"THE BOOK OF DANIEL" The Vision Of The Time Of The End - III (11:36-12:13) by Mark Copeland

"THE BOOK OF DANIEL"

The Vision Of The Time Of The End - III (11:36-12:13)

INTRODUCTION

1. We have been studying the final vision recorded in the book of Daniel...
   a. Depicting what will affect Daniel's people (i.e., Israel) - Dan 10:14
   b. Describing events "in the latter days, for the vision refers to
      many days yet to come" - Dan 10:14
   c. Its words were closed and sealed "till the time of the end" - Dan 12:9
   -- For such reasons this vision has been called "The Vision Of The
      Time Of The End"

2. In the introductory remarks of the vision, there is a glimpse of
   spiritual warfare...
   a. Angelic forces withstanding each other - Dan 10:13a,20
   b. Angelic forces helping each other - Dan 10:13b,21; 11:1
   -- Such forces affecting the nations of Persia and Greece

3. As the vision unfolds, a series of future conflicts involving nations is described...
   a. Between the Persians and the Greeks - Dan 11:2-4
   b. Between kings of the South (Egypt) and kings of the North (Syria)
      - Dan 11:5-35
      1) In this conflict, Israel would be caught in the middle
      2) Israel would suffer extreme blasphemies by one Syrian king
         (Antiochus Epiphanes)

4. Beginning with Dan 11:36, there is a large diversity of opinion...
   a. Regarding the identity of the king described in Dan 11:36-45
   b. The time in which events described in Dan 11:36-12:13 would be fulfilled

[As with any difficult portion of Scripture, especially one involving
prophecy, dogmatism should be avoided.  In this study, our final one in
this series of lessons on the Book of Daniel, I shall offer what I
believe is a plausible explanation of the text...]

I. THE IDENTITY OF THE KING AND HIS TIMES

   A. THREE DIFFERENT VIEWS...
      1. The king is Antiochus Epiphanes of Syria
         a. The vile and blasphemous ruler described in Dan 11:21-35
         b. The time of his persecution would therefore be 169-167 B.C.
         c. The time of the Maccabean revolt
         -- This view is espoused by Albert Barnes in his commentary
      2. The king represents the Roman emperors
         a. Who persecuted Christians in the early years of the church
         b. The time of this persecution would therefore be 60-313 A.D.
         -- This view is proposed by Robert Harkrider in his workbook
      3. The king represents the Anti-Christ
         a. A future ruler still to come
         b. The time of this persecution would be shortly before the
            return of Christ
         -- This view is held by pre-millennialists, but also by some
            amillennialists (e.g., Edward Young)

   B. ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES SEEMS A LIKELY CHOICE...
      1. The allusion in previous verses is undoubtedly to Antiochus Epiphanes
      2. There is no indication in the prophetic narrative of any change; notice...
         a. "Then the king shall do..." - Dan 11:36
         b. "At the time of the end the king of South shall attack
            him..." - Dan 11:40
         c. "At that time Michael..." - Dan 12:1
         d. "And at that time your people shall be delivered..." - Dan 12:1
      3. A sudden transition, with no given indication, is not in
         accordance with what is usually found in prophetic writings (Barnes)
      4. The word "king" is never applied to Antichrist (if there in
         fact be "the Antichrist", as the Bible speaks of many
         antichrists - 1Jn 2:18,22; 4:3; 2Jn 7)
      5. The description that follows can easily be applied to the
         person and times of Antiochus Epiphanes

[This is not imply there is no difficulty with applying this passage to
Antiochus Epiphanes and his times, but I believe it possesses fewer
difficulties than alternative views.  Now let's consider what is
described to come...]

II. THE EVENTS AT "THE TIME OF THE END"

   A. THE BLASPHEMY OF THIS KING...
      1. He shall magnify himself above every god - Dan 11:36-37
         a. Speaking blasphemies against the God of gods
         b. Prospering till the wrath that has been determined is done
            (suggesting that this was allowed by God as part of divine
            judgment against Israel) - cf. Dan 11:35; as with the case
            of Assyria and Israel, Isa 10:5-12
         c. He shall not regard the god of his fathers, nor the desire
            of women, nor any god
      2. He shall honor a god of fortresses - Dan 11:38-39
         a. A god which his fathers did not know (some suggest the
            Roman god Mars, or Jupiter)
         b. He shall act against the strongest fortresses with this
            foreign god, rule over many and divide the land for gain
      -- In his commentary, Albert Barnes explains how this could apply
         to Antiochus

   B. THE CONQUESTS AND END OF THIS KING...
      1. The king of the South (Egypt) shall attack him - Dan 11:40
         a. Note that this will occur "at the time of the end"
         b. This may help pinpoint the meaning of the "latter days" of Dan 10:14
      2. The king of the North (Antiochus Epiphanes) will respond and
         overwhelm the countries - Dan 11:40-43
         a. Entering the "Glorious Land" (Israel)
         b. Overthrowing many, while Edom, Moab and Ammon will escape
         c. Egypt will not escape, even Libyans and Ethiopians will submit
      3. He shall come to his end - Dan 11:44-45
         a. News from the east and north will trouble him (from Persia)
         b. He shall proceed to destroy and annihilate many, planting
            his tents between the seas and the glorious holy mountain
            (Mt. Zion, Jerusalem?)
         c. Yet he shall come to his end, no one helping him (Antiochus
            died in 163 B.C. of a terrible disease)
      -- Again, Barnes relates in detail how these events could refer to Antiochus

   C. THE ULTIMATE VICTORY OF DANIEL'S PEOPLE...
      1. To occur "at that time" - Dan 12:1
         a. To be assisted by "Michael...the great prince who stands
            watch over the sons of your people" - cf. Dan 10:13,21
         b. In a time of a trouble not seen before
         c. Deliverance of Daniel's people "at that time"
            1) I.e., the time just previously described 
            2) I.e., the time of the conflict involving Antiochus Epiphanes
      2. Many who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake - Dan 12:2
         a. Some to everlasting life
         b. Some to shame and everlasting contempt
         -- Note that this is not likely the physical resurrection of
            the dead, for then "all" (not "many") shall be raised - Jn 5:28,29
      3. Those who will shine at this time - Dan 12:3
         a. The wise will shine like the brightness of the firmament
         b. Those who turn many to righteousness will shine like the
            stars forever and ever
      -- Using the figure of the resurrection, this may depict the
         Maccabean revolt when the Jews came out of caves and mountain
         hideouts to resist Antiochus - cf. Dan 11:33-35

   D. FINAL INSTRUCTIONS AND ANSWERS GIVEN TO DANIEL...
      1. Shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end- Dan 12:4
         a. Perhaps what is meant is to stop writing, and secure what
            he has written
         b. Compare this with Dan 8:17,19,26
            1) Both visions (Dan 8, 10-12) were to be sealed up
            2) Both pertained to many days in the future
            3) Yet both visions were fulfilled within 200-400 years
         c. Contrast this with Rev 22:10
            1) The vision of the Revelation was not to be sealed, for
               the time was at hand
            2) How then the explanation of some that the events of
               Revelation have yet to begin, nearly 2000 years later?
      2. Two final questions answered
         a. One question overheard by Daniel - Dan 12:5-7
            1) Daniel saw two others, one on each side of a river bank
            2) One asked the man clothed in linen (cf. Dan 10:5-6)
               above the river:  "How long shall the fulfillment of
               these wonders be?"
            3) The answer: "...a time, times, and half a time; and when
               the power of the holy people has been completely
               shattered, all these things shall be finished."
               a) The "time, times, and half a time" (3 and a half
                  years, 42 months, 1260 days) is commonly used to
                  describe a definite, marked, period of tribulation 
                  - cf. Dan 7:25; Re 11:2,3; 12:6,13-14; 13:5
               b) When the persecution has accomplished its purpose,
                  then the things described will take place
         b. The question asked by Daniel - Dan 12:8-13
            1) Not understanding, Daniel asks:  "...what shall be the
               end of these things?"
            2) Daniel is first told:
               a) To go, for the words are closed and sealed till the
                  time of the end
               b) That many shall be purified, and the wise shall
                  understand - cf. Dan 11:33-35
               c) That the wicked shall do wickedly, and not understand- cf. Dan 11:32
               d) That there will be a period of "1290 days" beginning
                  from:
                  1/ The time the daily sacrifice is taken away - cf. Dan 11:31
                  2/ The abomination of desolation is set up - cf. Dan 11:31
               e) Those who wait and come to "1335 days" will be blessed
               -- Whether literal or figurative, these numbered days
                  appear to apply to the period of the Antiochian

                  persecution(ca. 168 B.C.)
            3) Daniel is then told:
               a) To go his way till the end
               b) For he shall rest and arise to his inheritance at the end of the days
               -- This "end" or "end of the days" may refer to the
                  actual resurrection on the day of Judgment, not "the
                  time of the end" spoken of throughout this vision

CONCLUSION

1. We have seen that "The Vision Of The Time Of The End" describes
   events that would...
   a  Affect Daniel's people (i.e., Israel) - Dan 10:14
   b. Take place "in the latter days, for the vision refers to many
      days yet to come" - Dan 10:14
   c. Occur in "the time of the end" - Dan 11:35,40; 12:4,9

2. From the context, "the time of the end" likely refers to the closing
   days of God's dealings with Israel as His covenant nation; i.e.,...
   a. The inter-testamental period between Malachi and Matthew
   b. The period involving the Greek-Persian and Egyptian-Syrian conflicts
   -- Which is how the phrase is used in "The Vision Of The Ram and The
      Goat" that depicts many of the same events - cf. Dan 8:1-27 (esp. 17,26)
                  
3. As we conclude our study of the Book of Daniel, we have found it to
   be a book that...
   a. Strengthens faith in God and His Word through its fulfilled prophecies
      1) Describing the rise and fall of world empires - Dan 2,4-5
      2) Foretelling the establishment of God's everlasting kingdom - Dan 2,7,9
      3) Depicting the events to befall the people of Israel - Dan 8,9, 10-12
   b. Inspires faithfulness to God through its examples of dedicated
      faith and service
      1) Of Daniel - Dan 1,6
      2) Of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego - Dan 3

While there is certainly much in this book that challenges our
understanding, may we never neglect to mine its spiritual treasures
preserved for the people of God:

   "For whatever things were written before were written for our
   learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the
   Scriptures might have hope." - Ro 15:4

 

“Jesus Didn’t Condemn Homosexuality” by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=11&article=1627

“Jesus Didn’t Condemn Homosexuality”

by	Kyle Butt, M.Div.

By and large, the American culture is aggressively promoting the sinful lifestyle of homosexuality. In the midst of such pressure, many people who call themselves Christians are caving in and accepting this perverted lifestyle in spite of God’s clear teachings against it (Butt, 2003). A few years ago, the country singer Carrie Underwood stated that her Christian faith led her to support gay marriage (Nilles, 2012). In truth, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ could never be accurately understood to lead a person to conclude that homosexual marriage is moral (Miller and Harrub, 2004).

One of the most common arguments made in support of homosexuality is that Jesus Christ did not explicitly condemn the practice. Supposedly, since Jesus never stated specifically: “Homosexuality is a sin,” then His failure to denounce the lifestyle can be interpreted to mean that He approved of it. This reasoning is riddled with error.

First, Jesus explained to His followers that He did not have time to teach them everything they needed to know. He told them that the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance all that He had taught, and would include additional teaching that He had not had time to cover. He told His disciples: “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:12-13). When we look to the inspired writings of the New Testament, we see the authors boldly and specifically condemning the practice based on the revelation they received from the Holy Spirit (Miller and Harrub, 2004). Thus, it is wrong to suggest that only the “words in red” are Jesus’ teachings. On the contrary, He foretold that more teaching would be done after His return to heaven due to the fact that the apostles “could not bear” all of it at the time.

Second, even if Jesus did not explicitly condemn the practice (though He actually did, as will be noted later), that certainly could not be used as evidence that He condoned the practice. For instance, where does Jesus explicitly state that bestiality is wrong? Where in the New Testament does Jesus state that polygamy is wrong? Where are the “words in red” that specifically condemn pedophilia? Are we to suppose that the Son of God condoned using crystal meth because there is not an explicit statement from Jesus’ mouth that says “do not smoke crystal meth?” The idea that silence from Jesus on a subject means He approved of or condoned the practice cannot be substantiated.

Finally, it must be considered that Jesus did, in fact, speak against homosexuality. On numerous occasions, Jesus condemned the sins of adultery (Matthew 19:18), sexual immorality (Matthew 19:9) and fornication (Matthew 15:19). These terms describe any type of sexual intercourse that is not within the confines of a marriage ordained by God. Jesus then proceeded to define exactly what God views as a morally permissible marriage. He stated:

Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate (Matthew 19:4-6).

By defining marriage as between one male and one female, Jesus effectively condemned all other arrangements, including but not limited to one man and two women, one woman and two men, three men and one woman, three men and three women, one man and one man, one woman and one animal, etc. You can see the overwhelming logic of such. For Jesus to have to explicitly condemn every assortment of genders and numbers would be absurd. When He defined marriage between one man and one woman, He clearly showed that such an arrangement is the only one authorized by God.

Several years ago a man named Cory Moore “legally married his 2004 Cherry ES-335” Gibson guitar (“Man Marries Guitar,” 2007). He said: “The day I got her, I just knew she was the one…. I know it seems weird, but I really love her—like, really love her, with all my heart. I just wanted to make it official” (2007). Are we to conclude that because Jesus never specifically condemned a man marrying his guitar then the Son of God approved of such? To ask is to answer. In 2006, 41-year-old Sharon Tendler married a dolphin (“Woman Marries Dolphin,” 2006). Jesus never said one word explicitly about refraining from marrying a dolphin. Does that mean His “silence” should be viewed as approval? Not in any way.

Homosexuality is a sin. It always has been, and it always will be. The inspired New Testament writers repeatedly teach that to be the case. Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit would bring to the inspired writers information that they could not handle at the time of His departing. In addition, Jesus did explicitly define marriage as being between one man and one woman. The ruse to suggest that Jesus approves of homosexuality because He never expressly condemned it cannot be sustained logically, nor can it be defended on any type of moral grounds. The person who presumes to claim to be a Christian, and yet supports homosexuality, misunderstands the teachings of Christ and needs to repent and stop approving of a perverted, destructive practice that Jesus condemns (Matthew 19:1-9).

REFERENCES

Butt, Kyle (2003), “Homosexuality—Sin, or Cultural Bad Habit?” Apologetics Press, http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=7&article=1239.

“Man Marries Guitar” (2007), http://www.messandnoise.com/discussions/865688.

Miller, Dave and Brad Harrub (2004), “An Investigation of the Biblical Evidence Against Homosexuality,” Apologetics Press, http://www.apologeticspress.org/apPubPage.aspx?pub=1&issue=557.

Nilles, Billy (2012), “Carrie Underwood Reveals She Supports Gay Marriage,” http://www.hollywoodlife.com/2012/06/11/carrie-underwood-supports-gay-marriage-christian/.

“Woman Marries Dolphin” (2006), http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/woman-marries-dolphin/2006/01/01/1136050339590.html.

“I, Not the Lord, Say...” by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=11&article=2075

“I, Not the Lord, Say...”

by	Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Q.

What did the apostle Paul mean by the statement, “But to the rest I, not the Lord, say...” (1 Corinthians 7:12)? Does this phrase indicate that what Paul subsequently wrote was uninspired?

A.

Considering how many times Paul claimed to write and preach by inspiration of God, it is irresponsible to conclude that he was denying inspiration when addressing marriages between Christians and non-Christians (1 Corinthians 7:12-16). Earlier in this letter, Paul noted that while in Corinth, his preaching was “not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (2:4-5). Paul contrasted human wisdom with the wisdom and power of God, and declared that he had the latter. Later, in this same epistle, Paul wrote: “If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord” (14:37, emp. added; cf. 7:40). Paul also claimed inspiration in his other epistles (Galatians 1:12; 1 Thessalonians 4:8,15). Even Peter alluded to Paul’s writings as being a part of Scripture, and thus inspired (2 Peter 3:15-16).

When Paul wrote that he (rather than the Lord) was addressing a particular marriage relationship, he did not mean that he was speaking without authority from God. He simply meant that he was making application of marital truths that the Lord did not specifically expound upon while on Earth. Jesus most certainly was the Master Teacher (cf. Matthew 7:28-29; John 7:46), but He obviously did not specifically address every subject under the Sun. Thankfully, through His inspired apostles and prophets, more specific truths and applications eventually were revealed. Christians have every reason to believe that such truths originated with “the Spirit of truth,” Who guided Paul and the rest of the Bible writers “into all truth” (John 16:13).

“Hell” is Back In the News by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=11&article=2163

“Hell” is Back In the News

by	Eric Lyons, M.Min.

In their book Surveying the Religious Landscape: Trends in U.S. Beliefs, George Gallup, Jr. and D. Michael Lindsay reported that a Gallup poll taken in May 1997 showed that only 56% of Americans held a firm conviction in the existence of hell (1999, p. 30). One reason that a growing number of Americans disbelieve in the reality of hell is likely due to its virtual disappearance from our vocabulary. Non-Christians basically use it only as a profane expression. Christians rarely address the subject in their discussions. Sermons on the subject of hell have been in decline for years. One denominational “pastor” was quoted in U.S. News & World Report a few years back, saying: “My congregation would be stunned to hear a sermon on hell” (“Revisiting...,” 1991, 110[11]:60). I once heard the late evangelist Wendell Winkler tell about preaching in a meeting in Oklahoma. After preaching a lesson on hell, the local preacher, who had been in that city for 22 years, told Winkler that in those 22 years, the church there had held 44 gospel meetings (two per year). During those meetings, a total of 527 sermons had been preached. Wendell Winkler’s lesson was said to be the first one on the subject of hell that they had ever heard in those meetings.

Preaching about eternal hell appears to be so rare that when a notable religious leader addresses the issue, it draws attention even from many major media outlets. Recently, Pope Benedict XVI, in a speech delivered outside of Rome, stressed that the impenitent risk “eternal damnation.” Hell “really exists,” he said, “and is eternal, even if nobody talks about it much any more” (as quoted in Owen, 2007). FOX News, the Boston Herald, Times Online, and the Melbourne Herald Sun are only a few of the media elites who carried this story. “The pope really believes in an eternal hell.”

Warning others about the judgment to come is not popular. Teaching in the streets and churches about an eternal hell is as sparse as rain in the Sahara. Although the papacy itself is unscriptural (see Pinedo, 2005), Christians can appreciate the fact that Benedict XVI would address such a politically incorrect subject. Truly, it is high past time for faithful Christians around the world to get back to teaching a truth that Jesus and the Bible writers repeatedly taught: hell is real and eternal (Matthew 5:22; 25:41,46; Mark 9:43; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9).

REFERENCES

Gallup, George Jr. and Michael Lindsay (1999), Surveying the Religious Landscape: Trends in U.S. Beliefs (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse Publishing).

Owen, Richard (2007), “The Fires of Hell are Real and Eternal, Pope Warns,” TimesOnline, March 27, [On-line], URL: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1572646.ece.

Pinedo, Moises (2005), “The Pope, the Papacy, and the Bible,” Apologetics Press, [On-line], URL: http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/2724.

“Revisiting the Abyss,” (1991), U.S. News & World Report, 110[11]:60, March 25.

THERE ARE WORKS THAT SAVE! BY STEVE FINNELL

http://steve-finnell.blogspot.com/2017/04/there-are-works-that-save-steve-finnell.html

THERE ARE WORKS THAT SAVE!  BY STEVE FINNELL

Are there works that are essential to salvation? Yes, absolutely, the work of believing and the work of water baptism are essential for salvation.

BELIEVING

John 6:27-29 Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal. 28 Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" 29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him who He sent."

Believing is a work that saves. Believing is essential to salvation.

WATER BAPTISM

Colossians 2:12-13 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions.

God does the work when we submit to believers baptism in water. Yes, water baptism is God's work not man's work.

1 Peter 3:20-21 ...safely through the water. 21 Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you ---not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience---through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

God does the work in water baptism. Man does no work at all.

Man is saved by works. Man's work is to believe in Jesus the Christ.

God's work is in water baptism when He forgives believers of their sins.

Jesus made it very clear when He said "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved..."(Mark 16:16)

Being obedient to God by believing and submitting to water baptism is not earning salvation. It is not a meritorious work.

THE WORKS THAT DO NOT SAVE

1. The works of the Law of Moses.

2. The works of good deeds.

3. The works of keeping man-made traditions.

4. The works of righteous acts.

How much are you worth? by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/033-yourworth.html

How much are you worth?

Value can be measured in different ways.
Add up the value of your possessions, subtract what you owe, and you have your financial worth. If you owe more than you possess, you are insolvent.
According to Forbes, Bill Gates was worth 56 billion dollars in 2011. How much are you worth?
There is also potential value. If you can earn €1200 a month with a secondary school diploma and €2400 a month with a specialized degree, your degree is worth €575,000 over a 40-year period.
There is also lost value. If your education enables you to earn €2000 per month and you conduct a business that earns €1000 a month, your business costs you €12,000 per year.
There is also spiritual value. Jesus said: “What profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Matthew 16:26). The poorest faithful Christian in India is richer spiritually than Bill Gates who is an agnostic.
How much are we worth spiritually?
Without God's help, we are bankrupt! Worse than that, we are bondservants of the devil. Have you seen one of those spooky films where someone sells his soul to the devil? Did you think: How could he do such a thing?
Yet Jesus said: “Whoever commits sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34). Through sin we are in the clutches of the devil.
One way value is determined is by the amount someone is willing to pay for something. A beautiful, delicate object that required many hours of skilled labor to make, might be sold at auction for practically nothing, if no one present values it. At the same auction, an old faded letter might be sold for a large sum if it was written by someone famous.
By this standard, you are worth a lot! God was willing to pay an extremely high price to buy you free from slavery to sin. How did God buy us and what was the price?
Peter explains: “And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your sojourning here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:17-19).
By sinning, we have rebelled against God, and we deserve to die. But Jesus died in our place, to pay the penalty for our sin, so we might go free. You are worth so much to God that He sent His son to set you free.
The church is the assembly of those who have been bought free from bondage to sin. Paul told the Ephesian elders: “Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28).
In the first instance, we belong to God because He created us. Then, after we chose the wrong path and allowed ourselves to be taken hostage, He also paid our ransom. As redeemed servants of God we ought to live the way He wants us to live rather than according to our own desires. To the glory of God we should keep ourselves pure.
Paul commands: “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:18-20).
In our so-called modern age everyone is encouraged to live the way he wants to live. The result is a sinful flood of lawlessness and immorality. Young people are fooled into thinking they can have free sexual relations without harmful physical, social and spiritual consequences. People live together without being married. Driven by egoism they do not want long-term obligations. They want to be free to walk away if difficulties arise, or just if they want to. They think they can violate moral standards without disadvantages.
A sea of misery and grief is the result. When people think they are smarter than God, it always turns out bad, because God's moral standards are for the well-being of man and society, and for the well-being of children.
The marriage relationship is holy. “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4). By having a sexual relationship outside of marriage, one sins not only against the other person and against God, but also against his own body. He desecrates himself, he makes himself unclean, he defiles his own body.
In his argumentation against immorality, Paul tells the Christian that he is a temple of God's Spirit, that he belongs to God, and therefore must shun immorality. Someone who has been immoral must repent. From Christ he can receive forgiveness and cleansing, and the strength to keep himself pure.
Since we are worth so much to God that He bought us free from slavery to sin, we ought to dedicate our lives in service to God. Paul writes: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1, 2).
Peter writes: “Conduct yourselves throughout the time of your sojourning here in fear” (1 Peter 1:17). Our time belongs to God, not just some of it, but all of it. Do we spend our days and hours in service to man and to the glory of God? Or have we been duped by the world into thinking that our time is our own to use however we want?
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15, 16). “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time” (Colossians 4:5).
In the original language “redeeming the time” is literally 'buying up the opportunity', which means that we may not waste our time and possibilities, but must make good use of them.
We are not our own. A high price was paid for us, the precious blood of Christ. We should use our resources dynamically to serve God. Our time, money and talents should be placed at God's disposal. We have responsibilities to God, to the church, to our family and to all men, because we belong to Christ.
We must, of course, spend time earning a living and taking care of the daily responsibilities of life. But if our lives are dedicated to God, because we know that we belong to Him, everything we do is sanctified, and He has promised to provide. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20). “You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men” (1 Corinthians 7:23).
Although the sacrifice of Christ is sufficient to redeem all men from bondage to sin, one must obey the gospel to be saved. God invites us to participate in this gift of grace through repentance and baptism.
Paul explains that after baptism we are no longer slaves of sin: “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Romans 6:3-6).
You are worth so much that Christ died for you. Through baptism you can participate in His sacrificial death and be freed from slavery to sin.
Paul continues: “For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:7-11).
Even when we were mired in sin, God valued us so much that He gave His Son to set us free. How much greater is our worth now that we are “alive to God in Christ.”
In gratitude we turn away from sin and submit to the will of God. Paul explains further: “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:12-14).
This grace may not be misused: “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!” (Romans 6:15).
If Christians continue in sin, they fall back into the service of Satan: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16).
We must be truly thankful that we have been redeemed by God, and show our gratitude by doing good: “But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:17, 18).
Our spiritual worth, our spiritual wealth, is a gift of God's grace that is bestowed at baptism. We were slaves of sin. Now we are slaves of righteousness. Thus, we ought to walk in the way of righteousness, not in the way of sin.
Paul continues: “I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:19-23).
How much are you worth? Your financial worth is of little importance. What is your spiritual worth?
Without Christ you are bankrupt, a beggarly slave of sin. The devil promises freedom, but gives slavery to corruption (2 Peter 2:19).
If you are a Christian, you have “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8). Your worth is greater than that of the wealthiest man in the world. In Christ “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7). Amen.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

"If" by Gary Rose

There are many out there that say that Christianity is founded on “Blind Faith” and not reality. They are wrong. Christianity is based on historical fact, which can be proved through archeology and historical documents. Recently, I have been reading the English Majority Text Version, which is based on 5800 manuscripts. This is reality and Christianity is verifiable. Although not listed in the picture, the bottom part of the picture refers to a passage from the book of Philippians; which says…

Philippians 4 ( World English Bible )

^[13] I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. 

How was Paul, who penned these words able to do the things he did? It was the will of God. God directly chose him, directed him and strengthened him. God has selected you because you have selected HIM. Each one of us is different; with particular talents and abilities, which God will use in HIS own time and way. Very few of us will rise to the status of a Moses or a Joshua or a David, but in Christ and through the power which God supplies, we can be everything we need to be to fit into God’s will for our lives. See 1 Cor. 12:5-18 and 27-31.

And the key to all this is listed in verse 31, which says…

1 Corinthians 12: (WEB)

 ^[31] But earnestly desire the best gifts. Moreover, I show a most excellent way to you. 

And the next chapter explains that excellent way- the way of love. In ancient times it was said: “Love God and do what you like.” For if you really, genuinely Love God, you will do HIS WILL rather than your own and anything is possible.