Why Are You Here? A Preview

 When Jesus began His public ministry He declared these words, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). In case you do not know what repent means, it is defined by changing one’s mind - about our sins in the Biblical evangelical context. You see Jesus came to earth on a rescue mission, to seek and save those who are lost - to save His people from their sins (Luke 19:10; Matt 1:21). The Father God's love for us is what compelled Him to send His only begotten Son to come and die for us (John 3:16). 

The main problem with man is that he has foolishly and hopelessly chosen to be at war with God - a battle he can never win. It's our sin that drives this insidious rage against our Maker. Listen to these penetrating words from King Solomon: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12;16:25).While man lives just to die, God desires to raise the dead to life!

What do I mean?

The Bible declares that we are dead in our trespasses and sins prior to the Spirit of God regenerating us to new life in Christ (Eph 2:1; Col 2:13). That is why Jesus told Nicodemus you must be born again (Italics added for emphasis John 3:3). Jesus has to come and give us the truth because without the Lord, we are dead while we live. John the Baptist said, “He that has the Son has life. He who does not have the Son does not have life, but the wrath of God abides on Him” (John 3:36). 

“Move Over. You’re Blocking My View!”

Listen to what happened to me in worship service today. What would you have done?

https://www.patreon.com/posts/youre-blocking-137263832 

Is Replacement Theology Biblical?

Replacement Theology or Supressionism is the teaching that God has replaced the nation of Israel with the Church. All the blessings of the Abrahamic covenant now belong to the Church as God has rejected Israel due to her unfaithfulness and disobedience over the centuries. To my knowledge, I am not aware of when this "replacement" occurred, but there were many no doubt during the first century believed God had rejected his people due to their unbelief. Paul in Romans 11:1 asked the question, "Has God rejected His people?" I'll answer that later. But what does the word of God say in regards to His covenant relationship with Israel. To understand God's relationship with Israel, we must go back in time before the nation was born to see what were the conditions of the covenant God made with one man, Abram (named changed to Abraham in Genesis 17:5).

The call of Abram

The Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country, your people and father's household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all people on earth will be blessed through you" (Genesis 12:1-4).

The Abrahamic Covenant

"Look up at the sky and count the stars-if indeed you can count them." Then He said to Him, "So shall your offspring be." Abram believed God and he credited to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:5).

"On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, "To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perrizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites" (Genesis 15:18b-20).

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, "I Am God Almighty; walk before Me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers." Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God" (Genesis 17:1-8).

The aforementioned texts makes it clear God has not forsaken His ancient people although most of them have forsaken the Lord over millennia. Two of the main promises/blessings of the Abrahamic covenant are 1) Numerous descendants. 2) Land grant. The covenantal promises God made to Abraham were not conditional; meaning that Abraham had to do something to merit them. This was a one way promise., God chose to bless Abraham simply because it pleased Him to do so (Psalm 115:3).

Whether modern society wants to accept it or not, the land of Israel belongs to the Jews, not the Arabs. As we have just read, God promised the land to Abraham and all of his offspring: His son Isaac, Isaac's son Jacob who's name was changed to Israel by God in Genesis 32:28. That is why the land is called Israel to this very day. The land was given the name Syria Palestina  after the defeat of the Jews led by military leader  Simon Bar Kochba against Emperor Hadrian on the 9th of Av 135 AD. To many this defeat of Israel led many to believe that God has forsaken the Jews permanently.

The rebirth of Israel

No nation in human history has ever resurrected after not being a nation or not having a homeland for nearly 1900 years other than the Jews. Their first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion on May 14th, 1948 declared that the new state of Israel was officially born and they were independent. Since this declaration, this tiny nation has had nothing but war in the last 77 years as a state. After defeating Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis all proxy's for Iran, they attacked Iran directly on June 13, 2025. 

What is currently the position Biblically of Israel?

    

                                                                   

Due to Israel's unbelief, they have been temporarily set aside by God. Why? Because they did not acknowledge the time of their visitation. When was that? When their Messiah Jesus Christ was on the earth desiring to save them and they refused. This is what Jesus said during Passion Week, As He approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace-but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming" (Luke 19:41-44). So Israel's current status is their fault, but remember, God promised through Abraham that his descendants would be blessed forever and they would always have a homeland - the land of Israel. They belong there by divine right although the Palestinians want to wipe them off the face the earth.

They will never succeed.

The current plan of God is spreading the gospel truth through the Church. Understand, there are many Jews who are believers and are in the Church enjoying the blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant. Paul describes the Jews as natural branches in God's olive tree. The olive tree is a metaphoric description of God's blessings to all His people. Gentiles are described as wild olives branches - not natural but grafted in due to Israel's disobedience and their faith in God. The point of God allowing Gentiles the blessings of Abraham is to make Israel jealous so that they will repent and believe the gospel so that they can be grafted back into God's olive tree since the covenants naturally belong to them by virtue of the fact they are the natural descendants of father Abraham. Israel will remain in the background of God's end time plan until the time of the Gentiles are fulfilled (Romans 11:25). After that time, God will save believing Israel and put them center stage on His end time calendar as the Church will be taken out of the earth via the rapture, and Israel will remain to be be protected and nourished for the three and a half years during the great tribulation (Revelation  12:6). 

Think about it, if God had cut off Israel completely, why are they still here? And more importantly, why did He allow them to re-establish themselves as a Jewish state after 1900 years of not being a nation because they have been dispersed all over the world since AD 70 when they were defeated by Emperor Titus and the Romans? There are more Jews in Israel than anytime in history - over 7 million. That's nearly half of the their entire world population which is around 16 million.

Paul said the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:29). His covenant to the Jews was not extinguished because of their unbelief - for it is an everlasting covenant. Israel will never be replaced by the Church. The Church has benefited from the disobedience of Israel (Romans 11:11-24). Paul severely warns his Gentile readers not to become arrogant because they have been grafted in but rather fear and tremble. He tells them if He (God) did not spare the natural branches, they could be cut off too (meaning the Gentiles/ unnatural branches). This completely dispels the replacement theology against the Jews. Just as they were cut off due to unbelief, Gentiles can be cut off due to their unbelief.  God HAS NOT forsaken His covenant people. Replacement theology is a heresy.

The Faith That Saves

Everyone exercises faith everyday whether they realize it or not. Every time we put food in our mouths, we are sure it will not harm us but nourish our bodies. Anytime we take a drink, we assume it is not poisoned. Every time we start our car we set off a series of explosions under the hood and we do not have a concern about the car blowing up. People trust the surgeon to use the knife on them to make the correct incisions with no surety the procedure will be successful. We know when we get paid from our employer that the money will be in the bank when we need to withdraw it although the paper check has no value. This is what the writer calls everyday faith. We do all these things and much more without thinking about them.

Why?

Because, our cars do not blow up when we start our engines. Some of our food is bad because it's processed with GMO's and many other additives but we eat it anyway. What we drink usually does not harm us. We have a relationship with these things, so we are used to them. But what about the faith that saves the soul?

Faith must have an object - whether it's a person, place or thing. The eleventh chapter of Hebrews is described as The Hall of Faith or the Hall of the Faithful. The first verse of the chapter says, "Faith is the substance of the things hoped for. The evidence of things not seen." Atheists view faith as quackery. Why? Because they believe the faith of Christians is void of empirical evidence. In other words, the believer's faith is blind - fools gold, nebulous, superstitious.  Nothing could be further from the truth. 

The evidence(s) that fuels the believer's faith

If the accounts in the Bible were lies, then the non-believer would have a leg to stand on, and we would have no evidence to back up our faith,  but they do not. It is vitally important to note that the majority of the writers of scripture were eyewitnesses to what they wrote about or were associates to eyewitnesses. Just because the skeptic cannot make sense of the Biblical accounts in their mind does not mean they did not occur. If one is an honest reporter, they can provide precise details of an event they witnessed that can be verified. If no one else was there to counter their version of the facts, how can one say they are wrong? 

Luke the physician was not an eyewitness of the life of Jesus but was associated with those who knew our Lord personally. He received their testimony, carefully researched the facts no doubt and provided an orderly account to a man named Theophilus:

Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us. Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word. It seem good to me also having had a perfect understanding of all things from the very first to write unto you in order most excellent Theophilus, that you might know the certainty of those things, wherein you have been instructed (Luke 1:1-4).

We do not know anything about Theophilus, but Luke must have had tremendous love and respect for him, as he provides a written evangelistic account of Jesus Christ for this man. The gospel of Luke is the most complete of all four gospel accounts. The book of Acts also written by Luke was dedicated to Theophilus. In it Luke says to Theophilus, "In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day when He was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented Himself alive to them after His suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:1-3).

Peter said regarding the testimony of Christ said, For we did not follow cleverly devised myths (or fables) when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to Him by the Majestic Glory, "This is My Beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased', we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain (2 Peter 1:16-17).

God's written word is the evidence that energizes our faith, and is also what makes it real. Our faith is based on the truth. Our faith is living and active because it has been given to us by God. Without the Lord, we could never have true saving faith. If God does not exist, how could we have faith in Him and His promises?

What does Hebrews 11:1 mean?

The verse reads, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The writer of Hebrews (which some scholars believe was Paul), said our faith has two important ingredients: substance and evidence. Due to those who had personal relationships with God Almighty, their faith was strengthened because of the promises given to them by God. The Lord was mighty in their midst so they had absolute confidence in what God promised them, He would fulfill. Now, not all saw the full manifestation of what was promised in their lifetime, but they saw it afar off (vs 13).

Likewise, everything God has promised us most likely will not happen in our lifetime, but will be fulfilled in the life to come. So what do we do? We rejoice in the promises of God as if they have been fulfilled. By faith we see the promises afar off although they have not manifested. Faith gives us vision to see the invisible. Our faith has substance or assurance. Bible teacher John MacArthur in his commentary on Hebrews 11 said, 

"Faith is the present essence of a future reality."

This same faith is what saves the soul. When one places their faith in the finished atoning work of Jesus Christ, we are declared righteous by God. This faith is a gift from God to believe in God the Son. 

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Saving faith does not make sense to the unregenerate. Why? Because they are blind spiritually and can never see it. Jesus said to those who have not seen Him yet believe are blessed (John 20:29). To the world it does not make sense to believe in a God we have never seen or who's voice we have never heard. We do not make the rules of engagement when it comes to how we are to relate to God; He makes them. The writer of  Hebrews said, "Without faith it is impossible to please God. For those that come to Him MUST believe that He exists, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). 

The faith of the redeemed

By way of wrap up, the believer's faith is the assurance now in the promises of God for the eternal. Our faith is not whimsical, airy or a leap into some endless black hole. Our faith is not blind; rather it sees. It sees so far that like the faithful of old who are dead, it endures now as a testimony to them. Believer's possess that same faith - the faith of Abraham that justified him (Gen 15:6; Rom 4:16). Our faith is based on truth, on what is real - the enduring Word of God which lasts forever so it will and cannot fail. The faith we possess has by grace led us to eternal life. 

Those who refuse to place faith in the Lord will never enter into the Kingdom of God. Anyone that places their trust in someone or something else is hopelessly blind. Even demons have a better faith than the non-believer; they believe God exists (James 2:19).

This is the thought process of the un-saved toward the Christian Faith: 

You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep-seated need to believe

Carl Sagan

Do I Remain a Sinner Once My Sins are Forgiven?

This is not a trick question. There are some Christians who believe they are no longer sinners when they came to Christ. Let's analyze and find out from God's Word what happens to our sins when we repent and believe the gospel.

Ephesians 1:7 tells us that In Christ we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. The word forgiveness in the Greek is Aphesis. It means remission, to release sins from the sinner. One must understand that when Jesus took away our sins through His death, He was our substitute. He acted as our intercessor and mediator; He suffered, was punished by the Father for our trespasses and paid our sin debt when He died. This was a judicial act by Christ. 

If one can imagine a court scene: 

The Judge is the Father, Satan is mankind's accuser, and Jesus is our defense attorney, our advocate. Now the devil of course wants us to kill us so that we're sent to hell unforgiven so he begins to belch out all of our sins to the Judge: Idolater, murderer, liar, glutton, drunkard, thief, adulterer, blasphemer, covetousness, etc. The Judge says to the defense attorney, "What do you have to say about these accusations?" The defense replies to the Judge, "My Lord the things the accuser has charged my clients with were true, but my Lord You sent Me here not only to defend my clients, You commanded Me to give My life for them because You and I love them. I did what You commanded Me 2,000 years ago and those that have repented and put their trust in Me I cleansed with my blood and saved them so the enemy has no right to them. They belong to You and Me My Honorable Lord. I AM their redeemer. I AM their Savior!

Because of Christ we have received a divine pardon. The Judge has banged His gavel and given us a not guilty verdict. We are free in Christ. Praise God! But just because our sins are no longer counted against us, it does not mean we are not still sinners - we are. How do I know this?

The apostle John in I John 1:8-10 says this to believers, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."

So, if we have been forgiven of all our sins when we initially repented and believed in the atoning work of Jesus for salvation, then why does John say as believers that we have to confess our sins to be cleansed from unrighteousness? I can understand why John's words could be confusing. Were our sins washed away or not?

You see Jesus delivered us from the penalty and power of sin, but currently not its presence. Our bodies have not received its glorification yet so we still struggle in our flesh and war against sin. Because the temptation to sin is with us, we fall prey to sin and we must confess it to the Lord for ongoing cleansing. This confession of sin is not forgiveness so that we can be saved again, but rather a familial or relationship forgiveness - like a father would give to his son that disobeys him (Hebrews 12:5-11). 

I John 2:1-2 says, "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may may not sin. If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." 

Notice what the Elder Apostle John said, my little children. He is clearly making reference to Christians; meaning we do sin. Now, sinning cannot be the pattern of the believer's life because we have been delivered from it. It no longer has dominion over us. You see, we sin, but we must not practice it. That was our former pattern of life. 

Why we should continually confess our sins

Paul said in Romans 15:4, "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope."

God relayed clearly to the children of Israel that in order for Him to dwell in their presence, the land could not be defiled by their sin. How in the world could approximately a couple of million people remain clean? By slaughtering animals, shedding their blood as a sin substitute for them. God required usually sheep, lamb, goats and bulls without blemish to be a sacrifice. The blood shed from these animals was an atonement for the sins of the people. The reason they had to continually offer sacrifices was because the animal's blood could only cover sins, it could not wash away the sins of the people. Hebrews 10:4 tells us the blood of bulls and goats could NEVER take away sins. The blood of animals pre-figured the once and for all sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Remember the words of John the Baptist, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).

I provided that small history lesson to show that although we are clean by the blood of the Lamb inwardly, our outward man which Paul describes as a body of death is not clean and is subject to sin (Romans 7:24). Ongoing confession of sin is good for our soul and body. It is not something we should do ritualistically or mechanically. Rather, we should do it humbly and joyfully realizing that we never deserve the right to even dwell in the presence of the Lord, let alone approach His holy majestic throne. 

So yes, we are still sinners, no question about it. The difference for the believer vs. the non believer is that our lives can no longer be dominated by it. The power of the Holy Spirit compels us to resist sin. The Bible tells us that we cannot practice sin because of the indwelling Holy Spirit (1 John 3:4-9). Notice I did not say temptation for we are always tempted due to the corruption that is in our flesh and the sinfulness of others. 

There will come a glorious day when we will sin no more. That will be when we are glorified in our bodies. That blessed day is when Jesus returns for His Bride the Church. The dead in Christ will rise first. Then all those who are alive will be changed and will meet the Lord in the air (1 Cor 15:51-58; 1 Thess 4:13-18).

The Abundant Life. What Is It?

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when He brings out His own sheep, He goes before them, and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.

Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I AM the door of the sheep. All whoever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I AM the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" 

---- John 10:1-10

 A sheepfold or a sheep pen was an enclosure made up of large rocks or wood with barbed wire, a fence and or wall that the shepherd would make the sheep go into for safety after they were done feeding on the hills or nearby fields. The enclosure had only one opening the sheep could go in and out of. The opening was the door; the shepherd was the door of the sheep. At night the shepherd would guard his sheep by lying down at the opening to keep thieves and predators away so they could rest. A good shepherd would not let his sheep get harmed and killed. He was their only protector, and they trusted him because he was the one that led them out and back in again. They responded to his voice only because he would call them by name. Also, shepherds could rent a communal pen with other shepherds who would keep their flocks overnight if they needed to attend to other business. They would pay a gatekeeper, a hireling, to watch the sheep. The next day, the shepherd would come, and the gatekeeper would open the door so that the shepherds would either call his sheep by name or use a special unique call or song to gather all of his sheep and lead them out. The sheep that belonged to the other shepherds would only listen to their shepherd’s voice and not a stranger. Sheepfolds today are the same as they were in antiquity. One of the differences today is that some shepherds use dogs to help direct the sheep if they try to go astray.

Jesus called Himself the Good Shepherd in John 10:11,14. Although those who were listening were not aware that when He said I give my life for my sheep He was referencing His death. 

So, why do so many Christians believe that when verse ten says, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that more abundantly”, that Jesus is making reference to material wealth? Verse ten is not talking about financial gain at all! Jesus is clearly making reference to granting eternal life to His sheep; those that place their faith in Him for the forgiveness of their sins. That is all this entire chapter is talking about.

The abundant life is the blessed reality that Jesus saves wretched sinners like you and I. Just like shepherds literally laid down their lives for actual sheep because he loves, cares and nourishes them, Jesus laid down His life for His sheep.

Jesus is indeed our Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14). 

Who are the thieves and robbers?

Well the ultimate thief is Satan, but he is not the thief in question here. Notice Jesus said, all that ever came before me were thieves and robbers. That would be the religious leaders of Christ’s day. Why did Jesus call them thieves and robbers? Because they were false teachers and prophets. The Prophet Ezekiel calls false teachers worthless shepherds who did not feed the flock of God but fed themselves (Ezekiel 34). In Matthew 23 Jesus righteously cursed out the religious leaders. 

But woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense  make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation (Matthew 23:13-14).

Jesus also calls them blind guides and fools (vv 16-17). 

The abundant life is eternal life. There is nothing better than to know that we will spend forever with God the Father, God the Son, The Holy Spirit, the Angels, and all the saints of God for all time. When one ponders on these blessings, they should burst forth in praise to God.

My Doxology

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God;and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:1-2).

From Charles Spurgeon regarding 1 John 3:1:

that we should be called children of God Who calls us so? That is the wonder. Men take upon themselves great names without any right to them. There are degrees among men that are degrees of shame because the persons who wear them were never justly entitled to them. It is one thing for us to call ourselves children of God, and another thing for the Father to bestow His love so that we are truly called the sons of God. From where comes this princely title of “children of God”? Who calls the saints the children of God?

The Father Himself does so. He speaks to them as unto children. He deals with them as with sons. He is pleased in infinite love to bid them say, “Our Father,” and He answers to them by calling them children and heirs. He acknowledges their sonship, and pities them as a father pities his children. He has called them sons, saying, “ ‘I will be a Father to you, and you will be sons and daughters to me,’ says the all-powerful Lord” (2 Cor 6:18). Oh, what a blessing it is to have God calling you His child; the great Almighty and Infinite One looking upon you with a Father’s love, and saying, “You are my son”! He speaks the truth, and we may believe it, and be sure. He knows His own children, and gives the name of sons to none whom He will in the end disown. He calls us His children, and we are.

Charles Spurgeon, Spurgeon Commentary: 1 John, ed. Elliot Ritzema, Spurgeon Commentary Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014), 1 Jn 3:1.

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us (emphasis added) and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10).

From Matthew Henry:

Verses 9–12; (1 John 4)

Nothing can be more absurd than the conduct of those who doubt as to the truth of Christianity, while in the common affairs of life they do not hesitate to proceed on human testimony, and would deem any one out of his senses who declined to do so. The real Christian has seen his guilt and misery, and his need of such a Saviour. He has seen the suitableness of such a Saviour to all his spiritual wants and circumstances. He has found and felt the power of the word and doctrine of Christ, humbling, healing, quickening, and comforting his soul. He has a new disposition, and new delights, and is not the man that he formerly was. Yet he finds still a conflict with himself, with sin, with the flesh, the world, and wicked powers. But he finds such strength from faith in Christ, that he can overcome the world, and travel on towards a better. Such assurance has the gospel believer: he has a witness in himself, which puts the matter out of doubt with him, except in hours of darkness or conflict; but he cannot be argued out of his belief in the leading truths of the gospel. Here is what makes the unbeliever’s sin so awful; the sin of unbelief. He gives God the lie; because he believes not the record that God gave of his Son. It is in vain for a man to plead that he believes the testimony of God in other things, while he rejects it in this. He that refuses to trust and honour Christ as the Son of God, who disdains to submit to his teaching as Prophet, to rely on his atonement and intercession as High Priest, or to obey him as King, is dead in sin, under condemnation; nor will any outward morality, learning, forms, notions, or confidences avail him. 

Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997), 1 Jn 5:9.

From King David:

The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. He makes me lie down in the green pastures. He leads me besides the still waters. He restores my soul. He causes me to walk in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For you are with me. Your rod and staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;You anoint my head with oil. My cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23:1-6

Broader vs Contextual Meaning

 There are a few Bible passages that come to mind that have a contextual meaning and what I would call a broader or general meaning. Oftentimes the New Testament writers quote and/or borrow language from Old Testament writers to deliver their messages, or to fulfill Old Testament prophecy. Let’s examine a few.

 Matthew 18:6 - Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

Contextual Meaning - When Jesus is referencing little ones in this passage He is making reference to all believers, young and old alike. No one should tempt God’s children into sin - it's deadly for the offender to do so.

Broader Meaning - Many Christians will use this verse to refer to children only; e.g. those that want to harm children and sexually groom them to have transgender mutilation surgery because they have confusion about their biological sex or worse, sex traffic them for profit. They (i.e. those that protect children) are saying to the predators out there, “It would be better if someone hung a millstone around your neck and threw you in the sea to drown than for you to hurt a small child.” I see no problem borrowing the language from this verse to emphasize the severe repercussions of harming children but it’s very important to remember the context in which Jesus said this so the original meaning is not lost.

 Revelation 3:20 - Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

Contextual Meaning - Jesus is proverbially knocking on the door of the Laodicean Church due to their sinfulness, they have locked the Lord out of their lives due to their apostate lukewarm behavior. This is a call to repentance by the disobedient members of this Church. Jesus loves them and desires to be let back in so that He can enjoy sweet communion and fellowship with the members of this congregation. It is not a call or invitation to repent and receive salvation for the first time. By extension this is a warning to all wayward believers for all time that think materialism is a barometer for holiness and success in lieu of obedience. The Laodiceans said they were rich. Jesus said they were wretched, blind, poor and naked (vs17b). Read all the verses regarding the Church of Laodicea.

 Broader Meaning - Many will use Revelation 3:20 as a useful verse for evangelism; to call the unregenerate to repent of their sins and believe in Jesus Christ for salvation because He’s standing and knocking on the door of their hearts, so to speak.

 2 Peter 3:9 - The Lord is not slack concerning His promise as some count slackness but is longsuffering toward us. He is not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance.

 Contextual Meaning - Peter is rebuking those that are mocking the return of Christ. They are saying that it is taking Jesus too long to return. Now mind you, when Peter wrote this, it was the First Century A.D., maybe less than 40 years since Jesus had resurrected and ascended back to heaven. Christians throughout Church history have anticipated Jesus could return in their lifetime. Contextually who are the “us”, the “any”, and the “all” in verse nine? Let’s connect the dots.

In the first letter of Peter we read in chapter 1 verses 1-2, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.”

 In 2 Peter 3:1-4 we read, “Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder), that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior, knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”’ 

In both letters Peter was writing to Christians. We are the “us”, the “any”, and the “all” in 2 Peter 3:9:the elect, the chosen of God before the foundation of the world. A comparable text is Ephesians 1:4, “Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.”

Broader Meaning - Christians use 2 Peter 3:9 as an evangelistic verse to say since God loves all people (which He does), He does not desire that anyone perish and die without Him which is true. Ezekiel 18:32 and Ezekiel 33:11 tells us God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Again, it's effective and I believe it right to borrow 2 Peter 3:9 as an evangelistic verse as long as the contextual meaning is not lost. 

 Exodus 33:18-19 - Moses asked the Lord, “Please show me your glory.” Then He (The Lord) said, “I will make My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”

 Paul borrows the language of Exodus 33:19 when discussing election:

“And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even our father Isaac (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.”[1] As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”[2]

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses. “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have 

compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”  So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy (Romans 9:10-16).

Paul anticipated that his audience would think and question God’s righteousness regarding election as unfair, so he is preemptive by saying there is certainly no unrighteousness with God. Remember, man is a sinner, and the only thing we deserve is hell. God deciding to choose who He wants to extend mercy to is His divine prerogative. God’s mercy is His unexplainable love to those who hate Him.

Sovereign election is God choosing who will be recipients of His saving grace. During the time of Isaac, his wife Rebecca was pregnant with twins, Esau and Jacob. God told Rebecca that the older son (Esau) would serve the younger son (Jacob), and that Jacob would be stronger than Esau (Genesis 25:23). Now when the text says that Jacob would be stronger than Esau, it's talking about the two nations which ended up being Israel and Edom. The descendants of Edom or the Edomites no longer exist, but the Israelites or who we call Jews today will always exist. Why? Because of the covenant made with one man, Abram (Genesis 12:2-3). The Jews are descendants of the first Hebrew Abram (Genesis 14:13).

We know this was sovereign election because the text says that before the sons were born, before they could do any good or evil, God chose one over the other so that His plan of election would stand. This is why Paul quoted the Exodus passage: “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”[3]

In like manner, God does that today when He decides to bring someone into the kingdom of God. Before we were born, it was in the mind of God to save sinners because He lovingly chose us through His mercy and compassion. He through the gospel message opens the eyes of the one He chooses to save. He grants them repentance and faith so that they believe and are saved (Eph 2:8; 2 Tim 2:25). This way God gets all the glory for salvation and the redeemed can say, “Thank you Lord for having mercy and compassion on me!”  

When we understand the original context of a passage, it should hold us accountable to treat God’s word with more reverence and care. It takes time, diligence, careful study and discipline to obtain the authorial intent of all the books of the Bible. Doing this is part of our maturation as Christians. Let's do everything we can to study to show ourselves approved unto God, a workman who is not ashamed - rightly dividing the Word of Truth (2 Timothy 2:15).