BS-33 ’Bible passages’
To study and talk about in detail
Exodus 20 – The 10 Commandments.
Jeremiah 31 – Galatians 3 – Hebrews 8 – 2 Cor. 3 – A New Covenant.
2 Corinthians 3 – It is the Holy Spirit that ministers.
Matthew 10 – Who is your Shephard?
John 3 – Can a person be born a 2nd time?
James 2 – What kind of belief do I have?
Ephesians 2 – Who provides the Grace?
Romans 10 – Do I have to make a public confession that Christ is my Lord / Savior?
Revelation 3 – Have you answered the door?
2 Corinthians 9 – Acts 15 – Is the tithe a N.T. requirement for entering Paradise?
John 9:31 – Does God answer prayers of the unsaved?
Exodus 20:2-17;
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “1 You shall have no other gods before Me. 4 “2 You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. 7 “3 You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain. 8 “4 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 “5 Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you. 13 “6 You shall not murder. 14 “7 You shall not commit adultery. 15 “8 You shall not steal. 16 “9 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 “10 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
{This was given to the Sons of Israel – Vs. 22. The Mosaic covenant is obsolete to Christians; it was a temporary covenant from God. Words in scripture from Hebrews 8:13 & Chapters 8 – 9 – 10 along with Galatians 3:15-29 is the verbiage used for we who are N.T. converts. The old was good but it is legalism; not Grace through Faith. The NEW covenant with God is thru Christ the living High Priest who shed his blood and today resides in the heavenly Holy of Holies as our mediator. If not we are all in trouble. God’s moral law of LOVE will never end; the Levitical High Priest were superseded by Christ.}
Jeremiah 31:27-37; {A NEW covenant or a new promise is coming to Israel}
27 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and with the seed of beast. 28 As I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down, to overthrow, to destroy and to bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the Lord. 29 “In those days they will not say again, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ 30 But everyone will die for his own iniquity; each man who eats the sour grapes, his teeth will be set on edge.
31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
35 Thus says the Lord, Who gives the sun for light by day And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The Lord of hosts is His name: 36 “If this fixed order departs From before Me,” declares the Lord,
“Then the offspring of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever.”
37 Thus says the Lord, “If the heavens above can be measured and the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel for all that they have done,” declares the Lord.
{Christ is the fulfillment of the NEW covenant; shared with Gentiles; the OLD legalistic ways will be obsolete}
Galatians 3:15-29; Intent of the Law
15 Brothers and sisters, I speak in terms of human relations: even though it is only a man’s covenant, yet when it has been ratified, no one sets it aside or adds conditions to it. 16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as one would in referring too many, but rather as in referring to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ. 17 What I am saying is this: the Law, which came 430 years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. 18 For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise.
19 Why the Law then? It was added on account of the violations, having been ordered through angels at the hand of a mediator, until the Seed [Christ] would come to whom the promise had been made. 20 Now a mediator is not for one party only; but God is only one. 21 Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? Far from it! For if a law had been given that was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. 22 But the Scripture has confined everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the Law, being confined for the faith that was destined to be revealed. 24 Therefore the Law has become our guardian to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. 26 For you are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.
{The LAW, which was legalism [do this or don’t do that], has been superseded by Gods amazing GRACE. We cannot work our way to heaven by always doing good. It was not possible for the Sons of Israel then OR for us today.}
Hebrews 8:7-13; {Is the Mosaic Levitical covenant obsolete?}
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. 8 For finding fault with them, He says,
“Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, When I will effect a new covenant
With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; 9 Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers On the day when I took them by the hand
To lead them out of the land of Egypt; For they did not continue in My covenant,
And I did not care for them, says the Lord. 10 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God,
And they shall be My people. 11 “And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all will know Me,
From the least to the greatest of them. 12 “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And I will remember their sins no more.” [The words of Jeremiah repeated]
13 When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. [NASB]
{Basically in AD 70 the temple was destroyed and the Levitical covenant disappeared from Israel. The people fled from Israel to other parts of the known world. So, are we living in the ‘time of the Gentiles’ or did it also become obsolete in 1948 when the UN gave a small piece of land to the Jews? Christ is now the only High Priest; the Christian INTERCESSOR in the heavenly Holy of Holies; at the right hand of Father God. The N.T. covenant became effective when Jesus shed HIS blood and died. Blood had to be shed for forgiveness. Think about this; a WILL is a covenant; it does not go into effect until the person dies. The New Covenant went into effect when Jesus died. Jesus is the crossover in Gods PLAN from the Old to the New. Check Romans 10:4.}
2 Corinthians 3:12-18 {Why do Jews live with a hard heart toward Christ?}
12 Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, 13 and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away. 14 But their [the Jews] minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. 15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; 16 but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.
{Sometimes I want to ask God a question; since Moses is quoted at different places in the O.T. by prophets, what is obsolete & what is history that we are supposed to use as a guide in response of what not to do; after all; don’t we want to be obedient? Are there SHALL and SHALL NOTS or does God’s Grace cover our failures? When theologians can’t agree on interpretations of some scripture; how is it that the Holy Spirit is being listened to; or are the theologians actually listening? Does taking scripture literal give lay people the best chance of understanding what we need to know?}
Matthew 10:24-32; {There is but one Chief Shepherd.}
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household! 26 “Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops. 28 Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.
32 “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.
{I don’t want to add a verse 34, but a comment is needed. The person who straddles the fence and never makes a confession or for that matter a denial [a choice]; basically never actually confesses that they accept Jesus as Lord / Savior. It is like a default; it goes into the denial category. It’s not black or white but a gray area; white is needed if a person wants to enter Paradise.}
John 3:1-21; {Can a person be born more than once?}
3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; 2 this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
4 Nicodemus *said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
9 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. 12 If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. 14 As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 15 so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.
16 “For God so loved the world; that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”
{Verse – 7. A person must be born twice or they will die twice; the 2nd death is when a person is cast into the ‘lake of fire’. The word ‘believe’ does not mean a head knowledge; it means to put your total trust in Jesus as your Savior & Lord. Only thru Christ can a person be born twice.}
James 2:14-26; {If the Demons of Satan believe in Christ will they be in heaven?}
14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. 18 But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” 19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. 20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? 22 You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. 24 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
{This is the kind of belief I had when I was in grade school. I heard about Jesus and believed all the things and stories the adults told me but there was not a time that I had Faith enough to put my ‘TRUST’ in Jesus as my Savior and Lord. Before you can have a Saving Faith, enough for me or you to repent, and put their Trust in Christ we must have heard the Gospel, at some time or place. We have to hear the ‘good news’; then seek God. How many ‘good ole boys’ who have attended church but never repented will enter paradise?} Our commission then becomes Matthew 28:16-20.
Ephesians 2:4-10; {Who is it that provides the Gift of Grace & Faith?}
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions [Sinners], made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
{Grace is not WORKS. A person cannot be good enough or do enough good deeds to become SAVED; but once they are SAVED; they should have a desire to be involved with sharing their Faith and some ‘good works’ with those who haven’t put their Trust in Christ. We are SAVED to SERVE in some way. Scripture says we have been given some godly gift; we are to use it for Gods glory.}
Romans 10:4-13; {If you hang on to another’s coattail; will you enter heaven?}
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness. 6 But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).” 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 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; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
{Only through Christ can a person be declared righteous before Father God. How can that be? By your own mouth making the profession of what your inner spirit has been convicted of; scripture points out that each person has that choice of accepting Christ or rejecting Christ. Few will go thru the pearly gate but many will enter the fiery gate. Matthew 7:13-14. What path will we take?}
Revelation 3:14-22; {If you hear the call from Christ; should you answer?}
14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this: 15 ‘I know your deeds that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold; I will spit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, 18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. 21 He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
{When the Spirit of God convicts your heart; first thru salvation but then don’t just be a so-so Christian; find a way to serve in some way. Let the Spirit speak to your mind and then find a job in the Lord’s family. Don’t sit on the sidelines just watching. Find a job and do it as best you can. A QUESTION? Does God provide Rewards or CROWNS?} [1 Peter 5:2-4 – 2 Tim 4:7-8 – James 1:12 etc.]
2 Cor. 9:6-7: {If the Levites are no longer Priest; is the tithe required?}
6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
{This scripture is given with the context of giving a monetary gift. The Apostle was seeking the gift for the poor in Jerusalem. The context tells the reader not to give grudgingly, under compulsion, or pressure. The Christian standard is to give generously and cheerfully. If you believe in the Mosaic Levitical tithe; you should give the tithe but if you don’t and look to Acts 15:28-29, for the Christian standard; where nothing is mentioned about the tithe. How much you give OR how much you keep for yourself does not determine a dwelling place in heaven BUT remember what verse 6 tells us; then use the Christian Standard presented by the Apostle. The legalist will use the term of tithe; it is like making it a requirement or a legalistic term; it is not a requirement; it was an O.T. standard for the Sons of Israel. Do you think the thief on the cross, beside Jesus, ever gave a tithe prior to entering Paradise? People receive more of a blessing giving; rather than receiving.}
{A Question – Who is a good steward of the Lord? Not only is money involved but also time and talents are mentioned. I asked myself; am I a good steward? Do I give of my Time, Talent, and Treasure? If not, then am I a good steward?} Colossians 3:23-24 – Hebrews 13:5 – Acts 20:35.
{When people come to the church or even those who belong to the church; need some financial help; is it the responsibility of those who are in charge of the church treasury to provide people with money? 1 Timothy 5:8-16 explains who it is who should provide for their household. Luke 18:12 explains that just because some person does tithe; the attitude is what counts. I think like this; ‘what I do, I do unto the Lord’’; it is not what the other persons opinion is. Your attitude is what counts.}
John 9:31: {Does the prayer of the unrighteous get answered?}
Verse 31. We know that God does not listen to sinners; but if someone is God-fearing and does His will, He listens to him. {God listens when a sinner repents and makes the choice to serve HIM but as the Psalms read in verses 34:16-17 or in Job 35:13 the voice coming from evil or unsaved man are not heard. Only the righteous are heard; you can only become righteous once you become BORN AGAIN with the Holy Spirit within; it is part of the salvation plan of God.}
DG