Sermons and Biblical Studies

EPHESIANS 2:1–3 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1). Having set out the wonderful things that God has given us in Christ, Paul now contrasts them with the miserable condition of humanity. Man apart from Christ is dead. Because of our human pride, we want to soften up this … Continue reading “THE HUMAN CONDITION”

EPHESIANS 19b–23 And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be Head over everything for the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills everything in every way (Ephesians 1:22–23). Paul’s second prayer-outline reaches its peak in Ephesians 1:22–23. Paul has said that he wants us to increase … Continue reading “THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST”

EPHESIANS 1:15–19a I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints (Ephesians 1:18). Ephesians 1:3–14 is a long paean of praise for the things God has done for us. … Continue reading “GROWING IN WISDOM”

EPHESIANS 1:11–14 Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance … (Ephesians 1:13b–14a). Sometimes we see banks named “Deposit Guaranty.” These banks are assuring us that if we place our deposits with them, our money will be safe. That is because the … Continue reading “THE DEPOSIT OF THE SPIRIT”

EPHESIANS 1:11–14 In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will (Ephesians 1:11). The mystery of God’s saving purposes was fully revealed, says Paul, when the times reached their fulfillment (Ephesians 1:10). God had a plan from … Continue reading “THE PERFECT PLAN”

EPHESIANS 1:1–10 And He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ (Ephesians 1:9). When some liberal scholars see the word mystery in Ephesians 1:9 and other places in Paul’s writings, they get excited. Here is evidence, they say, that the “mystery religions” were … Continue reading “THE GOSPEL MYSTERY”

COLOSSIANS 1:13–14 For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:13–14). Most pastors and Bible teachers can testify that when they preach and teach about sin and judgment, about redemption, and about … Continue reading “SAVED BY THE BLOOD”

MATTHEW 28:11–20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). If God in His absolute sovereignty predestines a fixed number of people to be saved, why should we be involved in evangelism? The chief reason is … Continue reading “EVANGELISM AND ELECTION”

ROMANS 8:28–39 And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified (Romans 8:30). Today we begin a brief survey of the doctrine of predestination. The Westminster Confession of Faith states that “the doctrine of this high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special … Continue reading “THE MYSTERY OF PREDESTINATION”

EPHESIANS 1:3–10 For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight (Ephesians 1:4). Paul in Ephesians deals with the depth and richness of the doctrine of God, and that means that he deals with predestination. We cannot avoid predestination when we read the Bible … Continue reading “CHOSEN BY GOD”