Category: Epistles – Is his letter to our church?

Epistle of Paul to the Romans

Epistles ἐπιστολή or Letters

I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.

Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians

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JUNE 2024 – 2025 —

1 CORINTHIANS

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Letters – Is he writing to me?
The short answer: YES.

In their epistles or 1st century church letters the Apostles and other men sent out by Jesus build up the saints [small – ‘s’] or members of local first century churches.

A Disciple or other witness of JESUS would write it. Messengers then delivered these church letters to many isolated worshipers.

Followers of Jesus Christ receive these letters as a major encouragement to their personal faith. Then leaders read them to worshipers of their church.

Although the Epistles 0r Letters to the Church were originally written to churches of the first century,

Romans through Jude will seem like letters to your 21st century church.

What do Peter, Paul, John and others tell us we must do?
Is he talking about an issue in your 21st c. church as well?
How does the writer’s advice, warning, or encouragement to the 1st c. believers apply to you as well
Is the writer of this letter talking about something you need to address in your 21st century ‘christian’ life?

Contemporary Application of the Letters (Epistles)

Most New Testament writers take on specific issues confronting faithful followers of Jesus Christ. These same issues continue to confront believers until the Lord’s coming again in these last days.

Certainly Christ our Lord will come again to those God has chosen for eternal life.

Believers currently suffer more than most of you who know Christ in your local church can imagine.

In other lands Christians continue to suffer by the hand of the ungodly.
Go into all the world

A 21st century Common Era church can see and hear nearly any atrocity of man or artificial imagination of sinful man’s mind, yet ‘christians‘ dare not speak of any absolute truth of the Lord God or talk of JESUS CHRIST.

Will YOU comment on Scripture and share the Gospel?

I invite you to read the inspired word of Scripture written in these LETTERS TO THE CHURCH.

YES, He IS writing to YOU.

Beloved brother or sister in Christ Jesus,

Will you read this ‘CHURCH LETTER’ and talk of JESUS through your comment, sharing and email to me about this ‘Letter to you?”

Roger@talkofJesus.com

Atheist or worshiper?

What is the difference between YOU and an atheist?

We can talk about Jesus Christ to some, but does He really make a difference in your life?

Do you worship Jesus as LORD on Sunday?

Do you cherish your relationships with other Christians?

And other than that mere hour on Sunday, do YOU look at life any different than the worldly who do NOT believe in God?

For the atheist – by Roger Harned

Your matter doesn’t matter.

Never mind your mind.

My soul sees who God has made.

Your soul touches mine.

Hebrews 10:

23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.

25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

26 Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins.

Psalm 95:6-7

Come, let us worship and bow down.
Let us kneel before the LORD our maker,

for he is our God.
We are the people he watches over,
the flock under his care.
If only you would listen to his voice today!

My soul seeks your soul, dear brother, dear sister in our Lord Christ Jesus.

Let us gather together in thankfulness.

See you Sunday, my fellow saints, as we gather as His church.

September 21, 2013
Christian Anger

Ephesians 4:25-27

English Standard Version (ESV)

25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.

26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.

Do you ever get ANGRY? What do you do with your Christian Anger?

Do you let many moons set on your ANGER, even though the Bible tells us NOTto let even one day go by?

I rarely get angry because I am quick to remember the hurtful consequences of past anger; but one day last week, I became angry.

I hope that it was righteous anger. I was lashing out against a sense of frustration in trying to defend my wife against an immovable bureaucracy causing high cost of injustice. (I wanted it taken care of RIGHT AWAY!) Have you ever been there?

Of course in time our Lord will right all injustice and reward all PATIENCE for suffering injustice. It may have been “righteous anger.”

After the situation was partially resolved, I made a phone call to the person who patiently endured my tirade of something out of her control and I apologized (before the sun set on her tough day).

Here is what helped me to PAUSE before I let out anger

Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.

Even when Jesus showed righteous anger, his anger was witness to God!

Careful… Our ANGER usually is not witness for God and makes others think that Jesus makes NO difference in us, IF HE is NOT Lord over our ANGER.

Between the STIMULUS ……..and……response…. Pause for Jesus’ sake.

We PAUSE here for you to Worship our Lord over the weekend…

…to be continued with a series beginning Monday, 16 September 2013:

ANGRY Children of a Loving God

September 13, 2013
Take a look in the mirror
TEXT: Do you love Jesus Christ?
- No answer
- Another text (later)
- No answer
So what is a brother or sister in Christ to think? Are you too busy for just a simple answer to a genuine communication in love?

Maybe you think: I have other things to do… or when that number comes up on your cell: “I won’t answer that. I don’t want to talk to him (or her).”

Is that your idea of what you look like when you say that you are a Christian?

Do you really think that is what Jesus Christ expects from those who ‘claim’ His Name by calling ourselves: christians?

Perhaps it’s time to take an honest look in the mirror of your Christianity?

John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

The word used three times in just one verse – a commandment of our Lord Christ Jesus – agapaō

of persons: to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly

I don’t know about you, but I see no choice here.

IF a Christian brother or sister is trying to communicate with you: Jesus commands us to welcome them, to entertain them and to be fond of our brother or sister in the Lord — even love them dearly.

IF we have a relationship with Jesus Christ, then by His command (IF in fact and in deed He IS our Lord) Jesus commands us to love each other dearly.

Take a look in the mirror. After all, you should see a forgiven sinner staring back at you AND Jesus forgave you.

In case you were wondering about the word for “love” in 1 Corinthians 13, often quoted as ‘the love chapter,’ it is a form of the same word:

agapē – affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love

You can be convicted by the entire list by reading the thirteen verses of 1 Corinthians 13; but to point out just a few for the mirror in front of you now:
- Love is not arrogant.
- Love is not rude.
- Love is not irritable.
- Love is not resentful.
Yes, there are more.

And don’t forget, dear brother or sister in the Lord:

Love never ends.

And one final look in the mirror:

12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

Let’s talk of Jesus. Please SHARE your Christian Social Witness.

& comment:

Do you love Jesus Christ?
September 11, 2013