How are we to understand this? We’re prone to think Peter was saying that the end of the world was near. With the resurrection, ascension and exaltation of Jesus (3:22) God’s plan of salvation here on earth entered its final stage that will culminate in the second coming of Jesus. This may well be what Peter had in mind when he made this statement.…

Pagans of the first century viewed Christians as killjoys who lived gloomy lives devoid of pleasure. The pleasures from which Christians of the first century typically abstained earned Christians the reputation of being haters of humanity and traitors to the Roman way of life.By Nelson, Paul

Peter is writing Christians, both Jews and Gentiles, who were expelled from the vicinity of the city of Rome and resettled in remote parts of Asia Minor which is modern day Turkey. They are foreigners living in hostile communities.By Nelson, Paul

Peter wrote to Christians expelled from Rome and resettled in remote parts of Asia Minor. They were foreigners living in hostile communities. Even in a hostile setting like that of Peter’s readers, believers can live in such a way as to get along peacefully with their neighbors. Being honest, being respectful, working hard and doing good work go a …

When faced with unjust insult and evil, Peter’s readers must decide whether to respond in kind out of the old nature and perpetuate strife or to demonstrate the power of God’s grace through radically new conduct.By Nelson, Paul

The phrase "with all fear" specifies the way that servants are to be subject to their masters. However, we need to identify the object of that fear. The one they should fear is determined by 2:17 building off of 1:17, where Peter makes the claim that one of the primary motivations for Godly living in a hostile environment, is the "fear" of the Lord…

Called To Suffer - 1 Peter 2:11-25By Ingvoldstad, Nate

God has honored your faith in Jesus by making you a living stone and a holy priest in His Temple; His dwelling place on earth today.By Nelson, Paul

Because LOVING ONE ANOTHER is one of the primary purposes of God’s Covenant Community of which you are a member.By Nelson, Paul

We Will Give Account to Jesus and Receive either Reward or Rebuke!By Nelson, Paul

Puzzled Prophets, Envious AngelsBy Nelson, Paul

In our section today Peter will address how the various trials we face should be thought of, and that when we are thinking rightly about these difficulties, there is even joy to be had in the midst of them. That there really is "Good Grief."By de Martimprey, Phil

Not only was Peter setting out to teach and remind these "chosen foreigners" that they were indeed the children of God, but he wanted them to rightly understand their new birth into God’s family and some of the incredible truths that were part and parcel of being born again.By de Martimprey, Phil

Peter drew parallels between his readers and Israel.By Nelson, Paul

There were some believers (Christians) in the Thessalonian church who were not working to support themselves. They were ‘walking in idleness’. Instead of working, they were relying on the church or those in the church to provide for their daily needs. This caused discouragement, and unnecessary strain on the rest of the believers.…

A Solid Foundation 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17; 3:1-5 Pastor Nate IngvoldstadBy Ingvoldstad, Nate

In his previous letter Paul taught the Thessalonians they would be rescued from the day of the Lord (Tribulation) by being gathered to Jesus before the beginning of the day of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Since receiving that first letter, someone, somehow had begun to spread the lie that the day of the Lord had come and therefore, by implic…

2 Thessalonians was written soon after 1 Thessalonians; perhaps within a few months in the summer of 51 A.D. Before writing 2 Thessalonians, Paul received news that both encouraged him and concerned him. He was encouraged to hear the Thessalonians were growing in faith and love in spite of persecution. But he was concerned to learn false teachers w…

Easter 2024By de Martimprey, Phil; Ingvoldstad, Nate; Bush, Bob

Paul closes this letter in the same manner as he does his other letters – with instructions how to live out the Christian life as a church family.By Nelson, Paul

The day of the Lord is an idiom used to emphasize the swift and decisive nature of the Lord’s victory over His enemies on any given occasion. The day of the Lord to which the Apostle Paul refers in 1 Thessalonians 5:2 is the Great Tribulation, the time period Jesus described in Matthew 24:21-22a.By Nelson, Paul

To choose to walk in sexual purity is a profound step of faith. It is God’s will that we walk in sexual purity and it pleases Him when we walk in sexual purity. Through the Holy Spirit Whom He has given us, He empowers us to walk in sexual purity; the Holy Spirit producing in us His fruit which includes patience, faithfulness and self-control.…

In the time Paul had with the Thessalonian believers it appears he taught quite a bit on end times. He certainly taught that Jesus was coming again and very possibly in their lifetime. When Timothy returned from Thessalonica, he came with questions from the Thessalonian believers.It appears that a few believers in the Thessalonian church family had…

Paul's enemies in Thessalonica were slandering Paul saying 1) the Thessalonians’ conversion was not real, therefore Paul’s message was not from God. 2) Paul was a charlatan peddling his message for money and fame, and 3) Paul had abandoned them because he didn’t care about them. Realizing these accusations had teeth, Paul felt compelled to defend h…

In our study today, we will see Paul answered numerous vicious accusations by reminding the believers of both his character and theirs. And we will be reminded that - Our character either supports or undermines the gospel message.By de Martimprey, Phil

For the Apostle Paul, there were many concerns on his heart and mind as he waited to hear the report card that Timothy was bringing him from the young church in Thessalonica. Paul had been run out of town by those who opposed the gospel and he was anxious to hear if the opposition had been successful with the fledgling believers, or if they had ove…

The book of Acts records for us how the Good News of Jesus the Messiah spread from city to city across the world. In our study today, we will begin a series on the letters to the church in Thessalonica, but before we dive head first into 1 Thessalonians, it is important for us to look at the background and context of these incredible letters.…

WHEN GOD FORGIVES A BELIEVER: He releases the believer from having to personally bear the punishment for his sins on the basis that JESUS has already suffered the punishment for all his sins. He accepts the substitutionary death (the blood sacrifice) of JESUS as the full and sufficient payment for the entirety of the believer’s sin debt.…

FORGIVENESS is only possible because GOD punishes all violations of His Law. WHEN GOD FORGIVES A BELIEVER: He releases the believer from having to personally bear the punishment for his sins on the basis that JESUS has already suffered the punishment for his sins.By Nelson, Paul

In this world we need more, not less, forgiveness. But seeking and granting forgiveness are not well understood and poorly practiced. One Christian counselor teaches that apologizing is the world’s substitute for forgiving. He points out that there is not a single reference in the Bible to apologizing. It is an unbiblical concept. It allows the wro…

What cancer is to the body; bitterness is to the soul. It eats us up from the inside out. Like a root, bitterness puts off poison fruit like slander, lying, malice, hatred, anxiety, and division.By Nelson, Paul

Christmas Eve Service. The Christmas StoryBy de Martimprey, Phil; Ingvoldstad, Nate; Lowther, Nick

The rebuilding of the Temple was not a cure all, however, and the nation of Israel needed to be rebuilt, for they had a serious lack of spiritual maturity and leadership. Into this void of leadership stepped Ezra. He was the Godly leader who YAHWEH would use to bring His people out of idolatry and back into obedience.…

Two weeks ago, we discovered the name “Israel” means “he struggles with God”. The Jews have a long history of struggling with Yahweh. But a day is coming when the name “Israel” will no longer fit. A day is coming when Yahweh will give His people a new nature and a new name.By Nelson, Paul

In Isaiah 44 & 45, Yahweh, speaking through Isaiah in 700 B.C., revealed in detail how He will accomplish His people’s return to Israel and how He will accomplish the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple.By Nelson, Paul

The majority of Jewish exiles were idolators. They considered Yahweh as one god among many. They interpreted the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 B.C. as the defeat of Yahweh at the hands of the Babylonian gods. They doubted Yahweh’s commitment to the covenants He had made with them. They doubted Yahweh’s ability to fulfill His promis…

The truth that there is only one God has been part of Israel’s history since its very beginning. The Hebrew prayer known as the “Shema” was taken from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 and recited daily by devout Jews, and its first line clearly expresses that monotheistic truth, “Hear Oh Israel, the LORD is our God, the LORD is one.” There is and has ever been on…

God gave an explicit promise to Israel. He would bring down the mighty nation of Babylon and turn them into refugees and fugitives. The ships that they once took pride in will be used to help them flee from the destruction God would bring on them at the hands of the Persians. God desired for His people to be free and to worship Him, so He promised …

Israel was experiencing God's hand of discipline, but instead of rightly interpreting it, they felt abandoned and rejected, which could not have been further from the truth! In our study today, we will see that Our lives should be a testimony to the marvelous love of The Lord our God, the Holy One of Israel, our Savior.…

The Book of Comfort contains prophecies of comfort to the returning Jews. The Book of Comfort also challenged Isaiah’s generation to repent, live by the covenant and trust God.By Nelson, Paul

The year 701 B.C. was a tough year for King Hezekiah. Not only did he fall deathly ill, but his capital, Jerusalem, was attacked by the mighty Assyrian army.By Nelson, Paul

This oracle is about a city and a king. The king’s name is Sennacherib and he reigned over the Assyrian Empire from 705-681 B.C. Sennacherib was a contemporary of Isaiah the Prophet (740-680 B.C.). At this time, Assyria was the dominant world power. Assyria ruled over several kingdoms including the kingdom of Babylon. In fact, “King of Babylon” was…

In Isaiah 9, it was revealed to these downtrodden and defeated people how incredible their future was, and if they had Faith in God and His promises, even this time of darkness would be filled with hope. For... Faith In Our Heavenly Father Results In A Life of Hope.By de Martimprey, Phil

Following last week’s study, God had a message for Isaiah regarding the unavoidable Assyrian invasion. This time, it wasn’t a message to be given to King Ahaz but was for Isaiah, his disciples, and the remaining people of Judah. This message was and is abundantly clear: Fearing God and believing His Word is the only way to salvation.…

Ahaz, the king of Judah, was in serious trouble. The kingdom of Judah had been invaded by Rezin (king of Syria) and Pekah (king of Israel). The remaining citizens of Judah were huddled in Jerusalem, looking out over the devastation of their entire land, awaiting the final blow, shaking “as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.” This was th…

In order to accurately understand the message of Isaiah chapter one, we need to understand the essence of idolatry or spiritism. The essence of idolatry is manipulation. Those who "worship" these spirits seek to manipulate the spirits to give them what they want. One means of manipulation is appeasement. Another means of manipulation is trickery. T…

The book of Isaiah is a unique type of literature. We say its genre is prophetic; genre refers, in this case, to various types of literature that have certain characteristics. For instance, American poetry is a literary genre characterized by rhythm and rhyme. Historical narrative is a literary genre that gives factual retellings of real events.…

We hold to the correspondence theory of truth that says: truth is when an idea, belief, or statement matches (or corresponds with) the way the world actually is (reality). The pronouns he/him and she/her have been used for millennia to articulate the way the world really is—specifically, that sex and gender are binary by their very nature. There ar…

Pronouns, him, her, he, and she, seem like little things. But they have become big things. Some of us may be facing this issue in our workplace, amongst our neighbors and within our families. All we’re being asked to do is change one word. What’s the big deal? Some Christians encourage the church to practice “pronoun hospitality” and use the prefer…

The Armor of GodBy Smith, Matt