THE DEAD CHURCH
1.And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
Continue reading SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY (REVELATION 3:1-13 “THE DEAD CHURCH, THE FAITHFUL CHURCH”)
1.And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
Continue reading SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY (REVELATION 20:1-15)
Created beings whose primary function is to serve and worship God. Though some interpret the “us” in Gen 1:26 as inclusive of God and His angelic court, the Bible does not comment as to when they were created. Unlike God they are not eternal or omniscient. The Hebrew word in the OT is mal’ak, and the NT Greek word is angelos. They both mean “messenger” and occasionally refer to human messengers.
Continue reading DEFINITION OF THE DAY (ANGEL 1 OF 3)
The practice of using clothing to make a statement regarding one’s status or position in society was just as prevalent in the biblical world as it is today. However, clothing styles did not change as rapidly in antiquity and so the effort to remain stylish was less hectic.
Continue reading DEFINITION OF THE DAY (FASTING)
Revelation uses three types of literature. First, it is a letter written by the apostle John to seven churches in Asia Minor. Second, it is prophecy speaking God’s judgment and truth. Finally, it is apocalyptic writing a common form of Jewish literature.
Continue reading IS REVELATION TO BE UNDERSTOOD LITERALLY?
WERE DREAMS EVER WRONG OR WRONGLY INTERPRETED?
Dreams were neither foolproof nor infallible. Both Jeremiah and Zechariah spoke against relying on dreams to express the revelation of God. Dreams could come without being God’s word (Jer 23:28). Jeremiah lumped dreamers together with soothsayers, sorcerers, and false prophets (Jer 27:9). He cautioned exiles in Babylon not to listen to dreamers and false prophets who told them that the exile would not be long (Jer 29:8). Zechariah pointed people toward the Lord, apparently because they were relying on dreamers and others to give them the truth (Zech 10:1-2). Thus while God often used dream to reveal His will, there is a warning, too, not to rely on this method to know the will of God.
Continue reading DEFFINITION OF THE DAY (DREAMS PT3)
The Jewish people thought of seven as a sacred number. It is used often in the Bible to show fullness, completion, and perfection (Gen 2:2-3; Dan 9:25).
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES (THE NUMBER SEVEN)
KJV alternate rendering of the Greek adjective monogenes (John 1:14,18; 3:16,18; Heb 11:17; 1 John 4:9). Elsewhere the KJV rendered the term “only [child]” (a son in Luke 7:12; 9:38; a daughter in 8:42). KJV, NKJV, NASB render monogenes as “only begotten [son]” when refering to Jesus (cp. NASB margin, “unique, only one of His kind”), but most modern translations (ESV,NAB,NJB,NLT,NRSV,REB,TEV) render the term consistently as “only.” NIV, HCSB render the term “One and Only [Son].”
Continue reading DEFINITION OF THE DAY (ONLY BEGOTTEN)
Engaging in sexual intercourse prior to marriage. The Song of Songs is an extended poem extolling the virtue of sexual fidelity between a king and his chosen bride. Sexual desire runs strong throughout the song as the king and his beloved anticipate their union together. At intervals the poet repeats a refrain counseling sexual restraint: “Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you, by the gazelles and the wild does of the field; do not stir up or awaken love until the appropriate time” (Song 2:7 HCSB; 3:5; 8:4). To the church in Corinth, a city well-known for
Continue reading BIBLE DEFINITION OF THE DAY (PREMARITAL SEX)
Heavenly record (Luke 10:20; Heb 12:23) written by God before the foundation of the world (Rev 13:8; 17:8) containing the names of those who are destined because of God’s grace and their faithfulness to participate in God’s heavenly kingdom. Those whose names are in the book have been born into God’s family through Jesus Christ (Heb 12:23; Rev 13:8), remain faithful in worship of God (Rev 13:8; 17:8), are untouched by the practice of abomination and falsehood (Rev 21:27), are faithful through tribulation (Rev 3:5), and are fellow workers in the work of Jesus Christ (Phil 4:3). The book of life will be used along with the books of judgment at the final judgment to separate the righteous and the wicked for their respective eternal destines (Rev 20:12, 15: 21:27).
Continue reading DEFINITION OF THE DAY (BOOK OF LIFE)