Category Archives: genuineness

the easy way and heaven’s king

Posted on June 28, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Matthew 7:13-29.  Jesus concludes his instructions to his disciples in his sermon on the mount with four figures of speech – all having to do with the dangers of counterfeit Christianity.   He talks about two ways of trying to … Continue reading →

Posted in commitment, conditional immortality, destruction in hell, discernment, genuineness, kingdom of God, leadership | Tagged | Leave a comment

testing heaven’s king

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Matthew 4:1-11.  Jesus responded rightly to each of the devil’s temptations in this narrative.  He used the word of God to combat the challenges the tempter brought to him.  Yet it is equally clear that there are fundamental flaws in … Continue reading →

Posted in dependence upon God, faith, genuineness, Jesus Christ, prayer, scriptures | Tagged | Leave a comment

mission: avoid distraction

Posted on June 10, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Titus 3:8b-11.   Paul instructs Titus to proclaim the gospel of justification by grace (5) and to also insist that the church devote themselves to good works (1, 8, 14).  The good works are in response to the Holy Spirit’s washing … Continue reading →

Posted in church, commitment, divisions, faithfulness, genuineness, gospel, grace, sanctification, witness | Tagged | 1 Comment

mission: insist on good works

Posted on June 9, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Titus 3:1-8a.  Paul is the champion of salvation by grace, apart from works.  He teaches that in this text when he says that God “saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own … Continue reading →

Posted in church, eternal life, faith, genuineness, gospel, grace, holiness, hope, integrity, missions, witness | Tagged | 1 Comment

mission: demonstrate true godliness

Posted on May 28, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

  1 Timothy 4.  Paul predicts a time in the future (from his standpoint) when the church would experience a departure from true godliness and follow deceitful spirits and teachings of demons (1).  He charged Timothy to “put these things … Continue reading →

Posted in church, discernment, faithfulness, future, genuineness, holiness, hypocrisy, truth, worldview | Tagged | Leave a comment

when Christ comes, the delusion will end

Posted on May 22, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12.  Paul warns the Thessalonian believers that they were in danger of being deceived about the second coming of Christ. Someone was teaching that the second coming had already happened.  Paul warned that a strong delusion  was about … Continue reading →

Posted in church, discernment, genuineness, Jesus Christ, second coming, worldview | Tagged | 2 Comments

Christ, our substance

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Colossians 2:6-23.  Christ is our substance, we do not need to grasp at the shadows that others seek. Christ is the reality that has set us free from dependence upon the philosophies of earth and false allegiances of the heavenly … Continue reading →

Posted in dependence upon God, discernment, genuineness, grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, sanctification, the cross | Tagged | 1 Comment

things that defile

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

2 Corinthians 6:11-7:16.  The temple under the old covenant was a building in Jerusalem, and it could be defiled by people who came in contact with certain things: a dead body, certain animals, etc.  Since the death of Christ on … Continue reading →

Posted in faithfulness, forgiveness, genuineness, holiness, idolatry, obedience, relationship with God | Tagged , | Leave a comment

when worship makes God sick

Posted on April 7, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Isaiah 1.  The Israelites are continuing their worship in the temple, but there is so much wickedness in their lives that the worship makes God sick.  He threatens to come as a consuming fire and destroy them. Only a few … Continue reading →

Posted in genuineness, integrity, judgment, mortality, relationship with God, works, worship | Tagged | Leave a comment

the debts he calls us to pay

Posted on March 18, 2011 by Jefferson Vann

Romans 13.  Believers have been set free from the debt to sin and are now free to live in the righteousness given to us through the grace and mercy of God.  Our change in status before God includes a new … Continue reading →

Posted in commitment, genuineness, grace, kingdom of God, love, self-control, submission, the flesh, worship | Tagged | 2 Comments