Podcast appearances and mentions of Bryan Chapell

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is 1 Samuel 8. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

Ephesians 3:14-21 “Paul says God's love for His people is as long as eternity past, so wide as to include all nations, so high as to ring praises from angels in heaven, and so deep as to cancel the claims of hell on our soul. Knowledge of such magnitude grants more than comfort, more than assurance, and even more than joy. Knowledge of this magnitude is power!” – Bryan Chapell

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Numbers 21:4–9. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional at https://www.crossway.org/books/daily-joy-hcj/. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

In this rebroadcast of a classic episode (from September of 2022) of the Expositors Collective Podcast, Dr. Bryan Chapell joins Mike to discuss the vital role of pastoral care and the irreplaceable power of love in pastoral ministry. Dr. Chapell is an internationally recognized preacher, teacher, and author who currently leads the Administrative Committee of the Presbyterian Church in America. He serves as Pastor Emeritus of the historic Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria, Illinois, and President Emeritus of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. In addition, he teaches on the faculties of numerous seminaries and Bible colleges worldwide and leads pastors' conferences across the globe each year. Dr. Chapell is also the founder and host of Unlimited Grace, a Bible teaching programme heard across the United States and in over 80 countries, and available online. His many books, including Christ-Centered Preaching, Holiness by Grace, and The Hardest Sermons You'll Ever Have to Preach, have established him as one of the foremost homiletics instructors of this generation. Join us as Dr. Chapell shares his passion for communicating the transformative truth of God's grace, which brings joy and peace to those who embrace it. Dr. Chapell and his wife, Kathy, are blessed with four adult children, a growing number of grandchildren, and lives filled with faith, friends, and fishing. Additional Resources:  Grace at Work: Redeeming the grind and glory of your job https://www.crossway.org/books/grace-at-work-tpb/ Preparation and Delivery of Sermons Course:  https://www.bryanchapell.com/course-sign-up-prep-and-del  Application for Empowered Preaching : https://www.bryanchapell.com/course-sign-up-application-for-empowered-preaching     Principles and Practice of Sermon Writing and Delivery, Exploring the Unifying Aspect of Grace that Binds all of Scripture Together :  https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/course/christ-centered-preaching/   Recommended Episodes:  Pastoral Ministry Beyond the Pulpit: https://cgnmedia.org/podcast/expositors-collective/episode/pastoral-ministry-beyond-the-pulpit-brian-brodersen-kike-tores-richard-cimino-manolo-matos  Calvin Wittman: https://cgnmedia.org/podcast/expositors-collective/episode/anchoring-truth-from-reporting-the-news-to-preaching-the-good-news  David Jackman : https://cgnmedia.org/podcast/expositors-collective/episode/impository-preaching-and-how-to-avoid-it ————— For information about our upcoming training events visit ExpositorsCollective.com  The Expositors Collective podcast is part of the CGNMedia, Working together to proclaim the Gospel, make disciples, and plant churches. For more content like this, visit https://cgnmedia.org/ Join our private Facebook group to continue the conversation: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ExpositorsCollective Donate to support the work of Expositors Collective, in person training events and a free weekly podcast: https://cgn.churchcenter.com/giving/to/expositors-collective

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

On this episode of Gifts and Graces, we get to hear Dr. Bryan Chapell share how first-time commissioners can make the most of their time at General Assembly. Dr. Bryan Chapell is the Stated Clerk of the Presbyterian Church in America. This episode was originally recorded as a seminar delivered at the 2024 General Assembly. Let's listen as Dr. Chapell introduces General Assembly for Rookies

O Poder da Misericórdia (Romanos 12.1-2) - Pr. Bryan Chapell

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Luke 22:24–30. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

Pastor Garrison GreeneTEXT: Ephesians 1:3-6; 5:1-2BIG IDEA: That you would be a people who increasingly rest in your beloved-ness in Christ, represent your Father in this world, all for his renown.OUTLINE:1. Resting2. Representing3. RenownRESOURCES: ESV Study Bible; Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians by Bryan Chapell; Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: Ephesians by Frank Thielman; Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament: Ephesians by Benjamin Merkle; The Message of Ephesians by John Stott; The Lectio Continua: Ephesians by Ian Hamilton; Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary by Harold Hoehner; Knowing God by J.I. Packer; Delighting the in the Trinity by Michael Reeves; Communion with God by John Owen; The Blessed and Boundless God by George Swinnock; Predestined for Adoption to the Praise of His Glory by John Piper

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

These Event Friday messages are from the Quakertown Conference on Reformed Theology 2011. Speakers at this conference include: Bryan Chapell, Richard Philips, Kevin DeYoung, Stephen Nichols, and Fred Zaspel To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/581/29

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Nahum 1. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

Pastor Garrison GreeneTEXT: Ephesians 5:18-19BIG IDEA: We're to be Spirit-filled Christians, producing a singing congregation.OUTLINE:1. Be Spirit-Filled Christians a. A Command b. A Present-Continuous Command c. A Command in the Passive Voice d. A Command for Us All2. Be A Singing Congregation a. Our Audiences b. Our Anthems c. Our AimRESOURCES: ESV Study Bible; Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians by Bryan Chapell; The Message of Ephesians by John Stott; The Lectio Continua: Ephesians by Ian Hamilton; Rediscovering the Holy Spirit: God's Perfecting Presence in Creation, Redemption, & Everyday Life by Michael Horton; Joy Unspeakable: Power & Renewal in the Holy Spirit by Martyn Lloyd-Jones; Corporate Worship: How The Church Gathers As God's People by Matt Merker; Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel by Mike Cosper; Worship In Spirit & Truth: A Refreshing Study of the Principles & Practices of Biblical Worship by John Frame; New Testament Christological Hymns: Exploring Texts, Contexts, and Significance by Matthew Gordley

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Hosea 11:1–12:1. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at equipping you for moral and spiritual transformation. Today's Bible reading is Daniel 4. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. ESV Bible narration read by Bryan Chapell. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at equipping you for moral and spiritual transformation. Today's Bible reading is Daniel 3. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. ESV Bible narration read by Bryan Chapell. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at equipping you for moral and spiritual transformation. Today's Bible reading is Daniel 2. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. ESV Bible narration read by Bryan Chapell. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at equipping you for moral and spiritual transformation. Today's Bible reading is Daniel 1. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. ESV Bible narration read by Bryan Chapell. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Ezekiel 11:14–25. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

John Owen was a puritan who lived in the United Kingdom, the most published author of the 17th century, and considered by many as one of the most important theologians produced by the West. One of his most famous lines ever penned comes from his book, The Mortification of Sin, which was first published in 1656. Mortification simply means to put to death. Owens entire book is really a treatise on Romans 8:13, for if you are living in accord with the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Owens condensed this verse into 9 words: Be killing sin or sin will be killing you. Now you may be thinking, Pastor Keith, you said that God loves us too much to leave us as we were. Pastor Keith, you said: Jesus loves His Church too much to leave her the way He found her. Pastor Keith, I thought Ephesians 1:19 was for me and that the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe is the power of the Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the grave and now that same power dwells in me so that I can live the Christian life well? So, what is this business of needing to kill sin because it may kill me? John Owen was right when he wrote of our sin problem, that it is always acting, always conceiving, and always seducing and tempting.[1] Where is that in the Bible? It is all over the Bible, but it is in Galatians 5:17, For the desire of the flesh is against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, in order to keep you from doing what you want. It is in Romans 7:23, but I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my bodys parts. Even though you can rejoice in your salvation, you still find yourself in places you do not want anyone else to hear, and maybe inwardly you are crying and begging as you grope for words: Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death (Rom. 7:24)? Owens wrote, Every lust is a depraved habit or inclination pushing the heart toward evil.[2] And, if you are honest, you know the terror of the truth of those words as you sit here today and the last thing you want is to feel more guilt over your failures, but instead want help and encouragement as you desire to press forward! There are two words in Ephesians 4:25-32 that I believe will offer you some help and encouragement this morning. The first word is ridding (apotithēmi) and is linked to the sins we were once slaves to. The other word is grief (lypeō) as it relates to the Holy Spirit. But first, let begin by first turning our attention to the word grief because if you can appreciate verse 30, what it means to rid ourselves of sin and how we do it, this will make more sense. Grief is Evidence that We Belong to God There are two types of grief that proves that God made you alive together with Christ. There is the grief the Holy Spirit experiences over your sin and the grief you experience because of your sin. Now that you are a Christian, the grief you experience over your sin is different than the kind of grief you experienced before you became a follower of Jesus. It is a grief that comes by way of being alive with Christ and no longer dead in your offenses and sins (2:1). When you were dead in your sins, you were also a child of wrath (Eph. 2:3)! Now that you are alive with Christ, you are a child of God! Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma (Eph. 5:1). You are not just a child of God, but a beloved child of God! Your grief over sin is different because you are now able to love Jesus in the way the apostle Peter described in his epistle: though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls (1 Pet. 1:8-9). Your grief over your sin is the kind of thing James wrote about: Come close to God and He will come close to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be miserable, and mourn, and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you (Jas 4:810). If you are born again, you grieve over your sin because of the ways it affects your relationship with God, which is the type of grieving that was impossible when you were dead in your sins. There is another grief that is addressed in Ephesians 4:30, and it is the grief the Holy Spirit experiences over your sins. The reason why your sins grieve the Holy Spirit is because you who were once an enemy of God are now a child of God. Your sins grieve the Holy Spirit in the same way the sins of a child grieves the heart of his mother and father who loves their child and are committed to that child. God as a Trinity is eternally invested in your redemption: the Father chose you for redemption, the Son redeemed you for salvation, the Holy Spirit seals you to powerfully keep you and all of it was motivated by love! We see the same work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in Romans 5:1-5, Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we also have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we celebrate in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also celebrate in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Rom. 5:15) The Holy Spirit is grieved over our sins because His sealing and indwelling is evidence of, the love of God poured out within our hearts. Kent Hughes said of the Holy Spirit: He comes to us in the clay of our sinful humanity, and though the walls are covered over with spiritual leprosy, he indwells us.[3] He does not just indwell us, He has come to stay! This is one of many reasons why Paul could write Romans 8:1, Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 4:30 doesnt end with the command, Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God but concludes with a promise: by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. If you are still confused over how this is good news, consider Philippians 1:6, For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus. It is because the Holy Spirit seals us and dwells within us with power that we are able to sing: No guilt in life, no fear in deathThis is the power of Christ in meFrom life's first cry to final breathJesus commands my destinyNo power of hell, no scheme of manCan ever pluck me from His handTill He returns or calls me homeHere in the power of Christ I'll stand The One who dwells within you and seals you for the day of redemption is the Holy Spirit of God. He is not a power, a force, or a character trait of God; the Holy Spirit is a Person, and He is God Almighty! Christian, because God loves you, the Holy Spirit can be grieved by you. The Holy Spirit is the Promise that We Can Live for God The reason why the Holy Spirit can be grieved is not only because He loves you, but because He has provided you with all that you need to say no to sin. Some of you are passively waiting to gain victory over sin in your life as though there is some magic recipe needed for you to successfully conquer certain sins in your life. Listen, when it comes to victory over sin, there is no easy button you can push! This might shock some of you, but to gain victory over your sin, you must be willing to fight against your sin. There is a list of sins Paul provides in verses 25-32, but do not think that this is an exhaustive list or that the sins listed are worse than others that are not listed. What is provided in these verses are examples, and dare I say it, examples we tend to feel better about than other sins. The point for why the apostle lists these sins is that we are to rid ourselves of them. We are to rid ourselves of falsehood (v. 25), sinful anger (v. 26), theft (v. 28), unwholesome talk (v. 29), ungodly virtues (vv. 31-32). We are to rid ourselves of deceit because God is truth and the devil is the father of lies (Deut. 32:4; John 8:44). We are to rid ourselves of ungodly anger because it does not leave room for the kind of mercy, love, and grace we received from God (see Col. 3:12-13; Matt. 18:21-35). We are to rid ourselves of theft because it feeds our idolatrous hearts into thinking what belongs to God, and how He has blessed others, really belongs to us. We are to rid ourselves of unwholesome talk because what comes out of our mouths really comes out of the heart (Matt. 15:17-19). We are to rid ourselves of bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, and malice by replacing those sins with kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. What does it mean to rid ourselves of these sins and how do we do it? Well, for starters, do not for a second think that Paul is telling us to do these things to keep our salvation. Bryan Chapell rightly said of these verses: We are not to live to secure grace but to live out the grace that God secured for us.[4] In light of the grace that God secured for us and the power that resides within us from His Holy Spirit, we are able, and we must, rid ourselves of these sins that threaten us. When we were dead in our sins, we were unable to rid ourselves of the sins of our flesh, but after God made us alive with Christ, He gave us a new nature and empowered us to fight our sins and to win against them. This is one of the reasons Jesus called Him the Helper: I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever (John 14:16). The word for rid in Greek is apotithēmi. The ESV translates this word put away. The NIV translates this word, put off. The previous version of the NASB before the 2020 update even translated this word, lay aside. All three ways are legitimate ways to translate apotithēmi, but I think the NASB2020 is better! Ridding yourselves of falsehood, sinful anger, theft, unwholesome talk, and ungodly virtues. Be truthful, exercise righteous anger when necessary, work hard and live generously for the good of others, and use your words for the glory of God and the edification of those around you! The same Greek word is used in Hebrews 12:1-2, Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, lets rid [apotithēmi] ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and lets run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Do more than just lay aside your sin, do more than just put it off, do more than put it away; get rid of it! Throw it aside! Put it to death! Why? Because it is dangerous! Just because you are a Christian and have the Holy Spirit, do not be passive about it. Treat it as something venomous and deadly! Your desire to lie, to give into anger and rage, to take that which does not belong to you get rid of it and put it to death! Your unwholesome talk dressed up in gossip, the words you use to tear down others, the poison that comes out of your mouth with cunning words used to get your way, or any other unwholesome speech get rid of it! Put it to death! Why? Because it is deadly, thats why! Be killing sin or it will be killing you. Later in his book, The Mortification of Sin, Owens wrote: If sin is subtle, watchful, strong, and always at work in the business of killing our souls, and we are slothful, negligent, and foolish in this battle, can we expect a favorable outcome? There is not a day but sin foils or is foiled, prevails or is prevailed upon. It will always be so while we live in this world. Sin will not spare for one day. There is no safety but in a constant warfare for those who desire deliverance from sins perplexing rebellion.[5] How do you get rid of the sin that threatens you? Well, for starters, confess it and get radical about not visiting that sin again. If you keep running back to your sin, find someone who you can talk to and will hold you accountable. God saved you from your sins and idols for a freedom only available in Him. You may be in bondage to a sin or sins, but they have no claim over your life. If you are a man, seek the help of your brothers; if you are a woman, seek the help of your sisters. You have all of the Holy Spirit you will ever need for a power over any bondage that you feel trapped in, but know that you belong to the Body of Christ and your sanctification is a community project. Some of you have grown so calloused to your sin because you have surrendered to it; it is time to stop grieving the Holy Spirit and live in the reality of your new identity in Jesus: For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them (Eph. 2:10). Amen. [1] Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., Not the Way Its Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing; 1995), 88. [2] John Owen (Abridged by Richard Rushing), The Mortification of Sin (Eas Peoria, IL: The Banner of Truth Trust; 2020), p.33. [3] R. Kent Hughes, Ephesians: The Mystery of the Body of Christ, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1990), 148. [4] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009), 219. [5] John Owen (Abridged by Richard Rushing), The Mortification of Sin (Eas Peoria, IL: The Banner of Truth Trust; 2020), p.11.

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Isaiah 42:1–9. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

Plugged In's Adam Holz talks about research around how youth often have a double life online, as well as the good and bad of dream-scrolling.  Pastor Bryan Chapell, author of "Are We Living in the Last Days?" talks about the multiple views around end times, and that while we have disagreements to the details, we share the hope of Jesus' return. Faith Radio podcasts are made possible by your support. Give now: Click here  

Looking for a balanced book about the end times? Bestselling author, Bryan Chapell explains four views of hope in his book Are We Living in the Last Days? Dr. Bryan Chapell, Ph.D. is Pastor Emeritus of the historic Grace Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Peoria, IL and he is also President Emeritus of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. His preaching and teaching are broadcast in many nations and are also available at www.bryanchapell.com. He is the author of many books, including Grace at Work, Unlimited Grace, Each for the Other, Holiness by Grace, Praying Backwards, The Gospel According to Daniel, The Hardest Sermons You’ll Ever Have to Preach, and Christ-Centered Preaching, a preaching textbook now in multiple editions and many languages that has established him as one of this generation’s foremost teachers of homiletics. He and his wife, Kathy, have four adult children, a growing number of grandchildren, and they enjoy the blessings of many friends, fishing, and faith.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One theme that bubbles up today: Truth without grace breeds self-righteous legalism; grace without truth breeds moral indifference. Bible used for reading today: Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020). Other sources consulted, quoted, or mentioned today: Randy Alcorn, The Grace and Truth Paradox: Responding with Christlike Balance, https://www.amazon.com/Grace-Truth-Paradox-Responding-Christlike/dp/1590520653. France B. Brown Jr., “Colossians,” in The Big Idea Companion for Preaching and Teaching: A Guide from Genesis to Revelation, ed. Matthew D. Kim and Scott M. Gibson (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic: A Division of Baker Publishing Group, 2021), 525. Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008). David S. Dockery, ed., Holman Bible Handbook (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 1992), 259. Miles Van Pelt, “1-2 Kings,” in Gospel Transformation Bible: English Standard Version, ed. Bryan Chapell and Dane Ortlund (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 456. ♱♱♱ About the #ForTheHope podcasts #ForTheHope's Daily Audio Bible is (crazy idea!) a daily audio Bible reading. But it's not just a voice — you can go anywhere and hear a better voice just read the actual text. We read through the New Testament in about 10 months and the Old Testament in about 14 months with a passion for just keepin' it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day. Also showing up in your stream when you subscribe via Apple,  Spotify, or your favorite podcast software are occasional (and separate) #PracticeTheWay segments for nurturing our spiritual formation and #AlwaysBeReady segments that help you take “a ministry of showing up” to work and culture.

Bryan Chapell discusses his new book with David this week. Connect with Bryan:www.bryanchapell.comPurchase the book: https://www.amazon.com/Are-Living-Last-Days-Revelation/dp/1540903923/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.s8F5FZ-U3ibu8naOR5Ydjv8coLlY0zD3Bl5zIrAeYhTSq8k1joTR_oRYVe6B_9UMVSnnibnGbuqidO8U2dt5IHDbbnwxIuczotFO-HQ_OZ_5zpKj-oVSuZwZQz5wz59Lat9j_n1CM_6Qf6EV1JbR1nWKDbyJ-0VHwNVjPq3uE3xo1Ar1Eq6eojG1FIqjdB2BzGw7hbSGfjWVEe3TesfrL8xR_2K65myJTgvD1BJOsesl-ZBi5ZC2Pd8zAXmWzw_puJvpHQG8syBb08amh-dNAt_9aydcGfhxsSANxhF1JlU.MBEzbiNcPrVwcBXYi4d84qPGjOcBAY1fZeViNmRs7l0&qid=1710822230&sr=8-5Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-b-a-r-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

There is a sticker I have seen on vehicles and on the back of laptops that I have seen just about every day since we moved into Cheyenne. The sticker did not capture my interest enough to google its meaning but every time I was forced to notice it at a stop light because it was affixed to the car in front of me, I would wonder about its meaning for as long as the light would last and then I would forget about it. Would you believe that I encountered this sticker for four years not realizing its significance because I never thought long enough about it to realize what it really meant? It wasnt until a year ago that while at a red light and another car with the same sticker I had seen dozens of times since moving to Wyoming that I realized that the number 307 stood for something; we even have a day each year in the great state of Wyoming to celebrate the significance of 307 every year on March 7th known as 307 Day to celebrate all things Wyoming. I am not the most observant person on planet earth when it comes to the most obvious things around me, but I do realize that the 307 stickers were low hanging fruit. Of the fifty-two states that make up our nation, Wyoming is one of eleven states that can boast of a single area code. In case you did not know this, area codes are given based on the population and number of phones in a geographic area and not based on the states land mass. As I thought about the significance of 307 and how that number was always before me for the first four years since making our home in Cheyenne before I ever realized what it truly meant, I cannot help but reflect upon how it is that so many can claim to be a Christian without fully appreciating what it means to be in Christ. Saved Through Christ from Death to Life I shared with you last Sunday that if you are a Christian, there are three reasons why you are, alive together with Christ. We, who were dead in our offenses and sins, walked in step with the prince of the power of the air, were disobedient, lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulged in the desires of our flesh and mind, and at the core of our nature were children of the wrath of Godare now, alive together with Christ (v. 5). The catalyst that moved God to, chose us in Him before the foundation of the world (1:4) was His mercy, love, and grace. The catalyst that made available the redemption through His blood, and the forgiveness of our wrongdoings (1:7) was Gods mercy, love, and grace. The catalyst that resulted in God sealing all who belong to Him by His Holy Spirit was the mercy, love, and grace of almighty God! However, it was not just any old mercy, love, and grace that we received from God, no it was His rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace. In what way is Gods mercy rich? Last week we went back to Genesis 2-3 to discover what Paul meant by stating we were all, dead in our offenses and sins. Today, to understand what Paul means by mercy, we must go to the place he drew the word from, and that place is found in Exodus 34:6-7, Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth; who keeps faithfulness for thousands, who forgives wrongdoing, violation of His Law, and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the punishment of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations. (Exod. 34:6-7) What you need to know is just before we come to Exodus 34, Moses requested to see God, but was warned, You cannot see My face, for mankind shall not see Me and live (33:20). God did promise that Moses could experience His presence, but Moses would have to remain hidden in a cleft of a rock as a way to protect him from certain death. The reason why Moses could not see the face of God and live was because Moses was sinful while God is holy. God promised Moses that while he was safe in the cleft of the rock, I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion to whom I will show compassion (see Exod. 33:12-23). There was another man who found himself in the presence of God, but for him it was in the form of a vision. The man I am referring to is the prophet, Isaiah. It happened after Israels king, who had served for over 40 years, died. We are told about the prophets encounter in Isaiah 6, but what we learn in those verses is that even Seraphim had to cover their faces and their feet in the presence of God: In the year of King Uzziahs death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim were standing above Him, each having six wings: with two each covered his face, and with two each covered his feet, and with two each flew. And one called out to another and said, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of armies. The whole earth is full of His glory (vv. 1-3). It was only a vison that Isaiah had, and yet his response was appropriate: Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies (Isa.6:5). So, of course Moses could not see the face of God and live, but he could experience His presence, and as he did, he heard Yahweh proclaim: The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth; who keeps faithfulness for thousands, who forgives wrongdoing, violation of His Law, and sin... (Exod. 34:6-7a). Let me give you four reasons why I am certain that the mercy, love, and grace of God that Paul refers to in Ephesians 2:4-5 was shaped by his understanding of Exodus 34. My four reasons are really four words God declared about Himself to Moses: Compassion (rǎḥm), merciful (ḥǎnnn), faithfulness (ḥěʹsěḏ), and truth (ʾěměṯ). The Hebrew word for compassion means mercy; the Hebrew word for mercy can be translated kindness or goodness; the Hebrew word for truth can be translated trustworthy. There is one more word God used to describe Himself, and that word is faithfulness which is the word used to describe Gods faithful and loyal love; listen, ḥěʹsěḏ is Gods covenantal and great love! What was revealed to Moses while he was in the cleft of the rock is the same God that Paul described whose mercy is rich, whose love is great, and whose grace is sufficient! But wait! God did not end His description of Himself there, of His rich mercy, kindness, goodness, or his covenantal and great love; for His also told Moses: yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the punishment of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations (Exod. 34:7b). God cannot and will not compromise His holiness and justice so that He is able to extend mercy, love, and grace towards guilty sinners. His holiness and His justice will not permit Him to leave the guilty unpunished. This is why, after seeing and experiencing the holiness of God, Isaiah cried out: Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for My eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies (Isa. 6:5). If God is God, then He must be just as merciful as He is just, He must be equally holy as He is a God of love. If God is God, then He is all that He is in equal measure with no character trait of His in conflict with the other. There is nothing about Him that is lacking and there is no room in Him for improvement. So, if God is God, then can He be rich in mercy and absolutely just in dealing with those who are dead in their offenses and sins (Eph. 2:1-3)? The Answer is found in Ephesians 1:7-8, which states: In Him [Jesus] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. This is why Paul could write: But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ. (Eph. 2:4-5). At the cross the rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace of God was reconciled through Jesus who bore Gods perfect justice through the full measure of a wrath we all deserve. First and foremost Jesus died to satisfy legal demands our sin required, and this is why Jesus was, Pierced for our offenses, and was crushed for our wrongdoings (Isa. 53:5); this is also why just five verses later, we read these words: The Lord delighted to crush Him, causing Him grief (v. 10). If you are a Christian, you are the recipient of a mercy that is rich, a love that is great, and a grace that is sufficient to address all your sins because of the Christ who, redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us (Gal. 3:13). This is why we can sing: Who could imagine so great a mercy?What heart could fathom such boundless grace?The God of ages stepped down from gloryTo wear my sin and bear my shameThe cross has spoken, I am forgivenThe King of kings calls me His ownBeautiful savior, I'm yours foreverJesus Christ, my living hope[1] Raised With Christ to Show Gods Grace As a result of being made alive with Christ, you, Christian, are raised up with Him, seated with Him, and united with Him. You were dead in our offenses and sins, but now you have been made alive with Christ! You were the spiritually walking dead and bound to a nature united with you, depravity, but now you have been set free by Christ and your life is now rooted in Him! You were once a child of wrath, but now you are a recipient of Gods great lovedeclared by Him to be His child! We who were dead in our offenses and sins, God made alive by the same power that He was able to give life to Adam from the lifeless dirt of the earth. However, our lifelessness was worse in the sense that Adams lifelessness came from the dirt of the earth while ours came from the soil of our own sin and rebellion, and from that polluted soil, God brought forth life out of death. God did what only God could do, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings through the same boundless power that raised Jesus from the grave, God did three things: 1) He made us alive with Christ, 2) He raised us up with Christ, and 3) He seated us with Christ in the heavenly places. Bryan Chapell, in his commentary on Ephesians said of these verses: These are the words of resurrection. Just as Christ was raised from the dead, so also, we are filled with the life that is from God. Our spiritual death has been swallowed up in Christs resurrection victory. The guilt and power of sin have been conquered by the Savior who now resides in us.[2] Oh, can you see it? Can you see that to be a Christian is not about being a more moral person, or a more religious person, or a nicer person, but about becoming a whole new person just as we are promised in the Bible: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, the new things have come (2 Cor. 5:17). Not only are we alive in Christ, but we have been raised up and seated with Him. The Greek word that Paul used for raised is synegeirō, the prefix of this word is syn-, from which we get the word sync and is short for synchronize. God made us alive in Christ, and quite literally has synced us with Him. What this means is that if you are a Christian, your identity is not in an area code, your last name, the person you are married to, your employment, or what you are able to do or unable to do. No! Your identity dear Christian is synced with the living Christ; you are not only alive in Him, but now you are raised up with Him. This is why, in his epistle to the Colossians, Paul wrote, Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (Col. 3:1). Your identity as a Christian is and always will be where Christ is! But hold on, it gets even better Christian! Not only have you been raised with Christ, but you are also seated with Christ. What does it mean to be seated with Christ exactly? Remember the way Ephesians 1 concludes, for it is in the final four verses that Paul informs us where it is that Christ is: He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (vv. 20-23).Jesus is above all things and all powers, and one day, at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:9-11). It is with that Christ that you are raised with and are seated with! What this means is that Christs identity is now our identity and now we are seated with Him positionally. What this means is that Jesus victories are now our victories, and because His victories are our victories, death, sin, disease, persecution, hardship, the demonic, and any other front that threatens to undo us does not have the final word or say over all who are raise with Christ and seated with Christ! What this means is that you are the Bride of Christ and regardless of your past, you dear Christian are now the apple of His eye! Christian, you were once dead in your offenses and sins, and now you are alive with Christ. Christian, you were once among the spiritually walking dead, but now you are raised up with Christ. Christian, you were once synced up with the prince of the power of the air and the spirit of the age, but now you are seated with Christ in the heavenly places.Christian, when you were dead, you lived in the lusts of your flesh and indulged the desires of the flesh, and now you are the recipient of the boundless riches of His grace in kindness in Christ Jesus (v. 7). Christian, do you know who you are? Because if you do, you will begin to live as though you are alive in Jesus, raised up with Jesus, and seated with Jesus. You will live with the confidence that it doesnt matter what anyone else thinks of you or has said about you because what matters most is what God thinks of you, and to Him, you are His inheritance and His trophy, demonstrating His all sufficient and infinite grace. Christian, you are a testament to the grace of God that is as boundless as is His power that raised Jesus from the grave and brought you from death to life. According to verse 7, for all of eternity you who were once dead will only know the unending benefits of His rich mercy, great love, and all-sufficient grace! For the ages to come we will stand together as Gods trophy of Grace that will forever serve as a reminder that there is no sin so great and no life so messed up that Gods mercy, love, and grace cannot overcome, redeem, resurrect, and put back together through the great serpent crushing, grave robbing, all-sufficient redeemer Himselfnamely Jesus Christ! We sing as the Church not because of how we feel or what style of music we like, we sing because the words we sing are true like the words in the modern hymn, In Christ Alone: In Christ alone, who took on fleshFullness of God in helpless babeThis gift of love and righteousnessScorned by the ones He came to save'Til on that cross as Jesus diedThe wrath of God was satisfiedFor every sin on Him was laidHere in the death of Christ I live, I live No guilt in life, no fear in deathThis is the power of Christ in meFrom life's first cry to final breathJesus commands my destinyNo power of hell, no scheme of manCan ever pluck me from His handTill He returns or calls me homeHere in the power of Christ I'll stand [1] Phil Wickham and Brian Johnson; Living Hope [2] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009), p. 83.

There is a sticker I have seen on vehicles and on the back of laptops that I have seen just about every day since we moved into Cheyenne. The sticker did not capture my interest enough to google its meaning but every time I was forced to notice it at a stop light because it was affixed to the car in front of me, I would wonder about its meaning for as long as the light would last and then I would forget about it. Would you believe that I encountered this sticker for four years not realizing its significance because I never thought long enough about it to realize what it really meant? It wasnt until a year ago that while at a red light and another car with the same sticker I had seen dozens of times since moving to Wyoming that I realized that the number 307 stood for something; we even have a day each year in the great state of Wyoming to celebrate the significance of 307 every year on March 7th known as 307 Day to celebrate all things Wyoming. I am not the most observant person on planet earth when it comes to the most obvious things around me, but I do realize that the 307 stickers were low hanging fruit. Of the fifty-two states that make up our nation, Wyoming is one of eleven states that can boast of a single area code. In case you did not know this, area codes are given based on the population and number of phones in a geographic area and not based on the states land mass. As I thought about the significance of 307 and how that number was always before me for the first four years since making our home in Cheyenne before I ever realized what it truly meant, I cannot help but reflect upon how it is that so many can claim to be a Christian without fully appreciating what it means to be in Christ. Saved Through Christ from Death to Life I shared with you last Sunday that if you are a Christian, there are three reasons why you are, alive together with Christ. We, who were dead in our offenses and sins, walked in step with the prince of the power of the air, were disobedient, lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulged in the desires of our flesh and mind, and at the core of our nature were children of the wrath of Godare now, alive together with Christ (v. 5). The catalyst that moved God to, chose us in Him before the foundation of the world (1:4) was His mercy, love, and grace. The catalyst that made available the redemption through His blood, and the forgiveness of our wrongdoings (1:7) was Gods mercy, love, and grace. The catalyst that resulted in God sealing all who belong to Him by His Holy Spirit was the mercy, love, and grace of almighty God! However, it was not just any old mercy, love, and grace that we received from God, no it was His rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace. In what way is Gods mercy rich? Last week we went back to Genesis 2-3 to discover what Paul meant by stating we were all, dead in our offenses and sins. Today, to understand what Paul means by mercy, we must go to the place he drew the word from, and that place is found in Exodus 34:6-7, Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth; who keeps faithfulness for thousands, who forgives wrongdoing, violation of His Law, and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the punishment of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations. (Exod. 34:6-7) What you need to know is just before we come to Exodus 34, Moses requested to see God, but was warned, You cannot see My face, for mankind shall not see Me and live (33:20). God did promise that Moses could experience His presence, but Moses would have to remain hidden in a cleft of a rock as a way to protect him from certain death. The reason why Moses could not see the face of God and live was because Moses was sinful while God is holy. God promised Moses that while he was safe in the cleft of the rock, I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion to whom I will show compassion (see Exod. 33:12-23). There was another man who found himself in the presence of God, but for him it was in the form of a vision. The man I am referring to is the prophet, Isaiah. It happened after Israels king, who had served for over 40 years, died. We are told about the prophets encounter in Isaiah 6, but what we learn in those verses is that even Seraphim had to cover their faces and their feet in the presence of God: In the year of King Uzziahs death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim were standing above Him, each having six wings: with two each covered his face, and with two each covered his feet, and with two each flew. And one called out to another and said, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of armies. The whole earth is full of His glory (vv. 1-3). It was only a vison that Isaiah had, and yet his response was appropriate: Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies (Isa.6:5). So, of course Moses could not see the face of God and live, but he could experience His presence, and as he did, he heard Yahweh proclaim: The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth; who keeps faithfulness for thousands, who forgives wrongdoing, violation of His Law, and sin... (Exod. 34:6-7a). Let me give you four reasons why I am certain that the mercy, love, and grace of God that Paul refers to in Ephesians 2:4-5 was shaped by his understanding of Exodus 34. My four reasons are really four words God declared about Himself to Moses: Compassion (rǎḥm), merciful (ḥǎnnn), faithfulness (ḥěʹsěḏ), and truth (ʾěměṯ). The Hebrew word for compassion means mercy; the Hebrew word for mercy can be translated kindness or goodness; the Hebrew word for truth can be translated trustworthy. There is one more word God used to describe Himself, and that word is faithfulness which is the word used to describe Gods faithful and loyal love; listen, ḥěʹsěḏ is Gods covenantal and great love! What was revealed to Moses while he was in the cleft of the rock is the same God that Paul described whose mercy is rich, whose love is great, and whose grace is sufficient! But wait! God did not end His description of Himself there, of His rich mercy, kindness, goodness, or his covenantal and great love; for His also told Moses: yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the punishment of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations (Exod. 34:7b). God cannot and will not compromise His holiness and justice so that He is able to extend mercy, love, and grace towards guilty sinners. His holiness and His justice will not permit Him to leave the guilty unpunished. This is why, after seeing and experiencing the holiness of God, Isaiah cried out: Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for My eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies (Isa. 6:5). If God is God, then He must be just as merciful as He is just, He must be equally holy as He is a God of love. If God is God, then He is all that He is in equal measure with no character trait of His in conflict with the other. There is nothing about Him that is lacking and there is no room in Him for improvement. So, if God is God, then can He be rich in mercy and absolutely just in dealing with those who are dead in their offenses and sins (Eph. 2:1-3)? The Answer is found in Ephesians 1:7-8, which states: In Him [Jesus] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. This is why Paul could write: But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ. (Eph. 2:4-5). At the cross the rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace of God was reconciled through Jesus who bore Gods perfect justice through the full measure of a wrath we all deserve. First and foremost Jesus died to satisfy legal demands our sin required, and this is why Jesus was, Pierced for our offenses, and was crushed for our wrongdoings (Isa. 53:5); this is also why just five verses later, we read these words: The Lord delighted to crush Him, causing Him grief (v. 10). If you are a Christian, you are the recipient of a mercy that is rich, a love that is great, and a grace that is sufficient to address all your sins because of the Christ who, redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us (Gal. 3:13). This is why we can sing: Who could imagine so great a mercy?What heart could fathom such boundless grace?The God of ages stepped down from gloryTo wear my sin and bear my shameThe cross has spoken, I am forgivenThe King of kings calls me His ownBeautiful savior, I'm yours foreverJesus Christ, my living hope[1] Raised With Christ to Show Gods Grace As a result of being made alive with Christ, you, Christian, are raised up with Him, seated with Him, and united with Him. You were dead in our offenses and sins, but now you have been made alive with Christ! You were the spiritually walking dead and bound to a nature united with you, depravity, but now you have been set free by Christ and your life is now rooted in Him! You were once a child of wrath, but now you are a recipient of Gods great lovedeclared by Him to be His child! We who were dead in our offenses and sins, God made alive by the same power that He was able to give life to Adam from the lifeless dirt of the earth. However, our lifelessness was worse in the sense that Adams lifelessness came from the dirt of the earth while ours came from the soil of our own sin and rebellion, and from that polluted soil, God brought forth life out of death. God did what only God could do, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings through the same boundless power that raised Jesus from the grave, God did three things: 1) He made us alive with Christ, 2) He raised us up with Christ, and 3) He seated us with Christ in the heavenly places. Bryan Chapell, in his commentary on Ephesians said of these verses: These are the words of resurrection. Just as Christ was raised from the dead, so also, we are filled with the life that is from God. Our spiritual death has been swallowed up in Christs resurrection victory. The guilt and power of sin have been conquered by the Savior who now resides in us.[2] Oh, can you see it? Can you see that to be a Christian is not about being a more moral person, or a more religious person, or a nicer person, but about becoming a whole new person just as we are promised in the Bible: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, the new things have come (2 Cor. 5:17). Not only are we alive in Christ, but we have been raised up and seated with Him. The Greek word that Paul used for raised is synegeirō, the prefix of this word is syn-, from which we get the word sync and is short for synchronize. God made us alive in Christ, and quite literally has synced us with Him. What this means is that if you are a Christian, your identity is not in an area code, your last name, the person you are married to, your employment, or what you are able to do or unable to do. No! Your identity dear Christian is synced with the living Christ; you are not only alive in Him, but now you are raised up with Him. This is why, in his epistle to the Colossians, Paul wrote, Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God (Col. 3:1). Your identity as a Christian is and always will be where Christ is! But hold on, it gets even better Christian! Not only have you been raised with Christ, but you are also seated with Christ. What does it mean to be seated with Christ exactly? Remember the way Ephesians 1 concludes, for it is in the final four verses that Paul informs us where it is that Christ is: He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (vv. 20-23).Jesus is above all things and all powers, and one day, at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:9-11). It is with that Christ that you are raised with and are seated with! What this means is that Christs identity is now our identity and now we are seated with Him positionally. What this means is that Jesus victories are now our victories, and because His victories are our victories, death, sin, disease, persecution, hardship, the demonic, and any other front that threatens to undo us does not have the final word or say over all who are raise with Christ and seated with Christ! What this means is that you are the Bride of Christ and regardless of your past, you dear Christian are now the apple of His eye! Christian, you were once dead in your offenses and sins, and now you are alive with Christ. Christian, you were once among the spiritually walking dead, but now you are raised up with Christ. Christian, you were once synced up with the prince of the power of the air and the spirit of the age, but now you are seated with Christ in the heavenly places.Christian, when you were dead, you lived in the lusts of your flesh and indulged the desires of the flesh, and now you are the recipient of the boundless riches of His grace in kindness in Christ Jesus (v. 7). Christian, do you know who you are? Because if you do, you will begin to live as though you are alive in Jesus, raised up with Jesus, and seated with Jesus. You will live with the confidence that it doesnt matter what anyone else thinks of you or has said about you because what matters most is what God thinks of you, and to Him, you are His inheritance and His trophy, demonstrating His all sufficient and infinite grace. Christian, you are a testament to the grace of God that is as boundless as is His power that raised Jesus from the grave and brought you from death to life. According to verse 7, for all of eternity you who were once dead will only know the unending benefits of His rich mercy, great love, and all-sufficient grace! For the ages to come we will stand together as Gods trophy of Grace that will forever serve as a reminder that there is no sin so great and no life so messed up that Gods mercy, love, and grace cannot overcome, redeem, resurrect, and put back together through the great serpent crushing, grave robbing, all-sufficient redeemer Himselfnamely Jesus Christ! We sing as the Church not because of how we feel or what style of music we like, we sing because the words we sing are true like the words in the modern hymn, In Christ Alone: In Christ alone, who took on fleshFullness of God in helpless babeThis gift of love and righteousnessScorned by the ones He came to save'Til on that cross as Jesus diedThe wrath of God was satisfiedFor every sin on Him was laidHere in the death of Christ I live, I live No guilt in life, no fear in deathThis is the power of Christ in meFrom life's first cry to final breathJesus commands my destinyNo power of hell, no scheme of manCan ever pluck me from His handTill He returns or calls me homeHere in the power of Christ I'll stand [1] Phil Wickham and Brian Johnson; Living Hope [2] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009), p. 83.

We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is 1 Samuel 8. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Bryan Chapell. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter

Will Jesus's return be preceded by a single world government? Will every person have a government-issued ID or mark? Does Christ return once or twice? Will believers go through a Great Tribulation? Will there be a literal battle of Armageddon? Does it even matter what we believe about future events? Biblical prophecies about the end times have confused, confounded, and even divided God's people for centuries. But the reason Scripture gives us hints about the future is to provide the encouragement we need to endure the present, confident that God keeps his promises. In this balanced look at four major views of the end times, bestselling author Bryan Chapell explains the primary ways Christians have interpreted biblical prophecy about the last days, not so that we might pick a hill to die on but so that we can cling to what unites us in Christ. No matter what end times view we find most compelling, in God's plans we can find strength for today and hope for tomorrow. View book here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Are-Living-Last-Days-Revelation/dp/1540903923/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FPmSweKo1Tfd5gfkG_sL2sZ9uedTe-PYHB2nWCpjwxNuvvHxzehe-MrREfutNU9tq-nF_27QHgC7BsIUeYnLeEOJjRTcWgSGqcmjdmOmM-KTuJWp7DMizHa-bBV9NWqyd5PTU_xuS5B7WjP-YC-kR-Jj-BBCeOjzkIzzenkOIKe8RQhGhaDeJLTYVDu_kqFkNT5tFurP75LyTZ_xXtg-PxuqPVXVbG_qaSeU9hbbLEE.3JbAEfcmpa3EcMs2UF3yeYNZDhV405uagOND0rEu96Q&qid=1709149306&sr=8-3   Please let us know in the comments where in the world you are tuned in from and make sure to give this video a like and subscribe to our channel to help promote sound Bible content on YouTube. Please consider becoming a supporter of Exposit The Word. Your one-time gift or regular monthly giving will help us reach more people with the Gospel and to help us equip people with sound bible teaching via online media and the production of physical Gospel tracts. https://exposittheword.com/support-us/

Let me begin by stating some truths about what it means to be a Christian that most of you already know: because you are in Christ, you are a son/daughter of the almighty God (v. 5), you are forgiven (v. 7), you are a new creation (vv. 9-10), and you have a glorious inheritance waiting for you that will never fade with time, can never be destroyed, and will forever be untouched by sin (v. 11; see also 1 Pet. 1:3-5). If you are a Christian, your reality and identity include all things made new (Rev. 21:1-5), all things for your good (Rom. 8:28-30), and all things for Gods glory! If you are a Christian, the God of Isaiah 46:9-11 is for you and not against you, for He has declared: For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me. Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, My plan will be established, and will accomplish all My good pleasure. When it comes to your struggle(s) in living out the Christian faith, it has more to do with a lack of knowledge of who you are in Christ or an ignored knowledge of who you are in Christ. All of what we have read and studied in Ephesians 1:1-14 can only be true of you if verses 15-17 are true of you: For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. The four character traits Paul lists in these verses are true of those who have been saved and redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ: A faith that is IN Jesus. A loyalty to the LORDSHIP of Jesus. A LOVE for those who belong to Jesus. A pursuit to KNOW Jesus. Two Types of Knowing for the Christian Now, I want to show you something that I did not have the time to show you last week, but you need to give me a little space to geek out a bit over two different words that Paul uses in the original language (Greek) that you cannot see in your English Bible; all that you see in your Bible is the word, knowledge (v. 17), and know (v. 18). The word for knowledge in verse 17 is ginōskō, and I made a big deal over that word for good reason. The knowledge of Jesus that Paul refers to in verse 17 is the kind of discovery that involves more than your mind, for it includes the experience of your whole person and is the kind of knowledge that is relational. The second Greek word for know is used in verse 18, and that word is oida. This kind of knowing can be experiential, but it is also a cognitive awareness of something or someone with certainty; it is the same word Paul used for know in 2 Timothy 1:12, For this reason I also suffer these things; but I am not ashamed, for I know [oida] whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to protect what I have entrusted to Him until that day. In the case of Ephesians 1:18 and 2 Timothy 1:12, you cannot have oida unless you have a relationship (ginōskō) with Jesus. Let me say what I just said differently for clarity: The kind of knowing Paul is praying for in verses 18-19 by way of the enlightened eyes of your heart cannot be experienced unless you ginōskō (know) Jesus (v. 17). In other words, there is no life-giving calling from God (vv. 3-6), no belonging to God (vv. 7-12), and no resurrection power from God apart from knowing Jesus. Illustrations tend to fall short when it comes to explaining who God is or the dynamics of what it means to know Him. However, when it comes to what Paul means by the eyes of your heart the best illustration I can think of for what he wanted these Christians to discover is the experience Roimaw and I had when we decided to have children. There was a difference between knowing Nathan with the first store-bought pregnancy test that was positive, and the first images we saw of him on the ultrasound. With every test and ultrasound image measuring Nathans development, Roimaws knowledge as a mother and my knowledge as a father grew, and what began as an understanding that we would soon be parents grew into something much, much more. While he was unseen in his mothers womb, we prayed for him, we read to him, and we loved him. But I got to tell you after Nathan was born and we held him for the first time, both Roimaw and I saw him with the eyes of our heart! We saw him with the eyes of our heart in such a way that neither she nor I could ever imagine life without him. There are three blessings Paul lists in verses 18-19 that he wants Christians everywhere to see with the eyes of their hearts, and it is to these blessings we turn our attention now. I want you to wrap your arms around the hope of His calling, the riches of His inheritance, and the greatness of His power towards all who believe. What is the Hope of His Calling It is Pauls prayer that these Christians will have the eyes of their hearts opened in such a way that they know what is, the hope of His calling. Notice that Paul did not say: the hope of your calling. What is the hope of Gods calling upon your life Christian? Well, we already know something of that calling from what we read in Ephesians 1:3-6; God knew you before the foundation of the world, saw all the rotten fruit of your spiritual deadness, and chose you anyway. To be chosen is to be called, and it is the calling of God that Paul wants the eyes of our hearts to see so that we can know just what that means practically. If your salvation and faith are rooted in the call of God that predates earth itself, then dont you think that God is doing something in your life that is much bigger than anything that you may suffer on this side of eternity? Paul elaborates on this very point in Romans 8:28-30, And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What is the hope of His calling? Listen to Romans 8:31, If God is for us, who is against us? God called you therefore He is for you! What does that mean practically? Well, Jesus said this to his disciples: But you will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, other relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by all people because of My name. And yet not a hair of your head will perish (Luke 21:1618). In other words, man may do his worst to you, but the worst he can do is kill you; what he cannot do is destroy you because of the One who called you! The hope of Gods calling is this: He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will (v. 5). Listen, the hope is yours because the calling was His. This is good news because your love is fragile, but His love is infinite! The hope of His calling is rooted in this reality: Gods infinite love for you, Christian, is as great as His infinite sovereignty. What are the Riches of His Inheritance in the Saints Just as your hope is rooted in His calling, the inheritance Paul prays that the eyes of our hearts will see so that we will know belongs to God. What inheritance belongs to God? Gods inheritance is all those whom He called, all those He predestined to adopt as His children, and all those who have been redeemed by the blood of His Son. I will say it another way: The Christian is counted as Gods inheritance. Yes, the Bible indeed teaches that God is our inheritance, the apostle Peter even said as much in his epistle: For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18). However, we are Gods inheritance, and that is good news! In what ways are we Gods inheritance? For starters we are told in the first fourteen verses that God chose us as a Father (v. 4), to redeem us through His Son (v. 7), to seal us through His Spirit (v. 13) to make us His holy and blameless (v. 4) adopted children (v. 6) with all the rights that come with being His children (v. 11)! In Ephesians 1:14, we are told that the Holy Spirit, is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods possession. In 1 Peter 2:9, we read: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 that the reason why it matters what we do with our bodies is that we belong to God: Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought for a price: therefore glorify God in your body. It is one thing to understand that we are Gods possession, but Paul explicitly prays that the eyes of the hearts of his readers would be enlightened to know, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance. Yes, it is true that Jesus died for our sins so that we could be reconciled to God, and yes, it is true that we are Gods treasured possession, but to be put into the category that we, who are the redeemed, are Gods inheritance is staggering! How is this staggering you may be asking? Well, if we are Gods inheritance, He will get what belongs to Him and no one absolutely no oneno demon, no power, no authority, no government, not Satan, and not even death will keep God from receiving His inheritance! Now against the backdrop of that reality, wrap your arms around Jesus promises to His people: My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:2729). If you belong to Jesus, then it is the Father who sings over you as His inheritance: The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will rejoice over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy (Zeph. 3:17). Listen, the reality that you are Gods inheritance is rooted in Gods infinite love that is equal to His infinite power, and that love has been, is being, and will forever be lavished upon you! Mark my words, the One who, declares the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, My plan will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10), will receive His inheritance! What is the Boundless Greatness of His Power Toward Us Who Believe The third and final thing Paul prayed for was that the eyes of the hearts of the Church would be enlightened to know the, boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places (vv. 19-20). Listen to how the NIV translates these verses from the Greek: That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 1:1920, NIV). Bryan Chapell, in his commentary on Ephesians, said of these verses, The promise of Gods affection is not our only hope; Paul also prays for the Spirit to give eyes to see Gods incomparably great power for us who believe (Eph. 1:19a). The promise is not only of an inheritance to come, but of power, great power for us.[1] Think about it, who can avoid the power of death? No one can, for death is coming for us all! Yet, there is One who conquered death, and the same power that raised Jesus from the grave is at work in you Christian! This power would be beyond our reach apart from knowing Jesus; but now that you have been called by God, and are the inheritance of God because of the redeeming work of the Lamb of God, this power is now ours. Jesus is our groom and we are His bride; He has declared, I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it" (Matt. 16:18b). Hell nor the grave have any power over Jesus Church, and you dear Christian are the Church! You have been given the Holy Spirit as a Helper by Jesus, and sealed by the Holy Spirit through Jesus to empower you to live your life for Jesus for the glory of God and the good of all those who are merely hanging by a thread over Hell and the only hope of escape and salvation is the hope that is now ours in Christ! We are a walking testament to the power of God to change lives through the good news of the gospel and can claim with the apostle: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek (Rom. 1:16). It is the same power that rescued us that now keeps us, and we can know with confidence the same thing the saints of old experienced as the Church: For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness, is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen containers, so that the extraordinary greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying around in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:610) This power that is ours in Jesus, is the power of the risen Christ to fight against sin, doubt, worry, and any other adversary that threatens to undo those who have been called by God, are the inheritance of God, and have been raised to new life by God. Our strength is His strength, and because of that truth, which is now our truth, we can celebrate with the apostle Paul: For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6). Amen. [1] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009); p. 69.

Let me begin by stating some truths about what it means to be a Christian that most of you already know: because you are in Christ, you are a son/daughter of the almighty God (v. 5), you are forgiven (v. 7), you are a new creation (vv. 9-10), and you have a glorious inheritance waiting for you that will never fade with time, can never be destroyed, and will forever be untouched by sin (v. 11; see also 1 Pet. 1:3-5). If you are a Christian, your reality and identity include all things made new (Rev. 21:1-5), all things for your good (Rom. 8:28-30), and all things for Gods glory! If you are a Christian, the God of Isaiah 46:9-11 is for you and not against you, for He has declared: For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me. Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, My plan will be established, and will accomplish all My good pleasure. When it comes to your struggle(s) in living out the Christian faith, it has more to do with a lack of knowledge of who you are in Christ or an ignored knowledge of who you are in Christ. All of what we have read and studied in Ephesians 1:1-14 can only be true of you if verses 15-17 are true of you: For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. The four character traits Paul lists in these verses are true of those who have been saved and redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ: A faith that is IN Jesus. A loyalty to the LORDSHIP of Jesus. A LOVE for those who belong to Jesus. A pursuit to KNOW Jesus. Two Types of Knowing for the Christian Now, I want to show you something that I did not have the time to show you last week, but you need to give me a little space to geek out a bit over two different words that Paul uses in the original language (Greek) that you cannot see in your English Bible; all that you see in your Bible is the word, knowledge (v. 17), and know (v. 18). The word for knowledge in verse 17 is ginōskō, and I made a big deal over that word for good reason. The knowledge of Jesus that Paul refers to in verse 17 is the kind of discovery that involves more than your mind, for it includes the experience of your whole person and is the kind of knowledge that is relational. The second Greek word for know is used in verse 18, and that word is oida. This kind of knowing can be experiential, but it is also a cognitive awareness of something or someone with certainty; it is the same word Paul used for know in 2 Timothy 1:12, For this reason I also suffer these things; but I am not ashamed, for I know [oida] whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to protect what I have entrusted to Him until that day. In the case of Ephesians 1:18 and 2 Timothy 1:12, you cannot have oida unless you have a relationship (ginōskō) with Jesus. Let me say what I just said differently for clarity: The kind of knowing Paul is praying for in verses 18-19 by way of the enlightened eyes of your heart cannot be experienced unless you ginōskō (know) Jesus (v. 17). In other words, there is no life-giving calling from God (vv. 3-6), no belonging to God (vv. 7-12), and no resurrection power from God apart from knowing Jesus. Illustrations tend to fall short when it comes to explaining who God is or the dynamics of what it means to know Him. However, when it comes to what Paul means by the eyes of your heart the best illustration I can think of for what he wanted these Christians to discover is the experience Roimaw and I had when we decided to have children. There was a difference between knowing Nathan with the first store-bought pregnancy test that was positive, and the first images we saw of him on the ultrasound. With every test and ultrasound image measuring Nathans development, Roimaws knowledge as a mother and my knowledge as a father grew, and what began as an understanding that we would soon be parents grew into something much, much more. While he was unseen in his mothers womb, we prayed for him, we read to him, and we loved him. But I got to tell you after Nathan was born and we held him for the first time, both Roimaw and I saw him with the eyes of our heart! We saw him with the eyes of our heart in such a way that neither she nor I could ever imagine life without him. There are three blessings Paul lists in verses 18-19 that he wants Christians everywhere to see with the eyes of their hearts, and it is to these blessings we turn our attention now. I want you to wrap your arms around the hope of His calling, the riches of His inheritance, and the greatness of His power towards all who believe. What is the Hope of His Calling It is Pauls prayer that these Christians will have the eyes of their hearts opened in such a way that they know what is, the hope of His calling. Notice that Paul did not say: the hope of your calling. What is the hope of Gods calling upon your life Christian? Well, we already know something of that calling from what we read in Ephesians 1:3-6; God knew you before the foundation of the world, saw all the rotten fruit of your spiritual deadness, and chose you anyway. To be chosen is to be called, and it is the calling of God that Paul wants the eyes of our hearts to see so that we can know just what that means practically. If your salvation and faith are rooted in the call of God that predates earth itself, then dont you think that God is doing something in your life that is much bigger than anything that you may suffer on this side of eternity? Paul elaborates on this very point in Romans 8:28-30, And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What is the hope of His calling? Listen to Romans 8:31, If God is for us, who is against us? God called you therefore He is for you! What does that mean practically? Well, Jesus said this to his disciples: But you will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, other relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by all people because of My name. And yet not a hair of your head will perish (Luke 21:1618). In other words, man may do his worst to you, but the worst he can do is kill you; what he cannot do is destroy you because of the One who called you! The hope of Gods calling is this: He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will (v. 5). Listen, the hope is yours because the calling was His. This is good news because your love is fragile, but His love is infinite! The hope of His calling is rooted in this reality: Gods infinite love for you, Christian, is as great as His infinite sovereignty. What are the Riches of His Inheritance in the Saints Just as your hope is rooted in His calling, the inheritance Paul prays that the eyes of our hearts will see so that we will know belongs to God. What inheritance belongs to God? Gods inheritance is all those whom He called, all those He predestined to adopt as His children, and all those who have been redeemed by the blood of His Son. I will say it another way: The Christian is counted as Gods inheritance. Yes, the Bible indeed teaches that God is our inheritance, the apostle Peter even said as much in his epistle: For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18). However, we are Gods inheritance, and that is good news! In what ways are we Gods inheritance? For starters we are told in the first fourteen verses that God chose us as a Father (v. 4), to redeem us through His Son (v. 7), to seal us through His Spirit (v. 13) to make us His holy and blameless (v. 4) adopted children (v. 6) with all the rights that come with being His children (v. 11)! In Ephesians 1:14, we are told that the Holy Spirit, is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods possession. In 1 Peter 2:9, we read: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 that the reason why it matters what we do with our bodies is that we belong to God: Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought for a price: therefore glorify God in your body. It is one thing to understand that we are Gods possession, but Paul explicitly prays that the eyes of the hearts of his readers would be enlightened to know, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance. Yes, it is true that Jesus died for our sins so that we could be reconciled to God, and yes, it is true that we are Gods treasured possession, but to be put into the category that we, who are the redeemed, are Gods inheritance is staggering! How is this staggering you may be asking? Well, if we are Gods inheritance, He will get what belongs to Him and no one absolutely no oneno demon, no power, no authority, no government, not Satan, and not even death will keep God from receiving His inheritance! Now against the backdrop of that reality, wrap your arms around Jesus promises to His people: My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:2729). If you belong to Jesus, then it is the Father who sings over you as His inheritance: The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will rejoice over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy (Zeph. 3:17). Listen, the reality that you are Gods inheritance is rooted in Gods infinite love that is equal to His infinite power, and that love has been, is being, and will forever be lavished upon you! Mark my words, the One who, declares the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, My plan will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10), will receive His inheritance! What is the Boundless Greatness of His Power Toward Us Who Believe The third and final thing Paul prayed for was that the eyes of the hearts of the Church would be enlightened to know the, boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places (vv. 19-20). Listen to how the NIV translates these verses from the Greek: That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 1:1920, NIV). Bryan Chapell, in his commentary on Ephesians, said of these verses, The promise of Gods affection is not our only hope; Paul also prays for the Spirit to give eyes to see Gods incomparably great power for us who believe (Eph. 1:19a). The promise is not only of an inheritance to come, but of power, great power for us.[1] Think about it, who can avoid the power of death? No one can, for death is coming for us all! Yet, there is One who conquered death, and the same power that raised Jesus from the grave is at work in you Christian! This power would be beyond our reach apart from knowing Jesus; but now that you have been called by God, and are the inheritance of God because of the redeeming work of the Lamb of God, this power is now ours. Jesus is our groom and we are His bride; He has declared, I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it" (Matt. 16:18b). Hell nor the grave have any power over Jesus Church, and you dear Christian are the Church! You have been given the Holy Spirit as a Helper by Jesus, and sealed by the Holy Spirit through Jesus to empower you to live your life for Jesus for the glory of God and the good of all those who are merely hanging by a thread over Hell and the only hope of escape and salvation is the hope that is now ours in Christ! We are a walking testament to the power of God to change lives through the good news of the gospel and can claim with the apostle: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek (Rom. 1:16). It is the same power that rescued us that now keeps us, and we can know with confidence the same thing the saints of old experienced as the Church: For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness, is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen containers, so that the extraordinary greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying around in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:610) This power that is ours in Jesus, is the power of the risen Christ to fight against sin, doubt, worry, and any other adversary that threatens to undo those who have been called by God, are the inheritance of God, and have been raised to new life by God. Our strength is His strength, and because of that truth, which is now our truth, we can celebrate with the apostle Paul: For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6). Amen. [1] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009); p. 69.

Click here to watch the video recording of this Sunday School.You can also listen to this audio on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

(Originally released Nov 3, 2022) PCA pastors Derrick Brite and Stephen Spinnenweber plus SBC firebrand pastor Tom Buck join us to examine the $100 million+ Jesus marketing campaign "He Gets Us." And rumors of PCA involvement were addressed by PCA stated clerk Bryan Chapell who graciously provided a special recorded statement and agreed to a short interview.  Watch: https://youtu.be/2LP5vYf5OQ8

What does it mean to be saved? When sharing the gospel with people, we often focus on getting them to decide to follow Jesus which often is concluded with a prayer where the person acknowledges some form of allegiance to Jesus as his or her savior. In sharing the gospel, we rightly focus on the need for a person to believe and trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins because after all, the Bible does say: if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation (Rom. 10:9-10). However, biblical salvation and what it means to be saved is so much more than the forgiveness of your sins. There are over two hundred words in the apostle Pauls long sentence that makes up Ephesians 1:1-14; within these verses we discover what it means to be a Christian. When it comes to what it means to be saved, Paul shares with us the role of a God who is Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When it comes to the salvation of our souls, we discover that the Father planned our salvation (vv. 3-6), the Son provided our salvation (vv. 7-12), and the Holy Spirit applied our salvation (vv. 13-14). It is in Ephesians 1:7-12 that we now turn our attention where we discover the three Rs of what it really means to be saved, and the three Rs are redemption, regeneration, and reconciliation. It is my hope this morning that by plumbing the depths of these very rich verses, that you will discover that your salvation is so much more than the forgiveness of your sins. Because you are in Christ, you are saved! But what does it mean to be saved? That is the question I hope to answer with the time that we have left. Gods Plan for Redemption is by Jesus (vv. 7-8a) To be saved is to be redeemed. To be redeemed is to be ransomed. And for the Christian, to be ransomed is to be freed from the captivity and slavery of sin; to redeem something is to reclaim or take back something that has been taken away or is held captive. One person said of redemption, Sin (both our personal sin and the sin nature we inherited from Adam) takes away the righteousness God intended to characterize our lives and holds us hostage to Satans purposes.[1] How was this redemption accomplished? Through, His blood. Not through your pedigree, not through your religious devotion, not through your Christian upbringing, and not by showing up to Church today, but through his blood you have been redeemed. No, your redemption is owed to one person through one act, and that one person is Jesus and His one act was His death upon a cross for all your sins. There are three Greek words used in the New Testament for redemption. The first word is the Greek word, agorazōand means to buy or to buy in a marketplace. When used in the context of Jesus death, it refers to the price he paid for our salvation, and what it cost Him was His own life. The second Greek word used for redemption is closely related to agorazō and that word is exagorazō, which means to buy out of the marketplace; it is the kind of purchasing that once purchased, that thing or person might never return to the marketplace again. When Jesus died for our sins, both words are used to describe what it was that He accomplished upon the Cross: Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought [agorazō] for a price: therefore glorify God in your body. (1 Cor. 6:1920) Christ redeemed [exagorazō] us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a Tree (Gal. 3:13) Now, when it comes to what Christ accomplished on the cross, He purchased us as His own (agorazō) and He purchased us from the slave market sin (exagorazō), and Paul no doubt looks back on both of these ways in which Christ redeemed us. It is in Christ that we have been redeemed to be holy and blameless, and it is in Christ that we are, adopted as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself (v. 5). But there is a third Greek word used for redemption, and it is used here in verse 7, and it is completely different than the other two words. The third Greek word used for redemption is lutrǒsis, which literally means, to fully liberate. The kind of redemption the Christian has is one where he/she has been purchased, but that is not all. The kind of redemption the Christian has is one where he/she has been purchased from the bondage of sin, but that is not all. The kind of redemption the Christian has is full, complete, and guarantees a redemption free from all the curse of sin. The kind of redemption that you have, Christian, is one that not only includes the forgiveness of your sins and the freedom from slavery to sin, but also the eventual freedom from the tyranny of disease and death, the promise of a physical resurrection, and the assurance of an inheritance that can never be destroyed, will never again be stained by sin, and will never ever grow old (see 1 Pet. 1:3-5). This is the redemption we have through the blood of Jesus, and it is a redemption that cannot be added to because it is complete; it is a redemption that includes, the forgiveness of sins of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace. It is a redemption available through the riches of His grace, which He alone is qualified to lavish upon those whom He has redeemed (vv. 7-8). Gods Plan for Regeneration is in Jesus (vv. 8b-10) Regeneration as it relates to the Christian is the work of God where He grants spiritual life to the Christian that raises him/her from spiritual death to spiritual life. It is what is described in Ephesians 2, And you were dead in your offenses and sins. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (vv. 1, 4-5). Jesus used the metaphor of birth to describe how a person goes from spiritual death to spiritual life in his conversation with Nicodemus in the gospel of John, where Jesus said things like: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (v. 3). Jesus also said to Nicodemus, That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which has been born of the Spirit is spirit (v. 6). What was Jesus point? His point was that the way a person is born again is through a supernatural miracle that only God, through His Spirit, is capable of doing. A picture of regeneration is given to us in Ezekiel 37:1-14 with the prophets vision of the Valley of Dry Bones where Ezekiel was told to speak the Word of God over the dry human bones, and when he did, God breathed life into them. In Ezekiel 37:14, we read these words: And I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your won land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it, declares the Lord. What Jesus said in John 3 to Nicodemus and what we read in Ezekiel 36 and 37 is picture of regeneration that only God is capable of doing; regeneration is the act where God makes the spiritually dead, alive in Jesus Christ. To be saved, is to be regenerated in Christ. The mystery of Gods will in verse 9 is the plan God had from before dirt existed to make the dead live through the work of His Son and the power of His Holy Spirit (see 13-14). If you are a Christian, God has regenerated your dead soul to life through Christ! What this means is that if you are a Christian, you are not only born again, but you are a new creation: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come (2 Cor. 5:17). If you are a new creation, then you have a new life and a new heart. Are you seeing how these verses are connected to Ephesians 1:4, He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before him. Or how about their connection to Ephesians 2:10, For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. The evidence that your faith is in Christ is marked by the kind of desire that loves and longs for Christ more than you love and long for sin (see Romans 8:12-25). The mystery Paul mentions in verses 9-10 is the redemption and regeneration of people that must take place before the rest of creation, under the curse of sin, experiences the same kind of liberation the Christian is experiencing in Jesus. All of history is moving to the subjugation of all things in heaven and on earth under the eternal and universal lordship of Jesus Christ. The first to experience this are Christians, those who have redemption through His blood the forgiveness of their sins and are experiencing the riches of His grace lavished upon all whose faith and hope rests in Jesus alone. Jesus Plan for Reconciliation is Through Jesus (vv. 11-12) When I read Ephesians 1:11-12, I cannot help but think of Jesus parable of the lost sheep where the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine in the open pasture to go after the one that is lost until he finds it, and when he finds that last sheep, puts it on his shoulders while rejoicing of that which was lost and now is found (Luke 15:1-7). When I read these verses in Ephesians, I think of the parable of the lost coin about a woman who rejoices after find the one coin she searched her entire house to find (see vv. 8-9). But the parable that overshadows them all, and to me has the strongest connection to Ephesians 1:7-12 is the parable of the Prodigal Son - who left his father to live a life free of all moral constraints, to the point where he squandered his inheritance and seemingly destroyed any hope of reconciliation. The son decided to return not as a son, but as one of his fathers hired hands, he even rehearsed in his mind what he would say to his father upon seeing him: I will set out and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired laborers (Luke 15:1819). But you know how the story ends, for when the father saw his son, he ran to his wayward son, embraced him and kissed him, and said to his servants: But the father said to his slaves, Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet; and bring the fattened calf, slaughter it, and lets eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found. And they began to celebrate (Luke 15:2224). Now against the backdrop of these parables, especially the parable of the Prodigal Son, listen to Ephesians 1:11-12, In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1:1112). What is our inheritance? It is redemption in its fullest sense. It is a life regenerated in the fullest sense. It is the eventual freedom from the curse of sin and the inheritance of a new heaven and new earth. It is the city that motivated Abraham to leave his home because, he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Heb. 11:10). The city Abraham longed for is a resurrected earth free of the curse of sin when all things that started with the spiritually dead are made new. All of history is moving toward that end when, what is mortal will be swallowed up by life (2 Cor. 5:4), for when our salvation is complete, the redeemed will be able to celebrate a new reality where we will finally be able to say: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting (1 Cor. 15:54-55). The Christian will finally know what it means to be saved when our redemption is complete, the rest of creation experiences a type of regeneration we have experienced, and the kind of reconciliation that will culminate is what we read in Isaiah 51:11, And the redeemed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with joyful shouting, and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. Conclusion Christian, all your redemption, all your regeneration, and all your reconciliation to God, is all because of Christ alonenothing more and nothing less! Can you see now how evil and demonic it is to add anything or to take away from what only Jesus Christ can provide? There is no other application or advice I believe is appropriate to give in light of these verses today: Your salvation is owed only to Jesus and nothing else! This is why the apostle could write what we must treasure: For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor. 1:18). Dont you dare try to add to it or to take away from what only God can and has accomplished by hanging on a cross for your sin and defeating death through His resurrection! Amen. [1] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009), p. 34.

What does it mean to be saved? When sharing the gospel with people, we often focus on getting them to decide to follow Jesus which often is concluded with a prayer where the person acknowledges some form of allegiance to Jesus as his or her savior. In sharing the gospel, we rightly focus on the need for a person to believe and trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins because after all, the Bible does say: if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation (Rom. 10:9-10). However, biblical salvation and what it means to be saved is so much more than the forgiveness of your sins. There are over two hundred words in the apostle Pauls long sentence that makes up Ephesians 1:1-14; within these verses we discover what it means to be a Christian. When it comes to what it means to be saved, Paul shares with us the role of a God who is Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When it comes to the salvation of our souls, we discover that the Father planned our salvation (vv. 3-6), the Son provided our salvation (vv. 7-12), and the Holy Spirit applied our salvation (vv. 13-14). It is in Ephesians 1:7-12 that we now turn our attention where we discover the three Rs of what it really means to be saved, and the three Rs are redemption, regeneration, and reconciliation. It is my hope this morning that by plumbing the depths of these very rich verses, that you will discover that your salvation is so much more than the forgiveness of your sins. Because you are in Christ, you are saved! But what does it mean to be saved? That is the question I hope to answer with the time that we have left. Gods Plan for Redemption is by Jesus (vv. 7-8a) To be saved is to be redeemed. To be redeemed is to be ransomed. And for the Christian, to be ransomed is to be freed from the captivity and slavery of sin; to redeem something is to reclaim or take back something that has been taken away or is held captive. One person said of redemption, Sin (both our personal sin and the sin nature we inherited from Adam) takes away the righteousness God intended to characterize our lives and holds us hostage to Satans purposes.[1] How was this redemption accomplished? Through, His blood. Not through your pedigree, not through your religious devotion, not through your Christian upbringing, and not by showing up to Church today, but through his blood you have been redeemed. No, your redemption is owed to one person through one act, and that one person is Jesus and His one act was His death upon a cross for all your sins. There are three Greek words used in the New Testament for redemption. The first word is the Greek word, agorazōand means to buy or to buy in a marketplace. When used in the context of Jesus death, it refers to the price he paid for our salvation, and what it cost Him was His own life. The second Greek word used for redemption is closely related to agorazō and that word is exagorazō, which means to buy out of the marketplace; it is the kind of purchasing that once purchased, that thing or person might never return to the marketplace again. When Jesus died for our sins, both words are used to describe what it was that He accomplished upon the Cross: Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought [agorazō] for a price: therefore glorify God in your body. (1 Cor. 6:1920) Christ redeemed [exagorazō] us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a Tree (Gal. 3:13) Now, when it comes to what Christ accomplished on the cross, He purchased us as His own (agorazō) and He purchased us from the slave market sin (exagorazō), and Paul no doubt looks back on both of these ways in which Christ redeemed us. It is in Christ that we have been redeemed to be holy and blameless, and it is in Christ that we are, adopted as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself (v. 5). But there is a third Greek word used for redemption, and it is used here in verse 7, and it is completely different than the other two words. The third Greek word used for redemption is lutrǒsis, which literally means, to fully liberate. The kind of redemption the Christian has is one where he/she has been purchased, but that is not all. The kind of redemption the Christian has is one where he/she has been purchased from the bondage of sin, but that is not all. The kind of redemption the Christian has is full, complete, and guarantees a redemption free from all the curse of sin. The kind of redemption that you have, Christian, is one that not only includes the forgiveness of your sins and the freedom from slavery to sin, but also the eventual freedom from the tyranny of disease and death, the promise of a physical resurrection, and the assurance of an inheritance that can never be destroyed, will never again be stained by sin, and will never ever grow old (see 1 Pet. 1:3-5). This is the redemption we have through the blood of Jesus, and it is a redemption that cannot be added to because it is complete; it is a redemption that includes, the forgiveness of sins of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace. It is a redemption available through the riches of His grace, which He alone is qualified to lavish upon those whom He has redeemed (vv. 7-8). Gods Plan for Regeneration is in Jesus (vv. 8b-10) Regeneration as it relates to the Christian is the work of God where He grants spiritual life to the Christian that raises him/her from spiritual death to spiritual life. It is what is described in Ephesians 2, And you were dead in your offenses and sins. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (vv. 1, 4-5). Jesus used the metaphor of birth to describe how a person goes from spiritual death to spiritual life in his conversation with Nicodemus in the gospel of John, where Jesus said things like: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (v. 3). Jesus also said to Nicodemus, That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which has been born of the Spirit is spirit (v. 6). What was Jesus point? His point was that the way a person is born again is through a supernatural miracle that only God, through His Spirit, is capable of doing. A picture of regeneration is given to us in Ezekiel 37:1-14 with the prophets vision of the Valley of Dry Bones where Ezekiel was told to speak the Word of God over the dry human bones, and when he did, God breathed life into them. In Ezekiel 37:14, we read these words: And I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your won land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it, declares the Lord. What Jesus said in John 3 to Nicodemus and what we read in Ezekiel 36 and 37 is picture of regeneration that only God is capable of doing; regeneration is the act where God makes the spiritually dead, alive in Jesus Christ. To be saved, is to be regenerated in Christ. The mystery of Gods will in verse 9 is the plan God had from before dirt existed to make the dead live through the work of His Son and the power of His Holy Spirit (see 13-14). If you are a Christian, God has regenerated your dead soul to life through Christ! What this means is that if you are a Christian, you are not only born again, but you are a new creation: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come (2 Cor. 5:17). If you are a new creation, then you have a new life and a new heart. Are you seeing how these verses are connected to Ephesians 1:4, He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before him. Or how about their connection to Ephesians 2:10, For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. The evidence that your faith is in Christ is marked by the kind of desire that loves and longs for Christ more than you love and long for sin (see Romans 8:12-25). The mystery Paul mentions in verses 9-10 is the redemption and regeneration of people that must take place before the rest of creation, under the curse of sin, experiences the same kind of liberation the Christian is experiencing in Jesus. All of history is moving to the subjugation of all things in heaven and on earth under the eternal and universal lordship of Jesus Christ. The first to experience this are Christians, those who have redemption through His blood the forgiveness of their sins and are experiencing the riches of His grace lavished upon all whose faith and hope rests in Jesus alone. Jesus Plan for Reconciliation is Through Jesus (vv. 11-12) When I read Ephesians 1:11-12, I cannot help but think of Jesus parable of the lost sheep where the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine in the open pasture to go after the one that is lost until he finds it, and when he finds that last sheep, puts it on his shoulders while rejoicing of that which was lost and now is found (Luke 15:1-7). When I read these verses in Ephesians, I think of the parable of the lost coin about a woman who rejoices after find the one coin she searched her entire house to find (see vv. 8-9). But the parable that overshadows them all, and to me has the strongest connection to Ephesians 1:7-12 is the parable of the Prodigal Son - who left his father to live a life free of all moral constraints, to the point where he squandered his inheritance and seemingly destroyed any hope of reconciliation. The son decided to return not as a son, but as one of his fathers hired hands, he even rehearsed in his mind what he would say to his father upon seeing him: I will set out and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired laborers (Luke 15:1819). But you know how the story ends, for when the father saw his son, he ran to his wayward son, embraced him and kissed him, and said to his servants: But the father said to his slaves, Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet; and bring the fattened calf, slaughter it, and lets eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found. And they began to celebrate (Luke 15:2224). Now against the backdrop of these parables, especially the parable of the Prodigal Son, listen to Ephesians 1:11-12, In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1:1112). What is our inheritance? It is redemption in its fullest sense. It is a life regenerated in the fullest sense. It is the eventual freedom from the curse of sin and the inheritance of a new heaven and new earth. It is the city that motivated Abraham to leave his home because, he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Heb. 11:10). The city Abraham longed for is a resurrected earth free of the curse of sin when all things that started with the spiritually dead are made new. All of history is moving toward that end when, what is mortal will be swallowed up by life (2 Cor. 5:4), for when our salvation is complete, the redeemed will be able to celebrate a new reality where we will finally be able to say: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting (1 Cor. 15:54-55). The Christian will finally know what it means to be saved when our redemption is complete, the rest of creation experiences a type of regeneration we have experienced, and the kind of reconciliation that will culminate is what we read in Isaiah 51:11, And the redeemed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with joyful shouting, and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. Conclusion Christian, all your redemption, all your regeneration, and all your reconciliation to God, is all because of Christ alonenothing more and nothing less! Can you see now how evil and demonic it is to add anything or to take away from what only Jesus Christ can provide? There is no other application or advice I believe is appropriate to give in light of these verses today: Your salvation is owed only to Jesus and nothing else! This is why the apostle could write what we must treasure: For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor. 1:18). Dont you dare try to add to it or to take away from what only God can and has accomplished by hanging on a cross for your sin and defeating death through His resurrection! Amen. [1] Bryan Chapell, Reformed Expository Commentary: Ephesians (Phillipsburg, NJ: PR Publishing; 2009), p. 34.

Date: January 21, 2024 Speaker: Pastor Jon Sherrill Topic: Christ Centered Worship: Patterns for the church (Sermon and ideas taken from Scripture, but helped by Bryan Chapell's book Christ Centered Worship.)

Pastor Garrison GreeneTEXT: 1 Timothy 1:15BIG IDEA: Christ came to save sinners.OUTLINE: 1. An Atrocious Sinner 2. An Astounding Salvation 3. An Acceptable StatementRESOURCES: ESV Study Bible; Reformed Expository Commentary: 1 Timothy by Phillip Graham Ryken; 1–2 Timothy and Titus: To Guard the Deposit (Preaching the Word) by R. Kent Hughes & Bryan Chapell; ESV Expository Commentary: 1 Timothy by Denny Burk; Dorothy Sayers Illustration by Tim Keller

Bible Study Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: 2 Timothy 2.1-26 Fan into flame the gift given to me? Guard the gospel? Remember How do I discover my gifts? What does it mean to guard the gospel? In what ways am I to guard the gospel? What am I meant to remember? How does remembering strengthen my faith? You can listen to the sermon by using the player below or via the St Andrew's Sermon Podcast on iTunes and Spotify 1 – 2 Timothy and Titus, R. Kent Hughes and Bryan Chapell 1 & 2 Timothy, Gordon Fee The Pastoral Epistles, Donald Guthrie 1-2 Timothy & Titus, Philip Towner Guard the Truth, John Stott Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Steve Wood (SWood@StAndrews.Church). Sermon OutlineDiscussion QuestionsAudio & VideoResources Cited/ConsultedQuestions?

In this episode, Caleb discusses a theology of preaching with Dr. Tony Merida (PhD, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary) pastor of preaching and vision at Imago Dei Church in Raleigh, Dean of Grimke Seminary, and vice president of planter development for the Send Network. Together they discuss question's like: what is the difference between teaching and preaching? How does the Bible describe preaching? What goes into a sermon (preparation and delivery)? What are some common mistakes young preachers make? And more. Resources The Christ-Centered Expositor: A Field Guide for Word-Driven Disciple Makers by Tony Merida https://a.co/d/cIL6iw1 The Priority of Preaching by Christopher Ash https://a.co/d/aeC6Ksi Between Two Worlds: The Challenge of Preaching Today by John Stott https://a.co/d/d6fuKvl Jesus on Every Page: 10 Simple Ways to Seek and Find Christ in the Old Testament by David Murray https://a.co/d/2U0SMcz Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon by Bryan Chapell https://a.co/d/cxa3NcN Preaching: Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism by Tim Keller https://a.co/d/3XmB1RL Preaching and Preachers by Martyn LLoyd-Jones https://a.co/d/9KMO0Fp Preaching Christ from the Old Testament: A Contemporary Hermeneutical Method by Sidney Greidanus https://a.co/d/fsAsBKQ