PT-3 "Intro to Colossians 2:8-10)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/7/2017 10:10 PM

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  PT-3 “Intro to Colossians 2:8-10”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:8-10

            Message of the verses:  “8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;”

            Before we begin to look at this next introduction to these verses I wanted to take the time to look up in my Greek/English dictionary that is on my Online Bible Program the definition for the word “captive” as it caught my eye as I was pasting these verses on this SD. 

1) to carry off booty

1a) to carry one off as a captive (and slave)

1b) to lead away from the truth and subject to one’s sway

            Now as we look at this last part of this definition we can see that this is exactly what the devil tries to do with every person in this world, but it is not always successful and when a person becomes a believer in Jesus Christ realizing that they were born a sinner and that Christ took their place on the cross giving them His righteousness, and then receiving His Holy Spirit they will not be led captive through this philosophy or vain deceit.  Satan can make the false things seem like the truth, but the truth is only found in the Word of God for the God of truth has written it.

            Now I mentioned that we would be looking at some of the specific heresies that the Colossian church was being threatened with, but we realize that Paul has not actually named it.  John MacArthur gives us some help when he writes “We can, however, reconstruct some of its tenets from 2:8-23.  It contained elements of philosophy (2:8-15), legalism (2:16-17), mysticism (2:18-19), and asceticism (2:20-23).  Because those beliefs were shared by the first-century Jewish sect known as the Essenes, we noted in the introduction it is possible they (or a group holding similar beliefs) were the ones threatening the Colossian believers.  This heresy also had components that were early forms of Gnosticism, the belief that there was a transcendent kind of knowledge beyond Christian doctrine know only to elite initiates who had ascended to that level.   Most damning, though, was its teaching that Jesus was neither God nor the source of all truth.  That was the frontal attack on His deity and sufficiency.” 

            Now I want to get a quote from an internet source that helps explain the different Jewish groups that were around during the time that Jesus was on the earth ministering as one is mentioned in this quote from John MacArthur that is not widely known, the “Essenes.”

The Pharisees

The most important of the three were the Pharisees because they are the spiritual fathers of modern Judaism. Their main distinguishing characteristic was a belief in an Oral Law that God gave to Moses at Sinai along with the Torah. The Torah, or Written Law, was akin to the U.S. Constitution in the sense that it set down a series of laws that were open to interpretation. The Pharisees believed that God also gave Moses the knowledge of what these laws meant and how they should be applied. This oral tradition was codified and written down roughly three centuries later in what is known as the Talmud.

The Pharisees also maintained that an after-life existed and that God punished the wicked and rewarded the righteous in the world to come. They also believed in a messiah who would herald an era of world peace.

Pharisees were in a sense blue-collar Jews who adhered to the tenets developed after the destruction of the Temple; that is, such things as individual prayer and assembly in synagogues.

The Sadducees

The Sadducees were elitists who wanted to maintain the priestly caste, but they were also liberal in their willingness to incorporate Hellenism into their lives, something the Pharisees opposed. The Sadducees rejected the idea of the Oral Law and insisted on a literal interpretation of the Written Law; consequently, they did not believe in an after life, since it is not mentioned in the Torah. The main focus of Sadducee life was rituals associated with the Temple.

The Sadducees disappeared around 70 A.D., after the destruction of the Second Temple. None of the writings of the Sadducees has survived, so the little we know about them comes from their Pharisaic opponents.

These two "parties" served in the Great Sanhedrin, a kind of Jewish Supreme Court made up of 71 members whose responsibility was to interpret civil and religious laws.

The Essenes

A third faction, the Essenes, emerged out of disgust with the other two. This sect believed the others had corrupted the city and the Temple. They moved out of Jerusalem and lived a monastic life in the desert, adopting strict dietary laws and a commitment to celibacy.

The Essenes are particularly interesting to scholars because they are believed to be an offshoot of the group that lived in Qumran, near the Dead Sea. In 1947, a Bedouin shepherd stumbled into a cave containing various ancient artifacts and jars containing manuscripts describing the beliefs of the sect and events of the time.

The most important documents, often only parchment fragments that had to be meticulously restored, were the earliest known copies of the Old Testament. The similarity of the substance of the material found in the scrolls to that in the modern scriptures has confirmed the authenticity of the Bible used today.

Disputes Among the Three Parties

	Sadducees	Pharisees	Essenes
Social Class	Priests, aristocrats	Common people	[Unknown]
Authority	Priests	"Disciples of the Wise"	"Teacher of Righteousness"
Practices	Emphasis on priestly obligations	Application of priestly laws to non-priests	"Inspired Exegesis"
Calendar	Luni-solar	Luni-solar	Solar
Attitude Toward:
Hellenism	For	Selective	Against
Hasmoneans	Opposed usurpation of priesthood by non-Zadokites	Opposed usurpation of monarchy	Personally opposed to Jonathan
Free will	Yes	Mostly	No
Afterlife	None	Resurrection	Spiritual Survival
Bible	Literalist	Sophisticated scholarly interpretations	"Inspired Exegesis"
Oral Torah	No such thing	Equal to Written Torah	"Inspired Exegesis"

---

Sources: Mitchell G. Bard, TheComplete Idiot's Guide to Middle East Conflicts, NY: MacMillan,1999. Chart courtesy of Prof. Eliezer Segal

3/7/2017

 

PT-2 "Intro to Colossians 2:8-10"

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/6/2017 10:26 PM

My Worship Time                                                              Focus:  PT-2 Intro to Colossians 2:8-10

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:8-10

            Message of the verses:  “8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;”

            We continue looking at philosophy in our second SD on this introduction to these verses, remembering that the chapter title that John MacArthur chose for this section is “Philosophy or Christ?”

            I suppose that the major problem with the majority of philosophers is that they try to do their work without looking to God for any answers.  You cannot begin away from God and try to find answers to your question when God’s truth is seen in the Word of God.  John MacArthur quotes Francis Schaefer as he emphasized that man cannot begin with himself and arrive at ultimate reality.”  Paul also agreed with this as we look at 1 Corinthian 2:9 “But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him’ (NKJV).”

            MacArthur also quotes a man named Os Guinness who comments on the futility of modern man’s search for truth apart from God:

“Contemporary man, with his self-drawn picture of society as the ‘closed room’ with No Exit, is caught metaphysically and sociologically.  In the darkness of the room evidently without windows, perhaps without doors, he gropes round and round the edges.  Can one hope that someone will dare to wonder whether there is any light other than the feeble sparks of his own making?  Or will he stubbornly persist in treading the barren circle of poor premises?”  

            Needless to say that if we looked at the history of different philosophers we will find that the majority of them are atheists, walking around in that dark room with no windows or doors tripping over themselves looking for truth that can only be found in the Word of God. 

            As we look at the Colossian church we realize that they too had their philosophers and that is why Paul is writing what he is writing in these verses comparing their message with the message of Jesus Christ stating that their message is “the elementary principles of the world.”  This church was in the same danger of being infiltrated by false teachings.  And this fight has gone on throughout the history of the church age as man has always had a need to worship even if they had to make up their own gods to worship.  Paul had a great concern over all of the early churches that he dealt with, even more concern that the persecutions that he had gone through for after he gave the Corinthians a very long list of times he had been persecuted he writes the following “28 Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches (2 Corinthians 11:28).”  As I took a second look at this passage I found it was more in the middle of the list of persecutions that he had gone through, but when you think of it, it is a wonder that he mentions this at all in this type of his writings, but then this is who Paul was.

            In our final SD on this introduction we will look more at the problems that the Colossian church had.

3/6/2017 10:52 PM

 

PT-1 "Intro to Colossians 2:8-10)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/5/2017 9:29 PM

My Worship Time                                                          Focus:  PT-1 “Intro to Colossians 2:8-10”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:8-10

            Message of the verses:  “8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;”

            John MacArthur entitles this chapter in his commentary on Colossians “Philosophy or Christ,” and as we think about the problems in the Colossian church as mentioned in our last SD this title and these verses are just what they needed to confront those who were peddling their poison to them.

            Many people throughout the history of mankind have wondered how we got here, where the world came from, what is the meaning of life and other questions that can only truly be answered in the Word of God.  I have written over and over again about my hatred for evolution, not the people who believe it but what evolution does to people who do believe it.  Evolution comes  right out of the pit of hell for what it does is tell people that the universe just happened by an accident and therefore no one has to be accountable to the God who the Bible tells us created it and who holds us accountable.  I believe that the people who were peddling their poison in Colossae would believe evolution.

            We see the word “philosophy” in verse eight and it comes from two Greek words “phileo” and “Sophia” and we know that the word Phileo means love as seen in the city of Philadelphia and the word “Sophia” means wisdom, therefore philosophy means to love wisdom, but the kind of wisdom that is being spoken of here is not the kind of wisdom we get from the reading of the Word, especially in the book of Proverbs, but empty deception which comes from the tradition of men as we see in our verses for today.

            People of Paul’s day and people today sit around and peruse the wrong kind of wisdom.  The Greeks were famous for this and Paul confronted them in Athens while visiting that city as he had to flee from persecution and while there he preached a sermon on Mars hill that is found in Acts 17:16 “Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols. 17 So he was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles and in the market place every day with those who happened to be present. 18 And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him. Some were saying, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" Others, "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,"-because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. 19 And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming? 20 “For you are bringing some strange things to our ears; so we want to know what these things mean." 21 (Now all the Athenians and the strangers visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.) (Acts 17:16-21).”  Now the sermon follows these verses but I am not going to quote it now.

            We will continue are look at this introduction in our next SD.

3/5/2017 9:49 PM  

Overflowing with Gratitude (Col. 2:7b)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/4/2017 11:11 PM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Overflowing with Gratitude

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:7b

            Message of the verse:  “overflowing with gratitude.”

            We are looking at the last of the four participles that are in verse seven “perisseuonites” (‘overflowing.’)  MacArthur writes that it “is the only one in the active voice.  It is a response to the other three.  Believers who are firmly rooted in Christ, being built up in Him, and established in their faith, will overflow with gratitude to God.  ‘Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to His name’ (Heb. 13:15).  A grateful heart for all God has given us in Christ will further strengthen our grip on the truth.”

            There is a circle as God gives us blessings and then we are to give praise and adoration to God for the blessings that He gives to us.  As we take in truth from the Word of God, we as believers get a strong mind.  As we live out all of those truths, then we receive full assurance that Christ is the One that He claims to be.  This gives us assurance and so we can appropriate those riches that are His legacy to believers, the ones who walk in Him.  And as they walk in Him, then they will grow in Him and then become established in their faith, and as a result, they will give praise to God.

            This finishes up the chapter that we have been following from John MacArthur’s commentary “Paul’s Love for the Church,” and in our next SD on Colossians we will follow “Philosophy of Christ” as we look at Colossians 2:8-10.  We must remember that the things that Paul is writing have to do with the issues that are going on in the Colossian Church as they do not believe that Christ alone is enough for salvation.

3/4/2017 11:24 PM

 

Walking in Christ "Col. 2:6-7a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/3/2017 4:16 PM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Walking in Christ

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference: Colossians 2:6-7a 

            Message of the verses:  “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed,”

            I know that I have said this before, but Colossian 2:6 is one of my favorite verses and I am happy to be able to study it in this SD.

            I think that I may have mentioned that the word “therefore” is used some 900 times in the Bible and when we see it we have to go back to what was said before, and in this case back to verses 2-5 “2  that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”  MacArthur writes that “The Colossians have received Christ Jesus the Lord, they have settled convictions about His deity and sufficiency, and are standing firm against the attacks of false teachers, so they must continue to ‘walk in Him.’    So as we look at the word “walk” this is a familiar term which refers to daily conduct and as we see it here it actually means that the Colossians, and also all believers, are continuing to believe the truth about Jesus Christ and not allow what they have first learned, their “Christology” to waver.

            As I have looked at this verse before I have come to the conclusion that it means that I have received Christ by “grace through faith” and therefore I am to walk in the same way “by grace through faith.”  I know that if I try and do this “walk” on my own that I will fail and so by faith I trust the Lord through His Spirit and through His Word to walk in the way that He desires me to walk each day.  I am to be living in union with Him.  It has to do with my lifestyle and that lifestyle is to be patterned after Christ, “the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked (1 John 2:6).”  John MacArthur writes the following, which is very important to know more about walking in Christ:  “When faced with the dilemmas that confront Christians in their daily lives, the guideline should be, ‘What would Jesus do in this situation?’  The hymn ‘O to Be Like Thee’ expresses what should be the desire of every Christian:

O to be like Thee!

Blessed Redeemer, this is my constant longing and prayer;

Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,

Jesus Thy perfect likeness to wear.

 

O to be like Thee!

O to be like Thee, Blessed Redeemer, pure as Thou art!

Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;

Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

 

            As we look at the portion in these verses which says “having been firmly rooted,” in Christ it makes me think of the first Psalm:  “1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.  4 The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.”

            John MacArthur writes “That eternal planting took place at salvation, as the perfect tense of the participle errizomenoi (‘having been firmly planted’) suggests.  Christ then became the source of our spiritual nourishment, growth, and fruit.  As we walk in Christ, we are ‘now being built up in Him.’  That connotes the process of being more and more like Jesus.  Epoikodomoumenoi (being built up) is a present-tense participle indicating continuous action.  By studying the ‘word of His grace, which is able to build you up’ (Acts 20:32), believers will ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’ (2 Pet. 3:18).  And then will come ‘to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ’ (Eph. 4:13).”

            Now as we are firmly rooted in Christ and also growing in Him this will result in believers being established in their faith.  MacArthur adds “The passive voice of the participle bebaioumenoi (established) indicates that it is God who will establish believers.  Having such a firm foundation for faith based on walking in Christ is imperative for a healthy Christian life (cf. Rom. 16:25; 2 Thess. 2:16-17; 1 Pet. 5:10; Jude 24).”

3/3/2017 4:49 PM

PT-3 "Settled in Understanding" (Col. 2:2c-5)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/2/2017 10:43 PM

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  PT-3 “Settled in Understanding”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:2c-5

            Message of the verses:  “and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”

            We have been talking about the deity of Christ, which as mentioned is something that some of those in the Colossian church were having trouble with.  You cannot be a true believer, a born-again Christian without knowing that Jesus Christ is truly God who came in the flesh.  There is no way that anyone could be saved without the second person of the godhead coming to earth to take on flesh and blood in order to die on the cross.  In our study of John 17 we read in the first verse “Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You,” and the time that Christ was talking about was what had been planned from eternity past, and that is that the second person of the godhead go to the cross to pay for our sins. 

            Paul tells us that Jesus Christ is the One in whom are “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,” making Him the only One who is sufficient.  John MacArthur writes “Hidden is from apokruphos, from which we get our English word apocrypha.  It was used by the heretics to refer to the writings containing their secret knowledge.  But there is no hidden spiritual knowledge necessary to salvation and sanctification outside of Christ.  The treasures of wisdom and knowledge in Christ, however, are hidden from all but Christians.”  There is little difference in our world today who say that it has to be Christ plus “something,” and that something could be whatever they want it to be in order to be saved, perhaps Christ plus “good works.” 

            We also need this knowledge not only for salvation but it is also critical to assurance of our salvation because doubts can creep in, and these doubts can also be about His ability to do what He has promised.

We will now look at verse four in a way that a man named Lightfoot paraphrases “I wish to warn you against any one who lead you astray by specious argument and persuasive rhetoric.”  The NASB translates it as “I say this in order that no one may delude you with persuasive argument.”  What was going on in the Colossian church is similar to what goes on in all false claims about Jesus Christ and that is to attack the deity of Christ, and His sufficiency to save and sanctify, or even both.  Paul writes to Timothy what is really going on here in 1 Timothy 4:1 “But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,” and that is not only what was going on then, but what continues to go on now.

Paul has warned the church to stand firm and actually rejoices that they are doing this.  He, as mentioned, has never been to this church before as he did not begin it, and so he is “absent in body” from them as he is now in prison, but Paul does say that he is present in spirit.  “5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”  John MacArthur writes “Taxis (good discipline) and stereoma (stability) are military terms, perhaps suggested by Paul’s close contact with Roman soldiers during his imprisonment (cf. Acts 28:16; Phil. 1:13).  Taxis refers to a line of soldiers drawn up for battle, whereas stereoma refers to the solidity of a formation of soldiers.  Taken together, they express Paul’s joy that individually and collectively the Colossians were standing firm against the attacks of false teaching.  His goal for them is that they remain settled in their present true understanding, and not yield to doubt from those attacks.”

3/2/2017 11:16 PM

PT-2 "Settled in Understanding" (Col. 2:2c-5)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/1/2017 11:48 PM

My Worship Time                                                               Focus:  PT-2 Settled in Understanding

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:2c-5

            Message of the verses: “and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”

            I said that we would begin this SD with the word “understanding,” sunesis is the Greek word that is translated understanding.  MacArthur writes that this “refers to applying biblical principles to everyday life.  It is the exclusive property of Christians because ‘a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised’ (1 Cor. 2:14).  Because ‘those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh’ (Rom. 8:5), they are ‘darkened in their understanding’ (Eph. 4:18).”

            As believers live out this spiritual truth then they will truly understand it and this will led to the assurance of their salvation, something we looked briefly at in our last SD.  This will lead to the “full assurance of understanding.”  Some believers have a hard time believing that they are saved, and this is not because they have a lack of knowledge, but their primary problem is a failure to apply the truths that they already know.  MacArthur adds “Truth that finds solid footing in a strong heart and works itself out in love of fellow believers results in deep conviction.  That is the basis for assurance.”

            We have written earlier about the heresies that were spreading in the Colossian Church, and because of that Paul stresses the need that the Colossians include and understanding of “a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”  This speaks of the deity of Jesus Christ, which is something that they were struggling with.  It also speaks of what Paul describes as a mystery, something that had been hidden in the OT times, but now is revealed in the New Testament times.  As we look at this last quote from our verses we can see that what Paul is describing to them is that Jesus Christ is indeed truly God.  Only God can have all of the hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge.  Jesus Christ is God’s mystery.  Paul records the following in 1 Tim. 3:16 which is actually a first century hymn.

“And by common confession great

Is the mystery of godliness:

He who was revealed in the flesh,

Was vindicated in the Spirit,

Beheld by angels,

Proclaimed among the nations,

Believed on in the world,

Taken up in glory.”

 

            MacArthur writes that “All these phrases refer to Christ.  In the early church, as in our own day, it was virtually important to have a grasp on Christ’s deity.  No person can be a Christian at all without this true knowledge of Jesus Christ as the incarnate God.  Yet so many Christians who affirm the deity of Christ live as if He were not the One in whom all spiritual sufficiency resides.”

3/2/2017 12:12 AM

 

PT-1 "Settled in Understanding" (Col. 2:2c-5)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/28/2017 12:14 PM

My Worship Time                                                                 Focus: PT-1 Settled in Understanding

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Colossians 2:2c-5

            Message of the verses:  “and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.   4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”

            I just had a thought that I have had before on many different occasions but have never written down.  Think for a moment of the problems that the church of Colossae was experiencing which caused the apostle Paul to write this letter to, and then for a moment think if they had not had these problems, and then we would not have this letter in the Word of God.  My point is that many of the letters that are contained in the Word of God are results of problems that the different churches or persons were having and if they had not had these problems then we, today would not know how to solve them if we faced the same situations today.  Paul writes to the Corinthians “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God (2 Cor. 1:3-4).” I realize that Paul is talking about some of the afflictions that he was going through, but the same holds true with the difficulties and even the wrong doctrinal problems churches like the Colossian church was going through.  God, through Paul would help them to solve their doctrinal issues and He will also use Paul’s writing to solve similar things that go on in churches today that is if they are willing to admit their problems and ask God to forgive them and then heal their churches.

            Now we want to look at our subject for today, but probably will not get through it in one SD.  Now when we look at the words “wealth that comes from the full assurance” we can be sure that Paul is not talking about physical or financial benefits, but spiritual benefits that will last for all eternity.  We have to rely on these assurances in order to enjoy on all of the blessings that are ours in Christ.  MacArthur writes “For example, no one can look forward with hope to the blessings of heaven who doubts whether he is going there.”  Now there are some who believe that God gives them salvation and that after giving it to them He takes it away from them because of the way that they are living.  John writes in John 3:36 “"He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."”  John is saying, and in this case it is John the Baptist, that you are either saved or you’re not.  John writes the following in 1 John 2:19  “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.”  Here the Apostle John is saying that the ones, who went out from us, never were really a part of us.  Good example of this is Judas who spent three years with Jesus but was never a true believer and so he went out from them.  Bottom line is that if we are a believer we have that hope of going to heaven; it is part of what Christ promises to believers.  Now there are a few places in the Scriptures where we read that we are to make certain of our salvation, and one of them is found in 2 Peter 1:10 where we read “Be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you.”  Paul writes in the last chapter of 2 Corinthians the following “5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you-unless indeed you fail the test?”  Now how do we make sure that our calling is sure?  Peter writes in 2 Peter 1:5-8:

“5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

            Now in our next SD on these verses we will begin to look at the meaning of the word “understanding”.
2/28/2017 12:41 PM

             

SD for 02/27/2017

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/27/2017 12:18 PM

            We are going to look at a special Spiritual Diary that comes from my “Drawing Near Devotional Bible” where the devotionals are written by John MacArthur.  This subject for today’s date (2-27) is entitled “Attaining Spiritual Stability.”  The verse that he used at the beginning of it is Colossians 1:11 “May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience.”  Now since we have been looking at obtaining spiritual strength in our recent SD’s from Colossians I thought we should look at this devotion.

“God always empowers you to do what He commands you to do.

            “An alarming number of Christians seem to lack spiritual stability. Many are ‘tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes’ (Eph. 4:14).  Others lack moral purity.  Many are driven by their emotions rather than sound thinking.  Increasingly, therapists, and psychologists are replacing pastors and biblical teachers as the heroes of the faith.  While we still proclaim a sovereign, all-powerful God, our conduct often belies our creed.

            “Despite our inconsistencies, the power for spiritual stability is ours in Christ as we allow the knowledge of His will to control our lives.  Paul describes the working of the power in Colossians 1:11.  There the Greek word translated ‘strengthened’ and ‘power’ speak of inherent power that gives one the ability to do something.

            “The phrase ‘according to’ indicates that the power for spiritual stability is proportional to God’s abundant supply—and that supply is inexhaustible!  The literal Greek says you are being ‘empowered with all power according to the might of His glory.’  That though is akin to Philippians 2:12-13, where Paul says that the power for working out your salvation comes from God, ‘who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.’

            “In Colossians 1:11 the result of God’s enabling is the attaining of ‘all endurance and patience.’  ‘Endurance’ speaks of perseverance regarding people; ‘patience’ speaks of perseverance regarding things or circumstances.  When you endure and are patient, you are spiritualy stable.  Your responses are biblical, thoughtful, and calculated—not worldly, emotional, or uncontrolled.  You bear up under trials because you understand God’s purposes and trust His promises.

            “Paul said, ‘Be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might’ (Eph. 6:10).  That is possible when you trust God and rely on the infinite power that is yours in Christ.

            “SUGGESTIONS FOR PRAYER:   Perhaps you know someone who is struggling with spiritual instability.  Pray for him or her, and ask God to use you as a source of encouragement.

            FOR FURTHER STUDY:  Psalm 18, is a psalm of victory that David wrote after God delivered him from Saul.  Read it, then answer these questions:--What characteristics of God did David mention? – How might those characteristics apply to situations you are facing?”

2/27/2017 12:43 PM