Simply Bible Magazine
—Page 7
Here's a magazine page with snippets and short articles.
THE LITTLE DOG
There was a little dog owned by an elderly lady. It sat each day at the cottage gate. Neighbours and passers by would say hello, give it a pat, tell it what a cute little doggie it was.
One day, the dog was at the gate as usual. As each passer by would greet it, the dog would give a few barks, and look toward the cottage. It would follow the passer by along the fence and bark again.
Each passer by would say something like, “Dear me, you are noisy today! There, there now! That’s a good doggie!” This went on for three days. Then the dog disappeared.
After a while the passers by and neighbours missed the little dog at the gate, and realised that they hadn’t seen the elderly lady either. Two neighbours went in to see if all was well.
In the kitchen they found the elderly lady and the dog both dead. Both, it turned out upon investigation, had suffered stroke. It was realized that the little dog had died of distress, because nobody had really listened to what it had been trying to tell them.
Sometimes a preacher feels like that little dog. A preacher's ability to communicate this message to you is limited. If you will not be sensitive to what the preacher is trying to say, then his effort will be in vain (Mark 8:18).
JESUS BEGAN THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL
"The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since then the gospel of the kingdom, the new covenant, is preached..." (Luke 16:16).
"He was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel..." (Luke 20:1).
"God... in these last days has spoken to us by his Son..." (Hebrews 1:1-2).
"How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was first spoken by the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard..." (Hebrews 2:3).
Those passages show that Jesus was the first gospel preacher after the Old Testament prophets. Any commentary Jesus made on the law of Moses was incidental (eg Matthew 15:1-9).
We often hear Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2) called "the first gospel sermon" —however this is intended to mean only that this is the first record of the disciples of Jesus preaching the gospel after they were empowered and after Jesus established his church. It is not meant to imply that the gospel had not been previously preached.
Among the Immortals
1Peter 1:23-25
Flesh and blood, for all its beauty, is born mortal. Like a flower it lives and flourishes for a short span, then withers and dies. This happens to all flesh because its seed is perishable, and seed begets its like.
The new birth, however, imparts immortality. Its seed is the word of God, the gospel of Christ. This seed is eternal. It never perishes but abides forever.
Having been born again, we know that we shall live forever —not in this present perishable form, nor in this mortal realm, but as glorious immortals in the marvelous light of God. We should see ourselves as such.
Every Christian lives as a citizen of Heaven, as one of the Immortals.
QUICK QUIZ
Read the question, think of the answer if you can, then press the answer button. The correct answer will appear.
1. Hebrews 10:31 speaks of a fearful thing to happen to a person. What is this fearful thing?
2. Hebrews 7:14 mentions the tribe of Israel from which Jesus came. Which tribe does Jesus belong to?.
3. Titus 3:9 tells us to shun a certain kind of activity. What is this activity that we should avoid?
4. Ephesians 5:19 commands Christians to sing, accompanied by music or melody on a certain instrument. What instrument?
5. Acts 2:1 mentions a special religious festival day for the Jewish people. What is the name of this day?
7. Romans 1:16 tells us that Paul was not ashamed. What was it that Paul was not ashamed of?
In 1Corinthians 11, Paul reminds us that Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, instituted the Lord's Supper by which we remember him and his death. Paul has in mind five directions in which our spirits look.
1 We look
BACKWARD to the cross
A Memorial in Our Hearts
1Corinthians 11:24
"Do this in remembrance of me."
2 We look
OUTWARD to the lost
An Example in Our Lives
1Corinthians 11:26
"For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death..."
3 We look
FORWARD to eternity
A Link Between Us and Heaven
1Corinthians 11:26
"...eat this bread and drink this cup... till he comes."
4 We look
INWARD to ourselves
A Focus for Self Examination
1Corinthians 11:28
"Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup."
5 We look
UPWARD to the glorious Christ
A Way We Give Recognition to Christ
1Corinthians 11:29 compare v.27
"He eats and drinks judgment to himself who does not judge the body [and the blood of the Lord] rightly."
FELLOWSHIP OF THE CROSS
“The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body, for we are all partakers of that one bread.” (1Corinthians 10:16-17 NKJV)
SALVATION DEFINED
Word family: Salvation, saved, Saviour.
Synonyms: Deliverance, rescue, preservation in peril
Related ideas: Wrath, lost, way, escape
Definitions: Salvation is being forgiven of sins through the sacrifice by Christ of his own body and blood. We are thereby rescued and preserved from the doom of all sinners. Instead, by the grace of God, we are given eternal life.
Greek References: σωτηρια (soteeria) 4991, cf 4990-4992 and 4982 (Strong)
Salvation by grace for all
- Titus 2:11 "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men..."
BEAUTIFUL
“On that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth will be the pride and the beauty of the survivors of Israel.”
(Isaiah 4:2 NASB)
EDITORIAL
Who Can Conquer Death
- 21st century science cannot provide a solution Science is working on the problem. Meanwhile science is finding ways to keep us alive a few years longer. Some people have arranged to have their bodies frozen as soon as they die, in the hope that future scientists can revive them to live indefinitely. This is a forlorn hope.
- The occult cannot solve the problem of death. There are those among the occult who claim to speak with the dead. The astral plane and “the other side” are the occult's version of Heaven. Even if it were true and real, this plane is not worthy of comparison with the place Jesus has prepared for his disciples (John 14:1-3).
- Money provides no answer to death. As the Bible points out, "Naked I came from my mother's womb and naked I shall return" (Job 1:21, Ecclesiastes 5:15-16).
- Ignoring the problem won't make it go away. Most people pretty much ignore death. They might take life insurance and even buy a grave site. But they ignore the basic problem. Sometimes problems go away by themselves. But death doesn't. After it's happened, it's too late to address the problem.
- Only Jesus can conquer death. We are made of dust and return to dust (Genesis 3:19). Those who sleep in the dust will arise one day. If they were obedient disciples of Jesus they shall, in their resurrection, enter into eternal life (Daniel 12:2, John 5:28-29).