God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, (2) has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; (3) who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (4) having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.  (5) For to which of the angels did He ever say; “You are My Son, Today I have begotten you?”  And again:  “I will be to Him a Father And He shall be to me a son”?  (6) But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the Angels of God worship Him.”

The author of the letter to the HEBREWS is unknown but the letter was written to Christian Jews who were considering – in the face of persecution for their faith — to revert to Judaism to escape harm. The Jewish religion was legal in the Roman Empire but not so Christianity and the lesson here is a warning not to seek temporary relief at the cost of eternal salvation.  The embattled Jewish Christians would have a better chance of persevering in their faith through pursuing  an enduring relationship and faith in Christ Jesus. The theme of HEBREWS is the supremacy of Christ Jesus to everything – Who is with us always and is our path to salvation.

This final revelation of God Who spoke to us in the past in various ways,  is that Christ is the essential Son of God.  GOd has revealed Himself to man not just in the complexity and genius of the natural world but also in his Word – the Bible. God spoke to the fathers – the Jewish ancestors – through the Old Testament prophets. Beginning with chapter 3 of Genesis God told of a future redemption which would have the final and complete revelation in Christ Jesus. The whole of the Old Testament points to Christ who was revealed in the New Testament.  And my belief is that the Bible is without error and completely inspaired by God using different personalities and styles of various authors.

Man was lost until Christ -the universal heir – and only as we are united in Christ shall we be given – freely by grace – eternal life. The message of all the Bible and the message of Christmas Day is Jesus Christ came to save us from our sin.

Merry christmas.

Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God (2) which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, (3) concerning His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, (4) and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.  (5) Through Him we have received grace and Apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, (6) among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.  (7) To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints:

The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul.  In our verses today, Paul begins with his personal testimony and then describes the gospel of God, and maintains that the gospel is for all nations – the Jew and the Gentiles –  and that it is the good news of salvation.  Paul was saved by grace unmerited by works.  He was a Hebrew of Hebrews, a Pharisee (thoroughly educated in the Old Testament), a Rabbi.  He was a former persecutor of Christians who was called by God to become the total opposite; to become the servant of Christ and the apostle to the Gentiles.

The gospel comes from God; Paul’s message comes out of the Old Testament scriptures – he didn’t make it up. Salvation was promised in Genesis right after the fall – 3:15:  And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.  Paul writes that Jesus is God’s eternal Son and was born of the seed of David as prophesied, in the likeness of sinful flesh but did not share in our sinfulness.  Paul doesn’t mention Jesus death in these opening lines of Romans – this is implicit in the doctrine of the Resurrection.  The gospel centers on the person of the Son of God who existed eternally and Jesus Christ is God’s Son.  He came to save us from our sin – the gospel is not primarily about us but it is from God and about God.

Salvation is from God and the gospel tells us how God intervened in human history.  The faithful have a new standing in Christ and a fundamental break with the world. Those beloved saints of God in Romans refers to ALL believers – those set apart not because of good deeds but set apart for good deeds – for God. And all this in the first seven verses of Romans.

All religions except for Christianity can exist without the person or teacher of that religion. Christianity is not a teaching of Christ, it is Christ.

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.  See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain.  (8) You also be patient.  Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.  (9) Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.  Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!  (10) My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke on the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 

This letter was written by James, the half brother of Jesus. JAmes was the head of the Christian church in Jerusalem – this is important because he presided over the Jerusalem council in A.D. 49 and did not mention that in this letter. He does say that he is writing to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad indicating persecution has begun forcing the new Christians out of Jerusalem – these two things as described and dated in the Acts of the Apostles might give us a date of pre- 49 A.D. for this letter, making it the earliest book in the New Testament Canon.

Writing to a dispersed audience, James concentrates on urging patience and trust in the Lord who is faithful. JAmes uses the example of the farmer who sows his crop and then waits for the early rain and the final rain.  The farmer is patient and confident of his precious fruit – the nourishment of life. Conversely, we can’t/don’t have to practice patience when things are going well – which was clearly not  case for the persecuted Jewish Christian – so adversity is your friend and builds patience which builds character and brings hope which shall not fail.

James was a Jewish man, steeped in the Old Testament. He advises his readers, when they are tempted to impatience or despair, to remember the prophets of the Old Testament who were blessed in their afflictions.  The patient Christians will be delivered and they should be just with one another. They are advised to be content and ready to bypass offense “lest you be condemned.”  God will be our judge – if we ask for vengeance on others we might be wishing it on ourselves and James tells us in this letter that the Judge is at the door.

In our verses today James condemns the rich who value only the things of this world.  If the rich knew what was coming because of the treasure they build up in this world, they would weep and howl.  Riches are even now corrupted, corroded and moth eaten.  In this letter James compares our lives to a but a vapor that appears then vanishes away  James counsels patience, patience patience – to bridle the body and trust in God  To not judge others and – there is only one judge and He is at the door

this is a pretty good Christmas message and we should be asking for the virtues James advocates and turn away from corruptable things.  We should gather our treasures in heaven for there our hearts will also be .  Lovely

For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.  (5) Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be likeminded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, (6) that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lod Jesus Christ.  (7) Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.  (8) Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, (9) and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written:  “For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, And sing to Your name”. 

The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul.  In Chapter 15 of Romans, Paul has completed the theological body of this letter and is now – in the verses we study today – addressing the unity of the church.  The central theme here is acceptance of one another.  This was easier for the Christian Gentiles than the Jewish Christians because the Gentiles were not constrained by Jewish scruples;  the ceremonial and historical culture, spiritual and racial pride of God’s chosen people.

At issue here is the mature believer vs the weak believer – both Jew and Gentile. With the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus the Mosaic law was no longer binding on the Jews. The Jews had lived since Moses with the law and ceremonial requirements. The Gentiles had no such background. The Jewish believers had trouble letting go of the prohibitions of the past – rituals, prohibitions, dietary requirements, and the keeping of the Law. Paul is writing to urge the strong and the weak, the mature believer and the immature believer, despite differences on non essential issues, to pursue loving harmony and unity for the glory of God.

In Christ we are all connected – there is no difference between Jew and Gentile. Paul appeals to the Old Testament and the prophets to make his point that we are saved by grace through Christ, not righteous works which no man can do.  No man can earn heaven.  And we must model this acceptance to others in the church family.  The Old Testament clearly shows Gentiles are included in God’s grace – all are included who trust in Christ and together we then glorify God,