Sunday, May 31, 2020

WHAT IS THE RIGHT TIME TO OPEN THE CHURCH BUILDING?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/trump-is-pushing-churches-to-open-black-pastors-in-covid-hit-st-louis-are-preaching-caution/2020/05/30/80b87338-a1c9-11ea-b5c9-570a91917d8d_story.html

🛑Exposed! The Worst Scandals In the Church! 😳😱

Friday, May 29, 2020

THROUGH THE BIBLE (Revelation)

By Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III, BA, MA, DD

LESSON NOTES:

I. THE KEY TO UNDERSTANDING THE ENTIRE BIBLE. If you understand that the Bible is written to show us how humanity was created for God, fell into sin, was reconciled through Christ (who was the product of a family) and God will restore everything through His sacrifice on the Cross; then you have the message of the entire Bible.

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 ¹⁷Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. ¹⁸And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. ²⁰Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. ²¹For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

I. HOW WOULD THE FIRST CENTURY CHRISTIANS VIEW THIS BOOK? We have already dealt with this book from an eschatological view. However, for Christians of the first century; this was a book about the confrontation of the Church vs the Roman Empire. And, in spite of how powerful the empire was; the Church was going to prevail.

A. HAS THE TRIBULATION OCCURRED? The first century Christians would probably have thought that they were in the Tribulation; considering the suffering that they were enduring under the hands of the Roman Empire.

II. THE EMPERORS WERE GOING CRAZY ON CHRISTIANS. At this time Christians were suffering under two evil emperors. Nero from 54-68 and Domitian from 81-96.

A. THE EMPIRE WAS ENFORCING EMPEROR WORSHIP. The church taught strongly against this; emphasizing that Jesus is LORD. That was both illegal and insulting to the emperor.

Luke 2:11

for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Romans 10:9

that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

Colossians 3:17

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Philippians 2:9-11

For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

1 Peter 3:15

but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;

Revelation 17:14

These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.”

1 Corinthians 8:6

yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.

2 Corinthians 4:5

For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake.

1. CHRISTIAN PRACTICES WERE ALSO SEEN AS BIZARRE AT THE LEAST AND CRIMINAL AT THE MOST.

a. CHRISTIANS WERE LOOKED AT AS CANNIBALS THAT ATE FLESH AND DRANK BLOOD. Because of the Holy Communion.

John 6:56 ⁵⁶Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.

1 Corinthians 11:23-26 ²³For I received from the LORD what I also passed on to you: The LORD Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, ²⁴and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." ²⁵In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." ²⁶For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the LORD's death until he comes.

b. CHRISTIANS WERE ALSO CONSIDERED INCESTUOUS. Because the world did not understand the use of the term brother and sister.

John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give to you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.

John 15:17
These things I command you, that you love one another.

1 Peter 3:8
Finally, be you all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brothers, be pitiful, be courteous:

1 John 3:18
My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

1 John 4:11
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

1 Peter 4:8
And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

1 John 3:11
For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

1 Peter 1:22
Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit to unfeigned love of the brothers, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently.

1 John 4:12
No man has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and his love is perfected in us.

1 John 4:7
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loves is born of God, and knows God.

III. THE SETTING OF THIS STORY.[1] John was banished to the isle of Patmos was an island in the Aegean sea. It was pretty small being about 30 square miles. It was the Alcatraz of that day.

Revelation 1:9-11 ⁹I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. ¹⁰On the LORD's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, ¹¹which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea."

IV. SUMMARY OF THE BOOK.

A. Introduction (Revelation 1).

B. Churches Rated (Revelation 2-3).

C. Vision of Heaven (Revelation 4-5).

D. Tribulation: Seven Bowls, Seven Trumpets (Revelation 6-9).

E. Two Witnesses (Revelation 10-11:14).

F. Seventh Trumpet, Red Dragon, Antichrist (Revelation 11:15-14).

G. Seven Bowls (Revelation 15-18).

H. Second Coming, Battle of Armageddon and White Throne Judgment (Revelation 19-20).

I. New Heaven and Earth (Revelation 21-22).

V. PRAYER FOR SALVATION. As we close, if you have not received this Jesus pray this simple prayer:

"Father, I know that I have sinned against You. Please forgive me. Wash me clean. I promise to trust in Jesus, Your Son. I believe that He died for me—He took my sin upon Himself when He died on the cross. I believe that He was raised from the dead. I surrender my life to Jesus today.

"Thank You, Father, for Your gift of forgiveness and eternal life. Please help me to live for you. In Jesus' name, Amen."

[1] Bell, James. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Bible. Penguin: New York, 2005.

Thursday, May 28, 2020

THROUGH THE BIBLE (Jude)

By Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III, BA, MA, DD

LESSON NOTES:

II. JUDE’S BACKGROUND. Please see the background of James.

A. THE MEANING OF JUDE’S NAME. Just Greek shortened version of the name Judah; which means, “praise.”

III. JUDE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT HE IS A SERVANT OF HIS HALF BROTHER JESUS CHRIST (Jude 1:1-2). This is amazing; considering the fact that Jesus’ brothers did not initially believe in him (see the lesson on James).

¹Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,

To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ:

²Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

IV. FALSE TEACHERS HAVE CREPT INTO THE CHURCH (Jude 1:3-4). Jude’s letter was initially to be a teaching on salvation; but, the urgency of addressing false teaching overshadowed that message.

³Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. ⁴For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

A. THE FALSE TEACHING PRECLUDED THAT GOD’S GRACE WAS A LICENSE TO SIN; THE DENYING THE PLAN OF SALVATION PROCURED BY GOD IN CHRIST.

1. PAUL HAD ALREADY EXPLAINED THAT GRACE WAS FREEDOM FROM SIN; NOT A LICENSE TO SIN.

Romans 5:18-21

¹⁸Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. ¹⁹For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

²⁰The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, ²¹so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:1-14

6 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ²By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

⁵For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— ⁷because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

⁸Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. ¹⁰The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

¹¹In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. ¹²Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. ¹³Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. ¹⁴For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

V. ANGELS THAT WERE JUDGED BY GOD (Jude 1:5-7).

⁵But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. ⁶And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; ⁷as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

A. THERE WERE ANGELS THAT SINNED AGAINST NATURE.

Genesis 6:1-4

6 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, ²that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.

³And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” ⁴There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

B. SAINTS ARE GOING TO HELP JUDGE THEM IN THE FUTURE.

1 Corinthians 6:3 ³Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!

VI. FOLLOW SPIRITUAL GUIDELINES IN SPIRITUAL WARFARE (Jude 1:8-11).

⁸Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries. ⁹Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” ¹⁰But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. ¹¹Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

A. INTERESTING AS IT IS; SATAN IS CONSIDERED A “DIGNITARY,” AND CERTAIN RULES HAVE TO BE FOLLOWED IN ENGAGING HIM. The word “devil” means slanderer and the word “satan,” means adversary. We should have faith in the fact that not only did Jesus die for us; but he stands completely in opposition to whatever Satan desires to do against us. We are protected from dangers seen and unseen.

Luke 22:31-32

³¹And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. ³²But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,

Zechariah 3:1-2 ¹Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. ²The LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?"

Revelation 12:10-11 ¹⁰Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. ¹¹They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

VII. JUDGMENT ON FALSE TEACHERS (Jude 1:12-13).

¹²These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; ¹³raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

VIII. THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST (Jude 1:14-15).

¹⁴Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, ¹⁵to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”

A. NOT MUCH IS SAID OF ENOCH IN THE BIBLE; BUT HE WAS A RIGHTEOUS MAN.

1. HE HAD A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD (Genesis 5:18-24).

¹⁸Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begot Enoch. ¹⁹After he begot Enoch, Jared lived eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters. ²⁰So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died.

²¹Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. ²²After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. ²³So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

2. HE WAS A MAN OF FAITH THAT PLEASED GOD (Hebrews 11:5).

By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

IX. THE LAST AND EVIL DAYS (Jude 1:16-19).

¹⁶These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage. ¹⁷But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: ¹⁸how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. ¹⁹These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.

X. BUILD YOUR FAITH; PRAY IN THE HOLY GHOST (Jude 1:20).

²⁰But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, ²¹keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

A. PRAYING IN TONGUES (OR THE GIFT OF TONGUES) IS DIFFERENT FROM INITIAL EVIDENCE.

1. WITH INITIAL EVIDENCE EVERYONE SPEAKS.

Acts 2:4

⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

2. WITH THE GIFT OF TONGUES EVERYONE DOES NOT.

1 Corinthians 12:30

³⁰Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?

B. PRAYING IN TONGUES BUILDS YOUR FAITH; BUT PRAYER SHOULD ALSO BE OFFERED IN YOUR NATIVE LANGUAGE AS WELL.

1 Corinthians 14:1-26

14 Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. ²For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries. ³But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. ⁴He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. ⁵I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.

⁶But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching? ⁷Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? ⁸For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle? ⁹So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. ¹⁰There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without significance. ¹¹Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me. ¹²Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.

¹³Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. ¹⁴For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. ¹⁵What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. ¹⁶Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? ¹⁷For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.

¹⁸I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all; ¹⁹yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

²⁰Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature.

²¹In the law it is written:

“With men of other tongues and other lips
I will speak to this people;
And yet, for all that, they will not hear Me,”

says the Lord.

²²Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophesying is not for unbelievers but for those who believe. ²³Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind? ²⁴But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. ²⁵And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you.

²⁶How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.

XI. THERE IS HOPE IF PEOPLE REPENT (Jude 1:22-23).

²²And on some have compassion, making a distinction; ²³but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.

XII. GOD WILL KEEP YOU FROM SINNING (Jude 1:24-25).

²⁴Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling,
And to present you faultless
Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
²⁵To God our Savior,
Who alone is wise,
Be glory and majesty,
Dominion and power,
Both now and forever.
Amen.

XIII. PRAYER FOR SALVATION. As we close, if you have not received this Jesus pray this simple prayer: