Talk of JESUS .com

Tag: ephesians

  • Our Sin

    Our Sin

    Psalm 51

    English Standard Version (ESV)

    Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God

    To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

    4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight,
    so that you may be justified in your words
    and blameless in your judgment.

    Mark 8:

    34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them,

    “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it…

    38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

    Titus 1:16  They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

    2 Timothy 2:

    If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
    12 if we endure, we will also reign with him;
    if we deny him, he also will deny us;
    13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

    God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

     

    John 13

    English Standard Version (ESV)

    Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet

    Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end…

    17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

    18 I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’

    If you know our Lord’s commands, ‘blessed are you if you do them.’

    And if not blessed for obedience to our Lord who died for our sins on the cross…

    IF not blessed, then cursed. (May God have mercy on your soul.)

    One of You Will Betray Me

    21 After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you,one of you will betray me.”

    22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke.23 One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus’ side, 24 so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?”

    You believe your sin is against me; but your sin is the adultery of Judas.JudasBetrayal

    I gave her time to repent, but she refuses… – Revelation 2

     John 15:12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

     

    Ephesians 5

    English Standard Version (ESV)

    Walk in Love

    Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.

    2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us,

    a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

    Walk as children of light

    9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.

    11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.

     

    Wives and Husbands

    22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

    23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.

    24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

    25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

    31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

    32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

    33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

    Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight…

    Forgive us, Lord

    by the fragrant offering of the Blood of Your Cross.

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  • The Time Is Near For Our Church – Ephesus

    The Time Is Near For Our Church – Ephesus

    The Revelation of Jesus Christ

    John to the seven churches

    Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.

    “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus…

    “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. 19 Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this.

    20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

    Christ, our risen Lord and Savior holds in His right hand the angels of the churches. Christ, our returning Lord and Savior stands in the presence of His golden churches – the believers to be taken-up along with those who have gone before us.

    Yet each letter to the churches is specific to a group of believers: praise for faithfulness and call to continued faith. For not all who say, “Lord, lord,” will be taken-up. Not all who say, “Lord, lord,” will stand as a light of witness as a lampstand on His right. For some will be separated to the King’s left and He will say of those who did not glimmer with the light of Jesus, “I never knew you.”

    And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. – Matthew 25:46 KJV

    Therefore: The warnings for the seven churches are addressed to the saints of every generation until the last.

    You with ears to hear, let the scripture of Revelation speak to your eternal soul.

    the_seven_churches_of_revelation       EPHESUS Library at Ephesus

    Maps change. Borders change. Buildings rise and fall. Nations rise and fall. Ephesus, like any other place on the map of this temporal world has changed over the years. Do not make the mistake of thinking of these letters to seven churches as being to “places.” These are letters which address some specific issues of faith encountered by the people of the churches.

    What does not change is people. We are sinners: no matter where we live; no matter when we live… or die: we are sinners.

    Into any part of this world, whether you call it Turkey (21st c.), Greece (BC), or Asia, as written in the Book of Revelation: enter Jesus Christ and every decaying building and dying man has new meaning.

    The population of Ephesus at the time of John was about 200,000 people. Over the centuries control of this area of Asia moved between east and west: Rome and Persia (among others).

    We know that wars and time will cause Nations and buildings to stand no more.  We know that we live in a flesh even more temporary than these. Yet the message of the Gospel from the first century until the 21st and to the Last Day endures.

    The people of Ephesus and the people of Pen Argyl (where I live) are essentially the same: we are sinners with the certain hope of resurrection in Christ Jesus. Yet the warnings for Pennsylvanians or Ephesians, for Romans or Americans, for men and women of any city, in any state, in any country and in any time until now is: follow Jesus Christ as your Lord. He IS and will return.

    Into our individual cultures and local towns we must BE the CHURCH. We must BE HIS SAINTS, or have our lampstand removed.

    We have nowhere to stand without Jesus.

    Each Christian in every Church must shine a light for Christ Jesus.

    Our choice is Eternal Life and Light OR Death, Darkness and the punishment we deserve for our many sins.

    Revelation 2:

    To the Church in Ephesus

    “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.

    2 “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.

    3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.

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    This is all High Praise from our Lord. Take note. These are good things for our church to continue. These are good things for us to continue.

    • Patient endurance.
    • Do not put up with those who are evil (and we know many who are evil).

    Here’s one a 21st c. seeker-friendly church might miss:

    • “… tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.

    When was the last time you, a fellow saint of your church, or even a church leader challenged ANY to find them to be FALSE christians?

    I’m not talking about those seeking to repent, change, and grow in Christ Jesus.  Our Lord challenges the church to identify the wolves in sheep’s clothing. Matthew 7:15; Acts 20:29

    wolf

    Some of us in what WE, ourselves listen to, read or watch as ‘christian teaching’ need discernment to recognize wolves in the shepherd’s clothing of the pulpit.

    IF you see no cross of sacrifice; IF Jesus is going to do something for you, IF ‘god’ wants you to have it NOW, beware.

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    4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.

    5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.

    Some of you have been born again in the Holy Spirit. Do you remember when you were first on fire for the Lord?

    Acts 4: 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

    Our Lord exhorts the church to continue in our boldness for returning to the love we had for for Jesus and for His Gospel at first.

    If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

    UNLESS YOU REPENT!

    Heaven OR Hell?  That’s really the consequence of repentance or disobedience, isn’t it?

    Why would Jesus keep a lampstand for our diminishing flicker after our wick has burnt dry?

    Our Lord closes His specific cautions to the church at Ephesus with an encouragement, as so often the Letters of the Apostles encourasge us.

    6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

    Again, recall that the warnings were to a specific church with specific challenges, just like your church or my church.  The works of the Nicolaitans are unknown with certainty (perhaps warning enough for false teaching).

    7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

    To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

     

    Hear the cautions for our Church.  NEXT: Smyrna

     

     

  • What’s the DIFFERENCE between Christians & non-Christians?

    What’s the DIFFERENCE between Christians & non-Christians?

    So as not to reinvent the wheel or simply understate what others have taught previously, I share with you the Christian witness of a wonderful background history of context, culture, and some geography of Paul’s Letters to the Thessalonians as HOMEWORK for a Bible Study I will be teaching, God willing, next Sunday, 9:15 a.m. at Bender’s Mennonite Church.  Please pray also for me.

    The following is for benefit of ALL believers. Please SHARE YOUR COMMENTS.

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    What’s the DIFFERENCE between Christians & non-Christians?

    This is essentially the question by residents of every city and every town to first century Christians as they preached the Gospel.

    “What makes YOU different from US?

    How do you answer this question in your town for your 21st century non-Christian neighbors and unsaved relatives?

    Do you get it right?  Do you TELL them how DIFFERENT you are from them?  Do you suppose that this DIFFERENCE sounds like “Good News” to unbelievers?

    Many Letters of the New Testament make much mention of ‘Jews and Gentiles,’ from the language and cultures of the first century.  What we fail to realize of this distinction is an important one of Holiness that requires separation to God from the evil and sin of the world.

    • The Jew was separated to the Holiness of God.
    • The Gentile was not yet adopted for separation to the Holiness of God. Gentile is a term meaning Nations or Ethic Peoples other than Jews.
    • The Gospel, consistent throughout ALL Letters to the first century church, is Good News:

    “The Perfect Sacrifice of Christ Jesus on the Cross is for ALL Peoples – Jew and Gentile.

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    So in a nutshell, what was the first century Christian answer?  Essentially:

    There is NO difference between me (a follower of Christ Jesus) and you (an unbeliever).

    You may read of it in great detail in Paul’s Letter to the Romans; or you may read succinct summary in Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians; OR you may study your Old Testament and the History of the first century Church as detailed by Luke in The Acts of the Apostles.

    With some homework and study of the background leading up to the Letters to the Churches, God will reveal much more than the former and current relevance of all Scripture, including the Good News of these New Testament Letters.

    The familiar New Testament story of witness is that a Jew from Judea, with Jerusalem as home of their God, travels to a town.

    Take for example, Thessaloniki, Macedonia on the Aegean Sea, with local gentiles (Greeks) of their own traditions and culture.  Thessalonians (as they are called) are ruled by the same empire (country) Rome, on the Tyrrhenian Sea, on the Italia peninsula across the Adriatic Sea from Macedonia, with power over all the lands of the Mediterranean.

    (The embedded PowerPoint Slideshow by Cooper Church of Christ in Cooper, Texas, US is our homework.)

    Thessalonica of Macedonia

    For 21st century readers of Thessalonians: Consider the hostile environment of the Roman Empire as compared to our current environment in all the world, hostile to Jesus Christ.

    • Jews who had dispersed into the Nations (Gentiles) tended to act as if they were morally better than their native hosts.
    • ALL Gentiles had in common a civil authority and local culture inclined toward godlessness, unless some rule of god could help maintain the political power of local, state, national, and international rule.

    (Of course, 21st century governments are so much different in their attitudes toward religion and God.  Right?)

    These first century Christians acted different from other “religious” people.

    HOW ARE CHRISTIANS DIFFERENT?

    WHY would a non-believer WANT to accept our GOOD NEWS?

    Learn a lesson from the first century evangelists.

    We are ALL the same WITHOUT Christ.  Yet ALL believers of every NATION are equal in CHRIST OUR LORD.