The Gospel of Mark - An Introduction

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Mark 1:1

It is widely held that the Gospel According to Mark is the account of the ministry of Jesus as related to John Mark by the apostle Peter. This means that even though this Gospel bears the name of Mark it is in fact the eye-witness account of Peter who spent the three years of Jesus' earthly ministry front-and-center. Unlike the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, the Gospel of Mark skips the genealogies and the few events of Jesus' childhood that we know, and by verse sixteen of chapter one we have already seen Jesus baptized by John the Baptist, His temptation in the wilderness, and the beginning of His earthly ministry.

Verse one is an important verse and as we begin our journey through the Gospel of Mark it is important to point out right at the outset that:

1. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ
2. That Jesus is the Son of God.

We can see both of these things right in the first verse. Let's look at these one at a time:

First we see that what we are about to read is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Greek word translated gospel here is euaggélion, which Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament words says:

originally denoted a reward for good tidings; later, the idea of reward dropped, and the word stood for “the good news” itself.

What we have here is the good news of Jesus Christ. So we now have to ask ourselves, "what is the good news of Jesus Christ?"

The good news is that we can all have our sins forgiven. The good news is that Jesus was born, lived a perfect life, died upon the cross for our sin, and rose again on the third day. The good news is that Jesus said He came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). The good news is that Jesus came to call not the righteous, but sinners (Mark 2:17). The good news is that Jesus came to take away the sins of the world (John1:29). The good news is that Jesus came to be the propitiation (atoning sacrifice) for our sin (1 John 2:2).

The good news is simply this: Jesus will forgive all of your sin - past, present, and future - when you repent and turn to Him. You don't have to clean yourself up first, you just have to abandon your own self-righteousness and follow Him. We can't earn this salvation, and we can't buy it - our sin deserves death but God offers us salvation as a free gift (Romans 6:23). That is good news! That is the Gospel! That is what we are going to discover as we work our way through this book.

The second thing we see here in this first verse is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. J.C. Ryle, in his book Expository Thoughts on the Gospels writes:

These words, "Son of God," conveyed far more to Jewish minds than they do to ours.They were nothing less than an assertion of our Lord's divinity. They were a declaration that Jesus was Himself very God, and "equal with God." (John 5:18)

The very God of the universe Himself took on human form and came to earth to pay the price that my sin deserved. Once again I say that that is the Gospel, the good news! And I am really looking forward to working our way through this book together. Please feel free to ask questions and post comments as we study together the Gospel of Mark.

Arthur W. Pink On The Fear Of God

One day last week my daily Grace Gem email was an excerpt from Arthur Pink asking several questions that all begin with the words, Why is it...? Since I have asked myself some of these same questions from time to time I thought it would be worth posting this and making a few comments myself.

A.W. Pink begins by asking the question:

Why is it that, today, the masses are so utterly unconcerned about spiritual and eternal things, and that they are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God?

I think we can all agree that this is a perfect description of the majority of the people in the world (and even in the "church," I'm sorry to say) today. So why is that? Is this just a symptom of living in the last days or is there something more going on here? The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy saying:

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

2 Timothy 3:1-5

We could look at this passage and say that this does not apply to the church, but to the world, and it certainly does sound like the world that we are living in, but before you come to that conclusion look again at what Paul said in verse five, "having the appearance of godliness..."This is what the world looks like today, but in a lot of cases this is also what the "church" looks like today.

Why is it that defiance of God is becoming more open, more blatant, more daring? The answer is, because "There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Romans 3:18).

How many times have you heard it said that fear means respect or awe when the Bible tells us to fear God? There is a sense in which that is true, but when the Bible tells us to fear God I think there is also a sense in which fear means fear, and we have become so comfortable with God that we no longer fear Him. The Bible tells us that we are to fear the one who can destroy our soul in hell (Matthew 10:28); the Bible tells us that God is a consuming fire(Hebrews 12:29); the Bible tells us that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31) and yet we have no fear of God before our eyes.

Why is it that the authority of the Scriptures has been lowered so sadly of late? Why is it that even among those who profess to be the Lord's people, that there is so little real subjection to His Word, and that its precepts are so lightly esteemed and so readily set aside?

Is it because even though we say that we believe the Bible to be the inerrant, inspired, Holy Spirit breathed word of God we really don't. I mean if we truly believed that this was God's word to us - His people - wouldn't we live our lives differently? Jesus told us to go into all the world and make disciples, but when was the last time you actually shared your faith with the person waiting on your table at the restaurants you frequent?

The apostle Paul wrote that we are to flee from sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 6:18) and that no impurity is to even be named among us (Ephesians 5:3) yet how many of us are still entertained by the sexually explicit material that is broadcast into our homes every evening on the TV? Sure, it may not be X-Rated, but is it pure and does it portray the life that God's word calls us to?

There are many, many more things we could look at (but I am starting to feel conviction myself). I just want you to ask yourself this question, Do I really believe that the Bible is God's word and if I really do would I be doing .... ?

Arthur Pink then concludes with this:

Ah! what needs to be stressed today--is that God is a God to be feared! Happy is the person who has been awed by a view of God's majesty, who has had a vision of . . .

• God's unutterable greatness,
• His ineffable holiness,
• His perfect righteousness,
• His irresistible power,
• His sovereign grace!

Time was, when it was the general custom to speak of a believer as "a God-fearing man". That such an appellation has become extinct--only serves to show where we have drifted. Nevertheless, it still stands written, "Like as a father pities His children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him!" Psalm 103:13

When we speak of godly fear, of course, we do not mean a servile fear, such as prevails among the heathen in connection with their gods. No! We mean that spirit which Jehovah is pledged to bless, that spirit to which the prophet referred when he said, "To this man will I will look--even to him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at My Word." Isaiah 66:2

Nothing will foster this godly fear, like a recognition of the sovereign majesty of God!

I encourage you to take some time today, get alone, open your Bible, and see what you can learn about the majesty and sovereignty and holiness of God, because I can promise you that when you begin to see God for who He really is you will not be the same.

Another Great Sermon On Textual Criticism

Have you ever wondered if you can trust the Bible? Dr. Foskey says yes you absolutely can, and then proves it even while addressing difficult textual issues.

Revelation Chapter Four - Part 1

As we continue our study of Revelation we now come to the second of five visions that were given to the apostle John and recorded for us here in this book. The first of these visions was covered in chapters one through three where John saw the risen and glorified Lord Jesus, and received the messages to the seven churches. This second vision begins with an invitation to come up to Heaven, and to witness “what must take place after these things.”

John is not the first person in the Bible to be given a vision of Heaven, Isaiah saw the Lord sitting on a throne high and lifted up (Isaiah 6), and Ezekiel had a vision of Heaven that, as we will see, is very similar to what is revealed here in Revelation chapter four. The apostle Paul also had a vision of Heaven, but he was not permitted to write of what he saw; all he tells us is this:

I know a man in Christ who was caught up into the third heaven 14 years ago. Whether he was in the body or out of the body, I don’t know; God knows. I know that this man whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— was caught up into paradise. He heard inexpressible words, which a man is not allowed to speak.

2 Corinthians 12:2-4 (HCSB)

Unlike the apostle Paul; however, John was permitted to write down what he heard and saw, and what we have here, beginning in Revelation chapter four, is the record of that vision. The vision begins with John being called up to heaven, and it ends in chapter seven with the sealing of the 144,000 witnesses just prior to the Rapture of the church. We have been given the privilege of accompanying John as he is taken to Heaven, so let’s join him now and witness what is taking place in the very throne room of God.

Warren Wiersbe writes:

The key word in this chapter is throne; it is used fourteen times. In fact, this is a key word in the entire book, appearing forty-six times. No matter what may happen on earth, God is on His throne and is in complete control.1

With that in mind I am going to borrow Dr Wiersbe’s outline for chapter four, which is as follows:

The Summons from the Throne (4:1)
The Glory of the Throne (4:2–3)
The Elders Around the Throne (4:4)
The Judgments Out of the Throne (4:5a)
The Objects Before the Throne (4:5b–11)2

Before we gat started there is one more key word that we need to be aware of; it is the word like. This word, which is used eight times in this chapter, is translated from the Greek word hómoios. This word can also be translated as similar, to resemble, or as the ESV translates it, had the appearance of. John uses this word to let us know that what he is seeing is similar in appearance to things we know, but not exactly; he is trying to describe things in terms that we will understand, but because there are truly no words to convey what he was seeing he must use words that we can understand.

So now that we have had a little preview of what is to come, and a road map of where we are going, let’s get started.



1. The Summons from the throne (Verse 1)

After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things."

Revelation 4:1(NASB)

Chapter four begins with the phrase after these things, which requires us to ask the question, after what things? Back in chapter one John was told to write the things he saw, the things that are, and the things that will take place after these things (Revelation 1:19). This verse, as we saw when we studied chapter one, is the broad outline for the book. As we move now into chapter four we have already covered the first two points of this outline, and the rest of the book will deal with the third point; the things that will take place after these things.

The Greek phrase here is metá toutó, and it could also be translated as after this. This phrase, which is used twice in verse one, is a transition marker that it is telling us two things:

1. That there has been a change in time
2. That there has been a change in location,

We can see this by the use of the phrase Come up here. While chapters one through three took place in the past or present for John, from chapter four on this is all prophecy. Also, chapters one through three took place on the earth and chapter four takes place in heaven.

So chapter four begins with a summons; John is invited to come up to heaven and to see the things that would take place after the conclusion of the first vision he had just witnessed. In this verse John tells us, After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven.

The word behold here is the Greek word idoú, which is:

a marker used to liven up a Hebrew style narrative, to change a scene, to emphasize an idea, to call attention to a detail.” 3

This word could also be translated as look, suddenly, or now, and what John is doing here is pointing our attention to what he is seeing; he is directing our attention to the open door in heaven.

So let’s look at this door standing open in heaven. First note that John did not say he saw a door opening in heaven; the Greek construction here:

suggests that the door had been opened and left that way for John’s arrival. 4

John was not the first person to see a door open in heaven; this vision, as has already been noted, is very similar to the vision of Ezekiel:

Now it came about in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.

Ezekiel 1:1 (NASB)

This is also reminiscent of the vision of Stephen in Acts chapter seven; as he was being stoned for his faith and witness he said:

Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.

Acts 7:56 (NASB)

J. Vernon McGee tells us that this is one of four doors that we encounter in the book of Revelation: the first is in Revelation 3:8 where the church of Philadelphia was given an open door for ministry, the second was seen in Revelation 3:20 where we saw Jesus standing at the door knocking, waiting for someone to open and let Him in, the third door is the one we have here in verse one of chapter four, and the fourth is found in chapter nineteen verse eleven which is the open door Jesus will come through at His second coming. Speaking of this door Dr. McGee goes on to say:

John did not see this door opening as the Authorized Version of verse one suggests. This door was open all the time. It is the door through which all believers have come to God for over nineteen hundred years. ‘Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me’ (John 14:6). He also said, ‘I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture’ (John 10:9). The open door to heaven is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is also the One who will come to the door of your heart – that is the wonder and glory of it all. 5

As John looked he saw this open door in heaven, and then he heard a voice; the text tells us that this was the “first voice” he heard, “like the sound of a trumpet.” This takes us once again back to chapter one; while standing on the Island of Patmos John tells us he was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day and he heard behind him “a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet” (Revelation 1:10). This voice turned out to be none other that the Lord Jesus Christ as we saw when we studied chapter one, and John is using the same imagery here again to make sure that we know that this is the same voice speaking to him here; the voice John hears is the voice of Jesus.

Next John tells us that the voice said to him “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things." We have now come to another point where there is some disagreement as to the meaning of the text: some see this invitation to “Come up here” as being the Rapture of the Church with John being a picture of the church. David Guzik, in his commentary on Revelation says:

The pattern is significant. Jesus is finished speaking and dealing with the churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3, and all churches are comprehended in the seven. Now after dealing with the church, Jesus calls John up to heaven, ‘catching him away’ with a voice that sounds like a trumpet. All this happens before the great wrath that will be described beginning at Revelation 6. As that great judgment on the earth unfolds, John – a representative of the church – is in heaven, looking down on earth. 6

Warren Wiersbe adds:

This is a vivid picture of the rapture of the church… The fact that John is “caught up” at this point is another evidence that the church will not go through the Tribulation. Note how his experience resembles the rapture: (1) heaven is opened to receive God’s child; (2) there is a voice like a trumpet, 1 Thes. 4:16; 1 Cor. 15:52; (3) it is a sudden event; (4) it comes at the end of the “church age” (chaps. 2–3); (5) it introduces John to the throne room of heaven; (6) it signals the beginning of God’s judgment on the world. 7

There are others; however, who say that this has nothing to do with the Rapture of the church – including many who espouse the Pretribulational position – for example, John MacArthur writes:

Some see in this command a reference to the Rapture of the church. However, the verse does not describe the church ascending to heaven in resurrected glorification, but John going to heaven to receive revelation. 8

Jerome H. Smith writes, in his book The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge:

This phrase is taken by many to prove the pretribulation Rapture of the church. This text, however, cannot prove anything about the Rapture, for to apply this to the Rapture one must take John to be a type of the church, the call to “come up hither” a type of the shout-command at the Rapture, and the third heaven as the destination of believers at the Rapture, all of which are tenuous connections at best. One cannot base a doctrine on a type, and proof of the timing of the Rapture must rest upon the direct statements of Scripture elsewhere. 9

And Robert Van Kampen, in speaking of the claim that this passage teaches a pretribulation rapture of the church adds

There is no exegetical or scriptural basis for this claim.10

The Greek word here is anabaínō, which means to, call for a specific act with a note of urgency.11 So we can conclude from the Greek word used here that this is not a reference to the rapture of the church, but was a call for the apostle John to come up to heaven for a specific purpose – the witnessing of his next vision.

And, as we have already noted the phrase after these things refers back to the outline given in chapter one.

Next time we will look at what John saw in this vision.

1 Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1989). The Bible exposition commentary. "An exposition of the New Testament comprising the entire 'BE' series"--Jkt. (Re 4:1). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.
2 Wiersbe, W. W. (1997, c1992). Wiersbe's expository outlines on the New Testament (806). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.
3 Swanson, J. (1997). Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New Testament) (electronic ed.) (GGK2627). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
4 Rogers, Cleon L. Jr., Rogers, Cleon L. III.(1998) The New Linguistic and Exegetical key to the Greek New Testament; (pg. 623). Grand Rapids MI.: Zondervan Publishing House
5 McGee J. Vernon (c 1983). Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee Vol.5 1 Corinthians–Revelation Pg.929. Nashville TN.: Thomas Nelson.
6 Guzik, David. (c2001). Commentary on the book of Revelation (91). Simi Valley CA: Enduring Word Media.
7 Wiersbe, W. W. (1997, c1992). Wiersbe's expository outlines on the New Testament (806). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.
8MacArthur, J. (1999). Revelation 1-11 (145). Chicago: Moody Press.
9 Smith, J. H. (1992; Published in electronic form, 1996). The new treasury of scripture knowledge: The most complete listing of cross references available anywhere- every verse, every theme, every important word (1510). Nashville TN: Thomas Nelson.
10 Van Kampen, Robert. Revelation Commentary Ch4 Pg1 (© www.revelationcommentry.org). Orlando Fl.: Sola Scriptura
11 Rogers, Cleon L. Jr., Rogers, Cleon L. III. (1998) The New Linguistic and Exegetical key to the Greek New Testament; (pg. 623). Grand Rapids MI.: Zondervan Publishing House

Preach The Word

A few weeks ago I posted an article by John Piper entitled Tethered Preaching, and just yesterday as I was getting caught up with some of the blogs that I read I came across this article by Dan Phillips over at Pyromaniacs where he basically said the same thing.

This article is very poignant and it needs to be read, not just by everyone who preaches or teaches the Bible, but by every Christian who ever comes into contact with non-Christians. Every time that we fail to share the Gospel we have wasted an opportunity that may never come again; there are people all around us who are dying and going to hell, and we are continually - myself included - missing the opportunities that God has placed right in front of us.

As you read this article by Dan Phillips I hope that you are as convicted as I was.

Carpe Diem, Preacherdude

I can't tell you how many times I've sat in an assembly and thought this, in the past 35+ years since my conversion: Dude, this critical moment, with these assembled people, on this your one shot — and you do that with it?

Let me unpack.

To me, as a preacher, one of the most stirring, throat-grabbing-and-shaking passages in the Bible is the one that starts this way:
I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom... (2 Timothy 4:1)
What? You charge me what? I'm sitting up, wide-awake, alert, holding my breath. With an attention-getter like that, what is the apostle going to say? Next verse:

...PREACH THE WORD!

There it is. That is our defining task. That is what we must do.

There may be pastoral activities that are nice, and even complementary — but this is not one of them. This is a must. This is definitional. This is non-negotiable. Fail at this, and you fail at pastoral ministry.

So. This guy gets up in the pulpit, right? He's got all these people, these immortal souls, literally one heartbeat away from an irreversible eternity, and he... does what?

This is the critical moment. These people have re-arranged their calendars. They've altered their schedules. They've said "No" to every activity but this. They're just sitting there. Most or all of them are quiet. You've got a minute to grab their attention, and fix it on something. What do you do?

Maybe there are 5 people, maybe there are 500 or 5000. Maybe you've got 5 minutes, maybe you've got 50. Doesn't matter. What do you do?

This may be the only time they've been in a church, about to hear someone who claims to believe the Word, the Gospel. Maybe they're there because a friend or relative has prayed for them for months, for years, for decades. Finally, they're in a (professedly) Christian church, intending to listen to whatever a (professedly) Christian preacher is about to say. It is literally a critical moment, a moment of crisis, of judgment. Angels attend! The Triune God is there! Endless ages will reverberate with the impact of what happens next. These people are accountable, you are accountable. All eyes are on you.

What do you do? What do you do with that priceless, pivotal, unbearably freighted opportunity?

I can tell you what some do.

This one guy — he tells jokes. Now, anyone who's heard me preach knows I've no problem with humor in the service of a Biblical message. The Bible does it, Spurgeon did it, I do it.

But that isn't the aim here. That isn't the purpose. No, these are jokes with the sole purpose of making the joker look cute and clever and witty. "Oh, please — like me," these jokes wail. "Love me. Think I'm cool!" The audience chuckles, and has a good time. Some of them go off to Hell chuckling. Others become a reproach to their professed Lord as they do what sheep characteristically do, without a shepherd.

Then there's this other guy, who gets up and chats. He shares, he randomly free-associates. Word flow, unfiltered, from imagination to mouth. He poses questions to which he offers no answer. Then he shrugs and wanders on. People leave with never a "Thus says the Lord" to challenge their thinking and point them to Christ.

Yet a third fellow tells stories, as if Garrison Keillor were his model for preaching rather than Isaiah or Paul, Wesley, Whitfield, Spurgeon, or Ryle. They are stories of which the only point is the story itself, or the cleverness of the storyteller. They serve the end of entertaining the audience, or provoking its admiration, or filling time inoffensively. They'll go off to Hell, or to shame Christ, with a nice story in their ears.

Still another gent weaves a blurry tapestry of vague, gauzy religious sentiments that could equally have been preached by a Unitarian, a pantheist, a New Ager, a Mormon, a Christian Scientist, a Roman Catholic, or a secular motivational speaker. Nobody's offended. Nobody. People like him, they think he's clever. Well, good. Because that was his goal: to be liked. Mission Accomplished. He has his reward. They like him... until eternity dawns, and they see how miserably he failed them. But for now, nobody's offended or upset.

Well, not everybody is not offended or upset. If I'm sitting there, you can lay good money I'm offended. (It isn't gambling when it's a sure thing.)

You can bet I'm sitting there fuming, and internally shouting these words: "You had that pulpit, these people, this opportunity — and you did that with it? What, in the name of all that's holy, were you thinking? You may never see these people again! Nobody may ever see them again! That may have been your one opportunity — and you do that with it? Why did you even get up there? Why are you even a pastor?"

Once again: it is a crucial moment. Vast ages of eternity hold their breath.

What do you do with it?

Preacherdude: best to ask yourself that question now, before it is asked of you on that Day.

We've already got a peek at the Teacher's Guide. We know the answer we'd better be able to give. What is it? Say it with me:

Preach the Word.

Now, don't waste the opportunities that God has given you... go share your faith!


You can see the article in it original form (with all of the cool Pyromaniacs graphics) at the Pyromaniacs website

Feed On God's Word

I have been thinking and praying a lot about where I should go with this blog and I have narrowed it down to four possibilities: 1. A study of the book of Mark; 2. A study of the Ten Commandments; 3. A study of the Attributes of God; 4. A study of the book of Revelation (a continuation of the seven churches series that we just completed). I am leaning most toward the book of Mark right now, but in reality what I may end up doing is a combination of all four of these with the study of Mark being the most prominent.

While I prepare to kick off that study you will probably see more posts of Grace Gems excerpts since: 1. I really like them, and 2. posting them gives me the opportunity to get ahead on some of the writing that I need to do.

Here is another excerpt from Arthur Pink on Bible study. This spoke to me in a personal way because as someone who really likes to dig into the meaning of Greek and Hebrew words and someone who a lot of the time approaches the Bible as a "study" I need to be aware of the dangers of my time in God's word becoming an intellectual pursuit instead of a time of communion with my Heavenly Father. As I read this I was reminded of just how prone to this temptation I am, and I pray that the Holy Spirit will use these words to remind you was well that when we open the Bible we are not just reading a piece of literature, but we are reading the very words of God.

"Desire the sincere milk of the Word--that you may grow thereby." 1 Peter 2:2

The Bible consists of a series of letters from the Heavenly Father, to His dear children. Then let us cherish them as such, and act accordingly. A few verses that are thoughtfully and prayerfully pondered, will advantage us far more than two or three whole chapters, merely skimmed through.

That against which we are protesting--is the God-dishonoring idea that His Word is merely a piece of literature, which may be "mastered" by a course of "study." We would warn against an undue occupation with the technical aspects of the Bible. God's blessed Word is not for dissection by the knife of cold intellectuality. It is not given for us to display our cleverness and "brilliance" upon--but to be bowed before in true humility. It is not designed for mental entertainment--but for the regulation of our daily lives!

Our motive when approaching the Word, should be to seek that which will subdue pride and bring us as supplicants to the footstool of Mercy--not to acquire that which will puff us up in our own conceit. Of what value is a knowledge of the original Hebrew and Greek--or a thorough acquaintance with the history, geography, and chronology of the Bible--if the heart is left cold and hard toward its Author!

I seriously doubt if God has called or requires us, merely to 'study' His Word. What we need to do, is FEED thereon. How much nourishment would your body derive from a study of the chemical properties of foods--or from seeking to ascertain the various sorts of soil in which they are grown--or the meaning of their Latin names? None whatever! And I am persuaded that much of the modern 'study of the Bible' is equally profitless spiritually!

By all means, "search the Scriptures daily" (Acts 17:11); slowly ponder each word in every verse. Pray constantly for the guidance and illumination of the Spirit, that He may open to you its Divine mysteries. Above all, beg God to write His Word more legibly and fully upon the tablets of your heart--that you may put the precepts into practice.

"Nourished up in the Words of Faith" (1 Timothy 4:6). God's Word is the only nutritive food for the soul! This is why the Holy Scriptures are given to us--that we may grow in love and reverence for them, and be more and more regulated by them. It is only by feeding on this Heavenly Manna, that strength is obtained for our pilgrim walk, for our warfare with sin and Satan, and for our service unto God and our fellows.

A.W. Pink

Take some time today to get alone with your heavenly Father and FEED on His word - that is from where true nourishment comes.

We Hold & Teach

The following was written by Bishop J.C. Ryle:

"All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness,so that the man of God may be complete,equipped for every good work."

2 Timothy 3:16-17

(1) We hold and teach--that the Bible is the only rule of faith and practice; and it alone is able to make a man wise unto salvation.

(2) We hold and teach--that we are accounted righteous before God--only for the merit of our Lord Jesus Christ, by faith--and not for our own works and deservings. We maintain that in the matter of our justification, our own goodness and holiness have nothing whatever to do.

(3) We hold and teach--that good works, which follow after justification, spring necessarily out of a true and living faith. We maintain that a living faith may be as evidently discerned, by the good works which spring from it--as a tree is discerned by its fruit; and that, consequently, the man in whom no good works and holiness can be seen--is not yet a converted man.

(4) We hold and teach--that repentance, faith, holiness of heart and life, justification, conversion, union with Christ, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit--are the primary and principal things in true religion. We maintain that other points of doctrine, however important and valuable in their due place, are by comparison, things of secondary importance.

"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction."

2 Timothy 4:2

J.C.Ryle

I could not have said it any better myself.

A Look At The Seven Churches Of Revelation As A Prophetic History Of The Church

Now that we have looked at the seven churches of Revelation chapters two and three individually I want to look at them from the perspective of prophecy. Please keep in mind as we work through this that even though I believe this gives us a picture of church history, these were letters to seven real churches, and the messages of each of these letters is still applicable to everyone of us today. We need to study and heed the warnings of these letters and apply the principles to our individual lives. With that said, let’s look at these churches as a prophetic pattern for the history of the church.

In Revelation 22:18-19 we are told that this book is a book of prophecy. It does not say that chapters four and beyond are prophecy, it says the whole book is a book of prophecy, and this includes chapters two and three. So what does this mean? As we look at the seven churches of Asia Minor we can see a picture, in very broad strokes, of the path that the church has taken throughout its history. While it is true that you can find individual churches in every age that look like each of these churches, the overall direction of the church as a whole has followed this pattern from the first century right up to today.

Also, if you look back to Revelation 1:11 you will see that Jesus told the Apostle John to “Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea." The reason that this is important is this: unlike the letters that Paul wrote which were to a specific church, this message was to be sent to all seven churches, and it was to be read by all seven churches. So the message to the church at Ephesus, for example, applies not only to Ephesus but also to the other six churches, and it also has application for us today. But beyond that we can also see a pattern that begins with the church at Ephesus and ends with the church at Laodicea that mirrors, in very broad strokes, the history of the church since the first century. So let’s take a quick look at this and see what we can learn.

A. The Church at Ephesus – The Loveless Church

Ephesus, the first church we looked at, and the first church addressed in Revelation chapter two represents the beginning of the church age. If you think back to what we learned when we studied this church you will remember that they were praised for their works, but Jesus told them that they had left their first love. Their doctrine was sound; verse two tells us that they would not endure evil men, and they put to the test those who claimed to be apostles and were not, and they found them to be false. We also see in verse six that they hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans. This church was orthodox, they fought heresy, but they lost their zeal. The problem that this church faced was that their love for Jesus had grown cold; they continued to work for Him, but they did so out of duty. They were no longer motivated by love.

This is a picture of what happened to the church as a whole in the first century. The Ephesian church represents a time in church history when the church was new, and they were on fire for Jesus and the gospel, but as time went on and they were faced with continuing persecution and adversity they grew tired and they left their first love.

B. The Church at Smyrna – The Persecuted Church

The next church we came to was the church at Smyrna. The church at Smyrna represents the time from approximately 100 A.D. to the beginning of the fourth century. During this time the church underwent intense persecution at the hands of the Roman government. We can see from verse nine of chapter two that this church was in tribulation and extreme poverty. Verse ten lets us know that they were suffering for their faith, and Jesus tells them that they will be cast into prison and have tribulation ten days. During the time in history that this church represents there were ten waves of persecution under ten different Roman emperors, which ended in the year 313 A.D. when Constantine merged the church with the Roman government, which leads us to the next church; the church at Pergamum.

C. The Church at Pergamum – The Worldly Church

In 313 A.D. the Roman emperor Constantine did something that on the surface appeared to be wonderful, but in reality ended up being awful; he merged the Roman government with the church. This merger seemed like a great thing for the church that had just suffered 200 years of persecution, but history would prove different. This became the point where the world moved into the church and the Roman Empire became the Holy Roman Empire.

This is the church that Jesus said was where Satan dwelled. And this unlike the church in the first century, this church embraced the doctrine and teaching of the Nicolaitans, which as you will recall was an establishment of the clergy over the people. The Nicolaitans taught that the people had to go through the clergy to get to God; they could not approach God on their own.

During this time in history it was hard to tell the difference between the government and the church, and although it didn’t happen immediately, within a few hundred years the Roman government would actually be picking the Popes. This period lasted until approximately 500 A.D.

D. The Church at Thyatira – The Compromising Church

This leads us to the next period of church history, which we know as the Dark Ages. At this point the church has gone from a new entity that was passionate for Jesus to a widely persecuted group to a church that looked exactly like the world, and now, after 200 years of the world infiltrating the church we come to a period where the church is compromising their beliefs. This is the church that was allowing Jezebel to teach immorality and lead people away from God. This was the time of indulgences; this was the time of the crusades.

During this time the church didn’t have easy access to the Bible, and most people had never even seen one, much less been able to read it in their own language. Access to the word of God was limited to the priests only, and not only did the people not have access to the Bible but the worship services were not even in a language that they could understand. This period lasted from about 500 A.D. to the early 1300’s.

E. The Church at Sardis – The Dead Church

After several hundred years without the word of God the church had began to look like the church at Sardis; it had a name that it was alive, but the church was dead. This period in church history, which began in the early 1300’s, lasted right up to the time of the Protestant Reformation in 1517.

Jesus told the church at Sardis that they were to wake up and strengthen the things which remained, which were about to die. That is the picture of the church during this time; the church had become indistinguishable from the world and had so compromised their beliefs that very few faithful remained. Then a man by the name of Martin Luther, who was training as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church got the opportunity to read the Bible for himself and as he began to study it he saw that the church was in error; he saw that salvation was by faith, and what we know as the Reformation began.

Along with Martin Luther men like John Calvin began to teach the word of God instead of the traditions of man, and Martin Luther worked diligently to translate the Bible into German so the people could have the word of God in a language they could understand. As the people once again had God’s word and were able to read it for themselves the church began to change, which leads us into the next phase of church history.

F. The Church at Philadelphia – The Faithful Church

The church at Philadelphia was characterized by their faithfulness to the word of God. For the first time in several hundred years the common man had access to the Bible and could read it for himself. As a result of this, if you look at the period of time from the Protestant Reformation in 1517 right up to the early 20th century you will see a church that was faithfully preaching and teaching the word of God. Jesus told the church at Philadelphia that He placed an open door before them, and that is exactly what happened during this period of time. All of the great revivals and prayer movements that we know about took place in this time. Men like Moody, Spurgeon, and Matthew Henry all came out of this period of church history. They had an open door and they took full advantage of the opportunities they were given. But around the turn of the 20th century things began to change, which leads us to the last phase of church history, the Laodicean age.

G. The Church at Laodicea – The Lukewarm Church

Around the year 1900 the church began to change. The church began to be more concerned with gaining “stuff” than with winning souls. No longer was the church interested in great revivals, they were interested in their own comfort. This is the picture that we see at the end of Revelation three with the church at Laodicea.

Jesus chastised the Laodicean church because they had the attitude that they had everything they needed and Jesus was left outside knocking on the door to get in. The people of Laodicea were guilty of “playing church.” For them it was all ritual with no relationship. They had become self-sufficient; notice that in Revelation 3:17 Jesus says, “you say, ‘I am rich and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.’” They had completely missed the point that Christianity is about a relationship with Jesus and has nothing to do with religious ritual; they had become lukewarm.

The Laodicean church is a picture of what the church will look like when Jesus returns, and if you look at the church today this is exactly what it looks like. Yes, you can still find Ephesian churches and Sardian churches and Philadelphian churches, just as all seven of these individual churches existed during the Ephesian age, but as a whole the church of today looks like the church of Laodicea.

So what does all of this mean for us? It means that is our individual responsibility to make sure that we are not following the trends that are present in the church today, but that we are seeking holiness and obedience to Christ above everything else. It means that we are to heed the warnings that Jesus gave to the churches in Revelation two and three, and we are to be overcomers. It means that we love God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength. It means that we remain faithful when we are persecuted. It means that we don’t conform to the world or compromise what we know to be true. It means that when we sin we repent, and we run back to Jesus. It means that we hold fast to the faith. And it means that we do whatever it takes to remain on fire for God.

These messages may lay out prophetically the path that the church will take, and we may be living in the Laodicean age, but that doesn’t mean you have to be a Laodicean Christian.

As Sure As Hell

Several months ago I was sitting somewhere and overheard a conversation between two people in which one of them said to the other, "It sure as hell does." That got me thinking, how many people will casually use a phrase like that and never understand the reality of what they have just said. Hell is real, and people need to be warned about its existence and that unless they repent of their sins and put their faith in Jesus Christ that is where they will spend eternity. But we don't warn them. We work and we shop and we play next to people everyday who are perishing - and they don't even know it.

Yes, hell is real. And if we believed that (like we say we do) we would be telling people about it; we would be pleading with the people that we love to come to Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. But we don't hear much about hell anymore in our churches, all we hear about is that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. This is tragic; while we are hearing about the wonderful plan God has for us our friends and families (and people we don't even know) are dying, and they are going to hell!

And since we don't hear much about it anymore, listen to what Jonathan Edwards had to say on the subject:

To help your conception of what hell is

Jonathan Edwards

"His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor, gathering His wheat into the barn--and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire!"

Matthew 3:12

"They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth!"

Matthew 13:42

"Then He will say to those on the left--Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels!"

Matthew 25:41

"If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell--where the fire never goes out!"

Mark 9:43

"He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire!"

Luke 3:17

"I am in agony in this fire!"

Luke 16:24

"Those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire!"

Jude 1:7

To help your conception of what hell is--imagine yourself to be cast into a fiery oven--or into the midst of a great furnace, where your pain would be as much greater than that occasioned by accidentally touching a coal of fire--as the heat is greater. Imagine also, that your body were to lie there for a quarter of an hour, full of fire, as full as a bright coal of fire, all the while full of quick sense. What horror would you feel at the entrance of such a furnace! And how long would that quarter of an hour seem to you! If it were to be measured by the hour-glass, how long would the glass seem to be running! And after you had endured it for one minute, how unbearable would it be to you--to think that you had yet to endure the other fourteen minutes!

But what would be the effect on your soul--if you knew you must lie there enduring that torment to the full--for twenty-four hours! And how much greater would be the effect--if you knew you must endure it for a whole year! And how vastly greater still--if you knew you must endure it for a thousand years! O then, how would your heart sink, if you thought, if you knew--that you must bear it forever and ever! That there would be no end--that after millions of millions of ages, your torment would be no nearer to an end, than it ever was; and that you would never, never be delivered!

But your torment in Hell will be immeasurably greater than this illustration represents! How then will the heart of a poor creature sink under it! How utterly inexpressible and inconceivable, must the sinking of the soul be in such a case!

"If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire!" Revelation 20:15

And here is what Arthur Pink had to say:

"Such, in brief, is the portion awaiting the lost - eternal separation from the Fount of all goodness; everlasting punishment; torment of soul and body; endless existence in the Lake of Fire, in association with the vilest of the vile; every ray of hope excluded; utterly crushed and overwhelmed by the wrath of a sin-avenging God!"

Arthur Pink, Eternal Punishment

But we have more than just the words of Jonathan Edwards and A.W. Pink; we have the words of Jesus Himself, who said:

There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— 28 for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’

Luke 16:19-32

Some people teach that this is just a parable, but in no other parable did Jesus ever name the the people involved and here we are told that this story involves a poor man named Lazarus who had died, an unnamed rich man who had also died, and Abraham. I believe that Jesus named Lazarus here because the people that He was telling this to knew who Lazarus was.

Likewise, they probably also knew the rich man, so why is his name not given? Could it be that in hell there is no longer the need for individuality since the people there are in complete isolation (notice that the rich man never makes reference to anyone else in this place with him). That is just speculation on my part, but look at what Jesus does say about this man: he is in torment; he could see the comfort of God's people; he still had his senses (he begged for water to cool his tongue); he was in anguish; he described the place he was in as being in a flame;he was aware of his past life; and he understood why he was there and what it would take to keep others from coming there.

Imagine your family and friends in a place like this. And not just for a day - For Ever! The Bible teaches that it is appointed for man to die once and then judgment (Hebrews 9:27) - there are no second chances. Notice in the passage above that the rich man is told that there is a great gulf fixed between the place where he is and the place where Abraham and Lazarus are and that no one can cross over it from where he is to where they are. that means when someone dies their eternity is fixed.

Heaven is forever, but so is hell, and we need to warn people. The Bible says:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

John 3:16-17

...if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

Romans 10:9-10

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10:13

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:9 (NASB)

This is the Gospel -the good news - Jesus is God in human form who came to this world to die and take upon Himself the wrath of God for the sins that we committed. He was buried, and three days later He physically rose from the dead. If you repent of your sins and place your faith in Him you will be saved.But we have to let people know that if they reject Jesus Christ they will spend eternity in hell; the good news of the Gospel is freely offered to everyone, but you have to repent and come to Christ.

Those who do not repent will end up just like the rich man in the passage above - "as sure as hell."

Another Thought Provoking Grace Gem

I have said before how much I look forward each day to the email that I get each morning from Grace Gems, and that even though every one of them is worth reading, on some days they are just profound and I find myself thinking about what I read all day. Today is one of those days. Today's Grace Gem was an excerpt from Arthur Pink's article David's Terrible Sin, and he asks the question, "Why did God permit David to fall so fearfully and sin so grievously?"

Have you ever asked that question about David? Have you ever asked that question about yourself? Have you ever wondered why God allows us to continue living in this sinful world and why, when He could keep us from sinning (Genesis 20:6), He allows us to still make our own choices and still lets us sin grievously against Him?

I have quoted Romans 8:28 here before and I think that this verse is just as applicable in answering these questions as it is in answering any other question we may have: everything that God allows in our lives has as it ultimate purpose to make us more like Christ. But how does that apply to when we sin? Look at what Arthur Pink had to say:

"Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. " Psalm 51:1-2

Why did God permit David to fall so fearfully, and sin so grievously?

One reason may be--that we might have set before our eyes the more clearly--the solemn fact that "the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked" (Jeremiah 17:9). Unmistakably plain as the meaning of those words is, uttered by Him who cannot lie--yet how very slow we all are to really receive them at their face value, and acknowledge that they accurately describe the natural state of every human heart! But God has done more than make this bare statement: He has placed on record in His Word-- illustrations, exemplifications, demonstrations of its verity--notably so in allowing us to see the unspeakable wickedness that still remained in the heart of David!


Also, the fearful fall of David, made way for a display of the amazing grace of God, in recovering His fallen people. If we are slow to receive what Scripture teaches concerning the depravity of the human heart and the exceeding sinfulness of sin--we are equally slow to really believe what it reveals about the covenant-faithfulness of God, the efficacy of Christ's blood to cleanse the foulest stain from those for whom it was shed, and the super-abounding grace of Him who is "the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort." Had David never sinned so grievously and sunken so low--he would have never known those infinite depths of mercy which are in the heart of God!


Also, had his terrible sin, his subsequent broken-hearted confession, and his pardon by God, never been placed in the Divine record--many of God's people throughout the centuries would have sunk in abject despair.


Also, thousands, from age to age, have by this solemn example of David's terrible sin, been rendered . . . .

• more suspicious of themselves,
• more watchful,
• more afraid of temptation,
• more dependent on the Lord,
• and more fervent in prayer.
  

By means of David's fall--they have, themselves, been preserved from falling!

Could this not also be the reason that some of us have fallen into terrible sin? Maybe the purpose was so that we would more fully appreciate the redemption that we have in Christ. Or maybe it is just so we can show compassion to others when they stumble themselves. I am certainly not saying that I completely understand why God chose to leave us with the ability to sin after we have come to Him in repentance and faith, but what Arthur Pink wrote does make sense.

Remember, as a child of God our goal - our desire - is to never sin, and we should be doing everything within our power to flee from any and all sin, but when we do fall we have an advocate with the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ; He is the propitiation for our sins (1 John 2:1-2).

Take some some tome today to get alone with God, repent of any known sin in your life and then thank Him that He alone is our Rock and our Salvation.