Spirit of Faith

Sunrise

But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed, therefore I spoke,’ we also believe, therefore we also speak” (2 Corinthians 4:13).

Paul wrote this verse as he told the Corinthians of the ministry he had been given, the hardships he faced for it, and the hope he had for eternal life. He quoted from Psalm 116 – a psalm of deliverance – in which the psalmist expressed his faith and trust in God even in the face of severe trials.

We are to have the same spirit of faith that Paul had. Having this spirit of faith, we will do certain things.
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The Lord’s Prayer in the Garden

Jesus in the Garden

Shortly before His arrest, trials, beatings, and crucifixion, Jesus spent time in the Garden of Gethsemane praying to the Father. Some interpret this prayer in such a way as to try and show that Jesus was praying that He might escape death. They say that this was a moment of weakness for Jesus and describe Him as being in dread of the cross. They depict Jesus (perhaps unwittingly) as if He were some miserable coward. Can such an interpretation be correct?

Notice Matthew’s account of the Lord’s prayer:

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, ‘Sit here while I go over there to pray.’ And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. Then He said to them, ‘My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.’ And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.’ […] He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matthew 26:36-39, 42).

After reading of His prayer, let us seek to answer this question: Did Jesus wish to avoid the cross?
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“Hail, Rabbi!”

Judas is one of the most infamous characters in the Bible. Most people with at least a limited knowledge of the Bible know Judas as the one who betrayed Jesus.

How could Judas betray Jesus? After all, Judas was one of the twelve disciples. He had been with Jesus throughout His public ministry. Why would he betray Him?

We may have a clue given in the account of the betrayal about one of the reasons Judas could have betrayed Jesus. Notice Matthew’s account:
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Love for Others

David and Mephibosheth

King David has been described as a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). While there are many qualities of David we should emulate, we will focus on one in this article – his love for others.

David showed love for a broad range of people. We can see the love and kindness he shared with his friends – namely Jonathan (1 Samuel 18:1; 2 Samuel 1:26). He loved his enemies, even sparing Saul’s life twice when he had opportunity to kill him (1 Samuel 24:1-4; 26:2-11). Both instances came when Saul was pursuing David in order to kill him. We also can see David’s love given to those in need with his example of caring for Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 9).
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Liberty in Christ

2 Corinthians 3:17

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Corinthians 3:17).

This is a popular verse for those who like to pervert the gospel and try to condone or ignore sin. They say we have liberty in Christ; therefore, we do not have to concern ourselves with obedience or following the New Testament pattern.
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How to Approach the Bible

Bible Reading

Paul told Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). The instruction to accurately handle the word implies the need to study and learn the word of God (the King James Version actually uses the word study at the beginning of the verse). Timothy was to give diligence to the study and learning of God’s word.

This instruction applies to us as well. Therefore, it is good for us to read and study the Bible on different occasions: Bible classes, sermons, home Bible studies, our own personal reading and study, etc. It is something that we ought to do our whole life. So it is good to be reminded from time to time how we are to approach the Bible. We must approach it properly so we will benefit from our time studying.
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Some Thoughts from 2 Timothy

In February we’re going to start studying 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus in the Sunday morning Bible class I teach. Tonight I’ve been working on the study guides. When I write a study guide, I divide them up a lesson per chapter. At the top of the page in each lesson I list a key verse in the chapter that states one of the main points.

After I finished 2 Timothy, I noticed a pattern in the verses I had chosen. 2 Timothy 1:13, 2:15, 3:16, and 4:2.
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