Standing in the True Grace of God, Lesson 22

By BARBARANNE KELLY|CONTRIBUTOR

In this week’s passage (actually, last week’s, as I was late getting this finished) Peter calls out false teachers and strips away their masks and pretenses to reveal the sordid truth behind their lies. This passage is not only difficult to read, it is necessary. For the same reasons parents everywhere warn their children to stay away from strangers, Peter is warning Christians to avoid false teachers in the church. At the end of his first epistle Peter wrote, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The false teachers are on mission from our prowling adversary, attempting to lure the Lord’s sheep away from the safety of the truth, and Peter, appointed to shepherd God’s flock, is warning the sheep to be wary. It’s a warning we must heed even still.

Kathy’s Notes

BY KATHY HORAN|CONTRIBUTOR

Dear Sister/friends,

Even though we are finished with our study of Apostles, I promised I would continue to communicate with you, keep you updated on women’s ministry, and send you some good reads.

This week we are busy getting ready for the conference. We have had a great response and expect a wonderful weekend. Please continue to pray for all aspects of this event including the speaker, the leaders, the women who are giving so much of their time and talents, the equipment and everything else involved to make this happen.

The Session and Women’s Ministry  I encourage you to read this article written in 2006 but is still so NOW! I think it will prepare you for the conference and give you an understanding of the direction of women’s ministry in the PCA.

Here are a few good reads for this week.

A Baby is Always Good News by Barbaranne Kelly    First, I have to highlight this very candid and poignant article posted by our sister Barbaranne Kelly about difficulties and God’s faithfulness in her own life. Don’t miss this one.

Created for Community  “How many friends do you have? Christina Fox’s question seems straightforward, but her definition of friendship is quite different from the culture’s definition.”

Be a Gospel Neighbor  This was a challenging as well as convicting article for me.

 

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.　Psa 1:1-2 

 

Standing in the True Grace of God, Lesson 21

By BARBARANNE KELLY|CONTRIBUTOR

In this week’s lesson we are digging deeper into Peter’s argument for sound doctrine as the best weapon against the false teachers who will attempt to lure believers away from the security and assurance found only in the truth of God’s revealed Word. Last week we looked at his warning about the motives and methods of the false teachers; this week we will see three examples of God’s power and sovereign grace to rescue his people while punishing the ungodly with his holy and righteous judgement.  In this passage, Peter is making the point that God judges those who oppose him (the false teachers) and protects those who love him.

Standing in the True Grace of God, Lesson 20

By BARBARANNE KELLY|CONTRIBUTOR

In last week’s lesson, we studied Peter’s discussion of the apostolic witness to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This week we will look at how that train of thought flows into his discussion of the divine origin of Scripture. Remember, this is important to Peter’s readers—and to us—because of the false teachers who were—and are even still—infiltrating the church with subversive doctrines and attempting to woo believers away from the truth.

Acts of the Apostles, Lesson 18

kathyhoran@att.net.

BY KATHY HORAN|CONTRIBUTOR

Yesterday we concluded our study of Acts of the Apostles. Luke ended with Paul in Rome, a prisoner, but with a great degree of freedom. Paul would write four epistles during this time of imprisonment: Philemon, Ephesians, Colossians and Philippians. The time period would be approximately 61-63 AD, just a few years before the Jewish revolt that would lead to the destruction of the temple, and the disappearance of the Ark of the Covenant.

We saw how Paul was focused continually on Christ and His atoning work for our salvation. He lived only to preach Christ, constantly using every opportunity to bring souls to believe in him.

Standing in the True Grace of God, Lesson 19

By BARBARANNE KELLY|CONTRIBUTOR

This week in our study of 2 Peter we are considering the topic of divine revelation. In 1:12-19 Peter urges his readers to remember the truth about their faith and salvation, having just told them to make their calling and election sure; he then writes of the transfiguration of Christ, in which our Lord’s majesty and divine glory were more fully revealed to Peter, James, and John; and then he goes on to write about the more sure prophetic word, the Scriptures, which shine the light of truth into the darkness.

Acts of the Apostles, Lesson 17

BY KATHY HORAN|CONTRIBUTOR

We finished through chapter 26, next week will be our last class! I marvel at how much I have learned about Paul, how I see him and the other apostles through a different lens. I have a different understanding of the epistles, with Acts giving us the storyline and the epistles being plugged in, filling in the details. Stephanie and others remarked about what a brilliant man Paul was, not just through education, but through a gifted mind. I have heard it said that Paul was not a great speaker nor was he attractive physically. I cannot imagine a greater preacher, one who knew of what he spoke, or knew of WHOM he spoke.

We saw how Paul was charged by the Jews, more specifically the Sadducees, with being a political menace, a religious heretic, and having desecrated the temple by bringing a Greek into the temple courts, beyond the Gentile court.