DBS will be making a presentation at about our work at the Memphis School of Preaching Lectureship on March 31, 2009. The school has been a great blessing to the brotherhood for many decades. I am 1994 graduate of the school and count the time spent and the lessons learned there invaluable to my life as a Christian and gospel preacher.

On a related note, we have begun working with them to digitize the cassette tape library of the school. Their collection is several thousand lessons in size and has some real gems in it that have basically been unheard for many years. We have completed the first 300 or so tapes and hope to finish up many more of them soon.

Our total collection now stands at over 6,200 lessons. You can find them all by visiting the "DBSN Library" link in the left-hand navigation menu.

Forgiveness

By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.

(Pro 16:6)

Whether between God and man or man and man, forgiveness is vital to every relationship. Every man has sinned against God and in every relationship there are times when offences enter in it. At some point every person is going to be on the side of needing forgiveness or giving it. We must learn what it takes to forgive.

The Proverbs' writer states two things that are necessary to remove the offence of sin. To purge iniquity both truth and mercy are required. It is interesting that as Jesus came into the world, John remarked, "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ"(John 1:17). God's method of bringing salvation into the world was the perfect manifestation of grace and truth in Jesus. In dealing with each other, our actions must have those same qualities.

Forgiveness requires truth. The facts do matter. What is right and what is wrong matters. Not everything that happens in life is simply a matter of opinion. There are times one person is right and another is wrong. There are actions that are always right and actions that are always wrong. Every healthy relationship is going to have a strong foundation in these issues of truth. As our actions in a relationship infringe on the statements of truth that God has made, we must acknowledge that. What someone else has done to push us to take a wrong action or whatever circumstances influenced our choice do not matter. Our relationships will only be healthy, if we acknowledge our own actions. They are the only actions that we can control. It is that acknowledgement of our actions (and so to reality of truth) that allows forgiveness to occur. Until there is an admission of wrong-doing, no one will seek or be able extend forgiveness.

Forgiveness also requires mercy. It is a great temptation when one has been wronged to seek the last drop of remorse from the wrong-doer. It is a choice we make to stop short of that impulse. But it is an important one. It is a god-like one. God's mercy removed us from punishment and his grace elevated us to a place of honor. This was all done when he had no obligation to us at all. Relationships that fail to have mercy in them will be a series of conflicts wherein each person seeks the upper hand over his counterpart. They are doomed to failure. Mercy is the glue that allows our bonds to last. We all fail. We all need mercy. Without mercy, the list of offences in a relationship will so grow so long that the good will never be seen. Mercy is at the heart of forgiveness.

Sin destroys everything it touches. If it is not purged from your relationship to God, hell awaits. If it is not purged from the relationships we have now, we may already have a hell on earth.

Jonathan

I Know that God Saves by Grace

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
(Eph 2:8-9)

No one has ever been saved without the grace of God. Whatever else can be said about salvation, that fact can not be changed or diminished. From the very first of God’s judgments on sin down to the final judgment of God on the world, grace is always present. It has to be. Grace is a part of God’s nature. Just as he is a God who is love and is holy, he is a God who is gracious. Peter even gives God the appellation, “the God of all grace” as he closes his first epistle (1 Peter 5:10). God is the definition of all that is gracious.

True grace can only be known by knowing and learning of God. The significance of that point needs to be understood. There has never been a time that God has not been gracious toward man. Adam and Eve walked out of the garden alive only because God is gracious. The blood offerings of the Old Testament are made available to Israel only because God is gracious. That those same animal sacrifices had the power to grant atonement to God’s people is an act of God’s grace.

We need to careful about how we speak of the works of God and especially of the Law of God. It is fashionable to speak of the Old Testament as a system of law and the New Testament as a system of grace. The Bible knows no such dichotomy. How could the “God of all grace” give a law to man that was devoid of grace? Grace abounds in the Old Testament. Noah was saved by grace, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” (Gen 6:8). Moses knew he had found grace in God’s sight (Ex. 33:18ff). The Psalmist knew that the upright were blessed because of God’s grace (Ps. 84:11). Ezra blessed God for sparing a remnant of the exiles to return and rebuild the fallen temple through his grace (Ezra 9:8). Some are too quick to portray the law given to govern and train the people of Israel as only a vehicle of condemnation and burden to them. That is not God’s nature. God gave that law because he is gracious. That law was an expression of his grace. David saw God’s grace in the Law. He understood God gave the law for man’s good, “The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. . .” (Ps. 19:7). David saw a path to revival in the law, not a vehicle of condemnation. He saw grace in God’s law – too many today see only God’s judgment. We must never lose sight of God’s grace in his law.

That grace also permeates the New Testament. The gospel is a message of grace. We are saved by his grace (Eph 2:8-9). His word to us is a “word of grace” (Acts 14:3). The gospel is called simply the “gospel of grace” (Acts 20:24). We are told to continue in God’s grace (Acts 13:43) and to grow in that same grace (2 Peter 3:18). Every part of man’s walk with God is founded on grace.

I know that God’s grace is foundational in my relationship to him. I know that without his grace there is no system, no law or way by which I will ever be saved. If you ever come across a teaching or suggestion that in any way diminishes the necessity of God’s grace, reject it. We need to live each day knowing that every action that God has taken on man’s behalf flows out of his gracious nature.

Jonathan

The first occurrence of the word, “fatherless” in most translations of the Bible is in Exodus 22:22. The passage reads, “You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless” (Ex. 22:22-24).

God’s special concern for fatherless children is seen powerfully in the Law of Moses. In Deuteronomy 14 and again in Deuteronomy 26, Israel is given instructions for a special tithe that in part would be used to provide for the fatherless children among them (14:28-29; 26:12-14). Israel was commanded to leave portions of their fields unpicked to ensure there would be food for these children (Deut. 24:19ff). Proverbs 23:10 warns fellow Israelites not to take over the land of any fatherless child. God wanted his nation to pay special attention to these children.

Fatherless children are never far from the mind of God. They are said to find mercy in the hand of God (Hosea 14:3). God is called the “Father of the fatherless” (Ps. 68:5). He watches over them with an intense care (Ps. 146:9). He often equates the doing of righteous and justice with favorable treatment of the fatherless (Is. 1:17). With God, doing evil to these innocent people is on a level of idolatry (Jer. 7:6)

The fatherless are only directly mentioned once in the New Testament in James 1:27, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” But God’s view of them is still evident. Pure religion is defined as visiting a fatherless child in his time of need.

The word translated “visit” in James 1:27 is made up of the Greek prefix, “epi” (upon or over) and the word “skopos” (sight). A noun form of that same root is the word which translated as “overseers” (Acts 20:28). That passage refers to the work of elders. God charged a special group of men in his kingdom with the task of looking over and caring for his church. James extends that same thought, not just to elders, but to everyone who professes a pure religion.

The Father of the fatherless has charged each faithful child of his to become an overseer of the fatherless child. Serving these most innocent and vulnerable souls is not someone else’s task. It is mine and it is yours. Let us never turn our eyes away and allow these precious souls in God’s sight to feel as if He had abandoned them.

Jonathan

I Know that God Will Judge

The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world . . .

(Acts 17:30-31)

How can a loving God who desires all men to be saved bring judgment? I do not know. I know that God is holy (Lev. 19:2). I know that God is just (Rom. 3:26). I also know that all of the facets of his nature work together in harmony. But I will never be able answer all of the questions that arise as we all try to understand the harmony within that amazing diversity.

But the point of this study is to remind us, that we do need to answer all of those questions. We just need to respect the guideposts that God has given us.

If your understanding of God leads you to make the statement, “I just don’t believe that a loving God would ever send someone to hell,” you need to read and trust the scriptures anew. If you struggle in coming to grips with this conflict, it is wholly understandable. Anyone who tells you they have every answer to this conflict is naïve or too prideful.

You have good reason to reflect and meditate on these things. But let me encourage you to stay within the markers God has left us. The same Bible from which you learned that God is love and from which you have been convicted that God wants to save you is the same book that pointedly says that God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world.

It is not our calling to explain every mystery of God – although we should never stop trying. No, it is our mission to live in view of what we do know.

I know a day judgment is coming. I do not know when it is. I do not fully understand why it is. But it is my passion to live because it is. One day I will stand before his throne to have my life examined. The sentence he proclaims will determine my eternal fate. That is what the Bible teaches.

It teaches it for you also. Judgment is coming. And only until that day or until your life ends will you have an opportunity to prepare. Get ready.

But do so in hope. The guideposts we have already examined provide hope. You will be judged. But you will be judged by a God who is infinite in love and wants nothing more than to save your soul.

Added the 30 video lessons from the Inaugural World Wide Lectureship.  The WWL was hosted by Digital Bible Study from December 2-6, 2007.  It was an interactive online only lectureship.  It included webcasts from 9 congregations from 5 different states as well as from the campus of Freed-Hardeman University.  The lectureship had over 5,000 visitors and 100,000 web site hits during its five days.

Originally, it was hosted hosted at a sister website to this.  However, we have merged the two sites together and are now hosting the archived lessons here.   Plans are being developed to bring back the World Wide Lectureship in 2009.

Speakers and topics are listed below.  As always, the entire file list can be found in the DBSN Library by following the link on the left.

Speaker List:

Scott Harp - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Every Scripture is Inspired of God

Harold Savage - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God Created the Heaven and the Earth

Eric Owens - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God Would All Men to be Saved

Phillip Satterfield - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God is Love

Tommy Tidwell - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God is Holy

David Decker - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God is Faithful

Dan Jenkins - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - All Have Sinned

David Sproule - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Sin is a Transgression of the Law

Willie Smith - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - The Wages of Sin is Death

Jerry Jenkins - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - The Word was Made Flesh

Drew Kizer - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Christ Died for Our Sins

Chuck Webster - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - He is Risen

Maxie Boren - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - By Grace We are Saved

Hardeman Nichols - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Without Faith It is Impossible to Please Him

Jeff Jenkins - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Faith Without Works is Dead

Ron Williams - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God Commands All Men to Repent

Glenn Colley - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Jesus Saves Them That Obey Him

E R Brannan - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Baptism Saves Us

Steve Baggett - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Jesus is the Savior of the Body

Paul Darety - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - There is No Condemnation in Christ

Steve Kirby - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - I Will Never Leave You

Dale Jenkins - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - We are More Than Conquerors

Phil Sanders - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - The Greatest of These is Love

Bill Watkins - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Love Covers Sin

Sam Jones - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - We Must Worship in Spirit and Truth

Earl Edwards - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - God Gives Grace to the Humble

Ralph Gilmore - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - We Reap What We Sow

Tim Alsup - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Your Life is a Vapor

Bobby O'Dell - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - The Dead Will Rise

John DeBerry - World Wide Lectureship (2007) - Judgment is Coming

Added 9 video lessons from the 12th Annual South Florida Lectureship hosted by the Palm Beach Lakes church of Christ in West Palm Beach, FL. The lectures occurred from November 9-11, 2007.

The files can be found in the DBSN Library.  The Library link is found on the left.

Speakers and topics include:

Panel - "Questions and Answers"

Kerry Cain - "The Extraordinary Faith of Ordinary People"

Al Washington - "Faith and the Beauty of Worship"

Bill Goodpasture - "Building My Faith in the Deity of Jesus"

Dave Miller - "My Faith and the Treasure of God's Word"

Al Washington - "Building My Invincible Faith"

Chris Mitchell - "My Faith and the Power of Prayer"

Hardeman Nichols - "The Unwavering Faith of Abraham"

Phil Sanders - "Increase My Faith"

I Know that God Wants to Save

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

(2 Peter 3:9 ESV)

“The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours”

(Jonathan Edwards, Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God, 1741).

For many people, the greatest conflict in understanding God’s nature is his desire to save man, while at the same time promising that he will judge. In time, we will look at both side of this issue. Let’s first turn our attention to his desire to save.

Peter’s statement above is clear. God wants no one to be lost. Paul echoed that same sentiment as he wrote, “This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1Ti 2:3-4). Jesus completes that testimony with his invitation, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Mat 11:28).

Could this guidepost be any more clearly marked? God wants to save you. God wants to save everyone. There has never been a person so vile, so evil as to stand outside of his desire to save. Every soul he has ever created, he views as worthy of redemption.

On a personal level, he wants to save you. On one occasion Jesus asked, “. . . what shall a man give in return for his soul” (Matt 16:26)? That question has been answered rightly only once. Only one offering could provide for the salvation of even one man. And only God could supply it. Jesus died for every man. But he also died for just you. God emptied heaven itself to save you.

This guidepost means that your life is valuable. God thought you worthy of saving. Mr. Edwards said that God “abhors you.” I must disagree. Even while you were his enemy, God loved you (Rom. 5:8-9). He has done all he can because you are his treasure. He wants to bring you home.

Sometimes life makes that hard to remember. Moral, ethic and personal failures pull our eyes away from his saving love. Fear, too, often creeps in. That’s why we must never lose sight of this indicator on God’s pathway. God wants to save you. Never let doubt, circumstance or temptation to convince you otherwise.

Jonathan

Added 9 video lessons from the 13th Annual South Florida Lectureship hosted by the Palm Beach Lakes church of Christ in West Palm Beach, FL. The lectures occurred from November 7-9.

The files can be found in the DBSN Library.  The Library link is found on the left.

Speakers and topics include:

Dan Jenkins – Trusting in the Providence of God

Rick Brumback – Walking by His Rule

Dan Chambers – Magnifying Christ in My Body

Allen Webster – Shining as Lights in the World

David Lipe – Knowing Heaven Awaits the Faithful

Bill Burton – Finding the Peace Which Surpasses Understanding

Rick Brumback – Living as a Citizen of Heaven

Robert Martin – Work Out Your Own Salvation

Dan Jenkins – Questions and Answers

I Know that God is Love

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

(1 John 4:8 ESV)

If you know the Parable of the Talents, you know that the one talent servant failed in his task. But the reason he failed is important. He failed because he misunderstood the nature of the master,

“Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” (Mat 25:24-25)

God’s people in the days of the prophet Micah suffered with the same problem,

"With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" (Mic 6:6-7)

Humans seem to have a propensity to view divinity in a harsh light. God’s people have been guilty of it, as we have noted. But so has mankind in general. Many of the ancient mythological stories of the gods portray them as beings with wild swings of emotions and petty outbursts. Take for example the goddess Athena. As a result of having lost a weaving contest to a moral named, Arachne, Athena turned the young girl into a spider, condemning her and her descendents to an eternity of weaving.

We have a hard time accepting the love of God. Christians are often too ready to believe that God longs to condemn more than he longs to redeem. That misunderstanding leads to fear and ultimately it gives birth to bitterness and resentment.

Your relationship to God is built upon your view of his nature. Use this guidepost as the starting point. God is love. That starting point creates trust. If I trust in his love, I trust that his commands for me are for my good. Eve failed here. She believed Satan’s lie that God just wanted to keep good things away from her. Because she distrusted the character of God, she was deceived into believing that his law only wanted to prevent her from being “like God” (Gen. 3:5).  That failure of trust cost her the Garden and so much more. We can lose that same intimacy and fellowship, if we miss this guidepost.

If you fail to trust that God is on your side and is seeking to help you, your relationship with him is doomed to failure.  The Hebrews’ writer said as much as he talked about the necessity of faith, “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Heb 11:6).  Unless we believe (trust) that God is longing to reward those who seek after him (in other words, love them), we will lack the sustaining motivation to seek after him.

God is love. Every action he has taken comes out of that fact. From the offering of his Son for our redemption to the judgment of the world, none his works can be understood if we ignore this vital guidepost.