ScriptureStream

ScriptureStream

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ScriptureStream episodes

  • The New Testament Church, Part 2
    What does “church” mean, continued:
    The Bible’s use of ekklesia:
    Universal spiritual group
    • Hebrews 12:18-24
      • See Colossians 1:15, 18 regarding use of the word “firstborn.”
      • “Firstborn” in this passage in Hebrews is plural. This passage is talking about the group of people who are in a saved relationship with God.
      • Matthew 16:13-20 – Jesus built His church on what Peter confessed – Jesus’ identity as the Christ. Compare Acts 2:44-47.
      • The Bible uses the word ekklesia (church) to mean a group of saved people.
      • The term “universal church”
        • The word “catholic” just means “universal.”
        • One single savior one single group of saved people (church)
          • Local spiritual group
          • I Corinthians 1:2
          • I Thessalonians 1:1
            • Local church assembly
            • I Corinthians 14:4, 5, 12, 19, 23, 28, 33, 34, 35
              • Regional spiritual group
              • Acts 9:31 – The textus receptus has ekklesia as plural. Some other manuscripts have the singular form here.
                • The Bible’s use of ekklesia compared to ours!
                • Various examples of phrases we use to talk about the church.
                  • 45 min
                • Can Christians Fall Away and Be Lost?
                  Introduction
                  • The Five Points of Calvinism: Defined, Defended, and Documented by Steele, Thomas, and Quinn
                  • Calvinists argue that the saved cannot fall away. Those that do fall away were never really saved.
                    • Colossians 1
                    • This letter was clearly written to the saved (Colossians 1:1-2, 13, 21-23).
                    • “… if you continue in the faith” (Colossians 1:23)
                    • Colossians 2:5 – Paul was not doubting their commitment to God, but he shows it was possible for them to fall away.
                    • I Timothy 1:19; 4:1 – Examples of those who did fall away.
                      • Hebrews 3-4
                      • Hebrews 3:1
                      • Hebrews 3:7-11 – The Israelites were unfaithful and were not allowed to enter the promised land.
                      • Hebrews 3:12-14 – Learn from the Israelites and don’t fall away!
                      • Hebrews 3:15-19 – Don’t repeat the mistakes of the Israelites.
                      • Hebrews 4:1-11 – There remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
                      • Is sin a matter of salvation? See Hebrews 3:6; 4:14. Yes!
                        • Once a child, always a child?
                        • I John 3:1-2
                        • Terry Watkins, Dial-the-Truth Ministries argues for this view
                        • John 10:14; Matthew 5:13 – A good shepherd raises sheep to be sheered and slaughtered. Is that what this figure means? Salt kills slugs. Does that mean that we should be the salt of the earth and kill slugs?
                        • John 1:11-13 – Those who received Jesus were given the right to become children of God.
                        • Hebrews 12:5-8
                        • I John 3:7-10 – Those who do not practice righteousness are not of God.
                        • If you start as a child of the devil (as per Calvinism), then by this reasoning you would always be a child of the devil.
                          • Conclusion
                          • Hebrews 4:11
                            • 33 min
                          • Moses
                            Moses
                            Life of Moses
                            • Moses spent 40 years in Egypt, 40 years in Midian, and 40 years in the wilderness
                            • Deuteronomy 34:5-8 – Buried by God, no one knows where. Moses died at 120, but was still in good health.
                              • What are some things that stick out about Moses?
                              • Committed – Exodus 2:11; Hebrews 11:27
                              • Humble – Exodus 18:13-26; Numbers 12:3
                              • Spoke face to face with God – Exodus 33:11; Deuteronomy 34:10-12
                                • “The Lord/God spoke to/unto Moses”
                                • This exact wording is recorded 106 times from Exodus to Deuteronomy.
                                • The same phrasing applied to other people occurs only 26 times in the Bible.
                                  • Why did God choose Moses?
                                  • Committed murder
                                  • Did not consider himself a leader
                                  • Not an eloquent speaker
                                  • Lost his temper
                                  • Got provoked with the people and disobeyed God
                                    • Matthew 9:12-13 – “I desire mercy and not sacrifice”
                                    • Exodus 32:32 – The golden calf
                                    • Numbers 11:2 – Complaining people
                                    • Numbers 12:13 – Miriam and Aaron
                                    • Numbers 14:19 – Refusal to enter Canaan
                                    • Numbers 16:22 – Korah’s rebellion
                                      • Moses
                                      Jesus
                                      Deuteronomy 18:15, 19
                                      Quoted by Peter in Acts 3:22-23 and Stephen in Acts 7:37
                                      John 1:45
                                      Psalm 90
                                      • A psalm written by Moses.
                                        • 39 min
                                      • "O LORD, I pray, open his eyes"
                                        Introduction
                                        • II Kings 6:8-23
                                          • We should open our eyes to the joy in Heaven!
                                          • Luke 15:3-10 – There is great joy in Heaven when a sinner repents.
                                          • II Peter 3:9
                                            • We should open our eyes to Jesus watching us.
                                            • John 1:43-51 – Jesus saw Nathaniel when he thought he was all alone.
                                            • Hebrews 4:13
                                              • We should open our eyes to people who are in the afterlife.
                                              • Luke 9:28-31
                                              • Luke 20:37-38
                                              • Luke 16:22-31
                                                • We should open our eyes to the glory of the Lord.
                                                • Acts 7:55-60 – God is on His throne now just as He was in the days of Steven.
                                                  • We should open our eyes to the future.
                                                  • Hebrews 11:3, 7-10, 13, 20, 27
                                                  • Can we see this scene in faith?
                                                    • 26 min
                                                  • The New Testament Church, Part 1
                                                    Introduction
                                                    Christ is the head of His church.
                                                    • Matthew 16:18
                                                    • Acts 11:20-26 – “… to the Lord”
                                                    • Acts 20:28
                                                    • Ephesians 5:23-30
                                                      • Let’s be precise and kind with our words.
                                                      • Proverbs 15:1-4
                                                      • “Legalist”
                                                      • “Anti-“
                                                      • “Conservative” / “Liberal” – These are relative terms.
                                                      • “Institutional” / “Non-institutional”
                                                        • We’re not interested in trying to prove points based on tradition or bias.
                                                        • John 12:48
                                                          • We’re interested in Biblical truth.
                                                          It’s important to continually study this topic.
                                                          What does “church” mean?
                                                          The word “ekklesia”
                                                          • Matthew 16:18
                                                          • “the ‘called out ones’ of God” (Mounce)
                                                          • The word “group” is a good parallel to ekklesia.
                                                            • The Bible’s use of “ekklesia” – secular group
                                                            • Israel in wilderness – Acts 7:38
                                                            • Riotous mob – Acts 19:32, 41
                                                            • Legal court – Acts 19:39
                                                              • 46 min
                                                            • Deeds of the Flesh, Fruit of the Spirit, Part 12
                                                              Enkrateia – Self-control
                                                              It’s a core quality of successful living
                                                              • Titus 2:11-14 – Restraint allows us to live better lives.
                                                              • Luke 9:23 – Jesus had perfect self-control.
                                                              • I Corinthians 9:23-27 – It takes discipline and self-control to put ourselves on the right path.
                                                              • II Peter 2:1, 14, 18-19
                                                              • Secular research results
                                                                • Self-control is a better determinator of success than intelligence or athletic ability.
                                                                • People with more self-control are happier about their lives.
                                                                  • You can grow it like a muscle
                                                                  • Galatians 5:24-25 – We are making a choice to put away sin.
                                                                  • II Peter 1:5-11 – These qualities should be continually increasing.
                                                                  • Improving self-control in one area helps in all areas!
                                                                    • Be thinking of some ways to exercise more self-control starting today!
                                                                    • Finances – Ecclesiastes 5:10
                                                                    • Emotions – Proverbs 16:32
                                                                    • Speech – Proverbs 21:23
                                                                    • Lust of the flesh – I Thessalonians 4:7
                                                                    • Lust of the eyes – Job 31:1
                                                                    • Pride – I Peter 5:5
                                                                    • Teach children self-control. If all you leave them is good self-control, that is a great inheritance!
                                                                      • 39 min
                                                                    • How Delightful is a Timely Word
                                                                      Introduction
                                                                      • Proverbs 15:23
                                                                        • The power of words
                                                                        • Proverbs 25:15 – Thoughtful speech can have great power!
                                                                        • Romans 1:16 – The gospel is the power of God for salvation.
                                                                        • Acts 11:14; 4:17 – The word of God is powerful. So much so that the Jewish leaders of the time tried to prevent the apostles from speaking.
                                                                        • Psalm 145:4, 6-7, 11-12 – God’s people tell others about God.
                                                                        • Colossians 4:5-6 – Let our speech always be with grace, making the most of our opportunities.
                                                                        • Ephesians 4:29 – Say only what is good for edification.
                                                                          • What can I say?
                                                                          Comment: “It’s just like the Bible says…”
                                                                          • “you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow” (James 4:14)
                                                                          • “whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant” (Matthew 20:26)
                                                                          • “he who restrains his lips is wise” (Proverbs 10:19)
                                                                          • “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money” (Ecclesiastes 5:10)
                                                                          • “he who listens to reproof acquires understanding” (Proverbs 15:32)
                                                                          • “everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger” (James 1:19)
                                                                          • “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.” (John 15:18)
                                                                            • Question: “Have you ever thought about… ?”
                                                                            • “What do you think would happen if we got rid of every single preacher, church, religious tradition, and book about the Bible and all we had left was the Bible itself?”
                                                                              • Matthew 15:1-9; II Timothy 4:1-5
                                                                              • “Can you imagine what it must have been like for Jesus to leave Heaven to come live on earth?”
                                                                                • Romans 5:6-8; Philippians 2:5-8
                                                                                • “How different do you think the world would be if we were all truly grateful for our blessings?”
                                                                                  • Luke 17:11-19; I Thessalonians 5:18
                                                                                  • “What’s the solution to hypocrisy in church members?”
                                                                                    • Matthew 23; James 2:14-17
                                                                                    • “What do you think some of the devil’s favorite tricks are?”
                                                                                      • Matthew 4:1-11; Galatians 1:6-9
                                                                                      • “If churches today would teach the same things Jesus taught back then, how do you think people today would react?”
                                                                                        • Mark 15:10; John 15:18
                                                                                        • God’s teaching has not changed. Have we changed?
                                                                                        • “Do you have a favorite Bible story?”
                                                                                          • I Corinthians 10:6-12; II Timothy 3:14-17
                                                                                          • These are actual events!
                                                                                            • Preparing ourselves
                                                                                            • Matthew 12:33-37 – First, we must be spiritually minded!
                                                                                              • Challenge!
                                                                                              • Pick ONE of these items and pray for an opportunity to say it somewhere to someone.
                                                                                              • “Please give me an opportunity I can handle.”
                                                                                                • 27 min
                                                                                              • Deeds of the Flesh, Fruit of the Spirit, Part 11
                                                                                                Prautes – Gentleness/meekness
                                                                                                • This word is hard to translate. In the original language, the word does not connote “weakness.” It is the idea of power under control.
                                                                                                  • Meek toward God, then others
                                                                                                  • James 1:21
                                                                                                    • Power under control
                                                                                                    • Zodhiates: “getting angry at the right time, in the right measure, and for the right reason”
                                                                                                    • Proverbs 16:32
                                                                                                    • Jesus
                                                                                                      • Matthew 11:28-30
                                                                                                      • I Peter 2:22-23
                                                                                                      • John 13:13-14
                                                                                                      • Matthew 23
                                                                                                        • Boldness through God (without selfishness or ego)
                                                                                                        • James 3:13-14; Ephesians 4:2; Colossians 3:12; I Peter 3:3-4, 15
                                                                                                        • BDAG: “not being overly impressed by a sense of one’s self-importance”
                                                                                                        • Jesus
                                                                                                          • Matthew 21:1-5
                                                                                                          • I Peter 2:23
                                                                                                          • Philippians 2:6-8
                                                                                                          • John 8:29
                                                                                                          • Galatians 6:1-2 – It takes boldness to confront someone about sin!
                                                                                                          • Timothy
                                                                                                            • I Timothy 6:11-12
                                                                                                            • II Timothy 2:22-26
                                                                                                            • Titus
                                                                                                              • Titus 1:12-13
                                                                                                              • Titus 2:15-3:3
                                                                                                              • Numbers 12:3 – Moses is given as an example of meekness and humility.
                                                                                                                • 40 min

                                                                                                              About ScriptureStream

                                                                                                              From the publisher's feed

                                                                                                              Just the gospel, plainly spoken. ScriptureStream compiles lessons presented at the Benchley church of Christ, located just north of Bryan, TX. Visit ScriptureStream.com for full notes on each lesson…