Bible Study Radio: Recent Episodes

Bible Study Radio

Knowing and experiencing the deeper truth in the Bible

Ephesians (Program #57) – The Whole Armor of God (2)

Four verses in Ephesians Chapter 6 mentioned 6 items that are associated with spiritual warfare. Beginning at verse 14, it says “Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth (#1) and having put on the breastplate of righteousness (#2) And having shod your feet with the firm foundation of the gospel of peace; (#3). Besides all these, having taken up the shield of faith, (#4) with which you will be able to quench all the flaming darts of the evil one. And receive the helmet of salvation (#5) and finally the sword of the Spirit, which Spirit is the word of God.”

Six items in two groups. The first group : the girdle of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the feet shod with the firm foundation of the gospel of peace. These three things prepare us for the warfare. While the second group provide us for the weapons, the implements that we need to fight the battle.

1 & 2 Samuel (Program #23) – The History Concerning David (10)

In 2 Samuel, David becomes secure and well established as the one king over all the tribes of Israel. As king, he’s prosperous, respected, loved, and secure from his enemies, even admired by the surrounding nations. In this situation, David’s true heart is clearly manifest. What he desires to do is to do something for God, even to build God a dwelling place in Israel. But having such a one on this earth whose heart was fully one on its own, Jehovah responds to David’s expression of wanting to do something for Him in a most surprising way.

Listen to this passage from 2 Samuel 7:

“Thus says Jehovah, Is it you who will build Me a house for Me to dwell in? For I have not dwelt in a house, since the day I brought the children of Israel up out of Egypt to this day; but I went about in a tent and in a tabernacle. In all My going about among all the children of Israel, did I ever speak a word to any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, Why have you not built Me a house of cedar? … Thus says Jehovah of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you might be ruler over My people, over Israel; And I have been with you in every place that you have gone and have cut off all your enemies before you; and I will make a great name for you, like the name of the great ones who are on the earth. And I will appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them there, that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more; and the sons of wickedness will ill-treat them no more as before … I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover Jehovah declares to you that Jehovah will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you sleep with your fathers, I will raise up your seed after you, which will come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. It is he who will build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he will be My son. … My lovingkindness will not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I put away before you. And your house and your kingdom will be made sure forever before you; your throne will be established forever.”

Ephesians (Program #56) – The Whole Armor of God (1)

The book of Ephesians unveils the Church as the center of God’s purpose and eternal plan. It also shows us the Church in several aspects that progress from the Body of Christ to a full grown man fully matured in life, in the expression of God to ultimately become the Bride of Christ for His satisfaction. That brings us to Chapter 6 and spiritual warfare. Verse 10 “Finally, be empowered in the Lord and in the might of His strength. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil”

It’s here that many readers of the Bible lose sight of one very crucial truth regarding the real focus of Ephesians. Remember, Ephesians is a book on the Church, the corporate expression of God and in the realm of spiritual warfare, this is even more crucial. For us to put on the whole armor takes the Body, all the members, we can not fight the spiritual battle alone.

1 & 2 Samuel (Program #22) – The History Concerning David (9)

After years of being persecuted at the hands of the evil king Saul, David has finally become king, fulfilling the promise that Jehovah had given to him as a young boy. Now, the entire nation of Israel was with him. And, even the surrounding nations lent their support to him as king. But most importantly, David had Jehovah’s presence with him as well. With all things fully in order under God’s sovereign arrangement, what would David turn his attention to now?

Many before him had sought greater riches and glory for themselves, but David has a different kind of heart. David had a heart that was fully one with the Lord. So and with his own house in order, David turned his full attention to God’s house. What a marvelous picture and pattern for us as believers today.

Galatians (Program #10) – No Longer I, but Christ Living in Me

We have come to an extreme crucial verse in the New Testament economy. Today we’re on Galatians 2:20:

“I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”

This is a mysterious verse to be sure, but one that contains crucial revelation of what it means to live the Christian life. Some people have used the expression “an exchanged life” to help describe the truth that’s being conveyed here. Is this a valid way of looking at it?

No. It’s not a valid way, even though some of us at one point considered using this expression. The reason I say it’s not valid is because it doesn’t apply to the whole verse…

Numbers (Program #15) – Journeying (7)

After many positive and wonderful miracles given to them in the wilderness, following their escape from Egypt, the children of Israel found themselves in the midst of escalating turmoil. This turmoil would eventually results in serious rebellion among them, bringing in God’s judgment. It was here however, in the midst of this turmoil that the Lord inserts chapter 15 in the divine record in the book of Numbers. This chapter reminds God’s people of what they have previously learned regarding their need for the offerings and for keeping the Sabbath. But just as the lessons depicted in the story of the Old Testament can be applied to our situation in the New Testament so does this reminder regarding the experience of Christ, typify by the offerings and the Sabbath have an application to us today. We will look at these types in our program.

Galatians (Program #9) – Dead to Law but Living to God

Did you know the Bible tells us that in Christ, not only have we died to sin, but we’ve also died to the law? In Christ we are free from sin. Wonderful! But equally in Christ, we’re free from law. Do these two spiritual truths describe your condition and your experience? Please stay with us today as we see our organic union with Christ and how this union can become our living reality.

Numbers (Program #14) – Journeying (5 – 6)

We all know the story from Numbers chapter 13. This is the story of twelve spies that were sent in from the twelve tribes of Israel to spy out the good land before they enter the land. We know that ten came back with one report while two seeing all the same pieces of information had an entirely different report. This story is often used as an example of men of great faith. But on today’s life study, we will see that two were living in a realm where faith could be produced.

Galatians (Program #2) – The Apostle’s Gospel

The New Testament reveals the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact the first 4 books of the New Testament are called the Gospels. Each one is unique in its focus and what it unveils regarding our wonderful Lord Jesus. But the New Testament also reveals the Gospel through the writings of the Apostle Paul. And, it’s this 5th Gospel that we come to today particularly in the book of Galatians.

We need 4 different versions of the Gospel because Christ is such a wonderful person. And, the 4 Gospels are just unveiling this most wonderful person from the angle of His being a king, the angle of His being a servant or a slave, from the angle of His being the most precious man ever revealed in the universe, and also being the Son of God who gives us Himself as the eternal life.

Numbers (Program #7) – Being Formed into an Army (8)

Most Christians live with the realization that the Christian life shall be a life that is separated unto God or sanctified. But the full understanding of just what this sanctification means is not so generally well-known. Numbers chapter 6 in the Old Testament gives us a marvelous picture in the vow of the Nazarite, a voluntarily vow that can be made by anyone among God’s people that desire to give themselves to the Lord absolutely, utterly and ultimately.

We come again for the second day in this life study of Numbers to consider the Nazarite vow and what a marvelous picture presents to us of the kind of life and living that God is looking for among His people.

Galatians (Program #1) – The Background and Subject of the Book

Just as there are 4 different seasons in the year, so there are seasons in our Christian life. This means that at times, we will pass through winter as well as through spring and summer. We may not enjoy the winter that much, but any good farmer can tell you without the reducing and killing of the winter, the growth of the crops will never be complete.

All of the epistles in the New Testament were written against a certain background or backdrop. To fully understand these letters, it’s helpful to be somewhat familiar with the background. What was the situation that the Apostle Paul faced when writing this book?

2 Corinthians (Program #55) – Final Exhortations, Greetings, and Blessings (2)

The book of 2 Corinthians has a wonderful conclusions. Paul after unveiling so many aspects of his own living and his own experience of Christ in this book, concludes with this 3-fold blessing. 2 Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” But this is not a blessing given in a merely religious way. It’s a blessing that brings us into the very Triune God that Paul himself experienced, enjoyed and even lived out in his daily life. Grace, love and fellowship were his portion and daily enjoyment of the very Triune God. May we have Him as such a portion as well.

Numbers (Program #5) – Being Formed into an Army (5 – 6)

There is a lot of talk about spiritual warfare among believers. Nearly all Christians have realization that there is a battle that must be waged if we are to prevail against God’s enemy. But what are the factors that we can see from the Old Testament books like Numbers that can be helpful to us in allowing God to form us into an army to fight for Him and with Him for the accomplishment of His purpose? We will see several things we can begin to apply immediately in our individual and corporate Christian walk on today’s program.

2 Corinthians (Program #14) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (7a)

The apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 that he and the other apostles had received a ministry or reconciliation. To reconcile one person to another is to restore the offending party to the offended party.

Of course in our case we all had offended God and the moment that we believed into Christ, receiving His work on the cross for us, we were brought nigh to Him and experience the first step or first level of reconciliation.

But actually 2 Corinthians reveals that there is a further step, a second level or degree of reconciliation. And that only someone fully in God can have such a ministry to reconcile others fully into God. This is the ministry of reconciliation that Paul was commissioned with.

Leviticus(Program #4) – The Burnt Offering Christ for God’s Satisfaction (2)

Many Christians pass over the fine points in this book, but the Lord has revealed many details of our precious Christ in Leviticus. Most believers in Christ today know that Christ is the Lamb of God but not many had heard the details of the sacrifice that’s offer to God as described in Leviticus chapters 1 through 7. As we touch an unique picture of our experience of Christ as it’s revealed in the Old Testament sacrifices.

The book of Leviticus shows us the way God’s people were to worship Him and then as a result of their worship of God they live a holy life. So these things are portrayed in Leviticus. According to Leviticus to worship God is not just to bow down and to recognizes how awesome and mighty God is. But to worship God is to contact God and to enjoy Christ together with God. This may be a different definition of worship than many Christians have heard but this is the real worship that’s revealed in the Bible and this is the worship that is spoken about in John 4:24 where John said that Father is seeking the true worshipers who will worship Him in spirit, that means in their regenerated human spirit and in reality, that’s with Christ as the reality of all the offerings. So the real worship of God is to contact God in our spirit and to enjoy Christ as the reality of the offerings together with God. So in Leviticus in the first 7 chapters especially we see these pictures of the five different kinds of offerings. The burn offering, the meal offering, the sin offering, the trespass offering, and the peace offering. These offerings were not only sacrifices but they were actually presents or gifts offer to God by those who appreciate Christ, those who experience Christ, those who enjoy Christ and those who appreciate Christ. And the interesting thing about most these offerings is that there is a portion that not for God to enjoy but also for God’s people to enjoy. So we may say that God and His people together enjoy these offerings. And they enjoy by way of eating. Something of the offering was eaten by God’s people and also was eaten by God. And we will see what that means in the future broadcast. The picture here is a picture of the mutual enjoyment. God and His people enjoying some common portion together in fellowship and this common portion is just Christ Himself who is portrayed in these offerings.

In relating worship to contact with God, as the priests in the offers were preparing these various offerings, they weren’t just caught up in the ceremonial aspect. but they were preparing it according to God’s direction knowing that they were about to have contact with Him in the actual presenting of these offerings so to get the really picture we have to understand these offerings were the vehicle by which God’s people, the priests and the offerers were coming into contact with the living God. This really is the center piece, the focus of our worship rather than just something ceremonial. The main aspect and item in worshiping God is to have contact with Him, to have fellowship with Him and to enjoy Christ together with Him.

2 Corinthians (Program #13) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (6)

At the beginning of chapter 5 in 2 Corinthians Paul the apostle speaks in a strange way.

1 “For we know that if our earthly tabernacle dwelling is taken down, we have a building from God, a dwelling not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens.”

Well, we may consider that we have understand this at least in parts. But listen to:

2 “For also in this we groan, longing to be clothed upon with our dwelling place from heaven,”

3 “If indeed, being clothed, we will not be found naked.”

Actually what Paul is expressing here is his deep longing and desire to be raptured.

Rapture, is a topic today that fascinating millions today even unbelievers are intrigued by this topic as we’ve seen by the tremendous popularity of recent series of novels on this subject.

But what is most often missed by Christians considering rapture it that it’s linked not just to our initially salvation but much more to our growth and maturity in the divine life. For as we grow and mature, our longing for this day deepens as we can clearly seen in Paul’s words.

4 “For also, we who are in this tabernacle groan, being burdened, in that we do not desire to be unclothed, but clothed upon, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.“

Leviticus (Program #3) – The Burnt Offering – Christ for God’s Satisfaction (1)

“…Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” This popular verse from Hebrews chapter 10 is commonly used but seldom understood in its real context – and that is of Christ replacing the Old Testament offerings. Stay with us today as we once again look at the picture of Christ as the Lamb of God in our life study of Leviticus.

The last 2 programs really were both introductions: firstly, to the book of Leviticus and then to the five major offerings which typify Christ in this book. We’re going to touch these offerings. The focus today will be on the burnt offering.

At the end of the book of Exodus, we do see that the tabernacle is built. But now in Leviticus we see not only that the tabernacle is built but the living God is living in that tabernacle. And, He has provided the offerings for us, as His believers, to enter into the tabernacle – to have fellowship with Him, to contact Him, to enjoy Him and eventually, we see through typology, that it all leads to Christ and the experience of Christ…

2 Corinthians (Program #12) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (5)

Let me give you three important spiritual terms from the New Testament.

Regeneration
Transformation
Transfiguration

I selected these because many believers confuse them or perhaps think that they are synonymous or interchangeable. But actually while they all refer to various steps in the process of God’s full salvation, they certainly are not interchangeable, in fact they apply to the three distinct parts of our being. Our spirit, our soul and our body.

Leviticus (Program #2) – A General Definition of the Offerings

Because Christ is so wonderful and all-inclusive, plain words are just not adequate to revel Him and describe Him. Types which are actually pictures are also necessary. Both the tabernacle and the offerings in the Leviticus are types of Christ. As we look at these types or pictures that we see of Christ in the Old Testament.

2 Corinthians (Program #11) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (4)

2 Corinthians makes a marvelous contribution to the New Testament because it describes so vividly the experience of Christ not from a doctrinal prospective but from the details of how the apostle Paul and his co-workers gain Christ experientially.

In fact chapters three and four may be the top chapters in the whole Bible in the experience of Christ. especially as this experience relates to how the genuine ministers of the New Covenant are produced. What we see in these chapters is that what these ministers preach, teach and minister is not based on what they have heard, studied or learned but upon what they themselves had been constituted with.

Leviticus (Program #1) – An Introductory Word

Leviticus, the third book of the Bible began this way; “Then Jehovah called to Moses and spoke to him out of the Tent of Meeting”. It’s marvelous that this book begins with God’s speaking. Through the ages, God has revealed Himself and His plan to mankind through speaking. There is much speaking of God, ahead for all of us in the coming weeks as today we begin our life study of Leviticus.

This is a unique life study of a book that it’s fair to say many people don’t know that much about. This book is not well-known by many many Christians but this message and as we go through this whole book, we are going to have our eyes opened to a lot of marvelous speaking from God.

2 Corinthians (Program #10) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (3)

The apostle Paul speaking about himself prior to his salvation refer to himself as the chiefest of sinners or the foremost of sinners, yet this one who had been the great persecutor of the church eventually becomes the chiefest among the apostles.

How did God accomplish such a reconstitution of Paul? Was it His miraculous work transforming him in an instant? Or was it the constituting work of the Spirit over many years?

2 Corinthians chapter 4 is the key chapter in providing answers to this profound question.

Exodus (Program #175) – The Erection of the Tabernacle – The Cloud, the Relationship Between Cloud and Glory, Comparison between Genesis and Exodus

In 1983, Witness Lee conclude his life study of Exodus. It spanned nearly 4 years. It includes 185 messages and nearly 2000 pages. In the final paragraph of volume number 8, he wrote “I have the full assurance that those who have been with us throughout the years can never be the same. Eternity will reveal what the Lord has been doing within us and among us for the fulfillment of His eternal purpose. Praise Him for the glorious conclusion of the book of Exodus.”

2 Corinthians (Program #9) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (2)

What should be the important criteria or qualities to be a genuine and proper minister of the gospel of the New Testament? We all might have our own ideas and thoughts about what are the most important qualities. But the Bible devotes several chapters to the subject in the book of 2 Corinthians and it’s there that we see several items that we likely would never have even considered.

First, the ministers must be those that are constituted with the life giving and transforming Spirit as chapter 3. This means that they are full of Christ and therefore able to minister this very Christ into people.

Second, as we will see today in chapter 4. They are those who conduct themselves in such a way that the glory of the gospel of Christ might shine through them and out from within them. In other words, their goal should not be just to preach the gospel, but to allow the gospel in its glory to be shined out through them for other to see. Oh, how we Christians today need such healthy, heavenly ministers.

Exodus (Program #174) – The Erection of the Tabernacle – God’s Side and Our Side, Two beginnings, Moses, The Need for Reality

In the final chapter of Exodus we see the people of God carrying out His plan and erecting the tabernacle, His dwelling place. The completion of this work brings in a two-fold presence of God’s glory. First it covered the tabernacle or tent of meeting as a cloud outwardly and then it filled the tabernacle within. God’s House brings man into contact with God’s glory.

2 Corinthians (Program #8) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (1)

All believers have their favorite verses, verses that just seem to minister particularly to us in our situation. But one verse that deserves to be on every list is 2 Corinthians 3:18, listen to the apostle Paul in this marvelous verse,

18 “But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.”

Why is this verse so particularly important? Because it brings us face to face with the Lord Jesus in an intimate and personal way. But also in a way where by we are infused, transfused even transformed by Christ Himself as the very life giving Spirit.

Exodus (Program #173) – The Making of the Tabernacle – Offering of the Materials, Preparing of Workers

The Bible reveals that God needs man to assist Him in His move. God needs man and for this God calls man. The question is what is it that man can do to assist God in His move? What is it that God is looking for for man to carry out His move? Part of the answers can be seen by understanding the types and pictures in the Old Testament book of Exodus. For the past several months we had that enjoyment, that privilege and that pleasure and today we come nearly to the conclusion of this life study of Exodus.

2 Corinthians (Program #7) – The Ministry of the New Covenant (3)

You probably remember the story of Moses coming down from Mt.Sinai after having been in God’s presence when he received the ten commandments. His face was shining so brightly that he had to put a veil over it before he can encounter the rest of the children of Israel. That shining was the outward reflection of God’s glory. A shining reflected off of Moses face. But as marvelous as that shining was in 2 Corinthians Paul calls it a fading glory. And rightly so, because in a very short time it was gone from Moses face. Actually this shining represents the glory of the Old Testament ministry. A ministry of as Paul called it “death and condemnation”. No wonder this glory fades.

But the New Testament ministry that Paul declares to us in 2 Corinthians is more in glory, an unfading, eternal, surpassing glory, that shines not just upon us but even out from within us, as the New Testament ministers.

Exodus (Program #172) – The Making of the Tabernacle with Its Furniture and the Garments for the Priests

When the children of Israel were escaping Egypt, the Lord granted them favor and allowed them to take much gold, silver and other precious materials with them. Later they used that gold to make an idol, offending God to the uttermost. But after being reconciled to Him they were able to offer this gold once again. This time for the building of God’s House. This brought in God’s full blessing. This is a wonderful lesson for us today.

2 Corinthians (Program #6) – The Ministry of the New Covenant (2)

Metaphors play an important role in Scripture. Webster says a metaphor is the use of one set of words to describe or illustrate a similar point.

John uses the technique when he speaks of Jesus approaching him in the gospel. “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Surely he wasn’t saying that Jesus was a literal “lamb”. But the metaphor or picture gives us a much richer and clearer understanding.

The apostle Paul was also very fond of metaphors, particularly when conveying his deepest thoughts in teachings. We see it used intensively in 2 Corinthians. For example in 2 Corinthians chapter 2:14 he says “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in the Christ” Here, the metaphor is the triumphant possession of captured and vanquished folks after a Roman battle. And Paul says that we, the believers had become such vanquished ones in the train of the victorious Christ.

Now, we come to another marvelous metaphor in the very next chapter, chapter 3 of 2 Corinthians begins this way:

1-3 “Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some do, letters of commendation to you or from you? You are our letter, inscribed in our hearts, known and read by all men, Since you are being manifested that you are a letter of Christ ministered by us, inscribed not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tablets of stone but in tablets of hearts of flesh.”

Living letters of Christ. This is our topic today.

Exodus (Program #171) – Moses Stay With God

After 40 days and 40 nights with God on Mount Sinai, Moses was instructed on how to begin building the tabernacle, God’s dwelling place with man. But twice in Exodus chapter 24 and again in chapter 35 the Lord cautions even warns Moses and the people not to begin working for Him without first enjoying the Sabbath rest. Is this just an oddity of the Old Testament dispensation or is this a real and meaningful exhortation for us, God’s New Testament believers? We will explore the real Sabbath today.

2 Corinthians (Program #5) – The Ministry of the New Covenant (1)

When we consider what are the main qualifications to be an effective and useful minister of the gospel. We may list things like been an eloquent speaker or having a charismatic personality or been one in power with miraculous gifts that can perform mighty works of power in the name of Jesus. But the New Testament itself when presenting to us what’s the genuine ministry of the New Testament doesn’t uplift any of these things. Rather what we see in the genuine ministry of the apostles was the growth and maturity in the divine life. Paul the apostle himself was such a minister not relying on either natural ability or super natural gifts. He was the one spent years experiencing, enjoying and been constituted inwardly with the life giving Spirit, the very Christ in resurrection.

Exodus (Program #170) – Moses Stay With God – Donkey, Lamb, Bringing the First Fruits to God, Not Boiling a Kid in Mother’s Milk

It has been marvelous, the reason is that we have seen Christ Himself in a wonderful way, unveiled for our experience for the carrying out of God’s economy. When we see such a Christ in relation to our experience and God’s economy, the situation in our reading and study of the Word truly become wonderful.

Today we come to chapter 34. This is a chapter where once again the Lord gives Moses the tablets containing the commandments. But there are a couple of other matters that we need to look at.

2 Corinthians (Program #4) -Introduction (4)

Have you ever noticed a married couple that’s been together for a long long time and they know each other so well that they seems to be an unspoken communication between them. It seems that the one can tell how the other feels just by a glance into their face. This is really a blessed state of marriage to arrive at. But more importantly it demonstrate a very special intimacy and knowledge of one another. It is just this kind of tender and intimate knowing that the apostle Paul was referring to in 2 Corinthians chapter 2:10 “But whom you forgive anything, I also forgive; for also what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, it is for your sake in the person of Christ;”

This phrase “in the person of Christ” can also be translated as “in the face of Christ” and it implies the most intimate knowledge of another person.

Exodus (Program #169) – Acts Program 6, Life-study of Acts 6

As we near the conclusion of our life study of Exodus, we come to a matter that seems to be just an Old Testament issue that is the keeping of feasts. These feasts are presented in Exodus and several other Old Testament books. But we would like to go back into our archives today and pick up a highlight program from the life study of Acts. We are going to see that feasting is surely not just an Old Testament matter.

Romans (Program #8) – The Subjective Experience of Justification (1) Faith is not separated from Christ. It is actually Christ Himself transfusing Himself into us and producing a reaction within us. And this is our believing, our saving faith. What is faith? We know we are saved by it. Oh how elusive it becomes when […]

Exodus (Program #48) – Amalek Versus Kingship Sin is a wicked and despicable thing. The Bible condemn sin and as believers we must also condemn. But sin is not the only enemy that we face in the Christian life. In fact it may not even be the biggest enemy. So then what constitute the main […]

Romans (Program #7) – The Example of Justification In this broadcast we see the wonderful God in whom Abraham believed. He’s the God who gives life to the dead and calls things not being as being. Abraham is the example of justification. Paul was fully in the view of Genesis as he wrote the epistles […]

Exodus (Program #47) – The Continual Fighting Against Amalek If we could have a birds-eye view of Exodus, we will realize that even after God’s people are redeemed and baptized and brought to feed and drink on the living Christ, they still must face a fierce and subjective enemy. Even more to be regarded than […]

Exodus (Program #37) -The Heavenly Diet—Manna (3)

The food that man eats is the focus of the Bible from the first pages of Genesis to the final pages of Revelation. Man’s eating represents what he takes into his being. Manna, the heavenly bread given by the Lord for His people in Exodus is one of the Bible’s meaningful types of our Lord Jesus. A careful consideration of the details and characteristics of manna can open up a great insight and appreciation of Christ.

The last couple of days we’ve been looking at the characteristics or details that are given in Scripture related to manna. Yesterday in particularly we saw 3 items that first it came from heaven, second it came with the dew of the morning and third it came every morning.

Acts (Program #69) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (35)

Once again the apostle Paul is given an opportunity to speak during his two year imprisonment at the hands of the corrupt Roman government. With his wisdom and knowledge of Roman laws and custom, he likely could have talked his way out of this difficult situation. But he chooses instead not to say all the right things in order to gain his freedom, but rather boldly testifies of the vision of the resurrected Christ that he had seen and who charged him with the marvelous commission of the New Testament ministry. Stay with us today for a rich and enlightening life study of the Bible.

Exodus (Program #36) -The Heavenly Diet—Manna (2)

Manna was the food that God gave to the children of Israel to eat during their 40 year journey in the wilderness. We know that it was small and white and round, but beyond that description we don’t know much else. In another word, it was mysterious. Though numerous words have been written about the Lord Jesus Christ, He also remained in may ways a mystery. It’s hard to say exactly what or who He is. Yet like the manna of old, He can surely feed and sustain His people.

We began this topic of manna a few days ago and Witness Lee put chapter 16 of Exodus on the same plain as chapter 14 and chapter 12 where the Passover feast and the crossing of the Red Sea are all depicted. It is quite remarkable that this chapter has the same kind of stature. Manna is mentioned in two places at least in Scripture in the Old Testament; this portion in Exodus 16 that we’ve been looking at and also comes up in Numbers chapter 11. Let’s look at couple verses from that portion, ” there is nothing at all but this manna to look at. Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like the appearance of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it and ground it between two millstones or beat it in a mortar; then they boiled it in pots and made cakes of it; and its taste was like the taste of cakes baked in oil. And when the dew fell on the camp at night, the manna would fall with it.” One thing is certain; manna was very mysterious but it was very wonderful as well. What do we know about manna?

Acts (Program #68) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (34)

For the third time during his two year imprisonment in Caesarea, the Apostle Paul is in a courtroom-like setting, making his defense before a magistrate of the Roman government. And on this occasion, he reveals that God has selected him to be both minister and witness of the very Christ in resurrection. These are not general words. The words given to Paul by inspiration that conveyed much rich spiritual meaning and content. We look closely at this marvelous expression on today’s life study of the Bible.

Exodus (Program #35) -The Heavenly Diet—Manna (1)

Listen to these brief words from Exodus chapter 16, “in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. And when the layer of dew lifted, there upon the surface of the wilderness were fine round flakes, fine as the frost on the earth. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which Jehovah has given you to eat.” It is easy to see why the people ask “what is it?” They needed what we need; vision and revelation as we touch the matter of manna, the unique food for God’s people. In this broadcast will be a tremendous help to us in our Christian journey to fulfill God’s eternal purpose.

Acts (Program #67) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (33)

The book of Acts reveal the outward trials and life-threatening events that confronted the Apostle Paul. Yet, hidden within these interesting stories are periods of absolute seclusion and reflection by the Apostle. What role did these periods play in the eventual unfolding of God’s plan for His people in the pages of the New Testament. We will look today at some of the great writings of the Bible and how God used every circumstance in the life of His chosen servant to bring to life his New Testament economy.

Exodus (Program #25) – The Passover (3) The redemption of Christ is mysterious and well beyond our natural understanding in all its rich significance. Without the Old Testament picture of the Passover we have no way of seeing all the wonderful and mysterious details and aspects of Christ eternal redemption. How we thank the Lord […]

Acts (Program #57) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (23) A deeply burdened Apostle Paul returns to the religious center of Jerusalem, only to be met with the most difficult situation of his entire life. To view and consider this momentous event in the life of the […]

Exodus (Program #24) – The Passover (2) The record of the Passover given in Exodus is very detailed. No where else in Scriptures do we find such a detailed account of Christ’s redemption. For His redemption is the clear message of the Passover. The reason for all the detail is that God wants us to […]

Acts (Program #56) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (22) At the conclusion of his third and final missionary journey against the counsel of the brothers in Ephesus and even against the warning of the Holy Spirit, Paul elects to travel to Jerusalem, and what proves to […]

Acts (Program #55) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (21) In Acts chapter 20, the Apostle Paul was departing from the saints in Ephesus whom he loved dearly. He gave them a solemn warning saying, “I know that after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among […]

Exodus (Program #23) – The Passover (1) Nearly all Christians know that Christ is the Lamb of God, who accomplished redemption for us. John 1:29 says “the next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Though most of us may […]

Exodus (Program #13) – God’s Demand and Pharaoh’s Resistance (1) During the captivities of God’s people, Israel, God had near direct dealing with the tyrannical Pharaoh as he held God’s people in against God’s demand to let them go. Pharaoh in this ancient story represent God’s enemy, who resisted God’s demand and refused again and […]

Acts (Program #45) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (11) To suffer persecution on behalf of Jesus is not uncommon. Believers have experienced this glory from the first century. We may think that the Biblical pattern for such suffering is to bear it humbly, meekly, as a […]

Acts (Program #44) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (10) If we were embarking on a mission to preach the Gospel, surely we would expect the Holy Spirit to assist us, even empower us. But, did you know that the book of Acts tells of the Holy […]

Exodus (Program #12) – The Three Stations in Fulfilling God’s Purpose As the children of Israel were called by God in Exodus 3 to make their exit or exodus from Egypt, they were directed to 3 different stations that will ultimately be a part of their journey. First to the wilderness, then to a mountain […]

Acts (Program #43) – The Propagation in Asia Minor and Europe through the Ministry of Paul’s Company (9) The Apostle Paul began the second of his great missionary journeys on a contentious note. A serious dispute aroused between he and Barnabas, his close co-worker and the one who initiated him into the ministry. The lessons […]

Exodus (Program #11) – The Purpose of God’s Calling The story of Moses is really the story of God’s calling. Moses was surely called by God. The account of this calling is both riveting and captivating. How we admire a man like Moses so useful to God for His purpose. But what about us? Is […]

Genesis (Program #134) – The Reigning Aspect of the Matured Israel (8) We come today to our final regular program of the life study of Genesis. We have one final look at Joseph as a full type of Christ. We’ve said that often before. But really what do we mean by that comparison?

Acts (Program #33) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (25) After a glorious beginning, the church in Jerusalem underwent a sudden turn and persecution fell heavily upon the church. The trouble and persecution became so heavy in fact that nearly all the believers except the apostles were […]

Genesis (Program #133) – The Reigning Aspect of the Matured Israel (7) This is our next to the last program from Genesis and soon we will be going on to the book of Romans and we certainly look forward to that. …this particular exposition of the book of Genesis is really a spiritual classic. We […]

Acts (Program #32) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (24) As Christians today, we likely take it for granted that anyone, despite their background or race, can freely take the salvation afforded by the grace of God through Jesus Christ. But, it wasn’t always that way. The […]

Acts (Program #31) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (23) When was Christ crucified for us? Of course we know that He died on the cross about 2000 years ago. But, how then do we understand Revelation 13:8 that says, the Lamb slain from the foundation of […]

Genesis (Program #132) – The Reigning Aspect of the Matured Israel (6) Today we have another program dealing with the way that Joseph elected to reveal himself to his 11 brothers. As Witness Lee begins today he once again is going to mention that with Joseph we do have these two lines: the line of […]

Genesis (Program #122) – The Ultimate Consummation of God’s Operation in the Bible As this book is the book of all the seeds of the truth contained in the Bible. The conclusion of this chapter must correspond with the conclusion of the whole Bible. At the end of the whole Bible, we all can see […]

Acts (Program #21) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (16) Fifteen thousand in the Church. They all left to other cities and other places, preaching the Gospel everywhere. Can you imagine the activated Body of Christ with every member going out to announce this resurrected and ascended […]

Genesis (Program #121) – The Spiritual Significance of Joseph and Benjamin (3) If you had previously thought that God’s plan was just to take us to heaven, you would most definitely want to stay with us for another marvelous life study of Genesis with Witness Lee. God’s plan is much higher than that as we […]

Acts (Program #20) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (15) In the book of Acts, there is an inspiring account of the martyrdom of a genuine saint in the early Church. Yet, the story of the stoning of Stephen, even more than a rich example for our […]

Genesis (Program #120) – The Spiritual Significance of Joseph and Benjamin (2) If you have ever wondered why the outward circumstance in your life seems so contrary to what you usually think of as God’s blessing. You’ll want to stay tune to today’s life study of Genesis with Witness Lee. Another marvelous life study from […]

Acts (Program #19) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (14) The early church life of the saints in first century Jerusalem was a unique time in Church history. They experienced the Lord mightily and inwardly, and they were multiplied even daily. But, this didn’t stop problems from […]

Genesis (Program #110) – The Shiftings of Birthright in Scripture As we come to a portion of Genesis that has far reaching implications for God’s people. We are going to focus today on a matter that appears Genesis, in which we will find out is very meaningful, very significant. Yet like many other things […]

Acts (Program #9) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (4) Today, we come to the tremendous preaching of the apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost. We’re going to spend several programs to get into this message that he gave. But today particularly, we want to focus […]

Genesis (Program #109) – Blessing In some of our previous studies, we’ve covered the matter of blessing, but mostly in a passing way or in a way of comparison with grace, which is a more inward experience of God. But today we focus the whole message on blessing. How does the blessing of the divine […]

Acts (Program #8) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (3) The day of Pentecost, chronicled in Acts chapter 2, has held a fascination for believers since the first century. So many significant items in the history of the church are traced to that period of time. Today, […]

Genesis (Program #108) – The Manifestation of Maturity (1) Our life study again today brings us to the matter of maturity and transformation from Genesis chapter 45 through 48. We have a life study today in which transformation as signified by the life experience of Jacob. It’s really looked at in its final stage, the […]

Acts (Program #7) – The Propagation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria through the Ministry of Peter’s Company (2) Acts chapter 2 verses 1 and 2 says, “And as the day of Pentecost was being fulfilled, they were all together in the same place. And suddenly there was a sound out of heaven, as of a […]

Genesis (Program #98) – Being Transformed (7) Today another program on the pillars for God’s House, that we first saw in Genesis 28 and I am sure for many, it may seen somewhat strange that we’ve devoted so much time, so many broadcast seems like rather an obscure item in the divine revelation…

John (Program #49) – Life Processed for Multiplication (4) Let us all let the wind blow where it wills. And, instead of trying to systematize or schematize the experience of the Spirit, let’s experience the Spirit for the carrying out of God’s economy, letting God truly be God. John 20 is in many respects, a […]

John (Program #48) – Life Processed for Multiplication (3) I really like this marvelous term here. “Go tell my brothers.” In the Gospel of John, He was with these disciples a lot, but He never referred to them as brothers. He always called them either by name or referred to them as friends. But, after […]

Genesis (Program #97) – Being Transformed (6) We’ve had several programs recently that have focused on Jacob’s dream in Genesis 28. Today’s program is going to deal specifically with one item that appeared in that dream; the pillar. A very crucial part of this dream.

Genesis (Program #96) – Being Transformed (5) Today in Genesis chapter 35, we come to a matter we are going to spend a couple programs on and that’s the matter of pillars. We’ve seen before that Genesis is a book in which all of the seeds of the great truth of the Bible are sown. […]

John (Program #46) – Life Processed for Multiplication (1) The main thing is that these garments were left there in this orderly way as a testimony of His resurrection. This was not something like someone got in and stole His body as reported. No. He did this Himself. He resurrected. The account of the crucifixion […]

Genesis (Program #86) – Being Dealt With (7) We will be again on Jacob’s dream on Genesis 28 to see the intrinsic significance of the dream that the Lord give him in this chapter. We have already touched this, but because of its significance of the first appearing in the Bible of the House of […]

John (Program #36) – The Dispensing of the Triune God for the Producing of His Abode (4) This is so critical for our experience of Christ to continually say, “Lord Jesus, I love you.” And according to these verses, when you tell the Lord that you love Him, He says “I will love you also, […]

John (Program #35) – The Dispensing of the Triune God for the Producing of His Abode (3) People think that the Lord Jesus has gone to prepare a big mansion for us in heaven. As though God had two dwelling places, or two buildings, God only has one building. Not one on heaven and one […]

Genesis (Program #85) – Being Dealt With (6) These chapters, chapter 30 and 31 of Genesis, we are going to see a very interesting story. But our focus is not just the story, we are discovering the principles of life in all these passages in Genesis. What is the background of our life study today […]

John (Program #34) – The Dispensing of the Triune God for the Producing of His Abode (2) Most Christians think that the Father’s house is heaven, or a heavenly mansion. But, I hope that those who are listening would come to the Word again to see what the Bible says that the Father’s house is. […]

Genesis (Program #84) – Being Dealt With (5) Today’s study brings us to chapter 29, a very interesting chapter in Jacob’s life. We have come now quite a way with Jacob and by this time he has left home and he is on a journey to go to his uncle Laban. His mother has worked […]

Genesis (Program #74) – Having No Maturity in Life

Today’s life study is going to focus on Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, somewhat collectively, including many of their failures and weakness.

John (Program #25) – The Need of Those Under the Bondage of Sin

We want to see again from the Gospel of John how Christ as life meets the need of every man’s case. No matter what your case is, Christ as life can meet your need.

There are 9 cases in John 3 through 11, which unveil this in a full way. In John 3 through John 7, what we’ve seen in previous programs is that Christ wants to be man’s life and life supply. In John 3, Christ as life regenerates man. In John 4, Christ as life satisfies man and heals man from all the sickness of sin. In John 5, Christ as life enlivens man. In John 6, Christ as life feeds man with Himself as man’s spiritual food to be man’s spiritual sustenance. In John 7, Christ as life quenches the thirst of man to be man’s satisfaction.

Genesis (Program #73) – The Marriage of Isaac – A Type of Christ Marrying the Church

Our life study today brings us to a very pleasant portion. We are going to examine the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah. There is much symbolism behind it as we are going to see in this life study.

John (Program #24) – The Need of the Thirsty – Life’s Quenching (2)

Today the Lord does not expect a welcome in religion, but He surely appreciates His lovers, His seekers, those who enjoy Him, not in the temple but in their little house. That’s where He is.

The Gospel of John frequently uses the feasts as a background for the presentation of Christ, the Son of God as life to us. In chapter 6, the background was the feast of Passover, the first of the annual feasts. In chapter 7, the background is the feast of tabernacles: the last of the annual feasts, a time of celebration, and joy, and in a sense success in the harvest. The Lord uses this feast as a background to address the need of the thirsty, and to present life as the unique capacity to quench the thirst of human beings.

Genesis (Program #72) – The Marriage of Isaac – A Practical Living in Oneness with the Lord

With the casual reading, Genesis appears to be a book of creation with some stories of some of the great men of the Old Testament. But I think during the course of these life study programs we have seen much much more.

The real focus of the book of Genesis is showing God of purpose carrying out His economy for His purpose with mankind. God is not a God of remedy for mistakes but He is a God of purpose to carry out what He intended from the earliest time.

John (Program #23) – The Need of the Thirsty – Life’s Quenching (1)

According to the book of Revelation, our ultimate destination is not heaven; it’s not a mansion; it’s the city of God, the New Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven. This city is not a physical, material city.

Today we come to chapter 7 of John and “The need of the thirsty – life’s quenching” Witness Lee actually begins his message with reference back to chapter 5 verse 39..

Genesis (Program #53) – The Trial of the Called Ones

Today we are going to look at the most precious experience of Abraham, a message entitled “the trial of the called ones”. How Abraham’s life is really a picture of our own Christian walk…

John (Program #4) – A Foreword to the Life-Study of the Gospel of John (4)

You have to remember the first section of this book (John) is to bring God into man, and to declare God to man. This is the first section. Then the second section is to bring man into God.

We come to the position of John’s writings in the scripture. First of all, we have to realize John’s ministry is a mending ministry. When John was called, he was not fishing there; he was mending the net. When Peter was called, Peter was fishing, but John was mending. So in the later ministry, Peter did a lot of fishing. Peter brought in the people, but eventually it was John that mended the heavenly net. John’s ministry was a mending ministry, and this mending was one with life. Only life mends. Only life covers all the holes of the heavenly net…

Genesis (Program #52) – Witness Lee Documentary (1905-1997)

Witness Lee, a prolific Christian teacher and writer, rest from his earthly labor and went to be with the Lord he loved on June 9, 1997. He was 91 years old. Witness Lee was a close co-worker of Watchman Nee in China and brought his ministry to the United States in 1962. For the next one half hour, we will feature excerpt of a three-part memorial which took place between July 3 and 9, 1997 in Orange County, California. Part one of this memorial was attended by over 5,000 believers in Christ in 12 meetings over 6 days. This gathering was a continuation of semi-annual Bible training initiated by Witness Lee over 20 years ago. Ron Kangas of Living Stream Ministry opened the training to remember and memorialize the truth of Witness Lee’s ministry, has summarized in the last 11 points:

the apostle’s teaching
the New Testament Ministry
God’s economy
the Triune God
the all-inclusive Christ
the full ministry of Christ
the all-inclusive Spirit
the divine life
the Body of Christ
the practical expression of the church
the glorious New Jerusalem

John (Program #3) – A Foreword to the Life-Study of the Gospel of John (3)

The central thought of the scripture is life and building. What is life? What is building? Firstly, life. God’s creation was centered on life. This has been fully revealed in Genesis chapter 1. And number two, man was placed in front of the tree of life, indicating that God wanted man to take it as life. This is revealed, thus, in two verses: verses 8 and 9 of chapter 2 of Genesis. Number 3, the Old Testament saints enjoyed God as their life. Psalms 36:9 says “With Thee, there is the fountain of life.”..

Genesis (Program #51) – Living by Faith (2)

We have our second program today on a life of faith. Our message will begin with Abraham building his second altar. What is the significance of Abraham building altars while human society was building cities and high towers?

John (Program #2) – A Foreword to the Life-Study of the Gospel of John (2)

The experience of Christ as life is in the realization of Christ being God himself dispensed into our being. This is life.

We all have to know, Christ is life, the Church is the building, but still what is life? You should say, life is Christ. But we should realize to such an extent that Christ as life to us is just God Himself dispensed into our very being.

John (Program #1) – A Foreword to the Life-Study of the Gospel of John (1)

In today’s program, we like to see something from the whole Bible. The Bible is a book of two things. Many of you would say Christ and the Church. The two things are not Christ and the Church, but life and building. Christ is life and the Church is building. If you don’t realize that Christ is life and the Church is building, when you say Christ and the Church, it is just a kind of doctrine. When we say Christ, we mean life. When we say the Church, we mean building. What is Christ? Christ is our life. What is the Church? The Church is God’s building.

Genesis (Program #50) – Living by Faith (1)

This one should be very instructive and helpful to anyone desiring to live by faith. We’ve seen before that we really need to look at Abraham, Isaac and Jacob collectively if we are going to get a full picture of God’s calling.

Genesis (Program #49) – The Progress in Answering God’s Calling

Our life study today is dealing with progress in answering God’s calling. A central item in God’s call to Abraham was the necessity for him to cross a river. What does this mean? The explanation should take into account both literal and the spiritual significance of this. Literally, Abraham had to cross a great river in order to go from one realm, the land of Chaldea into the realm, the good land into which God was calling him. Spiritually speaking, this points to the reality of the experience of baptism. Elsewhere in the Scriptures, when God’s people were to go from one realm to another, they pass through water. Noah passed through water to get into the realm of God’s new creation. The children of Israel passed through the water of the Red Sea and again through the water of the Jordan. All of these may be understood and rightly as types of baptism. When God calls us, we began in an old fallen realm. God wants to bring us out of that realm into a realm where Christ is everything to us. In order to make this transition by the Lord’s grace, we need so to speak to cross a river. We need to pass through water which spiritually signifies death and resurrection. So in summary, Abraham’s crossing the river indicates our need to go through death and resurrection in Christ signified by baptism in order to be transferred out of the realm of old creation into the realm of God’s new creation…

Luke (Program #65) – The Man-Savior’s Ascension (3 & 4)

The Gospel of Luke concludes with one of the mysterious and difficult to understand items in the entire New Testament and that’s the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ to the heavenlies, some forty days after His resurrection. Luke 20:4 says “while He blessed them He parted from them and was carried up into heaven and they worship Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple blessing God.” One of the reasons that seems to be mysterious and difficult is that it appears to be very removed even remote from us. Yet when we see His ascension properly in view of the entire New Testament revelation we realized that it has tremendous implications for us.

Luke (Program #64) – The Man-Savior’s Ascension (1 & 2)

The final Chapter of the Gospel of Luke is marvelous. It begins with the Lord Jesus revealing Himself to His dear ones, that He had resurrected from the dead. Then we see Him in resurrection appearing and disappearing repeatedly in order to train them to experience His invisible presence and finally He brings us to this concluding words that He uttered to His disciples:

Chapter 24:46, “And He said to them thus it is written that the Christ would suffered and raised up from the dead on the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaim in His name to all the nations beginning from Jerusalem. And behold I send forth the promise of my Father upon you. But as for you stay in the city until you put on power from on high.”

24:51 “And while He blessed them, He parted from them and was carried up into heavens.” Here was His promise that He would cloth them with power from on high. But not before His visible ascension to the third heavens. What happen in that ascension? And why is it important for us to know about it?

Genesis (Program #48) – The Motive and Strength of Being Called

Today we are going to look at the God of glory appearing to Abraham. When you consider Abraham’s entire life, when you look at him in his entire history. You’re looking at a person just like us. He is called the father of faith. There seems to be quite an impression from the Word that he is really a person of faith. But when you look at the details of his living, he was a person just like us and actually very unbelieving. If it weren’t for the appearing of God, he would just be in his unbelief. But the very appearing of God infused him to the uttermost. In principle, I would say, what kind of person was he? He was really like a kind of unbeliever; the Lord would say something, he would say yes but then actually he just live out the opposite. Really what was required, what was needed for God, the God of glory to appear to him over and over and over again and it’s just like us. I am so grateful that the Lord came to me again and again and again so that we can be infused with Him as the unique faith in this universe. Abraham is called the father of faith but actually he did not have one drop of faith. All of his faith came from the appearing of the God of glory, infusing him with Himself as the very believing element. This is the kind of person he was, apart from the God of glory, he had no faith. He was not a believing person. But Hallelujah, the God of glory appear to him over and over and over again, so he has been infused with this dear person as the very believing element.

Luke (Program #63) – The Man-Savior’s Resurrection (6)

“He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today, He walks with me and talks with me along life’s narrow way.

He lives, He lives, salvation to impart, you ask me how I know He lives, He lives within my heart.”

This well known song hymn answers the question many people have today, “how do you know Christ lives?” Today on life study of Luke we are going to focus on the wonderful Christ in resurrection who lives in us.

Genesis (Program #47) – The Background and Origin of God’s Calling and the Experience of the Called Ones

Genesis is broken into three sections and now we are just beginning to get into the third section, a very encouraging section that deal with God’s calling.

Although Genesis is a rather lengthy book, it is divided into 3 main sections. The first concerns God’s creation. The second deals with Satan’s corruption and his leading man into a corrupted state. The third concerns God’s coming in to save man through His calling and His all-sufficient grace. God’s creation deals not only with the original creation but as we have pointed out in several earlier messages, God’s re-creation and further creation climaxing in mankind created in God’s image.

The second section concerns Satan’s activity mainly behind the scene to lead man further and further into the fall in at least 4 stages. Man fell in Genesis 3 away from God by disobeying Him. Man fell again in Genesis 4 by turning away from God’s ordain means of salvation. In Genesis 6, man fell unto the flesh and became polluted and then even after the flood and the institution of human government, man continue to fall and the whole human race rose up in defiant rebellion against God. At that point, God no longer dealt directly with humanity as a whole but determine to work along another line by calling out a new people, a new race for Himself…

Luke (Program #62) -The Man-Savior’s Resurrection (4 & 5)

Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her that’s Ephesians 5:25. Many people are familiar with John 3:16 which says, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” But how many are familiar with the church that which He gave Himself for? He also gave Himself for the church. The church is not just a building with a steeple on the corner, most people know that. But how many people really know what the Church is, and what process Christ went through to give Himself for the Church? This is a very critical matter and we want to see it today on our life study of Luke.

Genesis (Program #46) – The Significance of God’s Calling

Our life study today is dealing with the significance of God’s calling.

For our introduction today, we will say something about the relationship between the great figures of the Old Testament in the accomplishment of God’s purpose. God had a fresh start with Noah in chapter 9 and He seems to be starting new again here in chapter 12 with Abraham. What is the significance of these new starts?

Genesis (Program #45) – The Fourth Fall of Man

Today we come to a life study in Genesis that will review the 4 steps of man’s fall which conclude at Babel.

Luke (Program #61) – The Man-Savior’s Resurrection (3)

The Triune God is a mystery. He is One and yet He is Three. But don’t think this matter is just relegated to the theologians. We as the believers all should enter into the experience of the Triune God. And today we have a very enlightening, encouraging program.

Genesis (Program #44) – Life in Resurrection (3)

Today we are going to continue in Genesis chapter 9 and we want to see more of God’s move related to Noah. All of us, no doubt are familiar with the Sunday school version of Noah and his family. But what is the deeper significance that we’ve been seeing related to God’s purpose?

Luke (Program #60) – The Man-Savior’s Resurrection (1 & 2)

Heb 2:14, says, “…that through death Christ destroy him who has the power of death, that is the devil.” Today we have a devil destroying radio program, we hope all of our listeners will stay tune to it.

Luke (Program #59) – Jubilee (6)

In our materialistic society today, people have many things, but are they really happy? Are they really enjoy the freedom that God had intended for them in Christ?

Genesis (Program #43) – Life in Resurrection (2)

Today we have our second program dealing with life in resurrection from Genesis chapter 9. As an introduction for those just join us today, how is it that Noah’s experience is a valid picture of resurrection?

Genesis (Program #42) – Life in Resurrection (1)

Today in our life study we come to life in resurrection. We saw in our last program Noah and his family were able to pass through the flood by virtue of the ark.

Luke (Program #58) – Jubilee (5)

Freedom is something that everyone is seeking today. But what is real freedom? The apostle Paul said in 1 Cor 6:12 “all things are lawful to me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful to me, but I would not be brought under the power of anything.” To not be brought under the power of anything this is the real freedom. That is what we are going to talk about in the life study of the Bible, we are on the living of the Jubilee.

Luke (Program #57) – Jubilee (3)

If you are hungry and a mouth watering apple pie was placed in front of you, wouldn’t you be happy? But if someone took it away from you wouldn’t you be sad? Well, in a sense God is that apple pie. He is the real enjoyable meal, He is the real food for the hungry ones.

And today in life study of the Bible, we want all of the listeners out there who are hungry to be fed by these words – not just to hear a word, not just to know about a word, but to enter into and enjoy the very food that’s in God’s word.

Genesis (Program #41) – Saved Through Water (2)

Today we conclude a message that we began in our last program from Genesis chapter 6 unveiling how Noah’s experience in the flood foreshadowed baptism.

Luke (Program #56) – Jubilee (2 & 4)

There is a famous bell in Philadelphia of Pennsylvania with the inscription engraved on it from the Old Testament book of Leviticus, 25:10, which says “Proclaim liberty through out all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” In the United States this liberty bell is a traditional symbol of U.S. freedom. But the freedom refer to in the Bible is much bigger. It is referred to as Jubilee. The Lord Jesus proclaims this liberty for all mankind, when He announced in Luke 4:18-19, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to announced the Gospel to the poor, He has sent Me to proclaim the release to the captives and the recovery of sight to the blind to send away in release those who are oppressed to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, the year of Jubilee.”

Genesis (Program #40) – Saved Through Water (1)

Today we are coming to a message entitled “Saved Through Water”. In previous message Witness Lee pointed out that the ark which Noah built was type of salvation. Not only to be saved from God’s judgement but also to be saved from a crooked, perverse and evil generation. That was the situation in Noah’s day. Through this, the Bible shows us that we also need to be saved not only from God’s judgment but also from our present crooked, perverse and evil age. The message we will hear today is the one that shows us how, not only the ark but there is another matter that enters into the salvation.

Luke (Program #55) – Jubilee (1)

When all is said and done, in the human life they are really only two basics items that we really have to be concerned with #1 our possessions, #2 ourselves. To become poor is to loose all of our possessions, and to become a slave is to loose ourselves. In Israel, in ancient times all the families were given a rich portion of the land but the foolish or the unfortunate ones might be forced to sell off their possessions in order to continue to provide food. But eventually, they may be forced even to sell themselves into slavery, if they would to continue to eat. Yet the Lord made a way for these suffering ones to be released from their captivity and to be released to return back to their portion of the land. This way was called the Jubilee. The Jubilee is an important part of the New Testament as well.

Genesis (Program #39) – The Way of Salvation from Man’s Third Fall (3)

Today’s life study continues Genesis chapter 6 with Noah’s ark and the way of salvation from the third fall of man.

The first, as we know is in chapter 3, where man fell away from God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and thereby taking into him, the life and nature of Satan. This is what is called the fall of man. But the fall progresses in chapter 4 with Cain. God had instituted a way of salvation which was practiced by Abel who obeyed and carried out the teaching of his parents concerning this way. Cain however, exercising his opinion, invented his own religion, his sacrifice or offering was rejected by God and man fell further away from God’s way of salvation into a godless civilization. The third fall of man is described in Genesis 6, by this time man had become flesh. The thoughts or the imaginations or purposes of his heart were evil and to make matter even worst, the sons of God, a phrase that refers to rebellious angels came into the daughters of man and through illicit, illegal marriage, polluted the human race creating a situation that cry out for God’s righteous judgement.

Luke (Program #54) – The Reproduction of the God-Man (1 & 2)

The New Testament tells us that who so ever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. But what kind of salvation is it and what is the goal of that salvation? We hope you would stay tune because that is what we are going to talk about in today’s life study program.

Genesis (Program #38) – The Life and Work that Changed the Age (2)

Witness Lee introduces us today to a very deep thought. And that is although Noah could have been contend with his godly and righteous life, God Himself was not satisfied…

Genesis (Program #37) – The Life and Work that Changed the Age (1)

Today we begin the topic “The Life and Work that Changed the Age”. To begin, Witness Lee notes the disparity between man’s condition in Genesis 1 and Genesis 6 in relationship to God’s eternal economy. What is the meaning of “God’s eternal economy?”…

Luke (Program #53) – The Man-Savior’s God-man Living (1 & 2)

Here is an interesting point to ponder; in creating the entire universe, God took only six days, resting on the seventh. Yet when it came time to redeem and save man, He spent thirty-three and a half years, living a genuine human life before going to the cross.

Why would all that time needed for redemption and salvation? Could He just miraculously appeared as a man and died the next day or next month to accomplish our redemption? Well, the salvation that this Ones came to accomplish was more than just as a sacrifice to save us from our sins. This One had to live the life of the first God-Man in order to save us, not just to the heaven, but as the Bible says, save us to the uttermost.

Luke (Program #52) – The Man-Savior’s Highest Standard of Morality Constituting His Qualification and the Basic Factor for His Dynamic Salvation (1)

You wake up in the morning full of love toward your wife. But during the day, little things began to irritate, and her words cut, and by the evening you both ready for marriage consoling. Sound silly or sound familiar? The problem is our love is frail, damaged and weak. 1 John says “God is love”. Would His love ever be so fickle or so easily given up? Of course not. But love is just one example of the difference between God’s life and our natural human life. But the hope of salvation is not just that God has forgiven us of our short comings and He wants to take us to heaven. But the full salvation that He promises is that our live would be filled with His life, so that His love, and His righteousness and all His attributes can fill us and be expressed through us.

Genesis (Program #36) – The Way of Salvation from Man’s Third Fall (2)

Today, we continue in Genesis chapter 6 and a development of grace and flesh. We will see a brief background of the situation that we have with Noah and how we can possibly see a comparison to our own situation today.

Genesis (Program #35) – The Way of Salvation from Man’s Third Fall (1)

Today our life study will bring us to Noah and the way of salvation from the third fall.

Luke (Program #51) – The Incarnation of the Man-Savior Fulfilling the Purpose of God’s Creation of Man (1 & 2)

The Gospel of Luke unveils that Jesus Christ was not just the Savior, but was the Man-Savior, that means He was both God and Man, a mingling of divine life and perfect humanity. As God we see many miracles and for these most people remember Him. However what touches us, as we read the accounts in the Gospel is not so much of the miracles but the humanity that He conveyed and how He loved and cared for so many poor and sinful ones. But here is the key, as we consider this perfect humanity we must also see that the divine life been expressed through His humanity, because this mingling of the divine life and humanity points us to the very purpose of God that He intended in His original creation. Sound like a deep and profound message, we hope the Lord would be merciful and shine His light and make it all clear to us.

Luke (Program #50) – The Resurrection and Ascension of the Man-Savior (2)

Following the Lord’ Jesus resurrection, He first appeared to two disciples as they were traveling on the road to a village called Emmaus. After revealing Himself to these ones and then disappearing, they hurry back to Jerusalem to make the account to Peter and the other disciples. And as they were telling this incredible story, the resurrected Lord miraculously appears again. Not as a ghost or as a Spirit, but with a physical body that can be handled and touched. But then in the midst of their astonishment, just as He had done to the two men traveling to Emmaus, He not only open their eyes to recognize that it was truly Him. He also open their eyes and minds to understand the scriptures, it was this unveiling that would stay with them and enable them to stay in His invisible presents long after His physical presence were no longer with them. How we need the same opening and unveiling even today.

Genesis (Program #34) – The Third Fall of Man (2)

Today is the second message from the first part of Genesis 6 and a very deep interpretation of the events of that time. This is a deep section, much deeper than we may realize from a casual reading. Today we are going to hear about Nephilim and illegal marriage between fallen angels and the daughters of men. And also a reference to a book that we have quoted from previously in our life study by a man named G. H. Pember.

Genesis (Program #33) – The Third Fall of Man (1)

Today’s life study brings us to the third fall of man. We are heading into much deeper water today. It’s going to need some development as we go…

Luke (Program #49) – The Resurrection and Ascension of the Man-Savior (1)

There is a marvelous account in the Gospel of Luke following the Lord’s death and resurrection that surly is a favorite of many believers. It’s the story of two men who were walking on the road to a village named Emmaus, and they were discussing among themselves the incredible event that had recently taken place. When the third person joined them in their walk, and joining their conversation and ultimately to be revealed as the very Lord in resurrection of Whom they were speaking. And the verse that I think is burnt in many of our hearts, found in Chapter 24:32 “and they said to one another, was not our heart burning within us while He were speaking to us on the road, while He was opening to us the scripture.”

Luke (Program #48) – The Death of the Man-Savior (3)

All genuine believers must realize that Christ died for them as their substitute in order to redeem them from God’s eternal judgment. But His death means much more than just our redemption, because the death that He died was all-inclusive and dealt with every possible negative items in the universe. While at the same time releasing all of the riches of God for us to experience and enjoy.

Genesis (Program #32) – The Way to Escape the Ultimate Issue of Man’s Fall

Today we are going to be in a chapter of the Bible that most of us probably not spending that much time considering. It is a chapter of genealogy in Genesis chapter 5…

Genesis (Program #31) – The Second Fall of Man (3)

Today will be an interesting program. We are at the end of Genesis 4 and Witness Lee’s message is a little different today that it focuses more on a particular practice of both Old Testament and New Testament believers and that is “calling on the name of the Lord”. We don’t usually deal too much with practices on this program…

Luke (Program #47) – The Death of the Man-Savior (2)

Let me post a question, that at first it may seems quite simple but in reality is not so simple, “who killed Christ?” As I said, it seems simple enough, we know He was placed on the cross by Roman soldiers at the instruction of the corrupt Roman politicians but this was done by the instigation of the subtle religious leaders. So, who killed Christ? As we will discover today in Luke Chapter 23, we have to see the real hand behind the scene may have been the righteous and Holy God Himself.

Genesis (Program #30) – The Second Fall of Man (2)

We have a very interesting life study today from chapter 4 of Genesis. In fact, we are going to see something about the development of human culture.

Genesis is really a book of seeds as Witness Lee has pointed out several times. The seeds in those first chapters are very very interesting, especially after the creation of man and in the fall of man. There we began to see that there are two lines from the book of Genesis, especially from chapter 4. The thing we are coming to today is to see the result of the second fall of man. The first fall was Adam and Eve, disobeying God by partaking the tree of knowledge instead of the tree of life. And the second fall goes on, how that result of that affected their two sons. Today’s message is concerning Cain and the effect of the fall in him, as the seed that really has a long long lasting result. Today we will see something concerning sin that came out of the fall.

Luke (Program #45) – The Man-Savior’s Presentation of Himself to Death for Redemption (5)

At the time the Lord Jesus was on the earth, all those around Him, both His followers and those opposing Him wanted Him to tell them about the end time. When is the kingdom coming? What about the rapture? When would the Lord’s second coming be? These questions continue to interest mankind, both believers and the unbelievers share a certain curiosity, Yet the Lord Jesus both then and now is not so much interested in satisfying our curiosity as He is in awaking us up from our spiritual sleep that we would be wise and beseeching Him that we would not be those who are caught unaware or worst, unprepared at His coming.

Luke (Program #46) – The Man-Savior’s Presentation of Himself to Death for Redemption (5)

The Old Testament or Jewish religion focuses on several holy days categorized by feasts. Preeminent among these is the Passover Feast, marking their deliverance from slavery and captivity in Egypt. In Luke, the Lord Jesus, a real Jew instructed His disciples to prepare for a final Passover Feast in the upper room in Jerusalem and then in its’ conclusion He announced the end of the Passover and instituted the first Lord’s Table feast. And He instructed not just to His disciples, but all of us, His New Testament believers to come together and enjoy this feast in remembrance of Him. What is the relationship between the Passover and the Lord’s Table or the Lord’s Supper? What did He mean when He said “For I tell you I shall by no means drink from now on of the product of the vine until the Kingdom of God comes?”

Genesis (Program #29) – Cain and Abel

We are going to be in Genesis chapter 4 today and the story of two brothers. It seems like whenever there is two brothers, there is always a story involved in the Bible. Why is this story an important one in term of our study of Genesis?

Luke (Program #44) – The Man-Savior’s Presentation of Himself to Death for Redemption (4)

One item that seems to interest all believers is the rapture of the Christians at the time of the Lord second coming. The prevailing thought among believers today is that the rapture rescues all the saved ones so that they do not have to pass through the suffering associated with the great tribulation. But the Bible if you read it carefully just does not support such a view. Because it depicts aspect of the rapture taking place at different times. In history these passages had led to confusions, and strong disputing among the brothers and sisters in the Lord. We will touch some of this confusing matters today. If the Lord is merciful, we would be brought into a clearer view of this very crucial matter.

Genesis (Program #28) – The Second Fall of Man (1)

We’re going to go on today in Genesis chapter 3. We’ve seen in our last couple of programs that God Himself proclaim a gospel message to Adam and Eve…

Genesis (Program #27) – God’s Dealing with Man’s First Fall (2)

We are looking at Genesis chapter three and the shadow of the first gospel presented to man.

The gospel was first preached by God Himself in the third chapter of Genesis verse 15. Of course, before this we realize that there was a fall and God came in to expose man’s sin, but at the same time He gave a promise and that promise was really the preaching of the gospel by God Himself…

Luke (Program #43) – The Man-Savior’s Presentation of Himself to Death for Redemption (2 & 3)

The ministry of the Lord Jesus during His human life took place primarily in Galilee, a region far to the North of Jerusalem and away from the center of religious activity. But as the lamb of God, He has to be offered to God at the prescribed place, Mount Moriah, where Abraham offered Issac. It was there that He had to be delivered according to the counsel of the Trinity. In order to establish His absolute qualification to be the unique offering to God for the sins of mankind, He first had to submit Himself to the examination and question of religious and political leaders of the day.

Luke (Program #42) – The Man-Savior’s Presentation of Himself to Death for Redemption (1)

Try to imagine in ancient times when a king or a prince would come and visit a certain place, the nature of that procession no doubt the king would come in either riding in a royal carriage or at least riding on a great white steed. Now we come to the climates of the Lord Jesus long journey to Jerusalem and His triumphal entry as the King of the Universe into the city of God. One that His disciples would certain would accommodate in taking His proper place on the throne of David in the temple and establishing His earthly kingdom and in splendor and majesty. It is against in this backdrop that we read Luke 19 in His actual entry into Jerusalem not on a great white horse or in a royal palanquin but instead riding on a most humble of all creatures, a young donkey.

Genesis (Program #26) – The Serpent, the Woman, and the Seed of the Woman (2)

Today, we are dealing with a very meaningful verse in Genesis 3:15. We saw the last time, this verse presented us with three significant figures; the serpent, the woman and the seed of the woman. Today Witness Lee is going to focus primarily on the seed of the woman.

Genesis (Program #25) – The Serpent, the Woman, and the Seed of the Woman (1)

Today we come to the first part of a two-part message, continuing with Genesis 3:15. This is a really profound portion that we are going to be looking at today with the first proclamation of the gospel in the entire Bible.

Luke (Program #41) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (21)

We’ve all heard of the city of Jericho. Actually it was a city of curse in the time of Lord Jesus. One of its inhabitants was a man of curse. His was Zaccheus, a tax collector actually the chief tax collector and in reality, an extortioner who had gotten rich by taking advantage of the inhabitants of the area. One day as Jesus was passing through, Zaccheus who climbed in a tree, hoping to get a look at the Savior. As He came to the place, Jesus looking up, He said to him, “Zaccheus hurry and come down for today I must stay in your house. And he hurried and came down, and received Him, rejoicing.” It was a marvelous day as salvation came to the house of Zaccheus. But the Pharisees, the religious ones who watched it and knew Zaccheus and his past did not share his rejoicing. We will discover more about this marvelous story of salvation in the gospel of Luke in chapter 19.

Luke (Program #40) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (20)

The Bible is so marvelous. Not only do the teachings convey truths to us, the parables and the stories illustrate those truths and even more marvelous, eventually we discover that even the arrangement and sequence of the story and accounts in the Bible help to underscore those truths. One example is found in Luke 18, where the Lord Jesus for the third time tries to unveil His coming death and resurrection to His disciples, but they simply do not have eyes to see or ears to hear. Then the Lord Jesus in a wonderful display of His sovereign arrangement heals a blind man. Who, in reality were the blind ones in this passage?

Genesis (Program #24) – God’s Dealing with Man’s First Fall (1)

Today Witness Lee is going to develop and expound more on Genesis 3:9-15.

What these verses talk about is what happened to Adam and Eve after they fell and partook of the wrong tree and the element of Satan which is sin, entered into their being. This passage of Scriptures started off by God asking Adam “where are you?”

Luke (Program #39) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (19)

Luke Chapter 18 presents us with a parable of two men going up to the temple to pray. One, a religious leader, a Pharisee, and the other a sinner even an evil extortioner. The contrast in their prayer gives us an interesting insight into why the Lord Jesus was drawn not to the so called righteous but to the unrighteous, those who knew they were in captivity and in need of the Jubilee.

Genesis (Program #23) – The First Fall of Man

Today we come to the first fall of man in Genesis chapter three.

Luke (Program #38) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (18)

Have you ever noticed how often the Lord Jesus spoke in parables to illustrate various aspects and great truths that He was presenting during His earthly ministry? Parables are in effect pictures in words, pictures that can convey deep and profound truth with a simple story. Some of the parables especially in Luke have a mysterious quality about them. Such as in Luke 16 when a story about an unrighteous steward who is praised for his unrighteous action was presented. This steward it turns out typifies us, servants of God, serving with Him to bring in His kingdom.
Now we come to Chapter 18, and a parable that represents God as an unrighteous judge. Is He really unrighteous? and should we really serve Him unrighteously? well, surely not. But the discovery of what this parable do depict is the focus of our life study today.

Genesis (Program #22) – To Work God into Man as Life

Today we are going to come to the final portion of chapter two and the first marriage in the Bible.

Genesis (Program #21) – The Line of Knowledge Throughout the Scriptures

Today’s life study message of Genesis is going to trace the line of the tree of knowledge through the Bible.

Luke (Program #37) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (17)

The Bible in both the Old and New Testaments speaks of the coming of the Kingdom of God. The Jews at the time of the Lord Jesus and His disciples had a definite understanding of this fact. So, it’s not surprising that the pharisees questioned Him about when the Kingdom would come. His answer is recorded in Luke 17 gives us tremendous insight, not just to the timing of the Kingdom, but as to what the Kingdom of God is in reality. And, His answer touches many topics of great interest even today such as the rapture of the believers. If you’ve ever wondered when will the Lord Jesus come again and set up His Kingdom, you won’t want to miss our program today.

Genesis (Program #20) – The Line of Life Throughout the Scriptures

We are going to continue with our third message dealing with the two lines that run throughout the Bible. The line of life and the line of knowledge.

Luke (Program #36) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (16)

It’s interesting that the greatest difficulties that the Lord Jesus had in His earthly ministry was not dealing with sin. It was dealing with religion. We would think that religion should help people come to God. But all too often what we find is the same thing that the Lord Jesus found; not only the religion not help us to find God it frustrates and even stumbles us from coming to God. It is in this context in Luke 17 that the Lord said “woe to him who stumbles. It’s more profitable if a millstone is put around his neck and he is hurled into the sea than to stumble the little ones.”

Luke (Program #35) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (15)

What does the Bible say happens to a believer in Christ when he or she dies? Does it actually say that we are taken immediately to heaven? Well though this is the common thought among Christians, remember the question was “What does the Bible say?” We may think we know, but we may be in for a surprise when we actually look into God’s Word. We will find this very important section of scripture today in Luke 16.

Genesis (Program #19) – The Two Trees (2)

We have our second message today dealing with the two lines that run throughout the Bible, both of which are introduced in Genesis chapter three in the Garden of Eden.

These two lines are related to the two trees in Genesis 3; the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. The tree of life signifies God in Christ as life. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil which issues in death, is a symbol of Satan. These two trees represent two principles and therefore two ways of living the human life.

Luke (Program #34) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (14)

Luke 15 is a chapter with three tremendous parables including one of the best known in the whole Bible, the parable of the prodigal son. When you take these three parable together, they reveal to us the three persons of the Godhead. The Son is seen the first parable, the Spirit in the second, and the Father in the third, and all three bring us to salvation. Then, we come to another parable at the beginning of chapter 16. At first, it seems terribly out of place. The story of a steward, who threatened with the loss of His position, unrighteously deals with his master’s assets only to gain His praise. But as we will see today, these parables fit very well together.

Genesis (Program #18) – The Two Trees (1)

We want to look today the matter of the two trees that we see in Genesis; the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

These two trees are very significant in the Bible…

Genesis (Program #17) – Transformation for Building in the Flow of Life (2)

Today’s message is a continuation of the last program, where Witness Lee began the discussion concerning transformation and he relate it to the consummation of the Bible, the New Jerusalem.

Many Christians don’t even know that the Bible covers the matter of transformation. Their concept of transformation, many times is that is what’s going to happen when the Lord comes when we are resurrected or we are changed at the moment and the twinkling of an eye. They call that transformation. But that’s not what Witness Lee has been talking about and we will talk about it again today.

Luke (Program #33) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (13)The story of the prodigal son as presented in Luke 15 is perhaps one of the most popular stories in the New Testament. There are surely aspects of the story of a wayward son who comes to realize the benefits of his father’s house that he had rejected in his youth that most us can relate to. But much more if the Lord in His mercy grant us eyes to see we can realize depth and aspects of God’s full salvation from the story that are not so clearly seen in nearly any other portion of Scripture. Stay with us today as we look at the prodigal son through the lens of God’s economy.

Luke (Program #32) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (12)

Anyone who has ever read the Bible, or even learn Bible stories as a child has come into contact with numerous parables which are stories that illustrate important lessons from the scripture. We all probably have our favorites because parables are a rich component of God’s word to man. But in addition to the moral or lesson to be learned from the parable individually, the way they are combined and arranged in the Bible is also meaningful. That aspect will become especially clear as we come to three well-known parables in Luke 15.

Genesis (Program #16) – Transformation for Building in the Flow of Life (1)

It’s amazing to me how God’s purpose and ultimate plan are so clearly visible in Genesis once we’ve been given the key. And that is precisely what Witness Lee is doing it seems, in every one of these classic messages.

Luke (Program #31) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (10)

As Christians, we are instructed by Scripture to do many things. Of course among them to love our wives as ourselves, to honor our mother and father and to be careful how we treat our own bodies because they are a Holy Temple of the Holy Spirit. But then we run into a section of the Bible such as found in Luke 14 where the Lord Jesus says “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, and moreover, even his own soul-life, he cannot be My disciple.” Well, does the Bible in fact as alleged by many unbelievers contradicts itself? Of course we know better. But what does it mean for us to “hate” such cherished one, even to hate ourselves as the Bible intends?

Genesis (Program #15) – God’s Procedures to Fulfill His Purpose (2)

Witness Lee today is going to develop and discuss a profound thought that we see throughout the entire Bible and that is how God has created man as a vessel and with a human spirit in order to receive and contain Him. It is interesting that God’s first action was not to teach him to worship or to serve Him, but rather to place him in front of the tree of life.

Genesis (Program #14) – God’s Procedures to Fulfill His Purpose (1)

We had a couple of wonderful messages dealing with two very significant and important words; image and dominion in Genesis 1:26

We have seen that in the past programs, that these words are very significant in the book of Genesis and especially as they are related to the creation of man. When God came to the point of making man, He said “let Us make man in our image”. Oh that is a wonderful, wonderful word. That we human beings are made in the image of God. That means we should have the expression of God. So image, we saw has been related to expression. God wants to be expressed.

Luke (Program #30) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (9)

At the time the Lord Jesus was on the earth, the Biblical religion of the day Judaism had many strict ordinances prohibiting all manner of activities on their Holy Sabbath day including healing the sick. And yet, the Lord Jesus purposely broke many of the ordinances. As He not only healed the sick, against the traditions and regulations of the Sabbath, but He would do so in the presence of the religious leaders, many times offending them. We will look at an interesting case today of the violation of the religious regulations with a purpose as the Lord Jesus was continuing to usher in the real New Testament Jubilee.

Genesis (Program #13) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (8) – Ultimate Consummation

In our last broadcast, Witness Lee pointed out that in Genesis 1:31, on the sixth day God’s response to the creation of man was “very good”. In today’s message, we began with Genesis 2 verses 2 & 3. We know that God rested on the seventh day because his work was finished. But the question I want to ask is did the creation of man also have an impact on God’s resting on the seventh day?

Luke (Program #29) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (8)

When a mustard seed is planted according to the natural law of life, it grows into a small and tender herb with succulent leaves. Yet, the parable in Luke 13 tells of a mustard seed growing into a great tree with birds lodging in the branches. And this unlikely distortion is presented as a picture of an aspect of the kingdom of God. Is this a positive development, or one from which we should take a strong and serious warning from the Lord? We’ll explore it on today’s life study.

Genesis (Program #12) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (7) – Ultimate Consummation

The whole Bible is a record of two seeds in Genesis 1; image and dominion. The last example in the Book of Revelations which is the New Jerusalem. How we can see God’s image and dominion in the New Jerusalem?

Luke (Program #28) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (7)

Peace is surely a vital aspect of the divine life of Christ. When we receive Him as our life and savior, we all experience peace within, peace with God, and even peace with one another. So what did the Lord Jesus mean in Luke 12 when He said, ” I have come to cast fire on the earth… Do you think that I have come to give peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” This is a mysterious portion of the Word to understand. Yet, surely it matches many of the experiences of His seeking ones. We’ll explore this passage on today’s life study of the Bible.

Genesis (Program #11) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (6) – Ultimate Consummation

Our last program centered on Genesis 1:26 and two words were introduced and that we are going to come back to today; image and dominion.

This verse is so meaningful it may rightly be called one of the most important verses in the entire Scriptures, especially in the Old Testament. In this verse, we have a two-fold revelation of why we human beings were created by God. First we were created in God’s image to express Him. Second, we were given God’s authority, in deputy form to exercise dominion over His enemy that there will be a peaceful situation on the earth for the God of glory to express Himself. These are some of the riches embodied and implied in this marvelous verse, Genesis 1:26.

Luke (Program #27) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (6)

Consider for a moment the religions of the world whether or not you agree with the various approaches in teachings, it’s fair to say that all religions begin of good intentions and noble ideals. But inevitably, one common condition befalls all religions over time – hypocrisy. The difference between those high ideals and teachings and the eventual practices and living of its adherence. The one striking exception to this universal is the life and the living of the Lord Jesus Christ. His living on earth was in stark contrast to the hypocrisy of the religion of that day and the reality of His divine life live out in His members remains in the same contrast today. As we fellowship on chapter 12 of Luke and three warnings that we are going to get into today.

Genesis (Program #10) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (5) – Purpose

In our last broadcast Witness Lee discussed Genesis 1:26 concerning the creation of man, especially concerning how man is the center of God’s creation.

In God ‘s creation man is the center and the human life is the highest among all the created life…. when it came to creating man, it wasn’t just let it be, “Let there be man”. No. He didn’t say let there be man but He said “Let Us” make man. A plural noun is used here. Let us, One God but us…

Luke (Program #26) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (5)

We are all familiar with the Lord’s prayer. It is covered in both Matthew and Luke. But it’s interesting that here in the gospel of Luke immediately following the Lord’s marvelous training of His disciples not just merely in how to pray but how to pray themselves into God, He find Himself in a conflict with demons and dealing with mass rejections.

Genesis (Program #9) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (4) – Purpose

Today we continue our study with the process of God’s restoration and further creation.

Luke (Program #25) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (4)

In Luke 11, the disciples find the Lord Jesus praying to the Father. They take the opportunity to ask the Lord to teach them how to pray. No doubt thinking that if they receive the proper instruction then they would soon enter into a realm where they received answers to all their prayers. Well, we need to ask ourselves, what is it to pray? Is it just to make our needs and requests known to God and then wait in faith for Him to grant all of our requests? Well, we will get light today from the Gospel of Luke chapter 11 that we have likely never received. We come to this message from Luke on today’s life study of the Bible.

Genesis (Program #7) – The Fourth-Day Lights (1)

In our last program we saw the progression of life in God’s creation; from the plant life to the aquatic life, and then to the animal life. Today we are going further to see not only the progression of life but also the progression of light…

Luke (Program #23) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (2)

We all know the story of the good Samaritan. Here’s a man walking down the road and he’s beaten up and left for dead by robbers, while many righteous people pass by to take no account of his pitiful condition. Then at last, a Samaritan, one from a rejected place, comes by and cares for the beaten man. It’s a wonderful story with a valuable moral. But to really understand it, we must know the characters. Who, for example, is the beaten man? And, who is the good Samaritan? If you’ve always thought the moral of this story is for us to be kind to our neighbors, you may want to pay particular attention to our program today because we will see in this parable in another light.

Luke (Program #22) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes from Galilee to Jerusalem (1)

As the Lord Jesus and His disciples were journeying from Galilee through Samaria to Jerusalem three cases are chronicled in Luke chapter 9 regarding different ones who desire to follow Him. Verse 57 says “And as they went along the road, someone said to Him, I will follow You wherever You go. And Jesus said to him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of heaven have roosts, but the Son of Man does not have a place where He may lay His head. And He said to another, Follow Me. But he said, Lord, permit me to go first and bury my father. But He said to him, Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and announce the kingdom of God everywhere. And another also said, I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say farewell to those in my house. But Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand on the plow and looks behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Genesis (Program #6) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (3) – Process

We are headed today in the portion of Genesis that is full of types and symbols…

Genesis (Program #4) – God’s Restoration and Further Creation (1) – Process

We saw in our last program, that there is absolutely no conflict between Scripture and science when it comes to creation. Today we want to come back to this amazing view of creation in Genesis that offers a scriptural reconcilliation of the scientific view of the age of the earth and what the Bible actually teaches. But to fully understand this interpretation we need to see not only God’s creation in this passage, we also need to see Satan’s rebellion.

Luke (Program #20) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (11)

In the gospel of Luke, the Lord Jesus initiates His ministry with a visit to the synagogue in chapter 4 as He reads from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah. He proclaims that His ministry is the fulfillment of the hidden but marvelous prophecy in the Old Testament regarding the Jubilee. Chapter 4:14-19 “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee. And reports about Him went out through all the surrounding region. And He taught in their synagogues and was glorified by all. And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up, and according to His custom He entered on the Sabbath day into the synagogue and stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to announce the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to send away in release those who are oppressed, To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, the year of jubilee.” As we fellowship now beyond just a proclamation, declaration of the Jubilee we come to its application in chapter 9.

Luke (Program #19) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (10)

In chapter 4 of Luke as the Lord Jesus was initiating His earthly ministry, He stood as was His habit in the synagogues and read from the Old Testament book of Isaiah, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to announce the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to send away in release those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, the year of jubilee.” This was the announcement, the proclamation, the declaration of the acceptable year of the Lord, the year of Jubilee. When we come to chapter 9 as we are today on our life study from the gospel of Luke, we find that Jubilee not just proclaim and announce but apply and spread.

Genesis (Program #3) – Satan’s Rebellion and Corruption

Today’s program focuses on just the first two verses of Genesis. Listeners will be presented with the Biblical view of creation that will very likely surprise them.

Genesis (Program #2) -The General Sketch and Central Thought (2)

The real focus of not only Genesis but the whole Bible is life. It begins with life and ends with life. The light that we received in this life study of Genesis will bring out all the seeds of the truth that is unfolded throughout the Bible. Everything here is opening up that this is a book of life. When we touch the Bible at any point, If we really touch the Lord Himself as life we will be very much nourished.

When we come to the Bible we have to realize that every book has been breathed out by God. We have to say “Lord I want to touch You, as I read this book I want to contact You.” I realize now that the book of Genesis is really also a book of life, not just a book of stories, not just of lives of man but the book of life itself, which is God Himself breath into this book and now when we breath Him in as we read this book we really get a supply of the divine life.

Luke (Program #18) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (9)

What does it mean to follow the Lord? As believers we all should have this desire that day by day even moment by moment, we want to take the way that He is directing. We probably heard the Christian life is described as a journey. This is a valid way to look at the Christian life. But a surprise thing to many of us is that once we finally to give ourselves to follow Him on this journey, the way He often leads us is not what we’d expected or hope for. This is also the case with the Lord’s disciples in the first century as we see unfolded in the gospel of Luke.

Luke (Program #17) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (8)

The progression in the gospel of Luke is truly marvelous. Chapter 7 concludes with several very touching stories of sinful people being forgiven and drawn to the Lord Jesus in love. Surely their cases match our own. Then after teaching His follower with parables we come to the most interesting passage in chapter 8, where the Man-Savior instead of acknowledging His flesh mother and brothers, identified His chosen ones, His believers as His real family members and relatives.

Genesis (Program #1) -The General Sketch and Central Thought (1)

Welcome to the life study of the book of Genesis.

This life study stands upon the shoulders of the great teachers and expositors throughout the century. So it is a study. However, this study is what we call a life study. We surely are studying with our whole being exercised. But the object of our study in particular is to grasp and to experience eventually the life elements in the Word of God.

The Bible is a book of life. Every book is permeated with the element of life. The life study has a particular objective. That objective is not merely to garner more information, more doctrine from the Scriptures. The object of this study is the Lord Himself reveal in the Word, Who is our life.

Luke (Program #16) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (7)

Try to picture meal-time in the home of a prominent religious leader. The guests include Jesus of Nazareth, other religious leaders and followers of Jesus. And then, an uninvited guest shows up, a woman, well-known in the community because of her sored background and sinful past. The picture is a vivid one, isn’t it? And what transpired is so unique and profound as to forever be considered when the gospel of God, love and grace to man is told.

Malachi (Program #4) – The Revival Revealed in the Minor Prophets

The twelve books of the minor prophets at the end of the Old Testament are somewhat hard to get into and most Christians today have a hard time even remembering or naming them in order. Today in our last life study of Malachi, we’re going to bring you the ‘kernel’ of all these twelve minor prophet books which is referred to as a ‘wonderful sweet kernel’.

Malachi (Program #3) – Jehovah’s Dealing with the Sons of Jacob

Malachi 4:6 tells us, “And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse.” This verse talks about the Lord’s warning about the day of His coming.

Malachi’s ministry is focused entirely upon the condition of the priests and the sons of Jacob. In other words, it is the condition of the people of God and their service to God as priests and in their living as God’s people before Him is what is central and crucial in the coming of the Lord Jesus the first time.

Luke (Program #15) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (6)

Have you ever noticed that shortly after introducing and baptizing the Lord Jesus, John the Baptist himself was imprisoned and held there until he was beheaded? But during his imprisonment, the Lord Jesus was healing and liberating many oppressed and suffering people. Yet for John the Baptist He offer no such miracle. Even pressed to do so by John and some of His followers. What He did offer to John, was a very unique word that outwardly seem to offer no help. But likely became an inner strengthening to John, even through his martyrdom. We will look at this case and two other interesting cases from Luke chapter 7.

Malachi (Program #2) – Christ in His Two Comings as Revealed in Malachi

Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament and it’s also the last book of the minor prophets. Today, we are going to touch Malachi – the center of the book of Malachi is the healing Christ. This healing Christ is the Messenger of God, the Angel of the Covenant and the Desire of the Nations. The whole earth is filled with death and injustice but with the healing Christ we have life and justice.

Luke (Program #14) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (5)

Human history has witnessed many great moral and ethical teachers, Plato, Socrates, Confucius just to name a few. The Bible also contains wonderful teachings of morality and ethical behavior but no one say the Lord Jesus Christ Himself ever claimed as He did in John 6, “that the word that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” We all need to ask ourselves this fundamental questions, “Is God’s word to us just a book of ethical and moral teachings or is it a book that brings us to spirit and life?”

Malachi (Program #1) – The Introductory Word and Jehovah’s Love of Jacob and His Dealing with the Sons of Levi

Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament and the central thought of the prophecy of Malachi is the correcting of the priests among Israel for the coming of Christ as the Messenger of God and the advising of the people of Israel for the appearing of Christ as the Sun of Righteousness.

Luke (Program #13) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (4)

The Bible tells us to love our enemies. Even to treat those who hate us well and to the ones that beat us in the cheek we should turn the other. Well we all heard such teachings and we may agree with them and even strongly desire to be such humble and meek persons. But when confronted with evil treatment or slander we lash out in anger and hatred of our own. But there is One in whom this kind of behavior does not come with difficulty and strife, in fact it matches the very character and nature of His life. For there was a time when we were His enemies and even His haters but He captured us with His love and now He blesses us by imparting His very life into us with the same capacity to love and forgive and forget.

Zechariah (Program #15) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (6)

We all have our own favorite verses throughout the Bible. For many of us, some of our favorite verses are found in pages of the Old Testament. And we tend to avoid the Old Testament often in terms of its bigger meaning because it does seem to be somewhat veiled and obscure. However, the real meaning of all of our verses in the Old Testament match that of the revelation in the New Testament. And, that is that at the heart of God’s desire is an economy. In the life study of Zechariah, God’s economy is summarized: “The center of God’s economy is to have a Body to express Christ. Eventually, this Body will be Christ’s Bride to match Him as His counterpart and to come down to earth with Him to carry out the final step of God’s economy. Today, the world situation is ready for His coming, but the Lord has not yet gained His counterpart. Therefore, He has no way to come back. He is still waiting.”

Luke (Program #12) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (3)

In Luke’s gospel, we find the account of just how the Lord Jesus called and attracted many of His disciples and followers. With some He performed mighty miracles, yet with others it was simply His word or His sympathetic care that captivated them and drew them out of whatever held them to follow Him and serve Him absolutely. What about you? Are you waiting for a miracle? Or is the realization of what He has already done or even the promise of His sweet presence enough to cause you to want to give up everything and follow Him?

Luke (Program #11) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in Galilee (2)

After passing through a full and thorough preparation, and even an inauguration, the Lord Jesus was ready to begin His earthly ministry. He does so by quoting from the Old Testament pages of Isaiah, speaking words of grace to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, ushering acceptable year of the Lord, the Jubilee. Well, these words were amazing to the Jews of Galilee as they are to us today. But as we will see today and the coming days as we continue on this life study from the gospel of Luke, His living and His ministry became a living portrait of this Jubilee and in Him, all we as the real captives and the real blind ones find our freedom and our sight.

Zechariah (Program #14) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (5)

Any careful consideration of the history of God’s people, Israel, reveals that for much of that history, Israel has suffered. Paul, even spoke in Romans, of Israel’s heart being hardened until the age of the Gentiles will be fulfilled. We know that, that fulfillment is complete at the Lord’s second coming, so what about Israel after that time? Well the prophet Zechariah is full of encouraging prophecies concerning the eventual household salvation of Israel at the Lord’s return especially in chapter 12. Listen to Zechariah in one of the sweetest verses in all of Scripture: “And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplications; and they will look upon Me, whom they pierced; and they will wail over Him with wailing as for an only son and cry bitterly over Him with bitter crying as for a firstborn son.”

Luke (Program #10) – The Ministry of the Man-Savior in His Human Virtues with His Divine Attributes in Galilee (1)

The Bible is full of inspiring stories recounting the miracles performed by the Lord Jesus during His earthly ministry. Surely this demonstrates Christ is none other than the Son of God. Yet it’s interesting that many of the touching stories are the ones not demonstrate not His divinity but His humanity. It is His humanity that attracts us and causes us to love Him. The gospel of Luke is particularly meaningful in this regard for in Luke more than any other book of the Bible, we see Christ as the Man-Savior.

Zechariah (Program #13) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (4)

In the Old Testament book of Zechariah, we are given extraordinary revelations of the New Testament Christ. We see Him as the Shepherd coming in an intimate and loving way to care for His scattered flock. We also see Him being rejected and even crucified for our redemption. But one of the most striking views of Christ in Zechariah is as the coming Triumphant Warrior to fight against Anti-Christ, the embodiment of Satan and to rescue God’s people, Israel, from their destiny on this earth, the war of Armageddon.

Zechariah (Program #12) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (4)

The universe that God so marvelously created is full of wonderful things for us, His creatures to experience. For all the beautiful scenes He created for us to enjoy, He gave us eyes to see. To hear the birds sing, He gave us ears to hear. And even for us to ponder the mysteries all around us, we have minds that can learn and understand. But what about contacting the most marvelous thing of all, God Himself? If we attempt to touch God using any of these faculties, no doubt we will be sorely disappointed. Because to touch the spiritual and divine person of God, we must use the faculty created in man uniquely for that purpose. And the Old Testament prophet, Zechariah give us a clear verse telling us what that part of man is.

Luke (Program #9) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (8)

Here is a story we all know quite well – the story of an angel paying a visit to a humble virgin in a lowly city in a despised region. “In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, Rejoice, you who have been graced! The Lord be with you.” (Luke 1:26-28) “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of David His father, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:31-33) This is the declaration of the arch angel Gabriel in the first chapter of the gospel of Luke. But it is just one of many pronouncements concerning the preparation of the Man-Savior Jesus as recorded in Luke’s gospel. We will look at several of these marvelous declarations today.

Luke (Program #8) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (7)

Following the account of the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist in Luke chapter 3, there are two very interesting items. First of all, the genealogy of Jesus – beginning with Jesus and working its way back to God. The second is the temptation or the testing of Jesus – forty days in the wilderness with Satan directly tempting the Lord, yet Jesus in His perfect humanity, fully withstanding every temptation and thereby defeating God’s enemy. But it’s interesting that the Lord was led there to face that temptation by the Holy Spirit. We will look at both the genealogy of Jesus and His passing this test of tests in today’s life study of Luke.

Zechariah (Program #11) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (3)

Zechariah is one of those hidden treasures in the Old Testament. As a book of prophecy it does seem mysterious and rather vague to many readers of the Bible. But as with all Scripture, with the Spirit’s illumination and the right keys to unlock our understanding, it reveals marvelous treasures. The main treasure in Zechariah is how compellingly and marvelously Christ is revealed. We see Him as the Shepherd of God’s flock in chapters 11 through 13, as He comes in, in an intimate way to feed and supply God’s suffering people. But we also see how this One was fully rejected, attacked, judged and ultimately crucified as well.

Zechariah (Program #10) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (2)

In Zechariah 10:3, Jehovah promised to visit His flock and make them like His horse of majesty in battle. This is a wonderful picture of the Lord’s loving visitation to His people and quite an encouragement to all believers in Christ today.

Luke (Program #7) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (6)

In America, every four years after the legal election of a new president, we pass through the ritual known as inauguration. On one hand, the person is thought of as president immediately following his election; but it is the inauguration that actually makes him president. Do you know that the Lord Jesus passed through a kind of inauguration as he began his earthly ministry? It’s true and it’s recorded in Luke chapter 3, we will look at the inauguration of the Man-Savior in today’s life study of the Bible.

Luke (Program #6) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (4)

Luke 2:1-4 says, “And in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus for a census to be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census that took place when Quirinius governed Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, to David’s city which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David.” These words introduce the most well-known story in Scripture, that of the birth of Jesus. But it is significant to know that they refer back to a prophecy from the Old Testament prophet, Micah. Listen to Micah’s words written hundred of years before, “But you, O Bethlehem, Ephrathah, So little to be among the thousands of Judah, From you there will come forth to Me He who is to be ruler in Israel; And His going forths are from ancient times; From the days of eternity”. (Micah 5:2) Marvelous prophetic words fulfilled in this most well-known story but we will look at some of the more hidden significances that are unveiled here from the gospel of Luke.

Zechariah (Program #9) – The Prophecies of Encouragement (1)

About 2500 years ago, the prophet Zechariah’s burden was to help the returned people of Israel to see God’s purpose. Today, God’s intention and His desire is that we will be one with Him. He’s brought us back to the very site, to the ground, even to the foundation of the temple typified by the recovery back to Jerusalem from Babylon in Zechariah’s day. Now God wants us to see that His interest, His desire and His burden are to finish the building of the temple, to build up the Body of Christ.

Zechariah (Program #8) – The Advice to Israel to Turn from the Vanity of Their Ritualistic Religion to the Reality of a Godly Life and the Desire of Jehovah to Restore Israel

God wants His people to turn from the vanity of their ritualistic religion to the reality of a godly life. Is your religion full of vanity and rituals or are you really in the reality of a godly life?

Luke (Program #5) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior (3 & 5)

In the opening chapter of the gospel of Luke there is the account of two miraculous conceptions. First John the Baptist was born to Zachariah and Elizabeth who both being well advanced in age were beyond any hope of conceiving a child short of the miraculous power of the Holy Spirit. The other conception of course is that of the Lord Jesus, who also was conceived in a miraculous way. But the conception of Jesus involved much more than mere divine power because it brought forth the mingling of two natures; the divine and human to produce not just an unique man as John the Baptist surely was but a God-Man, who became our Savior, the Man-Savior Jesus. John’s father Zachariah saw much of what was involved in this greatest of all miracles. We will look at it in His prophecy on our life study today.

Luke (Program #4) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (2)

The gospel of Luke tells the story of a wonder meeting between two mothers to be – Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist and Mary, of course who was the mother of our Lord Jesus. Listen to this marvelous account given in chapter 1 “And Mary rose up in those days and went to the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, And entered into the house of Zachariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she lifted up her voice with a loud cry and said, Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby leaped with exultation in my womb. And blessed is she who has believed, because there will be a completion of the things spoken to her from the Lord.”

Zechariah (Program #7) – The Visions of Consolation and Promise (6)

God cares about His chosen people and God is for His chosen people that through all His judgments He will perfect them and punish those who oppose His people. This is the last program dealing with the eight visions in the book of Zechariah. In chapter 6 we see another vision of God’s judgment on unrighteousness and also His judgment on His people. The judgment on His people is for the purpose of perfecting them so God’s full and eternal purpose may be accomplished. But His judgment on those nations that come against Israel, His people is referred to Israel in this case because we’re talking about the Old Testament prophet Zechariah, but it applies God’s people in every age. God wants to perfect His people so He can accomplish His goal of producing the Body of Christ. But Israel now is under a lot of opposition from a lot of different nations, kingdoms and peoples. So God is judging these people and protecting and perfecting His people in those judgments.

Zechariah (Program #6) – The Visions of Consolation and Promise (5)

Zechariah chapter 5 verses 1 through 4 say, “Then I lifted up my eyes again and I saw, and there was a flying scroll, And he said to me, What do you see? And I said, I see a flying scroll, its length twenty cubits and its breadth ten cubits. Then he said to me, This is the curse that goes forth over the face of all the land; for everyone who steals will be purged according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears will be purged according to what is on the other side. I will cause it to go forth, declares Jehovah of hosts; and it will enter the house of him who steals and the house of him who swears falsely by My name; and it will lodge overnight within his house and consume it, both with its timbers and its stones.”

Luke (Program #3) – The Preparation of the Man-Savior with His Divinity (1)

Luke chapter 1 is a marvelous chapter in the whole Bible. It’s interesting in that it gives us an account of two conceptions – that of John the Baptist and of course of Jesus Christ. Both of these conceptions involve the Holy Spirit in miraculous ways. But to see the difference between them is valuable because it will help unlock one of the most tremendous mysteries in scripture – and that is the two natures of the Man-Savior.

Mark (Program #52) – A Life Fully According To and For God’s New Testament Economy (9)

In Mark chapter 8, 9 the Lord Jesus is recognized as being the Christ. Then He goes on to unveil for the first time, His death and resurrection. It’s very significant that this unveiling comes immediately after the healing of a blind man in Bethesda. Before the Lord Jesus unveiled Himself, He healed a blind man. This indicates that in order to see Christ in His death and resurrection, we need to be healed of our blindness.

Nahum (Program #1) – Jehovah’s Judgment on Nineveh

In the Bible story of Jonah, we probably recall, that he was fleeing, running away from Jehovah and the task that God had appointed to Him. That of bringing God’s message of judgment and repentance to the evil city Nineveh.

In the story as Jonah was trying to escape from God, he is thrown into the sea during a raging storm, only to be swallowed up by a giant fish. He remained alive in the belly of the fish for three days until he was spewed out by the fish unto dry land. Well, this is the part of the story that most of us remember and can retell it to our children. But the story continues, for eventually Jonah reached Nineveh, and not only did he proclaimed God’s righteous judgment on that evil city, but he also witness first hand Jehovah’s mercy and salvation upon the people of Nineveh.

Another book in the Old Testament, another book of the Minor Prophets, is that of Nahum. And once again the subject of the book is the city of Nineveh. Only this time we don’t see God’s mercy and compassion resulting in the salvation for the city. Rather we see God’s righteous indignation and judgment upon Nineveh resulting in the city’s ultimate destruction. What was it about this ancient city that caused it to be the focus and so much attention by the Old Testament prophets?

Mark (Program #51) – A Life Fully According To and For God’s New Testament Economy (8)

The gospel of Mark is a biography of a person, that person is Christ, Who lived according to God’s New Testament economy.

In order to understand this biography we need to realize that every event recorded in it is meaningful.

Micah (Program #3) – The Greatness of the Prophets in Their Speaking Concerning Christ

Genuine lovers of God’s word have learned that the Old Testament reveals Christ in types and figures and in many places. In fact the Prophets of the Old Testament are particularly rich in the detailed aspects of Christ’s earthly and heavenly ministry revealed in their pages.

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, often what they wrote prophetically had both application to their own situations in their time, as well as a clear reference to the coming One, our dear Lord Jesus. Other passages seen uniquely focus on Christ. Micah 5:2 is such a passage, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, So little to be among the thousands of Judah, From you there will come forth to Me, He who is to be Ruler in Israel; And His goings forth are from ancient times, From the days of eternity.”

Mark (Program #50) – A Life Fully According To and For God’s New Testament Economy (7)

The book of Mark impresses us with God’s economy, which is God’s desire to saturate us with Christ.

Micah (Program #2) – Jehovah’s Comfort to Israel

The Prophet Micah in the Old Testament speaks of God’s reprove and chastisement of Israel in a very poetic language.

Chapter 1:3-4 “For Jehovah is about to come forth from His place, And He will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth. And the mountains will be melted under Him, And the valleys will be cleft, Like wax before fire, Like water poured down a slope.”

These sobering words caused Micah to weep but as with other prophets Micah also speaks of God’s comforting of His people. Which ultimately comes at the end of this age in what the prophets of all spoke as the restoration. A coming age when there will be no need of weapons for all the enemies will be gone and Christ will rule, shepherd and protect His people while His people feast and rejoice in loving worship of Him for a thousand years.

Mark (Program #40) – The Death and Resurrection of the Slave-Savior for the Accomplishment of God’s Redemption (2)

Each of the four gospels in the New Testament gives us a detail account of the crucifixion of Christ.

The account in Mark chapter 15 gives us a vivid picture of the persecution that He suffered at the hands of the religious leaders as well as the judgment that He endured on our behalf by the righteous hand of God the Father.

Begin reading in Mark chapter 15 : 16-28

“And the soldiers led Him away within the courtyard, that is, the praetorium, and called together the whole ccohort.
And they clothed Him in purple and wove a thorny crown and put it around His head.
And they began to salute Him: Rejoice, King of the Jews!
And they beat His head with a reed and spat at Him. And kneeling down, they bowed before Him.
And when they had mocked Him, they stripped Him of the purple and put His garments on Him. And they bled Him out to crucify Him.
And they compelled a certain passerby coming from the country, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to take up His cross.
And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is interpreted, the Place of a Skull.
And they tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not take it.
And they crucified Him and divided His garments, casting lots for them to see what each should take.
Now it was the third hour and they crucified Him.
And there was an inscription of the charge against Him inscribed: The King Of The JEWS.
And with Him they crucified two robbers, one on His right and one on His left.
And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, a”And He was counted with the lawless.‘”

Hosea (Program #5) – On Hosea (6)—Jehovah’s Unchanging Love Versus Israel’s Stubborn Unchastity (1)

The entire book of Hosea servers as a kind of metaphor showing us how Israel as God’s wife was unfaithful to Him even becoming a harlot. Unfaithfulness in marriage always lead to more and more evil and sinfulness. And the same was true with Israel. She eventually became sinful in her social dealing, that’s in her dealing with man. And also in her relationship with God on every level. Not only was Israel given fully to idolatry and sinfulness, but also she was stubborn refusing to turn back to Jehovah. In Chapter 7 referring to the stubbornness Jehovah says of Israel Ephraim is a cake not turned. By Chapter 11 Israel as this unturned cake refusing the admonition of Hosea and all the prophets eventually losses everything, including the temple, Jerusalem, the sacrifices, and ultimately the priesthood and the prophets.

Hosea (Program #4) – On Hosea (3)—The Sins of the Apostate People, the Punishments of Jehovah, and the Return of the Apostate People

Chapters 4 through 6 in the book of Hosea give us many details concerning God chastisement of rebellious people, Israel. For the most part He used the great nations, the great empires of the human history to accomplish this chastisement. Israel had suffered under first the Babylonian empire of Nebuchadnezzar and then the Medo Persian empire and the Greek empire and ultimately the Roman empire. And as harshly as Israel had suffered under these four great empires that were prophesied first by the prophet Daniel, still God had used this for good. Because Israel will eventually return to Jehovah and be fully restored. But even more than that God had used these four consuming empires as factors to help in the accomplishment of His great purpose in bringing forth and manifesting Christ

Mark (Program #39) – The Death and Resurrection of the Slave-Savior for the Accomplishment of God’s Redemption (1)

The record in Mark chapters 14 and 15 give a striking account of how the Lord Jesus prepared Himself for His crucifixion. Even manipulating those who would ultimately kill Him to do so according to God’s time table and not man’s.

Often overlook in this portion, however, is that the same chapters also record the experiences of Peter. In a very real sense Peter also was being prepared by the Lord to pass through the process of death and resurrection.

It’s somewhat easy to realize that Peter in these chapters is representative of all the disciples. What’s not so easy to see, but just as significant is that Peter’s experiences of failure upon failure eventually resulting in his been striped of any confidence in his natural strength and ability, represents all of us, the Lord’s believers as well.

Hosea (Program #3) – On Hosea (2)—The Symbol of a Wife of Harlotries (2)

The Lord used the prophet Hosea to signify His own sorrow and anguish over the unfaithfulness of His people Israel. Jehovah commanded Hosea to take Gomer who was a harlot as a wife and to love her in spite of heradultery. This was to show Hosea that the Lord view His people Israel as an unfaithful wife. Well, Hosea obeyed the Lord and married Gomer. But after he had born children to him, she left again to chase other lovers. Once again Jehovah came to Hosea and told him to receive her back, and to love her again. Here we see that the Lord patiently drawing Israel His people back to Himself. With a clear promise that at the end of this age He would restore her. This age of restoration would be at the coming of the Lord Jesus. The Minor Prophet Hosea gives us both a clear window into God’s heart for His people and also an unmistakable prophecy of the coming age of the kingdom.

Mark (Program #38) – The Preparation of the Slave-Savior for His Redemptive Service (12)

Ephesians chapter 1:7-9 tells us that Christ’s all redeeming death was part of God’s eternal plan and purpose. Yet on occasion after occasion when the Lord Jesus spoke concerning His coming death to His disciples especially Peter, they continually express their natural thought that such a thing should never happen to Him.

Furthermore, on the night before His death they one by one declare to the Lord, that they would never deny Him even at the cost of their own lives. Of course we all know the story, Peter representing all the disciples within a few short hours was repeatedly denying the Lord.

On one hand it seems hard to believe that after the Lord had revealed so much to His disciples, that they can still behave in such a way. In fact Peter and his failure is representative of all our natural strength and fleshly concepts. Yet by the Lord’s mercy, Peter and eventually even all of us His weak and frail seekers are led through a process of Christ’s death has become much more than just an objective fact. We must become those who like Peter enter into His death so that we can ultimately be ushered into the reality of His resurrection.

Daniel (Program #11) – The Visions of the Overcoming Daniel (3)

After a victorious testimony of overcoming in the first six chapters of the book of Daniel. God came in to show Daniel vision after vision concerning the world situation. Why did God showed Daniel all these visions recorded in chapter 7 through 12? In our life-study today of chapter 8 of Daniel, we will be addressing this question.

Throughout the ages, Israel has suffered a great deal because of the fighting between the three great empires seen in the vision in Daniel 2. The Medo-Persians empire, the Grecian empire and the Roman empire. Of all these, the center of their fighting is Israel. Israel has been through the ages of battleground and due to this fighting it been difficult at times for Israel God’s elect to be something truly according to His eternal economy. In our program today, we will see the vision Daniel saw in chapter 8. A vision concerning a ram and a male goat with its successor.

Mark (Program #28) – The Preparation of the Slave-Savior for His Redemptive Service (1) & (2)

At the end of a nearly three years long journey with His disciples the Lord Jesus at the end of His gospel ministry makes a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Just six days before the time of His sacrificial death on the cross the Lord Jesus surprises His disciples confounds His opposers and thoroughly captivated the hearts of the people of the great city of Jerusalem.

During these final days, Jesus was finished performing the miracles, the great teachings, the casting out of demons even the healing and the cleansing of lepers. For now He is totally focus on the preparation necessary for His death, His burial, His resurrection and ultimately His ascension. Mark chapter 11 gives us a marvelous account of these six days of preparation.

Mark (Program #27) – The Move of the Slave-Savior’s Gospel Service (16) & (17)

The second half of Mark chapter 10 brings us to the city of Jericho. The Lord Jesus has arrived at this place very near Jerusalem, near the end of the long journey He had taken with His disciples. Jesus knew that the time of His appointed death on the cross to be the real Lamb of God was only days away and He would not be kept from that hour.

Twice before on this journey on the way to Jerusalem the Lord had spoken to His disciples of approaching rejection and death in Jerusalem. But the disciples never seem to hear the words. And so here the Lord mentions it again for the third time. But still the disciples had neither ears to hear nor eyes to see as these verses in Mark 10 so clearly illustrate. Beginning at verse 32-37:

“Now they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus led the way before them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that were about to happen to Him: Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and to the scribes. And they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles, And they will mock Him and spit at Him and scourge Him, and they will kill Him. And after three days He will rise. And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying to Him, Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask You. And He said to them, What do you want Me to do for you? And they said to Him, Grant to us to sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.“

Daniel (Program #10) – The Visions of the Overcoming Daniel (2)

“The Ancient of Days sits upon His throne.” This is a word from Daniel. Today we want to consider further the visions of Daniel in chapter 7 concerning the four beasts out of the Mediterranean sea. We have previously seen that these four beast are dreadful and terrible doing whatever they desire as if there was no God in the universe. However these chapter reveals that the Ancient of Days is still on the throne.

Daniel (Program #9) – The Visions of the Overcoming Daniel (1)

God’s faithful servant Daniel not only interpreted the dreams of kings but also saw visions directly from God himself. Visions revealing God’s economy. Today on this life study of the Bible from the book of Daniel, we have reached the halfway point of Daniel. We are now going to get into the final six chapters containing many of Daniel’s visions.

The first section of Daniel or the first six chapters really focuses on the victory in captivity for Daniel and his three companions over Satan’s schemes. But today we start the second section of Daniel; chapters 7 to 12 with the visions of the overcoming Daniel.

Mark (Program #26) – The Move of the Slave-Savior’s Gospel Service (15)

Mark chapter 10 present us with 3 cases all related to whether or not believers will enter into the kingdom of the heavens. The best known of this cases concern a rich young man who approach the Lord Jesus wanting to what he must do in order to have eternal life. The Lord’s word shocked the young man as well as the Lord’s disciples. For He instructed him to go and sell all that he had and give it to the poor. Well, the young man turned and walked away knowing that he was not able to meet such a demand. And then this famous exchange took place between the Lord Jesus and His followers.

Mark 10:23-27: “And Jesus, looking around, said to His disciples, How difficult it will be for those who have riches to enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were amazed at His words. But Jesus again answered and said to them, Children, how difficult it is for those who trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. But they were astonished beyond measure and said among themselves, Then who can be saved? Looking upon them, Jesus said, With men it is impossible, but not with God, for all things are possible with God.“

Ezekiel (Program #24) – The River Flowing from the House

An outstanding feature that appears again and again throughout the pages of the Bible both in the Old Testament and the New is a river. The river was prominent in Genesis and the river appears in the books of history and the books of the prophets in the Old Testament. This river is still flowing in the gospels especially in the Gospel of John where the river flows out of the pierced side of the Lord Jesus. And it continues to flow right through the final chapters of Revelation where it is seen proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the New Jerusalem. In all of these mentions the river is a very positive factor, very much related to the matter of the divine eternal life. One of the more striking appearances that this river makes is in Ezekiel 47 where it’s seen flowing out of the house of God. In this chapter it becomes a deep river – too deep and too wide to be passed over. The one that we have no choice but to abandon ourselves to and swim in.

Mark (Program #16) – The Move of the Slave-Savior’s Gospel Service (4)

Mark chapter 7 verses 5 through 7 tells us “And the Pharisees and the scribes questioned Him, Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with common hands? And He said to them, Well has Isaiah prophesied concerning you hypocrites, as it is written, “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart stays far away from Me; But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as teachings the commandments of men.”“

Ezekiel (Program #23) – The Priests and the Offerings

The Lord revealed to Ezekiel that above all, He desires a place on the earth where He can put the soles of His feet that would also be the place of His throne. In other words, God desires to have a dwelling place, a place of rest and satisfaction; and, a place where He can administrate His heavenly rule and His divine move over the entire earth. This is the real significance of the house of God as revealed to Ezekiel and as revealed to us, the church, which is the reality of the house of God in the New Testament. But after we receive such a high revelation concerning the significance of God’s building, we need a further realization as to the kind of persons that are qualified to serve Him in His house.

Mark (Program #15) – The Move of the Slave-Savior’s Gospel Service (2) & (3)

Mark chapter 6 presents us with 4 seemingly unrelated cases. To our shallow understanding these 4 cases seems to be merely 4 separate stories of events that took place during the Lord’s earthly ministry. However if we receive even a little enlightenment we can see that once again the sequence in the divine record of how these events are unfolded is really marvelous. And that when taken together these 4 cases really are layers of meaning and significance.

So here are 4 cases, 2 negative and 2 positive. That individually show us the rejection, hatred and justice even martyrdom that typifies the world’s response to the gospel. But collectively they fill us with encouragement, conviction and even a renewed determination to go forth to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to the whole inhabited earth.

Ezekiel (Program #22) – The Return of God’s Glory to the House

Early in his ministry as recorded in chapters 9 and 10, the prophet Ezekiel had seen the glory of Jehovah depart from the temple and even from the earth. It was the gross sin of the people, the abominations, the whoredom, the carcasses and the degradation that caused the Lord’s glory to depart. But after receiving the vision of the completion of the building of the temple in chapter 43, Ezekiel saw another vision. This time a vision of the glory of Jehovah returning to the earth and filling the temple. This is Ezekiel 43:1-5, “Then He brought me to the gate, that is, the gate that faces toward the east. And the glory of the God of Israel was there … and His voice was like the sound of many waters, and the earth was illuminated with His glory. And it was like the appearance of the vision which I saw, that is, like the vision that I had seen when He came to destroy the city; and the visions were like the vision that I had seen by the river Chebar. And I fell on my face. And the glory of Jehovah came into the house through the gate which faced toward the east. And the Spirit took me up and brought me into the inner court, and just then the glory of Jehovah filled the house.”

Following the vision of the glory of the Lord filling the house, the Lord had many things to say to Ezekiel as He also does to us concerning His house. Question is, do we have ears to hear and eyes to see the house of God?

Mark (Program #14) – The Move of the Slave-Savior’s Gospel Service (1)

Mark chapter 4 verses 35 through 41 say, “And He said to them on that day when evening had fallen, Let us go over to the other side. And leaving the crowd, they took Him along, just as He was, in the boat; and other boats were with Him. And there arose a great windstorm, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already beginning to fill up. And He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. And they woke Him and said to Him, Teacher, does it not matter to You that we are perishing? And having awoken, He rebuked the wind and said to the sea, Be silent! Be still! And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. And He said to them, Why are you cowardly in this way? How is it that you do not have faith? And they became greatly frightened and said to one another, Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” Today we see the move of the Slave-Savior gospel service in the book of Mark.

Ezekiel (Program #12) – God’s Judgment Upon His People

In the book of Ezekiel, we come today to God’s judgment upon His people which is a picture of His judgment upon the church today. Yet the result of God’s judgment upon the church is to gain a group of people who return to Christ and gain Christ.

Mark (Program #4) – The Beginning of the Gospel and the Initiation of the Slave-Savior (2)

Each of the four gospels is unique in how it begins. The gospel of John begins with Jesus Christ in eternity past. Matthew began with the generations of Jesus Christ the Son of David, the king. Luke also presents us with the genealogy but not in the line of the kingship. Luke’s introduction shows us Jesus as the genuine and proper man.

Mark on the other hand does not begin with any reference to the origin of the man, Jesus. Rather it begins this way. “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,” Notice is not the gospel of Jesus or the gospel of the Son of God. But the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This is a marvelous beginning to Mark’s gospel because it highlights both His divinity as well as His humanity.

Mark (Program #3) – The Beginning of the Gospel and the Initiation of the Slave-Savior (1)

Matthew, Luke and John all begin one way or another with the origin of Jesus Christ. Matthew shows us His kingly genealogy. Luke, His human genealogy. And John, His divine, eternal origin as the Son of God. But Mark begins not with the genealogy rather with the gospel. “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” What is the gospel? Well, Roman tells us that the gospel is the glad tidings, the good news. The reality of that good news is Jesus Christ our savior. And as Mark shows us the slave of God serving His people.

Ezekiel (Program #11) – The Degradation of God’s People

The first chapter of Ezekiel with its awesome vision of the appearance of the glory of God is one of the truly remarkable and critically important chapters in all of the Bible. From there the book of Ezekiel is best understood by viewing it in its respective sections. The second section, a long portion from chapter 2 through chapter 32 reveals how Israel, once the treasure of God, the chosen and lovely people of God had become utterly rebellious and fit only for God to judge. This judgment finally comes in chapter 22, we’ll read about it in verses 16 to 19, “And you will be profaned through yourself in the sight of the nations, and you will know that I am Jehovah. And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; all of them are brass and tin and iron and lead in the midst of the furnace; they are the dross of silver. Therefore thus says the Lord Jehovah, Because all of you have become dross, therefore I am now gathering you into the midst of Jerusalem.”

Mark (Program #2) – A Word of Introduction (2)

Many people wonder why the Bible gives us four historical accounts of the life and ministry in Jesus. One of reasons is the each of the four gospels portrays Christ in a unique aspect. For example, Matthew a book on the kingdom of God reveals Christ in His kingship. Luke shows us Christ’s perfect and upright humanity as a genuine man. John on the other hand stresses the eternal, uncreated life of God as it is revealed in Christ. John is the gospel of Christ’s divinity.

Then what about Mark? Well, chapter 10:45 gives us a clue, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark is wonderful in that it uniquely reveals that Christ lay aside His kingship, His status as God and even His position as a high and honored man to become God’s servant and eventually to become a slave to all mankind giving His life as a ransom for many.

Ezekiel (Program #10) – The Man on the Throne

After the revelation of the four living creatures and the great wheel of the move of God in Ezekiel chapter 1, we are presented with the striking description of the spiritual sky above these four living creatures. In 1:22, Ezekiel writes, “And over the heads of the living creature there was the likeness of an expanse, like the sight of awesome crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.” This vivid picture conveys that when God’s people are fully experiencing Him in Christ and are connected to one another in a way that expresses and glorifies Him, then they have a clear sky above them – so clear that they can see without limitation into the very third heavens where our dear Lord Jesus sits so preeminently on the throne. Verse 26, “And above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it.”

Matthew (Program #67) – Prophecy of the Kingdom (6)

There is a parable in Matthew 25 about utilizing the gifts or talents that the Lord has given to us for His interests. The faithful ones in this parable not only used them for the Lord, but even gained more talents for Him. While the unfaithful servant didn’t lose what the Lord had given him, he just failed to use it to make a profit for the Master. But what are these talents and what is it to use them to gain profit for the Lord?

Lamentations (Program #5) – Conclusion

The emphasis on this life study was very New Testament in flavor. In both Jeremiah and Lamentations, there are some real gems of New Testament divine thought and revelations that come through. And we touch some of these early on in this life studies. So we’d thought that it will be interesting today to pull together three portions of those earlier programs as we review these high points.

Lamentations (Program #4) – God’s Eternal Being and His Throne

The book of Lamentations has often been praised for its rich poetic expression of the human suffering and anguish that was experienced by the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah. And from this perspective, it is an astonishing work. But recall that Jeremiah, more than any other Old Testament figure, has seen much and experienced much of God in the principle of God’s New Testament economy. Even in the midst of His lamentation, he offers a very new testament encouragement in 3:22-24, “It is Jehovah’s lovingkindness”, he wrote, “that we are not consumed, For His compassions do not fail; They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. Jehovah is my portion, says my soul; Therefore I hope in Him.” It is Jeremiah’s realization and expressions of God’s New Testament economy that should leave the deepest and most profound impression on us in reading his two Old Testament books.

Matthew (Program #66) – Prophecy of the Kingdom (5)

The parable says that when the Lord as the Bridegroom comes, ten virgins will go forth to meet Him. But of these ten, five will be deemed by the Lord to be unwise and not ready. So five will go in to the wedding, and five will be refused. Just what is it to be wise and to be ready? Do these terms simply mean to be saved?

Lamentations (Program #3) – The Third Lamentations (2)

The prophet Jeremiah in the Old Testament had much to be sorrowful for. For all around him is God’s judgment. This judgment fell upon God’s people Israel because of their degradation and their unfaithfulness. It also fell upon the nations that surrounded Israel for opposing God’s people and His purpose. And finally God’s judgment fell upon the prophet himself, not so much for his own failures and sins but rather because the prophet Jeremiah properly identified with his people Israel and thereby shared in their judgment. It was these sufferings that brought him to pour out his heart and soul to Jehovah in the short book called Lamentations. But in so doing, we see some wonderful passages that can be immense help to those of us in the New Testament economy. For Jeremiah learned to practice three marvelous things that sustain him and likewise can sustain us. We will look at these three in today’s program.

Matthew (Program #65) – Prophecy of the Kingdom (4)

Of all the parables in the final chapters of Matthew, none is more striking and sobering than the parable of the ten virgins in chapter 25. Coupled with the other parables around it, we can clearly see that at His Coming, the Lord will judge and examine His people, the believing and saved ones. This judgment will not be concerning sin or our eternal salvation, of that we have been assured. But in the matters of watchfulness and faithfulness we will be examined. Not at the risk of our salvation, but at the potential risk of the reward of the enjoyment of the kingdom.

Matthew (Program #55) – The Kingdom Reward and the Parable of the Kingdom Reward

A rich young man who desired to do something in order to receive eternal life approached the Lord Jesus about this matter. But the Lord’s word to him caused him to leave in utter discouragement at the impossibility that he could ever meet such requirement. Jesus then use this occasion to review the matter not of salvation but of the reward awaiting those who follow Him into the kingdom.

The reward of the kingdom is NOT our salvation and the hope of our salvation. This is something altogether different many believers have missed…

Jeremiah (Program #18) – Jehovah’s Condemnation of and Punishment upon the Kings and Prophets of Judah

In the middle chapters of Jeremiah, the Lord is condemning and chastising the kings and prophets of Israel for how they had so fully turned their backs on Him. Listen to this verse from chapter 22, “I spoke to you in your prosperity; But you said, I will not listen. This has been your way from your youth, That you have not listened to My voice.” But despite how this must have deeply offended the very God that had brought them through so much and had proven Himself to them again and again, it’s in the midst of His exposing how utterly unrighteous His people had become that He offers the most hopeful and encouraging promise through the prophet Jeremiah. Just a few verses later, we hear “Indeed, days are coming, Declares Jehovah, When I will raise up to David a righteous Shoot; And He will reign as King and act prudently And will execute justice and righteousness in the land.”

Matthew (Program #54) – The Kingdom Requirements

Lust, pride and the love of riches, these are 3 scorpions that plague virtually every human being. Many people come to Christ motivated by the desire to be free from the sting of these scorpions. As God’s people, we must ultimately experience this kind of freedom. But deliverance from these can never be attained by mere will power or determination. As we consider this account in Matthew 19 and how much these things will affect our ultimate standing in God’s kingdom.

Jeremiah (Program #17) – Jehovah as the Potter and Israel as the Pottery

The prophet Jeremiah found himself in a difficult almost impossible situation. On one hand, he himself was part of the nation of Israel. A nation that had rebelled against the Lord and as a result was suffering under the hand of Jehovah’s discipline and chastisement. Therefore, Jeremiah was suffering along with all his countrymen. Yet Jeremiah was unique in that he had faithfully spoken Jehovah’s word to Israel pointing out their unfaithfulness and warning them to turn back to the God who had so marvelously brought them into the Good Land. But this faithful speaking by Jeremiah was rejected by Israel and caused them to hate him and even further persecute him. So it’s not surprising to hear this man of God crying out in anguish to the one person who would surely sympathize with him – his own mother. In chapter 15, the prophet said “Woe is me, my mother, because you bore me, A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole land. I have not lent with interest, Nor have they lent to me; Yet everyone curses me.” But before his mother could speak a comforting word, Jehovah intervenes. And in the discourse that follows, we see that Jeremiah had a different view from Jehovah regarding the way that the Lord was dealing with His people, Israel.

Matthew (Program #53) – Relationships in the Kingdom (2)

Who can possibly describe the depth of God’s forgiveness of our debt to Him. Yet we frequently find it very difficult even impossible to forgive others who would even slightly offended us. Matthew 18 reveals that if we fail to forgive others after we have received God’s forgiveness of us, we are in serious jeopardy and we will face a very harsh reality when we meet Christ. You may say as many do, “I don’t have to worry, I have been forgiven of everything and on my way to heaven”. Well, if this is your thought we hope, we even pray that you stay tune today because this chapter like much of Matthew is not dealing with our eternal destiny but rather our practical participation in the kingdom of the heavens.

Jeremiah (Program #16) – A Full Picture of God’s Economy by His Dispensing

The book of Jeremiah reveals God’s righteous judgment upon His people, Israel, for their many sins and the idolatry that had overtaken them. But if we look carefully and consider this book in the light of the entire Bible, we see that in the midst of all this negative history, God’s economy – that is His desire to dispense Himself and His riches into His chosen people that they might be reconstituted with Him and become His very corporate expression, is also revealed. In the first pages of Jeremiah’s account, God commissions him to tell all the people that their greatest evil is that they have forsaken Him not as their Creator nor even as their God, but as the fountain of living waters.

Jeremiah (Program #5) – The Intrinsic Content of Jeremiah In Hebrews, the New Testament book, the apostle Paul who is the likely writer of Hebrews quotes the prophet Jeremiah. Listen to Hebrews 8:10-11 “For this is the covenant which I will covenant with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will […]

Matthew (Program #42) – The Treasure and the Pearl 6 parables that unlock the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens are presented by the Lord Jesus Himself in Matthew 13. Four of these parables depict the visible, outward appearance of God’s kingdom today. But the last two are much more hidden even difficult to […]

Isaiah (Program #40) – The Servant of Jehovah to be God’s Full Salvation In both Isaiah 42 and 49 Christ, the servant of Jehovah is presented as a covenant and as a light to the people of God. A covenant and a light, why are these two linked? Are they linked in other passages of […]

Matthew (Program #30) – The Enlargement of the King’s Ministry (2) In Matthew chapter 10, the Lord Jesus appointed His 12 apostles. Later in that chapter, He sent them out to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God, enlarging His earthly ministry. But before He sent them out to the cities of Israel to […]

Isaiah (Program #28) – A Child of both the Divine and Human Natures… All true believers love God’s word and love the genuine and undeniable words of prophecy. It seems that most people today may favor prophecy concerning Christ’s second coming. But much of the richest prophecy in Scripture concerns His first coming. Like these […]

Matthew (Program #18) – The Decree of the Kingdom’s Constitution (6) Matthew 5:17 says “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill.” Yet in other places in the New Testament we are told that the law has been done away […]

Judges (Program #4) – The Miserable History of Israel’s Forsaking God (3)

During a very difficult time in Israel’s history the Lord raised up Gideon to be a judge and ruler. Initially great victories were afforded under Gideon’s leadership and the account of his successes stands as the most glorious of those recorded in the book of Judges. His success can be attributed to 4 glorious factors of his relationship with Jehovah. However shortly after these successes he succumbed to serious temptations. These ultimately overtook him and all of Israel eventually suffered as a consequence. These factors remained as major stumbling blocks to many of God’s people and especially to many leading ones among God’s people today. We will look at the factors of both Gideon success and his failures on our program.

James (Program #1) – Introduction and Practical Virtues of Christian Perfection (1)

One of last books to be added to the canon of the New Testament was the Epistle of James. Throughout the centuries, believers have had very different attitudes towards this book. Some believers treasure it to the uttermost, granting it a status of being among the very top books in the bible. Others, drawing a comparison between James and Proverbs, may feel that it would better fit in the Old Testament. While some have question whether it belongs in the Bible at all. Why would such a book give rise to these varied opinions? The message of the book is very clear and straightforward. The language is lovely even poetic in places. And the author had great creditability because scholars agreed that this was the James that was the Lord Jesus’ flesh brother and he was also the leading elder in the first church, the Church in Jerusalem. We believe that the life study we begin today will give us a very solid answer to this intriguing question.

Joshua (Program #9) – The Allotment of the Land (1)

We all know the story of Jacob, of course he had 12 sons, each one very different. These 12 sons then became the 12 tribes of the nation of Israel and the good land of Canaan was eventually apportioned to these tribes, the descendants of Jacob’s 12 sons.

The account of how these parcels were passed on to the various tribes of Israel may seems to us to be a meaningless bit of history as God’s New Testament people, yet it is recorded in the book of Joshua and as we will see today it helps to convey a very meaningful and very experiential aspect of our own enjoyment of Christ.

Hebrews (Program #58) – Eating and Manna

Some of the Lord’s promises to His faithful overcomers are quite regal and heavenly. But among the final promises is that His overcomers would eat of the hidden manna. This hidden portion is spoken of in Hebrews chapter 9. And if you have never considered such a matter, you will be treated to a feast in today’s life study of the Bible.

Of all the heavenly things that we have seen and discussed in this life study of Hebrew, one of the real treasures without question has to do with something so simple, and so small as a round wafer that we eat called Manna.

Deuteronomy (Program #10) – The Rehearsal of the Law (3)

To the assembled nation of Israel preparing to cross over the Jordan river and enter Canaan, Moses had this to say, “Hear, O Israel! You are about to cross over the Jordan this day in order to enter in and dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, cities that are big and fortified up to heaven, know therefore today that Jehovah your God is the One crossing over before you as a consuming fire; it is He who will destroy them, and it is He who will subdue them before you, so that you may dispossess them and destroy them quickly, as Jehovah has said to you.”

Surely these words must had filled the people with hope and expectation. but Moses also brought their earlier failures to remembrance, “Remember; do not forget that you made Jehovah your God furious in the wilderness; from the day that you came forth from the land of Egypt up until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against Jehovah.” Moses once again preparing this new generation to overcome, enter and possess the land.

Hebrews (Program #37) – The Law of Life

God operates in our lives not so much according to what we feel He should be doing but according to the accomplishment of His own purpose. For this He has given us a new covenant.

Today’s life study will remind many of our listeners of the life study of Romans that we recently completed. These two books do overlap a lot, it seems, despite the complete different audience and how their truth are presented.

Hebrews (Program #22) – The Remaining Sabbath Rest (5)

To put any jigsaw puzzle together piece by piece, you need to see the picture on the box. Today we will see the picture on the box, that is the governing principle, which is the key to understand all the 66 books of the Bible.

We continue on the topic of the Sabbath rest from the book of Hebrew. This is a major topic in the book as we have seen. We are going to hear Witness Lee today use the term “the governing principle of the entire Scripture”. We are going to see some amazing items related to God’s eternal purpose open up today. What is this governing principle?

Numbers (Program #27) – Fighting (6)

After 40 years of journeying through the wilderness of Sinai, the children of Israel had finally arrived at the gate of the good land and the end of their long and difficult journey. By now they had experienced a wide range of things from God’s mercy, many of His miracles and the number of wars fighting against a variety of enemies and a great number of their own failures and setbacks as well. But through it all, God remained faithful to His promise to bring them into the land that He had given to their father Abraham. He was also faithful to remind them of His need and He would never let them forget the necessity of offering sacrifices there were satisfying to Him. We will review some of these marvelous point on today’s program and we will see some new things facing God’s people.

Hebrews (Program #1) – A Foreword

Today we come to one of the most mysterious books in the entire Bible – the book of Hebrews. Many believers shy away from this epistle but given the proper keys to unlock the treasure of this book, it surely is one of the most nourishing and enlightening of all in Scripture.

What will be different in the life-study of Hebrews will be an exploration of the profound concepts, the divine thoughts that are the foundation of the revelation in this book. What will be unique will be a faithful and thorough and comprehensive unveiling of the uniqueness of Christ as unveiled in the epistle to Hebrews. Another aspect of what is different or what is unique will be a serious consideration of the warning passages which point us to the fact that the coming kingdom, the coming reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years, will be a reward not to all believers but to the faithful, overcoming believers. When we put all these things together, we have what the writer of Hebrews calls “a word of righteousness – a solid word”. All of these messages will be very solid. On the one hand, they will supply the most mature and earnest and seeking of the believers. On the other hand, the presentation is so clear and so receivable that even the youngest and newest seeker of Christ will find much that he or she can understand, enjoy and appropriate.

Numbers (Program #6) – Being Formed into an Army (7)

In the Old Testament arrangement, all those who were born in the line of Aaron were designated automatically to the priesthood. To be a priest was not available to everyone. But the Lord made a provision for any among God’s people who voluntarily choose to serve Him in an absolute way. It was called the vow of the Nazarite. Under the provision of this vow, a person’s living and characteristics were subjected to the highest and strictest standard. Though such a formal vow with its restrictions is not directly associated with the New Testament economy, in principle, the Lord desires all of His children to be real Nazarite even today, just as the Lord Jesus lived so absolutely for God and to God. As we look into the vow of the Nazarite on today’s life study.