I. THE DESIGN OF CHRIST’S FREEDOM (1)
A. The _________________ for our freedom
1. negatively - - deliverance from __________________
2. positively - - deliverance to ____________________
B. The ________________ of our freedom
1. we are to _____________ _________________ firm
2. we are not to be ________________ to a ___________
II. THE DANGERS OF WRONG DOCTRINE (2-4)
A. Defining the _______________ and its _________________
B. Delineating the _________________ consequences
1. Christ will be of no __________________ (2)
a. effect on the __________________
b. effect on the _______-__________________
•A Christ supplemented is a Christ supplanted. ~Hendriksen
2. Obligation to the whole law (3)
a. repeated urgent ____________________
b. One must trust ____________ ___________! OR
c. One must keep the ___________ _____________!
3. _________________ from Christ (4)
4. _______________ from _______________ (4)
a. NOT salvation per se but rather a _________ of salvation
b. “lost your grasp” of ________ and turned to its antithesis
III. THE DELIGHTS OF BELIEVING (5-6)
A. ____________ for _____________ (5)
B. _______________ through ______________ (6)

Mia, Delene, and Me on the boat to the middle of nowhere:)

Dolphins….this one is for you Eric:)

Beautiful Palm Trees.

My Christmas Present…..a yummy grapfruit!

Recently I have noticed a very interesting pattern being developed in my life. It seems that every time I travel something seems to go “wrong”. It might mean the Land Cruiser getting stuck in a river. The alternator going out on an airplane (although I found out one doesn’t really need the alternator or radio power to fly). Or the most recent was getting a boat stuck in the middle of the ocean. During my break in Mombasa I was able to do some snorkeling with a family I was traveling with. We decided one day to hire a local boat to take us to the reef- not a problem- so we thought. We had a fantastic time under the water and after a couple of hours the winds were picking up so we got back into the boat to head back to the main island. The captain wanted to give us a sailing experience so he dawned his sails and away we went. The only problem was that he misjudged the tide and before we knew it we were stranded in the water with our boat going nowhere. We didn’t have a lot of options: wait 6 hours for the tide to change, or walk a “short” distant to the closet island to catch a boat back to the main island. Our trusty captain assured us that it was just around the first bend. So we gathered all our supplies (several baskets, cooler, and snorkeling gear), three kids, and started wading through the water to the island being careful not to step on the sharp sea urchins. After about three bends and about two hours walking in the blazing sun we finally neared land. It took us over two and a half hours to get to the island, but was an adventure needless to say and we found another boat and made it safety back to our vehicle. The family I was with joked that they would think twice before traveling with me and I can’t say I don’t blame themJ. But this pattern in my life made me think about other patterns in one’s life. Sometimes the patterns are good, but sometimes patterns that are set aren’t so good. Often times these negative patterns bring down many people around us including ourselves. Through much observation I have come to notice that the best pattern setter is Jesus Christ. I have been studying the gospels lately and have truly been encouraged by the patterns in Jesus’ life. He is always compassionate, kind, and loving. He is consistent and never changes. His love is consent and true. He is patient and willing to wait for us to understand. His patterns in life are ones that I desire to imitate, but recognize that only by His strength and power can I live like Him. But one must also recognize the negative patterns they have started in their lives and take the steps to changing those patterns. This is not always an easy experience. It may mean changing a mind set, language, or maybe even actions whose negative patterns have caused much damage. Praise the Lord we don’t have to do this alone! Christ is waiting to hold our hands and guide us today in new patterns that will bring HIM glory and honor. Are there patterns you need to change today? Seek HIM and be filled by His guidance.
“The Lord gives strength to his people, the Lord blesses his people with peace.” Psalm 29:31
“When Jesus Landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” Mark 6:34

I was reading through an article the other day which made me start thinking about just where my priorities really are.

The Bible is full of “last days prophecies”, some of which have come to pass, and some which have not. I’d like to share a few of these with you and see if you come to the same conclusion that I did.

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. II Peter 2:1-2 Nowadays, you often run into folks who reject some parts of the Bible (or misinterpret it) because of what they heard a false teacher say.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:14 Today, portions or all of the Bible have been translated into over 2,400 languages and dialects covering over 90% of the world’s population. TV and the internet is available to almost anyone who has electricity. Travel is fast. You can be on the other side of the world in a matter of hours. Missionaries cover most of the globe.

While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. I Thessalonians 5:3 The global cry for peace is becoming stronger as each year passes.

There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven. Luke 21:11 Famines are common. According the United Nations, an estimated 854 million people went hungry in 2006.

An oracle concerning Damascus: “See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins. Isaiah 17:1 The saber rattling between Syria and Israel has been building for years now, its just a matter of time before something happens.

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. Matthew 24:6-7 The Bible tells us not to be alarmed or afraid here. That these are warnings and the end of the world is still to come.

So what are we to do then?

When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. Luke 21:28

Even as turmoil goes on all around us, we are to stand and look up knowing our Savior and the start of eternity with Him is close at hand. The “day of the Lord” is meaningful in two ways; for sinners it will be a day of condemnation to eternal torment. For believers, deliverance through the blood and sacrifice of Jesus.

Knowing then, that our life here on earth “is but a mist”, and our eternity in heaven is sealed, shouldn’t we be focused on living godly, Christ centered lives?

Quoted from the article:

“The day of the Lord should be a truth that radically changes the Christian’s lifestyle. Knowing that the material world will vanish, we should not place too much value on material things. Knowing that the Word of God will never pass away, we should find it of infinite, eternal, value. And knowing that undue indulgence of earthly pleasures will dull our sensitivity to the time of His return should motivate us to live a disciplined life, a life marked by self-control, not self-indulgence. Neither should we worry or be anxious about the things of this life, knowing that this concern will also hinder our prayers and watchfulness.

Let us live our lives in the light of this reality—that Jesus Christ is to return to the earth to judge the wicked, and to bring deliverance to His saints. Let us live as though the material world is a vapor, and the unseen world (including the Word of God) is our only certainty.”

Bob Deffinbaugh, The Gospel of the Gentiles—article 67 Copyright ©1996-2006 Biblical Studies Press, reprinted with permission from www.bible.org.

Our time on earth is getting shorter. We should then, be about spreading the gospel to a lost and condemned world, not only in other countries, but in our own back yard.

Vertical focus—not horizontal!

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

B) Personal Inventory: Yes No

1. ___________ ____________ (John 3:16) ___ ___
2. ________ & _________ (Hebrews 4:12) ___ ___
3. ______________ (James 1:22) ___ ___
4. __________ __________ (Galatians 5:25) ___ ___
5. ___________ to ______ (I Corin. 10:12) ___ ___
6. Increased _______________ (Heb. 10:23-25) ___ ___
7. God-centered ______________ (Matt. 6:33) ___ ___
8. __________________ (Acts 1:8) ___ ___
9. __________ ____________ (Psalm 46:10) ___ ___
10. ____________________ (Psalm 92:1-4) ___ ___

C) Personal Correction:
Revelation 2:4-5 (Revelation 3:14-22) Three “R’s” . . . .

1) ____________ 2) _____________ 3) _____________

D) Personal Goals:

I. JOHN’S PROCLAMATION (1-2)
A. The __________________ Christ (1a)
1. The “___________ of ___________” designation
2. from the _________________
a. the origin of the __________ [John 1:1; Gen. 1:1]
b. the beginning of Jesus’ ________ [1 John 2:7, 3:11]
B. The _______________ Christ (1b-2)
1. John’s __________ account of Jesus’ __________ life
a. we have ______________
b. we have _____________ with our eyes
c. we have ______________ ______
d. we have _______________ with our hands
2. John’s _________ authentication of Jesus’ _______ life
II. JOHN’S PURPOSE (3)
A. To Share His _____________  so we would posses it
B. To Share His _____________  so we would posses it
1. with each _____________
2. with the ______________
3. with His ____________
a. His earthly birth name ~ _______________
b. His purposeful title name ~ ________________

Total Commitment. To accept marriage as a sacred covenant means first of all to be willing to make a total commitment of ourselves to our marriage partners. This is why Paul in Ephesians compares marriage to the relationship of Christ with His church (Eph 5:25-26).

Christ’s commitment to us, the church, is so total that He loved us while we were yet unfaithful (Rom 5:8) and gave up His life that we may live (Eph 5:25). Christ’s total commitment to us, to be with us in life and death, shows us the kind of total commitment upon which Christian marriage is to be founded. It is a commitment based on unrelenting love. It is a love which is “patient and kind; . . . not jealous or boastful; . . . not arrogant or rude; . . . it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. [It is a love that] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Cor 13: 4-7). It is this loving commitment which makes Christian marriage a sacred and permanent covenant. A Christian married couple is called to enter intimately into the kind of total commitment existing between Christ and His church. Such a commitment makes possible the blending of two lives into an interrelationship where they grow together in loving unity and fidelity.

When Christian couples enter into a marriage covenant, they are committing themselves to maintaining their marital union, no matter what! This total commitment is set forth in the marriage vows: “for better and for worse, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health.”

By taking the marriage vows, Christian mates promise to each other what is well expressed by Elizabeth Achtemeier: “I will be with you, no matter what happens to us and between us. If you should become blind tomorrow, I will be there. If you achieve no success and attain no status in our society, I will be there. When we argue and are angry, as we inevitably will, I will work to bring us together. When we seem totally at odds and neither of us is having needs fulfilled, I will persist in trying to understand and in trying to restore our relationship. When our marriage seems utterly sterile and going nowhere at all, I will believe that it can work and I will want it to work and I will do my part to make it work. And when all is wonderful and we are happy, I will rejoice over our life together, and continue to strive to keep our relationship growing and strong.”4

Such a total commitment is possible only by divine grace. It is God who gives us power to hold fast to our commitment. This is the unseen factor often ignored in marriage manuals. What is true for salvation is also true for a committed marriage: there is both a divine initiative and a human response. As Paul puts it, “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil 2:12-13). We must work to achieve total and permanent commitment in our marriages and yet recognize that it is God who is at work in and through us to make this goal possible.

A wonderful thing about a totally committed marriage is the fact that it is solely a relationship of grace, a relationship in which I do not have to earn my wife’s love constantly because she gives it to me as a gift. Love is seldom deserved because most of the time we are not lovable. Yet it is given to me, and this gives me acceptance, security, and freedom to act. This manifestation of unconditional love challenges us to respond by being more loving and lovable.

Next part….An Exclusive Commitment.

by Don Callander