God Foretells Destruction

June 5, 2022 Background Scripture: Isaiah 47 Lesson Passage: Isaiah 47: 10 - 15 In today's lesson, Isaiah prophesied doom and destruction. All hope was going to be taken away for a prosperous future. Pride and self-confidence were going to be replaced with despair. And this message was sent as a message of hope for the people of God. How was that so? The prophetic word was against the Babylonian Empire. In the future, God would use the Babylonian Empire to discipline His people, Judah. Judah refused to heed the warnings of the prophets of God—even after her sister to the north, Israel, had fallen to the Assyrians. The people of Judah were sure they would always be able to repent before God punished them. to make matters worse, there were false prophets in Judah ensuring them that God would always protect them even when they went contrary to His will. Destruction would come to Judah at the hands of the Babylonian Empire. The capitol city of Jerusalem would be destroyed. The wall around the city would be burned down and the temple would be destroyed. The holy artifacts in the temple were going to be carried away as spoils of war. No nation was able to stand against the mighty Babylonian Empire—or so the Babylonians thought! The Babylonian rulers had become arrogant and believed that they would be an eternal empire on earth. They had no regard or respect for God. Isaiah prophesied their doom in today's text. It would be as a beautiful princess who would suddenly become a lowly slave. There would be no hope; as a widow who had loss both her husband and children at the same time. There were two reasons given for the destruction of the Babylonian Empire, First, as was previously stated, they had no regard for God. They believed they were self-existent and self-sustaining. Their scientific knowledge and technology were very advanced at that time in human history. Every people they conquered they incorporated their knowledge and skills. They skillfully separated the gifted and learned from the rest. Their earthly knowledge and wisdom caused them to become conceited. They believed that their future was in their own hands because they had the power to destroy anyone who dared to oppose them. Secondly, after God allows the Babylonian Empire to take Judah into captivity and destroy Jerusalem, they would treat the people of God harshly. They would show no respect or mercy towards them. This would be especially true of their treatment of the elderly. God made note of it They were trusting in their own wicked schemes and devices. Their arrogant independence would be part of their undoing. Just as they thought they needed no one to be successful, there would be no one to aid them in the day of their calamity. Before Judah's destruction, the prophets of God had warned the people to repent and return to the Lord. Their refusal would lead to their captivity. However, God was sending word by His prophet to remind them of their hope. God would not cast them off forever. God would avenge them from the cruelty of their enemy, the Babylonians. This should have been welcomed news to the people of God. God was again foretelling destruction. However, this time the destruction would come to their enemy and not to them. Yes, Judah was going to suffer defeat and humiliation at the hands of the cruel Babylonians. But God would avenge Judah by destroying the Babylonians. Robert C. Hudson May 20, 2022

The Fruit of Freedom

May 29, 2022 Background Scripture: Galatians 5:16 - 26 Lesson Passage: Galatians 5:16 - 26 Many trees look similar during the winter months. Some are still difficult to distinguish from others as they begin to bud and leaf during the spring. However, when harvest time arrives, mature trees are easier to classify because the fruit they bear makes it evident. Prior to the season of harvest, we only judge trees by their exterior characteristics. Many trees have very similar exterior characteristics. Fruit is produced externally from materials that come from within the tree. Put another way, the fruit of a tree is indicative of what is inside the tree. I believe Paul had this in mind when he wrote about the fruit of the Spirit. We cannot look at people's exterior and ascertain what is inside of them. On Sunday, most people dress and look like what we expect Christians to look like on Sunday. Of course, that's just a church environment. If someone comes to church for the first time, it is normally obvious. We know what church people tend to look like, and we assume that church people are Christians. Therein lies the problem. Assumptions are not necessarily based on facts. "True" Christians all have one thing in common, the indwelling Spirit of Christ. No matter what we look like on the outside, this is true of all Christians. The indwelling Spirit of Christ within us brings us freedom from the Law of sin and death. Only through the grace of God are we saved and given the Spirit as the guarantee of eternal life in the presence of Christ. One of the great things about having the Spirit of Christ is the fruit He produces in us. We don't need to wait for a season of harvest because Spiritual fruit is always in season. Neither do we need to wait until Sunday to determine who is who. In this world, Christians can be identified by the fruit they produce. Jesus taught this same principle relative to the vine and the fruit it produce. Paul describes the fruit of the Spirit in our Lesson Passage. Note that Paul did not write about "fruits" but the "fruit". Therefore, what Paul lists is not various fruits but various characteristics of Spiritual fruit. Spiritual fruit is described as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are made evident the more we endeavor to walk in the Spirit. We accomplish this by depending on the Spirit to guide us daily. We pray, deny ourselves, and focus on the needs of others more than ourselves. We surrender our will to the will of God. Otherwise, life is a constant struggle for a Christian. Our flesh rebels against the things of God. Our flesh lusts to satisfy itself with no regards for the needs of others. This struggle is made known to us by the Law. What the Law declares we should do is what our flesh resists doing. What the Law says we should not do is what our flesh desires to do. When we allow our flesh to be satisfied in the things that it wants, it produces its own fruit. That fruit is manifest through adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and others of that ilk. Note that these are the things that become addictive to the flesh. That is because all of these will lead you into spiritual bondage. Only through the Spirit of Christ will those chains be broken, and freedom loosed within the person. When that freedom is allowed to take control, then the fruit of freedom is evident. Robert C. Hudson May 2, 2022

Freedom, Love, and Faith

May 22, 2022 Background Scripture: Galatians 5:1 -15 Lesson Passage: Galatians -15 The previous lesson was about the bondage of sin and the Law's inability to remove that bondage. In today's lesson, Paul added to his discussion of grace. Jewish Christians were familiar with the Law and its ordinances and observances, They expected to still be accountable for taking those same prescribed actions even under grace. Although they had accepted Christ as their Savior, they continued to do what was required under the Law. Furthermore, they were instructing the Gentile converts to take the same actions. One such act was circumcision. Some members of the congregation of Galatia were requiring new members to be circumcised as specified by the Law. They believed circumcision was necessary for them to be accepted by God—despite grace. However, they were not aware that what grace invites believers into is very different from the requirements of the Law. Paul warned the Gentile Christians that trying to fulfill the Law after being accepted by Christ is akin to rejecting the grace they had received through Christ. Paul's question to them was, who told you this was necessary? Paul went on to express his frustration by suggesting that those who were teaching that the congregation had to be circumcised to be saved should themselves be circumcised from the congregation. The proper response for those saved by the grace of God through Christ is to live a life of faith and love. What does it mean to live in this manner? It means to love others as yourself. This is not an emotional response to others but a benevolent act of the will that is motivated by the needs of others. This is caring for others by assisting in the things they have need of—to the extent possible. It is through benevolent love that Christians demonstrate their faith. The more we focus on meeting the needs of others, the less we will focus on the selfish desires of our flesh. The earthly ministry of Jesus demonstrated a life of faith. Jesus constantly focused on meeting the needs of others. Jesus did it even when his disciples thought it was best for him not to. Jesus faced constant opposition and harassment from the Jewish religious leaders for the same reason. Jesus was scorned if he healed people on the Sabbath. Even if the person had suffered for many years and needed physical relief, the religious leaders had no pity for them if that relief came on a Sabbath. They were too busy attempting to meet the requirements of the Law to concern themselves with the needs of others around them. They did not know that Jesus' ministry of benevolent love was fulfilling the requirements of the Law, They were blinded by their own selfish desires. Unfortunately, this same attitude crept into the congregation at Galatia after some of the Jews surrendered to grace. They believed that their own effort in fulfilling the Law was indeed a necessary part of salvation. Some taught others, including Gentile converts, the same thing. This is what Paul was addressing in today's lesson. Grace had freed them from the bondage of sin. Sin is strengthened through the weakness, and desires, of human flesh. This newfound freedom in Christ should be expressed by a life of faith demonstrated through benevolence to others. This would lead to prioritizing the needs of others above one's own needs. Our faith in Christ has made us free from sin's bondage. Walking in love towards others allows us to express our faith in tangible ways; and that is real freedom. Robert C. Hudson May 2, 2022

Freedom and the Law

May 15, 2022 Background Scripture: Galatians 3 Lesson Passage: Galatians 3:18 - 29 Admittedly, we get a lot of things twisted when it comes to New Testament doctrine versus Old Testament doctrine. Perhaps nothing compares to the confusion that surrounds the relationship between the Law of the Old Testament and grace in the New Testament. I believe we should always start with the understanding that God gave both, the Law and grace. Knowing this, we can clearly conclude that there should be no contradiction between Law and grace. There is no contradiction in God. One method the Apostle Paul used to show there is no contradiction is by noting three important historical milestones. First, Paul pointed out the relationship between God and Abraham that was based on Abraham's belief in what God promised him. God accepted Abraham's belief in His promise as putting Abraham in right standing with Him. Put another way, God considered Abraham to be righteous based solely on the fact that Abraham sincerely believed what God told him. Second, Paul noted that God gave the Law through Moses over four hundred and thirty years after God had declared Abraham to be righteous based on Abraham's belief in Him. Those two points make it clear that Abraham had been considered in right standing with God over four centuries before the Law was given. Finally, Paul noted that Jesus came after both events proclaiming faith (belief in God) for salvation. All who accept the message of salvation by faith are brought into the right relationship with God. This happens without a person demonstrating the ability to live according to the Law. Then what is the purpose of the Law? The Law was decreed by God to define holiness. Holiness is the state that a person must attain if they are to be in the right relationship with God. We don't know what God requires for a person to be in right relationship with Him except we have knowledge of the Law. In other words, if a person wants to be in the right relationship with God based on their own efforts, the Law details how to do it. The catch is anyone who has attempted to do what the Law requires has failed miserably. Anyone who sincerely wants to live according to the Law is confronted with an internal conflict that makes the person desire to do the opposite. The Law is like a spiritual mirror that allows one to see the unholiness that exist within one's own flesh. It is that unholiness of human flesh that causes us to rebel against the Law of God. And therein is the purpose of the Law. The Law reveals in us the unholiness that is against God and leading to our eternal condemnation by God. Grace is the call of God that draws us to Him that He might impart holiness to us. And when we dare to believe what God promises us through the grace of Jesus Christ, God brings us into right standing with Him. With that, we are accepted by God in the same way Abraham was accepted, and we become the children of Abraham because of our faith. After that, we are called by God to walk in that faith. Any attempt to use our own effort to follow the Law, after having been saved by grace, is confusion on our part. No one is made holy by keeping the Law. The Law is available to show us our need of grace—even as a tutor teaches us so that we understand what we previously did not know. A mirror cannot fix anything a person sees that is wrong with them based on their reflection in it. The reflection allows one to see what needs fixing. The mirror cannot fix the reflection. Sin is bondage. The Law allows us to see the chains, but the Law cannot remove them. Only grace can give us freedom and that is accomplished apart from the Law! Robert C. Hudson May 2, 2022

Freedom for the Future

May 8, 2022 Background Scripture: Romans 8:18 - 30 Lesson Passage: Romans 8:18 - 30 Adult Christians have learned the value of delayed gratification as it concerned a formal education, learning a trade, or honing a new career skill. We did not enjoy the benefits until the process was completed. Some of us had to forgo getting a decent job and earning wages until the process was completed. Some of us missed vacations, trips to exotic places, the ability to buy some neat stuff— including a car and having our very own place to live. All of that made waiting difficult from an emotional standpoint. However, after the process was finished, we began to experience some of what we denied ourselves earlier. Even more than that, the waiting allowed us to complete a program of study, learn a trade, or gain a new skillset. In essence, the delay had provided us with a much better future than we previously could have hoped for. We were eventually grateful when we obtained those things we wanted in the past. The potential for other blessings which were previously unavailable to us had been added to us because we chose to wait. Delayed gratification is one of the best lessons to be learned by an adult. On the other hand, salvation is much better than delayed gratification. Salvation allows us to be grateful today and abundantly blessed in the future. Salvation matters today, but its ultimate reward is in the future. That's one of the messages of today's topic. Our recent lessons have examined various aspects of freedom for those who are in Christ Jesus. Yes, there is much gained today when Jesus is accepted as one's personal savior. New insights, attitudes, perspectives, and dimensions of joy are all experienced by Christians. None of those things remove all burdens and hardships that afflict people in this world. In this life, we have tribulations, disappointments, and setbacks. These are experienced by Christians as well as non-Christians. Salvation in Christ Jesus does not exempt us from the trials and tribulations of this world. How Christians handle disappointments, setbacks, trials, and tribulations should be different than how non-Christians handle the same. But what about the sufferings that come because of our faith? Christians do suffer at times when non-Christians don't. This is more evident in some countries than it is in America. How do Christians know when enough is enough when it comes to suffering? We don't unless we practice seeking God for guidance and learn to listen to His voice. When difficulties come, we want to know the details of what God has planned for us in the future. However, faith demands that we believe everything God has said about the future and trust Him with the outcome. That is the heart of Paul's message in today's text. Christians have a future built on the precious promises of God. We believe that the future God promises is so great and glorious that it makes the sufferings of this present time insignificant by comparison. Nothing we suffer today will take anything away from the promises of God for our future. Every now and then God strengthens us by giving us a foretaste of what's in store for the future. This brings us an internal peace and joy that is unexplainable considering what may be going on around us. The personal experience of salvation gave us a foretaste, i.e., the Spirit as the firstfruits. So how should we handle situations today since we have been given a foretaste of the future? Christians should embrace God's promises for the future. Through the presence of the Holy Spirit in us, we possess the proof of a future freedom. And even nature awaits its unveiling. Robert C. Hudson April 23, 2022