Biblical Literacy Podcast

8-11-24 Biblical-Literacy

Mark continued teaching on The Attributes of God asking the question: How do we understand God?

Three areas of focus to understand God include:

1. Words—God’s name is more than a label but who He is and what He does. His majesty & power

are reflected in I Am. LORD, Yahweh, and Jehovah.

2. Socially—Through relationships we see God is our Good King, Father, Husband, Mother, Shepherd, Judge, and Teacher.

3. Attributes—As presented in the Westminster Confession of Faith.

Points for home

•Find God

•Honor God

•Dwell with God

Listen to Mark teach how we can better understand God by studying His name, social relationship and attributes. Be still and know He is God.

8-4-24 Biblical-Literacy

Mark continued teaching The Attributes of God using this outline:

1. The importance of Knowing God and understanding God is Truth.

Mark shows how Truth has shaped and reshaped over the years through views of

faith, theology, science, history, and reason.

2. The Westminster Confession of faith was written before the enlightenment.

This doctrine of faith shows how God reveals Himself in the Bible.

3. Points for home

Let’s get strong

Let’s go for the gold

Let’s follow His path

Listen to Mark explain the issues of knowing God today, the mystery of God’s

emotions, and how thinking about God humbles and expands our knowledge

of Him.

7-28-74 Biblical-Literacy

Mark Lanier returned from vacation to teach a lesson from the summer series - The Attributes of God. Practical life experiences with insight helps us understand the God who never changes.

Mark’s three points:

1. The Importance of knowing God

Eternal life starts now

Thinking of God humbles the mind

2. The Westminster Confession of Faith

Background for the statement of faith at the time.

Calvinistic with a Puritan spin

3. Points for home

Let's get strong

Let's go for the gold

Let's follow his path

Listen to Mark share the importance of considering when the Bible was written, the original audience’s life experiences, combined with cultural differences to more fully understand God’s message. What does God say in a life that’s painful and confusing? The unity of God. There is only one God. Who is faithful and true.

July 21, 2024

Dr. Capes discusses in detail “Favorite Attributes of God” as documented in Ephesians Chapter 1-6.

He begins by citing the “anchor verse” of the lesson: Ephesians 1; Anchor Verse

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lard Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be Holy and blameless before him.

He continues by elaborating what spiritual blessings are, referencing Psalms 103 and 104.

The lesson goes into great detail as to who God is, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost and what He expects from us as believers. DR. Capes further explains, in detail, what our relationship with God should be as a saved believer and what God’s relationship with us and the world will be as a result.

The lesson goes into detail as to what our relationship should be with God and how God views us and how we can be a part of God’s Forever Family.

We learn that God is creating a family, God’s Forever Family, and the family comes into being through Jesus the Messiah.

Points for Home:

1. Decide to follow Jesus. Eph 1:13

2. Through worship cultivate a new identity. Eph 1:12

3. Recognize that we occupy two times and two places. Eph 1:3

4. Rejoice in the blessings that come through Christ. Eph 1:6

5. Celebrate: Eph 1:3-6. The gracious purpose of God the Father

Eph 1: 7-12 Redemptive work of Christ the Son

Eph 1:13-14 The promised inheritance through the Spirt

7-7-24 Biblical-Literacy

Dr. David Fleming continued in summer series of The Attributes of God from the Bible using The Westminister Confession of Faith as a guide. This week David reflected on God as Incomparable, Incomprehensible & Indescribable and a focus of His Aseity.

The lesson had three points:

1. Aseity of God - the belief that God doesn't not depend on any cause other than himself for his existence.

Self-existent

Self-sufficient

Self-satisfied

2. What does that say to me?

Comforted

Encouraged

Set free

3. Points for home. How do I take this?

Not about me

I am free

Response of love and devotion

Listen to Pastor David explain the “I Am” attribute of God. He is self-sufficient and all-sufficient. God doesn’t need us, but we need God.

6-30-24 Biblical-Literacy

Brent Johnson taught a new summer series: Favorite Attributes of God -based on The Westminster Confession of Faith. Brent selected "Working all things according to the council of his immutable and righteous will, for his own glory.” Brent started by sharing some background on the confession which was drafted in Westminster Abbey and published in 1647 providing an overview of the Bible and ultimately influential in Protestant Christianity.

.Brent proceeded by digging deeper into the meaning of the selected attribute including::

-Gods will and Sovereignty: God is at work in everything: both believers and pagans..

-Your trust in peace: The power of prayer for peace that we do not understand.

Points for home

•Resist Satan

•Stand firm in your faith

•God will restore

Listen to Brent teach of God’s sovereignty by pointing out in Scripture who He is, His glory, His work, His attributes, and our resulting confidence.

6-23-24 Biblical-Literacy

Mark continued A Study in Revelation with lesson 18 in this series. As an intro to the lesson, Mark shared a rendition of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” whose lyrics, written by Julia Ward Howe, were partially based on passages from Revelation. Mark then continued the lesson with three parts emphasizing the fundamental and biblical truth that Jesus will come again!

1. Earlier Vignette’s - a recap from Revelation: 1-16 show the age of the church to the second coming. Themes include: The world is in darkness; The church is light; Jesus is ever present; live like it. The church is persecuted by the world, but God wins in the end. Warnings to the world of coming judgment to cause repentance. There’s a spiritual war ongoing.

2. The 7th Bowl - an angel poured out His bowl of wrath followed by Jesus’s return.

3. Points for home:

Trust and obey

Wait in hope

God will finish His work

Listen to Mark expound on Revelation 1-16, referring to apocalyptic writings from 4th Ezra and Biblical Scripture.

Mark continued in his Study of Revelation with lesson #18 with a refresher of material covered to-date.

The setup: Review of the previous lessons, Revelation 1-14, from the age of the church to the second coming in parallel series of vignettes.

The text: Chapters 15-16 mirror Exodus when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. God is full of righteousness and wrath.

Points for home:

God's works are great, amazing, awesome, and wonderful

God judges as The King of nations

Who are you listening to?

Listen to Mark teach how Revelation 1-16 shows how the church age through the second coming parallels the book of Exodus with the Lamb of God as the victor.

6-9-24 Biblical-Literacy

Mark continued with lesson 17 in his Study of Revelation starting with a reference to The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis which shows how Satan instructs his demon with eight ways to shake and destroy our faith. Satan uses the church, ourselves, Christian life, prayer, focus, all to pull us away from God. Mark then expanded on this from Revelation 12 - 14.

1. The Reality of Satan’s Assaults - We learn:

He is real and hides himself.

Can be a frontal attack or more subtle.

We are part of an ongoing war.

The mark of the beast - 666, is the number of man.

2. Placed into Revelation’s Larger Context - We learn:

All the visions and vignettes begin and end with Jesus.

The blessedness of the redeemed.

The warnings of humanity.

The harvest of mankind.

Listen to Mark teach how Satan (Dragon) has been trying to destroy Christ and His people since Christ entered the world and will continue until the second coming. Beware of false teachers and false teachings that are not from God. Anything that puts something other than God on the throne leads to death.

Points for Home:

God keeps all his people.

We sing a new song.

Mark continued with Lesson 15 in A Study of Revelation. This week’s focus was on the dragon,

the beast, and other things.

The persecuting dragon in Revelation 12-14 shows a spiritual war.This occurs during the age of the church through the second coming.

The dragon: Satan, the deceiver, accuser, devil.Two different beasts are sent to plague the

world: sea and land.

The beast from the sea represents earth's history, nations, and government. The best of the land

represents the mind.

Points for home:

 We’ve been made more than conquerors

 Be wary of the enemy’s wiles

 Endure

Listen to Mark continue with the theme from Revelation: The victory of Christ and His church

over the dragon and his minions. The church is afflicted but not destroyed. Beware of wors

hiping governments instead of God