http://bethanybible.org/new We Preach Christ - Colossians 1:28 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:46:29 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 We Preach Christ - Colossians 1:28 Bethany Bible Church no We Preach Christ - Colossians 1:28 http://bethanybible.org/new/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://bethanybible.org/new http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-17/our-reasonable-service-romans-121-2 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-17/our-reasonable-service-romans-121-2#comments Sun, 17 Jul 2011 17:45:05 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-17/our-reasonable-service-romans-121-2 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-17/our-reasonable-service-romans-121-2/feed 0 Theme: Our proper response to God's mercy is to give ourselves to Him in love and live holy lives in this world. Preached July 17, 2011 from Romans 12:1-2 Theme: Our proper response to God's mercy is to give ourselves to Him in love and live holy lives in this world. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) I invite you to turn with me to the twelfth chapter of Paul's letter to the Romans—and to two very important verses in that great New Testament letter. (http://bethanybible.org/new/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Living-Sacrifice-300x300.jpg)In Romans 12:1-2, Paul writes: I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:1-2). What great words! I don't know if you make it your practice to memorize Scripture; but if you don't, you should start. And I suggest that these two, very important verses would be good ones with which to begin! * * * * * * * * * * Why are they so important? One reason is because they summarize the practical call of the apostle Paul's great letter to the Romans—that great letter about the gospel of Jesus Christ. If you a reader of the Bible at all, you're probably already aware that Paul's letters are careful expositions of sound doctrine. But did you also know that he was always careful to bring his theology down into real-life, practical application? He does so in the first two verses of Romans 12. He had spent eleven chapters of his letter laying-out profound doctrine to his readers; but beginning with these two verses, he calls his Christian brothers and sisters to put all of that doctrine to work. You can see this at the very beginning of these two verses. They begin with the word "therefore"; which points our attention back to all the things he had written in the earlier chapters of this letter. All the great gospel doctrines that he has revealed to us in this epistle—the great doctrine of 'justification by faith'; the doctrine of God's just wrath for our sin, but also of His free gift of salvation through Jesus' death on the cross; the doctrine of our deliverance from bondage to sin through Christ, of our union with Christ, and of God's own enabling through Christ to live the life that pleases Him—all of it comes together in the appeal that Paul makes in these two verses. I agree with those Bible teachers who have said that, in the flow of the Book of Romans, these two verses pick up where chapter eight leaves off. And let me read to you what Paul said at the end of chapter eight. He wrote; What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-39). No wonder, then, that he writes; I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, Bethany Bible Church no 42:04 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-03/hezekiahs-cry-isaiah-38 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-03/hezekiahs-cry-isaiah-38#comments Sun, 03 Jul 2011 17:45:54 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-03/hezekiahs-cry-isaiah-38 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-07-03/hezekiahs-cry-isaiah-38/feed 0 discipline,King Hezekiah Theme: God gives grace to those who humble themselves under His disciplining hand. Preached July 3, 2011 from Isaiah 38 Theme: God gives grace to those who humble themselves under His disciplining hand. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) (http://bethanybible.org/new/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Hezekiah-300x300.jpg)We've been studying lately from the life story of King Hezekiah. And as we've done so, we've found him to stand out among the kings of Judah as a great man of faith. There's much to learn from such a man. But he was a great man of faith who also had faults. And since we have faults too, there's much for us to learn from such his faults. This morning, we look at a significant event in Hezekiah's life; and from it, learn how this great man of faith responded to God's loving discipline for a fault that any of us can fall into very easily. * * * * * * * * * * The story of this fault follows after the story of two other events in Hezekiah's life1 (#f1). The first event was the remarkable spiritual revival that God used Hezekiah to bring about for his people. At Hezekiah's lead, the people of Judah had returned to the God of their fathers and resumed a faithful worship of Him. And the second event—following after that great spiritual revival—was the test of Hezekiah's faith because of the threat of the dreaded king of Assyria. The vast army of Assyria surrounded helpless Jerusalem; and Hezekiah cried out to God. As a result, God brought about a great victory for His people—sending out His angel to slay 185,000 mighty Assyrian soldiers in one night! Please turn in your Bibles with me to 2 Chronicles 32 in order to see what happened next in the life of King Hezekiah. I believe it gives us some important background to this morning's story. In verses 22-23, you find these words; Thus the LORD saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side. And many brought gifts to the LORD at Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all nations thereafter (2 Chronicles 32:22-23). After God graciously rescued faithful Hezekiah and his people from the threat of the Assyrians, He then poured out His blessings upon them in a remarkable way. He caused the surrounding kings and nations to bring their treasures to Hezekiah and to Jerusalem; so that Hezekiah "was exalted in the sight of all nations thereafter". But it was because of this that a new challenge came—not externally as from a foreign king, but internally as from the sinful tendencies of our fallen nature. Hezekiah responded wrongly to the rich blessings that God poured out on him; and his heart began to be lifted up in a prideful way. The verses that follow give this morning's story to us in just a few words: In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death, and he prayed to the LORD; and He spoke to him and gave him a sign. But Hezekiah did not repay according to the favor shown him, for his heart was lifted up; therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem. Then Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD did not come upon them in the days of Hezekiah (vv. 24-26). The story of this third great event in Hezekiah's life, then, is the story of a heart lifted up in pride, brought down low into humility through illness, and then restored to an even greater faithfulness toward God. And that provides a great lesson for us to learn from. * * * * * * * * * * Now; before we get to far along, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I want to be very clear on something. I want to be extremely careful not to communicate—in any way—that I believe that the times of illness that we may suffer are always brought about because of sin in our lives. Bethany Bible Church no 36:34 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-26/the-simplicity-that-is-in-christ-1-corinthians-111-3 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-26/the-simplicity-that-is-in-christ-1-corinthians-111-3#comments Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:45:45 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-26/the-simplicity-that-is-in-christ-1-corinthians-111-3 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-26/the-simplicity-that-is-in-christ-1-corinthians-111-3/feed 0 christ,faith,jesus Theme: We must not let ourselves be deceived from 'the simplicity that is in Christ'. Preached June 26, 2011 from 1 Corinthians 11:1-3 Theme: We must not let ourselves be deceived from 'the simplicity that is in Christ'. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) One of the most passionate of all of the apostle Paul's New Testament letters is his second letter to the Corinthians. It's a letter that he wrote in much love; but also from a greatly burdened heart, because he was very concerned for his dear brothers and sisters in Christ. They were being negatively influenced by 'false apostles' who were infiltrating the fellowship, were boasting in false credentials, and were seeking to turn the Corinthians believers against Paul genuine apostolic authority. Now; Paul loved the Corinthian believers very much. But he wasn't burdened so much over the fear that they would reject him as that they might reject the gospel of Jesus Christ that he had been commissioned to preach to them. And so, near the end of his letter, he did something that must have been very distasteful to him. He countered the boasting of the false apostles by writing a long section of “boasting” over his own spiritual credentials as a true apostle. It must have felt like great 'foolishness' for him to have to boast to the Corinthian believers in this way. But he was willing to do it if it would mean the preservation of their souls in Christ. And so, in the first three verse of chapter eleven, we find that Paul writes; Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly—and indeed you do bear with me. For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ (2 Corinthians 11:1-3). And for the next two chapters of his letter, Paul engages in the 'folly' of boasting in his own apostolic credentials. I encourage you to read what he wrote sometime. His 'credentials' were certainly not anything that the phony apostles would have wanted to boast in. But they gave conclusive proof that he was the real thing. And what I am wanting to particularly draw your attention to in that passage is what he specifically said that he was most concerned about. He was very much afraid for the Corinthians that, somehow, the devil would deceive them; so that their minds would be "corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ". * * * * * * * * * * I very much love that phrase, "the simplicity that is in Christ"; don't you? Some versions of the ancient text have included the word "purity"; and so, you may find it also is included in the particular translation of the Bible you're using. But whether the word "purity" really belongs there or not, it still amounts to the same thing; because the word that's translated "simplicity"1 (#f1) itself conveys the idea of 'purity'. It speaks of a simple, straight-forward, unadorned, unadulterated, pure, singular faith upon the sufficiency of Jesus Christ alone—with nothing else added to that faith—for the meeting of all our spiritual needs. That kind of simplicity of faith is a very precious and wonderful thing—both to have and to protect. If I may share with you on a personal level, I have often thought about how little there is in my faith in Christ with respect to external 'religious' matters. In obedience to the scriptures, I was baptized shortly after I believed. I make it my commitment to regularly fellowship with my brothers and sisters on the Lord's day. And I regularly observe the communion meal with them, just as our Lord instructed. But other than those few things, I do not observe any religious ceremonies or rituals. I don't follow a religious calendar. I don't keep any appointed feasts, or observe any appointed fasts. Bethany Bible Church no 43:17 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-19/in-the-safety-of-gods-sovereign-purpose-isaiah-36-37 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-19/in-the-safety-of-gods-sovereign-purpose-isaiah-36-37#comments Sun, 19 Jun 2011 17:45:28 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-19/in-the-safety-of-gods-sovereign-purpose-isaiah-36-37 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-19/in-the-safety-of-gods-sovereign-purpose-isaiah-36-37/feed 0 Theme: When we conform ourselves to the purpose of our sovereign God in a time of trial, we place ourselves in the safest place in all the universe that we can possibly be. Preached June 19, 2011 from Isaiah 36-37 Theme: When we conform ourselves to the purpose of our sovereign God in a time of trial, we place ourselves in the safest place in all the universe that we can possibly be. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) We continue our study this morning of the Kings of Judah—and particularly of the godly king Hezekiah. King Hezekiah's story is such a full one, and the lessons to be learned from it are so great, that we have needed to break our study up into the four great biblical events of his life. Not long ago, we studied the first great event of his life; that is, the great spiritual revival that God established through him in the nation of Judah. It was from that first great event that we learned that God can utterly transform the course of an entire nation through the influence of just one godly individual who faithfully draws others to Him. And now, we come to the second great event of Hezekiah's life. It's a story of a great trial that came upon Hezekiah and his people. But to my mind, it's also one of the most exciting stories in all the Old Testament. This particular story is told to us in the Old Testament historical books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. But it's my belief that Isaiah was the one who originally wrote about it. And so; I ask that we turn to the 36th and 37th chapters of Book of Isaiah, and learn together from this story. * * * * * * * * * * The story has to do with what happened shortly after that great spiritual revival that God had brought about in His people through King Hezekiah. If you've sought to walk with the Lord for any length of time, you'll know that a new level of faithfulness and obedience to Him is often followed by a time of testing and trial. The enemy of our souls, it seems, quickly jumps in to try and divert us from any renewed commitment to God; and seeks to draw us away from a pure faith in Him. But everything that comes into the lives of God's precious people is under God's sovereign control—even those times of severe testing and trial that the devil is permitted to bring upon us. God permits the devil to test and try us, so that our faith in God Himself will be refined and strengthened. The particular test that God allowed to fall upon Hezekiah and his people came in the form of a threat from the dreaded Assyrian empire. Isaiah 36:1-2 tells us; Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. Then the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. And he stood by the aqueduct from the upper pool, on the highway to the Fuller’s Field1 (#f) (Isaiah 36:1-2). It's hard to express what a terrifying situation, humanly speaking, this would have been. The Assyrians were, at this time2 (#f2), a numerous and remarkably brutal people. They were experts at surrounding a city and holding it in siege—pounding it with battering rams, and firing upon it with spears and arrows—until they were able to enter it and conquer it. Ancient artwork of the time showed that the Assyrian king would pierce the lower lip of the kings he would overcome, and pull them around by a leash as if they were his dogs. And the things that these ancient drawings showed that the Assyrians would do to the people they conquered are, frankly, too brutal to describe in church. It hadn't been very long, before the events found in this morning's scripture passage, that the Assyrian king Sargon II had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel and displaced all of its people. King Hezekiah's father had submitted himself to that Assyrian king3 (#f3); but once Hezekiah had taken his father's place, he rebelled against him 4 (#f4). Bethany Bible Church no 41:51 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-12/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-12/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles#comments Sun, 12 Jun 2011 17:45:24 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-12/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-12/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles/feed 0 Theme: We are to cooperate with God by working out our salvation in practical living. Preached June 12, 2011 from Philippians 2:12-13 Theme: We are to cooperate with God by working out our salvation in practical living. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) There's a saying that is quoted so often, it has almost become an inherent part of the thinking of our culture. Some people who quote it even assume that it's from the Bible. But it's something that most biblically-minded Christians know is not a part of Scripture—and have rejected. I'm sure you've heard it. It's that old saying, "God helps those who help themselves." The reason biblically-minded Christians reject this old saying is because it is easily misapplied; and is often made to sound as if we can somehow do something to help God in bringing about our salvation. All genuinely saved people know that we are utterly helpless to do anything to save ourselves; and that we needed God to do all the work in our salvation all along. Romans 5:6 says, "For when we were still without strength"—that is to say, "helpless"—"in due time Christ died for the ungodly". Apart from God's grace, we wouldn't even be able to place our faith in Jesus to be saved by Him; because, as Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it"—that is, the very faith itself through which we are saved—"is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast". There's absolutely nothing that any of us could ever do to "help" God save us. Instead, He graciously saves helpless sinners who—in all their helplessness and inability—simply cry out to Him in faith. Rather than say, “God helps those who help themselves”, redeemed people would rightly say that God helps those who stop trying to help themselves, and who utterly trust God to save them by His grace alone. I'm committed to that conviction. I hope you are too. But I want to announce this morning that I no longer feel that I can entirely reject that old saying either. I have come to believe that there is aspect to our salvation in which it is very true and biblical to say that we cooperate with God; and in which God truly helps those who help themselves. That particular aspect is spoken of in Philippians 2:12-13. The apostle Paul—who is, without question, the greatest preacher of salvation by God's grace alone who ever lived—wrote to his beloved brothers and sisters in Philippi and said: Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:12-13). Just think of that! Paul—who always stresses in his letters that we are helpless to save ourselves—here says that we are to "work out" our own salvation; and that we're to do so because "it is God who works in" us. And so; there's a sense, dear brothers and sisters, in which we truly do 'cooperate' with God in the work of our salvation. * * * * * * * * * * To really appreciate what Paul is saying, we need to go back to the way that he begins this letter. When he wrote it, he was far away in a prison cell for the preaching of the gospel. He didn't know what might happen to him. He wasn't absolutely sure if he would be released and live on to minister the gospel, or if he would be executed and would go to be with the Lord he loved. But at some point during his imprisonment, his dear brothers and sisters from the church in the ancient city of Philippi sent him a financial gift that helped sustain him in his trials. He wrote this letter, in part, to say 'thank you'. And that's how he starts this letter. He says, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, Bethany Bible Church no 45:53 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-05/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles-29-31 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-05/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles-29-31#comments Sun, 05 Jun 2011 17:45:15 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-05/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles-29-31 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-06-05/an-influence-for-godliness-2-chronicles-29-31/feed 0 Theme: King Hezekiah's example teaches us that God can transform a nation through the influence of one godly man. Preached June 5, 2011 from 2 Chronicles 29-31 Theme: King Hezekiah's example teaches us that God can transform a nation through the influence of one godly man. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture refer... Bethany Bible Church no 35:50 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-29/the-slave-who-wore-a-crown-2-kings-16 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-29/the-slave-who-wore-a-crown-2-kings-16#comments Sun, 29 May 2011 17:45:24 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-29/the-slave-who-wore-a-crown-2-kings-16 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-29/the-slave-who-wore-a-crown-2-kings-16/feed 0 Theme: The life of King Ahaz teaches us that, when we turn away from an obedient trust in God, we become the slaves of what we trust in His place. Preached May 29, 2011 from 2 Kings 4:1-7 Theme: The life of King Ahaz teaches us that, when we turn away from an obedient trust in God, we become the slaves of what we trust in His place. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) We continue our study this morning of the lives of the kings of Judah by turning to the story of King Ahaz in 2 Kings 16. His story is quite a contrast to the story of his godly father, King Jotham. The Bible tells us that Jotham was a godly king who "did what was right in the sight of the LORD" (2 Kings 15:34)—a man who carefully "prepared his ways before the LORD his God" (2 Chronicles 27:6). He, like his great ancestor King David, had a heart after God. But it was not so for Jotham's son Ahaz. In fact, Ahaz' rebellion against God was profound. The record of his story begins with these words: In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham, king of Judah, began to reign. Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD his God, as his father David had done. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel . . . (2 Kings 16:1-3a). King Ahaz did what proved to be the downfall of some of his predecessors. He chose to imitate and walk according to the ungodly patterns of the kings of the northern kingdom of Israel. Their ways were so wicked that—in Ahaz' own lifetime—God allowed that northern kingdom to be conquered by the brutal Assyrian empire, carried away as captives, and scattered so as to never occupy their land again. And so, it was certainly bad enough that Ahaz walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. But he even exceeded their ways in his own wicked practices. The Bible goes on to tell us; . . . indeed he made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree (vv. 3b-4). Ahaz was so rebellious against God that he engaged in something that none of even the most wicked of his predecessors engaged in—human sacrifice. As 2 Chronicles 28:3 says, he actually "burned his children in the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel". So this is how King Ahaz' story begins. As his story unfolds, we find that his was a life characterized by a persistent, hard-hearted refusal to turn to the God that his good father had trusted, and to trust in other things instead. And those ungodly things that he turned to began to demand more and more of him, gave less and less to him in return, and brought him down further and further into bondage. And when we come to the end of his life, the only way to describe him is as a pathetic, beggarly spiritual slave with an earthly crown on his head—one who ran from one sinful expediency to another in a vain effort to meet his needs and solve his problems in ways that God never intended; but who only placed himself deeper and deeper into bondage to the things he trusted. He was a living illustration of what our Lord Jesus once said: "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin" (John 8:34). * * * * * * * * * * I was thinking of King Ahaz the other day. That may not come as too terribly big a surprise, since I was planning to preach on him. But I happened to be thinking of him—not while sitting in my study—but while I was in the midst of running a lot of errands and doing a lot of chores. My wife and I had just gotten back from a few days away at the coast. It was a great chance to get away and rest. But as often happens to most of us when we get back home from some time away, Bethany Bible Church no 39:27 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-08/the-widow-the-oil-2-kings-41-7 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-08/the-widow-the-oil-2-kings-41-7#comments Sun, 08 May 2011 17:45:27 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-08/the-widow-the-oil-2-kings-41-7 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-05-08/the-widow-the-oil-2-kings-41-7/feed 0 Theme: Because God's word is self-authenticating, we're called to proclaim it faithfully. Preached Mothers' Day; May 8, 2011 from 2 Kings 4:1-7 Theme: God's provision is more than sufficient for those who trust and obey Him. Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) Every year on Mother's Day, we enjoy a story of one of the great women of faith found in the Bible. And the story that I feel the Lord is leading us to consider today is one that is well-suited for the times in which we live. Please open your Bible to 2 Kings 4:1-7. It's there that we find an amazing story about a very poor woman living in very hard times—but who cried out to God in her time of greatest trial, and found Him to be abundantly sufficient to meet her needs. It reads as follows: A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.” So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.” Then he said, “Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those vessels, and set aside the full ones.” So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured it out. Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased. Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest" (2 Kings 4:1-7). * * * * * * * * * * This is a story about the ministry of the prophet Elisha. It would be easy to get him confused with another great prophet from the Old Testament named Elijah. But Elisha was the successor to the ministry of Elijah. And to appreciate this morning's story, we need to take a moment or two to consider these two prophets of God. Elijah—the first of those two prophets—was a mighty man of God who ministered to the northern kingdom of Israel during the spiritually dark days of King Ahab. Ahab was a very wicked king, who dragged his people down into idolatry and immorality. The Bible tells us that he did more evil than any of the kings of Israel who proceeded him. But perhaps the most destructive thing he did to bring his people down was to marry the daughter of the king of the Sidonians—a woman whose name will forever be proverbial in history for wickedness, murder and idolatry: the notorious Jezebel. Now, King Ahab hated Elijah. That prophet was always rebuking him and preaching against his sin. Ahab's kingdom had been stricken with a terrible drought; and Ahab blamed the prophet Elijah for it. He called Elijah the "troubler of Israel"—even though it was Ahab's own wickedness that was the cause of all his troubles. But as much as Ahab hated Elijah, his wife Jezebel's hatred for the message of the God of Israel exceeded even that of Ahab. She went on a murderous campaign to hunt-down and massacre all the prophets of God. Do you remember the story of Elijah's great victory at Mount Carmel?—the incident in which the God of Israel proved Himself mightily before the people of Israel by sending fire from heaven to consume the offering before all the prophets of Baal? Do you remember how, afterwards, the prophets of Baal were put to death? When it was all over, Jezebel sent a message to Elijah that said, "So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as one of them by tomorrow about this time" (1 Kings 19:2). What a dark, wicked, evil woman! And what dark, wicked, Bethany Bible Church no 33:18 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-10/harvest-time-galatians http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-10/harvest-time-galatians#comments Sun, 10 Apr 2011 17:45:29 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-10/looking-to-harvest-time-galatians-67-1 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-10/harvest-time-galatians/feed 0 Galatians,Harvest Theme: We should keep fervent in doing good, because God promises a harvest in due time. Preached Sunday, April 10, 2011 from Galatians 6:7-10 Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) Theme: We should keep fervent in doing good, because God promises a harvest in due time. (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.) (http://bethanybible.org/new/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Galatians-6.7-10.-impatient-farmer-234x300.jpg)One of the most fiery letters in all of the New Testament is the little book of Galatians. In it, the apostle Paul throws all his authority, logical force, and emotional power into defending the vital doctrine of 'justification by faith'—that is, that fallen people are not made righteous in the sight of God on the basis of their good works, but on the basis of God's grace through faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ alone. Because of the importance of what it was Paul was defending, it's a letter that contains some of his strongest words of rebuke toward those who were relying on their own good works to make them right before God. But the letter isn't all harsh. After stressing that good works are not to be seen as the basis of our salvation in Christ, Paul also goes on to stress that good works are to be seen as the natural outflow of our salvation in Christ. And so, it's also a letter that's filled with great encouragement to us as followers of Jesus. One of those very important 'encouraging' portions of Paul's letter of the Galatians—a portion that seems to start off harshly, but that definitely ends on a high note—is found in 6:7-10. The apostle Paul wrote to his brothers and sisters in Christ and told them; Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6:7-10) I've been thinking much about this passage lately. I've grown increasingly impressed with the wonderful people God has brought into our church family. I never cease to be delighted with the talent and skills that are represented in this place. And I've been thrilled to discover ways that the individual members of our church are serving one another behind the scenes. The Bible tells us, in another of Paul's letters, that we are a "body" for whom Jesus Christ Himself serves as the "head". It tells us that Jesus himself—through the ministry of the Holy Spirit—has formed us together as individual members of a body that, "joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love" (Ephesians 4:16). The body causes the growth of the body—when every part of the body does its share. And I want you to know that I see increasing numbers of us rising up within this church family, and serving together in the ways that He has gifted us. It's truly exciting; and I pray that more and more of us will do so at the Holy Spirit's call. And it's in the spirit of protecting that wonderful increase of happy service to the Lord Jesus that I'm calling your attention to this morning's passage. * * * * * * * * * * There is a danger—if we're not careful to protect ourselves from it—of becoming discouraged and disheartened in our work in the body today by losing our focus on the results that come in the future. Perhaps you've felt a little of that discouragement at some point or another. Perhaps you yourself have said things like, "Nobody seems to notice what it is that I do around here. Nobody seems to care if it gets done or not. I have to do all the work by myself. And why do I keep doing it? Bethany Bible Church no 33:54 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-03/jotham-principal http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-03/jotham-principal#comments Sun, 03 Apr 2011 17:45:06 +0000 Pastor Greg Allen http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-03/the-jotham-principle-2-chronicles-271-9 http://bethanybible.org/new/sermon/sermons_2011/2011-04-03/jotham-principal/feed 0 Jotham,planning Theme: Jotham became mighty "because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God." Preached Sunday, April 3, 2011 from 2 Chronicles 27:1-9 Theme: Jotham became mighty "because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God." Listen to this sermon online! (#podcast) (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken f... Bethany Bible Church no 36:22