasion Stephen saw Him is described in Acts 7. We also know that the two disciples who were selected to be considered to replace Judas saw Jesus. Paul tells us how many brethren saw Jesus on one occasion. We discuss what Paul says about the time he saw Jesus. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout e[osode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin discussing the trials Jesus was subjected to in the Jews attempts to falsely charge Him of violating Moses Law. We talk about their attempts that resulted in getting false witnesses to perjure themselves. Initially, Jesus was dragged before 2 Jewish High Priests. On each occasion He was beaten at some point during the questioning. He was also brought before Pontius Pilate twice. We discuss the results of those meetings and what Pontius Pilate concluded from them. Again, He was beaten severely. Jesus also had a hearing before Herod Antipas the Tetrarch of Galilee. We look at that meeting and note again that Jesus was beaten. We end our discussion of Jesus' crucifixion by noting what Isaiah said concerning Jesus' physical condition when He was placed on the cross. We begin our discussion of Jesus' resurrection by noting Matthew's account of what the angel at the tomb and Jesus later said to the first witnesses. We will pick up the rest of this subject at the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing Jesus' transfiguration. We note where this occurred, who was there and what was said. All of the accounts by Matthew, Mark and Luke mention the transfiguration. That being the case, we look at that term and what is meant by it. Peter was among those who were there, and he discussed it in his second letter. We look at that account. We then move on to talking about several of the over 50 miracles that Jesus performed. We note the different people who benefitted from His actions and why these miracles were performed. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin by noticing the Old Testament prophecy of Jesus' virgin birth. We notice an important word in Mathew's reminder of what Isaiah said about it. We talk about why Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem before Jesus birth. We talk about the shepherds who heard of His birth and how that occurred. We next look at Jesus' baptism, where it occurred, who performed it and why it was necessary. We discuss all four accounts of His baptism and note that they all agree. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this final episode of what the Bibe says about responsible Christians, Arnie and Fred begin by finishing the point about self -control. In particular, we discuss the need to control our tongue by avoiding what is said to be sins of the tongue. Jesus had something to say about the words we use, and we note that. We move on to the subject of humility. We look at what Paul, Peter and the Hebrew writer say about this. We talk about the tendency that the young sometimes lack a measure of humility, seeing themselves somewhat superior to their elders. We note an Old Testament situation that shows us the danger of this. We close this episode out by discussing the fact that the responsibilities we have imply both rewards and penalties. We discuss those as Jesus and Paul both have something to say to us about that. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. A transcript of this Buzzsprout episode is provided for your convenience.
In this second episode on responsible Christians, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of whether we manage our resources carefully in serving the Lord. One's giving on the first day of the week is often a reliable indicator. We need to remember that our resources really belong to the Lord. Next, we look at the fact that each Christian has a responsibility to teach others. Jesus gave this responsibility to us which requires us to cultivate this ability in the ways the Bible tells us. These abilities ultimately are required for one to become an elder, deacon or even the wives of these men. We talk about what every individual Christian must do to prepare to serve the Lord better as they get older. We move to the need for family guidance. We note that the home is the training ground to learn the various spiritual needs each Christian has. The next generation of leaders in the church obtain their basic training in the family. We complete this episode by beginning our discussion about self-control and the fact that both one's words and deeds are windows into the soul. We will complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss responsible Christians. We begin by noting what Jesus said in His parable generally referred to as the Parable of the Talents. We look at how His parable includes what we call in the episode, Responsible Christians. We answer the question, How Much Responsibility Do I Have? There is a formula that is expressed in what the Bible says in a number of places, and we look at that. We discuss the fact that God knows our capacities and the unfortunate truth that we many times underestimate them. We begin to address a number of our responsibilities and run out of time to complete that subject. Tune in the next episode to listen to more of this subject. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin this episode by discussing how our example can affect our children in either a good or bad way. We look at Old Testament guidance on this and a New Testament individual who was affected in a good way by the example of others. We talk about the problem when there is no father in the home. We note that Paul discusses the importance of the example that Christians display toward their brethren in the local church. We note that our example can affect even those who are not members of the church as well. Both Paul and Peter mention this. Finally, our example may even affect the enemies of Christ. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss our example that everyone sees as we live our lives. We look at what does the Bible say about this. We begin by noting what Paul said to the Christians in Corinth. Of particular interest, is the fact that they formerly had been worshippers of idols. He has a long discussion with them on the issue of eating meat that was offered to the pagan deities and whether there was a problem in doing so. We next note the effects the examples of others have on individuals. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. We then focus in on how my example may affect other people, even my mate. Take a little over 30-minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of a father's role by noting that a father is required by God to correct his children. Solomon has a good bit to say about this and we look at several of his Proverbs teaching this. Paul and the Hebrew writer also teach us about this concept. Encouragement of children is also in the mix, and we discuss this. The father's responsibility as head or leader of the family is an important role for him. We examine this and talk about why God would require this of fathers and the result if this responsibility is not exercised. Spiritual guidance is another important aspect of the father's role, and we note what the Bible says about this. We conclude by discussing the father's responsibility to provide the necessities of life for his family. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about a father's role in life. We talk about the fact that the scriptures sometimes liken God to our earthly fathers. We look briefly at the instructions God gave to the original pair. We note the result in their children when godly men and women bring them up according to what the Bible says. Fathers are to love their children according to Solomon. Dads are to enjoy their children and show that to them, as we discus. Several passages note the sympathy a father is to have toward his children. We note that concept. We close out this episode by looking at the instruction a father is to provide his children. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this third and final episode on being unspotted from the world, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing minor concessions. Can we make these and remain faithful to the Lord? We talk about our speech and the kinds of words we might use a little bit of. Being honest comes up in our discussion. Do we tolerate a little cheating and theft on our part? What about immorality. Do we give a wink and a nod at a little bit of it? Do we watch TV shows, read books and sing songs that have a little number of suggestive words and deeds? Is a little bit of the world ever a good thing for us? What kind of danger does this pose to us? We complete this episode by looking at where compromise and concession with the things of the world lead us. Take a little over 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode of being unspotted from the world, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that there can be no compromise with the world. We are either different from the world or like the world. We look at several passages that Paul wrote concerning this. If we do compromise with Satan, we note that we will be disloyal to the Lord. There is no middle ground. We next talk about the fact that compromise is gradual and not necessarily noticeable. Minor concessions seen less significant. We look at Daniel and talk about the concessions that he did not make. We talk about some of the so-called minor concessions that some Christians make. We discuss Queen Vashti referred to in Esther and what she did when called upon to violate her conscience. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred look at the peculiar situation the Christian is in, being in the world but not of the world. We look at some of the differences between the world, Satan's kingdom, and the kingdom the Christian is in. We note that these kingdoms are nor just different but are totally opposite from one another. We talk about them being rival kingdoms with rulers that are intolerant of one another. We look at the loyalty demanded by both and what that means. We close out this episode with a discussion of the conflict involved and the militancy involved in that conflict including the weapons that are available. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this 7th and final episode on what hinders prayer, Arnie and Fred begin by asking, Am I Reliable? Of course, primarily this question relates to being reliable in my serving the Lord. We look at several passages that point this out. We ask a number of questions that we can use in our self-examination of this subject. We continue by asking, Am I Pure? James discusses pure religion, and we talk about this. We discuss what John says about the world and it's influence over us, and the danger we face from it as it relates to our prayers. We complete this episode by asking, Am I Consistent? We note a number of passages that teach us the importance of this personal quality. We note how the people of the world watch what we do and their reaction when they see our lack of consistency. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion on what hinders prayer. We begin by asking, Am I temperate? Do I practice self-control? We look at 5 passages written by Peter and Paul about the importance of being self-control. A lack of self-control will result in an individual engaging in sinful behavior. Obviously, this will affect one's prayers to God. An honest self-examination must be done in order to discover these hindrances. We ask several questions that one might use. Next, we ask, Am I thankful? We talk about God's providence. The fact that He provides all of our needs, and we ought to be thankful for that, especially acknowledging our thankfulness in our prayers. We again provide some questions one might use in their own self-examination. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss what hinders our prayers by asking if we are self-centered. By this we mean are we completely absorbed with ourselves to the exclusion of anything to do with Christ. Paul talked about how Christ strengthened him, and we look at that passage. We note what James had to say about one's faith and discuss how this would affect our prayers. We ask a couple of questions that can be used in our self-examination. We next ask another question, "Am I worldly?" We talk about what being worldly is. Jesus talks about one's thinking and we show that this is a part of doing things those in the world do. Paul and Peter both mention that we are accountable for what we do and will face judgment for such. Obviously, these things will affect our prayers. We discuss what they are. In conclusion, we look at some things that Paul says we ought to think on which would certainly help in our prayers and not hinder them. We again suggest some questions that can be used in our self-examination. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for your convenience of this Buzzsprout episode.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion about what hinders prayers according to what the Bible says. We begin by talking about covetousness. We look at five passages that discuss what covetousness is, why it is a problem and how it affects our prayers. We then pose four questions one might ask oneself in a self-examination relating to this subject. We next move on to the subject of greed and how it can affect our prayers. We note four Bible passages that discuss this problem. Again, we pose four questions that one can use in discovering whether or not one is greedy. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third episode, Arnie and Fred ask the question, Am I Truthful? Does not being truthful hinder one's prayers? Paul has a lot to say about this. We look at those passages. We then ask 5 questions that one can use in their self- examination of whether or not one is guilty of this sin. We then ask the question, Am I Vulgar? Jesus discusses this sin as does Paul. Jesus is specific in telling us how important our speech is. Again, we discuss those passages and ask a couple of questions that illustrate this major problem in our society. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy in order to verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what hinders prayers by looking at whether I am peaceful. Jesus noted the problem of murder in the Old Testament. But he went further by saying that being angry with one's brother without a cause was just as bad because one lacked peace. We discuss the fact that this is sinful and one's sins result in the Lord not hearing one's prayers. We look at what Peter says about husbands and wives' prayers being hindered. We note what Paul said to the Philippians on this subject. As we have done before, we pose some questions we can ask one another in our self-examination. We next ask if I am a gossiper? James, Peter and Paul have much to say about this destructive practice. We look at what they have to say. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bibe handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about Jesus' resurrection in this second and last episode. We begin by noting that Jesus foretold of His upcoming resurrection on numerous occasions such as in the Temple, in Galilee, near Caesarea Philippi and at the Last Supper. We discuss each of those occasions at length. The apostles declared Jesus' resurrection numerous times as they preached the gospel. We talk about several of those occasions. We complete this episode by noting that Jesus' resurrection testifies to His deity, reconciles believers to God, is linked to our baptism, assures our own resurrection, and proves Jesus' authority as the final judge. We discuss each of these at length. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzspout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about the resurrection of Jesus. We begin by noting the incorrect translation of a word relating to Jesus' resurrection. The Bible identifies the specific day Jesus was crucified and the specific day He was resurrected. We discuss those passages. We notice that the Bible specifies the names of some people who saw and talked to Jesus after He was resurrected. We talk about those passages. We close out this first episode on this subject by looking at the passages that describe the first evening of Jesus' resurrection. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this episode provided for your convenience.
Arnie begins by noticing that the Bible tells us to examine ourselves. It is up to each individual to do a self-examination to see if one is obeying what God says. No one else can do this examination for them. As we introduce this discussion, we note that the Bible says that our sins separate us from God according to Isaiah. We then talk about the necessity of obeying the gospel in order to be in fellowship with God which makes it possible for our prayers to be heard by Him. We look at a number of Bible passages that tell us what we need to do in this regard. We move on to a discussion about forgiveness and how important it is to be a forgiving person. We complete this episode by talking about the necessity of being patient. We ask a number of questions that one can use in their self-examination. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third and final episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about how Christians should speak. We find Paul including speech that Christians should not be involved in with fornication and filthiness in at least one passage. We discuss that passage at length. James had a good bit to say about the tongue and the problem we have controlling it. He uses examples of how several physical things are controlled and applies them to the tongue. We look at what James has to say. Peter makes similar observations of how our speech can affect us in both good and bad ways. We consider what Peter has to say. Jesus discusses the source of our speech as well as our actions. We complete this episode by noting what He has to say. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
This is the second and final episode that Arnie and Fred discuss how Christians should speak as God's word says. We continue looking at what Solomon said in his Proverbs. He consistently notes the difference between speaking wholesome words and those which are perverse. Solomon connects the words we use with our heart and mind which is where all words come from, whether good or evil. We continue to find passages in Proverbs that note the problem with lying and we discuss several of them. Jesus was very specific about swearing and we also consider what He said about that. Not surprisingly, Jesus mentioned hypocrites and we talk about what He said on that subject. Paul also had a good bit to say about the conversation of the Christians in his day. We note his guidance. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion about how Christians should speak according to God's word. Paul tells the Colossians their speech ought to be such that they know how to answer others. Jesus deals with our subject in a long reading and reminds us that we are accountable for what we say and that will be one of the items we will be judged on. We discuss those passages. David had a good bit to say about the speech of righteous people in his Psalms, and we spend some time talking about what he says there. Not surprisingly, Solomon gives a lot of guidance for us in his Proverbs. We complete this episode by looking at what Solomon says in nine places about the benefit of good speech and what God thinks when speech is contrary to his guidance. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second and final episode, Arnie and Fred continue our discussion of how a Christian can keep from falling away. We begin by noting that one must practice self-control not only over one's physical actions but one's habits of speech. The Bible talks about those we associate with, and we look at some of those passages. Sometimes Christians get involved in frivolous controversies and we note the danger involved in this activity. It is important for the faithful disciple to pay attention to what is being taught and this is indicated in several passages the Holy Spirit supplied us through the inspired writers. This is related to rejecting false doctrine and being willing to stand up against it as the Bible clearly teaches in a number of passages that we discuss. The danger of the Christian falling away is real and ever present. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this first of two episodes, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about keeping from falling away. In our last episode we noted that the Bible listed several Christians who had fallen away, contrary to what a number of churches teach. We begin by noting that studying the word of truth regularly goes far to keep one faithful. We look at a number of passages that provide that guidance to us. There is a passage that specifically discusses assembling with the saints. We talk about this passage to see why this is so important. Our spiritual development is necessary to keep us from falling away and the passages that teach that are the subject of our next discussion. Prayer is mentioned as necessary in a number of scriptures and we look at them. The way we think goes a long way to keep us from falling away and there are passages that reveal the importance of our thinking righteous thoughts. We complete this episode by discussing these. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about the Christians in the Bible who are said to have fallen away. We begin by noting that the Hebrew writer discusses what will happen to those individuals. We discuss five instances where Paul mentions individual Christians who have fallen away or left the faith. Among these we talk about some named false teachers who were responsible for causing Christians to overthrow their faith. We spend the rest of this episode looking at a number of ways a disciple may fall away, including perhaps the easiest way an individual Christian can leave the faith. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred revisit this subject that we discussed in a previous episode several years ago, since it is perhaps the most important question one may ever ask. We start out by looking at the imprisonment of Paul and Silas and the discussion they had with their jailer when he asked them what he must do to be saved. Throughout this episode we will look at various other people that asked the same question. We will see that the answer to that question is consistent throughout the New Testament and is contrary to what many are told today by various religious people. Besides the Philippian jailer, we look at the 3,000 on Pentecost, Saul of Tarsus, the Ethiopian Royal Treasurer, Cornelius the Centurian, the Samaritans, Simon the Sorcerer, Lydia of Thyatira and her household, and the Ephesians. As you listen to the passages that we look at in the Bible, think about what you may have been told one must do to be saved and compare that with what the Bible says. Take about 30 minutes to do that. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the importance God places on the influence of godly parents, but specifically here, the importance of godly mothers. God is the Creator and He instituted Motherhood in the beginning of mankind. He included the requirement for Israelites to honor their mothers and fathers in the Law of Moses. We discuss this principle that is now a universal requirement of God's. We look at Lois and Eunice, Timothy's mother and grandmother and the power of their godly influence in Timothy's development to become an important fellow laborer with Paul the apostle. We discuss the fact that mothers are known by their children and the continuing righteous influence Eunice and Lois provided Timothy throughout his life. Even upon being persecuted and jailed, Timothy continued to be faithful to the godly encouragement and influence he continued to receive from these two godly women. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversations. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
We continue this discussion by reviewing three passages that refer to the second death which is the final consequence suffered by those who do not obey the gospel. We note that there seem to be many people who conclude that since the word gospel means good news that there are not any bad things related to it. They seem to believe that whatever they think the Bible teaches is in fact the truth and they are saved because they think so. We look at what Peter said about obeying what God says or what man says. So, we talk about the good news that the gospel contains but note that it does not ignore the evil that is in the world and reveals the consequences people face if they do not obey the gospel. In spite of this, it is a fact that most people do not obey it. We note some passages that would indicate this. We talk about the fact that many claim to be Christians, but don't behave like one and even some Christians are not faithful. We look at several instances in the Bible about some Christians who were disobedient and the consequences they suffered. We close this episode out by looking at a number of references to the judgment scene and the sentence received by those who failed to obey the gospel of Christ. We reiterate what Jesus said one must do to be saved from their sins. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying, A transcript of this Buzzsprout episode is provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about life after death. This follows our discussion of Jesus as the faithful witness and living faithfully to Him until we die. We had noted that Jesus experienced everything that we go through in the flesh and as a witness to that, He is in the best position to guide us on how to live faithfully. We look at the fact that He has given us all things related to faithful living and tells us what to expect when we die, both as righteous and unrighteous people. The Bible tells us that when we die, our soul and spirit go to Hades. We talk about what is said about Hades and what it is like there, according to what Jesus said in Luke 16. We then discuss what the Bible says about righteous and unrighteous ones after they die. This of course includes looking at the judgement scene in Matthew 25. We look at the description of heaven that the righteous ones will inherit after they are judged by the Lord. Finally, we look at descriptive passages of life after death for those who die having not obeyed the Lord. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second and final episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of being faithful to God until we die. We begin with a short review of Jesus' temptation by Satan and how he tried to get Jesus to sin. We note how Jesus defeated the temptation and note that Jesus has provided us with the guidance on how we can do the same, if we follow His guidance. We look at the fact that James reiterates the same guidance relating to the problem of following what the world wants us to do. We identify who is behind these worldly things. We move on to the matter of forgiveness and how important it is to being faithful unto death. Jesus discusses some specific things that can affect our faithfulness to Him. We look at them. We discuss what it means to forsake our service to the Lord, how being forsaken affects Him and His assurance given to His faithful ones. The Hebrew writer notes the lack of teaching ability those he wrote to suffered from. We talk about how this affects our faithfulness. Solomon has much to say about the problem of aging, how we suffer from it and when we ought to remember our Creator. Paul writes about this very subject and how we ought to look at this personal problem we all experience. We complete this episode by going back to what Jesus said to the local church at Smyrna in Revelation chapter 2 verse 10. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss being faithful to the Lord until we die. We begin by looking at the passage in Revelation where Jesus discusses this necessity with the saints in the local church at Smyrna. We talk about Jesus being the faithful witness who can provide His disciples with the guidance in order to do so. In this case, Jesus reminds His disciples there that He knows what they are faced with and encourages them to be faithful. We note what Jesus says about Satan and what he does to try to deceive those who obey His commands. We discuss what Satan did in trying to tempt Jesus to sin and how Jesus defeated Satan's attempts. We suggest that this is a pattern that the Lord has provided us to follow to remain faithful to Him all of our lives. John reminds us of the dangers we face in this world and what the god of this world does in using the things of the world to tempt us. We end this episode by noting that Paul states that we are not ignorant of Satan's devices that he uses. In the next episode, we will talk about some more of what Satan uses to keep the Lord's saints from being faithful until they die. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this second and final episode about the faithful witness, Arnie and Fred begin by noting the witnesses who saw Jesus during the 40 days He spent with them after His resurrection. His resurrection after 3 days in the tomb, just as He said, further proved His specific witness status. We talk about Jesus noting that He is the only means to the Father and several passages that reveal that fact. We note that Jesus will be the Judge of all men and look at how that relates to Him being the faithful witness. We discuss the choices we have in that regard. Jesus tells us what He will use as the standard of His judgment. We talk about what He says and again why we can depend on what he says. Jesus provided guidance to us on what we are to do in order to prepare for His judgment and we cap this episode off noting what He said. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss Jesus as described in the Bible as the faithful witness. We note what a witness is and what it means to be a faithful one. We again look at the definite article that appears in the passage that identifies Jesus as the faithful witness. We look at a number of passages that refer to Jesus as God or deity. Jesus says that He is the only one who has seen the Father. We note the importance of this statement. Jesus referred to Himself as I AM several times. We discuss this statement and its implication. God has given Jesus all authority and we look at what this means. We note what Jesus' primary mission was in coming to the earth in the flesh. We cap off this episode by talking about Jesus' death burial and resurrection and how they fit in to Jesus being the faithful witness. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this final episode, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the relationship of the blood of Christ and sanctification and what that means. The New Covenant, remission of sins and amnesty are part of this discussion, and we look at a number of passages that include these words. We look at a reference to the everlasting covenant and how the blood of Christ is connected with that to include perfection and how God is pleased with this. Peter notes that the blood of Christ is also connected to election, foreknowledge, as well as obedience and again, sanctification. We discuss this. We look at John's reference to cleansing of each saint and what is related to that. John in Revelation refers to the blood of Christ a number of times. We look at five of those places as we close out this final episode on the blood of Christ. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode about Jesus' blood, we begin by noting that Paul states that those who treat His blood irreverently are condemned. We next look at what Paul tells the Ephesians, specifically that they enjoy redemption, forgiveness of sins and the benefit of God's grace because of Jesus' blood. We discuss these terms. We note that the Hebrew writer mentions eternal redemption and one's conscience and we note how these subjects are connected with the blood of Christ. Peter also mentions the redeeming power of Jesus' blood as does Paul, and we talk about that. Paul is very specific about the condition the Gentiles found themselves in relating to God and how Jesus was responsible for their salvation. We complete this episode by looking at what the Hebrew writer said about the blood sacrifices in the Old Testament and Jesus' sacrifice in the New. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin their discussion about the blood of Christ as mentioned in the Bible. We look at passages that mention the remission of sins being related to the blood of Christ. In this context the New Covenant is referred to and we look at that. There is a consequence associated with those who reject Christ that we discuss. We note passages that discuss Jesus' death on the cross and note the proof of it displayed on the cross. Jesus' blood was the means of purchasing several things. We talk about those things. We find the word propitiation mentioned in the same passages that the blood of Christ appears. We discuss the relationship. We conclude this episode with a short notice of justification and the New Covenant and their relationship to the blood of Christ. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available so you can verify what we are saying. A transcript of this Buzzsprout episode is provided for your convenience.
In this third and final episode about wives, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss her God-given responsibility to keep the home. We note that materialism and necessity have lured many wives out of the home and into industry. The result is many children know no mother but the babysitter, childcare business, TV, cell phone or the internet. We discuss the result in the USA of this lack of parental attention and guidance. We also note the use of material things to appease children and what this results in. We talk about what happens when many women go into businesses and industries to work outside of the home. The desire of wives to have an abundance of material things sometimes requires the husband to take second jobs to make the money to buy those things. We discuss what it means for the father/husband to be away from the home. We talk about God's design of the home and note each of the important responsibilities of the wife and mother. There are also spiritual aspects of the wife's role. We look at those and note their importance. Take abut 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode on what the Bible says about wives, Arnie and Fred begin by looking at passages that teach the wife is to be obedient to her husband. We note the application of this requirement that God instituted. Peter goes to the Old Testament and notes the relationship Sarah had with Abraham and we talk about that. We discuss what happens when wives fail to follow God's instructions and we specifically note the effect that may have on the children. There are a number of passages that teach that the wife is to be the keeper of the home. We discuss the importance of this challenging occupation and the serious responsibility that goes with it. Take abut 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of what the Bible says about wives and their role in the marriage relationship. We begin, as we did in the episodes about husbands, that God established the marriage relationship and the roles for husbands and wives in the marriage. We note that the Bible says that the wife must love her husband and it is so obvious that it is often taken for granted to the detriment of the marriage. This is actually commanded in the Bible. We talk about a number of reasons that many women marry for and how these might affect a marriage. The Bibe teaches that the wife is to support her husband as passages in Genesis tell us. We discuss passages in the Bible that say that the wife must be subject to her husband which includes the subject of headship and what that means. Paul notes that the wife is to reverence her husband and we discuss what that means. Take about 30 - minutes to listen in on this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third and final episode about husbands, Arnie and Fred discuss the fact that God intentionally arranged the family with the husband as the head. Part of this discussion includes the modern feminist demand that wives be equally in charge in the family. We note that when God's way is not followed, things tend not to work out well for the family. We look at God's law of headship and note that it is patterned like Christ's over His church. Since God placed husbands in this position of head over the wife, we talk about the husband's accountability to God for how he exercises his authority in the family. We close out this episode by noting the spiritual aspects of his role as head of the family. As Christ loved the church as His bride even so ought husbands to love their wives. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode we continue our discussion of husbands by noting that the husband's love for his wife is unbreakable because it is God who established the marriage. We then move to how the Bible describes one's love for his wife as a submitting love, contrary to how many view the husband's relationship to her today. We talk about the comparison that is made with the Lord's relationship with His church. Much is said about the husband being the head of the wife and we look at passages that teach this and what they mean. As God instituted marriage, it is described as a body. We talk about this concept. We close out this episode with a discussion of why the husband is said to be the head of the wife. We briefly note what some modern women want to change in the marriage relationship. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion about what the Bible says about husbands. We begin by noting a number of passages in the Bible that say a husband must love his wife. We look at the meaning of this word and at some other passages where it is used. We note some specific applications of this word as relating to the husband's relationship to his wife. We discuss the Lord's relationship to His church and how that relates to husbands and wives. The nature of the husband's love is dealt with at length to include the sacrificial element of it. We look at the caring, non-diminishing and unbreakable aspect of the husband's love of his wife. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience of this Buzzsprout episode.
In this fourth and final episode about some things many are confused about, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing how Melchisedec and Jesus are alike and why many are confused about this. We look at the prophetic and historical passages that clear up any confusion on this. There seems to be much confusion about the last days or last times that the Bible speaks of. We look at passages that are clear as to when the last days or last times began. Some of those passages also discuss antichrist which is very instructive of who he is and when he existed. We hear numerous discussions about the Lord's kingdom, when and where it is established. We talk about a number of passages that are very clear about what the Lord's kingdom is. Finally, we note several passages that discuss the book of Revelation. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this episode Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of some of the things many are confused about. In the last episode we were looking at passages that reveal God's foreknowledge of the intentions of Jesus' foes to defeat Him. However, He promised to defeat them and make Jesus King. We continue that discussion and look at three more passages that reveal that truth. We next note that Jesus promised that His kingdom would come during the lifetime of some of His hearers, which is identified as the last days. There are numerous passages in the Old Testament that record God's promise to David that his descendant would rule on his throne. We look at some of those passages and at the application of those passages by the Holy Spirit inspired apostles. We talk about what it means to deny that Jesus is ruling on David's throne now. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss some of the things many are confused about in this 2nd episode. We complete looking at Jesus as the lawgiver. We then note that one of the purposes of Christ's coming to earth and returning to heaven was to reign as king. The Bible says that His crucifixion did not prevent this, as many seem to believe. We also look at the passages that teach that there is only one time of a resurrection for all people, both good and evil and only one judgment for them. We talk about God's foreknowledge and the fact that Jesus' foes would attempt to defeat His plan to save men. But He promised to defeat them and make Jesus King. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on this second episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of some of the things many people are confused about. We begin by noting when the Old Testament stopped being in effect and the New Testament was in force and what that means. We note the day of Pentecost and what we should remember of that day. We talk about Jesus as King, His reign, when it began, the extent of His reign and how we can know these things. This discussion will continue in our next episode. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third and final episode on life as a Christian, Arnie and Fred continue the discussion noting that Christians must be active. We cannot ease our way into heaven without making any effort. We look at several passages that unequivocally teach this fact. We discuss a number of passages that teach us to be active in good works. That is the works that God has said are good. There are several Bible passages that tell us that we will be judged by the Lord based on what we do. Jesus criticizes laziness and Paul notes that if an individual is able to work and refuses to do so, others have no responsibility to give him food to eat. We complete this episode by discussing a number of passages that specify promises of a reward for those Christians who are faithful. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
Fred and Arnie begin this second episode about life as a Christian by noting that Jesus becomes our Lord and Master when we obey Him. Jesus discusses this with His apostles when He gave them a lesson on being servants. In Peter's first gospel sermon on Pentecost, he makes reference to this also. When we obey Him, we give ourselves over to the Lord and we seek to please Him. There are several references that say we are temples where He dwells and is worshipped. We discuss this. We talk about the righteous conduct that He requires of us. We complete this episode by looking at some passages that teach us that we must be active when we become Christians. We will complete this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about life as a Christian. We begin by noticing a number of people who claim to be Christians, but their life indicates that they don't really know what it means to be a Christian. This seems to be the case with a lot of people. So, we start by looking at what it means to be a Christian. The Bible teaches that once becoming a Christian, all of our sins have been cleansed. Our former life was one without hope and we look at several passages that tell us that. But when we are baptized, we look at passages that tell us what happens to us. These actions result in the Christian beginning a new life. We note passages that tell us what that means. We end this episode by beginning our discussion of Jesus as our Lord and Master. We will continue this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our comments. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript available of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience,
In this second episode about God's Inspired Word, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the fact that the Bible is the Word of God, and its inspiration demands careful handling. We move to talking about the completeness of God's Word and the fact that this was foretold by the inspired apostles, prophets and teachers. The inspired writers affirmed and recorded the completeness of God's Word in the first century before their deaths. They gave warnings to anyone who might seek to tamper with those words. We move on to discuss the understandability of God's written word and the knowledge and understanding that is provided by those words. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of the inspiration of the Bible. We begin by looking at the word "prophecy" referred to by Peter and noting what that means. There is much disagreement today about whether God's revealed will is really available to us today. Is it complete? Is it reliable? And is it understandable? We note how important inspiration of the Bible is to us. Peter used the word "inspiration" and we look at the meaning of the original Koine Greek word that he used. We talk about God being the Author of the Bible, the extent of His Authorship and how He accomplished it. We also note the Holy Spirit's work in this respect. The original manuscripts enter our discussion, and we look at some passages that reveal the actions of several writers in both the Old and New Testaments. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. For your convenience, there is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this fourth and final episode about gambling, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the principle of faith. We note that the Bible discusses the doubts one may have about something, even if it is allowed, as being sinful, and how it applies to gambling. The principle of civil obedience requires us to obey civil authorities and that's the next point of discussion relating to our subject. We look at lotteries that a lot of states use to raise funds and talk about the greed that is involved on the part of those who play them. We note that the use of these lotteries' perverts the legitimate purpose of government, which both Peter and Paul discuss. We complete this episode by noting the principle of ever-increasing corruption and how it occurs. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bibe handy to verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about gambling in this third episode. We begin by looking at the principle of greed and how that relates to gambling and covetousness. We also talk about lotteries. Next, we note our responsibility of providing for our families and how gambling may affect that responsibility. The Bible discusses the principle of fruit bearing. Jesus specifically talks about that, and we look at how that applies to gambling. Paul discusses the influence others may have upon us, the principle of companionship. Jesus teaches the need not to be anxious concerning the things we face in this life which relates to the principle of anxiety. We talk about this. We complete this episode by looking at the principle of faith, living our lives without doubts. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided with this Buzzsprout episode.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about gambling in this second episode. We begin by finishing talking about the principle of temperance or self-control. Gambling can and does become addictive and we note this problem which affects self-control. The Christian is to be an example of godliness in everything he does, and we look at the passages that teach that. The Bible talks about worldliness and the problem that exists when a Christian is worldly in his actions by doing the things the people in the world do. We find passages that discuss the danger of tempting others by the things that we do, and we discuss those passages. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of what the Bible says about gambling. We note that the Bible doesn't specifically use the word gambling. Neither does it name all sins specifically. But the Bible clearly sets forth principles that we can use to determine whether or not an activity is right or wrong - righteous or sinful. Gambling is such an activity. We begin by looking at the principle of stewardship. We are to be good, faithful and wise stewards, Jesus says. God has said that everything in the world is His, including ourselves. We discuss these things. We also talk about what is referred to as the Golden Rule, the love we are to have for others and the fact that we are to do good to them. We note the application of this principle. We move on to the principle against stealing and how that applies to gambling. We look at what we call the principle of personal industry, the work ethic that is clearly taught in the Bible. The principle against exploiting others is clearly one to be considered when discussing gambling. We include that in this episode. We complete this episode by beginning our discussion of the principle of temperance, which we will begin the next episode with. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and verify what we are saying. There is a transcription included with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this 3rd and final episode on what the Bible says about suffering, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that God understands and sympathizes with our pain and suffering. We talk about Jesus and the physical life that He lived as an average man. We look at a passage that discusses the compassion Jesus has for men since He went through similar experiences. We note what is said about the death of His friend Lazarus and Jesus' reaction to it. Jesus had something to say about the coming destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 and we talk about that passage. We note a passage that teaches that God is both approachable and welcomes us to seek mercy and grace from Him. We include in our discussion a number of passages that show us that God will see us through our sufferings. We complete this episode by discussing the future glory we will experience which cannot be compared to the present afflictions we go through. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode about suffering, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that God permits saints' suffering to strengthen us. It leads to growth, development and maturity, if one knows what the Bible says about it. We look at passages that teach us that God is aware when saints suffer, and He helps us get through it. We note that when we look at suffering in light of eternity, our suffering is for a relatively short period of time. We discuss the fact that no trial or tribulation that we are called to endure, will exceed our ability to endure it. We end this episode by noting that all things work together for saints' good according to what Paul says. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss three facts concerning what the Bible says about suffering. We note that suffering comes at any time, place and in ways when we least expect it. We note that we are seldom prepared for it, seek to avoid it and shrink from it. We note the passages that point out that the various afflictions we suffer come from Satan and not God and the fact that they started with Adam and Eve. The Bible teaches us that God is the giver of good things to mankind, and we look at some passages that show that. We complete this episode by discussing the fact that suffering is a consequence of sin, not necessarily a punishment and look at passages that indicate that. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode.
In this final episode about things you'll never regret, Arnie and Fred talk about true reverence toward God, not merely acting reverent, but reverence as a character trait. We begin by noticing what the Bible says about man's purpose in life. We look at several passages in Proverbs that are helpful in being reverent toward our heavenly Father. We also discuss the reverence necessary toward both Christ and the Holy Spirit. We then consider the respect required toward God's words. In doing so, we note that sometimes those who try to follow those words are accused of being "legalists". We discuss what God's word says about that. We cap off this episode by talking about obeying the gospel and the fact that we will never regret doing so, However, the Bible indicates that there will come a time that one will always regret not doing so. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about loving our marriage partner. We begin by noting that God made the man and woman to be life-long partners. The words cleave, cling, united and bond are used to escribe this relationship. The Bible says that both are made in God's image. We talk about marriage being a 3-dimensional relationship consisting of physical, emotional and spiritual aspects. We discuss what this love must consist of between these two partners, such as not making demands of one's life partner and the purity God requires of each. We look at the passages that require the wife to submit to her husband and the husband's responsibility to honor, understand and protect his wife. We end the episode by looking at some of the characteristics of the love essential between husbands and wives. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about protecting the reputation of others. We note that gossip impacts other people, and many times harms their reputation, and we note that the Bible identifies gossip as a sin. It mentions gossipy women and by extension, men. We look at a portion of Moses' Law that prohibits gossip. There are 23 evil behaviors listed in Romans 1:28-32. Among them are two behaviors related to this subject. We look at them. The Bible teaches that we are to edify, or build up one another. But the result of gossip is far different from that as we note. This is not a new problem as we find out when we look at several passages by James and Paul. We end this episode by looking at a number of the wise sayings that are found in the book of Proverbs relating to this subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about apologizing when we are wrong about something. We start out by looking at what Jesus said one must do if one is angry at his brother without a cause and why this is so important. We discuss why it is so important to be willing to admit wrongdoing and correct it. We look at a passage that indicates others can help us in this regard. We also note a passage that tells us we ought to accept others who are seeking to correct their own faults. There are three individuals who offered apologies for their wrong actions that we discuss. Their apologies differed in a number of ways, and we note them. Finally, we discuss several things that are also very important when it comes to apologizing.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred look at what the Bible says about controlling our anger. First of all, Solomon says it is a wise thing to do according to his Proverbs. We discuss ways the Bible tells us that we can do to help control our anger. Sometimes we may be angry for a good reason, and we look to Jesus to learn this truth. We also note the role that forgiveness plays in maintaining a calm disposition. We look at a couple of passages in Ephesians where Paul tells the brethren there how to maintain peace in a local congregation including true forgiveness in that formula. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss showing kindness to the aged. It is one of the things that we will never regret doing. We look at Moses' Law in this regard and also what Paul wrote to Timothy on this subject. We note that both the Old and New Testaments require that parents be honored as well as aided, and we discuss those passages. We discuss the care of aged parents and the fact that this is often neglected by some family members. We talk about a number of the common shortcomings that result from this situation. We round out this episode by noting the benefits derived from showing kindness to the aged. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for your convenience.
In this second and final episode on Who Is Jesus, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that John records Jesus stating on several occasions that He is the Messiah or Christ. The first time is at Jacob's well when Jesus is talking with the Samaritan woman. When Jesus was in prayer with the apostles at the Last Supper, He mentioned that He was with the Father before creation. On numerous occasions, Jesus referred to Himself in various picturesque terms. We talk about what the term the bread of life and the living bread means and the response of those who heard Him. He was in Jerusalem and after healing a man, He said He was the door of the sheep and the good shepherd. We talk about those terms. In what may be called His going away speech at the Last Supper, he mentions the way, the truth and the life and the true vine. We look at those terms. Three times in John 8, speaking to unbelieving Jews, Jesus refers to himself as I Am. We look at the significance of those two words. In the first five verses of John chapter 1, John refers to Jesus as the Word and introduces Him as the Creator. We note that aspect of His identity. Take abut 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about who is Jesus. We look at the references that were made by Jesus and various individuals in four gospel accounts about who He is. We note what John the Baptizer said of Jesus' identity and why he said what he did. We next discuss Nathaniel who made a statement as to Jesus' identity. There was a blind man who was healed by Jesus at Siloam who spoke with Jesus and made a statement identifying Him. Martha the sister of Lazarus stated her faith in Jesus and called Him the Christ. We discuss this term. The Apostle John records what Jesus said of Himself and what a number of other individuals referred to Jesus as. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this fourth and final episode of why we have the Bible, Arnie and Fred begin by noting that the Bible teaches us how to become one of the saved. We discuss several passages that tell us that God wants all men to be saved. Related to that, we look at passages that explain to us how a person becomes a Christian. We see that the Bible also is a guide for disciples in living as Christians. We point out in our discussion that all of the epistles or letters were written to Christians and for Christians. In those letters is guidance that the Lord expects Christians to follow in order to live as acceptably unto God as possible. Finally, we see that the Bible reveals the destiny of human souls. We discuss the difference in the physical body and the soul. We end our discussion by noting what the destiny of each soul is. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this third episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the fact that the Bible sets forth man's role in his salvation. God did provide a Savior to redeem man, but we must also do our part as God requires. We cannot be saved from sin by our own efforts. We must depend upon our faith in Christ which includes being obedient to His commands. We note that it is the Bible that provides the evidence that produces our faith in Jesus Christ. It records the essential words and deeds of Jesus that we can depend upon to be true. We close out this episode by looking at Bible passages that identify the Lord's church starting with the promise the Lord made concerning His church. We discuss the pattern that we find in the Bible of that church. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode about why we have the Bible, Arnie and Fred complete their discussion of the fact that our Creator has definite expectations for man to meet. We then move on to note that the Bible reveals to us the nature of sin. We needed to be aware and understand God's laws and each person's violations of them. We note several passages that point that out to us. How else would man learn the consequences of his sins? We then look at several passages from the Old Testament that look forward to the coming Messiah, Christ. We then turn to the New Testament and some passages that point to Jesus as the Christ. We complete this episode by looking at passages in the Bible that tell us of the Savior God sent to redeem man. We will begin the next episode by noting that the Bible sets forth man's role in salvation. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to ensure we are teaching what the Bible says. There is a transcription provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss why we have the Bible. Most people don't seem to believe that the Bible actually comes from God even though it says it does. We begin by looking at some passages that say the Bible is the word of God. We note that when one reads the Bible one sees that it reveals the nature of God by discussing the physical creation and the fact it provides evidence of God. We then look at passages that show that God intended to specifically reveal Himself through the written words provided by the inspired writers of it.
We end this episode by talking about the Bible revealing that mankind is a species which God uniquely created in His likeness and is not a part of the animal kingdom. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode about Hell, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of whether Hell is a place of punishment. We note several Bible passages that tell us that Hell is in fact reserved for the punishment of evildoers. Jesus in several passages tells us this is the case. We look at those passages. We talk about how long Hell must be endured. We note that there are a number of opinions that people have that are not what the Bible says. There are a number of Bible passages that say Hell will be endured by evil doers eternally, that is forever. We note a number of passages that tell us that Hell's duration is the same as that of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There is no annihilation or temporary purgatory in Hell as some teach and believe. We end this episode by looking at how Hell can be consistent with God's mercy, grace and love. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about Hell. We start out by answering the question, Does Hell Exist? We look at 2 passages where Jesus discusses Hell. We point out the specific word Jesus uses in referring to Hell in these passages. We move on to passages that tell us what Hell is like. We discuss 8 passages that describe Hell in no uncertain terms. We talk about whether Jesus is speaking in figurative language. We begin our last segment to answer the question, Is Hell A Place of Punishment? We run out of time, so next week we will continue this discussion in the next episode. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bibe handy to verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience in this Buzzsprout episode.
In this third and final episode on repentance, Arnie and Fred discuss hindrances to repentance. We note that ignorance can be a hindrance and had evidently hindered the Athenians from understanding the true and living God and His expectations for them. Knowledge of Adam and Eve's and Noah's experiences had been lost to most cultures. Additionally, some Christians in Rome failed to realize that God's goodness should have motivated them to repent. Unbelief can hinder one from repenting. and the Hebrew saints were warned against having an evil heart of unbelief. The unbelieving people of Nineveh repented after hearing Jonah's preaching. Apathy is another problem that can affect one's ability to repent and Jesus criticized people in several cities and the church in Laodicea for their apathy. Finally, pride about any number of things can hinder repentance. Judah's pride was identified by the prophet Jeremiah as a reason they went into captivity. The pride that Pharisees and Sadducees had for their physical lineage caused them great difficulty in repenting. We discuss all of these examples and note that whatever hinders one's repentance also affects one's salvation. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
Arnie and Fred begin this second episode about Repentance by discussing the need for restitution and restoration of ill-gotten gains. We look at the case of the tax collector, Zaccaeus and what he said he did in that regard and Jesus' response to that. We remind ourselves of what genuine repentance involves. We talk about a number of Bible examples in both the Old and New Testaments when inspired individuals state the requirement that individuals and nations repent of their sinful behavior, which leads us to understand that God views repentance as absolutely necessary. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this episode Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of what the Bible says about repentance. We begin by noticing three of the things that the Bible identifies that involve repentance. The Bible makes a distinction between godly sorrow and the sorrow of the world. We talk about the difference between these two attitudes, what that means and two Bible examples that illustrate these two points. A change of mind or a change of heart is the next thing that involves repentance. We note several passages that tell us what is involved in these changes and a specific Bible example of that. Finally, we discuss the evidence that is required to show whether or not one has truly repented. We look at a specific Bible example of such evidence. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
This is the 4th and final episode that Arnie and Fred discuss substance abuse. In this episode we focus on the popular use of tobacco products such as smoking, dipping, chewing and vaping. We begin by noting that there are legitimate uses of tobacco that God approves of. But is proven that tobacco is harmful to the human body if not used for God's intended purposes. We talk about its various harmful physical effects. We note that tobacco use is extremely addictive and very difficult for those addicted to quit. We look at a number of Bible passages that warn against allowing ourselves to become overcome and slaves to anything. We talk about various surprising statistics relating to the abuse of tobacco products. Finally, we look specifically at the use of E Cigarettes and the Vaping associated with that. Again, we note the surprisingly harmful effects of these popular products. Take about 30 minutes to listen to our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this third episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss the harmful effects of the misuse of alcohol. We then move on to note the fact that alcohol abuse leads to both moral and spiritual decay. One disregards pure religion since God specifically speaks against the misuse of alcohol. Illegal use of alcohol causes one, obviously, to break the law, for instance driving while intoxicated. Uncontrolled anger occurs sometimes when one is under the influence of alcohol. We talk about that. Fights and worse occur in bars and the parking lots adjacent to them. One's physical condition is degraded due to long term alcohol use. We note the immorality that accompanies those under its influence and specifically discuss Ladies Night that bars have and question its purpose. We complete this episode by noting the loss of physical self- control that one suffers. We will complete this series by discussing tobacco misuse in the fourth and final episode. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of substance abuse from the Bible's standpoint. We start off by looking at some of the legal aspects. We note a number of passages that mention the legal authority of civil government, where that comes from and God's requirement that we obey their laws. We look at a number of the harmful effects of substance abuse in the physical, emotional and spiritual life of the individual. We discuss some of the mortality statistics in the USA resulting from substance abuse. A short mention of marijuana and the chemical it contains follows. We end the episode with the start of our discussion about tobacco abuse which we will have to complete in a third episode. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided with this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about substance abuse. Arnie begins by noting that Paul likens the Christian to an athlete who prepares himself for athletic competition and then engages in it. He notes the rigorous exercise and preparation of his body that is required to compete successfully. The Christian must engage in a much more important race as Paul notes in a later passage. We begin by looking at passages that mention the importance of the Christian's physical body. The Christian's body is a member of Christ and temple of the holy spirit. We discuss the passage that indicates we are to function in this life as living sacrifices and what that means. Consequently, there is a requirement that we must meet to do so, and we look at that. We note what the bible says about our desires and the need to control them because God has crowned us with glory and honor, and we ought to reflect that as His creation. We end this episode by looking at the Holy Spirit's use of the word's sorcery and witchcraft and the meanings of these two words in the contexts they appear. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for this Buzzsprout episode.
In this final episode on what does the Bible says about abortion, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the fact that God punishes nations for violence against children. We look at a number of Old Testament passages where God details the punishment that He will mete out to these nations for the child sacrifices that they engaged in. We note the number of abortions done in the USA since the passage of the Roe v Wade decision in 1973. We also talk about the enormous number of abortions worldwide in the past 40 years. We look at passages where the taking of human life is referred to as "shedding blood" and note that this is true in both the Old and New Testaments. We discuss passages that include references to the conception and development before birth of both John the Immerser and Jesus. We look at the use of two New Testament words that is important to understand when one is examining the seriousness of abortion. Take about 30 minutes to follow this important discussion on this the 49th year since the passage of the Roe v Wade decision. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what the Bible says. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this, the first of a 2 part episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about abortion on this the 49th year since the Roe V Wade decision in the USA. We begin by noting what David said by inspiration concerning his conception and development in his mother's womb. He las a lot to say about what God knew of him before he was born. We talk about some of the modern genetic science of an individual, what it tells us about individuals. We look at six individuals that are referred to in the Old and New Testament. Especially what God said about them before they were born. We end this episode by discussing the human spirit and what the Bibles says about it. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this important subject of our time. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying about abortion. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this third and final episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss heaven and in particular, who will and will not be there. We start out by looking at who will not be there according to the inspired writers. We discuss two sets of scriptures that Paul wrote where he notes a number of activities people are engaged in that will prevent them from going to heaven. It is most important that one repents if one is engaged in any of these activities. We encourage you to do so. We also see that John writes of something the Lord said about those who will and will not be in heaven and the reason for that. We continue the discussion by looking at passages that specifically say who will be in heaven. Some of these passages relate what the Lord stated, and some relate what John saw and wrote about. There are passages that tell us how we can be among the number who will be in heaven, and we look at some of them. We complete our discussion by noting what John said about Christians who sin and what to do about that so their heavenly journey will not be prevented. Take about 30 minutes to listen to our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are teaching what the Bible says. A transcript is provided for your convenience in this Buzzsprout episode.
This is the second and final episode of our discussion on same sex sexual activity as written about in the Bible. Parents please be advised that this discussion will involve Bible passages about moral issues relating to same sex sexual activity which will be discretely but clearly noted. We finish up looking at the passages in the New Testament which condemn same sex sexual activity. We discuss some other Bible terms that can include this activity such as fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, lust and adultery. We note passages that say this activity will be judged by God which will result in condemnation and punishment by Him. Finally, we discuss several passages that refer to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah because of same sex sexual activity and the situation with the perverted men of Gibeah. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can ensure that we are teaching what it says. There is a transcription provided in this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this episode Arnie and Fred begin by advising parents that this study will involve a discussion of Bible passages about moral issues relating to same sex sexual activity as discretely, but clearly, as possible. We begin by noting the United States criminal code relating to same sex sexual activity and what happened to it. We look at the Bible definition of marriage from both the Old Testament and the New Testament and the fact that sexual relations were encouraged in that relationship alone. We examine Old Testament passages that forbade same sex sexual activity and the terms that were used in those passages. Our attention is then turned to what the New Testament says about this subject. We look at the specific words that the inspired writers used and the definitions of those words in order to make sure we correctly understand what those inspired writers were saying. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided in this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this second episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion about what heaven will be like. We talk about it being a place of light and why that is so. It seems to be a place of comfort and tranquility as well and we look at some passages that tell us that. We look at what John says about the peace and rest that we will enjoy there and glorious praise that will occur there as well as the enjoyment and glory that Christ provides there. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible available so you can follow along and verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of what the Bible says about heaven. On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus discussed heaven but referred to it as "My father's house". We talk about some of the terms that heaven is called in the bible such as everlasting kingdom, our country, our inheritance, and paradise. We continue by noting some of the passages that tell us what heaven is like. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on the discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss What The Bible Says About Jesus' Temptation in the wilderness where Satan tried to get Him to sin. We note what the definition is to tempt someone. We look at what things are that tempt are. We talk about a particular Bible passage that specifies the three forms of temptation that Satan uses to tempt us to sin and note that Satan used these to tempt Jesus in the wilderness. These lusts or desires are the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride or vainglory of life. We note how Jesus was able to resist those temptations and not sin. We discuss the scriptures in Hebrews that tells us that Jesus was tempted in the same ways that we are, yet did not sin. We look at the scriptures that declare Jesus to be Divine , Deity, or God and also those that say He was human as well and was subject to all of the physical and emotional aspects that we are. We complete this episode by noting that Jesus did resist the Devil's attempts and how He was able to do so and note that He has provided us with an example to follow in resisting Satan today when we are tempted. We note that Jesus' temptation also provides us with the assurance that He understands what we go through and that we can turn to Him in our time of need. Take about 30 minutes to follow what we have to say. Have your bible handy so you can verify that we are following what the Bible says. There is a transcript provided for you convenience.
In this third and final episode on What Does The Bible Say About What Saves People, Arnie and Fred begin by finishing our discussion concerning Christ's atoning blood which is associated with our salvation. We talk about Christ's body which Paul notes is one of the things associated with saving people. We note the connection between Christ's blood and His body in man's atonement. We move on to look at some of the things that we as individuals God has made us responsible for doing in order to be saved. Paul reminds the saints in Ephesus that trust in Christ is required. And related to that trust is the hope that we have because of it. The Hebrew writer notes that Christ obeyed what it was necessary for Him to go through His suffering and consequently is the author of eternal salvation to all that obey Him. Paul discusses the fear or reverence that all must display toward the Lord. In order for one to be saved, one must make the decision to come to Christ. We discuss what it means to "call on the name of the Lord" and the necessity of doing so as the Lord requires in His Word. We note the need for works of faith as James describes in his letter. We talk about one's faithfulness and what that means. We note what Peter told those on Pentecost that they needed to do. We end this episode by noting that all members of the Godhead are involved in saving us. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this second episode of what does the Bible say about what saves people, Arnie and Fred begin by continuing our discussion about baptism. We note what the phrase "in the name of Jesus Christ" means. We also point out the purpose of that baptism. We continue by talking about the grace of Jesus Christ, God's grace, the Lord's longsuffering, and God's mercy relating to salvation. We talk about God's eternal purpose in saving people and the fact that it was His will to do so. We look at one of God's promises relating to this issue. We end this episode by noting a number of other things that are associated with Christ that saves us, namely, the name of Christ, His sacrificial death and His atoning blood, which we will also begin the next episode with. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that our discussion is in fact about what the Bible says. We have provided a transcription of the discussion for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says saves people. We begin by noting that there are over a thousand religious denominations in the world in which no two of them believe, practice or teach the same things. Arnie notes what three people had told him that they thought saved people. We begin by noting what the Bible says about the gospel and what it does. Next we look at the preaching and receiving of God's word. We then look at several passages that mention faith and the declaration of it. There are numerous passages that mention repentance and one that notes godly sorrow and what that does. We begin discussing baptism but run out of time to finish our discussion. So, we will begin the next episode with that aspect of salvation. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this important discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided to assist you in following what we are saying.
In this fifth and final episode about what to pray for, Arnie and Fred continue discussing some things we should be reminded of to include in our prayers. We begin by noting the importance to remember our fellowmen and those in authority. Most of these are not Christians and consequently not saved. God wants all to be saved and we need to remember that and pray for them. Both Jesus on the cross and Stephen while he was being stoned prayed for their enemies who were in the process of killing them, requesting that God would forgive them and not lay the sins to their charge. We discuss how this applies to us today. Paul throughout the New Testament, in writing to the churches, reminds the members to pray for fellow Christians. Prayers for those who serve us, elders, deacons, preachers and teachers are always needed. We are to remember that. We find examples of prayers for the physically sick offered in the New Testament as well as prayers for those who are lost. We have discussed just a few of the things we ought to pray for. God hears the prayers of the righteous and we need to offer fervent prayers that we have considered carefully. We pray that this five part discussion has been beneficial for you. As you listen to this last one, have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are following what the Bible says. There is a transcript provided for your convenience.
In this fourth episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss what to pray for. We begin where we left off in our last conversation by noting that we ought to pray for good leadership, both in religious and secular areas. Paul wrote about praying for those in authority and for all men. We are served by a number of people in various positions of authority and should pray for them to serve in such a way that we will continue to enjoy the peace to worship and serve God as He requires and to live peacefully together. We have Bible guidance to pray for wisdom in choosing the right lifetime mate. God's people prayed for children and for their children to grow up as godly children of God. We find the bible writers encouraging saints to always be faithful and prayers are offered for that to be so. We discuss some things we ought to be reminded of like praying for our Nation. We will continue discussing things to be reminded of in the next and last episode of this subject. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription provided for your convenience.
In this third episode, Arnie and Fred continue discussing the need to pray for peace and that we may have it. The Bible includes instances where God's people prayed for forgiveness. We look at several of them. Seeking mercy is something that we can include in our prayers as the Publican did. God promises His faithful saints eternal life and we find that subject in their recorded prayers as examples for us. We find Paul praying that God's blessings be extended to others and that is also mentioned in the Old Testament. We are to teach others the gospel and praying for them and other disciples doing the teaching is something we ought to include in our prayers. Finally, we are to even pray for our enemies, as Jesus directed us to do. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of what to pray for. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are noting what the Bible says about this important subject. A transcription has been provided for your convenience in doing so.
This is a second episode in which Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about what to pray for. We begin where we left off in the last episode talking about praying for boldness in teaching and preaching the gospel. Next we note that Jesus prayed for more laborers to work in propagating the gospel and that is certainly something we ought to pray for. James says we ought to pray for wisdom and we look at that. Jeremiah started to make excuses when the Lord was sending him to those in Judah and we ought to avoid doing the same thing concerning the need for us to go to those who are lost in sin. We look at Solomon's attitude when the Lord confronted him as the new king of Israel. We find a number of prayers offered by Jesus and others for protection from evil and note this is something we can pray for also. It was dangerous in the first century to travel from place to place. We see prayers offered for the safety of those traveling, which we can also pray for. Deliverance from foes is also discussed for we know there are those who do not want us to teach the truth to others. We end this episode by looking at the first passage relating tp praying for peace. In our next episode, we will begin by looking at several other passages mentioning prayers for peace. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify we are following what the Bible says. There is a transcription provided for your convenience in following what we are saying.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about what to pray for. Jesus had taught His disciples about prayer when they asked Him to, "Teach us to pray". Consequently, we thought it important to review what was taught to them. In an earlier episode on the first of February last year, we discussed "The Lord's Prayer. We encourage you to find that episode and review it. We begin this episode by noting some things to consider when one prays. We begin with one's spiritual state and the authority to do so. Faith is necessary as well as doing so in the spirit and understanding. We look at what is said of one's desires and what God's will is on the matter. We note some of the topics of prayers such as giving of thanks and for the success of the gospel. We end the session with the request for boldness t=in teaching the gospel that we find in the New Testament. We will begin the next episode with a further discussion of boldness. Tae about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are following what the Bible says. There is a transcription provided for your convenience in following the discussion. You may copy it and print it out if you desire to.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of Luke who is referred to as "the beloved Physician" in Colossians 4 verse 14. We begin by noting that he was an eager gospel teacher who taught Theophilus who was an official in the Roman government. Luke wrote 2 letters to Theophilus which are Luke and Acts. He traveled with Paul and stayed alone in strange lands to continue teaching the gospel. We note that Luke was a reliable historian who investigated fully those things he wrote about, noting this in the first chapter of the epistle that bears his name. We discuss the fact that he was known and loved by the saints, affectionately mentioned by Paul on two occasions. He evidently used his medical knowledge freely to benefit others, especially the brethren he traveled with. We note that it was certainly providential that a physician would be available to those early Christians as they travelled in their efforts to spread the gospel. Our discussion includes the fact that Luke became Paul's companion and aide in propagating the gospel. Perhaps having to leave family, friends and his practice to do so. We end this episode by talking about the fact that Luke was a loyal disciple who helped to attend to Paul while he was in prison and in his many struggles. It was due to Luke's loyalty to Christ that made it possible for him to serve as he did. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available to verify we are discussing what the Bible says about Luke, the beloved physician. There is a transcription provided for your convenience in following what we are saying.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about Luke who is referred to as "the beloved physician" in Colossians 4 verse 14. We note that he is one of the most prominent disciples of the early gospel age, but he is very inconspicuous in the writings of the New Testament of which he wrote 2 books. However, his name does not appear in either the book of Luke or Acts which he wrote. There is little known about Luke except that which is contained in seven passages: 4 in the "we" sections of the book of Acts and 3 times where Paul references him in his writings. In our discussion, we summarize those passages noting who he was with, where he was and what was being done there. We talk about the fact that Luke was a Gentile who had obeyed the gospel. He was intelligent and educated, accepted by men of rank and dignity. We note that he was not a witness of Jesus and what He had done. He is among the number Jesus referred to in John 20, verse 29. It is evident that Luke grew rapidly as a Christian after he obeyed the gospel. Paul had full confidence leaving him at Philippi to continue the work of teaching the gospel unattended. We end our episode at this point. We will take up this discussion in the next episode. In the mean time, listen in on our 30 minute discussion and have your Bible handy so you can verify what the Bible says about Luke. There is a transcription provided for your convenience in following our discussion.
Fred and Arnie continue their discussion of what the Bible says about the Lord's Supper by noting the examples of New Testament disciples observing it. We begin in Acts chapter 2 on Pentecost, showing that Pentecost actually occurred on the first day of the week. We explain why that is so and note the passages that refer to the observance of the Lord's Supper. Acts chapter 20 is the next written occurrence and includes the specific day of observance. We include a discussion of the significance of the event where Paul raised an individual up from being dead. We return to the Corinthian letter where Paul again corrects the disciples there for their abuse of the Lord's Supper memorial. We complete this episode by examining Jesus' Bread of Life sermon in John chapter 6 in order to show that this sermon is not about the Lord's Supper, as many seem to think. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available so you can make sure we are following what the Bible says about this important subject. A transcript of our discussion is provided for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion about the Lord's Supper. We begin by noting that Jesus instituted it at His Last Supper among His apostles during Passover right before His betrayal by Judas and arrest. We note that there are three accounts of it in the biographical books, in Matthew, Mark and Luke. We look at the accounts by asking five questions: Who, Where, What, How and Why? John's account does discuss other instructions Jesus gave to His apostles at that time, but does not discuss the Lord's Supper itself. It ends in prayer. Afterwards the eleven apostles, but not Judas who had left, went with Jesus to Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. Finally, we talk about Paul's correction of the errors the church at Corinth were making in their observance of the Lord's Supper which were quite significant. In the next episode we will discuss the Lord's Supper observances by disciples in the first century as guided by the inspired apostles. Take about 30 minutes to follow along with our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying, There is a transcript provided for your convenience. What Does The Bible Say? (vurbl.com)
In this second episode of Marriage , Divorce and Remarriage, Arnie and Fred continue discuss what the Bible says about this important subject. We note again, that in the first century, the brethren in the church at Corinth had evidently asked Paul a number of questions relating to this subject. One of them dealt with the case of an unbeliever divorcing a believer. Paul deals with their questions in First Corinthians Chapter 7. We discuss what Paul said and note in particular a popular error that is taught concerning verses 10 and 11. We talk about several "What If's", that are sometimes used to justify divorce. In the end, it is important to go by what the Bible says, not by what some uninspired individual might say about it, Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided for your convenience in following along.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about marriage, divorce and remarriage. The Bible records that from the beginning, God intended marriage to be a lifelong relationship between one man and one woman. But the record shows that human sin often disrupts marriage; and divorce and remarriage were about as common in ancient times as they are today. We note that marriage illustrates one's relationship to law. We talk about what Jesus said on a number of occasions where He specified that God instituted marriage between one man and one woman in the beginning. We take some time to discuss when the Pharisees challenged Jesus specifically on divorce. We discuss Jesus' answer and the specific applications of what He said to them. We note that the Christians in Corinth had some questions concerning believers and their mates and directed them to Paul. W look at Paul's answers to them. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying. There is a written transcript provided for your convenience which you may copy and print if you like.
Arnie and Fred continue the third and final discussion of what the Bible says about becoming a new creature. We note that those who were saved by obeying the gospel developed an intense spiritual hunger to acquire more knowledge of their new life in Christ. They learned from what John wrote in Revelation of heaven as a place where there is continual spiritual activity and that is also recorded for us to study and learn from as well. We discuss the love of the Lord that saved people have, their desire to teach other people of their love of the Lord and His love of them. We note their desire to worship Him in spirit and in truth now and that which will occur in heaven some day. We look at the spiritual activities the Bible describes that new creatures or creations, the saints engaged in as examples for us to emulate. We end our discussion by posing some questions each individual ought to ask themselves. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can verify we are saying what the Bible says on this subject. There is a transcript of this episode provided for your convenience in following it.
In this episode, we continue our discussion of what the Bible says about becoming a new creature or a new creation, as some translations say. We begin by talking about the Christians at Colossae and Paul's description of the new lifestyle that they were to begin when they became Christians. They were to seek those things above and put to death or put off the behaviors that were contrary to their new lifestyle in Christ. Paul notes the difference in the behavior of the new Christians in Corinth. And we ask if each one of us also manifests such a change. We continue by talking about John's admonition to not love the world and the things in the world and what that entails. Both Paul and James encourage us to love the things of Christ instead. We end this episode by noting how steadfast the saved ones were in their worship in spirit and in truth in the first century. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are discussing what the Bible says. There is a transcription provided to make it easier for you to follow what is being said.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss becoming a new creature as described by the Bible. The New Testament identifies those who obey the gospel as children of God who receive a new life and are described as a new creature. There is a specific assurance given concerning this. There is also a new manner of life that should accompany the new disciple's salvation. We note the new spiritual attitudes described, new spiritual interests and activities. We note that the bible record also acknowledges that not everyone who obeys the gospel adopts this new lifestyle. We look at the bible examples of those whose life was changed dramatically upon their obedience to the gospel of Christ. We note the reference to becoming a new man, the radical change in behaviors as well as being raised to new life , having a new mind and new thinking. Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy to note the scriptures we refer to. There is a transcription included for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk of the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah that the apostles note in the New Testament. Peter made reference to what David had said about Jesus in two of his Psalms which Peter declared that it certified Jesus to be Christ, the Messiah. Later on Peter accused the Chief Priests and Elders of being those who rejected the head cornerstone that David referred to in Psalm 118. In Acts 10, Peter referred to no less that four Old Testament prophets who prophesied that the remission of sins would be available through Christ. When Paul was in Antioch of Pisidia he called attention to Christ's resurrection which fulfilled two Old Testament prophecies. When Pail wrote to the Romans, he mentioned that God's prophets had promised the coming of the gospel and Christ being of the seed of David. Take about 30 minutes to follow along in our discussion of these prophetic references of the apostles which provide us with more evidence of the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ and the Son of God.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss Jesus' crucifixion and burial which were prophesied in several prophecies in the Old Testament. These prophecies are stated and written down hundreds of years before the event s took place. The fact that Jesus was crucified between convicted criminals is one of those prophecies made by Isaiah. David in one of his Psalms said that none of His bones would be broken and we note that occasion as reported by John in his account. One of the soldiers that crucified Jesus thrust his spear through Jesus' side to ensure He was dead again according to John. We look at Zachariah's prophecy about this occurrence. We talk a little about Thomas's requirement to physically verify that Jesus had in fact been resurrected. Matthew and John note that Jesus was buried with the rich and we again note that Isaiah made a prophecy about this fact. These prophecies and Thomas's insistence on verifying the wounds Jesus sustained on the cross before believing He was risen from the dead provide us with evidence of the truth of the Bible record and Jesus' claims to be the Messiah. Take about 30 minutes to listen to our discussion of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and verify that this is what the Bible says. There is a transcript provided for your convenience in following the discussion.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about Jesus's betrayal by Judas Iscariot and the trial that followed. We notice that Judas collaborated with the chief priests which had been prophesied by David in one of his Psalms and was fulfilled in Gethsemane. We talk about the 30 pieces of silver that Judas received, the prophesy concerning it and the significance of the amount. We note the number of times that Jesus stood before the Jewish officials and the Roman authorities. There were a number of false accusers that faced Jesus and we note the prophesy relating to them. Jesus offered no defense against these false accusations and again there is a prophesy in the Old Testament relating to this situation. Finally we look at the abuse that Jesus endured at the hands of the Jewish rulers as well as the Roman soldiers and the prophecy concerning these actions. Take about 30 minutes to listen to this episode. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcription of our conversation included that you can also follow.
In this third and final episode about Messianic Prophecies, Arnie and Fred begin the discussion by noting that the religious authorities in Jerusalem were plotting to kill Jesus for at least a year. We note the prophecy and what Jesus said about it. We continue by looking at Moses' prophecy about the Messiah and God's Prophet. Isaiah prophesied about a "corner stone" and we detail New Testament passages relating to this prophecy. Zechariah tells us about what Jesus' apostles did hundreds of years before the occasion. The abuse that Jesus suffered and His crucifixion is prophesied by several Old Testament prophets. We discuss those passages. Messianic Prophecies are some of the powerful evidences that God has provided to us in His Word that assures us of the truthfulness of the fact that Jesus is the promised Messiah who came in the flesh to save us from our sins. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject.
This is the second episode that Arnie and Fred discuss What The Bible Says About Messianic Prophecies. We begin with the location of Jesus' birth, what the prophet Micah says about it and Luke and Matthew's notice of what he wrote. Next we note that Daniel's prophesy concerning Jesus' birth was specific even to the number of years after a historical event. We look at the situation of king Herod slaughtering infants under 2 years old that Jeremiah had prophesied hundreds of years before the event. We know that Jesus preached throughout Galilee and find that Isaiah made a prophecy concerning that activity and we look at that prophecy. Finally, we look at Isaiah's description of Jesus' ministry and Luke's recording of the fulfillment of it. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along. There is also a transcript that you can follow for your convenience.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred begin a discussion of some of the Messianic Prophecies that are found in the Bible. We talk about the purposes of these prophecies and the fact that they were stated from Genesis to Malachi and written down by the various prophets who lived in different localities hundreds and thousands of years before the Messiah was born. There were a number of prophecies that related to John the Immerser that we look at. We end this episode by beginning to look at the prophecies concerning Jesus, the Messiah, Savior and Redeemer. This will be the first of several episodes on this subject. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on what we have to say. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along in it. There is a transcript provided to make it easier for you.
Unity is a Bible subject, in particular in the New Testament that we will discuss in this episode. Jesus prayed for unity among His disciples. Yet there is almost universal disagreement about nearly every religious subject and no unity. Paul condemned division among Christians. There are thousands of sects today just in America alone many claiming to be a part of the "Christian Church". We discuss this term and concept that so many accept and note what the Bible says about it. In particular, we look at the Lord's church and some of the passages that speak of it. We note a number of the denominations that exist today, noting when they were established and who established them. We look at some passages that refer to religious division and what the Bible says is the cause of it. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can ensure we are teaching what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of what the Bible says about the church being the kingdom. we noted at the end of last weeks episode that the church was promised. Next we looked at the fact that the church was established on Pentecost in about AD33 at which time Jesus was declared to be both Lord and Christ, We also note that obedient believers were added to the church at this time indicating that the church was now in existence. We look at a number of passages that refer to the church in the New Testament. We continue by noting a number of passages that refer to the name of the church and what those names tell us about it. We talk about the denominations and what we should know about them. Finally, we note that one cannot join the Lord's church by looking at passages that tell us how one becomes a member of it. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are presenting what the Bible says about the subject.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the statement that, "The Church Is The Kingdom" and the fact that the Bible agrees with that statement. We note that Jesus spoke of His church and kingdom in the same context when He discussed that subject with Peter and the rest of the apostles. We point out the original meaning of the Koine Greek word translated "church" in most English bibles. We look at passages that uses the word "church" and "kingdom" in them. We deal with a number of passages in the Old Testament that prophesy the establishment of the church/kingdom and when these prophesies were made. We close out this episode by pointing out some passages in the New Testament that the Lord's kingdom was at hand or nigh and the Lord's church would be built soon. Take about 30 minutes to listen to our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow the passages we refer to in order to ensure we are discussing what the Bible says about the subject.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred talk about resurrection. It is a subject many times at funerals when we talk about seeing our loved ones again. Solomon tells us that our spirit returns to God when our bodies die. We note numerous passages that refer to the resurrection of our bodies. Paul in particular has a whole chapter in First Corinthians discussing that very subject. We talk about the definition of the word and the fact that it is referred to no less than 42 times in the New Testament. We look at the three times in the Old Testament that individuals rose from the dead. There are a number of instances in the New Testament that we talk about. Of course, the example of Jesus' resurrection is also noted and especially the example of Thomas being a reliable witness of that event. We complete this episode by noting the comfort an obedient servant of the Lord can experience knowing he will live again and be with the Lord in heaven. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to follow along and insure what we are saying is what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says one must do to be saved. We start out by talking about why the question is even asked in the Bible about being saved. Saved from what? We move to the answers that are not given in the Bible, primarily because many people are told to do many things the Bible does not say. We spend most of our time looking at some of the some of the example of people in the Bible that asked "What must I do?" or "What must I do to be saved?" Those noted are the Philippian jailer, the 3,000 Jews in Jerusalem on Pentecost, Saul of Tarsus, the Ethiopian Royal Treasurer and Cornelius and his household and neighbors. We finally note that there was a consistent answer provided by the inspired apostles to the question of what one must do to be saved. Take about 30 minutes to discover what the Bible says one must do to be saved. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along in our discussion to make sure we are in fact teaching what the Bible says about this most important subject.
In this second episode about the Judgment, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing the fact that the Bible is the standard the Lord will use to judge all people. We talk about some of the ways various people teach that others will be judged and the fact that many seem to be in no hurry to prepare for their judgment. Additionally we note that the time of the Lord's return to judge His people is not known and consequently could be anytime, sooner or later. We discuss the fact that the Lord will judge each person individually. Each soul will give account for his own actions and conduct whether good or bad, for the Bible states that there is a record kept of what each one has done. The only way to be forgiven of the sins we commit and thus avoid punishment for them is to obey the gospel of Christ. Finally, we note what Jesus said about eternity which will follow His judgment of all souls. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this final episode on the Judgment. Have your Bible handy to ensure we are in fact teaching what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the Judgment as described in the Bible. Arnie begins by referring to what Paul had to say to Felix the Roman Governor of Judea about the coming judgment of God. We then note that there will be a judgment that is said to be the last day and it is appointed and assured. The Bible says that every accountable soul will be at the judgment and we discuss those passages that say so. We discuss those Bible passages that say that the Lord will be that Judge and why we will be judged by Him. Finally, note that there will only be one standard of judgment. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject that will affect all accountable souls. Have your Bible available so you can follow along and verify that we are in fact discussing what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the literal and figurative language found in the Bible. Paul mentions having used a figure of speech in the Corinthian letter. This discussion is important because some Bible students think everything the Scriptures say is literal. Others think the entire Bible is figurative and everything symbolizes something else. Neither view is correct. We are reminded that the Bible is verbally inspired and that Jesus treated accounts of certain events as historically accurate and literal. We note some of those events. We note that Jesus and His apostles understood some historical and literal Bible accounts to contain figurative language. We talk about the times Jesus and His apostles used figurative language themselves. We are reminded that in our daily conversations we do the same. There are ways that we can distinguish figurative language from that which is literal and we note them. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation and have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying.
This is the third episode that Arnie and Fred discuss what that Bible says about human traditions, doctrines and creeds. We note that these contain false doctrine that the Bible calls heresy, that is propagated by heretics and results in division. The inspired Bible writers told us to reject such traditions that are not found in the Bible. We are to speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where the Bible is silent. We note some of the errors contained in the creeds and what Jesus had to say about the human traditions in His day. We talk about several false doctrines that are common today that are specifically not found in the New Testament. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion and have your bible handy to verify what is being said.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of Human Traditions, Doctrines and Creeds in this second episode of that subject. We note that the apostles were inspired to teach what the Hoy Spirit supplied them in the words they preached and wrote down. Those words were certified and confirmed by the miracles that the Holy Spirit provided in the miraculous gifts the apostles had been given by Him. Contrary to some of the Creeds, Christ is equal as od with the Father. Christ claimed equality with God when questioned by the Jewish leaders of the day. Before coming into the world in the flesh, Christ's substance was identical with that of the Father. The Son radiates, not reflects, God's glory. Christ is said to be both the Great God and our Savior. The false doctrine found in Human Traditions, Doctrines and Creeds results in division and is referred to as heresy or from a heretic in the Bible. Take about 30 minutes to follow along in the discussion. Have your Bible Handy to verify what is being said.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about human traditions, doctrines and creeds. We talk about the three main creeds, their influence upon the denominational churches and the result of the same which is primarily to replace the actual gospel teaching from the Bible. Creeds address only the interests of the uninspired councils that produce them.
We note that the original text of the New Testament remains unaltered from generation to generation, unlike creeds that are often revised or replaced. We discuss the completeness of the New Testament and its inspiration. We also note that Jesus condemns any tampering of it.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our conversation. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are in fact noting what the Bible says about the subject.
In this fourth and final discussion of this subject, Arnie and Fred continue to note some of the various theories offered by sceptics to explain the missing body of Jesus. We talk about the stolen body theory and the imposter theory. We review a number of the prophecies concerning Jesus' resurrection, promises related to it and the quotations of those prophecies and promises made by the apostles. We review the claims that the bones found in various ossuaries in recent years are those of Jesus. We note the attempts of Hollywood and various news organizations to undermine God's Word and the faith of Bible believers. We conclude our discussion by noting that the Bible record declares Jesus to be the Son of God with power, that He was seen by over 500 witnesses after He was raised from the dead and is in fact the final judge of all men. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this last episode on this subject. Have your Bible handy to make sure we are discussing what the Bible says.
In this third episode of What Does The Bible Say About Jesus' Death, Burial And Resurrection, Arnie and Fred begin by noting what the record says about the guards and what they did after Jesus was resurrected. This necessitated a discussion of the actions of the Pharisees relating to the guards. Next we talk about Jesus' appearance to His disciples in Jerusalem for the first time on the first day of the week and their reactions. Finally, we note what the Bible says about Thomas who was not with the disciples the first time Jesus appeared to them. We talk about what Thomas said and did on the second time Jesus was with the disciples on the first day of the week.
In this second episode, Arnie and Fred begin the discussion about the women who witnessed Jesus' burial procedures and placement of His body in the sepulcher before the Sabbath began. We note that the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate the next day on the Sabbath and requested that Pontius Pilate have the tomb secured, what that entailed and to post a guard there. We talk about the record of the two Mary's who visited the tomb, who they were, what occurred and the response of the guards that were posted. Jesus' resurrection is our next discussion. Again, we find women who had returned to the tomb bringing the spices that they had prepared and finding Jesus' body gone. The text says there are 2 men there who tell the women that Jesus has risen and for them to go tell the eleven remaining apostles. We find more discussion of these women who evidently met the resurrected Jesus as they were on the way to tell the apostles. We talk about Mary Magdalene who was evidently the first one to arrive at the tomb and what she did. The text records John and Peter's arrival and what they noticed about the cloths hat Jesus was wrapped in. Finally, we find that the record notes that Mary Magdalene was weeping at the sepulcher prior to her meeting the Lord there and what He said to her. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this most important event. Have your Bible handy to follow along and make sure we are in fact discussingwhat the Bible says.
This episode begins a series of discussions about Jesus' crucifixion, death and burial, Arnie and Fred start by noting how Luke begins the book of Acts. We refer to the discovery of some ossuaries in southeast Jerusalem in 1980 by construction workers. We talk about these boxes containing bones and some of the speculation concerning them. The actual crucifixion according to the Bible record is noted with the specific affects of the things that were done to Jesus while He was on the cross. We move to the concurrent happenings like the earthquake, what the Roman soldiers said and names of some the women that were there. We close out the discussion by noting the two individuals who prepared Jesus' body for burial and how that was done. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are discussing what the Bible says about this subject. There is a transcription provided for your convenience in following this episode.
In this second episode about what the Bible says about making moral decisions, Arnie and Fred discuss some questions we ought to ask ourselves to help distinguish right from wrong. We discuss whether or not God has expressly forbidden a particular activity, will it harm me physically, will it damage my influence and will it violate my conscience? We ought also to consider whether it will weaken my faith, will it put me in association with bad companions and will it appeal to unrighteous desires in me? We talk about whether this activity will steal resources that belong to God which He has entrusted to me? We discuss whether our actions could cause a brother or sister to stumble into sin. Will what I consider doing enhance my godly thinking as well as that of others? Finally, will the words or actions that I say or do bring glory to God and is it unquestionably right? We close out the discussion by noting that the Christian simply cannot compromise with worldliness and note what Jesus says about the matter. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that what we are saying is what the Bible says about making moral decisions.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about making moral decisions. We know that sin abounds in the world ever since Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden. Ever since that time, every accountable person has committed sin. We know that it got so bad in the past that God flooded the earth destroying all human beings except the eight on the Ark. In this study we want to discuss what sin is, the fact that it is a clear and present danger that entraps, destroys and condemns people; and then consider how to make safe and moral decisions. We note a number of the Bible passages that list various sins. We talk about ancient Israel and how it illustrates declining morals of God's people. The ancient Gentiles were notorious for their immorality and we note one specific example. Even early Christians did not escape the evil influence of the society they were a part of and we discuss the examples provided by the Bible. We note the hidden dangers that are involved with sin, its deceptiveness and enslavement. Finally, we discuss the role that false teachers play in deceiving people and causing them to sin. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and ensure we are teaching what the Bible says. A transcript is also provided to help you follow along.
This is the third and final discussion of how to recognize a Christian. Arnie and Fred discuss why it is that Christians choose to be so different from others. First of all we note that Christians are not of the world and we discuss what that means even though it is obvious that they are in the world. So, when was it that they were separated from the world? It is said that Christians march to a different drummer. Who is that and what does that mean? Why is it that Christians view hardship, persecution and suffering differently than others do. Finally, we note that Christians are not as common as one might think, but are actually easy to recognize. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided that you can use to help you to follow the conversation.
Arnie and Fred continue to discuss How To Recognize A Christian in this second episode. We remind ourselves that Christians are disciples, that disciples are learners and in fact there are few Christians. We talk about the Christian's speech and point out that it is different from that of the people of the world. Another characteristic is that Christians are honest people. They dress modestly, their behavior is godly and so is their treatment of other people. Another hallmark is that they even treat their enemies in a caring way and seek peace with them. A Christian's thinking is different from that of others because they want o obey the Lord's warnings about that and are especially careful about lustful thoughts. we end this episode by discussing the love that the Christian has for God and his desire to obey His word. These are just a few of the distinctions between Christians and and the world. Spend about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that the it does in fact say what we say it does.
This is the first episode that Arnie and Fred discuss what the bible says about the characteristics that identify a Christian. We talk about what a disciple is, what he does and the fact that there are actually few disciples in the world.
The Bible has a lot to say about the fact that the disciples of Jesus Christ are different from people of the world. We note that Christians believe in Christ and reject man-made doctrines and creeds. They read and study the Bible and are eager to explain the doctrine of Christ to others. They seek to grow and mature in Christ.
We talk about what the Bible says about prayer and the fact that Christians are a praying people who even pray for their enemies.
We note that Christians worship in spirit and in truth r3gularly as the Bible teaches. As a part of this worship they contribute generously for the work of the local church. As individuals they are ready to help and assist the poor and widows.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available to ensure what we are saying is in fact what the Bible says.
Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of Civil Government in this third and last episode. We continue talking about the saints who served in government positions in the New Testament times. We start with the Ethiopian Royal Treasurer who ultimately took the gospel back to his homeland. We find Cornelius in Acts chapter 10 who was a Centurion in the Roman army who was stationed in Caesarea, the seat of the Roman Government in Judea. In Philippi we meet the jailer in charge of the Roman prison there. Finally, we find that there were members of Caesar's household and the Praetorian Guard who Paul had taught the gospel to.
We note that Christians may serve in government only in righteousness, not in any evil way or participate in any of those activities.
We talk about what the Bible says about what Christians can do while serving in government positions and as members of any society. We note specifically Daniel's government service during the reigns of three kings in the Old Testament.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can follow along and verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided that you can use to help you follow this discussion.
In this second episode on civil government, Arnie and Fred continue discussing the factthat evil in civil government is not a new thing. We note more examples from the Old Testament and the New Testament of rulers and government officials engaged in all kinds of evil from adultery to murder of Jesus and persecution of Christians. We end this episode by examining some of the righteous followers of God who served in various government positions faithfully. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible available to verify what we are saying about evil in civil government as well as the righteous service provided by the Lord's followers.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss civil government, that God is its Originator and men are obligated to submit to it. We note that whoever resists it will face consequences, if not in this life, certainly in the final judgment. We discuss the passages that show us that God intends government to be a friend and a rewarder of law abiding and righteous people.
We start out by looking at the God ordained role of civil government, to protect, reward and encourage the righteous and to punish evil doers. We note that it is God who ultimately decides who rules , when and for hw long. We talk about government authority and take some time on the subject of capital punishment.
Finally, we look and some examples of evil in civil government and the fact that it is now a new thing.
Take about 30 minutes to follow our discussion. Have your Bible handy in order to follow along and verify that we are in fact discussing what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of spiritual gifts in the New Testament. We begin by noting that it was the Holy Spirit who decided who received which spiritual gift. We show that there were nine gifts that were named in the New Testament record. Two of those gifts involved the intellect, five gifts involved faith, and two involved the speaking of foreign languages. We discuss each of these supernatural and where they are referred to in the inspired record. These spiritual gifts were provided for a specific purpose and we discuss what that was. Finally, we note that these spiritual gifts were temporary and were only passed on by the original 12 apostles. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to follow along and verify that what we are saying is in fact what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the miraculous gifts Jesus" imparted to His apostles and those spiritual gifts that the apostles imparted to some disciples in the New Testament times. Those gifts were given to the apostles initially when Jesus sent them out on what os commonly referred to as the Limited Commission. Additionally, those gifts were given to the seventy disciples that Jesus later sent to prepare places He would soon visit. Later, on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit would also empower the apostles.
We talk about the fact that the purpose of these miraculous gifts was to confirm the gospel the apostles were preaching actually came from God. We note what Jesus said to the eleven apostles in Mark 16 and specifically note that they would receive the spiritual gifts only if they believed. Included is a short discussion of the pronouns the Holy Spirit used in Mark 16:14 thru 20 and why this is important to know.
We discuss some of the occasions where the spiritual gifts were used by the apostles and the fact that every time a portion of the gospel message being preached or taught by the apostles, it was confirmed by the performance of a miracle or sign.
The apostles had the ability to confer spiritual gifts to specific individuals. They were always believers who had been baptized. We discuss who these were and the fact that only the apostles had this ability.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy in order to verify that what we are saying is in fact what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the bible says about Christ, the Son of God. We begin by a short notice of the difficulty in properly translating the Bible from its original languages into modern languages spoken today. Every language and culture has its own unique complexities. Arnie notes Arabic as one of the languages with biblically problematic issues with the tendencies of translators to change the translation to accommodate its peculiarities. The bible must be translated to say exactly what it says regardless of what various cultures might believe and do.
Jesus' disciples are sent to teach all nations the singular gospel as related by the Holy Spirit inspired disciples of His and written down for us today. That gospel clearly describes Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, from His conception to His death on the cross.
We discuss a number of passages that show that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, beginning with His miraculous conception, John's declaration of that fact and a number of the miracles that Jesus did that attest to His being the Christ,
We finally notice the message of the gospel as taught by the apostles, especially to the Ethiopian eunuch by Phillip and the necessity of calling on the name of the Lord in order to be saved as Paul related to the Romans.
Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying.
In this episode Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of The Faith Of Enoch. We begin by again noting the importance of parent teaching their children about God and His instructions on how we are to live faithful and righteous lives. It is evident that Enoch's parents faithfully taught him about God and Enoch believed that teaching and in God. Part of that instruction included that about God's promised Messiah which was God's eternal purpose. God had promised both His Redeemer and Satan's defeat in Genesis 3:15. Adam and Eve were witnesses to what God had said and they were still alive as Enoch was growing up. So Enoch had benefit of learning from them about them being created by God and everything God may have said to them. So we talk about Enoch's belief in God, his trust in the promise, the hope of salvation and he confidentially rejoiced in that. We note that Enoch believed in God's power to reward and punish and he preached on those subjects we are told by Jude. We discuss the persistence of Enoch's faith noting that he walked with God for the entire 365 years of his life. Finally, we are told that Enoch pleased God and God took him. Enoch did not die, God took him straight to be with Hm.
This is the first episode that Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about the faith of Enoch. We start out noting the first six verses of Hebrews 11. As is commonly known, this chapter of Hebrews contains references to a number of faithful people from the old testament and notes their faithfulness to God. Enoch is one of those people who believed in God. He lived before the flood and knew Adam and Eve and we discuss why this is an important fact. We talk about the natural evidence of God that is available for all to see. In believing God, we talk about the importance of parents teaching their children about God from an early age. We close out the discussion noting that Enoch believed in God's promised Messiah. We will start the next episode at this point. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we are saying,
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue to discuss Jesus' apostles and their work. Jesus instructed them in what is commonly called the Limited Commission. The apostles accompanied and assisted Jesus in His work such as the feeding of the 5,000. We note that they witnessed and proclaimed His death and resurrection. We talk about the fact that they were referred to as servants and had left nearly everything for the Gospel. We find them referred to as "earthen vessels" and discuss what that means. They were ambassadors for Christ and we note what that meant. They were also judges and we talk about what that means to us today. They are said to hold the keys of the kingdom and we relate what the bible says about that. They also declared and taught the gospel through the spoken and written word and confirmed it with miraculous signs and we discuss some of that. Finally we talk about to what degree they considered themselves indebted to Jesus Christ and God. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion and have your Bible available so you can verify what we are saying.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss Jesus' apostles and their work. We note that the original 12 apostles were known by other names, sometimes referred to as surnames. We talk about each name as found in the bible. There were three pairs of brothers in this group. We also note that many of them were evidently engaged in a family business of fishing. There is one puzzle relating to one of the apostles that we talk about. There were also two more apostles appointed and we note that here were qualifications in order to do so. Finally we note the definition of the word "apostle" and what the word implies. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible available to verify what we are saying.
John provides seven signs or miracles in his gospel account that Jesus performed while He was on this earth among us. In this episode we discuss those seven signs and what they represent. Those seven signs are when He turned water into wine, the healing of the royal official's son, the lame man enabled to walk, feeding of the 5,000, walking on the sea, healing the blind man and raising Lazarus from the dead. We note that these signs prove that He is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God and the Author of eternal life. His enemies and skeptics who rejected Him always demanded a sign after He first cleared the temple. He promised He would give it and He did! New Testament history records that they rejected that sign as well. These signs are provided to us as evidence that Jesus came to save us. Let's make sure we don't make the same mistake as those in the first century. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion of this important subject.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue their discussion of the persecution of Christians in the first century. We note that this persecution resulted from riots, false charges, brutal assaults and even murders on numerous occasions. We talk about the riot that occurred in Ephesus, as well as the murder of Antipas at Pergamos and the persecution of the members of the church at Smyrna. There were false brethren who engaged in persecution and even relatives who persecuted their own family members. Saints in the first century risked their lives to teach and preach the gospel and to protect other brethren at the risk of their own lives. Finally, we talk about Jesus' death on the cross which resulted from persecution by a criminal conspiracy at the highest levels of the Jewish government. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible available to verify what we are saying. Be aware that there is a transcript provided as well that you can follow along on.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the persecution of the righteous that is recorded in the Bible even beginning in the Garden of Eden. it is Satan who is behind this evil activity. He seeks to entice and harm any who would want to serve God and persecution is one of the methods he uses to do that. We note that the Old Testament record is filled with the persecution of the righteous. We discuss Cain and Abel, Zacharias, Moses, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Mordecai and others. In the New Testament persecution of the righteous continued. John the Immerser was targeted as was Christians such as James, Peter and Paul. We close out the first part of this episode by a short mention of riots, false charges, brutal assaults and even murders that were used to persecute the first century brethren. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what is said. There is a word for word written transcription available for your convenience.
This is the second episode that Arnie and Fred discuss John the Immerser, better known as John the Baptist. This time we start out by noticing his parents and the record of the angel visiting John's father. We talk about Mary's visit with John's mother Elisabeth, who was also her cousin, while she was expecting Jesus. We also note the baptism that John was sent to perform, its purpose and method, John's influence and the expiration of his baptism. Finally, we note the end of John's life. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our final discussion of John the baptizer. Have your Bible handy to verify thatwe are in fact noting whatthe Bible says.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss John the Immerser, better known as John the Baptist in some Bible translations. We begin by noting when the Bible says his work began. We talk about his mission which included his preaching that was to prepare men to believe in Him who was "the Light". John preached about repentance and the fact that God's kingdom was soon to come. John spoke to both the religious elite and the politically powerful. We discuss what his specific demands of the people were and what he said about the coming Messiah. Finally, we note the fulfillment of his mission and the fact that he was not "The prophet" that the people were looking for. Wewill finish our discussion of John the Baptist in the next episode. Spend about 30 minutes with us on this episode and have your Bible handy to follow along.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue the discussion of what godly women did ni the church in the first century. We note that some women saints prophesied in New Testament times. We discuss what prophesy entailed and what the Bible says about when these prophetesses did this. We also discuss the fact that teaching by inspiration ended when the New Testament revelation was completed. We look at a number of passages that show that women participated in church business and that participation was confirmed by miracles. There are several matters that are ignored in our times about what women can or cannot do and we discuss these. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what is said. There is also a written transcription provided that you can follow along on what is being said.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss some of the women disciples found in the New Testament and what they did. This will be the first of two episodes. You will find that the godly women in the New Testament church were critical to the success of spreading the gospel throughout the world. We will note nine named disciples and the work that they performed in the spreading of the gospel at that time as recorded by both Paul and Luke. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion and have your bible handy so you can follow us discussing the related passages.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue the discussion about evangelists. We begin by noting more duties to the gospel that evangelists have. The New Testament requires evangelists to point out false teachers and the false doctrine they propagate as well as those who incite unnecessary controversy. They are to command and teach the gospel according to the authority contained in the New Testament, contending for it without the slightest exception. The evangelist has duties to the called out body as a group and to individual members of it. Those duties are discussed. Finally, his duties to those who are lost are noted. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy so you can make sure we are in fact discussing what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss those in the called out body, the church, who deliver the message of the gospel. There are a number of terms that are used in the New Testament to refer to these disciples and we note each one. We discuss some "nots" concerning these evangelists. The Lord's pattern in the New Testament reveals duties that these preachers have in delivering the word of God to the listeners in the called out body as well as alien sinners. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible handy to verify that we are in fact discussing what the Bible says about this subject.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred continue the discussion about the local body of Christ. We note the responsibility of elders in the local body as required by the New Testament pattern, as well as their qualifications in order to serve in that capacity. The pattern also identifies special servants in each local assembly, the work they are to do and the qualifications they need to meet in order to serve. Each assembly is to worship God as He has directed. His directions have been recorded by the inspired writers in the New Testament. We discuss those 5 items of worship and the note that each local assembly follows the same written pattern. There is work that God has assigned to each congregation and we note what that work is. The Lord's New Testament pattern also contains a particular lifestyle that His disciples are to follow. Finally we note that the Lord has specified a particular name for the members of His local churches. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify that we are in fact discussing what the Bible says.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred complete the discussion in the previous episode on The Church Belonging To Christ, noting several passages we were not able to discuss in that episode that related to the universal or general assemble of the Lord's saints. The majority of this episode deals with the assemblies of Christ that are in various localities. First, we discuss the fact that the New Testament contains the Lord's pattern for His local assemblies to follow in its membership, organization, worship, work and name. we then note that each local group of saints are organized according to the same pattern. We see that every Christian must identify to a local assembly in order to do the work the Lord assigns to His people in this New Testament period. We discuss the elders that are part of the pattern and their work in that regard. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy in order to verify what we are saying.
In a previous episode, Arnie and Fred discussed the word "church", exploring several points regarding Christ's church as we read about it in the Bible. In this episode you will hear us note some additional aspects of the church belonging to Christ as found in the New Testament. We will again note the word "church" as translated in most English Bibles, in particular discussing the Koine Greek word "ecclesia", its meaning and usage in the various New Testament passages, in which it appears 112 times. This will be the first of two episodes. The second episode will appear next week and will deal specifically with the local church of Christ. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. We encourage you to have your Bible handy to refer to. There is a written transcript also available that you can refer to.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred answer a number of questions from listeners concerning instrumental music in worship. People who visit a church of Christ wonder why there are no organs, pianos or other musical instruments. People sometimes say that they don't know of a passage that forbids the use of instruments in worship. We note what the Bible says about the silence of the scriptures. Some people say that instruments would help to establish the pitch and rhythm of the songs. Some wonder why instruments aren't used now, since they were common in the Old Testament as guided by the prophets at that time. Also, we have been asked why is it wrong to use instruments in worship in church, but OK at home? Finally, many note that instruments are recorded in Revelation being used in heaven. So why can't we use them in worship now? We discuss what the Bible says about these questions. Have your Bible handy and listen in for about 30 minutes on our conversation.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about forgiveness. We begin by noting that all accountable people sin and consequently are in need of forgiveness from God. Sin causes a barrier that separates the sinner from the victim. When forgiveness is granted, reconciliation is then possible between the two parties. We discuss Jesus' parable about the unmerciful servant and its application. We look at passages that indicate that God grants forgiveness to all who obey Him, but note that His forgiveness is conditional. Our individual forgiveness is looked at as well and what Jesus says about that. What attitude are we to have toward those who wrong us? Does God say anything about that? Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify what we say.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the bible says about Jesus coming again. We note that Jesus assured His disciples that He would come again. We note the various passages that say He will come again, and there are plenty. It is noted that the date of the Lord's return is not told us in the bible. His return is not imminent and there are a number of events that are discussed that would precede Christ's return. We talk about Jesus' teaching on the necessity of always being prepared for His coming. Finally, we note what would occur when Jesus comes again. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this episode.
There are evidently a number of religious organizations that teach that an individual once saved as a Christian can never do anything that would cause them to fall and be lost forever. Arnie and Fred discuss the fact that the Bible records a number of Christians who had fallen away. There are also admonitions in the bible regarding the possibility of individual apostacy. We discuss what the Bible says about a mass apostacy that will occur before the return of Christ. There are grave warnings of the consequences and fate of apostate disciples. Have your Bible available and take about 30 minutes to listen in on this conversation.
At least since the time of Augustine of Hippo (aka Saint Augustine, AD354-430) and perhaps even before him, numerous religions that consider themselves to be "Christian", have taught the doctrine of Original Sin or Inherent Total Depravity. Since Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden because they disobeyed God by eating of the Tree of Knowledge and became guilty of sin, many theologians, like Augustine, but not all of them, have concluded and teach that our original parents' guilt is physically inherited from them by all of their descendants. Consequently, all future human beings have been and are born with sin. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on Arnie and Fred's discussion of what the bible says about this subject.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about being saved by faith or works. For many people, the Bible seems to give a mixed message: can we be saved by works? Not saved by works? Saved by faith? Or what? By the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church had begun essentially teaching salvation by works: indulgences, penance, sacraments, and so forth. So as the Protestant Reformation began, some reformers ran to the opposite extreme of salvation by faith only. WE discuss what the Bible says. Is salvation by works, or by faith, or by several factors. With an open mind, take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify we are correctly presenting what it says.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss the general theory of Evolution. It is essentially a hypothesis that millions of years ago, without cause or reason lifeless matter came into existence, spontaneously, and over time developed into living organisms, which gradually and repeatedly transformed themselves from one kind into another, eventually having produced all living and extinct plants, fish, fowl, and animals, including man. Our discussion will note that the theory is atheistic and contrary to what God says in His word in every way. Tune in for about 30 minutes to our discussion and have your Bible handy to ensure we are teaching what the Bible says on this important subject.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss the Creation. The Bible is very clear concerning God creating the universe and everything in it. We discuss the six days of Creation in the Genesis record. We note what is specified that God created on each day. We note that Gof created everything in a logical order. It is noted that the physical, visible creation provides the evidence of God the Creator to the extent that all men can see it. Consequently, there is no excuse to deny that fact. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the hostility among people that seems to surround us. Malice - among nations, between ethnicities, against other races, toward different political or religious views, of one person against another. Why is that? When it doesn't have to be this way. We discuss New Testament cases of animosity resulting in violent persecution and the fact that God has no racial, ethnic or gender partiality. We note that Christ's Gospel removes prejudice and strife when obeyed. Finally, we discuss some things we need to remember. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. We encourage you to have your bible available to make sure we use the scriptures correctly.
The miracles that Jesus performed are recorded in the Bible as evidence that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. There are somewhere in the neighborhood of 97 accounts recorded in the New Testament scriptures. These miracles were spread across the entire region Jesus was in, from Caesarea Philippi in the north, to Judean villages in the south, and from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon by the Mediterranean Sea, eastward across the Jordan River, in Decapolis. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on Arnie and Fred's readings of some of these miracles that Jesus performed. Have your Bible available and at the end decide for yourself if Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
Our nation, as well as other nations in the world, are in a state of crisis and have been for decades, and many deny this based on the confused standards of "political correctness". It is a crisis of values in the United States, as it is elsewhere. In the United States it is particularly apparent in our mayor urban centers - New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco - cities where it seems especially severe. Its effects are indeed felt from coast to coast and border. Gangs, violence, crime, drugs, abortion, dishonesty, immorality, lack of integrity, incivility, hatred of other races, ethnicities, and even genders. In a land where a man's word was his bond, and where a handshake used to guarantee fulfilment, many today are uncertain whom they can trust. God's word has a good bit to say about the responsibilities of parwnts to make sure their children grow up with godly values. In this episode, Fred and Arnie discuss the true inheritance which the Bible teaches, that we as fathers and grandfathers owe our children and grandchildren. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify that we are saying what the Bible says.
Death is ever present with us. We are reminded of it every day. Especially during this current pandemic. There tens of thousands of our fellow citizens and hundreds of thousands of people worldwide who have died of it. Extraordinary efforts have been taken to mitigate it, but to no avail. It isn't unusual to be frightened of the prospect of death. The Bible speaks of the fear of death in Hebrews 2:5. In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss why men die, what happens when we die, the resurrection, why people fear death, why Christians shouldn't be afraid of dying and finally God's Plan of Salvation for mankind. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. You will notice that there is a transcription of the episode provided.
Parents are advised that as discreetly as possible, Fred and Arnie will discuss Bible passages involving moral issues of adultery, incest and homosexuality, including one verse that refers to sexual abuse of children. We hear a lot these days about how intolerant and hypocritical Christians are regarding supposedly normal human behavior. This is true not only today, but indeed in the past, even over the past 2,000 years. There are synonyms for normal which include common, usual, regular, standard, and natural. Sinful behavior is what is normal among grown-up people, and even adolescents, although not all commit the same sins. And it is true that every Christian has acted normally in his past according to Romans 3:23-24, but ideally, he has learned to reject sinful behaviors and labors to live "soberly, righteously and godly in this present world". Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this discussion of the false charge against faithful Christians by those in the world who want to normalize and justify their sinful behaviors.
Arnie and Fred discuss what the bible says in Acts Chapter 2. Acts Chapter 2 begins 10 days after Jesus ascended to heaven. Jesus had promised the apostles that they soon would be baptized with the Holy Spirit which would give them power to be His witnesses. He told them to go to Jerusalem to wait where they would be endued with power from on high. They did so and we find basically three sections in the Acts Chapter 2 record. The phenomenon of Holy Spirit baptism is recorded as well as Peter's address and the life among the first believers who the Lord added to His church. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your bible available to ensure that what we discuss is what the Bible says.
In this Episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the first chapter of Acts. There seem to be many people who don't consider this book to be very important. But there is a great deal of important information in this first chapter of Acts that relates what occurred in the 40 days Jesus was with His apostles and other disciples before His ascension, and the remaining 10 days before Pentecost. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we discuss and take about 30 minutes to listen in.
This is a lesson Fred provided to the Woodland church of Christ in January 2018. Fred and Arnie discuss what Paul referred to as the body, soul and spirit in 1 Thessalonians 5:23. Discussion will be centered around what the Bible says about these three terms. We invite you to have your Bible available so you can verify what is being said. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this episode.
This is Arnie and Fred's third discussion of Divine or God's Authority. Our first discussion considered what we termed a "Chain of Divine Authority", beginning with God having all authority. Our second session reviewed the New Testament's inspiration, completeness, certainty, assurance and authority as God's final revelation of His will,replacing the Old Testament; that all men must obey it, and that now only teachings and practices authorized in the New Testament are in fact, authorized. The focus of our discussion today will be how to understand and apply what the New Testament allows and requires, as opposed to what it forbids. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to make sure what we say is in fact what the Bible says.
This episode is the second discussion Arnie and Fred have on God's or Divine Authority. We will begin this discussion by reviewing some things you already know about the Authority of the Bible; then considering the important - indeed, the ESSENTIAL nature of the Authority of God's Word, in the Bible. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this discussion. Have your Bible available to verify what we are saying.
This will be the first of 3 discussions about God's Chain of Authority as revealed in the Bible. It is noted in the New Testament that the people were astonished at what Jesus taught them in what is commonly known as the Sermon on the Mount. They recognized that Jesus taught as one having authority and not as the Scribes. Arnie and Fred will discuss the passages where references to divine authority are found and who it is that possesses such authority and how they obtained such authority. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy to verify the references we make.
The older we get, the more we are conscious of our mortality. We experience sickness our selves and see it in others. There are accidents, violence, war, and various news reports of the demise of others. So, there are times that we wonder about what happens to us after death. There are philosophers and theologians who try to explain it theoretically, but they can offer only speculation and uninspired human reasoning. Only God's inspired Word in the Bible can be depended upon for the answers we seek about what happens to us after we die. Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about the death of the human body which is commonly known by everyone. We discuss what the Bible says about the spirit of man, where it goes and why. The resurrection as revealed in the Bible is discussed as well as the judgment day when Jesus will render final judgment upon every individual. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on the discussion. Have your bible open so you can verify what is said.
Christ's resurrection is unique in the history of mankind and there are many who are skeptical of it and doubt that it ever occurred. There are even those who claim to be Christians who fabricate theories about what they think really happened. The Bible is very clear: faith is so essential that without it one cannot be saved. The Bible records evidence supplied by eyewitnesses who saw Jesus crucified and saw the empty tomb after His resurrection. These same witnesses saw Jesus after His resurrection, talked with Him, ate with Him and ultimately witnessed His ascension into heaven during the 40 days after His resurrection. There were some who were at first skeptical of what other witnesses told them. Nevertheless, upon seeing Him themselves and touching the wounds from His crucifixion, believed also. In this 30 minute episode, Arnie and Fred discuss the occasions that some 523 witnesses associated with Jesus for 40 days after His resurrection. Take some time to listen in.
Jesus faced several trials on the Passover before His crucifixion before Jewish authorities and Roman authorities. These trials were contrary to both Jewish and Roman Law. In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about these trials by primarily reading the record in sequence as best we can determine. It is evident from the record that the Jewish authorities conspired for about a year on how they could kill Jesus. We discuss that conspiracy as well as the arrest and each incident of Jesus before the Jewish and Roman authorities. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on this Bible discussion.
It's that time in the USA to vote for our national leaders. Other nations don't necessarily get to choose their leaders in this way. Some don't get to make the choice at all. Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about the selection, choosing and cooperating with government officials. The discussion centers around the specific inspired passages in the Bible that deal with this subject. Not surprisingly, specific individuals are named in these passages with the specific actions taken by God are recorded. Take about 30 minutes to listen in on the discussion. You may be surprise4d at what the Bible says about this important subject.
The word meaning "to judge" appears many times in the original language in the New Testament and in a number of contexts. Jesus frequently mentioned things pertaining to judgment at the end of time. He did this because His purpose for coming to earth was to save men from God's condemnation of them because of their sins and God's final judgment of them. Most of the Lord's references to the judgment are brief and Arnie and Fred will discuss these including His longest one in Matthew 25. We will discuss what the New Testament tells us about the final judgment that we all will face. Take about 30 minutes to learn what the Bible says about the final judgment at the end of time.
The Bible records that Christians have been persecuted in many countries in every age since the First Century. They have been verbally abused, defamed, vandalized, with their property being stolen. The teaching and practice of their faith has been outlawed, their children taken, harmed physically, imprisoned and even put to death. What is it about the name "Christian"? Arnie and Fred discuss Saul of Tarsus, a notorious persecutor who became the primary teacher of the gospel to the Gentiles. We discuss what made one a Christian and what they did in the First Century. Finally we note when the name "Christian" first appeared in the Bible, what it means and it uses there. Take about 30 minutes to find out what the Bible says about the name 'Christian.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss the word "Church" and the fact that its use is unique to the New Testament. We discuss the word's use and its meaning in the New Testament by noting all of the passages it is used in. We note the misuses of the term which we find throughout conversations and writings today. Take a listen to this 30 minute discussion in which you may learn something about this very familiar word.
Arnie and Fred discuss the various works of the flesh that are named in the Bible. The discussion kick of by noting the various festivals that are engaged in before what is known as Lent. Noted is the fact that in the days of the New Testament, there were similar festivals in Rome and other cities such as Saturnalia, Lupercalia and other sexually charged pagan fertility festivals. Once knowing that fact, it is easy to understand why the Bible writers warned so much about the works of the flesh. Likewise, today similar festivals occur in the united States and all over the world. We discuss the warnings written to various cities in the New Testament record which are just as applicable to us today. Take a listen to this 30 minute discussion.
Arnie and Fred discuss a question a listener posed about the Lord's Prayer. The listener states, "Most churches I am familiar with recite the Lord's Prayer as part of their worship services, but I understand churches of Christ do not. If not, is that because you do not believe in it, or for some other reason?". We discuss the fact that there are two forms of the Lord's Prayer recorded in the New Testament. We discuss what Jesus used the prayer for and the occasions that the Bible writers recorded Jesus praying. We also discuss the occasions when the apostles and early disciples prayed. Finally, we discuss some pointers gleaned from Bible verses for acceptable prayers.
Arnie and Fred discuss the two words, "in Christ" that we find throughout the New Testament. We discuss the fact that those two words tell us that in this life God will basically grant us a "do over". We talk about what it means not to be "in Christ" and the fact that there are eternal consequences for that condition. We then note the benefits that being "in Christ" are enjoyed. Finally, the discussion ends with how God tells us we can get "in Christ".
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss why Jesus was baptized. The discussion begins with John the baptizer who was selected by God to prepare the way for the promised Messiah. In doing so he preached that people needed to repent of their sins. They responded in large numbers to the extent that all those in Judea and Jerusalem obeyed John and he baptized or immersed them in water. Before dealing with Jesus' baptism, we need to know some things. The bible says that all accountable people sin. Christ gave His life to redeem us from sin and its consequences. The Gospel message clearly describes man's part in God's Plan of Salvation. The Bible says that Jesus is the only person who never sinned. So that brings us to the question of why Jesus was baptized? Listen to this 30 minute discussion to find out.
In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about worship in spirit and in truth. We note that improper worship is common among many people, religions and cultures. We begin with Jesus' discussion with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well. We note the experience of Cain and Abel where right and wrong worship is illustrated. Worship by the very first Christians guided by the inspired apostles is examined closely, noting the elements in their worship. Finally, we note again that it is Jesus who declares the requirement to worship God in spirit and in truth.
Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about when human life begins, not what the opinions of uninspired men are. The Bible does discuss this subject related specifically to named individuals in the Bible. David discusses his pre-birth development in one of his Psalms. We discuss the proven features of genetic science relating to when human life begins. We discuss six individuals named in the Bible whose destinies in life are noted before they are born, even when they were conceived. We finally discuss the fact that every human being is made in the image of God.
Arnie and Fred discuss a question we received who asked if we are obligated to keep the Law of Moses in the Old Testament. We discuss the fact that Moses Law was not universal. It was never intended for Gentiles and was not delivered to them. We discuss the fact that the Bible says Moses Law is obsolete. We discuss the fact that the Bible says the Old Testament was replaced by the New Testament. Finally, we discuss the fact that the Bible says that we are now under the Law of Christ.
In this 30 minute study, Fred and Arnie discuss what the Bible says about Jesus being God. There are a number of religions and people who deny what the Bible says on this subject. There are numerous passages that say that Jesus is God, the Creator and Judge of all mankind. We discuss the passages that quote what Jesus said of Himself being God as well as those that the witnesses said the same. The discussion ends with the significance of Jesus being God. Why is it important for us to know and accept this truth?
This year is about to come to an end. People make resolutions for the coming year. The bible repeatedly reminds us of how swiftly time passes. It also discusses the shortness of life and our lack of knowledge when it will end. Likewise, the Bible discusses the return of the Lord and the fact that we don't know when that will be. We are warned a number of time of the importance of being ready for His return. It discusses the fact that the Lord will destroy all the material creation upon that return, the judgment that will occur of all people, the reward for the righteous and the punishment for those who have not obeyed the Lord. You re invited to listen in on Arnie and Fred discussing these issues.
Arnie and Fred discuss a question received concerning when Jesus was born. The questioner notes that some friends observe Jesus' birth on various dates in January and some in March. He wants to know when exactly was the first Christmas and what doe we know of Jesus' birth. We begin the discussion with the known facts that we find recorded in the Bible. Then we discuss some of the details that people assume to know but are actually not known. Finally, we discuss the current celebration of Jesus birth and the bile authority for it or the lack thereof.
There is one question we were asked about baptism that we need to discuss. The questioner asks whether in the Bible baptism refers to sprinkling, pouring or immersion or any one of the three. The questioner states that this is important because "my parents had me christened as an infant". Arnie and Fred discuss three things related to baptism in the Bible. Who requires it, if anyone did. Who in the Bible were baptized, if anyone was. And finally, does the Bible specifically tell us what baptism actually is. We invite you to listen in on this 30 minute discussion of what the Bible says about Baptism.
Arnie and Fred continue discussing several questions that were asked about baptism. In this episode, we discuss the first question, "What does it mean to be 'in Christ", and "How can someone 'get into Him'". We also answer the following question which was "I am concerned to learn that you refuse the sacrament of baptism for infants and young children, and do not cleanse them from the stain of original sin, as Jesus' Apostles did when they baptized whole households." This question involves several issues so we invite you to listen to what the bible says about them.
In this episode Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about baptism. We will discuss two questions posed by listeners. We have been asked why we teach one must be baptized in order to be saved when most people believe we are saved by faith and join a church through baptism. The second question posed by a listener is that they note correctly that sin is a spiritual condition, but water used in baptism is a physical substance. They want us to explain how physically washing with water could cleanse the spiritual condition of sin. So, listen to this Podcast and find out what the Bible says about baptism.
Over the years there have been numerous people who have espoused various ways that an individual is saved. The fact is that Jesus offers salvation to every accountable person. However, He places conditions that a person must meet in order to be saved. In this episode, Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says an individual must do in order to be saved. Since Jesus says in John 12:48 that we will be judged by His words, We need to make sure we have done what He commands us to do. In the end, it matters not what uninspired men say we must do. It only matters to us what the Lord says n His word, the Bible.
Arnie and Fred discuss what is commonly known as The Great Commission which is related to Jesus final instructions to His apostles to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations in Matthew 28:18-20. We discuss what a disciple is as well as the meaning of "baptism" which was a part of the teaching they were to accomplish. The contents of Mark 16:15 and 16 are part of the discussion. Luke has a record of some of what the Lord told His apostles which included some of the Old Testament prophecies concerning Jesus, John also includes some of the commands given to them which we discuss. Jesus final words prior to His ascension in Acts 1:4-8 are noted where Jesus specified the area of their testimony.
Arnie and Fred continue the discussion of when the miraculous gifts in the New Testament ended, We again note that at the end of Mark 16 after the Lord ascended we are told that He worked with them as they preached the word confirming it with signs following. We discuss other passages that indicate the purpose of the miraculous gifts and their duration. We note that now we can know what the apostles preached by referring to the confirmed words in our New Testaments. The means that these miraculous gifts were conferred is discussed. Warnings of false teachers is noted as well as warnings against adding to or taking from the words they delivered.
In the last study, Arnie and Fred discussed how God confirmed His word by the miracles, signs and wonders He gave to the apostles to use for that purpose, according to Mark 16:20. In this study, we will discuss what the Bible says about when those miracles ceased. We will see that the Bible tells us when that occurred. We note that Paul names the various miraculous spiritual gifts that the apostles possessed and that they passed on to some of the disciples in the first century. I 1 Corinthians 13, Paul notes that those miraculous gifts would cease when "that which is perfect is come" and he gives examples that support what he says. He does the same thing in his writings to the Ephesians in Ephesians 4:8-16. He notes the roles of responsibility of those first century disciples as they delivered gthe revelation. In this context, The temporary nature of the miraculous spiritual gifts as they were used in the first century is noted here and their end when the full faith was delivered. We discuss Acts 8:14-16 where we learned that these miraculous spiritual gifts were conferred by the laying on of the apostles hands. Finally, we discuss the fact that since the apostles all died in the first century after the complete New Testament was delivered and confirmed, the ability to confer those gifts ceased as well as the gifts possessed by the disciples.
Arnie and Fred continue the discussion on how God confirmed His word. We note that Mark says in Mark 16 verse 20 that after the Lord ascended to heaven, the apostles went everywhere preaching the word and the Lord worked with them confirming the word with signs following. WE note the numerous passages that record the miracles that the apostles performed that confirmed their teaching and preaching. Peter healed diseases and cast out demons. Paul conferred the Holy Spirit upon the disciples in Ephesus and they spoke foreign languages they never learned. Paul raised Eutychus from the dead at Troas. Both Stephen and Philip are mentioned as performing miracles that conformed their teaching. Finally, we note that the Bible says that once the apostles and inspired disciples delivered and wrote down all of God's words in the first century, the age of miracles ended.
Understanding that the Bible is God's complete word and the fact Jesus says in John 12:48 that we will be judged by His words, we need to know how God confirmed or certified those words as being from Him and reliable. Jesus tells us in Mark 16:20 that the apostles went everywhere preaching the word and the Lord worked with them confirming the word with signs following. Fred and Arnie discuss these signs and miracles and show that God accompanied the delivery of His words throughout the Bible with miracles that verified that the words the men were providing came from God. The nature of various miracles described in the Old and New Testaments is discussed. Spiritual gifts that are recorded in the New Testament are noted as well as the means these were given to men. It is finally noted that the word of God having been completely revealed, documented in the Bible and miraculously confirmed, the age of miracles has now ended, according to the word of God.
Arnie and Fred continue with the discussion of Jesus requiring people to understand the Bible alike. Jesus originally sent His apostles out to teach the gospel in all the world and to every creature or individual according to Mark 16 and Matthew 28. He emphasized that those who did not obey His words would be judged for it. Jesus said this on a number of occasions. This requires people to understand what is said in the same way, that is, alike. We discuss the fact that words have meanings, and the author of those words determines their meanings in the context He uses them. The example of the use of the word "seed" is discussed. If the hearer or reader assigns a meaning to the word different from the author, he will misunderstand the author. The hearer of this podcast is challenged to determine if they understand the use of the word "seed" in the same way the author intended. Ultimately, there is no such thing as understanding the Bible differently. The fact is, we all be judged by the standard of God's word, the New Testament according to the Lord in John 12:48.
Arnie and Fred continue the discussion of what the Bible says about understanding it and the fact that Jesus expected His listeners to understand what He said. But we also find that Jesus expected His listeners to understand what He said in the same way or alike. We find the apostles teaching the same message, the gospel, to the individuals and churches that they spoke to. The churches in Galatia and the church in Corinth were taught the same requirement to take up a collection on the first day of the week. We find the same decrees were taught in every city Paul and Silas went according to the record in Acts 16:4-5 and that was taught to the Philippian jailer later in the chapter. The gospel that was taught to that jailer was the same that Jesus sent the apostles out to teach and was taught in Acts chapter 2. We discuss the divisions that Paul discovered in the church at Corinth when they departed from teaching the same gospel that Paul had originally taught them. So, all God's people today are to understand the Bible alike and to teach it alike.
Arnie and Fred continue the discussion of what the Bible says about understanding it. Several passages from last weeks discussion that state the word of God was written to be understood and to be a guide for God's people. Discussed is the need to master some fundamentals in order to properly understand the Bible. A desire to learn what it says is necessary just as a new born baby desires milk. Noted is that the word of God is spiritual food for the new Christian. A common mistake is that people start at the hardest books of the Bible and get frustrated when they see difficulties in them. Starting with New Testament historical books is recommended, then to letters to churches and disciples. Next the Old Testament historical books, then the 17 books of prophets. Save Revelation for later study, for much of the same figurative language used by the Old Testament prophets is also used by John in writing The Revelation. One must not neglect noting God's plan of salvation for Jesus did say that He came to seek and save that which was lost. That is discussed in this lesson. Jesus selecting and sending out His apostles to teach the gospel in all the world is discussed and the requirement for all people everywhere to obey the gospel which they taught. The passages that say Jesus expected people to understand His teaching and that of His apostles is discussed.
Fred and Arnie discuss what the Bible says about understanding it. We hear people say that they can't understand the Bible and they sometimes refer to what Peter said in 2 Peter 3:15-16. We discuss what these passages actually say. We note that the Bible was written in the common language of the day, to everyday people, not to theologians. We discuss some of the passages that say that God delivered His word to be understood and to enlighten people, to guide them. The fact that Jesus was a carpenter who ;lived in a rural village and was not a sophisticated man who had not attended the schools of higher learning of the day. We talk about what it takes to understand the Bible and note that the same things are true of understanding other things that we are interested in.
Fred and Arnie continue the discussion of what the Bible says about being specific. The Bible gives specific details about future events. The Bible names the leader of Persian Empire 176 years in advance. Discussion includes the Bible description of the destruction of Jerusalem before it occurred and Daniels identification of when that would occur. Finally, discussion of some of the details of Jesus' crucifixion which David described in Psalm 22.
Fred and Arnie discuss some of the specific statements in the Bible. The statements made by the inspired Bible prophets who spoke distinctly and understandably and whose words were written down. Those words distinguished between verb tenses, the singular and plural. The importance of these facts for the readers of the Bible are discussed.
Fred and Arnie discuss what the Bible says about being complete. Jesus commanded that every generation of disciples obey His teachings. How can we fully obey that which has not been fully revealed? The discussion centers upon the numerous passages that discuss that the Bible was complete in the first century. Touched upon are the false claims of uninspired men who say they have received various revelations from God at various times after the Bible was completed by the Lord's inspired writers.
Arnie and Fred discuss what the Bible says about its inspiration and the inspiration of the writers of the Bible. Common beliefs of the Bible's inspiration are also noted. Questions and comments are solicited which may be directed to: Fred Gosnell at fgosnell@ftc-i.net or Arnie Granke at agranke440718@twc.com.