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Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
(Psalm 119:105)
Mount
Baker
Beacon
Volume 02, Number
11
03/12/2023
Published
by
Mt. Baker
church of Christ
Location:
1860 Mt. Baker HWY
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 30821
Bellingham, WA 98228
(360) 752-2692
Sunday:
Bible Classes..........9:30 AM
Worship..10:30AM; 6:00PM
Wednesday:
Bible Classes.........7:00 PM
Web site:
Mt. Baker church
Editor......John Bass
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In this issue:
HOLD FAST TO THE NAME OF CHRIST
Jesse A. Flowers
"I know your works, and where you
dwell, where Satan's throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not
deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who
was killed among you, where Satan dwells" (Rev. 2:13).
The church in Pergamos received some sharp
rebukes and condemnations in the verses that follow, however, we ought to be
greatly impressed with the commendation that they received from Christ in
this verse. This city was a very difficult place for a Christian to live and
remain faithful. After all, this is where Satan's throne was - this is where
Satan dwelt. This is where pagan worship was prevalent and emperor worship
was enforced. But in spite of the pressures and persecution these saints
faced, they held fast to the name of Christ and did not deny the faith of
Christ. Even when one of their own, Antipas, was killed because of his
fidelity to Jesus, they remained loyal to their Lord and steadfast to His
cause.
How strong is our faith? Would we hold up
under the pressure of threats, persecution, and even death? If our life was
on the line, would we continue to confess the name of Christ or deny Him to
save our own neck?
Jesus says to His disciples: "If anyone
desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and
follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever
loses his life for My sake will find it" (Matthew 16:24-25). If we struggle
to muster up the courage to confess Christ and share His gospel with an
unbelieving world in the absence of persecution, how would we fare in the
midst of it?
Let us be moved and inspired by the faith, courage, and loyalty of our
brethren in the first century. And let us be resolved to hold fast to
Christ's name and not deny His faith no matter the cost!
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DECLARED TO BE THE SON OF GOD WITH POWER
Michael R. Baggett
"Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of
David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power,
according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead"
(Romans 1:3-4).
When Jesus was resurrected from the tomb, He
was declared to be the Son of God with Power (Romans 1:4). The Greek word
from which we get power, as used in this verse, is where we derive the term
"dynamite." The resurrection was a happening like an explosion on this earth
that could not be ignored!
In Acts 13:33, Paul, an apostle, gives an
inspired understanding of a prophecy about Christ found in the second Psalm:
"God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised
up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second Psalm, 'Thou art my Son,
this day have I begotten thee.'" Jesus has always been the Son of God, but
when Jesus was resurrected from the tomb, He was in a real sense begotten or
born again to life and in this way, God declared Jesus to the world as the
Son of God with the power (dynamite) of the resurrection! The resurrection
of Jesus is something too powerful to be swept under the rug by even the
most stubborn skeptic.
The Jews of Jesus' day rejected Jesus for
the most part (John 1:11-12). The Jewish people wanted an earthly king like
David. Even the apostles, before they were enlightened by the Holy Spirit,
wondered if Jesus would restore the kingdom to Israel at that time (Acts
1:6). Jesus quickly put their minds back on the task at hand; that being,
they would soon receive power from on high and begin carrying out the Great
Commission and establishing the Church/Kingdom (Acts 1:7-8; see Acts Chapter
Two). It is interesting that when some men attempted to make Jesus a king,
by force, Jesus flatly refused their efforts! (John 6:15). Most of the Jews
had misunderstood the kind of king the prophets had said the Messiah would
be when He would set up His kingdom. The kingdom of Christ would be an
everlasting kingdom (Daniel 2:44; 1 Corinthians 15:24). Only a spiritual
kingdom could last forever. The Church is that spiritual kingdom (See
Matthew 16:18-19). The meek and lowly Jesus didn't fit the profile of the
earthly king the Jews expected, so they rejected Him as the Messiah and
called Him a blasphemer of God (Matthew 26:63-66). They decided to kill
Jesus.
The trial of Jesus was the very definition
of a kangaroo court. They rushed Jesus through one court to another, and one
ruler to another to accomplish their plan to kill Jesus. They had Jesus
crucified! Jesus died and was buried in a tomb. But the efforts of the Jews
to" keep Jesus dead" failed. The Jewish rulers encouraged the Roman governor
to set a guard in front of Jesus' tomb and even had the tomb of Jesus sealed
so no one could tamper with or remove His body and then say He had risen
from the dead (Matthew 27:62-66). Now, keep in mind that the stone placed
over Jesus's tomb weighed between one and two tons. All these efforts to
keep Jesus in the tomb only magnified the fact that Jesus really did come
out of that grave and is alive today! Think about this: all the Jewish
leaders had to do was present the dead body of Jesus to the people on the
third day or after to prove that Jesus was not the Christ. Friends, the body
of Jesus could not be found! The angel told the women who came to the tomb
on that Sunday looking for Jesus who was crucified: "He is not here, for He
is risen as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay" (Matthew 28:6).
Jesus was declared the Son of God with the
power by the resurrection. Jesus was seen by the women who brought spices to
the tomb on Sunday morning, the apostles saw Him, and over 500 brethren saw
Him at once (Matthew 28:1-17; 1 Corinthians 15:5-7). Jesus appeared numerous
times over the 40 days after His resurrection. These are infallible proofs
of His resurrection (Acts 1:3). Last of all, Paul, the apostle and writer of
the Roman letter had also seen the risen Savior (1 Corinthians 15:8). Paul
and people like him, were so convinced they died preaching the resurrected
Christ! There can be no denying that Jesus came back to life again! The
resurrection of Jesus is and will always be the single greatest event in
history.
Do you believe in the resurrected Jesus? The
resurrected Jesus will someday judge all people (Acts 17:31). Are you ready?
The gospel is the power (dynamite) of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16).
Would you hear it, believe it, and obey it?
Top
Psalm 23
23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not [a]want.
2 He makes me to lie down in [b]green
pastures;
He leads me beside the [c]still
waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Yea,
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare
a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will [d]dwell
in the house of the Lord
[e]Forever.
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Created by Chuck Sibbing, last updated.
03/12/2023
The Mount Baker Beacon is a
weekly publication of the Mt. Baker church of Christ, Bellingham, WA.
Send all questions, comments to the editor, John Bass at (360) 325-5149
or johnbass2468@gmail.com |