 |
This email has been sent to because you requested it. Do not reply to this email, as the address is not monitored. To unsubscribe, see the end of the newsletter.
News of the ministry
You have been saying:
"I've listened to the "Dead & Alive" series about four times now and I'm still listening to them! The material is covered very thoroughly and with ample (vivid) examples and a very personable style of teaching. Above all it is simple, direct and under-standable at any level. Your materials definitely are for those that want to manifest God's power in their lives and help people. There is plenty of 'meat' to sink your teeth into; I like the parts where you make a statement and tell the listener to figure it out. 'Good teachers drive their students to think.'
All in all it is an exceptional series and handled with great care and understanding. A listener can easily relate to your style and no punches are pulled." -- GV, Washington.
"God bless you and your teachings. I have grown to follow your 'Christ In' teachings. I have shown your teachings to friends of mine and they want to read it all, just as I. I feel like Jeremiah when he said in Jeremiah 15:16, "Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart..." -- JT, email.
"Outstanding newsletter just received! Just hit home for me. So many good points. Thanks. Our love to you and Vivien. -- GD, California.
"God Bless this Ministry! Thank you Peter for your emails and kind words of encouragement. I am very thankful for your life and those whom you have been called to serve! I see the great love you and your ministry have for the saints. May your walk and service in ministry, to your family, and to the saints of the body of Christ continue to grow and prosper in the furtherance of His Gospel through the riches of the glory of the mystery, which is the Christ in you, the hope of glory! Know that your friendship, fellowship, and leadership have been a precious treasure to my life and for these things, I give thanks to God, our Father!" -- SW, Ohio.
We welcome those who have subscribed for the first time during this past month, and encourage you to read the archive of previous issues from our Home Page. In this issue we continue with our fourth verse-by-verse teaching from "Colossal Colossians".
Would you like to see more teaching from Colossians? Email us -- safer from our Home Page!
You Are Included
[We conclude our thoughts on Colossians 1:1-8]
I want to go back over these first few verses of chapter one for just for a brief minute, because there's some other things we need to see there. Would you put a circle around the word "faith" in verse 4. And would you put a circle around the word "love" in verse 4. And put another one around the word "hope" in verse 5. Those circles might help bring to your mind three great abiding things: faith, love, and hope. These are mentioned many times in the Bible, and several times as a group of three. The most famous example would be in I Corinthians 13:13, "So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love." That particular passage puts them in a different order to what we have here in Colossians, while I Thessalonians 1:3 and 5:8 follow the same order as Colossians. These are very important concepts. Faith, love, and hope. A Christian is one who has those three concepts operating in their lives.
We must explore our terms. How does faith come? The Bible says faith comes by hearing, "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." What do we do with faith? We walk by faith (II Corinthians 5:7). So we not only become a Christian by faith, but we walk in the Christian life by faith. Then we work by faith (I Thessalonians 1:3). Faith is such an integral part of the Christian life, that without faith there is no Christian life. We pray in faith to an invisible God that hears and works miracles on our behalf, so faith is a important part of the Christian life.
Then love. How do we get love? Romans 5:5 says, "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." So God's love is now resident within us. It's not regular human love; it's the love which only God can give. "Agapao" love is the word in the Bible. It's a love that embraces the whole world. We can love the unlovely. General William Booth of the Salvation Army used to say, "Go for souls and go for the worst." It is necessary often to love someone that is unlovely from our viewpoint in order to bring them into the family of God. And, of course, we not only need to go for the worst we must also go for the best as well. God loves the "up and out" as much as the "down and out". They all need the same great message of truth. In addition, our love one to another is our greatest expression of that love.
What is hope or expectation? Hope is something the world just doesn't have. If I might put it in modern terms, they don't have a hope. If you believe what it says in the book of Revelation, you'll know how true that is. Our hope, our expectation comes through the cross of Christ, as it is only Christ that gives expectation to us. This is not a wishy-washy hope-so, maybe situation. It is very much a sure solid thing. We live forth the positive expectation of our hope. If you believe that tomorrow the thing you started to do would prosper and be an enormous success, how would you look? You would dress yourself up to the hilt. You would let the world know that you are on top of the situation and you are in control, and it's going to work out beautifully to your benefit and help others as well. That's what expectation does for you. That's why I'm excited about being a Christian.
Let's look back at the passage once again in conclusion. I want you to see how often you get a mention. You are mentioned when you are included in the word "you" or the word "saint". First, "grace to you", verse 2. "We pray for you", verse 3. Verse 4, it's "your faith", and "the love that you have for all the saints." Verse 5, "The hope... for you", and "the word of the truth... which has come to you", verses 5a and 6. "And it is bearing fruit and growing... among you, since the day you heard it", verse 6. And then "just as you learned [the grace of God in truth]...", verses 6 and 7. "Epaphras... a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf... has made known to us your love in the spirit", verses 7 and 8. Can you see how God is pointing these truths right at you and to me? Can you get the message from that? It is beautiful. It is really personal what God has done for us. It is tremendous. -- Peter Wade.
This email was launched into cyberspace to bless you. Our newsletter is never sent unsolicited. You are receiving it because you subscribed.
Subscription information...
To unsubscribe or subscribe, or to contact us, go to our Home Page.
http://www.inChristRadio.net -- weekly Internet radio broadcast, 24/7 listening! *** We also have an RSS feed available from our Home Page.
|
"IN CHRIST" QUOTE FOR TODAY
