Well, as the upstate regions of New York prepare for a snow storm tonight and tomorrow there has been a change in the program! Not really, I just decided to take a personal day off from work tomorrow and decided to join my wife at our countryside home in Easton NY to beat the storm and to enjoy an extended weekend. But that hasn't changed my goal to finish the Bonhoeffer's Discipleship series of presentations for the MT4Christ247 podcast and YouTube Channel!
So, I am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 18 of “Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : our informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost of Discipleship – with Lesson 19 “The Church of Jesus Christ and Discipleship” – The Image of Christ!
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
Doing this series of presentations was a lot of work! But it was a labor of love and I pray that Christians enjoy it and the Lord uses it for His purposes.
It is my prayer that
this series will encourage people to read Bonhoeffer’s work but more
importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to deepen their faith in Christ
by pursuing a life of Christian Discipleship.
Today’s photo of a street lamp shining like the sun
in a blue sky as the real thing fades over the horizon illuminating the road
side trees on State Route 9J, or River Road in Schodack Landing, comes to us
today from yours truly, as I was moved to turn my phone sideways from its vertical
rearview mirror mounted orientation to capture some of the glory before me
during yesterday’s commute back to River House. After the previous day’s snow
storm the Lord graced us with a clear day and a reminder of that His creation
is awesome and something we can miss and just drive through if we are too
consumed with the things of this world.
Well, It’s Tuesday and I learned this morning that
Clyde Wilburn’s Memorial Service and Funeral will tomorrow in Catskill but I won’t
be in attendance.I am not the best “griever”
and a quote from F. Scott’s Fitzgerald’s “Great Gatsby’s isums up my feelings
about funerals, a mob boss in the story says : “Let us learn to show our
friendship for a man when he is alive and not after he is dead.”Of course, the context of the Gatsby story
actually reveals that this quote isn’t so profound as it may have been self-serving,
as Gatsby’s Meyer Wolfsheim may have desired to distance himself from his
deceased friend and his illegal dealings.
So, do I want to distance myself from my deceased
friend because of his falling away from the church we attended, his illegal
choices, and his death by overdose? Not really, I try to be as transparent
about my addictive past and don’t try to distance myself from anyone I met along
the way during the 5 years that I went through, taught. and eventually led the
Celebrate Freedom recovery ministry at my former church.Because of our interactions there and in
church, I will always consider Clyde Wilburn as a brother and a friend but the
truth is that other than seeing him earlier this year at a “Bible Study with
the Cincotti’s”
My life has taken me in a direction that led me away
from Hudson and the church that we used to attend together and before hearing
about Clyde’s death on Sunday I didn’t what was going on in Clyde’s life.I assumed he was well.I was wrong and discovered that he was
charged with armed robbery in September.In 8 months, Clyde went from a Bible Study to the police blotter and,
now 3 months later, his obituary will be all the news we may see regarding our
old friend.
As I was thinking about Clyde yesterday, I was
reminded how important it is to keep walking with the Lord and how when I was
first saved I was so ignorant about the importance of having a “good testimony”.Because I had lived a very selfish and sinful
life for 38 years before being saved in 2010, I never thought that I would had
any hope to leave a “good testimony” other than that God is gracious to forgive
a sinner like me.I didn’t understand
that or testimony isn’t frozen in stone. It is progressive. While it is awesome to say a sinner’s prayer
and to attend church services, the glory that we give to the Lord comes from
our decision to continue to follow Him and to seek our identity and enact our purpose
in Christ.
My testimony regarding Clyde Wilburn would be
overwhelmingly positive as I loved him for his testimony as someone who had
walked in darkness and decided to get right with God. His insights on the word
of God, his sense of humility and humor, and his huge heart made it easy to love him,
But my testimony is obviously one sided and based on the context of Clyde’s
time in church.
However, recently I wrote about how due to
situations from my past, some people out there, even though I am walking out my
faith the best I can, consider me to be a “bad Christian” or hypocrite.And as I thought about the unfortunate circumstances
and poor choices Clyde had made in his life, I suspect that for every praise of
his name that will come tomorrow at his memorial service and funeral, there may
also be words of condemnation and possibly cursing whispered or flatly statde
about Clyde in the days, weeks, months, and years that will come as Clyde doesn’t
get a chance to change his story or to defend himself.
The woman charged as an accomplice in the armed
robbery that allegedly took place in September with Clyde, now has the perfect
opportunity to craft a defense as a hapless victim to an out of control man that
coerced her into participating in his crime.How true that is we will never know but whether the legal proceedings
regarding those charges are resolved currently or not, this woman now has the
option to speak well of or ill of my friend because he gave into his dark side.
I wonder if she knows that Clyde was a Christian.Did he share his faith with her? Does she
know the Lord? Will she bless Clyde’s name with fond remembrances and a defense
of the things he is alleged to have done or will she, possibly rightfully,
curse him?
It’s is doubtful that I will ever know any of the answers
to these questions but I pray for peace and comfort for the Wilburn family and
I pray for this woman, who remain nameless, in my blog anyway, and all the people
that Clyde met in his time on this earth that they would discover the truth the
gospel of Jesus Christ, turn to Lord in repentance, and learn from Clyde’s
death just how important it is to continue walking with the Lord and to endure
in our faith.
The longer we live as active Spirit filled disciples
of Jesus Christ the longer and brighter our testimonies become. No matter how
dark our pasts may be, if we keep walking and talking with God and show our faith
in the way we live, every day, the brighter and more glorious our lives
become.
So let’s not forget to encourage one another as we
walk through the last month of this year, and through out our lives, to stay
the course, to resist the devil and his temptations and to stay within the
safety of the community and fellowship of the church.Church congregations and the individuals who
make them up may not be perfect but the One who established the church is and He
calls His to abide with Him there.
So let’s draw close together and keep following the
voice of the Good Shepherd all the days of our lives and show our friendship to
one another while we live so we can report on the good testimony and legacy of
faithfulness each of us will leave behind.
Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible
Promise Book for Men”.
This morning’s meditation verse is:
John 1:29 (NLT2) 29 The next day John saw
Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin
of the world!
Today’s verse tells us that Christ was the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world.
Christ died for all sinners. But we must be redeemed by putting
our faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior.And let’s face it, we also have to follow Him,
I’m short on time but this “Lamb of God” thing indicates that
Christ was the perfect sinless sacrifice to pay for all the sins we have ever
done or will ever do and when we put our faith in Him we are forgiven and set
free. So thank God for Jesus and your forgiveness and walk free from the sins
of your past.
___________________________________________
As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s
“Discipleship”, also known as “The Cost of Discipleship”
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage all to purchase Bonhoeffer’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available on
many websites for less than $20.00.
The
Church of Jesus Christ and Discipleship
Chapter
Eleven
The
Visible Church-Community
The body of Christ takes up physical space here on earth. By
becoming human Christ claims a place among us human beings. He came unto his
own.[3] Yet when he was born he was given a stable, “because there
was no other place in the inn.” And when he died, they cast him from their
midst so that his body hung on the gibbet between heaven and earth. Nevertheless,
the incarnation does entail the claim to space granted on earth, and anything
that takes up space is visible. Thus the body of Jesus Christ can only be a
visible body, or else it is not a body at all. Our human eyes see Jesus the
human being; faith knows him as the Son of God. Our human eyes see the body of
Jesus; faith knows him as the body of God incarnate. Our human eyes see Jesus
in the flesh; faith knows him as bearing our flesh. “To this human being you
shall point and say: ‘Here is God’ ” (Luther).[5]
A truth, a doctrine,
or a religion needs no space of its own. Such entities are bodyless. They do
not go beyond being heard, learned, and understood. But the incarnate Son of
God needs not only ears or even hearts; he needs actual, living human beings
who follow him. That is why he called his disciples into following him bodily.
His community with them was something everyone could see. It was founded and
held together by none other than Jesus Christ, the incarnate one himself. It
was the Word made flesh who had called them, who had created the visible,
bodily community. Those who had been called could no longer remain hidden; they
were the light which has to shine, the city on a hill which is bound to be
seen.[8] Over their community stood visibly the cross and suffering
of Jesus Christ. For the sake of community with him the disciples had to give
up everything, they had to suffer and endure persecution; and yet, in the very
midst of being persecuted together with him, they received back in visible form
the very things they had lost—brothers and sisters, fields and houses. The
community of those who followed him was manifest to the eyes of the world. Here
were bodies that acted, worked, and suffered in community with Jesus.
The body of the exalted
Lord is likewise a visible body, taking the form of the church-community. How
does this body become visible? First, in the preaching of the word. “They continued in the apostles’ teaching”
(Acts 2:42). Every word in this sentence is significant. Preaching here is
called teaching (διδαχή) in order to set it apart from all forms of religious
speech. The term means communication of facts that have actually taken place.
The content of what has to be said is already objectively determined. It simply
needs to be conveyed through the ‘teaching’. A communication of news is by
definition confined to facts which are not yet known. Once these facts are
known, it makes no sense to communicate them again. ‘Teaching’ thus aims by
definition at making itself superfluous. However, in strange contrast we read
here that the earliest church-community “continued” listening to this teaching.
This means that this teaching did not make itself superfluous, but, on the
contrary, required precisely this continuing attention. There must, therefore,
be some rational necessity for this particular ‘teaching’ to demand continued
attention. This necessity lies in the fact that the teaching in question is
“the teaching of the apostles.” What does “teaching of the apostles” mean?
Apostles are those chosen by God to witness to the facts of the revelation in
Jesus Christ. They have lived in bodily community with Jesus. They have seen
the one who became incarnate, was crucified, and is risen. They physically
touched his body with their hands (1 John 1:1). They are the witnesses whom God
the Holy Spirit uses as instruments to proclaim the Word. The apostles’
preaching is the witness to the physical event of God’s revelation in Jesus
Christ. The apostles and prophets are the foundation of the church whose
cornerstone is Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:20). Any subsequent preaching must itself
be ‘apostolic’ in the sense of being based on the same foundation. Thus it is
the word of the apostles which makes us one with the earliest church-community.
But in what way does this apostolic teaching require ongoing and continual
hearing? The word of the apostles is truly God’s Word in human words (1 Thess.
2:13). It is thus a Word which seeks to accept human beings and which has the
power to do so. The Word of God seeks out community in order to accept it. It
exists mainly within the community. It moves on its own into the community. It
has an inherent impulse toward community. It is wrong to assume that on the one
hand there is a word, or a truth, and on the other hand there is a community
existing as two separate entities, and that it would then be the task of the
preacher to take this word, to manipulate and enliven it, in order to bring it
within and apply it to the community. Rather, the Word moves along this path of
its own accord. The preacher should and can do nothing more than be a servant
of this movement inherent in the Word itself, and refrain from placing
obstacles in its path. The Word goes forth to accept human beings. This is
something the apostles knew. It is the very essence of their preaching. They
had seen the Word of God with their own eyes, how it had come into the world
and assumed human flesh, and with it the whole human race. Now they were
compelled to bear witness to nothing else but the fact that God’s Word had
become flesh, and had come to accept sinners, to forgive their sins and
sanctify them. It is this same Word which now enters the church-community. The
Word made flesh, the Word which already bears the whole human race, the Word
which can no longer exist in isolation from the humanity it has assumed—this
same Word now comes to the church-community. And in this Word comes the Holy
Spirit, revealing to the single individual and to the church-community the
gifts they have already been given in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit bestows
faith on the hearers, enabling them to believe that, in the word of preaching,
Jesus Christ himself has come to be present in our midst in the power of his
body. The Holy Spirit enables me to trust that Jesus Christ has come to tell me
that he has accepted me and will do so again today.[1]
Encouragement
for the Path of Christian Discipleship
[1]
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Discipleship,
ed. Martin Kuske et al., trans. Barbara Green and Reinhard Krauss, vol. 4, Dietrich
Bonhoeffer Works (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003), 225–228.
Or watch the Video Zoom Session of our Study on YouTube:
Light of the World
“For it is the God who
commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give
the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus
Christ.II Cor. 4:6
In the Roman worldview everything was about glory
For the Greek, knowledge was preeminent.
For the Jew, it was all about light.
Last weeks study was truly a
precursor for today’s lesson, and anybody who has been putting up Christmas
lights this week will understand the timeliness of this subject!!!
To approach first cause, we
see, in Gen. 1:3 that God said, “Let there be light,” and this, in essence, is
His first blessing upon His creation. Truly He blesses His creation with
Himself, since
I Jn. I1:5 tells us, “God is
light, and in Him is no darkness at all.”
It is as if He enters into
His creation and participates in it.
This is the first inclination
that God is intimately involved in His creation.
Consider the contrast before
light, “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of
the deep.” This is a bleak picture. He has not yet declared anything as good.
In last weeks study we looked
at the lampstand, or menorah, and it’s placement in the “holy place” of the
tabernacle. We emphasized that it was the only source of light in a
purposefully darkened space. The seven branches signify God’s perfection, and
the source of fuel is a type of the Holy Spirit. It was situated across from
the table of showbread, which is a type of Christ, to shine light upon it.Beginning to get the picture???
The Priestly Blessing, in Num. 6:22-27, the blessing becomes
personnel, and we again engage the usage of light in vrs. 25, “The LORD make His
face shine upon you.”
Ps. 89:15, “Blessed is the
people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the
light of thy countenance.
In the progression we are seeing that light is not just a
general blessing for creation, but it is very personal; for the Nation of
Israel and for all believers individually.
Enter next our Lord Jesus, and in the birth narrative
(Christmas) Simeon prophesies over the baby, when His parents brought Him to
the temple to “present Him to the Lord”; “A light to bring revelation to the
Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.” Lk. 2:22 & 32
John declares, “the Word (which) was with God and was God”
1:1, “Became flesh and dwelt among us” (personal) vrs. 14, and “In Him was
life, and the life was the light of men.” vrs. 4
No wonder we put up lights at Christmas!
Fast forward thirty years and Jesus will leave Nazareth,
departing for Galilee (Mt. 4:12) and fulfill Isaiah’s prophesy, “the people who
sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region
and shadow of death Light has dawned.” Mt. 4:16
We don’t need to make any further case that Jesus Christ is
the Light of the world, but in last weeks study we examined a transference of
authority when Jesus said, in Jn. 8:12, “I am the light of the world”, but then
in Mt. 5:14, “You are the light of the world”.
Imagine, for a moment, that
before knowing Christ, we were like the earth in Gen. 1:2, “without form, (or
purpose) void (empty), and dark”
Eph. 5:8 says, “For you were
once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”
And reading on, Paul equates “darkness” with unfruitfulness.
Here is the Christmas directive for today...Phil.
2:14-15
-----Join us for
another Bible Study Next Week -------
or
Join our “Victory over
the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of
Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!
What better day to present a lesson on the Saints! Thursdays were the nights I taught recovery ministry and initially launched the Community Freedom Ministry that led to me expanding my blog to the podcast and YouTube channel.
So I find it oddly appropriate and I am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 17 of “Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : an informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost of Discipleship – with Lesson 17 “The Church of Jesus Christ and Discipleship” – The Saints - Part 1
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
It is my prayer that this series will encourage people to read
Bonhoeffer’s work but more importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to
deepen their faith in Christ by pursuing a life of Christian
Discipleship.
“Remember therefore from
where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to
you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent.” Rev. 2:3
Much is known about the
church in Ephesus from Scripture and tradition. Paul left Timothy in charge of
the church there following his release from his first Roman imprisonment. John
is also believed to have moved to Ephesus somewhere between 66 and 70 AD. There,
it is believed that John wrote his gospel. Acts 19 tells of some of the
dramatic events that occurred in Ephesus during Paul’s visit there, and Paul’s
letter to the church at Ephesus is replete with doctrine.
Why would Jesus, in
Revelation, make such a bold rebuke to the church in Ephesus?
The lampstand is described in
Ex. 25:31-40. It is make of pure gold, one piece, ornamented with almond
blossoms. Though the dimensions are not given, vrs. 39 says, “It shall be made
of a talent of pure gold, with all these utensils.” about 75 lbs. The almond
blossoms come out early in this region of the Middle East; around late January.
Arron’s rod was made of almond wood. When Arron’s rod budded, in Num. 17, it designating the
tribe of Levi as the priests and settled the complaints against Moses by the
children of Israel. The lampstand was placed in the south portion of the Holy
Place, opposite the table of showbread, and was the only source of light. There
was a wick, fueled by olive oil which had to be refilled daily by the priests.
In the parable of the ten
virgins, Mt. 25:1-13 we see the use of oil lamps and a reserve of oil. From
this we receive that oil is a type of
the Holy Spirit.
In Jn. 8:12, Jesus said, “I
am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but
have the light of life.”
But in Mat.5:14 Jesus said,
“You are the light of the world. A city that is sit on a hill cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it
gives light to all who are in the house.”
The transfer of authority to
preach the gospel to the church, by the power of the Holy Spirit is a timeless
injunction. Yet we see that this fuel, or source of power must be replenished.
Mt. 25:1-13
Since the Holy Spirit is a
person – the third Person or the Trinity – it would make sense to suggest that
we may nurture a relationship with the Holy Spirit. The manner in which we
nurture a relationship is to first listen, and then to agree, and then to obey.
The office of the Holy Spirit
is to “help” Jn.14:16; To teach, Jn. 14:26,
“He will convict the
world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment;” Jn. 16:8; and “He will guide
you into all truth” Jn. 16:13
The gifts of the Spirit are
expressed in I Cor. 12:1-11, and the fruit of the spirit is described in Gal.
5:22,23; the first fruit being “love”.
The church in Ephesus was
indicted, “you have left your first love.” Rev. 2:4
But they were a busy church!
It seems as though we can do,
without listening, agreeing, nurturing, or obeying. “The Feast of the Harvest,
the first fruits of your labors” Ex. 23:16 and vrs 19, “The first of the first
fruits” meant the best and the first of the products of Israel’s labors.
When a church loses it’s
lamp, it loses it’s influence. No longer the light of the world. How can Is.
9:2 be fulfilled?
“The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great light
Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,
Upon them a light has shinned.”
-----Join us for
another Bible Study Next Week -------
or
Join our “Victory over
the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of
Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!
In my continuing efforts to complete the Bonhoeffer Series before the end of 2022, I am pleased to announce that I have made strides in that direction and now endeavor to complete all 19 installments of Bonhoeffer's Installments before Christmas!
So, I am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 15 of “Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : an informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost of Discipleship – with Lesson 15 –The Church of Jesus Christ and Discipleship: The Visible Church Community - Part 1 -
This Lesson was based on Chapter 30 of the "original" The Cost of Discipleship, which was simply called "The Visible Community", in that version (oh don't get me started!). This chapter was a long one and rather than doing a presentation of excessive length to "get 'er done", I made the executive decision to split the chapter in two parts.
Spoiler: I will also be taking this approach with "Chapter 31 - The Saints" as well, for the same reasons.
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
It is my prayer that this series will encourage people to read Bonhoeffer’s work but more importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to deepen their faith in Christ by pursuing a life of Christian Discipleship.
I had some extra time on my hands over the Thanksgiving Day weekend so I prepared the 14th powerpoint presentation a few days ago and had a little extra time tonight so I decided to produce and release the latest installment of Bonhoeffer's Discipleship.
So, I am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 14 of “Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : an informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost of Discipleship – with Lesson 14 –The Church of Jesus Christ and Discipleship: The Body of Christ.
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
It is my prayer that this series will encourage people to read Bonhoeffer’s work but more importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to deepen their faith in Christ by pursuing a life of Christian Discipleship.
I
am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 12 of
“Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : an informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost
of Discipleship – with Lesson 12 – The Messengers:
The Harvest, The Apostles, The Work, The
Suffering of the Messengers, The Decision, & The Fruit
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
It is my prayer that this series will encourage people to read Bonhoeffer’s
work but more importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to deepen their
faith in Christ by pursuing a life of Christian Discipleship.
I
am happy to announce that I have completed and uploaded Lesson 11 of
“Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship” : an informal study of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Cost
of Discipleship – with Lesson 11 – The
Disciples and Unbelievers, The Great Divide, & The Conclusion
Here is a link to the video on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel:
It is my prayer that this series will encourage people to read
Bonhoeffer’s work but more importantly I hope the lessons encourage people to
deepen their faith in Christ by pursuing a life of Christian
Discipleship.
Or watch the Video Zoom Session of our Study on YouTube:
For a Time Such as This
“The LORD is
King forever and ever;
The nations have
perished out of His land.
LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble;
You will prepare
their heart;” Ps. 10:16,17
The Lord is sovereign over
all. He takes allegory and makes it history so that when we discover it, He
says, “I know, I wrote it that way.”
The Book of Ester is filled
with allegory. There are sevens, and twelves, and a rebellious queen, and a
king – who does not reign forever and ever” – a humble servant, and a new queen
who has to go through “purification”, and a plot to wipe out the Jews...again.
Overview:
King Ahasuerus delighted in
his accomplishments and aimed to celebrate. Es. 1:3:4
He summoned his queen
(Vashti) that he may display her beauty, and certainly to celebrate with him.
vr. 1:11
“O my love, you are as beautiful as Tirzah,
Lovely as Jerusalem,
Awesome as an army with banners!” SS. 6;4
“He brought me to the banqueting house…” SS. 2:4
But she refused. vr. 12
“I have stretched out My hands all day long to a
rebellious people,
Who walk in a way that is not good,
According to their
own thoughts;” Is. 65:2
I don’t wish to read too much
into this, but some have said that, “God left one bride at the alter”. This is
called “replacement theology” meaning that the Church replaces Israel in God’s
plan. I disagree because God made promises to Israel, and God always keeps His
promises. He kept His promise to David.
But it is interesting to see,
in the narrative, a new queen rise up; born of adversity, purified, accepted,
and eventually humbly risking her life on behalf of another.
God always raises up a chosen
instrument to thwart the enemy and accomplish His purpose.
It’s not without significance
that Ester risks her life to engage God’s deliverance. We see a similar event
in Neh. 2:1,2
Also, I believe, in Mk. 5:25
Some questions for discussion
should rise up in our thinking about these texts.
Will God pass over His people because of sin and rebellion?
Consider the Laodicean Church in Rev. 3:14
Who is God raising up in this generation? “For a time such
as this.”
Will God pass over us because of sin and rebellion?
Perhaps the narrative is really about Haman; self made man, enemy of God, hung on his own
gallows?
It’s disturbing that we don’t
discover what became of Queen Vashti. Small points like this may be why
scholars disqualify this as a true allegory. We have many accounts in Scripture
of people God used in spite of their rebellion; Samson, Jonah, Paul.
The sovereignty of God defies
the notion that we could, “miss God’s plan” as many believers are accustom to
saying. And yet this statement is not a free pass to sit back and let God thrust
His plan upon us. Somewhere in the middle is a perfect mariage.
“I am my beloved’s and my
beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” SS. 7:10
Let’s keep this truth before us always!!
-----Join us for
another Bible Study Next Week -------
or
Join our “Victory over
the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of
Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!