All posts by JT

Christian. Husband. Dad. Preacher. Baseball fan. Music nerd. Bookworm.

A Study of Malachi and the Inter-Testamental Period: Malachi 2

September 10, 2017 JT Leave a comment

MALACHI 2

2:1-4 – Just as God’s promises are sure for the faithful, His punishments are certain for the disobedient
Isaiah prophesied about the hardening of Israel’s hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10)
The dung/refuse of the sacrifice was to be taken out of the camp (Exodus 29:14; Leviticus 4:12; 16:27)
Shows the priests were unfit for the service of the Lord

2:5-9 – Contrast between original intent of Levi and what it became
Instead of walking with God “in peace and equity,” they had “departed from the way.” Instead of keeping knowledge and directing the people who sought the law, they “caused many to stumble at the law.” In short, the priests of Malachi’s day had “corrupted the covenant of Levi,” bringing to an end God’s blessings.

2:10-16 – God prohibited marriages with foreign/pagan women (Deuteronomy 7:1-4; Ezra 9:10-15; Nehemiah 13:23-27)
The intent was to keep the nation pure and dedicated to God until the Messiah arrived
These prohibited marriages were often done at the expense of Israelite women
God hates divorce
“What God has joined together, let not man separate” (Matthew 19:6)
Exception: fornication (NKJV and other translations as “sexual immorality” is too broad; only fornication is in view in Matthew 19:9)

2:17 – Murmuring wearies God
The sun rises on evil and good; rain falls on just and unjust (Matthew 5:45)
Be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it

Review and thought questions

1. How far-reaching is “the curse” of God? Read Deuteronomy 28:15-19.

2. Under the Old Law, the tribe of Levi served as priests for the people of God. Who are the priests today? Read 1 Peter 2:9-10. How must the royal priesthood keep themselves fit for service to the Lord?

3. In what three ways had the priests of Malachi’s day violated the covenant God made with Levi? How can we, as a royal priesthood, avoid the same mistakes under the law of Christ?

4. How careful should one be in choosing a spouse? What spiritual characteristics should be considered?

Class Studies

A Study of Malachi and the Inter-Testamental Period: Malachi 1

September 3, 2017 JT Leave a comment

“Malachi” means “My messenger”
Written in the middle of the fifth century BC

Timeline:
536 BC – remnant returned from Babylonian captivity to rebuild nation
520-515 BC – God’s temple rebuilt under Zerubbabel (governor) and Joshua (high priest), encouraged by of Haggai and Zechariah
458 BC – Ezra reorganizes and reestablishes nation’s worship
445 BC – Nehemiah leads Hebrews in rebuilding walls of city
432 BC – Nehemiah’s second visit to Jerusalem

MALACHI 1

1:1-5 – God declares His love
Egypt, wilderness, other enemies, even when under foreign rule (cf. Daniel 1:19; Esther 2:17; Nehemiah 1:11)
Edom opposed God and His people (cf. Obadiah 10-18; Amos 1:11-12; Jeremiah 49:7-10; 25:9,21)
Chaldeans, Nabataeans, Maccabees, and Romans all captured Edom

1:6-8 – Israel despised God’s name
Defiled food/bread, specifically blind, lame, and sick sacrifices, in opposition to Law (Leviticus 22:17-25)

1:9-10 – Sarcasm and irony
God desires zeal in His people

1:11-13 – God will be honored by Gentiles, despite Israel’s irreverence
Israel expressed weariness in worship
“If people are only going through the motions without the heart being in it, such will only be endured rather than enjoyed. That which should have been a blessing has become a burden to them. Where they should have seen themselves as a blessed people with the opportunity to be a light in the nations around them, they see themselves burdened.” (J. Winfred Clark)

1:14 – “Cursed be the deceiver”
God’s name is “to be feared” (NKJV), “dreadful” (KJV), “terrible” (ASV)

Review and thought questions

1. Edom confidently asserted, “We have been impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places” (1:4). Is there anything wrong with such determination in the face of despair? Consider Psalm 127:1 and James 4:13-16 as you answer.

2. Identify some of the parallels between the religious people of Malachi’s day and the religious people of today.

3. How important is appropriate worship? What did Jesus say in Matthew 15:8-9?

4. How would you respond to someone who complains that “church is boring”? How can you guard yourself against developing a similar attitude?

5. Should a person make a vow if he has no intention of following through? What does Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 say?

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Refuting False Doctrines

August 27, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Refuting False Doctrines

Max R. King’s “A.D. 70 Doctrine” (also known as Realized Eschatology, Kingism, or the Max King Doctrine)

“The Holy Scriptures teach that the second coming of Christ, including the establishment of the eternal kingdom, the day of judgment, the end of the world and the resurrection of the dead, occurred with the fall of Judaism in 70 A.D.”
King struggles with the figurative language, and with separating the second coming or final judgment from the coming in judgment upon individual nations
King’s debate with brother Gus Nichols can be read online: http://icotb.org/resource/NICHOLS-KINGDEBATE.pdf
Brother Garland M. Robinsons refutation of King’s false doctrine: http://icotb.org/resources/AD70-Kingism.pdf

The Jehovah’s Witnesses Literal View of 144,000

Literal interpretation of Revelation 7:4
Contrast “those who were sealed” in verse 4 (“a definite number”) with “a great crowd” in verse 9 (“without a definite number”)
JWs do not believe all Christians go to heaven, but rather that “resurrection to heaven is closely related to an assignment given only to some humans”
Easily refuted with 2 Timothy 4:8 and Matthew 25:31-46

Premillennialism

Based in part on a literal application and a very twisted interpretation of the “one thousand years” of Revelation 20
Has all but disappeared from the Lord’s church, but still very prevalent in the denominational world
“The interpretation of the premillennialists is that the thousand years of Revelation 20 comes after the next resurrection, which they say will be a resurrection of saints only, and then, they say Christ will reign a thousand years on earth, and raise the wicked dead at the end of the thousand years. However, the chapter does not say this. Furthermore, hard-to-be understood scriptures should be interpreted so as to have to clash with plain passages whose meaning is not in doubt. Four times in one chapter Christ says he will raise the righteous dead ‘at the last day.’ (John 6:39, 40, 44, 54.) Millennialists deny this, and say the righteous will be raised a thousand years before the last day, and that the wicked will be raised at the last day, or after a thousand years.” (Gus Nichols, “Dangers of Premillennialism.” The Lipscomb Lectures, 1947, Vol. 1, page 127)
Refutation: What evidence is there that John was speaking here literally, in a book that was “signified” (Revelation 1:1) to the apostle?
“John said, ‘they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.’ The passage says nothing about ‘the thousand years reign of Christ.’ There is a great difference in the two expressions. Revelation 20 says, ‘they lived and reigned with Christ.’ They who? Lived—lived where? Reigned—how, with whom and where? ‘Lived and reigned”—with whom, in what place? It is not the reign of Christ, but the reign of souls ‘with Christ,’ that is mentioned in Revelation 20. There is a vast difference between living and reigning ‘with Christ’ and a millennial reign ‘of Christ.’ So let us be true to the facts in the case. It does not mention the reign of Christ, but the reign of souls ‘with’ him. They not only ‘reigned’ with him, they ‘lived’ with him. They ‘lived and reigned’ with Christ a thousand years. The two verbs ‘lived’ and ‘reigned’ are both limited by the thousand years. If the expression denotes time, then when the reign is over, and they ceased to reign; the living would be over and they would cease to live.” (Foy E. Wallace, Jr., The Book of Revelation, 1966, pages 402-403)
In addition to Wallace’s commentary on Revelation, you can read his seminal work against premillennialism called God’s Prophetic Word: http://www.retainthestandard.com/Foy%20E%20Wallace%20-%20God’s%20Prophetic%20Word.pdf

Review
1. Does belief in the early writing of Revelation necessarily lead one to believe the Max R. King “A.D. 70 Doctrine”?

2. How would you show the fallacy of Max R. King’s “A.D. 70 Doctrine”?

3. What Scriptures would you point to in refuting the Jehovah’s Witnesses literal interpretation of the 144,000?

4. Expose as many errors of premillennialism as you can, using the Scriptures.

Sermon Outlines

Us Against the World

August 23, 2017 JT Leave a comment

1 John 4:1-6

I. LOVE WITH EYES WIDE OPEN (1 JOHN 4:1)

II. CONTEXT: A SPECIFIC FALSE DOCTRINE (1 JOHN 4:2-3)

C. If a teaching does not originate with God, it must be rejected by the faithful

III. CONTRASTING JOHN’S READERS TO FALSE TEACHERS, AND FALSE TEACHERS TO TRUE APOSTLES (1 JOHN 4:4-6)

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Revelation 20:11 – 22:21 (All Things Made New)

August 20, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Revelation chapters 20:11 – 22:21 (All Things Made New)

20:11-15 – The final judgment scene
This passage can bring great joy and hope to some, while others read it with terror (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14; John 12:48; 2 Corinthians 5:10)
The Book of Life contains the names of those approved of God
Those whose names are not in the Book of Life face eternal punishment and separation from God (Exo. 32:32-33; Ps. 69:28; Rev. 3:5; 20:15)

21:1-8 – What is the new heaven and new earth? The spiritual rule of Christ and His church
The New Jerusalem is the church – both now and forevermore
The thrust of this passage is the relationship between God and “he who overcomes.” God says, “I will be his God, and he shall by My son.” There is no greater relationship than this; there is no force that can break this bond in eternity.
Sins that will prevent the impenitent from eternity (Revelation 21:8; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21; 1 Peter 4:3)

21:9-21 – Description of the glorified church
Twelve = completeness
Precious stones show “the eternal beauty and value of the church of the living God” (Coffman)

21:22-27 – The old temple was a type of the new; it had passed away

22:1-5 – The tree of life (Genesis 2:8-9, 16-17; 3:23-24)
Christ removed the curse of sin (Galatians 3:13-14)

22:6-11 – Return to John’s present time
Judgment upon the harlot (Jerusalem), the end of Palestinian persecution, and then the beast (Rome) would be conquered
Jesus: “Behold, I am coming quickly” – not reference to second coming, but coming in judgment upon Jerusalem in 70 AD
John is told, “Do not seal the words” here; compare to Daniel 8:26 – in one instance the fulfillment would come soon; in the other it would not pass for “many days in the future”

22:12-17 – “Do His commandments” (KJV/NKJV) = “wash their robes” (ASV/NASB/ESV/NIV) [cf. Acts 22:16; 2:38; Rom. 6:3-6]
Contrast with those who disobey – “dogs” and “sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie”

22:18-21 – Warning against changing the Word (cf. 2 Peter 3:15-16; 2 Timothy 4:2-4; Galatians 1:6-9)

Review
1. In the final judgment, what will be the standard of judgment?

2. What are some of the things that will be no more, according to chapters 21 and 22?

3. What are some of the sins that will lead men to the second death in chapter 21? What will prevent men from entering the gates of the city in chapter 22?

4. Why are the warnings against tampering with the revealed Word so severe?

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Revelation 19:11 – 20:10 (The Defeat of the Beast)

August 13, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Revelation chapters 19:11 – 20:10 (The Defeat of the Beast)

19:11-14 – White = either purity or victory
These events follow Jerusalem’s destruction; Christ’s war is now against Caesar-worship and heathenism
“Faithful and True” (cf. Revelation 3:14; 21:5; 22:6)
“Eyes…like a flame of fire” (cf. Rev. 1:14; 2:18) – refers to omniscience
Whose blood? Perhaps symbolizes judgment against Israel, or the eternal victory of the Cross
“The Word of God” = Jesus (cf. John 1:1,14)

19:15-16 – “Sharp sword” (cf. Hebrews 4:12; Ephesians 6:17)
Striking of the nations and ruling with rod of iron symbolized the impact of the gospel on the world (prophesied in Psalm 2:1-3)
Ogden: “By His powerful word, He either smites, or shepherds, the nations. His word either convinces, or it convicts.”
“King of kings and Lord of lords” (cf. Revelation 11:15) – spiritual, not literal; accomplished by the spread of gospel

19:17-21 – The judgment against Jerusalem was past, but persecutions continued via the Roman Empire (the beast)
Christ will reign victorious; evil will not and cannot defeat the Lord
Ultimately accomplished by 313 AD with Constantine

20:1-3 – Now that the harlot and the beast have been defeated, John sees the binding of Satan himself
The thousand years is not a literal, specific amount of time; it refers to the complete success of Christ’s cause over persecution
Wallace: “There are twenty figures of speech in the nineteenth and twentieth chapters alone. In a series of symbols such as these, it is not reasonable to make a literal application of the thousand years and a figurative application of all the rest of the symbols, without a contextual or historical reason for doing so. The thousand years, like the other parts of the vision, is a figure of speech—a symbol of something else.”
Coffman: “The ‘little time’…beginning at the point after which God shall have finally achieved the full salvation of the total number of the redeemed, and lasting only a relatively short while. Satan will be ‘loosed’ without any restraint whatever during that brief period.”

20:4-6 – The same martyred souls as those who were “under the altar” in Revelation 6:9
According to the false doctrine of premillennialism, this living and reigning is still future, will occur on the earth, and is inclusive of all Christians
* Note the past tense “lived and reigned”
* “On earth” is nowhere stated nor implied
* “They” refers specifically to those “who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands”
Those who have part in the first resurrection are those who overcome (cf. Revelation 2:11)

20:7-10 – The need to evangelize (cf. Galatians 1:6-9; Romans 1:16)
Gog and Magog represent any religion or faith that is not expressly from God
The torment of eternal separation from God:
* “The lake of fire and brimstone” (Revelation 20:10)
* “Outer darkness” (Matthew 8:12; 22:13; 15:30)
* “Eternal fire” (Matthew 25:41)
* “Unquenchable fire” (Mark 9:44)
* “Hell, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:48)
Hell is eternal (Revelation 20:10; Matthew 25:41,46)

Review
1. In what four ways is the rider of the white horse identified in chapter 19?

2. What is the sharp sword of Revelation 19:15, and how was it used to strike the nations?

3. What is a possible explanation of the “thousand years” of Revelation 20 that does not contradict other Scriptures?

4. When will the end of the thousand years come?

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Revelation 17:1 – 19:10 (The Fall of Babylon)

August 8, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Revelation chapters 17:1 – 19:10 (The Fall of Babylon)

17:1-6 – Apostate Jerusalem must be removed in order for the New Jerusalem/church/kingdom of Christ
The harlot woman is Jerusalem; the beast is Rome
Seven heads = complete power of the ruling Roman emperor
Ten horns = ten kingdoms over which the emperor ruled
The woman appeared attractive, but underlying sin is destructive (cf. Matthew 23:28)

17:7-10 – Refers to the Roman emperors
“Five have fallen” = Julius Caesar, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, and Claudius
“One is” = Nero
“The other has not yet come” = Domitian

17:11-14 – Jerusalem will be destroyed, but persecutions against the church will continue in Diocletian’s “reign of terror” (Rev. 2:10)

17:15-18 – Rome was a tool used to serve God’s purposes
“Earth” of 17:18 = land of Judea; the city of Jerusalem was the royal city where the kings of Judah reigned

18:1-3 – “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen” (cf. Isaiah 21:9)
This is a view from the point of view of the Gentiles (“the nations”)

18:4-8 – Warning to the faithful to flee Jerusalem
Destruction of Jerusalem would come in “one day” or suddenly (cf. Matthew 24:16-18)

18:9-19 – Three groups lament over the fall of Jerusalem:
* “Kings of the earth” (18:9)
* “Merchants of the earth” (18:11)
* “Shipmasters” (18:17)
The riches of this life are not eternal (cf. 1 Timothy 6:17)

18:20 – Joy that the apostles and prophets have been avenged by the Almighty

18:21-24 – The millstone metaphor
Jerusalem had stumbled, and had caused others to stumble, and was destroyed for it (cf. Matthew 18:6)

19:1-6 – Worship and praise for God’s righteous judgments upon the church’s oppressors
“Alleluia” = praise ye the Lord – used only in 19:1, 3, 4, 6

19:7-9 – The relationship of the church to Jesus (cf. Romans 7:2-4; Ephesians 5:22-33)
The wedding feast is ongoing; every time one obeys the gospel, he or she becomes wedded to Christ

19:10 – The Christian must put his or her trust in God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
Far too often, more trust is placed in preachers than the Word
Be a Berean – receive the teaching, but verify for yourself that it is of God (cf. Acts 17:11)

Review
1. In Revelation 17:10, who are the seven kings? To whom specifically does the phrase “one is” refer?

2. Who are the “ten kings” of Revelation 17:12?

3. What three groups of people lamented the fall of Jerusalem in Revelation 18?

4. Who is worthy of worship? In whom should we place our faith and trust?

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Revelation 15-16 (The Seven Bowls of Wrath)

July 23, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Revelation chapters 15-16 (The Seven Bowls of Wrath)

15:1-2 – The seven seals had Christ as central figure; seven bowls have the bride of Christ as central figure
God works at His pace, often granting time for repentance (Genesis 15:13-16; 2 Peter 3:9)
“Mingled with fire” indicates the coming judgment of God

15:3-4 – The song of Moses could only be sung by Israelites; the song of the Lamb can only be sung by Christians
Both speak of deliverance: from the bondage of Egypt (OT), and from the bondage of sin through Christ (NT)
The song isn’t about the saint’s ability to overcome, but God’s mighty works

15:5-8 – The temple moves from Jerusalem to heaven; from temporal to spiritual
The seven angels’ clothing resembles Christ’s (1:13), indicating the authority of their task was from Christ
Moses was prevented from entering the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35); here men are prohibited from entering until God’s will was accomplished

16:1 – “The earth” = the Jewish nation, not the whole world
The downfall of Egypt is a type of the downfall of Jerusalem; they were once the oppressed righteous, the were now the unrighteous oppressors

16:2-7 – God’s punishments are not arbitrary; He punished those who rejected Him and His Son
The rivers and springs turning to blood symbolized retribution for blood of the martyrs
It is not our place to exact vengeance, but God’s (Romans 12:17-21)

16:8-9 – The danger of rebellion in the face of correction

16:10-11 – More impenitence

16:12-16 – Frogs were considered magical creatures; here they represent deception
Armageddon is not the site of a great future battle; it represents a conflict in which God clearly and purposefully aids one side against the other

16:17-21 – “It is done” = the end of Jerusalem
Three divisions may be “the three sources of Jerusalem’s afflictions: pestilence, sword, and exile” (Wallace)
Three divisions may be “the dead, those waiting to die, and those that would be left alive to live the rest of their days with the horrid memories of the butchery and carnage” (Blake)
Our attitude toward discipline (Proverbs 3:11-12)

Review
1. What event in the Old Testament is similar to the events of Revelation 15-16?

2. What were the seven angels to pour out of the bowls?

3. When is the significance of the words, “It is done,” in Revelation 16:17?

4. What is a possible explanation of the three divisions of the city?

Sermon Outlines

Love in Action

July 21, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Love in Action

1 John 3:16-24

I. THE ULTIMATE EXAMPLE OF LOVE

II. HIS LOVE SHOULD MOTIVATE US TO LOVE

III. TRUE, ACTIVE BROTHERLY LOVE

Class Studies

A Study of Revelation: Revelation 12-14 (The Great Conflict)

July 16, 2017 JT Leave a comment

Revelation 12-14 (The Great Conflict)

12:1-6 – The woman = the church
Twelve stars = symbol of whole church typified in OT, fulfilled in NT
Pains = persecutions of the church; despite persecution, more children of God were being born
Great, fiery red dragon = Satan (red represents bloodshed he brought)
Seven heads = complete power of the ruling Roman emperor
Ten horns = ten kingdoms over which the emperor rules

12:7-12 – Michael represents the church’s protectors
Satan’s deception started in Eden (Genesis 3); Jesus called him “a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44)

12:13-17 – Rebellions, uprisings, local wars distracted Roman authorities from the persecutions for a brief time

13:1-10 – Sea beast = Rome
Seven hills of Rome = universal symbol of the imperial city
Ten horns = tributary kings that served the Roman Empire

13:11-18 – Land beast = Jewish persecutors
Two horns = indicates power, but less than the sea beast possessed
Mark of the beast was not a physical mark
The right hand or forehead signified a binding oath of loyalty
Just as the mark of Christians is following God, the mark of the beast is following the devil-guided emperor
666 = Nero (Nron Ksr in Hebrew) – Observe: N=50, R=200, O=6, K=100, S=60, R=200, adding up to 666

14:1-5 – New song is not worship by earthly beings, but the victorious in Lord’s presence

14:6-11 – The importance of evangelism
Fear God and give Him glory (cf. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)
Argument against the identification of Babylon as Rome (Blake):
1) The beast hates and seeks to destroy the harlot (Rev. 17:16)
2) Rome was never faithful to God, but the harlot was (cf. Isaiah 1:1-21; Ezekiel 16)
3) Peter says he was in Babylon in 1 Peter, but there is no historical evidence he was ever in Rome
4) Revelation is not directly concerned with Rome; it enters the picture as the instrument of God’s wrath

14:12-13 – Immediate context is those who died in martyrdom
1st century Christians needed this encouragement, facing great tribulation; today we have the advantage of the complete, written Word, with all its promises at our fingertips

14:14-20 – Justice for the faithful and unfaithful
Harvest of grain = rich reward for faithful
Vintage of grapes = retribution against church’s enemies
Josephus: “The whole city run down with blood, to such a degree indeed that the fire of many of the houses was quenched with these men’s blood.”

Review
1. Who is the woman of Revelation 12?

2. What is represented by the sea beast? What is represented by the land beast?

3. Who is most likely identified by the number of the beast?

4. What does Babylon represent?

But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. (Acts 8:12)