THE mere reading of the holy Scriptures will be of no avail to us, unless the Holy Spirit sanctify the truth to our souls. Let us pray that (in commencing this year’s Family Reading) he who commanded light to shine out of darkness may shins into our hearts and give us to know the inner... Continue Reading →
THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. People want to change. All advertising is based on the presupposition that people want things different from the way they are. They want to look... Continue Reading →
SANCTIFY YOURSELVES
TEXT: “And Joshua said to the people, Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you” (Josh. 3:5). INTRODUCTION: The key to victory is “Sanctify yourselves.” We have the promise, “The Lord will do wonders.” I. Consider the setting. A. For forty years Israel had the “pillar of fire” by night and the... Continue Reading →
Special Revelation through Dreams
Dreams are one of the many mediums of special revelation. God used dreams in the Old and New Testament eras in order to reveal his truth to his prophets and others. In the ancient world dreams were frequently seen as being a medium by which the gods communicated with humans. They were also viewed as... Continue Reading →
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
2 Sa 22:2; Ps 18:2; Ps 46; 91:2; Mt 2:2; Heb 1:31. A mighty fortress is our God, A bulwark never-failing; Our helper he amid the flood Of mortal ills prevailing. For still our ancient foe Doth seek to work us woe; His craft and power are great; And armed with cruel hate, On earth... Continue Reading →
Special Revelation through Prophecy
Prophecy is a divine gift by which a human being is enabled to speak divinely authoritative words. Often in Scripture, we read of human beings whom God appointed and empowered to speak his very words. In the book of Genesis, Noah and Jacob evidently spoke words that could have come only from God. But the... Continue Reading →
Power of Holy Spirit
The power of the Holy Spirit is witnessed to in the OT Is 11:2–3See also Is 42:1 The Spirit will show his power on the earthIs 32:15The Spirit’s power will enable people to serve GodEze 36:26–27See also Je 31:33The Spirit’s power will prompt prophecy and visionsJoe 2:28–29See also Ac 2:17–18 The Holy Spirit’s power is described by OT... Continue Reading →
Avoiding Satan’s Snares
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). I. Don’t Stray “Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word” (Ps. 119:67). A. Christians sometimes neglect their prayer life, and they fail to study God’s... Continue Reading →
Errors in Prophecy
(a) What are charged as such may frequently be explained by remembering that much of prophecy is yet unfulfilled. It is sometimes taken for granted that the book of Revelation, for example, refers entirely to events already past. Moses Stuart, in his Commentary, and Warren’s Parousia, represent this preterist interpretation. Thus judged, however, many of... Continue Reading →
Special Revelation through Visions
Visions are revelatory experiences that manifest before the visionary God’s will, plans, and/or perspective. Alongside dreams and theophanies, visions are a means by which God has occasionally chosen to reveal his will to certain individuals for the purpose of guiding, warning, comforting, encouraging, or even pronouncing judgment on his people (or the enemies of God’s... Continue Reading →