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“Working out your own salvation”? Can we save ourselves? Absolutely not. We know that from Ephesians 2:8-9 that "For by grace are ye saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” So then what is Philippians 2:12-16 talking about?
The “working out” is your daily walk with the Lord and approaching every circumstance with an attitude
that testifies of God’s love and the life that’s in His word. It’s in this witness that you can shine as lights in the world. Consider Paul and Silas in Acts
16:20-34. What was their attitude when circumstances didn’t go their way? “And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison
, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God:
and the prisoners heard them.” It is most apparent that our actions witness to others and identify whether our heart and mind is set on things above or
on things below. We know as saved Christians we are to shine as lights in the world… holding forth the word of life
versus complaining which shows a lack of God’s word in your heart and a shipwrecked witness. The encouragement from this lesson is to “work out” your problems all the while praising God.   Click here to listen to the lesson on 08-05.
 In 1 Timothy 3:16, Paul acknowledged that without controversy, great is
the Mystery of Godliness. First, God was manifested in the flesh. God became a sinless man to save man from
sin. Second, He was justified in the spirit. The greek word for Justified is “dikaioo” which means to
set forth as righteous, to justify. Christ does just that for everyone who accepts Him as savior. Third, He was seen of Angles. Angels were actively part of Israel’s history, and they witnessed
and aided the Lord as He was here in the flesh. Fourth, He was preached unto the Gentiles. This was a major issue in the New Testament because the preaching of Christ to the Gentiles (or Nations
) was not permitted throughout the Gospels (Matt 10:5-6, 15:22-27) and up until Acts 9. This is
when Gentiles were preached salvation along with faithful Abraham as foretold in the Song of Moses (Deut. 32:21). It
wasn’t until Acts 28:28 however, that the Gentiles would be addressed apart from any national calling of Israel when Paul then delivered a new revelation called “The Mystery” (Ephesians 3:9). Fifth, He was believed on in the world. This belief
was done individually… not nationally! Individual Jews and Gentiles believed on Christ as Savior but Israel as a nation did not. Israel will believe in the future when Elijah returns and restores all things (Malachi 4:5-6). In the mean time, every
person, irrespective of nationality (Col 3:11), has access to eternal life by believing on Christ Jesus as Savior. And finally,
the Sixth item listed is that He was raised up into Glory. Christ Jesus is located far above all principalities and powers in
the heavens where He sits as mediator between God and man. Have you accepted Him as your mediator? Click here to listen to the lesson on 08-12. Click here to download the handout as well.
 Reasoning out of the Scriptures
. The reasoning facilities that you have are only as good as what you put into it. If you base your reasoning on others, which is what you do as a child, then
your reasoning is what others have. If you base your reasoning on your own experiences, then it’s only as good as what experiences you have had in your life. If you put it in your own thought
processes, then it’s subject to change from day to day. There is only one true absolute place to
base your reasoning on and that is the Word of God. That’s why Paul, in Acts 17:2 reasons with the Jews in Thessalonica out of the Scriptures. Like Paul, you need to continually spend time studying
the Word of God in order to keep your reasoning true. If you don’t spend time in the Word, you get
tossed to and fro by every issue that comes your way and your faith will be shallow and ship wrecked. On the other
hand, spend consistent time in the Bible and your joy will be rich no matter what storms come your way. The Bible has all
the answers that man needs but it doesn’t matter if you don’t have the right heart... a heart that has been changed by salvation and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The lesson on 08-19-2001 covers Acts 17:1-4 where Paul is reasoning out
of the scriptures about Christ.
Click here to listen.
 Idolatry.
In every generation, there is a cultural or spiritual "fad" of the day. It’s usually present
when large groups follow trendy behavior. "Fad's" not only occur in society but in religon as well.
When "popularity" takes precidence over your own personal Bible study and knowledge of scripture, then you're at risk of being caught up in the "fad" of the day. When Paul was in Athens,
he witnessed trendy religious worship to idols... even to one idol set aside to the “unknown God”. Today, idolatry takes on many forms other than the obvious worshipping of statues made with
metal, stone, or wood. God's universal principal of reaping and sowing is applicable to your
worship and walk. What you reap today was sown yesterday. Are you sowing the Word of God or is their something
else consuming your time and in the way of your relationship with the one true God? Sow the Word, reap Christ. Paul
addresses this in Athens at Mars Hill where his spirit was stirred over this ignorant worship. Click here to listen to the lesson for 08-26.
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Audio Lessons for this Month
