The Furtherance of the Gospel Phil. 1:12-20
The things that happened to Paul, particularly his imprisonment, were for the furtherance of the gospel. Preaching the gospel was Paul’s principle concern. His persecutors thought once he was in prison, the gospel couldn’t continue to spread by his preaching. They were wrong. Ex 1:12 shows us that the more the Jews were afflicted the […]
Philippians 1:1-11 Paul’s Prayer
In the first eleven verses of this first chapter of Philippians, Paul tells the Philippians what he has been praying for them. The things he prays in this text are the same things that any preacher would want to be able to pray for his own congregation. Though Paul was not the pastor of these […]
What about Soul Winning Programs?
We get questions from time to time about salvation and the questions address a common problem. Soul winners aren’t sure when they can put another stripe on their sleeves and testify to their friends that they “have led another soul to Christ.” Truthfully, the intimidating thing about soul winning is first getting the conversation started […]
What are the sins of not witnessing?
According to John R. Rice, who was personally a great soul winner, there are seven sins that Christians commit when they are NOT witnessing for Jesus Christ. These sins are: 1. Disobedience to the main command of Jesus Christ. We commonly refer to the last two verses of Matthew as the “great commission,” (Matt. 28:19-20). When […]
Matthew 28:16-20 Forty Days before the Ascension
Matt 28:16-20 Forty Days before the Ascension CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO Following the appearances on the first day, Jesus appeared to his disciples several more times over the period of forty days before the ascension (Acts 1:3). Each time the Bible records something different that happened. In Matt 28:16-20, Jesus appeared to the disciples in […]
Matthew 28:1-15 The Resurrection of Jesus
Matt 28:1-15 The Resurrection of Jesus CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO It is easiest to view the resurrection of Jesus from the perspective of the various characters that were involved. The characters directly involved with the resurrection are: The Two Mary’s Matt 28:1 at first daylight, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joses […]
Matthew 27:55-56 The Burial of Jesus
Matt 27:55-56 The Burial of Jesus CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO We are given quite a few details concerning the people and events surrounding the burial of Jesus. Not all of the details are found in Matthew, but rather in all of the gospels. Therefore, we will break our study down into separate sections dealing with […]
Matthew 27:51-53 The Rending of the Veil
Matt 27:51-53 The Rending of the Veil CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO When Jesus Christ died on the cross, he yielded up the ghost, which is to say that his spirit went up to God (Lk 23:46, Ecc 12:7). Simultaneously, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom, the […]
Matthew 27:27-38 The Crucifixion
Matt 27:27-38 The Crucifixion CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO This study is a little more easily taught in a verse by verse fashion rather than topically because there are so many different things going on in the passage surrounding the crucifixion. So, we will comment on each verse according to the references below. Verses 27-28 – […]
Matthew 27:15-26 The Release of Barabbas
Matt 27:15-26 The Release of Barabbas CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO Companion passages are found in Mk 15:6-15; Lk 23:17-25; and Jn 18:39-40. We’ll study these along with the text to glean all the meat out of this passage. One of the ploys that Pilate tried, since he was determined to let Jesus go (Acts 3:13), […]