Preached on Sunday, November 17, 2019Marriage is good for resisting fleshly temptation. Believers must not divorce the unbelieving spouse, for the whole family has been regarded as clean by God because of the believer. Salvation of the beloved ones are the works of God, but through the believing family member. However, if the nonbeliever wants to abandon the believer, it is a legal divorce.Please join us in person for worship, fellowship, and study at Abilene Bible Church. Pastor Daiqi...

Sermon #7: The Problem of Trigger Happy Litigation: The Need of Meekness (1 Cor 6:1-8)Preached on Sunday, November 3, 2019Some members of the Corinthian church were trigger happy to sue fellow members in secular court concerning the issue of property rights. Paul condemned this tight holding of rights and ownership and urged them to learn meekness, taking a loss for the sake of Christ. It is the third blessing of the Beatitudes that the Corinthians were lacking: it was the proof of having bee...

Sermon #6: The Problem of the Toleration of Sin: The Biblical Solution (1 Cor 5:1-13)Preached on Sunday, October 27, 2019One member of the Corinthian church committed an egregious sin, taking in his stepmother, something even the pagans do not approve. The Corinthian church not only tolerated the sin, but also became proud of their tolerance. The second blessing of the Beatitudes says that only those who mourn for sins can be comforted by grace. Paul denounced this lack of mourning for sin an...

Sermon #5: The Problem of Pride and the Second Prescription (1 Cor 4)Preached on Sunday, October 20, 2019“Start a ministry and become faithful” is the second advice from Paul to the Church of Corinth -- to help them solve the problem of pride. He gave three goals for believers to strive toward: (1) True servants of God are faithful stewards of God’s Word (4:1-7); (2) True servants of God are horrible spectacles to the world (4:8-13); and (3) true servants of God are like loving fathers of bel...

Preached on Sunday, October 6, 2019 The problem of pride in the Church of Corinth was due to two misunderstandings of the gospel. Not only is the gospel totally despised by the world (1:18-31), it can only be understood through the work of the Holy Spirit (2:1-16). The gospel is centered on the death of Christ (2:1-5); it is the eternal plan of God (2:6-9), and it is revealed by the Holy Spirit (2:10-16). So if anyone understands it and believes, it is the work of God, to which men shoul...

Preached on Sunday, October 13, 2019 “Follow the spirit and not the flesh” is the first advice from Paul for the Church of Corinth, to help them solve the problem of pride. He used four illustrations. (1) The Church Is like a person: It needs to grow into maturity (3:1-4). (2) The Church Is like a field: It needs planting and watering (3:5-9). (3) The Church Is like a building: It needs quality material (3:10-15). And (4) the Church Is a temple of God: It needs the true gospel (3:16-23)....

Sermon #2: The Problem of Pride and the First Diagnosis: The Gospel Is a Folly to the World (1 Cor 1:10-31)Preached on Sunday, September 29, 2019The Church of Corinth was divided into parties and factions, each claiming to follow one famous person (1:10-17). This reveals a severe problem of pride or the lack of humility, missing the first blessing in the Beatitudes: the recognition of being “poor in spirit.” Paul diagnosed that because of two misunderstandings of the gospel, thinking that it ...

Sermon #1: Introduction to the Book of First Corinthians (1 Cor 1:1-9)Preached on Sunday, September 8, 2019Paul visited Corinth in AD 50-51 and founded the church. In the epistolary opening (1:1-9), Paul affirmed that the church was indeed saved through faith, positionally sanctified, having a secure relationship with God. But while the church was vibrant, energetic, and richly blessed in financial resources and spiritual gifts, the believers lacked maturity and faithfulness. They needed to w...

Before the beginning of the process of salvation as known to men (where Salvation equals Justification, Regeneration, Adoption, Betrothal, Sanctification, and then Glorification), God has done a lot more: Election which equates with Foreknowledge Predestination, Redemption, and Call. There are varying opinions on the big picture of salvation, differing on how much weight one gives to the divine and human will on salvation. If we draw a spectrum of soteriology, on the left are Pelagianism, Sem...

The result of salvation is the Church. The doctrine of the Church is ecclesiology. It involves (1) the doctrine of Sanctification and Practical Theology; (2) the definitions of the Universal Church and the Local Churches; (3) the rites of the Church; (4) the governments of the Church; (5) the dogma, councils, and creeds of the Church (the boundaries of faith); (6) the history of the denominations; and, (7) the Church-and-State relationship. Ecclesiology is the least complete doctrine of syste...