A Reinforcement in the Faith of Believers In Christ, and An Appeal To Those Who Do Not

Why Be a Christian in the First Place?

Is There Really a Point to It All?

(1^st Corinthians chapter 15, verses 1-19)

Since the 15^th chapter of 1^st Corinthians is noticeably longer than the one we just completed, I will be dividing chapter 15 into 4 lessons to allow me to get into some serious depth regarding the apostle Paul’s letters to the early churches. As we begin to read at verse 1, we find Paul reminding the early Corinthian church of the reasons for the faith of the whole congregation, which is unconditional belief and unshakable confidence in the saving power of the shed Blood of Christ. I would liken this portion of Scripture to a coach going over some of the basic fundamentals of the game during a team meeting, reminding the players that if they stick to the basics consistently, they will ultimately win. Being a follower of Jesus is a lot like that, and so you may think of Christ as your Spiritual coach. Here is an example of that from Scripture.

“Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the Gospel I preached to you, which you have received and on which you have taken your stand. By this Gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the Word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all He appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not deserve to even be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.” (1^st Corinthians 15, verses 1-11)

The basis of Christianity and of belief in Christ as the Son of God is summed up in Paul’s words “ …Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time…….” So we have basic fundamental teaching and instruction here from Paul the apostle to the brethren in the early Church, which is the ultimate sacrificial offering of Jesus himself for the sins of all humankind who freely accept His eternal salvation.

Without this faith, all the good deeds and personal sacrifice in the world will do us no good at all, and we will have “believed in vain”. Based on this portion of scripture I would say that one of our primary tasks as practicing Christians is to make sure our belief is genuine – that is, that we exercise our faith in such a way that our passion for Christ strives to approach and imitate His passion for all humankind when He died upon the cross. As He gave his all for us, so we must be willing to give our very best for Him. In fact, a time is coming soon to North America when Christians will begin to be slain for their faith. The apostles saw the risen Lord in person, but we believe having not seen Him (yet).

At this point I would ask that all those reading this who are knowledgeable about the Bible, or who have been Christians for a very long time like I have, to bear with me for a few moments while I explain something to the newer believers regarding what Paul wrote about himself towards the end of the above passage. Paul wrote, “For I am the least of the apostles and do not deserve to even be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me”. Paul is referring to his initial meeting with the Spirit of Christ on the road to Damascus, which is documented in chapter 9 of the book of Acts in the New Testament. He was blinded for 3 days and instructed to go to a certain house where he met the apostle Peter, who laid his hands on Paul and healed his blindness.

Before all this happened, Paul was one of the leaders of Judaism at that time who actively persecuted Christians prior to his own conversion. The Book of Acts also documents Paul’s being present at the execution of St. Stephen in chapter 6. And yet ever since meeting the Lord on the road to Damascus, Paul had been converted and was actively preaching and teaching throughout the known world of that time. This is why Paul calls himself “the least of the apostles”, but Paul does one thing here that we all should learn to emulate. He gives all the credit for his conversion to his faith in God through His grace, taking none for himself. He even mentions working harder in his new ministry than anyone else in an attempt to make up for his previous life as a persecutor of the followers of Christ.

God gets all the credit for our own conversions because He loved us first, not the other way around. Remember what Jesus said, “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but those who humble themselves will be exalted”. Therefore, if we humble ourselves in our faith by giving all the credit for our salvation and well-being to Jesus, and to God’s grace (which means unmerited favor), we will be rewarded with higher places in heaven when our physical lives are over and our eternal Spiritual lives begin. I will teach more on this topic at some point in the future. But for now, I will continue today’s study at verse 12.

“But if it has been preached that Christ was raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that He raised Christ from the dead. But He did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” (1^st Corinthians 15, verses 12-19)

Based on what the apostle Paul wrote just above, perhaps there was some disagreement among the members of the early Churches regarding whether the resurrection of Christ was real or a myth. What we are seeing here is one of the first indicators of denominational teaching. Paul clearly wanted this practice stopped immediately, but history teaches us that not only did this not occur, but the fragmentation of the original church into divisions that were set against one another is an unfortunate reality that continues into modern times. But Paul responded back then by pointing out an obvious truth, which is that being a Christian while not believing in the resurrection of Christ, along with all who have believed on and trusted in His name, defeats the very purpose of our beliefs.

The crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on the morning of the third day is the very basis for all Christian faith. Even the two greatest commandments as they were taught by Jesus in the four gospels – love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself – are impossible to follow without a belief in the deity of God through Christ. And a belief in God through Jesus Christ is unworkable without the strongly held belief that Jesus rose from the dead, and that in so doing, He gave all of humankind a chance to have the same opportunity to have eternal life without end, which He already has. None of us can ever achieve immortality on our own, but we can all have it through Christ, the Son of God. And that’s a goal worth shooting for every single day of the year.

Wisdom Continues to be Taught to the Willing. Would You Like Some Too?

Wisdom Continues to Be Taught to the Willing

By the Holy Spirit of Our Risen Savior

First Corinthians Chapter Two

This week’s ongoing Biblical study of the writings of the apostles will entail all of First Corinthians chapter two, since there are only 16 verses anyway. Still in all, there is quite a bit of Spiritual nourishment packed into these 16 verses, including what the apostle Paul called “God’s secret wisdom”. So let’s begin chapter two, commencing at verse one.

“When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” (1st Corinthians 2, verses 1-5)

The apostle Paul is writing this letter in the past tense after having already established the church at Corinth. The other thing that there seems to be abundant evidence of is Paul’s apparent humility, such as when he wrote, “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” Paul was the primary founding father of this particular church. As such Paul could have established a cult of personality around himself based on his authority as evangelist and leader. But he chose not to do so. This speaks volumes about the high level of Paul’s integrity, including his marked refusal to abuse his authority even though he probably could have if he had wanted to. Paul then continues his train of thought in verse 6.

“We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the King of Glory. However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’ – but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.” (1st Corinthians 2, verses 6-10)

“We speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.” God destined His secret wisdom for each of us since before the dawn of prehistory. From before the time when we were first formed in our mother’s womb, God’s secret wisdom was imparted to us by God. As Paul wrote, “’No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’ – but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.” We can achieve all Godly knowledge by the revelation of his Spirit. We come to know the revelation of God’s Spirit, first by prayer and fasting, and second by how we treat others. But prayer and fasting, which are of the utmost importance in our walk with Christ, are topics for another discussion. For now, let’s continue today’s study where we left off at verse 10.

“The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment: ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord, that they may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ. (1st Corinthians 2, verses 10-16)

“’No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’ – but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.” When our lives are over and we make it to heaven, we simply cannot imagine how magnificent it will be to live there with the Lord forever without end. We will find ourselves surrounded by beauty beyond compare that will last forever. I would not be able to describe heaven to you unless it was revealed to me by the Holy Spirit, and if you try to imagine what heaven will be like, whatever your mind can conceive of is there by the inspiration of that same Holy Spirit, not of your own imagination. That is why Paul wrote, “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.”

But people who do not have the Spirit can’t possibly do this, as Paul wrote, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” So if you ever find yourself in a group of people who put down Christians or who talk disparagingly or sarcastically about them, you now know where that kind of talk comes from. Remarks such as those go far beyond the mere opinions of humankind. Instead, they reveal an utter contempt for God, and by extension all that God has created, which includes ourselves.

The Bible also warns us that in the last days there will be “scoffers” among us who will inquire sarcastically, “Where is this Jesus that you said was coming back? Don’t you think He would have come back by now?” But we as Christians are to ignore this kind of foolish talk as we keep our eyes on the prize, which is Jesus crucified, risen, and ascended to heaven to be seated at His Father’s right hand. Besides, as Paul wrote, “we have the mind of Christ.” To have the mind of Christ is to obtain God’s secret wisdom that I started our study off with today. They go hand in hand together. This is a worthwhile goal for any of us to achieve.

So I want to encourage each and every one of you to find a way to incorporate this into your life. You won’t achieve it all at once, so be sure and give yourself plenty of time to get acclimated to this new way of living. Remember that practice makes perfect. If you approach your Christian values in this manner, you will find yourself with a much healthier outlook on life in general. And the peace of Christ, which is beyond all human understanding and comprehension, will be with you all. Amen!

Biblical studies this week with Minister Paul J. Bern will be part 3 of Acts chapter 27

The Shipwreck and Paul the Apostle’s Leadership

Acts chapter 27, verses 30-44

by Minister Paul J. Bern

Last week as we left off at verse 29 of Acts chapter 27, the storm that was battering the ship they were traveling on had become so severe that those on board were helping the crew toss the cargo overboard in an attempt to save the ship and themselves. Had this particular vessel been equipped with even so much as a rudimentary means of propulsion, they would have stood a fairly decent chance of being able to outrun, or go around, that storm. Instead, they found themselves caught up in or near the center of the storm as they were being propelled along with it. As we begin part 3 of this week’s lesson on Acts 27, we finally find their circumstances showing signs of changing for the better, starting at verse 30.

“30) In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. 31) Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, ‘Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.’ 32) So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away. 33) Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food – you haven’t eaten anything. 34) Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.’ 35) After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36) They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37) Altogether there were 276 of us on board. 38) When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.” (Acts 27, verses 30-38)

Without a doubt, the ship the apostle Paul was on had just experienced a near- catastrophe at sea. So much so that Paul said in verses 31-32, “’Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.’ So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away….” By now it is clear that Paul had quite a bit of sailing experience – even to the point of knowing what to throw overboard and what to keep. Sometimes life can be like that. There are points in life where we can see to go to our intended destinations, and still others where we can’t see our hands in front of our faces. But the Bible tells us repeatedly that he or she who holds out to the very end will most certainly be saved by the Blood of the Lamb. Selah’

Once again, beginning at verse 33, the apostle Paul begins to have a greater role, not in the fate of the ship, but in the lives of those who were on-board with him. Saying and doing what needed to be said or done, as he encouraged the men on board, he urged them to stop and eat something: ‘For the last fourteen days,’ he said, ‘you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food – you haven’t eaten anything. 34) Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive….. 35) After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all…..”

I don’t know about yourselves, but I don’t really see myself as being the type of personality that could endure 2 weeks at sea without eating anything. So it’s no wonder that, once Paul had baked the loaf of bread that he was about to consume, the rest of them joined in immediately, and I quote: “36) They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37) Altogether there were 276 of us on board. 38) When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.” And so, even though it was evident the storm was no longer their biggest problem, they had continued in a state of heightened alert since the ship had been damaged by the storm to the extent that it could no longer carry its cargo, let alone the 276 individuals on board. And so they continued to throw heavy objects overboard. Let’s hold that thought as we continue to the second half of this week’s study, beginning at verse 39.

“39) When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. 40) Cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. 41) But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf. 42) The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. 43) But the centurion wanted to spare Paul’s life and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. 44) The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely.” (Acts 27, verses 39-44)

Those aboard what was left of that ship were being presented with a choice in verse 39. Those choices were to go for that beach or attempt to find a better one with a deeper harbor. Either way the voyage was over. One thing I have learned over the years when it comes to being a servant of the Lord Almighty is to never try and second-guess God. Sometimes when a solution to a problem is presented to us, we are to be ever thankful as we receive it, even if it doesn’t seem right at first. This inevitably leads to our own differentiation between our emotions, our logic, and our souls or spirits. The apostles Paul and Luke, together with Aristarchus of Thessalonica, Julius their Roman guard, and the other 260 or so passengers and crew, knew that if they saw land with a suitable beach, they should make for the shoreline immediately. No speculation about a better landing spot was ever considered. They simply did what needed to be done.

Life and how we live it puts us in similar predicaments today. Sometimes we are presented with a choice that doesn’t seem to fit the situation at first. Oftentimes it’s because we’ve seen better choices in our own pasts, to the point that the current choice seems inadequate. That’s what that beach may have looked like just before they hit that sand bar. But first, they had to cut loose all that was holding the ship back. Like the freight back in verse 18 from last week’s study, everything that held the ship down or kept it from moving forward was thrown overboard or cut loose from the ship. Had any of these drastic steps not been taken, they would have sank before they got to the sand bar.

By now Paul’s strong faith in Christ, combined with the prayers from the people of faith who were on board, had made a deep impression on everyone else. So taken aback with the formidable faith of Paul and the others were the rest of those on board that Julius the centurion put an end to the plans of some of those on board who wanted the prisoners executed, as we saw in verses 42-43. Instead, he organized a plan of escape so that, at the end of the chapter, everyone reached shore without the loss of one single life. This is a really great ending to the harrowing tale of being lost at sea for two weeks, only to culminate in a successful landing with no fatalities. So what’s in store for them now? First, they needed to get their bearings straight by identifying their location. But that is something I must hold in reserve until next week’s Biblical lesson. So until then, stay safe and stay in tune with God.