Last week we learned that Paul had left Timothy in Ephesus to serve as pastor there to “clean house.” God’s household, the congregation there, had come under the sway of “alien teaching.” Since Paul was writing to Pastor Timothy, Timothy, as the manager or steward of the congregation, was to deal with of that problem. […]
1 Corinthians, Lesson 19: The Corinthians Bring Heresy into the Lord’s Supper
May 10, 2015 by
Paul now deals with a topic that he had earlier touched on in 1 Corinthians chapter 10: The Lord’s Supper. In this section, Paul was admonishing the Corinthians for straying from what he had “traditioned” to them. “In following the command [the mandate of the Lord’s Supper], I do not praise you… For I received […]
1 Timothy, Lesson 1 (and Introduction to the Pastoral Epistles)
May 7, 2015 by
Before we delve into 1 Timothy, a general survey of what we call “the Pastoral Epistles” would be helpful. Introduction to the Pastoral Epistles What are the Pastoral Epistles? They are the New-Testament books of 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus. It is good to study them together because they are the last three […]
1 Corinthians, Lesson 18: God’s Tradition
May 3, 2015 by
We see Paul start this section doing something that he rarely did in 1 Corinthians: He praised them! In this case, Paul praised them for keeping the traditions that he had passed on to them. Thus, we learn, that keeping the right traditions are something important for us to do in Christ’s Church. Tradition […]
Acts, Lesson 30: Paul Finally Makes It to Rome
April 29, 2015 by
Last week, we got a lesson in 1st-century sailing and how ship captains navigated the Mediterranean Sea to deliver cargo and passengers. Since Paul left late in the sailing season, he met storms on his way to Rome. The storms became so bad that, as Paul had predicted, they would become shipwrecked. And that’s where […]
1 Corinthians, Lesson 17: A Look at the Lord’s Supper
April 26, 2015 by
Last week, we finished looking into Paul’s use of Israel’s sins during the Old Covenant as examples of what not to do for the Corinthian Christians in the New Covenant. At first glance, it simply looked as if Paul’s examples were Israel being unfaithful to God (and they were, but the question is, “In what […]
Acts, Lesson 29: Paul Sets Sail to Rome
April 23, 2015 by
After being under house arrest for two years in Caesarea, and after speaking before Herod Agrippa and Festus, Paul’s appeal to Caesar now begins to take place. They deliver Paul to be taken by ship to Rome. Luke records these events in a parallel structure: A Paul journeys to Malta (Acts 27) . B Paul […]
Understanding Five Bible Verses in a Better Way
April 21, 2015 by
This is our pastor’s newsletter article for May, 2015. We each have our favorite Bible verses, which we quote, which may even help us get through dark times. But, sometimes, the way we use a verse can cause us see God or events in ways that the original writer of that verse never meant. […]
1 Corinthians, Lesson 16: Don’t Keep God from Coming to You with His Life and Salvation
April 19, 2015 by
Paul continues to deal with the issue of whether it’s okay to eat the meat that was earlier sacrificed to idols. To deal with this issue, he continues to use Old-Covenant Israel as an example of what not to do and how not to approach God, all within a chiastic structure. A 8:1-13 Dealing with […]
Acts, Lesson 28: Paul before Herod Agrippa, Bernice, and Festus
April 16, 2015 by
Before Lent, we learned (but may have forgotten by now) that Paul petitioned for the Roman legal system to hear his grievances. He could do that since he was a Roman citizen. Paul knew that the Jewish Sanhedrin would not give him an honest hearing for preaching and teaching “the Way.” But more than that, […]
