E-pistle for July 25, 2008
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E-pistle
Dr. Dan Hite, President FreeWay Foundation July 25, 2008
The Victory That Overcomes The World
(I John 5:1-21)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the faith that overcomes
1. Overcoming faith starts with a personal belief and acceptance of Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, v. 1.
2. Overcoming faith includes not only receiving God's love through Christ,
but also loving others, vv. 1-2.
3. Overcoming faith includes knowing and obeying God's will and His
commandments, v.3.
4. Overcoming faith is triumphant in this world through the finished work of
Christ, vv. 4-6.
II. Meditation: on the "witnesses" of God's truth
1. Three witnesses in heaven, v. 7:
(1) The Father
(2) The Word (Jesus Christ, John 1:1)
(3) The Holy Spirit
These three are one . . . the Trinity.
2. Three witnesses on earth, v. 8:
(1) The Spirit: Who indwells believers on earth.
(2) The water: baptism which testifies of saving faith.
(3) The blood: Christ's blood applied to sinful souls to bring
forgiveness and cleansing.
These three agree as one.
III. Revelation: on John's reassuring possibilities
1. IF we receive the witness of man, the witness of God is greater, v. 9.
2. IF we ask anything according to His will, He hears us, v. 14.
3. IF we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the
petitions that we have asked of Him, v. 15.
4. IF a Christian prays in intercession for another believer, God will hear and
answer that petition, unless the back-slider already has committed "the sin
leading to death" . . . has sinned away his day of grace, v. 16.
IV. Applications: as a Christian, I need to . . .
1. Establish my faith upon the infallible witnesses provided by God.
2. In intercessory prayer, first seek to know what God's will is concerning the
person, situation, or circumstance.
3. Believe, with unshakable faith, that God will and does answer all my prayers
which are according to His revealed will to me.
4. Rather than criticizing or condemning a believer who has fallen into sin, pray
for God to restore that person to full spiritual fellowship.
Nahum Promises God's Victory
(Nahum 3:1-19)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. God's judgment may seem overly harsh, but this chapter shows that He is
justified in His condemnation of Assyria.
2. Nineveh was a "bloody city," v. 3, a city guilty of shedding the innocent
blood of many other nations.
3. Nineveh was a city known for deceit, falsehood, theft, drunkenness, and
sexual debauchery, vv. 1, 4.
4. Such vice was an offence to God, so His verdict of judgment was inevitable,
vv. 2-3, 5-7.
5. Like No Amon, an Egyptian city that fell despite numerous allies and strong
defenses, Nineveh could not escape divine judgment, vv. 8-13.
6. All efforts to survive proved futile, vv. 14-15; troops scattered, leaders perished,
and the people fled to the mountains, vv. 16-18.
7. God's judgment fell on Nineveh, and the nations which Assyria once victimized
so mercilessly, rejoiced and celebrated in response to the news, v. 9.
II. Meditation and Revelation: on the spiritual implications seen here
1. Sin is serious in the sight of God; though His mercy and patience may cause Him
to withhold judgment for a time, God ultimately will announce a day of reckoning.
2. When God's righteous judgment is unleashed, no human power can withstand its
force; God's dominion extends over all the universe, and He sits on the throne to
to judge all individuals and nations.
3. Nahum calls us to serious self-examination, and he warns against the subtle sin of
believing that life can be lived apart from the will and ways of God.
4. Nahum cautions us about becoming overly smug and complacent in our faith . . . for
Assyria, once used as God's instrument (Isaiah 10:5-6), became the object of His
wrath: "Behold, I am against you," 2:13.
III. Applications: as a Christian, I need to
1. REPENT: self-examination (in the light of the spiritual implications discussed
above) should lead me into wholehearted and sincere repentance.
2. RECEIVE GOD'S GRACE: His judgment against the sinful is offset by His
mercy and comfort available to those who come to Him in humble faith and
complete devotion.
3. REJOICE: God's goodness and justice shall prevail, though circumstances
may seem contradictory; victory is mine in Jesus!
4. RENEW MY EVANGELISTIC FERVOR: persons in sin will suffer the wrath
of God in hell; I must reach out to them with the saving message of the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
Those Who Itch For Success
by: Harvey Mackay
(This is only part of the article)
One of the questions I am asked most often is how to attain success. That's a tough
question to answer because success is different for each individual.
I still remember one of my college professors who was often asked how he judged
whether his students were successful. He always said, "If they are happy, they are successful."
Years ago, I wrote about a formula for success: determination plus goal setting plus
concentration equal success. I received a letter from a Harvard graduate saying that I was
missing a fourth quality - - courage. His point was that determination could be undermined
by the fear that comes with a new venture.
Let me take that one step further. In my opinion, many people fail to achieve their
goals not because they are afraid of the job at hand but because they have grown so familiar
in the comfort zone of their job - - they are afraid to meet the challenge of a new job. I once
heard someone joke that the road to success is marked with many tempting parking places.
Great acts of courage tend to be committed by entrepreneurs. I have seldom met
anyone who left his or her job, whether fired or voluntarily, started his or her own business
and regretted it. What these people always regret is not having done it sooner. Even people
who started a business and failed are satisfied because they tried.
I watched a fascinating TV program on an education channel about "Why do men die
for their country?" They examined the U.S. Marines, the French Foreign Legion, and the
British Commandos. They discussed the importance of discipline and tradition.
However, the most important reason why men died for their country was their love
for their fellow man. They interviewed a soldier who related a most revealing story. Wounded
in combat, he was convalescing in a hospital when he discovered that his fellow soldiers
were going on a dangerous mission. He escaped from the hospital and went with them. Then,
while participating in this mission, he was wounded again.
When they interview him he said, "You work with people and you live with them, and
you soon realize that your survival depends on one another."
Whether it is a military battle, a basketball game or work, we can only enjoy success
when we realize that we must be able to count on each other.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mackay's Moral: "Some people succeed because they are destined to,
but most people succeed because they are determined
to."
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