The Eternal Nature of "GOD" and His Work!
Now with the foregoing in mind, reflect upon the last words of the Great Chris-tian Hymn, “Holy, Holy, Holy” — “Holy, Holy, Holy, merciful and mighty, God in three persons, blessed trinity!” Now since “the triune nature of God” cannot be fully understood by human beings… they must see “THE TRIUNE NATURE OF GOD” as consisting of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Now with that in mind, Scripture often teaches “THE ONE GOD,” which is revealed in Scripture as the Father, the Son & the Holy Spirit (Gal 3:20). Now with that in mind, remember “TRINITY” is the unity of three persons in One God; again, though there is only One God, it possesses the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit… and all three of them are united in the fullness of “THE ONE LIVING GOD.” Beloved, with the forgoing in mind, remember “GOD IS ONE!” and ministers to us through His Son and the Spirit. It is also important to remember that God the Father made Jesus a “physical human being” here on earth back in the first-century; as such, the birth of Jesus was as follows — the Holy Spirit had placed a child named Jesus in a virgin named Mary, that she might give birth to Jesus (Matt 1:18-25 and Luke 2:21). Keep in mind, Jesus was born a Jew (Gal 4:4), and was a descendant of King David (Rom 1:3). Now though Jesus was ultimately betrayed and crucified (1 Cor 1:23; 11:23), He rose from the dead, and after ministering to His disciples, He then ascended into Heaven (cf. 1 Cor 15:3-8; Eph 4:8). Remember, Jesus’ ministry to the Jewish world in Israel back in the first century, did not take place until He was 30 years old and was baptized by John the Baptist (Mk 1:1-15). Now with the forgoing in mind, it is important to remember that GOD HAD MADE JESUS A PHYSICAL HUMAN BEING THAT HE MIGHT “MINISTER DIVINE TRUTH” TO THE WORLD, AND BE CRUCIFIED FOR PEOPLE THAT HE MIGHT “SAVE THEM!” Re-member what the disciple John said, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but shall have eternal life” (John 3:16). Beloved, remember, God sent Jesus into the world for three reasons — that He might FORGIVE PEOPLE OF THEIR SINS, that He might MAKE THEM HIS CHILDREN, and that He might have God PLACE THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THEIR LIVES. Remember, the Christian world is “ANOINTED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD” (1 Jn 2:20)… as such, the Holy Spirit assures believers of the indwelling presence of JESUS in their lives (1 Jn 3:24).
Now regarding this person called “GOD,” it is extremely important to remem-ber who He is — remember, God is One, God is Self-existent, God is Spiritual, God is Immutable, God is Perfect, God is Truthful, God is Self-sufficient, God is Merciful and Loving, God is Trustworthy, God is Gracious, God is Almighty, God is the Infinite Eternal Being, God is the Living God, The God of Hosts, The Most High, The Lord, and The Creator and Preserver and Moral Ruler & Gov-ernor of all things; though that is a lot, that doesn’t fully define Him. Now with the forgoing in mind, it is important to remember that SCRIPTURE TEACHES THAT “GOD IS INCOMPREHENSIBLE!” (Job 11:7-9; Rom 11:33). Beloved, it should be obvious to all of us that the complete knowledge of God is simply not attainable by us as human beings… now though Scripture reveals God to our hearts and minds by the Holy Spirit, in spite of the fact that it provides us with an extremely limited nature of God, yet it is sufficient that we might “believe” in God and become His people. Again, though we can’t fully comprehend God, yet we can still know Him by His own self-revelation and become His people (cf. Matt 11:27; John 17:3; Rom 1:19-20; Col 1:9-10; 1 John 5:20).
Now since “GOD” is zillions of times bigger then the entire created realm, His infinite nature is completely immeasurable to every creature in existence; thus God has given every creature the grace to know Him in an acceptable way as “THE GOD OF EVERYTHING!” Keep in mind, God transcends every creature in existence both hear on earth and in heaven; now though we cannot fully com-prehend God, God gives all of us the grace to truly know Him! Remember, the word “grace” means “undeserved favor” — the wonderful news is, God gives grace to people when they “humble themselves before Him” (Jam 4:6; 1 Pet 5:5). that they might experience the absolute goodness of God! (in spite of the fact that they are not fully deserving of it). Said Dr. R. C. Sproul, one of the great Christian professors in America in the last century, “Because the Holy Spirit is a real and distinct person, we can enjoy a personal relationship with Him, and pray frequently to Him and seek His will.” Said Paul to the Corinthians, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all” (2 Cor 13:14). Now with the forgoing in mind, it is important to remember that “God’s existence” is the great presupposition of theology (i.e., of God’s Word). Obviously, there’s no point in people speaking of God if they do not embrace what God’s Word says. Keep in mind, GOD’S EXISTANCE IS “ACCEPTED BY FAITH IN GOD’S SELF-REVELATION TO THE WORLD” (i.e., through God’s Word). Said the apostle Paul to Timothy: “The Spirit says that in latter times some people will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Tim 4:1). Keep in mind, when God testifies to the truth of something, his witness is absolutely sure, because testimonies that have God as its author cannot fail; thus it is an infallible testimony. Now just as the Holy Spirit bears witness to our spirits that we are the children of God (Rom 8:16), the Holy Spirit assures us that “THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD!” (Gal 5:16-18). Keep in mind, the Bible is not a book of darkness, it is a divine source of much needed light! (Psalm 119:105). Remember, the Spirit of God is called the Holy Spirit to make us God’s saints… thus to be sanctified is to be made holy and righteous; now with that in mind, the process continues until death, when we as God’s people are fully made righteous forever! (John 15:26; 2 Cor 3:17-18; Gal 4:6; Phil 2:12-13).
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF GOD’S WORD
Remember, every page on this study requires a lot of attention, so don’t simply pass things off as if they don’t mean much; instead give careful attention to what is said. Now since there is “significant evidence” for the existence of God, when people deny God’s existence “atheism” often rules in their lives, due to the fact that immoral people want nothing to do with God (Ps 10:4; 14:1). Remember, fools say there is no God or valid proof for the existence of God. Now in spite of the fact that GOD has made it known to “every person who has ever lived, many people simply suppress the truth in “unrighteousness;” yet since God has made it evident to them, they are without excuse; thus God gives them over to impurity because they exchange the truth of God for a lie! (Rom 1:18-25, 28). Keep in mind, every human being knows what is moral and immoral, yet most people in this world, often live lives of immorality; so it is not as if people don’t know what is truly moral (Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:3-5; Col 3:5-6). Said King David, “God, I give thanks to Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made…wonderful are Thy works, and my soul knows it very well” (Ps 139:14; 111:2).
REMEMBER WHAT SCRIPTURE SAYS!
“The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness, be-cause they suppress the truth in unrighteousness, inspite of the fact that that which is known about God is evident within them, because God has made it evident to them. Remember, since the creation of the world God’s invisible attributes have been clearly seen, so that people are without excuse. Now though every person in the world knew God, many of them did not honor Him as God; as such, God darkened their foolish hearts… Professing to be wise, such people became fools & exchanged the truth of God for a lie. For this reason, God then gave them over to degrading passions and a depraved mind” (Rom 1:18-28). Said Paul to unbelievers, “Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of God’s judgment” (Rom 2:5). Said Paul, “Though all have sinned & fall short of the glory of God, believers are justified as a gift of God’s grace – incidentally, believers were created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Rom 3:23-24; Eph 2:8-10).
Now with the forgoing in mind, it is extremely important that we as believers interpret God’s Word for what it really says; said Peter: “No prophecy of Scrip-ture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from GOD!” (2 Pet 1:20-21). Remember, many words in those verses are EMPHATIC in GREEK, so give careful attention to what it says. Said Peter, “Long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Pet 2:2). Obviously if we as believers don’t see God’s Word as being “emphatically stated in Scrip-ture,” our faith will be very remedial. Remember, “Since God works all things after the counsel of HIS WILL” (Eph 1:11), His people must see Him as being the ruler of everything in their life! (Ps 22:28; 66:5-7; 103:19). Now with that in mind remember, God is GOD, and everything that exists was made by GOD! Thus it is important to remember that what God has revealed to us in “HIS WORD” that is the foundation of our FAITH; thus Scripture must be fully em-braced by God’s people. Now in spite of the fact that GOD has made Himself known to every person who ever existed; yet many people suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Keep in mind, “atheism” means denying the existence of God; as such, atheism results in unbelief. By the way, the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in the western world began to express “militant religious skepticism;” thus many people rejected Christian doctrine. By the way, the twentieth century has seen the development of “Communism” with its devotion to atheism.
THE ISSUE OF HUMILITY & CONFESSION
Now since God is Omniscient (i.e., He knows everything)… Omnipotent (i.e., He possesses unlimited power)… and Omnipresent (i.e., He is present every-where at all times), God rules over everything in the universe; as such, there is no end whatsoever to His existence — which essentially is what it means to be the GOD of all creation; He simply transcends everything! Now since “all of us as God’s people stumble and sin in life” (Jam 3:2), we must seek God’s forgiveness (Rom 8:32). Remember, it is the blood of Jesus’ atonement that yields eternal forgiveness of our sins (Mt 26:28; Heb 10:11-12). Now with that in mind, Jesus places enormous emphasis on “forgiveness” (Mt 18:21-35). Keep in mind, forgiveness is mediated to sinners through Christ’s blood! (Mt 26:28). Said the apostle Paul, “God defines forgiveness as the fundamental condition for Christian fellowship” (2 Cor 2:7-10). Now since God redeems His believers, they are obligated to “forgive others” as God has forgiven them (cf. Col 3:13). Remember, when we repent and confess our sins we are believing in God’s Word (Mk 1:1-5), and by God’s grace we are forgiven (Ps 32:5; 1 Jn 1:9); by the way, the word “GRACE” means “unmerited favor”… thus none of us merit God’s forgiveness! The wonderful truth is, God forgives us of our sins in spite of the fact that we don’t deserve it or merit it! What is important to remember is that God forgives us when we humble ourselves before Him & completely confess and admit our wrongdoing (cf, Jam 4:6; 1 Pet 5:5). Now since GOD is a forgiving God, when we humble ourselves before Him & admit our diabolical sinfulness, God’s forgiveness is still an issue that we as believers often have a difficult time accepting — nevertheless, God does forgive us when we humble ourselves before Him & confess our sins to Him. Remember, all believers have a difficult time accepting their sinful nature, because the fact that God truly loves us with an everlasting love, can also be a very difficult issue for believers to fully embrace, due to the fact we often experience a very significant negative. Now due to the fact we are still fallen creatures we often stumble in life; as such, our minds often cause us to be very frustrated with what we’re experiencing. Yet in spite of that, the wonderful truth is “GOD is our God no matter how big a mess we oftentimes make of ourselves in life!” Beloved, remember, “though we are Christians and children of God, we are not at all glorious creatures; as such, sin often rules in our lives! Yet the day is coming, when we enter into heaven God is going to completely remove our sinful nature from us!” Re-member, “REALITY IS WHAT IT IS IN LIFE” whether we like it or not.
THE INTENSE FEELINGS WE EXPERIENCE
Now since there are a lot of things that we don’t like in life, R. C. Sproul said in his book Essential Truths of the Christian Faith – “Our human life is often marked by intense feelings, that include such things as hate, fear, guilt, envy, ambition, lust, jealousy, and several other things; keep in mind, as creatures we all have deep feelings about our lives” (with that in mind read Psalm 51). Now though all of us as Christian are spirit filled, we also possess sinful flesh. Furthermore, since our sanctification is a life-long process, all of us as Christ-ians are often engaged in warfare with our own nature as we seek to grow in the Spirit and grace; remember, this thing called “sanctification” is a process of being made holy, resulting in a changed lifestyle (1 Tim 4:4-5). Remember, we were “set apart to God” in conversion; as such we are now living out that dedication to God in holiness. Now though our Spirit will prevail in the warfare at the end of the age, until then the struggle we experience will oftentimes be very intense. Remember, all Christians will continue to struggle with sin and temptation until the day they die… and after they die they will be completely glorified and purified, and God will completely remove their flesh from their life and completely destroy it and put it to death. Beloved remember, salvation literally refers to redemption from sin and God’s wrath, and reconciliation to God by Jesus Christ. Again remember, all of us as Christians were completely SAVED BY THE WORD OF GOD, not ourselves as human-beings… remember, God not only makes faith possible for us, He quickens it within us. Now with that in mind, “as believers we were born again through the living and abiding Word of God, which abides forever!” (1 Pet 1:23, 25). Again, FAITH means to TRUST GOD, which is not only the substance of “things hoped for,” but the evidence of “things not seen” (cf. Heb 11:1). Beloved, remember, our faith also comprises our hope for the future; thus we must trust God for the future. Now with the forgoing in mind, there is every reason for us to believe that God will be as faithful to us in the future as He has been in the past.
THE INCREDIBLE THINGS GOD PLANNED BEFORE HE CREATED THE WORLD
Remember, prior to the creation of the world, in eternity past GOD decided to send Christ His Son into a new world He was creating, “to die for His people” that they might be Redeemed; as such, Christ came into the world out of heaven back in the 1st century, not only to die for us, but to rescue us from our former way of life. Again, remember, God’s payment for sin was planned before the creation of the world; thus “Christ died to deliver us from our sin that we as fallen creatures might come to know God and trust in God” (1 Pet 1:20-21). Now as a result of God’s eternal plan and priceless payment for our sin, faith and hope can be placed in us! (1 Pet 1:3, 7, 9). Keep in mind, God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4); thus God sent Christ into the world to die for us and rescue us from our former way of life. Now since Christ died for us, our lives need to show that we are children of God, no longer children of our own sinful nature. As “The Handbook of Bible Application” states, “Ineffective faith (i.e., a lack of faith) results in several problems when we take over for God; remember, when we ask God for something, oftentimes we must simply wait and not take matters into our own hands, and interfere with what God has planned. Remember, ineffective faith is marked by an unchanged life and a lack of trust in God… so to be productive for God we must obey His teachings… resist temp-tation… serve and help others… and share our faith with others. Now since we don’t have the capacity to walk on water, we do have the ability to success-fully walk through difficult trials & difficult situations. Keep in mind, to main-tain your faith when situations are difficult, you must keep your eyes on Jesus rather than your own inadequacies. Now when we as believers are apprehensive about the troubles they are experiencing, they must remember that “Christ is the author & ruler of their life” (cf. Ps 45:6; Lam 5:19). Remember, faith is a gift from God (Eph 2:8-9), thus as believers we are not to be self-sufficient in life. Remem-ber, growing in faith is a constant process of daily renewing our trust in Jesus, and humbly obeying God’s will. Again, since God is the GOD of our lives, He is the ruler and governor of our lives (read the following verses – Rom 8:28, 31; Eph 1:11; Ps 33:6). Keep in mind, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life thru Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 6:23); thank GOD, God has let Christ “RULE” in our lives!
GOD’S GUIDANCE IN LIFE
Remember what the Book of Numbers said back during the time of Moses when God moved His people out of Egypt and forwarded them on to the new nation of Israel. In so doing, GOD asked His people to camp out until He caused the “cloud” & “fire” to move them on (Num 9:23; 11:1; 14:14; 16:35); thus the people were to stop and pitch their tents when the cloud & fire existed; as such the cloud and fire was a symbol that GOD used to guide His people. Now though that is not something we experience today, the principle is still valid – God still guides His people. As such, we are to let GOD guide us in life today, because He is the one who rules in our lives; as such we are to constantly ask God what He wants us to do and not simply rule in our own lives! Beloved remember, when you follow God’s guidance, you know you are where God wants you! What is important for us as believers is that we understand what God wants us to do! i.e., what God’s will is! (Rom 12:2; 15:32; 1 Cor 1:1; Eph 4:22-23; 1 Thes 5:18; Heb 10:7; 1 John 2:15). Now it’s important to remember that God’s will is worked out in our lives every day. Said Jesus to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, everything you ask Me in prayer you shall receive” (Mt 21:21-22). Beloved, remember, our prayers must be in harmony with God’s will – as such, the stronger our belief, the more likely our prayers will be in line with the will of God; as such, God will then be happy to grant them to us. By the way, it is also important to remember that our greatest joy is found in willingly obeying God. Now with that in mind remember, God wants us to become like His Son Jesus Christ; incidentally, to be like Jesus we must train ourselves to think like Jesus. Now to change our desires to be more like Jesus, we need to embrace the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds (Phil 1:19).
THE IMPORTANCE OF DIVINE RIGHTEOUSNESS
Now regarding this thing called “righteousness,” the God of Israel in the Old Testament was seen as “a God of righteousness” (cf. Gen 18:24; Duet 32:4; Ps 11:7; Dan 9:14). Incidentally, the issue of “righteousness” refers to the purity of one’s heart and doing that which is right. Now the righteousness of God is the divine holiness that rules in Him, thus He is seen as the righteous governor of all crea-tures; as such, He is not only a dispenser of rewards, He is a dispenser of punish-ment, which is the byproduct of His perfect obedience to the Law. Thus right-eousness is frequently used to designate God’s holiness, justice and faithfulness (cf. Gen 18:24; Deut 6:25; Ps 31:1; 119:137, 42; Is 45:23; 46:13; 51:5-8; 8:4). Now with the forgoing in mind, the perfect righteousness of Christ is imputed to believers when they accept Christ as their savior (cf. 1 Cor 1:30; 2 Cor 5:20-21; Rom 2:5). By the way there can be no doubt that those whom God declares righteous are truly righteous. Remember, GOD made the One who did not know sin (Jesus) to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 5:21); keep in mind, God credits RIGHTEOUSNESS to those who live by “FAITH IN HIM” (Rom 4:16). Thus the result of becoming the righteousness of God is living a life of righteousness before God (Rom 6:13; Eph 6:14). Remember, those whom God “disciplines” produces the “peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Heb 12:9-11). Now though God doesn’t cause sin, He permits it and controls it and punishes it. Now with that in mind, God’s will is inscrutable; i.e., no man fully understands God’s will, yet we must submit to God in reverent obedience, knowing that He does all things well; said the psalmist, “The council of the Lord stands forever” (Ps 33:14); “Though there are many plans in the minds of men, it is the council of the Lord that will stand (Prov 19:21)… said the Lord to the prophet Isaiah, “My word which goes forth from My mouth, shall not return to Me empty, with-out accomplishing what I desire” (Is 55:11). Beloved, if God is not the “GOD” of everything in your life, heart, and mind, then you are not living the life that God wants you to live. Remember, we came to God to receive life, and when we FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD we live the life God wants us to live… remem-ber, the gift of God is to LIVE LIFE IN SERVICE TO GOD (Is 38:10-20). Again, all Christians are to live a life that shows that Jesus is the purpose for living. Remember, living demands fellowship with the Savior who is the purpose for living (Jn 14:6). Now with the forgoing in mind, as God’s people we are to Love God’s people (Mt 5:43, 46; Jn 13:34; 15:12, 17; Rom 13:8; Gal 5:22; 1 Th 4:9; Heb 10:24; Jam 2:8)… Pray for One another (Jam 5:16; 1 Jn 5:17)… Help One another (Phil 4:3;1 Th 5:14)… Serve One another (Mk 10:45; Rom 9:12; Gal 5:13), and Care for One another (Heb 10:23-25). Remember, Spiritual people live for God and His people in this world (cf. Mt 4:4; 22:37-40; Lk 10:27; Gal 5:13-15).
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST AND HIS PEOPLE
Remember, JESUS CHRIST is the One who made the Church for His people; said Jesus to His disciple Peter, “I will build MY CHURCH upon the ROCK (cf. Mt 16:18); remember, Jesus was spoken of as a “rock” (1 Cor 10:4). So Scripture teaches that the Church was built on Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone (Eph 2:20; 5:23-25); incidentally, Jesus also said that “the gates of HADES shall not prevail against it!” (Mt 16:18); keep in mind, Hades signified the headquarters of opposition to the church (cf. Lk 10:15; Acts 2:27; Rom 20:14). Remember, the apostle Paul tried to destroy the Church of God before He became a Christian, but he was unable to do so! (Gal 1:13). Said Paul to Timothy after several years of ministry, “I write to you that you may know how one ought to conduct him-self in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15). Keep in mind, the New Testament refers to the church as the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim 3:15; Eph 3:8-12). Now due to the fact that sin often rules in the lives of believers, take the time and reflect upon how it is described in the New Testament — it is defined as missing the mark… unrighteousness… lawlessness… disobedience… transgression… disrupting one’s relationship with God… depravity… as well as desire & lust. Remember, the sin of Eve began with “doubt” concerning the righteousness of God’s command not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good & evil — remember, “God inflicted the penalty of death on the human race as a result of Adam and Eve’s sin” (Gen 4-6). Though the depravity of sin exists in every human being’s life, every born-again believer knows that sin dwells in them. Said the psalmist David, “There is none who does good, not even one!” (Ps 53:1, 3)… “Be gracious to me, O God, according to Thy loving-kindness, for against Thee & Thee only I have sinned; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow, restore to me the joy of Thy salvation” (Ps 51:1-19; Ps 139:23-24). Remember, Jesus came into this world to “call sinners to repentance” (cf. Matt 9:13). The wonderful news for us as sinners is that God completely forgives sin when we humble ourselves before Him and repent of our sin — remember what John said, “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and righteous to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn 1:9). Now in spite of the fact that sin can be extremely frustrating to believers, God completely forgives us of our sins when we fully confess them to God! No matter how bad our sin is!!! Again, keep in mind, even as believers we all possess “sinful flesh!” Remember, “Christ died for us that He might redeem us of our sins & that He might purify us and make us a people of His own possession who are zealous for good deeds!” (Titus 2:14). Thank GOD, God is who He is — a God of LOVE!!! Though that is often difficult to fathom, that’s who GOD is! Now since Christ is the one who established the Christian church, it was ordained for His people that they might have FELLOWSHIP with God & each other due to the presence of God’s Spirit in their lives. Remember, the apostle Paul referred to the church as “the body of Christ!” (1 Cor 12:12-31), and the fact that “Christ is the head of everything in the Church” (Eph 1:22; Col 1:18). Now the fact that the Church is the Body of Christ, every Church must possess the membership of Christ, and give evidence of faith in Him. Says the book of Hebrews, “We have confidence to enter the Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, thus let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith… and let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promises is faithful. Therefore, let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, and let us draw near to people with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith & not forsake the assembling of ourselves together” (Heb 10:19-25). Keep in mind, “the Church of the living God is the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15; Eph 2:20); thus church leaders are to “GUARD WHAT GOD’S WORD SAYS” and preach the truth to God’s people!!! (cf. Acts 20:25-30; 1 Tim 4:1-11; 2 Tim 3:13-17; Heb 13:7). Remember, Scripture says, “We do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as bond-servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor 4:5); now with that in mind, remember as church leaders WE ARE RESPONSIBLE TO “GOD;” with that in mind remember what Jesus’ brother James said, “Let not many of you become teachers, because you will incur a stricter judgment” (James 3:1). By the way, it is important that church members “edify and love one another”
(cf. Jn 13:34; Rom 12:1, 10), and restore those who falter in the faith (Gal 6:1-2). Trust you found this a very encouraging study, so take the time to read it again!
Praying God’s best for you, your friend & brother in Christ, Don Ekstrand.