When people don't like the message, they attack the messenger. When our predecessors didn't like the Biblical message, they critiqued and rebuked those that had brought it. Prophets, apostles, even Christ himself - all died because of what they had to say. That will be the focus of today's study in Galatians.

Questions That We'll Answer:

A) What was Paul's greatest frustration about the Galatians?

B) Why did the Galatians turn so quickly to "another gospel?"

C) Why was their behavior both stupid and dangerous?

Speaker : Rev. Dr. Toby B. Holt

Questions this sermon helps answer:

1. What is the main issue raised in Galatians: When They Won't Listen To God (Ep. 2)?

2. How does this passage point listeners to Christ, grace, repentance, and faith?

3. How should Christians respond in worship, obedience, and daily life?

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more Bible teaching at newgeneva.org.

What is the Book of Galatians all about?

The Book of Galatians is a letter that was written by the Apostle Paul. This letter contains some of the STRONGEST and MOST CRITICAL STATEMENTS in all of Scripture. Click to learn why Galatians is so important (and so relevant) in our own day.

Questions That We'll Answer:

A) What was going wrong in Galatia? What was the church doing?

B) Why were the people 'turning to another gospel?'

C) What does the scary word 'anathema' mean? Why did Paul use it?

Speaker : Rev. Dr. Toby B. Holt

Questions this sermon helps answer:

1. What is the main issue raised in Galatians: Introduction To Paul's Letter (Ep. 1)?

2. How does this passage point listeners to Christ, grace, repentance, and faith?

3. How should Christians respond in worship, obedience, and daily life?

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more Bible teaching at newgeneva.org.

When Exodus began, God's people were laboring over a building project - Pharaoh's. But by the time Exodus ends, an entirely different building project is in view (the Tabernacle).

In our final study of the Book of Exodus, we consider the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was a game changer for the people of Israel. With that said, what was this tent designed for? What was its purpose? Other Questions That We'll Answer:

A) Why was God so specific about the Tabernacle's construction?

B) Why was Moses not permitted to enter into the Tabernacle (Ex. 40)?

C) Ultimately, what did the Tabernacle point toward?

Speaker : Rev. Dr. Toby B. Holt

Questions this sermon helps answer:

1. What is the main issue raised in Exodus: The Last Words Of Exodus (Ep. 15)?

2. How does this passage point listeners to Christ, grace, repentance, and faith?

3. How should Christians respond in worship, obedience, and daily life?

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more Bible teaching at newgeneva.org.

Is God's presence really with you?

In Exodus 33, Moses pleads for the one thing that matters most: God's own presence. Dr. Toby Holt shows why nearness to God is the believer's greatest treasure. After the golden calf, God says He will give Israel the land but warns His presence will not go in their midst, lest He consume a stubborn people. Moses refuses to go without God, and God relents: "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Then Moses asks to see God's glory, and God hides him in the cleft of a rock.

Questions this study answers:

1. Why did God say His presence would not go with Israel? Because they were a stiff-necked people, and His holy presence among them could consume them. It revealed the seriousness of their sin.

2. Why was Moses so desperate for God's presence? Because His presence is what set Israel apart from every other nation. Without it, the Promised Land meant nothing.

3. What did the cleft in the rock picture? A safe hiding place where a sinner could glimpse God's glory and live — pointing to the refuge we have in Christ.

"My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." — Exodus 33:14 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.

Why do people make idols? In Exodus 32, while Moses is on the mountain with God, the people below melt their gold into a calf and worship it. Dr. Toby Holt examines the human heart's pull toward idols. Impatient for Moses, the people pressure Aaron to "make us gods," and he fashions a golden calf, even calling it a feast to the Lord. An idol's appeal: a god you make yourself, who demands no obedience and never judges. God's anger burns, but Moses intercedes — a picture of Christ the Mediator — and God relents, though judgment still falls.

Questions this study answers:

1. What were the people thinking, and why did Aaron help? Impatient and afraid, they wanted a god they could see, and Aaron gave in to the pressure of the crowd.

2. Were they trying to replace God? In part they blended true worship with idolatry, even calling the calf a feast to the Lord. It was corruption, not just replacement.

3. How does Moses point to Christ? Moses stood between the people and God's wrath, pleading for them. He pictures Jesus, the true Mediator who saves His people.

"This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!" — Exodus 32:4 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.

Does God care how we worship Him? 

According to Exodus 28, the answer is YES.

In the last fifteen chapters of Exodus, we read about the construction of the Tabernacle. In these chapters, God gave the people some meticulous, specific details for the Tabernacle's components and design. He also gave specific details for the clothing of the priests - including a phrase they were to wear on their foreheads, "HOLINESS TO THE LORD."

Questions That We'll Answer:
A) What was the significance of God meeting with His people in the tabernacle?
B) In what way did the Tabernacle reflect or anticipate Heaven?
C) How are you and I considered "priests" as NT believers?

Speaker: Rev. Dr. Toby B. Holt
Church Website: www.fpcgulfport.org

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What was the Ark of the Covenant for? In Exodus 25, God gives the plans for the Ark of the Covenant — the most sacred object in Israel. Dr. Toby Holt explains what the ark was really for, and what it pointed to. God asks for the people's finest materials, and the ark is the first item described — because His glory would rest on it. The true focus is the "mercy seat" on top, between two golden cherubim, where God promised to meet His people. Holt corrects the popular fascination with the ark's contents, pointing instead to the mercy seat, fulfilled when Christ's blood was shed.

Questions this study answers:

1. What was the ark, and why was it important? The sacred chest at the center of the tabernacle, where God's glory rested. The whole structure pointed to it.

2. What was the "mercy seat"? The gold lid on the ark, between two cherubim, where God met His people and atoning blood was sprinkled. It pointed to Christ.

3. Where is the ark today, and does it matter? Its location is unknown, and it does not matter — Jesus has fulfilled what the ark and mercy seat pictured. He is now our meeting place with God. "And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat…" — Exodus 25:22 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.

Can the blood of animals take away sin? In Exodus 24:1-8, Moses seals God's covenant with Israel by sprinkling the people with blood. Dr. Toby Holt explains why the Bible speaks so much about blood — and where it all points. After the people vow, "All that the LORD has said we will do," Moses offers sacrifices and sprinkles half the blood on the altar and half on the people. Animal blood could never truly take away sin; these were shadows pointing to Christ, the perfect Lamb. The old covenant's weakness is exactly why we need a better one.

Questions this study answers:

1. Can the blood of animals take away sin? No. Animal sacrifices could only cover sin temporarily and point forward. They could never truly remove it.

2. How did the sacrifices point to Jesus? They were shadows of the perfect sacrifice to come. Jesus is the Lamb of God whose blood truly takes away sin.

3. Why do we need a better covenant? Because the old covenant, based on the people's obedience, could not save. Christ brings a new covenant in His own blood. "And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, 'This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you…'" — Exodus 24:8 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.

Does Jesus appear in the Old Testament?

In Exodus 23:20-33, God promises to send "an Angel" before Israel to guard and guide them. Dr. Toby Holt makes the case that this Angel is the pre-incarnate Christ. God says of this Angel, "My name is in him" — a clue that this is no ordinary messenger but the Son of God before His birth in Bethlehem. Holt traces His appearances through Exodus — the burning bush, the Passover, the Red Sea. God promises to drive out Israel's enemies "little by little," growing their faith, and warns against covenants with the surrounding gods.

Questions this study answers:

1. Does Jesus appear in the Old Testament? Yes. Many believe the "Angel of the Lord" is the pre-incarnate Christ, appearing before His birth in Bethlehem.

2. How can we be sure it is Him? Because God says "My name is in him," and the Angel speaks and acts as God — marks of deity, not a mere messenger.

3. Why did God drive out Israel's enemies "little by little"? To grow their faith and avoid unintended harm. God often refines His people through gradual challenges. "Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared." — Exodus 23:20 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.

Why did God give the Ten Commandments?

In Exodus 20, God speaks the Ten Commandments aloud from Mount Sinai. Dr. Toby Holt explains the purpose of God's law — and why it cannot save us. The first commandments govern our relationship to God, the rest our relationship to one another; Jesus summed them up as loving God and loving neighbor. Sin is a matter of the heart, not just outward acts — so all of us have broken God's law. The law teaches and convicts but cannot save; it drives us to a Mediator. The frightened people begged for Moses to stand between them and God — but we need a better Mediator, Jesus.

Questions this study answers:

1. How are the commandments divided? The first four concern our relationship with God, the last six our relationship with others. Jesus summarized them as loving God and loving neighbor.

2. Can keeping the commandments save us? No. The law reveals our sin but cannot remove it. It shows our need for a Savior.

3. What hope is there for lawbreakers? A better Mediator — Jesus. Where the law condemns, Christ stands between us and God's judgment.

"You shall have no other gods before Me." — Exodus 20:3 (NKJV)

Dr. Toby Holt is President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Find more verse-by-verse Bible teaching at newgeneva.org; support this ministry at newgeneva.org/give.